CHAPTER 1 -- THE LOGIC OF POLITICSPOWERPOINT NOTESWhy Do We Need a Government?- options :- anarchy -- no formal rulers or rules- government -- rulers and rules- outcomes :- anarchy -- most likely outcome is violence- government -- countries with formal rulers and rules tend to have more internal peace and better economies- why do choices breed conflict?- conflicting interests- conflicting values- conflicting ideas about how to allocate limited resourcesThe Logic of American Politics- James Madison talks of factions -- any group with objectives contrary to the general interests of society- different groups with different preferences- cross-cutting -- heterogeneous (mixed up)- reinforcing -- homogeneous (the same)- American’s preferences are reinforcing -- Democrat’s want one thing on many issues and Republicans want another- the outcome is political polarization- the consequence of this is that the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer- Republicans = rich- Democrats = poor- politics -- how people attempt to manage conflict; the process through which individuals and groups reach agreements on a course of common or collective action, even as they continue to disagree on the goals that action is intended to achieve- successful politics almost always requires bargaining and compromise- bargaining -- the issues are simple and the participants know and trust one another; a form of negotiation in which two or more parties who disagree propose exchanges and concessions to find a course of acceptable collective action- example -- the exchange between parents and their teenagers- compromise -- a settlement in which each side concedes some preferences to secure others- preferences -- may reflect an individual’s economic situation, religious values, ethnic identity, or some other valued interest- the more people involved in the political process, and as issues become more complex and divisive, unstructured negotiation generally fails- so what is required? effective political institutions- institution -- in a democracy, an organization that manages political conflicts betweenpolitical rivals, helps them to find mutually acceptable solutions, and makes and enforces the society’s collective agreements- examples -- Congress, the presidency, and the Supreme CourtConstitutions and Governments- nations can be thought of as organizations, just like colleges or fraternities1- most organizations require some form of rules or procedures -- like a constitution, by-laws, etc.- constitution -- creates a nation’s governing institutions and the set of rules prescribing the political process these institutions must (and must not) follow to reach and enforce collective agreements; a document outlining the formal rules and institutions of government and the limits placed on its powers- government -- consists of those institutions created by the constitution and charged with making and enforcing collective agreements; the institutions and procedures through which people are ruled- in government, the roles are often formalized as offices -- subdivisions of somegovernment departments; positions that confer on their occupant’s specific authority and responsibilities- authority -- the acknowledged right of the office to make a particular decision for all participants; the right to make and implement a decision- Social Contract- authority is distinguishable from power -- an officeholder’s actual influence with other officeholders, and as a consequence, over the government’s actionsCollective Action Problems- in democratic nations, which are generally large and complex in nature, every aspect of political choice presents a challenge- the three general steps for solving a collective action problem are :- combining and ranking preferences- agreeing on a course of action- implementing and enforcing the collective choice- there are four classes of challenges to the efforts of a group to reach and implement agreements (collective action -- the efforts of a group to reach and implement agreements; an action taken by a group of like-minded individuals to achieve a common goal)- coordination -- the act of organizing a group to achieve a common goal; remains a prerequisite for effective collective action, even after the disincentives to individual participation (that is, prisoner’s dilemma problems) have been solved- what does the group want, and how will they get it?- large groups make coordination difficult- focal point -- a critical ingredient to success; focus identified by participants when coordinating their energies to achieve a common purpose- prisoner’s dilemma -- a situation in which two (or more) actors cannot agree to cooperate forfear that the other will find its interest best served by reneging on an agreement- when individuals act according to their best interests, taking into account what othersmight do; the outcome isn’t always the best for the group- zero sum -- issues for which mutual gains through cooperation are not possible; one party’s gain is the other’s loss; may cause politics to break down- tragedy of the commons -- a situation in which group members over-exploit a common resource, causing its destruction- solution -- privatize collective goods- free-rider problem -- a situation in which individuals can receive the benefits from a collective activity whether or not they helped to pay for it, leaving them with no incentive to contribute- why should i participate if it won’t make a difference?2- occurs when group members withhold their contribution to the group’s undertaking- this problem arises when citizens recognize that their small contribution to the collective enterprise will not affect its success or failure- examples -- giving to public radio (intrinsic reward), paying your taxes, and voting- public vs. private goods- public goods -- goods that everyone else can use without hurting someone else; goods that are collectively produced and freely available for anyone’s consumption- example -- the National Defense- solution -- force people to contribute- private goods -- goods that someone buys and consumes by themselves; benefits and services over which the owner has full control of their use- example -- an ipod- principal-agent problem -- when principals don’t/can’t monitor their agents 100% of the time, so agents don’t always act in the principal’s best interests- another way to solve collective action problems