Where Does The US Political System Fit?

In the spectrum from Absolute Freedom to Absolute Authority, the US Political System would be just about in the middle, balanced between the two extremes.



Winston Churchill said "democracy is the worst form of government except all those other forms that have been tried".  While the US political system is messy, inefficient, and costly, it is still, in many ways, better than the alternatives.

The two main parties today are the Republicans, who tend to favor Classical Liberalism or less government involvement, and the Democrats, who tend to favor more government involvement and more government run services to the people.

While politicians will argue visciously between more or less government involvement in various issues, it is the tension between the parties that keeps the US political system firmly grounded in the middle of the spectrum with little variation from one side to the other.  The US political system is designed so that the tension between the parties will never be resolved.  The tension will always exist, and therefore our government will always be in the middle of the two extremes.

Classical Liberalism - a Little Bit of Government

John Locke,
the Father of Liberalism

With Absolute Freedom on one end of the spectrum and Absolute Authority on the other end, Classical Liberalism would lie one step up from Absolute Freedom.  The main theory of Classical Liberalism (not to be confused with the modern use of the word liberal today) is "that government is best which governs least". 

Classical Liberalism calls for the least amount of government possible - just maintain the military to protect the people, and maybe build a few roads.  That's it.  If someone is sick and they can't afford healthcare, that is not the government's problem.  If someone needs to go to school, but they can't afford it, that also is not government's problem.  You should have been born rich.  If a hurricane hits your town and you are left without clean water, electricity, and food, it is not the government's problem.  You shouldn't have lived near the ocean.

The founding fathers of the United States were big followers of the idea of Classical Liberalism.   John Locke is typically considered the "Father of Liberalism".  Locke described Liberalism where the government's only goal is "the protection of life, liberty, and property".  Later, the Declaration of Independence lists "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness" as the right of every citizen under government.

Socialism - A Lot of Government

In the spectrum between Absolute Freedom and Absolute Authority, Socialism would be one step down from Absoute Authority.

In Socialist societies, government controls many aspects of society.  While small businesses are still owned by the people, once a business grows to a certain size or makes a lot of money, government would then own that business.  A Socialist government would be more likely to provide individuals with health care, education, and a guaranteed income to more evenly distribute wealth among the people, contrasting from the less-involved Classical Liberalism idea.  Many European nations adopt a more socialist view of government than the United States.

Karl Marx and Absolute Authority

Karl Marx

An example of Absolute Authority could be Marxism.  Karl Marx believed that everyone should be treated the same.  There is no rich, no poor, everyone is equal.  In Marxism, the government owns and controls everything.  Land, businesses, equipment, facilities, natural resources, homes - everything is owned by government, and the government distributes goods, services, food, and money equally among the people.  Governments strongly influenced by Marxism tend to be authoritarian - what the government says, goes.  Or else.  The people have very little individual freedom.

For example, in 1978, The People's Republic of China issued the controversial "one child policy", allowing Chinese families to have one child only.

Another example of near Absolute Authority would be Fidel Castro's rise to power in Cuba.  Within the first year that Castro was in power all opposition newspapers had been closed down and all radio and television stations were in state control.  Cuban law limits freedom of expression, association, assembly, movement, and the press.

Thomas Hobbes and Absolute Freedom

Thomas Hobbes

Thomas Hobbes was a political philosopher who wrote a book called Leviathan in 1651.  In Leviathan, Hobbes imagined what life would be like without any government at all - a condition he called the state of nature, or like we discussed in class, Absolute Freedom.  In the state of nature, people could do whatever they wanted, resulting in what Hobbes described as "a war of all against all" or every man for himself.  Life in this state would be "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short".

According to Hobbes, people living in this violent state of nature will seek to create social agreements with each other.  For example, "I won't steal from or kill you if you won't steal from or kill me."  Then, because people can't always trust their neighbor to keep their promise, they will seek to create a civil society under some sort of authority.  People will give up some of their freedoms to authority in exchange for civil, military, and judicial services.

Hobbes influenced John Locke, another political theorist who is widely considered the "Father of Liberalism".  John Locke, in turn, greatly influenced the founding fathers of the United States.  Thomas Jefferson listed Locke as one of the greatest men that had ever lived.

What is Political Science?

Political Science is the study of the balance between individual freedom and government control.  

Absolute Freedom
In the beginning, there was no government.  Every one ran around, doing whatever they felt like doing.  They could steal and kill whenever they felt like it.  But, they could also just as easily be robbed or killed themselves.  In this scenario, government could (or should) be established as a 3rd party to enforce laws, like no stealing or no killing.  Government is necessary to protect the people.  In exchange, people have to give up some of their freedoms and agree to abide by the laws set up by the government and pay taxes to fund the government.

Absolute Authority
The opposite of absolute freedom is absolute authority.  This is a situation where the government controls all the actions of the people.  Goverment tells you what to do, what to think, what to say, how to live, where to live, who to marry, how many children to have, etc.  If you don't, the government can kill you, put you in jail, or whatever they see fit.

The optimal amount of governmental control lies somewhere between the two extremes.  Figuring out the best balance is Political Science.