Politics, Human Rights and Democracy A Critical

Transcript:Politics, Human Rights and Democracy A Critical:
Politics, Human Rights and Democracy A Critical Examination Important definitions Politics “social institution that distributes power, sets society’s goals and makes decisions” (Macionis 2009) Nationalism “the intense belief in the worth, rightness and glory of one’s own nation” (Sernau 2012: 176). Nationalism obscures internal class divisions, may be used to rationalize imperialist wars. Nationalism can reflect various forms of ethnic and social exclusion; ultra-nationalism is a critical element of fascism. Nationalism in oppressed or colonized countries may be used to foster unity to fight against colonialism Nation “An independent entity with full sovereignty” ; “a sovereign government entity” is also known as a state. (Remember state has two meanings) Definitions Nation State “A sovereign entity that represents the interests of people who share a common culture…language, and territory” (ibid 177). Some countries have more than one national language; some (Nigeria, India, US) have hundreds of languages. Thus many countries are multicultural. Oligarchy Rule by a few, powerful, wealthy individuals Plutocracy Rule by the rich Types of Government Monarchy- Political system in which a single family rules (Saudi Arabia- US major ally) Common among agrarian societies; most today reduced to constitutional monarchies: symbolic but not real rule Democracy: system that gives rule to the people- representative democracy- a system where formal elected officials (ideally) represent their constituents’ interests in government Parliamentary Democracy In a parliamentary democracy (such as the UK) people vote for members of parliament, candidates are typically chosen by political parties. The party with the most seats than “forms the government. In most parliamentary system the parliament then votes to appoint the prime minister, typically the prime minster comes from the party with the most votes. The prime minister is accountable to parliament and can be removed by a vote of no confidence. Prime Ministers are thus not directly elected by the population, but elected among the democratically elected representatives. Parliaments are not winner take all systems, and tend to provide proportional representation participatory or direct democracy – citizens play an active role in government with the population and/or councils/assemblies voting and helping to form or vote for policy directly (i.e., Bolivarian circles in Venezuela, worker assemblies, Poder Popular in Cuba) Many countries have characteristics of various forms of government Democracy or Plutocracy? U.S.: Democracy or Plutocracy? Corporate state capture: costly campaigns effectively limit who obtains position of power and guarantee widespread corporate dominance “Lobbyists outnumber legislators sixty-three to