W8.1 April 22 (Mon)—CHENG SHIYI

1.Summary

 Politics is the process by which groups of people make social economic decisions. 

 Part I describes the relationship between Power, Authority, and Violence.Authority is the ability to influence the behavior of others, and political power allows groups to manage resources. Authority is the assertion of legality and legitimacy, and there are three types: rational law, traditional and charismatic. Violence is usually exercised by governments to maintain their authority. The paper also suggests that there is controversy as to whether government authority derives from the use of violence and explores issues of political philosophy.

 The second part is a description of the different types of government:

• Monarchy,supreme power rests in the hands of a personal head of state and may be absolute or nominal. Monarchies may include hereditary rule or elected monarchies.
• Democracy, the power to govern is held by a majority of citizens, and democracy includes the principles of equal power and universal freedoms. However, the absence of a rational distribution of power may lead to concentration of power and undermine democracy.
• Totalitarianism,a political system dedicated to controlling all aspects of public and private life, usually through propaganda, single-party control, personality cults, economic control, and limitations on freedom to maintain political power.
• Oligarchy,where power is effectively held by a small elite in society and may be based on family, wealth, military or religious power.
• Communist State,ruled by a single communist party, usually claiming allegiance to communist ideology, with strong ties between the state and the communist party.
• Theocracy,the highest civil ruler of the state is considered a god or deity, or the government is ruled by direct divine guidance. Theocracies exist in a variety of religious traditions.

 Part III describes two political parties, respectively:

In the United States, political parties are relatively loosely organized, with no formal organization at the national level controlling membership and policy positions. The two main parties are the Democrats and the Republicans, which command broad national attention, but party caucuses are weakly organized, individuals are permitted to call themselves members of a party, and parties have less control over the activities of their members.

In Sweden, on the other hand, there is a multiparty system with so many parties that no single party can usually gain power alone and must cooperate with each other to form coalition governments. A system of proportional representation is used to encourage political participation by multiple officially recognized parties and to promote cooperation between parties by preventing one party from leading the formulation of policy.

 The fourth section describes voting patterns and political inequality, covering issues of gender, age, race and class. Women, young people, ethnic minorities, and people with low incomes and low levels of education experience widespread inequality in political participation and political power. Such inequalities may stem from discrimination on the basis of gender, age, race and economic status, as well as neglect of their influence in political decision-making.

 The final section describes the growing ideological divide in American politics that has led to a greater tendency to live with people of the same political persuasion. Trust in family and friends, churches, and local newspapers increases, while trust in politicians, national news, and the Internet decreases.

2.Interesting Point

A story is told before the beginning of this article about a young man's experience in the office area of the Canadian federal government, demonstrating his feelings of power and reflections on his position.This young man he felt the overwhelming nature of power and his own insignificance, and this contrast provoked him to think deeply about his own status and power.

3.Discussion

Beyond the questions discussed in the text, how then has social media changed the way young people view and participate in politics? What is the role of social media platforms in the dissemination of political information and opinion leadership?