The Basics of Politics

Politics (from Greek: polis, “affairs of the cities”) is the branch of social science that studies the processes of government. It also includes the study of ethics and international relations.

Political systems are usually classified as one of three types: autocracies, oligarchies or dictatorships. In terms of vertical integration, they may be confederations, federations or unitary states.

Forms of government

There are many different types of government and the type of government that a country uses can affect politics. For example, a country may be a republic in which the people determine the leaders through elections.

However, some countries are ruled by monarchies. A monarchy is a form of government where the head of state (king or queen) has absolute power.

Another form of government is a democracy, which is a system in which the citizens determine their leaders through free and fair elections. Democratic governments are characterized by a separation of powers between different branches of government, the rule of law in everyday life as part of an open society, and the protection of human rights and civil liberties.

Another form of government is an oligarchy, which is a system in which a small number of individuals control a large number of resources and opportunities. Oligarchies are often pejoratively criticized for their selectivity and inequality.

Parties

Party systems are a critical component of representative democracy. They have long been linked with democratic outcomes and economic success.

Parties are organized into national committees that coordinate their activities between conventions and election campaigns. They also recruit candidates and provide financial assistance.

They operate sophisticated operations with large paid staff, professional party elites, and a network of affiliated public relations and marketing firms. They also maintain sophisticated databases of their supporters, which they use for outreach and mobilization.

We test two hypotheses about the extent to which parties have organisational ties with groups occupying a particular policy space: H1 (Party Fragmentation Hypothesis) and H2 (Policy-specific Polarisation Hypothesis).

Our results suggest that the more parties compete in the same positional space as a group category’s core policy dimension, the higher the probability that a party holds organisational ties with that group. However, policy-specific polarisation reduces the probability of party-group leadership ties. This reflects that parties are reluctant to establish leadership ties with groups that occupy a non-centrist core interest on a controversial policy dimension.

Ethics

Politics and ethics are intertwined in many ways. A good politician must be aware of the ethical obligations that he or she has to the public, and be committed to acting in a way that promotes these interests.

The ethical political leader should also be able to exercise judgment and make decisions based on what is best for the public. He or she must be able to do this without becoming overwhelmed by the demands of office.

However, as Michael Walzer argues, even the most ethical political leader will sometimes have to engage in acts that are immoral. For example, a political leader may decide that torture is the only way to save civilian lives in a ticking time bomb scenario.

This behavior is generally perceived as unethical and immoral by the public, and studies in management and organization theory have shown that the perception of organizational politics is a significant predictor of employee satisfaction with their jobs (Ferris and Kacmar 1992; Ferris 1991; Kacmar and Ferris 1999; Witt, Andrews, and Kacmar 2000). In addition, citizens who perceive higher levels of internal political climate will likely be less satisfied with the services they receive from government.

Diplomacy

Diplomacy is the art of influencing foreign countries through peaceful tactics such as negotiation and dialogue. It is usually carried out by a country’s representatives abroad, but their actions are largely controlled by the government they represent.

Diplomacy has many different types, and can involve everything from economics to culture. It is often confused with foreign policy, but it is not the same thing.

The main aim of diplomacy is to make sure that all parties involved agree to something that will benefit everyone. This is usually achieved through negotiations, although it can also include other methods such as bribery and threats of economic or punitive measures.