Government
The formal vehicle through which polivies are made and affairs of state are conducted.
Social Contract
an agreement between the people and their government signifying their consent to be governed.
Mayflower Compact
Document written by the Pilgrams while at sea enumerating the scope of their government and its expectations of citizens.
Social Contract Theory
The belief that people are free and equal by natural right, and that this in turn requires that all people give their consent to be governed; espoused by Thomas Hobbes and John Locke and influential in the writing of the declaration of independence.
Direct Democracy
a system of government in which members of the polity meet to discuss all policy decisions and then agree to abide by majority rule.
Indirect Democracy
a system of government that gives citizens the opportunity to vote for representatives who will work on their behalf.
Republic
a government rooted in the consent of the governed; a representative or indirect democracy.
Monarchy
A form of government in which power is vested in hereditary kings and queens who govern in the interests of all.
Totalitarianism
a form of government in which power resides in a leader who rules according to self-interest and without regard for individual rights and liberties.
Oligarchy
A form of government in which the right to participate is conditioned on the possession of wealth, social status, military position, or achievement.
Democracy
Government by the people, exercised either directly or through elected representative.
Political Culture
commonly shared attitudes, beliefs, and core values about how government should operate.
Personal Liberty
key characteristic of U.S. Democracy. Initially meaning freedom from governmental interference, today it includes demands for freedom to engage in a variety of practices without governmental intereference or discrimination.
Political Equality
The principle that all citizens are the same in the eyes of the law.
Popular Consent
the idea that governments must draw their powers from the consent of the governed.
Majority Rule
the central premise of direct democracy in which only policies that collectively garner the support of a majority of voters will be made into law.
Popular Sovereignty
the notion that the ultimate authority in society rests with the people.
Natural Law
a doctrine that society should be governed by certain ethical principles that are part of nature and, as such, can be understood by reason.
Political Ideology
the coherent set of values and beliefs about the purpose and scope of government held by groups and individuals.
Four Functions Political Scientist Attribute to Ideologies.
Explanation, Evaluation, Orientation, Political Program.
Conservative
one thought to believe that a government is best that governs least and that big government shouldn't only infringe on individual, personal, and economic rights.
Social Conservative
one who believes that traditional moral teachings should be supported and furthered by the government.
Liberal
One considered to favor extensive governmental involvement in the economy and the provision of social services and to take an activist role in protecting the rights of women, the elderly, minorities, and the environment.
Moderate
A person who takes a relatively centrist or middle-of-the-road view on most political issues.
Libertarian
One who believes in limited government and no governmental interference in personal liberties.
Politics
the study of who gets what, when, and how - or how policy decisions are made.
American Dream
an American ideal of a happy, successful life, which often includes wealth, a house, a better life for one's children, and, for some, the ability to grow up to be president.
1607 Jamestown Colony
The first English settlement in the New World is established in present-day Virginia.
1609-1610 Starving Time
Settlers in Jamestown struggle to survive the harsh winter; some resort to cannibalism.
1609 New Netherlands
The Dutch establish a commerical settlement in present-day New York.
1620 Massachusetts Bay Colony
The English Pilgrims sail to the New World on the Mayflower and establish a settlement in Plymouth
1632 Maryland
King Charles I grants a charter to establish a Catholic haven in the New World.
1636 Providence
Roger Williams and others banished from Massachusetts Bay Colony establish a settlement in present-day Rhode Island.
1637 Portsmouth
Anne Hutchinson and others persecuted in Massachusetts Bay Colony establish a settlement in present day Rhode Island.
1682 Pennsylvania
King Charles II grants a charter to William Penn, a Quaker who established an ethnically and religiously diverse settlement.
Which of the following settlements was not founded for religious reasons? (pg 4)
a- Pennsylvania
b- Portsmouth
c- New Amsterdam
d- Massachusetts Bay
e- Boston
a- Pennsylvania
The Delcaration of Independance was most directly influenced by the ideas of which political philospher? (pg 7)
a- John Locke
b- Thomas Hobbes
c- Isacc Newton
d- Puritans
e- Jean-Jacques Rousseau
...
Natural law forms the basis for which of the following principles? (pg 11)
a- Majority Rule
b- Political Equality
c- Popular Sovereignty
d- Indirect Democracy
e- Civil Law
...
Which of the following is not a function of American Government, as outlined in the Preamble of the US Constitution? (pg 13)
a- Providing for the common defense.
b- Promoting the general welfare.
c- Securing the blessings of privacy.
d- Establishing justi
...
Which of the following starements best describes recent population trends in the United States? (pg 15)
a- The size of the US population has leveled out in the past twenty years.
b- African Americans have consistently comprised the second largest minority
...
Approximately 35% of the American population today identifies as.. (pg 20)
a- Conservative.
b- Liberal
c- Libertatian
d- Moderate
e- Socialist
...
The ideal of being able to live a happy and successful life in the United States is often called.. (pg 22)
a- The American Expectation
b- The American Dream
c- A constitutional right.
d- The American Creed.
e- Impossible to reach.
The American Dream.