POLS 1101Jan 9, 2013Declaration of Independence AnalysisWe hold these Truths to be self-evident - The truths are so clear, no evidence is needed- Truth is capitalized meaning it was very important to them- The colonies are separating themselves from a government which is controlled by a monarchy- They made the DOI to show the radical change they were wanting to make- This was the first democracy in 2300 years since Athens, Greece That all Men are created equal- They say all men are equal, but what do they really mean by this?- The meaning varied dramatically from person to person- The people who wrote this were all literate white males who owned property and slaves- They may have considered men to be people just like themselves- Some meant men, women, children, slaves, free people, skilled, unskilled, etc.- Today, we consider ALL people - This is very radical because it means any person is literally equal to the king for instance.That they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights- We were created, born to have rights that cannot be taken away from us- We don’t get rights from a king/government- We are born with the rights and no government can take them away- We call these civil libertiesThat among these are life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness- There is no guarantee of happiness, but we are free to make our own decisions- Life- but what about abortion and the death penality?To secure these rights, Governments are instituted among men- Purpose of the government is to protect our rightsDeriving their just powers from the consent of the governed- The government gets their powers from usWhenever any form of government becomes destructive, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it.- Government is accountable to our needs. Jefferson believed it was inevitable to be trampled on so many changes would need to be made.POLS 1101Jan 9, 2013To institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organize its Powers in such forms, as to them shall seem most likely to affect their safety and happiness.Federalist 51- James Madison was a founder and became president after Jefferson- Madison also helped write the Constitution- Madison thought: many people are ambitious (greedy). If we accept people that are naturally greedy, we do not want them in office with power. So, we need a system that is not too strong or too weak.Critical Points from Federalist 51- 4th Paragrapho If Men were angels, no government would be necessaryo If angels controlled men, no government would be necessaryo But, we are not angelso We need to separate powers so it is not all in one place Legislative (write laws) Executive (enforce laws) Judicial (settle disputes)o If one is too powerful, they are put in check by other brancheso “Ambition must be made to counter ambition”o Additional securityFederalism Division of power between the national and state governments These are subdivided into
View Full Document
Unlocking...