AP Government Notes
Unit 1
Day 1: 1/27/24
What is a nation-state?-
- Extra national groups-
exist outside the concept of a nation-state.
-Any small group of people that want to have a country but do not
- the united nations counts as an extra-national group,
- any international group that exerts any policy over the world is an extra-national group
-military groups/ alliances count as well like N.A.T.O.
-terrorist groups like ISIS-
- ISIS thinks it's a nation-state but it's not considered one because there are no borders
and nobody else considers it a country.
-Major religions like the catholic church, organized Islamic faiths
- some people are against political leaders being religious in fear of the top religious
leaders running the country like President Kennedy being catholic and the Pope.
-multinational corporations- like Apple since it influences global politics and economics.
The United Fruit Company dominated southern American countries like Guatemala, and the
United Fruit Company practically ran the country due to them being able to boost the economy
which allowed them to practically puppet the political leaders there. Hence the term “Banana
republic”
Nation
- the word nation implies something very general about a country
- when we talk about a nation we talk about common culture. (religion, clothes, food, etc.)
- Some nations are more homogenous than others like Norway compared to the US.
- Most people have an idea that the US has a common culture (outside of the US)
- People are proud of their country/ identity which goes with a common culture
- It is hard to judge a common culture when you live there.
State
- The official part of a nation with the rules and political system
,What makes a country a country?
- Land- clearly defined boundaries
- if you define a boundary by a natural thing like a river you have to give it room
because the land can change.
- Border disputes are common
- People- who is a citizen?
-it's easier to become a member via immigration in the US than anywhere else in the
world
-Every country has its own rules for becoming a citizen.
- Government- some set of rules
- A country will need some sort of system of government
Sovereignty:
This means that no other political power is above you, and nobody else can tell the US
what to do. (United Nations, different countries, etc.)
- A state (like North Carolina) is being told what to do from the US which is why it's not
considered a country.
- The only time that we would by law do what another country tells us to do is if we had a
signed treaty.
- For a treaty to become a treaty it has to have a signature from the leader (present), and
it has to go to the Senate/Congress.
What is the purpose of government?
Order- laws, rules, people to enforce the laws, rights, court
- The government exists to maintain order
- Keeps us safe inside our borders
- We need to have some mechanism/ process that keeps us safe
- Government order allows us to do the things we want to do but requires us to do the
things we have to do, like taxes, follow the laws, documentation, attend school/require
that your children get an education/ apply for selective services (guys only), complete
the census.
Security:
- Keeps us safe outside our borders/defends us from other countries
,Economy
- Economic stability
- The US dollar has value because the government says so and was originally backed up
with gold and silver.
- Currency we have faith in
Services
- Some people not all people believe that the government exists to provide services
- The main argument is what services the government should provide
- In some countries, hospitals and medical care is provided by the government
- Like building bridges, roads, food stamps, public libraries/ schools
Welfare: Anytime the government provides a payment for your services
- 70 different types of welfare company
- Welfare is what we spend the most money on
- Didn't exist in 1965
Day 2: 1/28/24
● What is the purpose of government?
- Some people say The purpose of government is to do those things we cannot do
for ourselves, like operating a court of law, protecting us from threats, etc.
- Small government types say that the government shouldn't do things we can do
for ourselves, like public school when homeschooling works.
● What form best achieves this/ these purposes? What is the
nature of man?
For most of these philosophers, their answer to the question of what form of government we
should have is based on their opinion of the nature of man.
Plato
Ordained by the god to have a certain role
Hobbs
Mans's natural state is war, left to our own devices we will kill ourselves.
The absolute ruler that provides order and security
, The social contract between leaders and civilians surrendering freedom for safety and
security.
- Once this social construct is created you can't rise against the ruler since you
made a deal.
Tutor of the two princes during the English Civil War, watched the kid's father be
executed
- .Opinion may be based on the English Civil War, watching violence for decades.
King James got into trouble because the English parliament said no.
France doesn't have a parliament, it has an absolute monarchy, king has unchecked
power.
Rousseau
Philosopher and writer about politics, philosophy, and life in general
Writes a book called The Social Contract
- Says that man is born perfect, “the noble savage” is that you and I living on our
own (berry picking, etc.) are perfect, but everywhere man is in chains due to
when you put us in society with other people it makes us jealous.
- Living in society makes us jealous of others
- We become flawed when you put us with other people
He says that to solve the problem of social corruption, we are going to enter into a
social contract.
With Hobbs, we form a contract with an absolute monarch
In Rousseau, we surrender our liberty to each other “general will” which is a concept of
democracy
- We agree that we will go along with whatever the group decides
- Get rid of this jealousy and greed
- He said it might not be good individually but good as a group
Rousseau says that if you don't like how things are going, you can't say no since you
formed the social contract.
- Anticipated what people will say next, how even if someone signed the construct
(like a grandfather) you still have to obey the construct since you imply you want
to be in the social construct for going along with that.
Voltaire
Writes at the same time as Rousseau
Gadfly- social critic, prods at the worst of society
Unit 1
Day 1: 1/27/24
What is a nation-state?-
- Extra national groups-
exist outside the concept of a nation-state.
-Any small group of people that want to have a country but do not
- the united nations counts as an extra-national group,
- any international group that exerts any policy over the world is an extra-national group
-military groups/ alliances count as well like N.A.T.O.
-terrorist groups like ISIS-
- ISIS thinks it's a nation-state but it's not considered one because there are no borders
and nobody else considers it a country.
-Major religions like the catholic church, organized Islamic faiths
- some people are against political leaders being religious in fear of the top religious
leaders running the country like President Kennedy being catholic and the Pope.
-multinational corporations- like Apple since it influences global politics and economics.
The United Fruit Company dominated southern American countries like Guatemala, and the
United Fruit Company practically ran the country due to them being able to boost the economy
which allowed them to practically puppet the political leaders there. Hence the term “Banana
republic”
Nation
- the word nation implies something very general about a country
- when we talk about a nation we talk about common culture. (religion, clothes, food, etc.)
- Some nations are more homogenous than others like Norway compared to the US.
- Most people have an idea that the US has a common culture (outside of the US)
- People are proud of their country/ identity which goes with a common culture
- It is hard to judge a common culture when you live there.
State
- The official part of a nation with the rules and political system
,What makes a country a country?
- Land- clearly defined boundaries
- if you define a boundary by a natural thing like a river you have to give it room
because the land can change.
- Border disputes are common
- People- who is a citizen?
-it's easier to become a member via immigration in the US than anywhere else in the
world
-Every country has its own rules for becoming a citizen.
- Government- some set of rules
- A country will need some sort of system of government
Sovereignty:
This means that no other political power is above you, and nobody else can tell the US
what to do. (United Nations, different countries, etc.)
- A state (like North Carolina) is being told what to do from the US which is why it's not
considered a country.
- The only time that we would by law do what another country tells us to do is if we had a
signed treaty.
- For a treaty to become a treaty it has to have a signature from the leader (present), and
it has to go to the Senate/Congress.
What is the purpose of government?
Order- laws, rules, people to enforce the laws, rights, court
- The government exists to maintain order
- Keeps us safe inside our borders
- We need to have some mechanism/ process that keeps us safe
- Government order allows us to do the things we want to do but requires us to do the
things we have to do, like taxes, follow the laws, documentation, attend school/require
that your children get an education/ apply for selective services (guys only), complete
the census.
Security:
- Keeps us safe outside our borders/defends us from other countries
,Economy
- Economic stability
- The US dollar has value because the government says so and was originally backed up
with gold and silver.
- Currency we have faith in
Services
- Some people not all people believe that the government exists to provide services
- The main argument is what services the government should provide
- In some countries, hospitals and medical care is provided by the government
- Like building bridges, roads, food stamps, public libraries/ schools
Welfare: Anytime the government provides a payment for your services
- 70 different types of welfare company
- Welfare is what we spend the most money on
- Didn't exist in 1965
Day 2: 1/28/24
● What is the purpose of government?
- Some people say The purpose of government is to do those things we cannot do
for ourselves, like operating a court of law, protecting us from threats, etc.
- Small government types say that the government shouldn't do things we can do
for ourselves, like public school when homeschooling works.
● What form best achieves this/ these purposes? What is the
nature of man?
For most of these philosophers, their answer to the question of what form of government we
should have is based on their opinion of the nature of man.
Plato
Ordained by the god to have a certain role
Hobbs
Mans's natural state is war, left to our own devices we will kill ourselves.
The absolute ruler that provides order and security
, The social contract between leaders and civilians surrendering freedom for safety and
security.
- Once this social construct is created you can't rise against the ruler since you
made a deal.
Tutor of the two princes during the English Civil War, watched the kid's father be
executed
- .Opinion may be based on the English Civil War, watching violence for decades.
King James got into trouble because the English parliament said no.
France doesn't have a parliament, it has an absolute monarchy, king has unchecked
power.
Rousseau
Philosopher and writer about politics, philosophy, and life in general
Writes a book called The Social Contract
- Says that man is born perfect, “the noble savage” is that you and I living on our
own (berry picking, etc.) are perfect, but everywhere man is in chains due to
when you put us in society with other people it makes us jealous.
- Living in society makes us jealous of others
- We become flawed when you put us with other people
He says that to solve the problem of social corruption, we are going to enter into a
social contract.
With Hobbs, we form a contract with an absolute monarch
In Rousseau, we surrender our liberty to each other “general will” which is a concept of
democracy
- We agree that we will go along with whatever the group decides
- Get rid of this jealousy and greed
- He said it might not be good individually but good as a group
Rousseau says that if you don't like how things are going, you can't say no since you
formed the social contract.
- Anticipated what people will say next, how even if someone signed the construct
(like a grandfather) you still have to obey the construct since you imply you want
to be in the social construct for going along with that.
Voltaire
Writes at the same time as Rousseau
Gadfly- social critic, prods at the worst of society
