CHAPTER 2 (Sec 1. Only)“FOUNDATIONS OF

GOVERNMENT”

WHY AMERICANS HAVE GOVERNMENT

A. LOYALTY AND PROTECTION

1. What does loyalty mean?

a. Paying taxes

b. Assist in defense of the country.

c. Refuse to help country’s enemies.

2. What does protection mean?

a. Defend against country’s enemies.

b. Congress can declare war.

c. Government will defend citizens

from injustice.

B. All governments meet certain conditions.

1. Sovereignty - the power to rule

2. Must have people to rule:

a. Subjects - people under the rule of a

government.

b. Citizens - subjects who have full legal rights.

c. Allegiance - person’s obligation to support

their country.

3. Must have an area to rule.

C. Ruling includes three things:

1. Settling conflicts

2. Making laws

3. Use force if necessary to make

people obey the laws.

D. Good government helps us achieve certain things.

1. Provides protection

2. Balance and harmony

3. Increase liberty

4. Promotes teamwork

5. Supplies services

6. People are better able to promote the

well-being of all.

TYPES OF GOVERNMENT Free Republics (Democratic Republics) 1. Members of government are elected by the people.

2. Have a higher law

a. Constitution - highest law of the land. 3. All adult citizens can elect the members of government.

4. Laws and actions must be justified by the

people.

a. “of the people” - very few restrictions keep

Americans from holding public office.

b. “by the people” - real choices are offered

in elections.

c. “for the people” - concerned with liberty

and the common good.

EXAMPLE

Absolute Governments 1. Opposite of a free republic.

2. Can often be called despotism or tyrannies.

A. Aristocratic Republic (Aristocracy)

1. Members of government are elected

by only a small portion of the population.

B. Totalitarian1. Ruled by a single political group.

2. Total control over its citizens and

economy.

C. Dictatorship1. One person has total control.

2. Usually gains power by force.

3. Citizens have no rights.

D. Monarchy1. One person rules (Absolute Monarch)

2. Power is inherited.

3. Elected representatives are the law making

bodies. (Constitutional Monarch)

(More of a democracy form.)

HOW CAN WE BE CERTAIN THAT THE UNITED STATES FREE REPUBLIC SYSTEM WON’T CHANGE?

1. System of checks and balances.

a. 3 branches have over one another.

b. States have over federal.

c. People have over federal and state. (voting)

GOVERNMENT IS IN THE HANDS OF THE

PEOPLE!!!!

A. Citizenship in a Democratic Republic

1. Loyalty does not always mean agreeing

with the government.

a. Citizens can disagree and question

government.

2. Loyalty is not the only thing that is

expected of citizens.

a. Citizens are expected to participate.

3. Protection is not the only thing that

citizens are thought to deserve.

a. Liberty - freedom to do many things.

b. Rights - freedoms guaranteed by the

Constitution.

IN YOUR SMALL GROUPS COME UP WITH SOME EXAMPLES OF CITIZENS DEMONSTRATING LOYALTY, LIBERTY, AND EXERCISING THEIR RIGHTS. WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF HOW SOME CITIZENS MISUSE LOYALTY, LIBERTY AND THEIR RIGHTS?

(5 MIN.)

B. Can Any Right Be Taken Away.

1. Criminals lose many of their rights.

2. Must be a fair trial.

a. No Distant Trial

b. Right to an Attorney

c. Trial by Jury in an Open Court

d. No Self-Incrimination.

e. No Double Jeopardy.

3. Punishment must be one that is

allowed by law.

a. Appeal - request to have a decision

made by the trial court reviewed by

a higher court.

C. Can Citizens Lose Their Citizenship

1. People can say that they no longer

want to be citizens.

a. Moving to other countries and

becoming citizens there.

2. Citizens can lose their citizenship only

by choice. (Afrouim v. Rusk, 1967)

a. Treason - act of trying to overthrow

the government or helping the

government’s enemies.

b. Denaturalization - process of

naturalized citizen losing their

citizenship.

PARTICIPATION IN THE DEMOCRATIC PROCESS

A. Democratic Participation

1. Voting is simplest form.

2. Referendum - laws that must be

approved by voters before they go

into effect.

3. Having people vote helps us achieve

many things:

a. Responsibility

b. Peaceful succession - replacement of

one set of officials by another.

c. Consideration for public opinion.

B. A strange Fact About Voting

IN YOUR SMALL GROUPS DISCUSS WHY ALL PEOPLE DIDN’T VOTE IN THE 1800’S AND EARLY 1900’S. WHY DON’T PEOPLE VOTE TODAY?

***LEARN THE ISSUES AND VOTE***

***PARTICIPATION IS YOUR

RESPONSIBILITY***

C. Why people don’t participate:

1. Feeling that the candidates are all

the same.

2. Not knowing enough

3. Getting lost in the Crowd (Tell the

Jews and Nazi Germany this)

LEARNING TO LIVE TOGETHER IN FREEDOM

A. WHAT IS A POLITICAL PERSONALITY (WHAT DO CITIZENS LEARN)

1. Information

a. Who are the rulers.

b. What form of government do you live in.

c. Realize that information given out can be

accurate or inaccurate.

d. Media is most common source of info.

2. Attitudes

a. Each person forms their own feelings

and opinions.

3. Character Traits

a. Do you speak up or keep quiet

4. Political Personality - information,

attitudes, and character traits that

influence your behavior toward

government, and toward other citizens

and groups of citizens.

ON A PIECE OF PAPER WRITE DOWN WHAT YOUR POLITICAL PERSONALITY IS.

(YOU HAVE 5 MIN.)

B. HOW IS POLITICAL PERSONALITY LEARNED

1. Team Sports

a. Do you play fair or do you cheat.

2. Clubs

a. Many people have different interest and

ideas.

3. Fiction (Movies, Novels, TV)

4. School

a. Student to Student/Teacher to Student

5. Others (Church, family, etc....)

****YOU HAVE CHOICES****

**DEVELOP YOUR OWN IDEAS**

C. THE DEMOCRATIC TEMPERAMENT

1. Democratic Temperament - kind of

personality that a democratic republic

depends on.

2. Not every form of government depends on

the same kind of political personality.

IN YOU SMALL GROUPS COME UP WITH THE TYPE OF PERSONALITY THAT IS NEEDED IN EACH OF THE GOVERNMENTS WE HAVE LEARNED ABOUT (12 MIN..)

D. DEMOCRATIC TEMPERAMENT TRAITS

1. Tolerance - ability to be fair to others and

open minded to ideas that may differ from

your own.

a. Patience and understanding are a must.

b. Respect the rights of others.

c. Settle disagreements by compromising.

2. Avoid Prejudice (an unfair opinion of

members of another group.)

a. Hear facts before forming an opinion

3. Listen

a. Carefully and with an open mind.

b. Try to understand why people believe

what they do.

4. Fair Argument

a. Let others be heard.

5. Clear Thinking

a. Try hard not to be influenced by

unreasonable arguments.

**** YOUR DEMOCRATIC TEMPERAMENT CAN BE A

LARGE PART OF YOUR TOTAL PERSONALITY****

POSSIBLE ASSIGNMENTS 1. Bring in newspaper articles demonstrating

conflict in the world and how it may be resolved. 2. Bring in newspaper articles demonstrating good

citizenship 3. Section Review (pg. 23) 4. American Govrn. Worksheet (pg. 96) 5. Quiz (Chap 2) 6. Enrichment (pg. 2) 7. Study Guide EXTRA CREDIT (10 PTS.) 1. Voc workshop, Main ideas and Thinking

Critically (pg. 35)