Branches Of Government

The Federal Executive Branch

Education

                Department Of Education

                Admin Finances Schools And Students

Health And Human Services

Performs Health And Social Science Research

Assures Drug And General Food Safety

Veteran Affairs

                Creates Help Programs

                Runs Va Hospitals

                Operates National Cemeteries

Treasury

                Regulate Banks And Finical Intuitions

                Public Debt

                Prints $$

                Collets Income Taxes

Department Of Interior

                Manages Federal Land

                Runs Hydroelectric Plants

                Promotes Natural Recourse Conservation

Justice

                Admins State And Local Gov’t When Necessary

                Prevents And Controls Crime By Prosecuting Cases

                Enforces Federal Laws

                Runs Federal Prisons

                Ensures Public Safety

Agricultire

Usda

                Promotes Foreign And Domestic Agro

                Researches Growth Of Crops And Natural Recourses

                Ensures Safety Of Meat And Poultry

                Provides Anti Hunger Programs

Housing And Urban Development

                Funds Public Housing Projects

                Ensures Housing Equality

                Enforces Housing Laws

                Insures Finances And Mortgages

Homeland Security

                Prevents Terrorist Attacks

                Minimized Damage Don’t By Attackers

                Admins Coast Guard

                Admins Immigrations

State

                Oversees Embassies And Consulates

                Issues Passports

                Monitors And Admins Foreign Relations

Labor

                Enforces Minimum Wage

                Ensures Workplace Safety And Equality

                Admins Unemployment              

                Regulates Pensions

Commerce

                Forecasts The Weather

                Charts The Oceans

                Regulates Patents And Trademarks

                Complies Stats Of The Public

                Encourages Foreign Trade

Energy

                Coordates Energy Dispersal

                Oversees Production And Disposal Of  Nuclear Wepons

                Plans Future Energy Needs

Transportation

                Sets National Transport Policies

                Plans And Funds Construction For Highways, Aviation, Etc

Defense

                Military

                Civilian Workforce For The Department Of Defense

President

                Duties

                                Commander And Chief Of The Armed Forces

                                Makes Treaties

                                Suggest Laws

                                Gives Pardons

Vice President

                Presides Over Senate And Gives The Breaking Vote In Ties

                Decides Whether The President Is Able Or Not

First Lady

                President’s Spouse

Second Lady

                Vice President’s Spouse

The Cabinet

Order Of Succession

                President

                Vice President

                Speaker Of The House

                President Pro Tempore Of The Senate

Department Of State Secretary

                Department Of Treasury Sectary

                Department Of Defense Secretary

                Department Of Justice Attorney General

                Department Of Interior Secretary

                Department Of Agriculture Secretary

                Department Of Commerce Secretary

                Department Of Labor Secretary

                Department Of Human Services Secretary

                Department Of Housing And Urban Development Secretary

                Department Of Transportation Secretary

                Department Of Energy Secretary

                Department Of Educations Secretary

                Department Of Veteran Affairs Secretary

                Department Of Homeland Security Secretary

Federal Legislative Branch

Passes Laws, Either Pertaining To $ Or Social Matters

Senate

                100 Members

                Approves And Revies Presedental Decisioms

House Of Representatives

                435 Members

                Amount Per State Determined By Population

Checks Executive Branch

                Can Impeach (House)

                                Trial Done By Senate

                Selects President In Cease Of Ties

                Override Presidential Vetoes

                Power To Declare War

Checks On Judiciary

                Approves Federal Judges

                Initiate Constitutional Amendments

Executive Checks On It

                Veto Laws Sent By Legislature

Judicial Checks On It

                Judicial Review, Analyses Activities To Ensure They Are Doing Their Jobs

Self Checks

                Bills Must Be Passed By Both Chambers

                May Not Adjourn For More Than 3 Days Without Consent From Other House

Federal Judicial Branch

Courts

                Distract Courts

                                Criminal, Civil Matter, Etc

                Accolade Courts (Court Of Appeals)

                                Appeals

                                                No New Evidence Is Brought In, Only The Minutes Of The Former Court Hearing

                Supreme Court

                                Rules Not Guilty Or Innocent But Constitutional Or Unconstitutional

                                9 Judges Elected By President But Verified By House Of Representatives

                                No Term Limit

                                                Retirement, Death, Or Impeachment Are The Only Ways Out

Responsibilities

                All Courts Are Under How The Supreme Court Rules Laws

Arizona Executive Branch

Governor

                Head Of The State In Which They Reside

                Term Of 4 Years

                Powers Of The President Only Instate

                Can Appoint Judges

Secretary Of State

                Chief Elections Officer

                As Keeper Of The State Seal They Impressed Seal On Gubernational (Pertaining To The Governor) Papers

State Treasurer

                Banker For The State

                Pay Out State Funds

                Custodian Of Secretaries

State Attorney General

                Main State Attorney

                Has Executive Responsibility For Law Enforcement

Superintendent Of Public Instruction

                Controls State School

                Plans Budgets, Employments, Regulations, Etc

State Mine Inspector

                Documentation, Upkeep, And Safety Of All Mines In Arizona Working Or Closed

                Ensure The Safety Of The Communities That Preside Around Old Mines

                Protector Of Children And The Idiotic

Five Member Corporation Commission

                Regulates State Licensed Corporations Except For Federal Controlled Utilities (H2o, Gas)

                Pipeline And Railroad Construction And Safety

Line Of Succession

                Governor

                Secretary Of State

                State Treasurer

                Attorney General

                Superintendent Of Public Instruction

                Mine Inspector

                                (In Other States There Is A Lieutenant Governor As Second In Command)

Arizona Legislative Branch

Hand Out

Arizona Judiciary Branch

Handout

Maricopa County

Educational Services

                59 School Districts And 259 Other Charter Schools

Health Services

                Air Quality Department

Courts & Legal Matters

                Tax Courts Have All Jurisdiction Over Any Tax Matter

Public Safety

                County Sherriff

                                Homeland Security For The County

                                Emergency Management Personnel

                                Sherriff Officers

Public Works

                Solid Waste Management

                                Dispose Of Waste

Money

                Department Of Finance

Transportation

                Manages Signs And Roads

                Regulate The Buses

Flood Control

                Overseeing Implantation Flood Control Measures

                                I.E. Road Signs

Phoenix Government

Mayor

                In Charge Of Council Meetings

Council Member

                Represent The Districts

City Manager

Council Members And Mayor Say What Is Allowed In Phoenix

Ideally They Should Listen To The People For What They Have To Say

SAR 8.13.10

Self-Assessment #1                                                                                Friday, August 13

We’ve Two Weeks In The Books And It’s Time Look Back.  Where Do You Stand?  (Are You Going “Above And Beyond”, “Basically Fine” Or “Could You Do Better”?)  As You Think About These Things Also Consider The Following:

There Is Always More To Do…

One Of The Major Aspects Of This Class Will Be Your Reliance On The People Around You To Enhance Your Learning As You Work Together To Share Perspectives, Ideas Connections, Insight And Knowledge

So, With Regards To Participation, What Have You Done Well And What Could You Have Done Better?  To Put This In Other Terms, If You Continued On Your Current Path, Doing Nothing More And Nothing Less, How Successful Will You Be?

Finally, Set Two Goals For Yourself For The Next Two Weeks.  As You Think About These Goals, Be Reasonable.  We Are More Likely To Change Small Things Than We Are Toa Make Sweeping Changes As The Later Rarely Last.

Logistics

Type Your Self-Assessment / Reflection In A Word Document And Save It As Follows:

Lastname_Firstname_Ges_Sar.Doc

You Will Need A Document Such As This For Each Of Your Classes.  If You’ve Not Already Set Up Folders And Some Level Of Organization, Do It Now.

This Will Be An Ongoing Document / Dialogue / Discussion About Your Learning Journey.  For Now, You Will Have Only Two Weeks On Which To Reflect.  For Our Next Sar, You Will Have Goals (Set Here) And An Additional Two-Week Chunk To Ponder.  This Is Not To Say That You Are Only Thinking About This Specific Two-Week Chunk, But Rather The Entire Journey Thus Far As Well As Your Efforts In Reaching Your Goals.  Just Like A Blog, The Most Recent Entries Will Be At The Top Of The Document.

This Is Due Before The End Of Class, Friday, August 13.

What Is Democracy 8.10.10

“Democracy is itself, a religious faith. For some it comes close to being the only formal religion they have.”  –E.B. White

A principal that the control of authority comes from the public, and the ruler and non-ruler are the same

Popular sovereignty is common.

Often called “The Last Form Of Government”

The US Democracy

Constitutional Representative Democracy

English Democracy Influence

“A citizen of America will cross the ocean to fight for democracy, but will not cross the street to vote in a national election” –Unknown

Funny Fact  - There are more Democrats than Republicans in most places but most of them don’t vote.

Foundations

Greek Democracy

A.K.A. Athenian Democracy

~500 BC

Adult Males who finished their military duty could vote

Assembly, courts, council

100 elected

1000 by lot

Roman Republic

First overthrew Roman monarchy

509 BC and lasted 450 years

Complex constitution

Separation of powers

Direct Democracy

                People voted on laws instead of a representative

English Roots

The Magna Carta

                1215 AD

                King John Of England

                Everyone Had Certain Rights

                Legal Procedures

                The king was bound to the law as well

English Bill Of Rights

                An Act declaring the Rights and Liberties of the people

                Right to petition, Right to bear arms in defense.

Representative Government

                A representative votes on laws for the people

Philosophical Roots

Judeo Christian

                Legal Codes And Morality

                Old Testament

                10 Commandments

                All Human Created Equal – Genesis

John Locke

                Social Contract Theory

                Human Nature

                                Humans are tolerant and reasonable to each other

                Natural rights

                                “Life, Health, Liberty or possessions”

Charles De Montesquieu

                Separation of government into 3 branches.

Fundamental parts of us democracy

Seen in the Declaration of independence

Equality

                “All people talk about equality. The only thing they have in common is that they all are going to die” – Bob Dylan

Natural Rights Of Man

                “Democracy does not guarantee equality of conditions-it only guarantees equality of opportunity” – Irving Kristol

The Rule Of law

                Supremacy Of Law

8.9.10

What About These Types Of Government?

Each type of government has its advantages and disadvantages. They all try to establish some kind of order for the most part (with a few exceptions). They want to create order and some do achieve it while some fail. They rely on the people to follow some kind of leader that has power.

I would say the easiest is an anarchy because there is no order. Everyone is free to do as they wish and no one can stop them but themselves. It would also be the worst because there is no order and no one but the people governs themselves.

Most civilized would have to be a Republic as the people have a say in what happens. The people control themselves and there are balances between people.

“Democracy is itself, a religious faith. For some it comes close to being the only formal religion they have” -E.B. White

This is saying that people want this type of government because it works and they will fight for it. This can apply to the other government types as well as long as the people want it to survive.

"What is democracy?"

In the way me implement a democracy it is a combination of multiple government types. We see a republic because the citizens are involved in the government itself. A constitutional monarchy can be seen in the executive branch, a leader who has power and follows a construction to make decisions.

Government Types

Republic

The people/citizens have an active role in gov’t with no monarch or king

There have been many types of republican gov’t

There are representatives elected by the people to govern them

Venezuela has a federal republic

The U.S.A has a constitution based republic

Some are based off of religion i.e. Islamic republic

It is not hereditary

The people have power (think indirect demo) representatives can abuse their power

Not everyone has their voice heard

There can be a miscommunication between representatives and the people

Monarchy

Constitutional monarchy

Country that gives 1 person power and a parliament that counter balances his power

                Has to follow the constitution

Example is the UK but the monarch is really a figure

Coexists with parliament and constitution

Separates out powers

Absolute monarchy

One person has total power

                Rule has see fit

Can be passed via hereditary or elective where the people vote them in

One person does rule so it is a similar to a dictatorship

Diarchy

Two rulers

Separates power

One can have each ruler as a specialist

One person doesn’t do too much

If the 2 argue than there can be a civil war

Constitutional monarchy has the most balance

Elective monarchy exists in the Vatican

Totalitarian

It’s a dictatorship, one person rules over everything

Can not be disputed

Easy to rule

There is only one person so if they mess up than doomed

Ruler can do what he wants

Hitler is a key example

Latest one is in iraq

Anarchy

Uncontrolled theocracy

There is no government

There is no system

No taxes

People have absolutely free

People are ungoverned

No laws

Pros and cons are same

Doesn’t really work

Last anarchy may be Somalia

                Officially Albania after a failed Ponzi scheme and the people went nuts

                1998 is when it ended after a constitution was fixed

                Small regions of warring countries are at anarchy as well

Oligarchy

Ruled by a group

Can be passed down

Can be military based, religious, family, money

Like a Communism

Ruling body puts forth a lot of effort (normally)

Cuba, N. Korea, South Africa

The oligarchs put more effort into money than actual ruling

Theocracy

Ruled by the will of god

One person rules as a direct portal of god

All law must follow religious text

Nations conveys strict discipline

Do not have to elect a government official

Bills could be easily passed, people have no say

Does not allow much freedom

Much to strict

Must be all the same

Think zombies of god

Early civilizations had plenty of this

Iran, Vatican city

Aristocracy

Ruled by those who are the best able in the state

Loose rule

Best can eb by wealth, birthright, millitaryt power

Greeks had this

Dictatorship

Where one person has absolute power

They can govern with no consent of anyone

Dictator makes all decisions and tells them what to do

Hitler’s Germany, china, North Korea

Good dictators do only what they believe is right

Power rests solely on pone person

Not elected in

Parliamentary

2 branched, executive and legislative

Executive is parliament or king/queen

Legislative is House of Commons and House of Lords

Con: little checks and balances

Vocal vote between houses to make decisions

Additional Notes

Parliament

Like a legislative branch

Like out House of Representatives and Congress but more open

The Prime Minister is the big figure head.

Great Britain’s Queen has no real power; it is more of a tradition

                She can suggest a change but she has no power

Totalitarianism

One person has all control

Can be tied into other governments

Monarchy

Typically stays in the family

Anarchy

It is an absence of government

It is typically where everything starts

Those who push for it today are seen as crazy or hippies that do nothing (both are stereotypes)

In theory it can be peaceful

                If it is natural for people to get along so if we can all just get along

On the other side people have a “every man for themselves”

                Everyone will riot

Republican and Democratic are from old Greek and idea

Liberal and Conservative are the two sides of an anarchy

Aristocracy

Those who were “most intelligent” or wealthy

                In those times wealth typically denoted intelligence

Government run by the “best”

Republic

Every member of the society has an active role

Theocracy

A Government run by religion

There is a person who is a portal of god

It only works in a place where everyone is under one religion i.e. The Vatican

In other areas there are disputes

Feudalism

Ties in with a monarch and trickles down from there

Dictatorship and Totalitarianism typically tie together

All of the governments can tie together to create different rules

The U.S.A Is A Constitutional Representative Federal Democratic Republic

                Some say we are theocracy, aristocracy etc

Feudalism

What is it?

Feudalism is a political and military system between a feudal aristocracy (a lord), and his vassals.

How it works

A Lord would grand his Vassals a Fief (piece of land) in exchange for the Vassal’s military service. In theory, the king owned all or most of the land and gave it to his leading nobles in return for their loyalty and military service. The nobles in turn held land that peasants, including serfs, were allowed to farm in return for the peasants' labor and a portion of their produce. Under feudalism, people were born with a permanent position in society.

Good / Pros

It provided land to people so that they may make some kind of living.

People knew their place and it was predictable and systematic.

Bad / Cons

People could not move on the social scale. If you were unsatisfied than you were stuck.

One family would rule the entirety of the feudal kingdom, no new ideas or people could be introduced.

It seems like there are no laws or rules, only that the vassals were to give the king their power at any given time.

The vassal may have been required to yield a certain amount of his farm's output to his lord. This would make it so the lord is always on the top of the system and the presents are on the bottom,

If the presents fail to make anything than it will topple the rest of the stack.

Is there a place out there where it still exists?

Class 08.05.2010

Discussion Board Posts

“What is Government?”

Government is a system of ruling that is made by one or more people to control a system of people. It is made to give rules and restrictions to people.  It can be made to dictate a people into doing what the ruler(s) wish or it can be beneficial to the people to keep them safe. It is a safety net for some people so that they feel like they have something to blame when things go wrong.

“How Do You Feel About Government?”

I see a government as a safety net, or something people created to put the blame on. If something goes wrong than people like to have something to blame so that they can disconnect themselves from the problem.

There can be upsides to a government however; it can be a benefit to the people by helping them with their needs. It puts a face on a nation so that other nations can interact with them in a simpler manner. It is basically a portal to the rest of the world. The only problem I see with this is that if the representative is giving a bad image of the nation than the rest of the world associates that nation as unfavorable and does not wish to interact with them.

I feel that governments are necessary when it comes to helping create a face for the nation and helping the people. I feel that when the ruler(s) don’t fulfill that than the government needs to be fixed so that it works to better the people.

”Based on the reading, Government is Good has your views, thoughts or ideas of government changed?”

Overall there has not been much of a change in my mind. Governments are going to have flaws in one way or another. If the people are headstrong and don’t want to change than society moves nowhere, while the people who are open to change will see improvement.

As humans we want to be on the top but the people on top don’t want to share. The higher ups push down on the lovers to further increase the gap between them to space it out. This is no surprise to me, I didn’t know some of the details of how large the gap is but that was provided.