Liberal DemocracyCH 6 Riemer, Simon, & RomancePolit.docx

Liberal Democracy
CH 6: Riemer, Simon, & Romance
Political Ideologies
Political ideologies are the beliefs and practices that guide
political actors in political communities;
Ideologies reflect the underlying vision of political actors;
Major ideologies that have traditionally dominated
contemporary politics are liberal democracy, democratic
socialism, and communism;
Ideologies help explain the purposes, principles, and rules of
politics; allow us to examine what political actors say they
ought to do and what they actually do;
Central question of Chapter 6 is, “What are the strengths and
weaknesses of liberal democracy?”
Definition of Liberal Democracy
Traditional definition of liberal democracy is a constitutional
government characterized by popular rule, protection of basic
rights, and political and economic competition.
Liberal democracy embodies two ideals:
(1) Liberal parts of definition include constitutionalism,
protection of basic rights, political and economic competition,
and free choice at the ballot box and the marketplace.
(2) Democratic parts of the definition include popular rule,
freedom, and equality.

Liberalism in the United States today is a political ideology that
favors government intervention in the interest of public welfare,
social justice, and fair play.
Historically, had taken a laissez-faire economic approach which
demanded minimal government interference in the economy.
Liberalism has always recognized a common good; what has
been at issue is the meaning of that common good and the
means to achieve it.
Combining the ideals of liberalism and democracy helps us
comprehend the guiding liberal democratic vision which calls
for the freest and fullest possible realization of individual
freedom within the framework of the common good.
Liberty can be understood as the right of an individual to act
uncoerced by government and to be free from government
imposed unlawful or arbitrary control.
Liberal democratic vision is a pluralistic approach providing for
justice as well as order and for the general welfare as well as
liberty; because many persons, groups, and interests seek
fulfillment, a balance must be struck in a highly diverse
political community;
Most influential school of liberal democratic thought in
contemporary America is pluralism; balance can be achieved

through a constitutional system of representative democracy,
with the help of skillful leaders and resourceful political
parties, with the recognition that a rough approximation of the
public interest emerges from the clash of contending interests,
and in accord with policies that advance the general welfare.
The Ideals of Liberal Democracy
Liberal democrats want their political ideals to be reflected in
actual political practice and they endorse pluralism because
society includes many interests seeking to protect and advance
them.
The struggles of contending issues constitute the raw materials
of politics and are inevitable because they are rooted in liberty
and diversity.
Government regulates these struggles on behalf of freedom and
the common good but government must also control itself.
Popular Government
Popular Government: popular rule requires that the people make
political judgments; people must be free to debate and select
among competing leaders; to make choices, people must enjoy
civil liberties; system must commit to an informed and vigilant
public opinion, a diligent and responsible press, a plurality of
contending interests, and to competitive parties.

Rights-Respecting Government
Rights-Respecting Government: basic democratic rights are both
political (freedom of speech, press, assembly, and right to vote)
and nonpolitical (religious, cultural, economic, and social
rights); there is a realm of activity that must be beyond
governmental reach and should be safeguarded by a
constitutional government that grants, prohibits, and restricts
power.
Constitutional Government
Constitutional Government: power is granted to government but
is also limited; constitutional rules of the game establish what
government can and cannot do and how those with power are to
act.
Some powers are expressly granted while others may be granted
if necessary and proper.
When exercising its legitimate powers, government cannot act
arbitrarily; it must follow due process, which forbids illegal and
arbitrary action by the government, to ensure the protection of
life, liberty, and property; power is divided and shared.
To restrain power in the US government system we have
separation of powers as well as a system of federalism.
Representative Government
Representative Government: direct democracy, citizens voting
directly about policy, is not feasible; elect representatives to
vote for us but what does it mean when a representative acts?

What is he or she representing?
Three theories of representation:
(1) delegates strive to reflect the will of the people in the
district; vote as constituents want them to despite how they feel
about an issue;
(2) trustee uses his or her best judgment in making decisions
regardless of the views of the district, to promote the good of
the nation as whole;
(3) politicos are somewhere in-between depending on the issue;
balance the needs of the district, their own conscience and
judgment about politics, and demands of the party;
Responsible Government
Responsible Government: responsibility in a liberal democracy
has several interrelated meanings:
(1) should be accountable to the people from whom it derives its
power,
(2) should be responsible to political parties,
(3) should be responsible to the Constitution and to the laws and
regulations made under the Constitution,
(4) should be answerable to an authority higher than the people
or the Constitution, and
(5) should adhere to professional standards of conduct and
administration.
General Welfare Government
General Welfare Government: committed to the idea of
advancing the general welfare; minimal needs (safety, civil
liberties, income, food, housing, health, & education) should be

satisfied through the democratic process.
Politics should foster the conditions in which human beings can
flourish.
Sources of Liberal Democracy
Greek heritage of democracy; democracy comes from the Greek
words demos, meaning the people and krateia, meaning “rule”
or “government;” democracy means “the people’s rule.”
Aristotle understood democracy as the government by the many
poor, in contrast to that of the plutocratic and aristocratic
classes, who governed in their own class interest and favored
freedom and equality.
Not constitutional in the modern sense because it lacked
effective and regularized restraints on those who wielded power
and excluded women and slaves from suffrage.
Christian Theology and Roman Republicanism
Christian Theology and Roman Republicanism: general belief
that all people had the right to worship God as they saw fit
without governmental interference.
Men and women are equal under God; emphasizes equal
political and social rights or the condition of being neither
superior nor inferior; not an absolute (slavery characterized
both the Roman empire and the United States until 1865) but
equality is a crucial concept of liberal democracy.
Romans kept alive the concept of popular sovereignty and
broadened the concept of citizenship (to include anyone who
came within the jurisdiction of their empire).

Medieval Europe
Medieval Europe: constitutional ideas crucial to evolution of
liberal democracy were current in medieval political theory.
Political rule must be just and in the interests of the people.
No earthly ruler was absolute.
Theorists insisted that princes (rulers) follow the precepts of a
higher law; God’s law or natural (moral) law, which could be
known by humans possessed of “right reason.”
Limitations of rule by the higher law and God important
contribution to the development of liberal democratic ideals.
The Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation: influence of Martin Luther and
John Calvin.
Calvin and Luther’s revolt against the Roman Catholic Church,
and some of their ideas, set the political and intellectual scene
for the emergence of constitutional ideas crucial to liberal
democracy.
Luther’s idea of the freedom of individuals to find God on their
own and Calvin’s concept of the legitimacy, in limited cases, of
resistance to political rulers by certain magistrates.
The American Republic
The American Republic: The First Great Democratic
Experiment: American Revolution ushered in the world’s first
large modern republic.

Americans drew on a republican tradition for the development
of their new government system.
Republicanism has always included some notion of
constitutional rule by the many.
Americans affirmed their general belief in popular rule and the
protection of basic rights.
The French Revolution of 1789
The French Revolution of 1789 and Liberal Democracy in
Europe: most dramatically challenged political absolutism and
popularized democratic ideas; motto of the French Revolution,
“Liberty, Equality, Fraternity” became political watchword of
European liberal democracy.
More liberal laws and constitutions were secured.
The emergence of nationalism (powerful sense of group identity
and loyalty).
Emergence of the idea of the nation-state combined the sense of
identity and belonging expressed by nationalism with the legal
term for a country, the state, which encompasses a people, a
territory, a government, and acceptance by the international
community.
Liberalism, Capitalism, and Democracy
The rise of the nation-state led to the spread of ideas about
democracy, constitutional government, and the liberal ideal of
individual rights.
French Revolution symbolized the triumph of the middle class
over a royal monarchy, a feudal aristocracy, and an established
church; both a political and an economic triumph.

Emergence of capitalism; an economic system marked by
private ownership of the means of production and exchange, a
market economy, economic competition, free trade, and
consumer sovereignty.
Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations; became the inspiration
for the 19th century liberal policy of restricting governmental
interference in economic matters; favored a hands off policy in
the economy except where it would benefit their enterprise; the
invisible hand.
Liberalism and capitalism share a common interest in economic
freedom.
Liberalism and democracy share a common interest in freedom
(including economic freedom).
The relationship between capitalism, liberalism, and democracy
less clear; democracy and capitalism have emerged alongside
each other but often conflict with each other.
Little doubt that liberal democracy forged ahead with the
growth of an essentially capitalistic middle class.
Changing Character of Liberalism
Shift between 19th and 20th centuries; liberals originally
committed to limited government began to believe in the
wisdom of more government intervention in economic and
social life; response to capitalistic abuses that hurt families,
small businesspeople, workers and consumers.
New 20th century liberalism did not emerge until FDR’s New
Deal Program to the fight the Great Depression came about in
the 1930’s; ushered in government strongly dedicated to the

general welfare.
Changing Character of Democracy
Americans adhered in theory to democratic principles: rule by
the people, through majority decision, in a representative and
constitutional system that protects individual and group rights
and the freedoms of both majority and minority; in practice
their conception of popular rule and basic rights was not
democratic by modern standards.
Variations on the Liberal Democratic Theme
Most Americans are liberal democrats; adhere to the major ideas
of popular, constitutional, rights-respecting, and responsible
government and even the concept of government dedicated to
the general welfare; may interpret these ideas differently.
Divide Americans into four groups: liberals, conservatives,
populists, and libertarians; each group emphasizes a different
aspect of liberal democratic tradition.
American Liberals
American liberals favor a greater concern for the least free and
the least powerful in society – poor people, ethnic minorities,
women, working people, small farmers, small business owners,
and consumers; seek to overcome abuses of economic, social,
and political power; seek to end oppression, injustice, poverty,
and inequality.
Willing to employ the power of government, especially the

national government, to seek changes on behalf of fair play for
the least free and the least powerful; favor broad measures to
advance the general welfare.
More favorably disposed to political, economic, and social
change to accomplish the objectives mentioned above.
American Conservatives
American conservatives are concerned about the neediest in
society but are deeply skeptical of the ability of the government
to solve problems associated with poverty; often believe such
programs are wasteful and inefficient.
American conservatives generally endorse a laissez-faire
position; opposed to adverse government interference in their
political, economic, and social affairs.
Seek to maintain the existing economic, political, and social
scheme of things; reluctant to abandon that which is known.
Tend to support traditional values often reflecting a religious
orientation.
Populists & Libertarians
Populists generally tend to favor government intervention in
economic affairs and may oppose expansion of some “liberal”
personal freedoms;
Libertarians consistently oppose government intervention in
economic affairs and favor expansion of personal freedoms;
Each group may be brought together under certain
circumstances but differ on three points: (1) their concern for
the least free, (2) their view on the role of government, and (3)
their attitude toward change.

American Liberals v. Conservatives
Liberals
Favor a greater concern for the least free and the least powerful
in society;
Willing to employ the power of government to seek changes on
behalf of fair play for the least free and the least powerful;
More favorably disposed to political, economic, and social
change to accomplish these goals.
Conservatives
Skeptical of the ability of the government to solve the problems
associated with poverty;
Generally endorse a laissez-faire position; suspicious of
intervention on behalf of the least free;
Seek to maintain the existing economic, political, and social
scheme of things;
Tend to support traditional values often reflecting a religious
orientation.
3 Key Advantages of Liberal Democracy
Adaptive to changing circumstances and shows a willingness to
change and evolve.
Able to effectively respond to the worst examples of tyranny
and the abuse of power.
Realistic about politics which creates a stable regime;
pluralistic system that values the representation of many
interests, balancing those interest while fostering compromise
between competing political forces.

The Attack on Liberal Democracy:
On the Left
On the left there is concern that not enough people participate
in the process;
Individuals are not really free;
Concerned about the harmful consequences of a still largely
laissez-faire economy;
Americans worship private property, profits, and free enterprise
at the expense of a healthy society, a meaningful community,
and the common good;
US is an affluent, largely white, democratic nation-state on a
globe that is mostly poor, largely nonwhite, and either
unprepared for or hostile to liberal democracy;
The Attack on Liberal Democracy:
On the Right
On the right, concern that liberal democracy has degenerated
into serfdom and socialism;
Concerned about threat to representative democracy and
equality of opportunity;
Dangers of participatory democracy; decline of prudent
judgment, submission to the ignorant, and loss of quality;
Bemoan the loss of individual moral character and
responsibility;
Deplore governmental controls and the encroachment of
centralized power.

R E S E A R C H P A P E R
Topic: Mobile computing and its business implications
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Include an abstract, introduction, and conclusion
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Is interesting problem/issue addressed?
Is knowledge of the area demonstrated?
Have all key reference been cited?
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H E L P F U L R E S O U R C E S
The Agile Architecture Revolution: How Cloud Computing,
REST-Based SOA, and Mobile
Computing are Changing Enterprise IT, 2013, Jason Bloomberg,
Wiley & Sons, Inc., ISBN: 978-1-118-
40977-0.
The Architecture of Computer Hardware and System Software:
An Information Technology
Approach, 5th edition, 2013, Irv Englander. Wiley & Sons,
Inc., ISBN: 978-1-118-80310-3.
Building a Windows IT Infrastructure in the Cloud, 1st edition,
2012, David K. Rensin, O’Reilly Media,
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