This document discusses political ideology and the role of government. It defines political ideology as a set of beliefs about the role of government that forms an overall philosophy. It emphasizes understanding competing ideologies in American politics and how terms can be interpreted differently or distorted. The key question at the heart of competing ideologies is what the proper role and size of government should be, in terms of laws, policies, level of power, and resources. The document directs the reader to a video lecture in three parts that introduces political ideologies and the political spectrum.
Political Ideology is defined as a cohesive set of beliefs that form.docx
1. Political Ideology is defined as a cohesive set of beliefs that
forms a general philosophy about the role of government. It is
essential to understand not only the basic competing ideologies
in American political culture, but the nuanced application,
interpretation and in fact, perversion of these terms and
concepts. It is important to understand these dynamics in order
to make sense of the various political behavior that pervades
our society. The subject of political ideology is addressed in
Chapter #6 later in the semester. However, it has general
relevance in all aspects of the study of American and California
government and specific and greater relevance in some areas
more than others. It also has specific relevance to many of the
concepts and themes addressed in Chapter #8. At the heart of
competing ideologies is the following question:
What is the proper role and size of government?
When we talk of the size of government we are talking about
the amount and types of laws passed by government; the nature
and scope of policies and involvement of government; the level
of power of government; the amount of people, funding
and overall infrastructure of government. The answer to this
over arching question can inform us of where someone stands in
their political ideology. Below, you will find a video lecture
that has been broken into three parts. The lecture introduces
students to political ideology and the political spectrum. Your
assignment begins by having you watch that lecture and then
answering some related questions. The lecture totals about one
hour. The lecture posted below includes closed captioning.
Unfortunately, the captioning obscures the term "Republican
Party" on the bottom of the chart. FYI.
(Because the video lectures are lengthy, this assignment is not
due until the end of week #2. All other assignments in this
Module are due as otherwise instructed.)
Once you have watched the video lectures I want you to answer
and submit the following questions
(By clicking on the hyperlink above)
2. :
What is the difference between "Classical Liberalism" as a
concept and being considered a "Liberal" on the U.S. Political
Spectrum?
Ronald Reagan believed in small government. Based on my
lecture, how was his belief somewhat, not entirely,
contradictory?
Based on my lecture, how did the ideologies of President
George H.W. Bush and President George W. Bush differ?
Based on my lecture, which parts of Communism and Marxism
are arguably still relevant today and which part(s) are not?
What is the proper role of government for the United States?
1.https://youtu.be/lV0Foyx-hlY
2.https://youtu.be/iVOFy-BNveo
3.https://youtu.be/0NDerm8vYxw
