Mythology Political Issues
Constitutional History: Beginnings and Changes
This paper will explore the historical basis for the Constitution of the United States and the changes that have occurred both gradually and radically during short history of the U.S. Constitution. This paper will also review the structure of local, state and federal government and make note of the changes that have occurred in rules and laws since the signing of this most important document in American governmental history.
Assigning a definition to the meaning of the words "government," "politics," and "power" has always been a source of contemplation, speculation and eventually the cause of much litigation as disagreements have arisen. Aristotle and his student, Plato both gave much thought to the possible meaning of those worlds as have political scientists and philosophers discovering difficulty in securing a definition of these elements in society. In some form or the other, even in the most primitive of societies it has been noted that eventually a leader will arise and through this leadership gain power.
Very simply defined government is composed of the institutions and individuals and processes that naturally develop within a society from the common rules formed within that society. That however, is government in simple structure only. Again, very basically, the government performs two key services.. First the government makes rules. Secondly, governments resolve, or attempt to resolve, conflicts in states and communities. As stated by David Easton:
Even in the smallest and simplest society someone must intervene in the name of society with its authority behind him, to decide how differences over value things are to be resolved.
This authoritative allocation of values is a minimum prerequisite of any society....Every society provides some mechanisms, however rudimentary they may be for authoritatively resolving differences about the ends that are to be pursued, that is, for deciding who is to get what there is of the desirable things."
The word Democracy has Greek roots being traced to the word, demos. The definition of demos in the Greek language is "populace." Populace, society, the population, all of these define and clarify what the fore fathers intended the government structure and foundation to be when they wrote "by the people and for the people" into the language of the U.S. Constitution.
However, there have been those who did not see democracy in this light. Leader of the Democrats Tammany Hall, Boss Tweed" was noted over a century ago of having stated that:
The way to have power is to take it."
The Role of Local Government
The country is a nation comprise of "states," however some of these states were here before the official forming of the nation. Major expenditures of State and Local governments are generally in the following areas:
Education
Welfare
Hospitals, health and sanitation
Highways
Utilities
Police, correction and fire
Administration and interest
Natural Resources and recreation
Housing and Urban development
Cities are chartered by the states as municipal governments. Home rule is the power backing municipalities in modification of their charters and the running of their affairs without approval by the legislature, subject, of course, to the Constitution and laws of the state. The three basic forms of government are:
The Mayor and City Council Form: Most cities employ this type of government with the mayor having power over the executive city agencies and an elected city council.
The Council and Manager Form: This form of government in cities was founded before World War I in Virginia in the towns of Staunton, Virginia and Sumter South Carolina. In this form of government the elected council under a non-party ticket employs a city planner as the head administrator of the city with hiring and firing powers Generally, city managers are trained and educated for this type job and are neutral politically.
Commission Form: This form of government is usually appointed in the event of an emergency such as floods, hurricanes or other natural disasters or in time of war.
City employees face dealing with a wide array of categories that concern the city while serving in their capacity of a public employee. Urban transportation, poverty housing development, conservation, sanitation and other issues are the not so pleasant tasks facing city management.
II. Local Political Forces
Floyd Hunter, a sociologist, made popular the term "power structure" approximately fifty years ago. Floyd studied community leadership in one of Georgia's hotspots, home of the Atlanta Braves baseball team, Atlanta, Georgia. In a study of a group comprised of forty people, Floyd's conclusion was that policy in Atlanta was decided by businessmen of the top ranks using the workings of government to their own ends and means.
History tells that the politics in big cities has generally characterized urban policy and politics, with the practice of obtaining votes from immigrants and minorities through the promise of jobs or other benefits. City governments and administrators influence the power of a city with a mayor infused with power through his associations and
Gun violence in America has always been a great concern to communities, families and law enforcement officials. But in recent years gun violence has received a great deal more publicity and public concern because of the mass shootings -- particularly in schools -- that the media focuses on in great detail. In other words, a law-abiding family living in a quiet small town in Vermont is impacted emotionally when a
History of Crime and Punishment in Europe 17C-18C This paper traces the history crime and punishment in Europe. It looks at the influences of that time the social and philosophical movements and how they affected the whole evolution of treatment of crime and the thought behind punishment. The paper details about the neoclassical period its forbearers and how they regarded the issue of crime and punishment and their assumptions regarding the
After that great war, the black soldiers of the very nation that liberated Europe and Asia from murderous dictatorships returned home to social rules that prohibited their sharing water fountains and food services next to the white majority (Nevins & Commager). Civil Rights as a Fundamental Social Value: Before respectfully issuing my recommendations to the Elders as requested, I would like to outline the most important principles that I believe the
Korean History: The Climate and Culture of Foreign Business The challenge of any cultural history undertaken to determine the foreign business fitness of a location is to make sure that there is due respect afforded the society with regard to issues that might not be seen as directly affecting the bottom line. So much of the time in the business world we are collectively focused on the ideas that surround the
The British and French empires of the time used their settlement colonies for their natural resources, which represent the engine for the empire development and growth. Commerce was the way people earned a living, and famous mercantilist economists elaborated specific scientific documents- like Adam Smith - 'The Wealth of Nations'- in 1776. The invisible hand represents the way a market assures. The Protestant Reformation occurred in the 16th century as
The litanies of the order are believed to have been taught to al-Tijani directly by the Prophet Mohammed. In these visions, al-Tijani was instructed to break ties with other orders, and followers of the Tijaniyyah path were restricted to affiliation with only the Tijaniyyah" (531-532). The Tijani order provides a good example of how different Sufis practiced different rites and held different beliefs, although there were some commonalities among
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