Political Systems: Demarchy and Direct Democracy

Political Systems

• Demarchy: a system based on multiple decision-making groups, each focused on a specific function (e.g., transport, parks, land use), with members chosen randomly every year.

Direct Democracy

• Enables the public to vote directly on proposed constitutional amendments, laws, treaties, or policy decisions.
• Includes referendums and initiatives as key forms of direct democracy.

Liberal Democracy

• Emphasizes separation of powers, an independent judiciary, and a system of checks and balances between branches of government.
• Characterized by multi-party systems with at least two persistent, viable political parties.

Social Democracy

• An evolutionary form of democratic socialism that aims to achieve socialism through established political processes.
• Gradual and peaceful approach to achieving socialism.

Socialism

• A political and economic theory that advocates for community ownership or regulation of the means of production, distribution, and exchange.

Democracy

• A government owned by the people, for the people.

Communism

• A political theory derived from Karl Marx, advocating class war and a society in which all property is publicly owned.
• Each person works and is paid according to their abilities and needs.

Autocratic Systems

Despotism

• A political system where the ruler holds absolute power.

Dictatorship

• A form of government where one person or a small group possesses absolute power without effective constitutional limitations.

Tyranny

• A nation under a cruel and oppressive government.

Government and Society

• A tyrannical government is characterized by being cruel and oppressive.

Types of Societies

• An anarchic society is organized based on involuntary cooperation, lacking political institutions and hierarchical government.

Stateless Society

• A stateless society is a society that operates without the presence of a governing state.