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ATTRIBUTES OF DEMOCRACY
Top ten things you need to know
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WHAT IS POLITICAL LIBERALISM?
1 WHAT IS POLITICAL LIBERALISM? Democracy the people have a voice – decisions based on majority rule also have to respect the minority that disagreed with the decision because all individuals have rights – not just those that agree with the majority.
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2 WHY DEMOCRACY IS GREAT allows the greatest amount of freedom
responds to the will of the people encourages people to be more creative allows for the peaceful and orderly change of government
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WHY DEMOCRACY IS NOT GREAT
3 WHY DEMOCRACY IS NOT GREAT majority can ignore the minority = tyranny of the majority is it really majority rule if only 50% +1 vote for something? how long it takes to make a decision; pluralism = many opinions and voices often the elite get more access to government; government representatives can start seeing themselves as the elite VOTER APATHY!
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4 DIRECT DEMOCRACY all people rule in all aspects one man - one vote
Rules for direct democracy all people rule in all aspects one man - one vote open communication to spread information educated society
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WHY USE REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY
5 WHY USE REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY most citizens in a society don’t have the time or interest to become fully educated in order to make informed decisions representative democracy = as a citizen I only have to make one decision – who am I going to vote for to represent me in making all of the decisions
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WAYS TO ENSURE OUR REPRESENTATIVES DO THEIR JOB
6 WAYS TO ENSURE OUR REPRESENTATIVES DO THEIR JOB representation by population - protects minorities because the poorest individual has the same voice as the richest person. periodic elections – ensures that the government has the mandate to rule
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SOME MORE WAYS TO ENSURE OUR REPRESENTATIVES DO THEIR JOB
7 SOME MORE WAYS TO ENSURE OUR REPRESENTATIVES DO THEIR JOB secret ballot - this protects the minority (not afraid to vote for a party that may not be all that popular) independent courts – essential for rule of law
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TWO MORE TECHNIQUES TO ENSURE DEMOCRATIC IDEALS ARE PROTECTED
8 TWO MORE TECHNIQUES TO ENSURE DEMOCRATIC IDEALS ARE PROTECTED political parties – whichever party gets the most votes demonstrates that this is the ideology the majority of the nation support. power of the purse
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ANOTHER WAY TO MAKE SURE REPRESENTATIVES ARE REPRESENTING
9 ANOTHER WAY TO MAKE SURE REPRESENTATIVES ARE REPRESENTING interest or lobby groups – not directly part of government but influences legislative processes
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ONE MORE WAY TO KEEP THOSE REPRESENTATIVES HONEST
10 ONE MORE WAY TO KEEP THOSE REPRESENTATIVES HONEST free press tells us what the government representatives are doing we can use it to influence our politicians
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LOBBY GROUPS/ELITE RULE
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Northwest Territories 44.1 1
Population (2015, in thousands) # of MPs (2015) Average size of ridings Ontario 13,792.1 121 114.0 Quebec 8,263.6 78 105.9 Nova Scotia 943.0 11 85.7 New Brunswick 753.9 10 75.4 Manitoba 1,293.4 14 92.4 British Columbia 4,683.1 42 111.5 Prince Edward Island 146.4 4 36.6 Saskatchewan 1,133.6 81.0 Alberta 4,196.5 34 123.4 Newfoundland 527.8 7 74.4 Northwest Territories 44.1 1 Yukon Territory 37.4 Nunavut Territory 36.9
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