The Basics of Government
A government is a group that has power to rule over a territory, which can be an entire country, a state or province within a country, or even a small neighborhood. Governments make laws, collect taxes and print money, and they have a monopoly on the use of force to ensure that people obey those laws. They also set the goals for a society and provide benefits for their citizens, such as education, healthcare, and infrastructure for transportation. The specifics of each government vary according to the country’s culture, historical circumstance and political ideals.
In most modern democracies, government is elected by the people to represent them. Some governments have multiple layers, with each layer representing a different level of the organization. In the United States, there are three main branches of government: the legislative branch (known as Congress), the executive branch (led by the president), and the judicial branch (the Supreme Court). These branches work together to form a system known as checks and balances. These ensure that each branch does not become too powerful and can be reined in by the other branches.
Governments have always played a crucial role in human history. They began to evolve when people realized that it was easier to protect themselves if they worked in groups and agreed on one person as leader of the group. The ancient Chinese built the Great Wall to protect their empire, and modern nations form alliances to fight against foreign invasion.
The economic role of government has evolved as well. Traditionally, a government has been responsible for providing goods and services that can’t be easily or cheaply produced in the market. These “non-excludable” and “non-rivaling” goods are known as public goods and include national security, healthcare, and education. Governments have the unique ability to tax and draw upon the resources of an entire nation, which allows them to provide these goods in large quantities.
Managing negative externalities and social inequality is another major responsibility of governments, but this task is difficult. Governments can be overly-regulatory or under-regulated, and they can easily miss the mark on policies designed to correct these spillover effects. Governments can also get bogged down in bureaucracy and lose sight of the need to keep taxes low and create jobs.
Some governments make it a priority to support particular ideologies, such as egalitarianism or individual liberty. The priorities of a government influence its decisions about what laws to make and how to enforce them. For example, if a government supports the idea that everyone should be treated equally, it will promote policies that reduce socioeconomic inequalities. If it supports the idea of individual liberty, it will place restrictions on how far law enforcement agencies can intrude into the private lives of its citizens. This can be seen in the way that certain countries restrict what newspapers may publish or limit the extent to which law enforcement agencies can tap phones. Governments can also have a surprisingly wide range of other interests that dictate their policy decisions, such as economic prosperity or protecting the environment.