The State: Class Notes
THE STATE
Max Weber: Monopoly on violence
----A set of political institutions to generate and carry out policy
----Typically highly institutionalized (explain!)
-----Has army, policy, taxation, judiciary, social-welfare system
(give example of Russian taxes - does this make a state?)
-----SOVEREIGN
Sovereignty: Ability to carry out actions of policies within a territory independently from external actors or internal rivals
External actors: Other countries (China and Tibet example)
Internal actors: competing regions, competing political characters, rebel movements (Georgia: Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Ajaria)
According to international law, a state has three requirements:
1. A PERMANENT population
2. A DEFINED territory
3. A GOVERNMENT capable of maintaining effective control over its territory, AND conducting international relations with other states
Give examples of: Israel, Nigeria, China (Uighurs), United States - do they fit all of these requirements?
Doesn't mean definition of state isn't accurate - just that very few states fit this description perfectly
Ten functions of the state:
total monopoly on violence - but must be used wisely, must have checks and balances to counterbalance the threat of force to be trusted by citizens
Administrative control - breadth/depth of state's control over territory, seen in division of responsibilities throughout country
Management of Public Finances - must be managed to adequately provide resources, must not rely on external sources for funds.
HIGHLY EFFECTIVE STATES have budgets that determine the state's priorities
Investments in human capital - citizens must feel a PART of the government and governing structure - must be INVESTED in the state to make it work. Otherwise, risk DISENFRANCHISEMENT.
DELINEATION OF CITIZEN RIGHTS/DUTIES - can be best achieved when governments seek to create EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY for all
PROVISION OF INFRASTRUCTURE SERVICES - transport, water, power - citizens can participate in state activities, economy will flourish
FORMATION OF THE MARKET - facilitates growth of trade and economy - establish property rights, laws governing economic exchange
Example gone wrong: in post-communist world, there was no protection for entrepreneurs, no laws, it was mayhem and stymied economic growth
MANAGE ASSETS OF THE STATE - refers to states ability to license and regulate industry. In licensing, enables businesses to flourish while protecting the consumer. In regulating, maintains quality control AND facilitates globalization
AUTHORITY OVER INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS - entering into treaties and public borrowing, to benefit the public and expand industries and trade
Problem: Quebec seeks its own relations with nations, goes above Canada
RULE OF LAW - implies that government authority may ONLY be exercised in accordance with written laws, which were adopted through established procedure. Leaders and elites are NOT above the law.
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A REGIME is different.
We usually associate it with DICTATORSHIPS (Nazi regime, Baathist regime)
But, a REGIME is the fundamental rules and NORMS of politics.
Go over NORMS. -- determines what is RIGHT and APPROPRIATE behavior in a society
REGIMES are the rules of norms regarding individual power, collective freedom, and how power is to be attained and used
Institutionalized, but can be changed by major events
Go over institutionalization
Events: revolution, gross abuse of power, economic collapse
France and the Fifth Regime, South Africa post-apartheid
: Democratic Regime: freedom of the people, elections, accountability
variances: US, Canada, UK
Authoritarian Regime: no freedom, decrees, centralized power, abuse of power
variances: China, Cuba, Uzbekistan
DO A SPECTRUM HERE
GOVERNMENT
Give example of working in British Parliament - when the Thatcher government fell....
Leadership that runs the state
Weakly institutionalized
Thatcherite reforms were largely reversed by Blair
Characterized by President/PM/Dictator
Limited by existing regime - discuss
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DEVELOPMENT OF THE STATE
With the exception of Antarctica, every stretch of land is now controlled by one state or another
How did we get here?
Political organization:
May have originated due to environment and agriculture, switched from nomad to sedentary
Suddenly, the problem of LIMITED RESOURCES became very important
Increasing specialisation of human beings – who decides who farms?
Economic problems like surpluses - WHO gets WHAT?
Collective security vs. individual freedom - how to navigate?
Had to reconcile freedom and equality
Monopoly of force evolved
Why did humans become political communities?
Thomas Hobbes: "social contract" to over come anarchy – could not be revoked
Jean-Jacques Rousseau: "Social contract" - between ruler and ruled, once ruler violated contract, it was annulled
John Locke: Social contract theory based on fundamental rights in state of nature, said government should be limited to preventing private property
Karl Marx: political community exploitative, rich take advantage of the poor, striving for fully equal society outside of politics altogether
Coercion vs. consensus
Is any state based on truly one or the other? Also reintroduce the spectrum
Development of modern state-
Roman empire collapses
Institutions disappear
Dark Ages
a chance to start from scratch
organized crime was rampant - people organized different ways to protect themselves
Eventually, settled on the state, a new form of political organization
Three advantages:
A. ENCOURAGED economic development
realized feudal system wasn't making it, so privatized land and created incentives for higher productivity
B. Encouraged TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION
inbcreases productivity
C. HOMOGENIZATION of people in territories
printing press enabled people to think of themselves as "one nation"
stability made intrastate traveling easier
beginning of colonisation
decreasing power of R.C. church
Treaty of Westphalia:
Signed in 1648, established the nation-state as we know it today
Background:
Europe is broken into several empires: Spain, Holy Roman Empire, etc
Each went to war with each other for a variety of reasons, one of which being religion
Tried to establish which Christian religion was "right"
Treaty ended that
Basically said: Whatever religion the prince of a region is, so his subjects will be
So basic achievements of Treaty:
--- à States are based on TERRITORIAL SOVEREIGNTY - all territory within a border is subject to law of governing state
- à States are INDEPENDENT and must be respected by other states
-- à Made International Relations SECULAR (within Europe at least)
-- àGave state monopoly on WAR
Another change -
Treaty of Versailles - introduced the idea that states shouldn't be ALL sovereign without limit - League of Nations, but failed because of lack of commitment by member states
Turning Point: World War II - recognized absolute sovereignty could be disastrous, UN, beginnings of EU
Evolution of States:
Use map
These did not ALWAYS exist.
States EVOLVE and CHANGE with political change