Irkhin Yu.V., Zotov V.D., Zotova L.V.
“All people are equal in republican states, they are equal and in despotic states, in the first case they are equal because they are everything, in the second because they are nothing. Freedom is the right to do everything that is permitted by law.”
C. Montesquieu
§ 1. Democracy: essence and stages of development
The term "democracy" ancient Greek origin: demos - people and kratein - ruling, which means “power of the people” (or “democracy”). A more detailed definition of “democracy” was given by American President Lincoln: “government of the people, by the people and for the people.”
Democracy and freedom are complex and multi-valued categories. We can talk about democracy as the value of public life, the ideal of government, the mechanism of functioning of a really existing state. But in any case, the concept of democracy will be closely connected with the concept of freedom, primarily with the political concept of freedom (liberty). From this last word comes the concept of liberalism, which arose in the 17th century. Therefore, in essence, we will talk about the connection between democracy and liberalism.
For a long time - from antiquity to the end of the 18th century. – by democracy they meant one of the forms of the state with such an organization of power in which not one person or group of persons rules, but all citizens and decisions are made by a simple majority of votes. Democracy was understood as direct rule of the people, modeled on Athens in the 5th–4th centuries. BC.
Democracy is one of the oldest forms of government. Aristotle in his work “The Athenian Waters,” dedicated to the history of the Athenian state from the 13th to the 5th centuries. BC, showed how over the course of seven centuries, as a result of the legislative initiatives of various rulers against the backdrop of the constant struggle of two “parties” - the demos (people) and the aristocracy (nobility) - a political system developed in which the people achieved equality with the nobility rights to participate in political life. In the 5th century BC. in the “glorious era of Pericles,” power belonged to an assembly of free citizens who periodically met in the city square to discuss public affairs. Political decisions were made by a simple majority of votes. The assembly managed the treasury, approved laws, and decided issues of war and peace. The method of drawing lots was used to occupy numerous positions in the management of various government affairs.
With all this, it is important to take into account that in the Athenian state of that period there were 400 thousand inhabitants, but only 40 thousand of them were full citizens. Women, immigrants, and slaves did not have political rights.
At a later time, the Athenian state also learned another form of democracy, which is close to “mob rule” (ochlocracy). Under such rule, the power of the majority in the people's assembly acted as a collective tyranny, the characteristic feature of which was non-compliance with laws. “Excessive democracy” led to ineffective governance, instability state power and was condemned in the political teachings of antiquity After Aristotle showed that the transition from democracy to ochlocracy leads to degeneration state life, “democracy” was not popular for the next two millennia. The European Middle Ages were characterized by feudal fragmentation and later by such a form of state as an absolute monarchy. City-republics were much less common.
In fact, only at the end of the 18th century, after the English colonies in North America English, Irish and other European settlers formed a new state - the USA, after the Great French Revolution broke out in Europe itself with its calls for freedom, equality and fraternity - only after that the concept of democracy became widely known and popular. However, in Europe, the principles of liberalism and democracy (personal freedom and people's power) existed separately for a long time. The French Revolution proclaimed the principles of democracy and opened up the possibility of broad popular representation, but without liberalism (guarantees of personal freedom). The English Revolution (1688) established the principles of liberalism in England under a constitutional monarchy, but without democracy.
But in the United States of America, a new type of government system has developed, based on the synthesis of democracy and liberalism. Let's look at this in more detail.
Until the last quarter of the 18th century. The North American colonies were governed by a governor representing the interests of the British Crown. At the same time, in each colony there were legislative assemblies, elected by a narrow circle of wealthy citizens and at first having modest claims to power. British government without American representation already in the middle of the 18th century. was regarded in the British Parliament as a manifestation of tyranny, denying not only natural human rights, but also the traditional rights of the British. During the Revolutionary War (1775–1783), the colonies declared their separation from England. Legislative assemblies came out with a demand for full parliamentary power. The Congress of representatives of all thirteen colonies met in Philadelphia and adopted the Declaration of Independence in 1776. The main idea of the Declaration was the proclamation of liberal rights and the demand for a constitutional (legal) state that ensures compliance with these rights.
From the very beginning of the revolution, its democratic tendencies were also obvious: the masses demanded broad representation in government bodies. These demands had their basis in the direct democracy of city assemblies, which developed in the colonies since the middle of the 17th century. The democratic charge of such meetings was always high. They involved not only citizens who had the right to vote in elections to the Legislative Assemblies, but all segments of the public, right down to “debtors and laborers”1.
The US Constitution, adopted in 1787, became a compromise between liberal ideas, the principles of the American followers of J. Locke and the democratic demands of the broad masses.
The founders of the American state developed and put into practice a system of norms that combine democratic principles of government by the people and liberal principles of protecting the freedoms and rights of every person. For these purposes, it seemed important to them to avoid creating a government that was absolutely dependent on the will of the majority of voters. J. Madison believed that “such democracies have always been examples of restlessness and discord, incompatible with guarantees of personal security and property rights, and, in general, lived as short as they died a violent death.” And the creators of American laws managed to achieve a balance between the ideal of the decisive will of the majority of voters (the idea of classical democracy) and the need to protect the rights of the minority (the liberal idea).
It is essential for the development of political science that the close connection between respect for minority rights and political stability was then understood. A. Hamilton rightly noted that “people love power... Give all power to the majority, and it will oppress the minority. Give all power to the minority and it will oppress the majority, so power must be divided between both so that each side can protect itself from the other.”2
Already by the middle of the 19th century. The United States became the first example of a modern liberal democratic society. A. de Tocqueville, who visited America in the 30s. XIX century in his work “Democracy in America,” he names three types of reasons why the contemporary democratic society in the United States was at the same time liberal (free):
Firstly, the random and peculiar situation in which we found ourselves American society: profitable geographical position, the absence of military danger from neighboring states, vast territories occupied by immigrants from Europe, possessing the technical achievements of their civilization and engaged in activities in the field of industry and trade;
Secondly, good laws paved the way for freedom in America. In this regard, T. Jefferson noted that if a lot of blood was shed in Europe in the struggle for democracy, the Americans spilled a lot of ink;
Thirdly, the most significant reasons for the freedom that characterizes American democracy are the habits, morals and beliefs of the American people, who are both religious and free3.
A. de Tocqueville concluded that the American experience in establishing freedom and political equality would soon be of decisive importance on the European continent?4
The development of democracy in Europe, associated with the demand for universal suffrage, included among the main political participants in the events the Western European working class, which mid-19th V. acted as an organized political force. If previously hired workers and workers deprived of private property were deprived of voting rights, then by the beginning of the 20th century. the Western European working class achieved them.
All this led to the fact that democracy began to be understood not only as one of the forms of government, as in the era of antiquity, but also the essential qualities of the entire society - political, economic, social, spiritual. At the same time, democracy no longer acts as the power of the people, but as power with the consent of the people, when citizens take part in making decisions not directly, but indirectly - through their representatives. The latter make decisions by majority vote, but preserving the rights of the minority. Such democracy is called constitutional or liberal.
New quality of modern democracy. Modern democracy has the following characteristic features and characteristics.
First, it is built on a new understanding of freedom and equality. The principles of freedom and equality, in accordance with the natural law theory of liberalism, apply to all citizens of the state. As society democratizes, these principles are increasingly translated into practical life.
Secondly, democracy is developing in states that are large in territory and in number. The principles of direct democracy in such states operate mainly at the level of local self-government, and at the national level a representative form of democracy is developed. Citizens govern the state not directly, but by electing representatives to government bodies.
Thirdly, the representative form of democracy arises in response to the need to express the diverse, primarily economic, interests of civil society.
Fourthly, modern liberal democratic states, while differing from each other in many ways, are built on a system of common liberal democratic principles and values: recognition of the people as the source of power; equality of citizens and respect for human rights; priority of human rights over state rights; election of the main bodies of state power, subordination of the minority to the majority when making decisions, but with a guarantee of the rights of the minority; law supremacy; separation of powers, presupposing their relative autonomy and mutual control, etc.
Fifth, liberal democracy is seen as a process that began in the early constitutionalism of England and the United States and tends to democratize all aspects of life, as well as to spread throughout the world.
The historical paths to democracy differ among different nations, but all modern democratic states operate on common liberal democratic principles and have reached internal consensus (agreement) regarding the basic values of public and private life.
§ 2. Liberal democratic values and principles of democracy
Today, several dozen states have a liberal-democratic system. The conceptual basis of the main values in modern democracies is the formula: “All people are born free and equal in dignity and rights.” Freedom is the basic value of modern democracy.
Among the basic human rights, the founder of the ideology of liberalism, J. Locke, highlighted the rights to life, liberty and private property. This triad of rights can have at least two interpretations: bourgeois and civil5. From a bourgeois point of view, the rights to life and the use of earthly goods (to “private property”) are basic values. In a civil interpretation basic value the new society is freedom.
Freedom as a value does not prescribe any specific behavior to a person, it does not impose any pre-determined content of activity, but opens up wide opportunities for the individual to choose forms of behavior and activity filled with different content. It was on this issue and on the basis of recognition of the value of freedom that agreement was reached in Western European and North American societies, while there was an acute class struggle around private property.
Liberal rights guaranteed only individual freedom and formal equality of all before the law, but not social equality. In the absence of such, the use of many of the rights turned into an actual privilege of the propertied classes. In the 20th century liberal or civil, personal rights were supplemented by socio-economic rights, which promised everyone decent living conditions. This is how a holistic set of human rights emerged, recognized by the world community as a modern standard of freedom.
The rights and freedoms enshrined by the United Nations in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) can be divided into four groups.
The first group includes the so-called elementary rights and freedoms. These include the rights to life, liberty and security of person (Article 3), freedom from slavery (Article 4), prohibition of torture or cruel, inhuman treatment or punishment (Article 5), equality of all people before the law and equal protection of the law ( Art. 7), a number of rights relating to procedural guarantees of justice (Art. 8–11), the right to protection from arbitrary interference with personal and family life and from infringement of honor and reputation, inviolability of home, privacy of correspondence (Article 12).
The second group consists civil rights. The Declaration proclaims: the right of an individual to recognition of his legal personality (Article 6), freedom of movement and choice of place of residence (Article 13), the right to asylum (Article 14), the right to citizenship (Article 15), the right to marry and to create a family (Article 16), the right to own property (Article 17).
Among the political rights and freedoms, the Declaration establishes: freedom of thought, conscience and religion (Article 18), freedom of opinion and expression (Article 19), freedom of peaceful assembly and association (Article 20), the right to take part in the government of your country (v. 21).
And finally, Art. 22–28 list economic, social and cultural rights, such as the right to work and free choice of work, equal pay for equal work, the right to form trade unions, the right to rest and leisure, the right to a certain standard of living, and the right to education6.
Another core value of modern democracy is the principle of equality of people. Equality does not mean the identity of people. As you know, all people are divided into races, nationalities, classes, and differ in their adherence to different religions, but they are all united in the fact that they are people with the ability to think rationally. But the ability to think intelligently does not give rise to the ability to act intelligently. In the Christian understanding, all people are equal before God. His requirements for all people are the same, but people’s responsibility for their actions is different.
The American Declaration of Independence reflected the belief that all men are equal in that they are all entitled to the unalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Such equality does not mean a gift or offering to a person that he receives in connection with the fact of birth. It should be seen as an opportunity or even a requirement. So, for example, the phrase about the right to the pursuit of happiness does not mean that a person cannot be unhappy and that someone else (the state, family, friends) will definitely make him happy. It only means that every person has the right to strive for happiness, and there are no insurmountable obstacles on this path. In this all people are equal. But happiness cannot be achieved without individual efforts, which vary from person to person. This is where human inequality comes from.
Democracy recognizes differences and inequalities in people's talents and abilities. And it demands that those who excel in their abilities be provided with every opportunity for their development (regardless of racial, religious and social differences).
Denying people with extraordinary abilities the chance to excel is not only morally wrong, but also socially wasteful.
However, equality, understood as equality of opportunity, cannot be a magic formula for achieving social justice in society.
If all people had equal abilities, were born in the same age prosperous families and received equal education, only then could providing equal opportunities for everyone be the best solution to the problem of a just society.
Many differences cannot be eliminated by the operation of a law that is equal for all. But laws can reduce differences in background and education at the very beginning life path and thus make equality of opportunity more effective7.
Rights and freedoms are guarded by the rule of law and civil society, which in themselves represent the most important achievements and values of democracy. Legal law formalizes statehood as democratic, and civil society provides democratic statehood with the necessary connections with society. The more developed civil society is, the more foundation there is for democracy. And vice versa: the less developed civil society is, the greater the opportunities for the establishment and existence of undemocratic regimes.
The principle of pluralism. Recognizing freedom as a basic value, society must ensure its absolute obligatory nature. This is where the religious, worldview, ideological, political, and economic pluralism of Western liberal democracies originates. Pluralism (from the Latin pluralis - multiple) in public life is characterized by a variety of forms of ownership, public interests, parties and associations, ideological trends etc., as well as the special competitive nature of the relationship between them. However, free competition between various political forces proceeds according to certain “rules of the game” accepted by all participants. Conflicts arising in the course of such competitive rivalry must be resolved according to generally accepted rules, including non-violence in resolving conflicts, tolerance of the opinions of opponents, the search for consensus and willingness to compromise, respect for the law, individual rights, and the democratic order in general.
The concept of pluralism, developed by G. Laski, E. Bernstein, R. Hilferding and others, grew out of the ideas of liberalism. Unlike classical liberalism, where the main subject of social life was a separate free individual realizing his interests in competitive rivalry with the interests of other citizens, in pluralistic theory such an object is a social group. The pluralistic theory of democracy, speaking from the position of rivalry between organized social groups, is a further development of liberal theory in the conditions of a large and complexly organized industrial society. Today, liberal democratic states are sometimes called pluralistic democracies. Pluralism, as plurality, diversity and freedom of expression, requires that if general rules, norms, and values regulating the behavior of people are found (which are necessary to ensure order, stability, discipline), then they must be established as a result of free consent.
Combining power and freedom, modern democracies are guided by the principle of majority rule while protecting the rights of the minority. People with different experiences and life interests, different political goals must have the opportunity to freely express their needs and aspirations. Political decisions in these conditions are developed as a result of clashes of unequal interests, when there is only a minimum common views. It is obvious that with the diversity of opinions and interests it is impossible to make a completely satisfactory decision for everyone. Therefore, the basis for agreement is forced to take the majority principle. Political power belongs to the circle of persons for whom the majority of the population voted as a result of free elections.
But representatives of the majority do not have the right to ignore the interests of the minority or prohibit them from defending their positions, since no one is immune from mistakes. The duty of the ruling group, elected by the majority, is to recognize the right of the minority to political opposition and criticism, and the possibility of its opponents coming to power following new elections.
Freedom of expression, guaranteeing the rights of the opposition, is a fundamental requirement of democracy. Briefly, democracy can even be separated as the rule of the majority, respecting the rights of the minority, gjidim, in modern meaning The concept of “democracy” has little in common with “rule of the people.” Democracy is the power of people's traitors, which (directly or indirectly) is freely elected by the majority of the people and controlled by them.
§ 3. The mechanism of functioning of democratic systems
You can take control of the actions of the authorities with the help of a constitutional law or a set of laws. The idea of a constitution as a fundamental law that proclaims the principle of separation of powers and determines the powers of any government institutions and officials is the most important in the ideology of liberalism. The implementation of this idea is ensured by a complex mechanism of checks and balances.
So, for example, in the Gothic system of the United States, each government body is given the functions of monitoring the decisions of other bodies. For example, passing laws is the prerogative of Congress. But the President also influences the legislative process, since he has the right of veto. He is obliged to provide Congress with a report on the situation of the country and propose certain necessary measures for its adoption. The Senate, in turn, controls the right of appointment granted to the President to the posts of meters. Congress can override the veto of the chief executive (the President). The executive branch can spend money only in accordance with decisions of Congress. The Supreme Court is appointed by the President with the consent of the Senate, Congress has the power to form lower courts, and the Supreme Court has control over Congress and executive branch. What is taking place here is not so much a “separation of powers”, but rather the mutual participation of state structures in the exercise of power; such a complex device was developed specifically in order to protect individual, private interests both from the interests of the majority and from government interference.
Free elections of government representatives. Free elections provide for:
Universal and equal suffrage based on the principle of “one person, one vote”;
Free nomination of candidates, made possible by the right to free formation and functioning of parties;
Creation of election commissions for holding elections: central, district, precinct;
Democratic way of selecting central election commissions: with equal representation from different parties participating in the elections, or with the involvement of several members appointed by parliaments or local authorities after consultation with parties, etc.;
Control over the accuracy of voter lists with the possibility of appealing them in local courts;
Possibility of judicial review of election campaign results;
Fair election management mechanism with equal access of candidates to the media and fair funding system election campaign etc.
Types of electoral systems. In modern democratic countries, the set of rules and techniques for organizing elections and determining their results is called the electoral system. Electoral systems allow for re-election of authorities in a non-violent manner, within the framework of constitutional restrictions. Holding free elections and public recognition of their results is an important sign of the ability modern democracies solve problems through peaceful political means and ensure the legitimacy of the political process.
There are two electoral systems - majoritarian and proportional. The majoritarian (from the French majoritaire - majority) system assumes that the winner of the vote is the one who receives the majority of votes.
The majoritarian system is based on the principle of relative or absolute majority.
The principle of relative majority means that the winner of the vote is the one who received more votes than his opponents. Such a system exists in the USA, Canada and Great Britain. According to the absolute majority principle, a vote is considered valid only if the person for whom voters vote receives 50% of the votes + 1 vote. If no candidate receives an absolute majority of votes, a second round of elections is held. It involves the two candidates who received the most votes in the first round. To win, a candidate only needs to receive a simple majority of votes. Such a majoritarian system exists in France, Ireland, and Australia.
The most common proportional electoral system in Europe. Under a proportional system, parliamentary seats in parliament are distributed depending on the number of votes cast in elections for party lists. At the same time, voters do not vote for individual candidates, but for parties that present party lists of candidates. Proportional elections provide that all votes cast for party lists are taken into account when determining the election results. This is the fundamental difference between a proportional system and a majoritarian system, in which only the “winner takes all”, and votes cast for candidates who remain in the minority are not taken into account.
Some countries have so-called mixed systems. Thus, in Germany, half of the deputies of parliament are elected according to a majoritarian system, and the second - according to a proportional system.
As for presidential elections, in those countries where they are held using direct voting of the population, these elections are held according to the majoritarian system of absolute or relative majority. IN Russian Federation, which expressed its intention to achieve a democratic transformation of society, elections to the Federal Assembly in 1993 and 1995 were held under a mixed electoral system. One half of the State Duma (lower house) was elected by a majoritarian system (225 deputies), and the other half by a proportional system, according to party lists. Those parties and electoral blocs that received more than 5% of the votes (the so-called electoral threshold of 5%) entered the State Duma.
In representative democracies, the people, as already noted, do not exercise power, but transfer it to bodies and individuals acting on their behalf. There are two main ways to give government power without jeopardizing democracy. Both of these methods have shown their viability. They differ in a number of features. Great Britain is considered the birthplace of the parliamentary form of government - the most common in democratic countries. It was adopted by Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Portugal, etc. The United States gave rise to the presidential form of government.
Comparison table of forms of government
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Peaceful regime change became possible as a result of the voluntary decision of the previous authorities to give way to democratically elected governments. Although this voluntary abdication of power was always provoked by some kind of crisis, it was ultimately made possible by the growing democratic movement.
At the turn of the XIX-XX centuries. formed " mass democracy”, which differed from old liberalism primarily in its broad social base.
The expansion of the number of voters occurred due to the poor and dissatisfied with life of people experiencing constant hardships and deprivations. The class consciousness of these people became increasingly threatening to the social, economic and political foundations of society. The growth of social tension in society was facilitated by the liberals themselves, who could not be called democrats in the true sense of the word: the liberals of that era resisted the introduction of equal and general political rights, limiting themselves only to protecting the rights of owners.
The emergence of a mass of new voters, aware of the social injustice of society and ready to fight for its changes, led to a weakening of the influence of traditional liberalism as a political force. In its place, democracy brought two other forces - class and national consciousness, which competed during this period.
French writer Anatole France accurately depicted the essence of the ideals of bourgeois society: “The law, in its majestic justice, gives every person the right to both dine at the Ritz restaurant and spend the night under a bridge.”
At the beginning of the 20th century. a working man living in an atmosphere of scientific and technological progress and achievements could no longer put up with the imperfection of the social structure, which was becoming unbearable for him.
In April 1974, a coup was carried out in Portugal by democratically minded military forces, which was subsequently supported by a massive popular movement, which put an end to the long-term dictatorship of the military. A few months later in Greece, as a result of a deep political crisis, the military government was forced to resign, and power passed into the hands of civilian leaders of democratically oriented political parties. In Spain in November 1975, Franco's death marked the end of 36 years of authoritarian rule.
Eastern Europe
Appeared in the mid-1970s. détente of international tension, which, however, was short-lived, led to the emergence of a dissident, essentially human rights, movement in the USSR and other countries of Eastern Europe. This movement consistently opposed the violation of human rights and for the democratization of the existing political system in the countries of the socialist camp.
Of the former communist countries, the most developed (Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic) moved to democracy faster, and the less developed (Bulgaria, Romania, Albania) - slower; the governments in these countries consisted of communist reformers, who for the most part were not ready to carry out the necessary changes. Material from the site
In 1980, after 20 years of military dictatorship, a democratically elected government was restored in Peru. The War for the Malvinas Islands led to the fall of the military junta in Argentina and the rise to power of a democratically elected president. Argentina was followed by Uruguay in 1983 and Brazil in 1984. By the end of the decade, the dictatorships of A. Stroessner in Paraguay and A. Pinochet in Chile gave way to elected authorities. In Chile, a special commission investigated cases of human rights violations and crimes committed by the Pinochet junta. In the early 1990s. The Sandinista government of Nicaragua gave way to the democratic government of Violetta Chamorro.
In 1986, the Marcos dictatorship was overthrown in the Philippines, and the team of President Corazon Aquino, enjoying popular support, came to power. The following year, General Chun gave up power in South Korea, and Roh Dae Woo was elected president. In Taiwan, after the death of Chiang Kai-shek in 1988, democratic unrest began. Similar changes also affected Burma, where an authoritarian government was in power.
The owners of a tailoring studio bear constant and variable costs. Which of the following is a variable cost? 1) Rent for the premises; 2) Purchase of raw materials 3) Interest on loans 4) Advertising expenses 5) Managerial salaries 6) Piece payment of staff ANSWER: 26
Citizen R. entered into an installation agreement with the company “Reliable Lock” interior doors. The installation team carried out the appropriate work, the quality of which did not satisfy the citizen. The company considered the customer's demands too high and refused to redo the work. Find in the list the positions corresponding to the legal solution to the conflict described, and write down the numbers under which they are indicated. 1) Plaintiff 2) Defendant 3) Labor law 4) Internal Affairs 5) Civil proceedings 6) Criminal Procedure Code ANSWER: 125
Country Z has developed factory production. What other signs indicate that it is developing as an industrial-type society? 1) There is a democratization of political life, political freedoms are proclaimed; 2) Religion has a significant influence on the development of society. 3) A class of industrial workers is being formed. 4) There is a division of labor. 5) Mechanization and automation of production and management is taking place. 6)Develops Agriculture. ANSWER: 135
Ivan is 17 years old. Find in the list the traits that characterize Ivan as a person. 1) Ivan has blond hair and blue eyes. 2) Ivan’s height is 180 cm. 3) Ivan helps his parents care for their sick grandmother. 4) Ivan is studying athletics, takes training seriously. 5) Ivan is a kind and sympathetic person. 6)Ivan is a good student at school, he is interested in biology and chemistry. ANSWER: 3456
The student carries out project work in social studies: conducts a micro-study about the cultural preferences of classmates. Find empirically relevant methods in the list below scientific knowledge. 1) Questioning classmates 2) Observing the behavior of classmates 3) Description appearance 4) Identifying patterns of behavior 5) Proposing a hypothesis 6) Formulating conclusions ANSWER: 123
Vasily Sergeevich is 35 years old. Find in the list the features that characterize his social role as an employee. 1) Vasily is married and has three children. 2) Vasily joined the party. 3) Vasily carefully read the program of the candidate for the post of head of administration. 4) Vasily works as a doctor in a city hospital. 5) Vasily regularly attends advanced training courses. 6) Vasily is never late for work. ANSWER: 456
In town Z, many companies supply food to stores, including: large manufacturers, and individual farms. Select the characteristics of this market from the list below. 1) Market for goods 2) Local market 3) Oligopoly 4) Market for information 5) Excess of products 6) Pure competition ANSWER: 126
Alla is 39 years old. Find in the list below the traits that characterize her fulfillment of the social role of a family man. 1)Alla is married to Alexander. 2) Alla works as an accountant 3) Alla helps her retired mother. 4) Alla drives a car perfectly. 5) Alla is interested in astronomy. 6) Alla is raising her son Alexei. ANSWER: 136
Which of the following examples illustrate the functioning of civil society? 1)The Ministry of Education announced the “Teacher of the Year” competition. 2) At a meeting of residents of the microdistrict, a decision was made to improve the children's playgrounds. 3)Elections to local government bodies were held throughout the country. 4) The traffic police installed new traffic lights at road crossings near educational institutions. 5) Citizens were active in improving their area and organizing leisure activities for minors. 6) In city Z, mathematics teachers created an association. ANSWER: 256
Tatyana is 13 years old. Find items in the list that reflect its legal status and write down the numbers under which they are indicated. 1) To be heard during the trial to determine the place of residence in the event of a divorce of parents. 2) Manage your earnings, scholarships and other income. 3) Make deposits in credit institutions and manage them. 4) Conclude a minor employment contract with the consent of the parents. 5) Conduct small household transactions. 6) Bear criminal liability on a general basis. ANSWER: 15
The economy of country Z is based on subsistence farming and crafts. What other signs indicate that country Z is developing as a traditional type of society? 1) Public consciousness is based on religious values. 2) The leading sector of the economy is industry. 3) Extensive technology prevails. 4) The communal form of ownership predominates. 5) A market economy is being formed. 6) Mechanization and automation of production is taking place. ANSWER: 134
11th grade student Maxim is preparing for exams. Find methods in the list that will allow the maxim to achieve his goal. 1) Admission to a university 2) Conducting an exam 3) Consultations with teachers. 4) Solving problems 5) Getting a high score 6) Reading textbooks, reference books ANSWER: 346
Find in the list signs that allow you to conclude that country Z is developing as a post-industrial society. 1) In country Z, the production of industrial goods is fully automated. 2) In country Z, high-tech industries and means of communication are developing. 3) Country Z has created the necessary conditions for lifelong education. 4) In country Z, virtual culture is actively developing. 5) In country Z, extensive technologies predominate. 6) Access to information becomes one of the conditions for success in competition. ANSWER: 234
Popular actor on own funds made a black and white film about the fate of his generation. Critics classified this work as elite art. Select characteristics from the list of this work. 1) Commercial nature 2) Content complexity 3) Attention of critics and experts 4) Use of special effects 5) Attraction of movie stars 6) Enormous interest of viewers ANSWER: 23
In country Z, coal consumption and exports have decreased, most mines have closed, and tens of thousands of miners have lost their jobs. Select from the list below the characteristics of the unemployment that occurred. 1) Hidden unemployment 2) Frictional unemployment 3) Seasonal unemployment 4) Voluntary unemployment 5) Structural unemployment 6) Mass unemployment ANSWER: 56
Marina is 45 years old. Find in the list the features that characterize the fulfillment of her social role as a citizen. 1) Marina is raising two children 2) Marina pays taxes on time 3) Marina works as an accountant 4) Marina received a second higher education 5) Marina always goes to the polls 6) Marina is fond of oriental dancing. ANSWER: 25
Bakery owners incur fixed and variable costs. Which of the following is a fixed cost? 1)Rent for premises 2)Purchase of raw materials 3)Interest on loans 4)Transportation costs 5)Managers' salaries 6)Piece payment of staff ANSWER: 135
Sergei, on the advice of his lawyer, filed a lawsuit to invalidate his father’s will, according to which Sergei’s brother, Roman, took over the inheritance rights. Find items in the list that correspond to the legal solution to the situation described. 1) Plaintiff 2) Defendant 3) Labor law 4) Constitutional proceedings 5) Civil proceedings 6) Criminal Procedure Code ANSWER: 125
In State Z there is a hereditary transfer of power. The king's power is limited by the laws of the country. Parliamentary elections take place regularly, on an alternative basis. Citizens have full rights and freedoms, and civil society institutions are developed. State Z includes the territories of entities with partial sovereignty. Parliament has a bicameral structure, subjects have the right to adopt their own constitution. Find in the list the characteristics of state form Z. 1) Unitary state 2) Federal state 3) Constitutional monarchy 4) Democratic state 5) Absolute monarchy 6) Presidential republic ANSWER: 234
Vitaly is preparing for a trip to Greece. He studies the Greek language, reads books on the history and culture of Greece, and communicates with connoisseurs of Greek cuisine on online forums. He planned his travel route and purchased a ticket. Find in the list examples of the means Vitaly uses to achieve his goal. 1) Studying the Greek language 2) Reading books about Greece 3) Connoisseurs of Greek cuisine 4) Traveling around Greece 5) Buying a tour package 6) Chatting on the Internet ANSWER: 1256
In the process of socialization, a person’s legal consciousness is formed. Select a legal awareness element from the list. 1)Knowledge of laws 2)Law enforcement agencies 3)Understanding of the need to comply with laws 4)Professional legal education 5)Involvement in legal liability 6) Compliance with legal requirements ANSWER: 136
Citizen R. constantly leaves his car on the lawn near his house. Law enforcement officials warned him about the illegality of such actions. Select positions related to the legal assessment of this situation. 1) Labor law 2) Administrative offense 3) Disciplinary liability 4) Fine 5) Constitutional law 6) Criminal record ANSWER: 24
State Z unites several states that have their own parliaments, government and legislation. In Z, free elections to parliament are periodically held, which forms a government from representatives of the winning political parties. Members of parliament elect a president who performs representative functions. Select the characteristics of the form of state Z. 1)Presidential republic 2)Unitary state 3)Democratic republic 4)Parliamentary republic 5)Authoritarian rule 6)Federal state ANSWER: 346
In country N, spouses, their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren live under one roof. The head of the family is the eldest man, whose decisions are binding on the rest of the household. Women do housework, and men provide the material conditions for the family's existence. Select the characteristics of this family from the list. 1) Nuclear 2) Affiliate 3) Traditional 4) Multigenerational 5) Democratic 6) Egalitarian ANSWER: 34
Party V created a network of primary organizations in different parts of the country. Members of the party's political council are elected to various federal and local government bodies. The party comes out with the idea of protecting workers’ rights, is a supporter of building legal and social state. Select the characteristics of this batch. 1) Cadre 2) Conservative 3) Socialist 4) Ruling 5) Mass 6) Revolutionary ANSWER: 345
Commercial bank analyst A left Moscow for Paris for a two-year internship at a well-known French company. A. will work in France in the same position as in Moscow, receiving approximately the same salary. Select social mobility characteristics from the list. 1) Individual 2) Ascending 3) Migration 4) Horizontal 5) Descending 6) Intergenerational ANSWER: 134
Find examples in the list below that illustrate the use of formal positive sanctions. 1) Olga Ivanovna was awarded the title “Honored Teacher of the Russian Federation.” 2) Colleagues praised Sergei Vladimirovich for a well-prepared presentation of the new product. 3) Vladimir Alexandrovich received a prize at the plant for his invention. 4) Vitaly Viktorovich was awarded the degree of Doctor of Law. 5) Lena’s performance at the Autumn Festival drew applause. 6) Officer Smirnov was assigned another military rank. ANSWER: 1346
Democracy is the most complex type political regime. "Democracy" translated from Greek means "power of the people." However, starting from the first mention of it in Aristotle’s Politics, disputes about its content have not ceased to this day. Various authors focus their attention on its various components. For example, the power of the majority, limitation and control over it, general elections, openness, competition of different opinions, pluralism, etc. In some cases it is interpreted as a social system, in others - as a form of state in which all citizens have equal rights to power. This is how it differs from a monarchy.
Democracy was originally seen as direct rule by citizens. But since ancient times, democracy has been considered the worst form of government, because... the low level of culture of citizens allowed the rulers to manipulate the “power of the people”, as a result of which democracy passed into the power of the crowd, and then into tyranny.
The negative attitude towards democracy was not overcome even after the Great French Revolution in the 18th century. This was due to the fact that democracy could not solve day-to-day social issues a large state (as opposed to city-policies).
From the point of view of the descriptive approach, democracy is a set of political structures and procedures that would be effective in realizing public needs. The liberal theory of democracy, for example, views democracy as responsible and competent government, the source of power is the people, who, on the principles of trust enshrined in the constitution, express their power through their representatives (deputies). In this case, power is exercised by trained people who must express the aspirations of their voters. The theory of direct democracy denies the principle of representativeness. Democracy is understood as direct rule by the people. The will is expressed at the meeting and is the basis for government activities and the drafting of laws. Proponents of the pluralistic theory of democracy proceed from the fact that each individual strives to realize his personal interests, and not essential needs. In this regard, society is considered as a collection of social groups, and decision-making occurs as a result of the struggle of these groups and serves as a kind of compromise. Followers of the elitist theory of democracy use reverse logic to prove the merits of their approach. They proceed from the fact that there is no rational behavior of an individual, there is no concept of the “common good.” And therefore, there must be a ruling elite elected by the people, which, during its reign, deprives the people of the opportunity to act for the same period. On the contrary, supporters of participatory democracy deny the principle of division of labor and proceed from individual self-determination. Moreover, self-determination is their full right to participate in the political life of society. In the 60s, democracy of this type began to actively develop and found its expression in new social movements(eg, the green movement).
There is another interesting type of democracy - socialist democracy, which interprets it as a form of class domination. Within the framework of this concept, two directions developed: orthodox (K. Marx, F. Engels, V. Lenin) and reformist (K. Kautsky, E. Berstein). The paradox of the first is that only socialist democracy establishes the power of the people, but on the other hand, under communism, democracy as a principle of the existence of the state dies out altogether. Ideological goal(building communism) sacrifices all individual freedoms. Proponents of the second theory seek a form of compromise through an agreement between various social forces.
Currently, democracy in its various forms exists in 35 countries around the world. Moreover, democracies in these countries have a number of common characteristics:
Popular legitimacy that is based on popular confirmation in the form of elections.
Competitive politics - electoral competition.
Political parties. They serve as the main mechanism that facilitates the process of forming the will of the people.
Civil, political and social rights.
Democratization - the introduction of democratic principles, the reorganization of any society into democratic foundations. The main directions of democratization: involving citizens in managing the affairs of society and the state; creating conditions for the manifestation of initiative by individuals, representative authorities, public organizations, labor collectives, development of self-government of society; the free development of every nation and nationality, strengthening their equal cooperation; constant strengthening of law and order; expansion of publicity; regular consideration of public opinion when discussing and resolving state and public affairs; improving the electoral system.
In politics, a popular theory of “waves” of democratization, according to which modern institutions of democratic government - polyarchy - were established in stages, and at each of them this process affected different groups countries, and the expansion of the area of democracy (the rise of democratization) was followed by some reduction (a rollback of democratization).
The first “wave” of democratization began to grow from the second half of the 19th century V. and reached its peak shortly after the end of the First World War. The second "wave" was stimulated by the Allied victory in World War II and the processes of decolonization that lasted until the 1960s. gg. Finally, the third “wave” of democratization began in mid. 1970s with the fall of authoritarian regimes in Portugal, Spain, Greece, etc. So, by the end of the second millennium, the area of the spread of democracy covers almost the entire industrialized northern hemisphere, along with a number of countries, including such large ones as India.
Democracy is a fragile system, and if the appropriate conditions are not created to maintain it, it can be destroyed. Society often expects immediate returns from the elected government, without thinking about what the citizens themselves do to ensure that the system works effectively, so that the representatives of the people express their interests, are controlled and managed. This problem is also typical for Russia, which has embarked on the path of democratic development, whose citizens are not spoiled by the attention of the authorities and are not experienced in democratic subtleties and nuances.
Experience shows developed countries, democracy has serious problems, the resolution of which is a necessary condition for its effective functioning. J. Beshler calls these problems “distortions of democracies,” S. Eisenstadt calls them “the fragility of modern democratic regimes.”
American political scientist S. Huntington names poverty among the main economic obstacles to democratic development, so he associates the future of democracy with a developed economy. What gets in the way economic development, is also an obstacle to the spread of democracy. “Most poor societies will remain undemocratic as long as they remain poor,” concludes the American scientist.
Democracy is characterized by regular renewal of the ruling elite and the policies it pursues. If such renewal occurs in non-violent, strictly defined and legal forms, society is not subject to upheavals due to periodic crises of power. Regular adjustments of power in democratic systems make them relatively flexible, receptive to technological and social innovation, which ultimately ensures constant economic progress, as was the case in the democracies of Europe and North America.
The democratic process helps to increase the independence of the people, who learn to act lawfully. The Russian people have very short experience of independent action. Russian political practice of the 1990s - early 2000s. indicates an increasingly interested participation of people in management, an increase in demands on leaders, and a critical attitude towards the activities of political parties and public associations that claim to protect the interests of various social groups. This is an invaluable experience that will always be in demand and on the basis of which people learn not to make mistakes.
Despite all the difficulties that democracy has to face on its thorny path, the thought expressed by Robert Dahl will remain relevant: “The democratic idea will not lose its attractiveness for people in non-democratic countries, and, as modern, dynamic and more pluralistic societies, their authoritarian governments will find it increasingly difficult to resist aspirations for expanded democracy.”
- 3. Give comparative analysis three historical forms of political democracy in modern times: liberal, collectivist and pluralistic. Describe their strengths and weaknesses
- 1). The wary attitude of liberalism towards the masses influenced liberal democracy, which was a fusion of the liberal idea of limiting the arbitrariness of power through individual rights and the democratic principle of popular sovereignty. In general, this model of democracy in its classical version (XIX - early XX centuries) has the following characteristic features:
Identification of the people as a subject of power with male owners, exclusion of the lower strata, primarily wage workers, as well as women from the number of citizens with the right to vote. In most Western democracies, until the beginning and middle of the 20th century. property and other qualifications were preserved - mandatory conditions, without which a person did not have the right to participate in voting. (In some US states, a kind of property qualification - a poll tax - was abolished only in 1961.)
Individualism, recognition of the individual as the primary and main source of power, priority of the rights of the individual over the laws of the state. For the purposes of protection, individual rights are enshrined in the constitution, the strict implementation of which is monitored by an independent court.
3. The narrowly political, formal nature of democracy, resulting from a narrow, negative understanding of freedom as the absence of coercion and restrictions. Unlike ancient democracy, freedom here is interpreted not as the possibility of active equal participation in politics, but as a passive individual right to be protected from interference from the state and other people. “The goal of the ancients,” B. Constant wrote in this regard, “was the division of public power between all citizens of the country. This is what they called freedom. The goal of our contemporaries is the security of the private sphere; and they call freedom the guarantees created by public institutions for these purposes."
Parliamentarism, the predominance of representative forms of political influence. As D. Acton wrote, the lesson of Athenian democracy teaches that the government of the whole people, being the government of the most numerous and powerful class, is an evil of the same order as an unlimited monarchy, and needs, for almost the same reasons, institutions that would would protect him from himself and would assert the constant rule of law, protecting him from arbitrary revolutions of opinion."
Limitation of the competence and sphere of activity of the state primarily by the protection of public order, security and rights of citizens, social peace, etc., its non-interference in the affairs of civil society, economic, social and spiritual-moral processes.
Separation of powers, creation of checks and balances as a condition for effective control of citizens over the state, prevention of abuse of power. As noted back in the 18th century. Montesquieu, society is able to control only that power that is fragmented and whose individual parts are opposed to each other.
Limiting the power of the majority over the minority, ensuring individual and group autonomy and freedom. The minority is obliged to obey the majority only in strictly defined matters, beyond which it is completely free. A minority has the right to have its own opinion and defend it within the framework of the law, regardless of the decisions made by the majority.
These and other features of liberal democracy indicate that it has become a major step forward towards the liberation of man, respect for his dignity and fundamental rights. At the same time, this model of democracy, presented in its classical version, is very far from the ideal of democracy and is justifiably criticized.
Disadvantages of classical liberal democracy:
- 1. Social class limitations. Like ancient democracy, it does not apply to the majority of the population: proletarians, other lower strata, women, and therefore is not the power of the people in the full sense of the word.
- 2. The formality and, as a consequence, the declarative nature of democracy for the poor, socially disadvantaged segments of the population, its transformation from democracy into a competition of money bags. The non-extension of democracy to economic and social processes leads to deepening social inequality and aggravation social conflicts, does not satisfy the interests of the majority of citizens. The property polarization of the population stimulated by this form of power devalues the fundamental rights and freedoms of the individual for the lower strata, makes them difficult to implement in practice and ultimately calls into question the democracy of this form of government.
- 3. The limited scope of democracy and political participation of the individual. Focus on representative bodies and only occasional, predominantly electoral political activity citizens actually removes the authorities from the control of the masses and turns democracy into a form of domination by the political elite. The consequence of extremely limited political participation is mass political apathy, alienation of citizens from power, and its weak legitimacy.
- 4. Downplaying the role of the state in managing society and strengthening social justice. The needs of economic and social development require expansion of government regulation, active investment tax and other policies. A democratic state cannot be limited to the role of a “night watchman” and must have the right to regulate economic and social processes, strengthen justice in society and prevent conflicts.
- 5. Excessive value-based individualism, ignoring the collective nature of man, his belonging to various social groups. This hinders the social self-realization of the individual, his development, stimulates selfishness and egocentrism, which undermine the foundations of the state and society. A practical response to the shortcomings of classical liberal democracy was the workers', socialist, communist and other movements, as well as new democratic concepts, in many ways opposed to liberalism, and attempts to bring them to life.
- 2). Despite significant differences, the various collectivist theories of democrats have a number of common features. These include:
- 1). collectivism in the interpretation of the people, recognition of the people as a single homogeneous whole, having an objective common interest and will that exists even before its awareness;
- 2). absence of contradictions within the people, consideration of political opposition as a pathology or an enemy subject to violent elimination;
- 3). collectivist (close to ancient) understanding of freedom as active equal participation of a citizen in the affairs of the entire state and society;
- 4). totalitarianism, the all-pervasive absolute nature of power, in fact exercised by leaders identified with the people (classes, nation), the complete defenselessness of the minority, including the individual;
- 5). eliminating the very problem of human rights, since the whole - the state - is already interested in the well-being of its own constituent parts;
- 6). general political mobilization, predominantly direct participation of citizens in governance, consideration of representative bodies and officials not as independent leaders within the limits of the law and responsible for the decisions made, but only as conductors of the will of the people, their servants;
- 7). declaration of social democracy, shifting the main emphasis from the legal declaration of political rights to ensuring social conditions for citizen participation in governance.
The theories of collectivist democracy have shown their practical inconsistency or, at least, incompatibility with democracy in its liberal understanding. Attempts to implement them inevitably led to the emergence of a new ruling class - the nomenklatura, to totalitarianism, the suppression of all individual freedom, and terror against dissidents. It turned out that the power of the people (class, nation) cannot be real without guarantees of individual freedom and other individual rights, without recognition and institutional consolidation of its role as the primary source of power.
The following general fundamental ideas of pluralistic democracy can be identified:
1). An interested group is a central element of a democratic political system that guarantees the realization of individual interests, rights and freedoms. In this case, the personality itself is relegated to the background, although its status as the primary subject of power is not denied;
General will as a result of conflict interaction various groups and their compromises. This will does not exist a priori, before the competition of various political actors, but is formed in the process of “reconciliation”, equalization of diverse interests;
- 3). rivalry and balance of group interests -- social basis democratic power, its dynamics;
- 4). checks and balances apply not only to the institutional sphere (liberalism), but also to the social sphere, where they are rival groups;
- 5). “reasonable egoism”, personal and, especially, group interests as policy generators;
- 6). the state is not a “night watchman” (liberalism), but a body responsible for the normal functioning of all sectors of the social system and supporting social justice in society. The theory and practice of a social state that provides decent living conditions for every person is quite compatible with the pluralistic theory of democrats. The state is also an arbiter that guarantees compliance with laws, rules of the game in the competition of diverse groups and does not allow the monopolization of power;
- 7). diffusion, dispersion of power between various centers of political influence: state institutions, parties, interest groups, etc.;
- 8). the presence in society of a value consensus, which presupposes recognition and respect by all participants in political competition of the foundations of the existing political system, democratic rules of the game, individual rights, and the law;
- 9). democratic organization of the basic groups themselves as a condition for adequate representation of the interests of their constituent citizens. Without this, democracy turns into pluralism of elites.
The pluralistic theory of democracy has found recognition and application in many countries around the world. However, her ideas are not controversial and are subject to criticism. One of the initial shortcomings of this theory is often considered to be the idealization of reality, the exaggeration of group identification of the population, and the participation of citizens in interest groups. In Western countries, only no more than one third of the adult population is actually represented in interest groups. Therefore, a model of democracy built according to pluralistic recipes will not be the rule of the majority.
In modern political thought, not only is the consistency of pluralistic theory questioned real life, but the very model of such democracy is criticized. It is argued that pluralistic democracy is conservative because it requires broad consent of all interested groups to make decisions, which is difficult to ensure in practice, especially during periods of political reform. Such democracy reduces the general will to the lowest threshold of consent achievable in society. Moreover, in a pluralistic system, universal, global, long-term and new interests find it difficult to make their way and gain recognition.
political democratization