Political ideology and political culture

Maintaining order as a role of government

• law protects persons and property

Provide public goods as a role of government

• Services available to everyone (public schools)

• Services the market is unable/unwilling to provide (parks, public order)

Promote equality as a role of government

• Most controversial and newest

• Linkages in political thought between equality and popular government

What is political ideology?

Set of assumptions about how the social world works

Set of beliefs and general philosophy about politics and government - what gov should do

Anarchism

No government, no government power

Totalitarianism

Unlimited government power

• society commandeered by the state for this control to work

Socialism (economy)

Society owns and controls provision of basic goods and services through the government - equality promotion

Capitalism

people control and own basic goods and what is done with them

• more efficient for those in the market

Socialism in the economy

• pros - profit and labor have intrinsic value, humans not discarded

• cons - big free rider problem - those who don’t work as hard still reap the benefits

Capitalism in the economy

• pros - effort ties with benefit which maximizes growth and promotes freedom for individual wealth

• Cons - self interested behavior and separates the people (wealth vs poor)

Social freedom

• individual freedom valued at expense of order in society

Social order

• public safety and decency prioritized above individual freedoms

the left

want social freedom and equality

The right

want social order and efficiency

Conservative

• value social order and economic efficiency

• want government power to regulate individual choices but not economic choices

Liberal

• value social freedom and economic equality

• government power shouldn’t restrict social choices and should govern economy to promote individual welfare

Liberatarian

Value social freedom and economic efficiency

stress for autonomy and government to play small role

concerned about public power

Populist

value government intervention in economy so that average citizens are benefited against wealthy and powerful people

don’t trust elites

Texas

• known to be conservative, dislike for being told what to do

Daniel Elazar

• Why do diff. regions of U.S. hold uniform ideologies?

• Developed casual theory

Casual force

• clusters of immigrants with cultures settled in fixed areas - descendants migrate in patterns

Elazar individualistic classification

• individual initiative to have a strong market, self-interest as a motivator to start capitalism

• do it yourself culture

Elazar’s moralistic classification

• government is a positive force for good

• citizens have a duty to serve in politics

Elazar’s traditionalistic classification

• Elite lineage is all that matters

• Government serves the elites who created it - maintains social order and economic hierarchy

• Politicians are part of elite

Hybrid political hybrids

• caused by internal migrations, shifting bases of economic and social power

• Even if cultures mix, one is usually more dominant