Political Theory Midterm Two All Content

thoreau

abolitionist, opponent to the mexican american war
essay based on lecture given in concord explaining his refusal to pay taxes due to his opposition to the war and slavery

inspired MLK Tolstoy and Gandhi

complicity

participation in another person's wrongdoing

unjust laws make us complicit as agents of injustice *

who are the daily agents of injustice?

(thoreau)
law never made a man a white more just; and by means of their respect for it, even the well disposed are daily made agents of injustice

examples of complicity

(thoreau)
using slave grown crops/ sweat shops

merchants and farmers are more concerned with commerce and agriculture than humanity

there are thousands opposed to the war and slavery in opinion, nut they do nothing in effect to put an end to them

why are we complicit?

(thoreau)
we tacitly approve of unjust laws by obeying them
we pay taxes that support gov injustices
our gov is democratically authorized to act on our behalf and in our name
we buy products produced in unjust conditions

similarities and differences on civil disobedience (King vs. Thoreau)

1. King's civil disobedience in organized, thoreau's is solitary (refuses to pay his taxes alone)
2. King's civil disobedience involves negotiation
3. King believes civil disobedience is a last resort, preceded by fact finding, negotiation, and self purification

refusing allegiance to the state

"to withdraw and to stand aloof" (thoreau)
emphasis on clean hands --\> avoiding complicity alotogether

thoreau's justification for civil disobedience

(1) we should not resign our conscience to the majority (parallel to wolff's autonomy)
(2) we should cultivate respect for the right, not just the law; we have an obligation to do at any time what we think is right
(3) to give up your conscience is to debase your humanity; "the mass of men will serve their state as a machine, rather than men" **there are few heros, patriots, martyrs, and reformers that serve the state with their conscience, but they are treated as enemies

King: Civil Disobedience AND Political Reform

"non violent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and establish such creative tension that a community that has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue"

Thoreau: Civil Disobedience VS Political Reform
(The Purpose of Civil Disobedience)

if the government makes you an agent of injustice, you should simply break the law (transgress it at once; don't wait for it to be ammended)

"do not lend yourself to the wrong which you condemn"

"the state takes too much time to remedy evil; a man's life will be gone"

thoreau's skepticism about elections

"there is little virtue in the action of the masses"

even voting for the right is doing nothing for it; it is only feebly expressing your desire that it shall prevail

a wise man will not leave the right to the mercy of chance

it is man's duty to give wrong practically none of his support

Thoreau's Socratic ethics

one should not obey the law if it does not have normative empirical legitimacy

Kateb's definition of patriotism

love for one's country; most importantly shown in a readiness to die or to kill for one's country

definition of country as an abstraction

(kateb)
"one's country is best understood as an aobstraction constructed out of transmitted memories; true and false"
*usually falsely sanitized or heroized

"patriotism is a readiness to die and to kill for what is largely a figment of the imagination"

principle vs abstraction

(kateb)
a principle must be universal, but an abstraction can have any scope

embracing a principle

(kateb)
to pledge oneself to a rule to guide one's perception of the world . if one has sufficient integrity, they will guide their conduct in that principle

moral principle

(kateb)
governs one's conduct toward others

must be conceived as universalist; asks for consistent application

aims at respect for indivuals; not abstract entities

Patriotism as egotism

(kateb)
the vicarious pride of patriotism idealizes the country; makes a certain kind of self love into an ideal

a self concern that inevitably passes into a licensed self preference that is destructive toward other countries

incompatibility of patriotism with moral principle

(kateb)
patriotism is inherently disposed to disregard morality.

armed entities can never think of anything but self promotion

moral disposition is wholly alien to international relations because self preservation is permanently thought to be endangered.

patriotism vs morality

(kateb)
morality: treat everyone equally
patriotism: self idealization; group narcissism without any self , restraint, radical forms of group thinking, being armed makes it radical

\** not much difference between patriotism and narcissism

patriotism used for just ends

(kateb)
lincoln was persuaded from the dredd scott case that slavery could only be abolished through war

the free states would never begin a war for abolishing slavery, only preserving the union

**patriotism may be mobilized for a goof cause, but kateb thinks this is unusual

patriotism as self worship

(kateb)
people are ashamed of worshipping themselves overtly and directly, so they identify with a group

they forget they are absorbing the group into oneself so as to make self worship more palatable;

"the I becomes a we and the we becomes an it"

rights-based individualism

(kateb)- alternative to patriotism
we should focus on politics that protect the rights of the individual; life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness

benevolent despotism

(mill)
government by a wise but unchecked ruler

King Charles I- no such thing as freedom
*no need to participate in gov
*freedom consists of having government

plato on benevolent despotism

plato defends benevolent despotism in "the republic"

socrates' 3 criticisms of democracy:
1. democracy is tyranny of the majority
2. democracy involves the rule of the ignorant
3. democracy makes decisions based on emotion, not reason; empowers demogogues who use sophistry.

"we should only care about those who know justice"

benevolent despotism in singapore

singapore is doing better than the US:
-3rd largest oil refiner
-world's busiest port
-major center of global manufacturing

Lee Kwan Yew's miraculous transformation of singapore's economy
- maintained political control
but... people are less intellectually stimulated, and singapore could be an outlier

mill's definition of democracy

(mill)
democracy involved sovereign authority
citizens must have a voice in the exercise of sovereignty
citizens should be called on to take action

mill's criticism of benevolent despotism

I look upon this as a radical and most pernicious misconception of what good government is

mill's instrumental defense of democracy

the best form of gov is a participatory representative democracy

- the only gov that can satisfy all the exigencies of the social state; one where the whole people participate

the admission of all to share in the sovereign power of the state

Why representative democracy?

(mill)
the admission of all to a share in the sovereign state is impossible past the small town size; not all can personally participate, but a representative sample can.

2 principles of democracy

(mill)
1. the protective argument
2. the educative argument

protective argument

(mill)
democracy equips us to defend our rights
-the rights and interested of every person are only secure from being disregarded when the person interested is himself able, and habitually disposed to stand up for them
-you need to advocate for yourself to be free

-humans are self protective and can use democratic rights to be free

"in the absence of natural defenders, the interests of the excluded are always in danger of being overlooked'- working class being excluded; parliament not looking from their perspective

educative argument

(mill)

in contrast with benign authoritarianism, democracy shapes the character of citizens by instilling 3 virtues

citizens should be active, public spirited, and intelligent
-democracy influences the character of citizens and cultivates a set of virtues (moral, intellectual, active)
-a benevolent despot would have to have superhuman mental ability and rule over a mentally passive people
-citizens would become an unthinking herd of sheep; no information and thus no interests; their moral capacities equally stunted

"let a person have nothing to do with his country and he will not care about it"

-subjects collective interests are managed for them; "leaving things to the government is synonymous with caring nothing for them"

3 ways of understanding democracy

(anderson)
1. membership org
2. mode of governance
3. culture among equals

democracy as a membership organization

(anderson)
everyone should be included as a citizen who is under the gov's jurisdiction; everyone is is governed must have a say

Declaration of Ind- "consent of the governed"

democracy as a mode of governance

(anderson)
2 models
1. electoral: elections
2. deliberative

democracy as a culture among equals

(anderson)
strong civil society, citizens cooperate across racial, ethnic, religious, and sexual divides

*culture of mutual respect and forbearance: acknowledge both sides of the political debate

democracy's value (anderson)

(anderson)
mutual respect
avoiding abuse/oppression (Mill)
autonomy and sympathy (educative MIill)
collective learning (epistemic democracy

3 types of citizens

(brennan)
classified by their level of political engagement, knowledge, and bias

1. hobbits
2. hooligans
3. vulcans

hobbits

(brennan)
unobtrusive, politically ignorant/indifferent
-lack strong, fixed policy preferences
-little, if any social scientific knowledge
-in the US, the typical nonvoter is a hobbit
-MOST PPL ARE HOBBITS

hooligans

(brennan) rapid sports fans of politics
-have strong, largely fixed world views
-can present their arguments but not counter in a way that would suffice for someone who disagrees
-treat politics like a religion
-politics form a part of their identity
-tend to despise ppl who disagree w them
*most regular voters, active political participants, registered party members, and politicians

vulcans

(brennan)
think scientifically and rationally about politics
-opinions are strongly grounded in social science/philosophy
-can explain contrary POVs
-interested in politics, but at the same time dispassionate
-avoid being biased and irrational

(brennan) on voting

we should discourage most people from voting, because it turns hobbits to hooligans, not vulcans

brennan's typology

not a matter of exteme vs moderate:
-a vulcan can be far left/right
-a hooligan can be moderate

pew vs brennan

pew suggests hobbits are actually a minority

political liberties/rights

political rights are primarily rights to acquire power over others
right to vote/right to run for office (brennan)

civil/economic liberties

(brennan)
civil liberties: rights to free speech, association, religion
economic liberties: rights to contract/own property

paternalism

to interfere with a person's liberty for that person's own benefit

*izzy should be able to smoke because she's only harming herself

brennan on paternalism

analogy of izzy smoking fails
an electorate is not like an individual; it is a collective of individuals w separate goals

-if the majority makes a capricious decision; others have to suffer the risks

3 ways of valuing democracy (brennan)

1. epistemic
2. aretaic
3. intrinsic

epistemic value of democracy

(brennan)
democracy makes more knowledgeable decisions through deliberation and voting

aretaic value of democracy

(brennan)
democracy promotes active, moral and intellectual virtues
democratic participation makes citizens more energetic, public spirited, and intelligent

intrinsic value of democracy

(brennan)
democracy is valuable in itself (Anderson) because of the respect it expresses, and relationship of equality and self gov it creates

brennan rejects: "democracy is nothing more than a hammer. If we can find a better hammer, we should use it"

evidence of voter ignorance

(brennan)
citizens generally do not know which party controls congress (22% of non voters know that republicans control the house)

before the 2004 presidential election, 70% of americans were unaware congress added a new prescription drug benefit to Medicare

problem of rational ignorance

(brennan)
there is little self interested incentive to be politically knowledgeable because one's vote makes such little difference

brennan on democracy's value

believes democracy's value is purely instrumental and democratic participation yields poor decisions and makes citizens worse

brennan's 2 epistocratic proposals

1. restricted suffrage
2. plural voting

universal suffrage with epistocratic veto

(brennan)
epistocratic council can overrule people's votes if they deem it threatens society

*parallel to plato's Guardians in the Republic
*expert rule in federal reserve and European Union

intrinsic value

valuable in itself; in the respect it expresses, or relationship it constitutes

friendship

folk theory of democracy

(achen & bartels)
citizens have policy preferences and select representatives based on how closely they align with them

aka; prospective accountability

prospective accountability

(achen & bartels)
looking forward ; representatives function as delegates

issues with prospective accountability/folk theory of democracy

(achen & bartels)
similar to brennan: citizens have vague policy preferences and are ignorant about policy

what does the folk theory of democracy recommend to overcome recalcitrant representatives?

referenda and term limits (achen & bartels)

issues w referenda

(achen & bartels)
*referenda actually empower special interests, instead of ordinary citizens interests because it is expensive to get signatures and media coverage

issue with term limits

(achen & bartels)
they deprive the legislature of experienced representatives
*shift power to executive, bureaucrats, and lobbyists

*results in less innovative policies, less work done by the expert legislative committees, and they end up electing professional politicians, anyways

retrospective accountability

(achen & bartels)
the idea that citizens vote based on whether their lives are going well or poorly (morris fiorina)

benefits of retrospective accountability

(achen & bartels)
-is less demanding of citizen knowledge
-does not require detailed policy preferences
-gives representative strong incentives if they want to be reelected

downfalls of retrospective accountability

(achen & bartels)
citizens punish represntatives for conditions the gov is not responsible for (drought, shark attacks (wilson))

citizens are not good at evaluating whether conditions are going well for them or not

why are citizens bad a retrospective accountability?

(achen & bartels)
1. they focus on economic performance 6 mos prior to election, not the whole term
2. citizens assess crime rates based on sensationalistic news stories

how do achen and bartels value democracy?

democracy is valuable for
1. providing an educative benefit
2. providing political stability by being an empirically legit way of selecting gov that can command widespread support
3. limiting abuses by allowing protest and legitimate opposition

objection to achen and bartels

holding officials strictly responsible for poor outcomes may be rational for voters because it maximizes the incentive for officials to perform well if they know they cannot excuse failure

**analogy to navy regulations: "the responsibility of the commanding officer for their command is absolute"

political stability benefit (achen & bartels)

empirically legit way of selecting gov

legitimate opposition/protest benefit (achen & bartels)

allows protest/legit opposition (MLK)
limits most egregious abuses of gov

intrinsic value of democracy (achen & bartels)

do not value it intrinsically, rather for the benefits it may provide

they recognize that politicians and interests groups rule; democracy does not express respect nor make people self governing

educative benefit (achen & bartels)

not assessed

achen and bartels as pluralists

they see democracy as involving multiple interest groups seeking to influence politics

BUT; pluralism speaks in an upper class accent; the rich have much greater power

how to make pluralism less upper class

(achen & bartels)
we need campaign finance reform
we should make political parties more representative of ordinary citizens

democracy's lack of responsiveness to ordinary citizens

(Gilens/Page)
-increasing support from average citizens makes almost no difference to the likelihood a policy will be adopted

-increasing wealthy support greatly rises the likelihood a policy will be adopted

iron law of oligarchy

(michels)
all organizations eventually become oligarchic, or dominated by an elite few even if the organizations start out comitted to democracy and equality

why does oligarchy arise?

(michels)
because of the need for leadership and bureaucracy in a large organization

where does michels derive his theory of bureaucracy?

german sociologist max weber

what does the iron law of oligarchy critique?

marxism

the condition of the industrial revolution working class

child labor
12-16 hour work days
sundays off

socialists on working class parties

(michels)
many socialists pinned their hopes on working class parties
"workingmen of all countries will unite!!" -marx

michels critique of socialists

nothing could be more antiscientific than the supposition that as soon as socialists have gained possession of governmental power, it will suffice for the masses to exercise a little control over their leaders to secure that the interests of these leaders shall coincide perfectly with those of the led.

"the mass will never rule except in abstracto"

why can't the mass rule (michels)?

the necessity for leadership and bureaucracy/ the impossibility and inefficiency of direct democracy?

whose ideas contast michels?

graeber

oligarchy and communism

(michels)
stalin- use of secret police NKVD: wield absolute power with impunity outside the rule of law

what is the principle cause of oligarchy?

(michels)
the technical indispensibility of leadership

organization and oligarchy relationship

(michels)
"it is organization which gives birth to the dominion of the elected over the electors"

"who says organization says oligarchy"

representation of popular interests?

(michels)
the notion of the representation of popular interests is an illusion

the mass as amorphous

(michels)
because the mass per se is amophous, it needs division of labor, specialization, and guidance

the need for bureaucracy

(michels)
based on weber:
division of labor and specialization (instead of amateur generalists)
hierarchy of authority (instead of egalitarianism)
clear rules and regulations (instead of rule by personal whim)
impersonal relationships (instead of treating similar cases diff)
selection by expert qualification (instead of the mass)

seeds of resistance to oligarchy in democracy

(michels)
pallative to the disease of oligarchy: democratic principles carry a general characteristic to stimulate and strengthen the intellectual aptitudes of individuals for criticism and control (mill's educative argument)

the labor movement is apt to bring into existence free spirits who will desire to revise the base upon which authority is established; they will have free will; not the will of leaders

democracy as 2 forces in tension

(michels)
1. the ideological tendency of democracy toward criticism and control
2. the effective countertendency of democracy toward the creation of parties even more complex which are increasingly based upon the competence of the few

democratic currents of history

(michels)
the democractic currents of history resemble successive waves
- democracy has a lack of responsiveness to the ordinary citizen (gilens, page)

ideal gov (michels)

an aristocracy of the morally good and technically efficient

IMPOSSIBLE

concedes that it would be an error to abandon the idea of popular sovereignty

democracy as the least objectionable form of gov (michels)

"the more humanity comes to recognize the advantages which democracy, however imperfect, presents over aristocracy, even at its best, the less likely it is that a recognition of the defects of democracy will provoke a return to aristocracy."

political hobbyism

(hersh)
the wrong kind of political participation
ineffective

1/3 of citizens spend 2+ hours on politics per day. How?

(hersh)
doom scrolling twitter
watching cable tv
listening to radio
venting on FB