One of the most interesting aspects (when discussing comparative politics) is how the seemingly ideal political system is a democracy, as opposed to an authoritarian regime. In a democratic society, it’s clear that individual citizens have a lot of power, and the right to influence decisions that impact how their country is governed, but how can we be sure that a democracy is the best option? Authoritarian states, such as China limit the peoples power, but by doing so, strengthen their countries identity, and at the same time protect their country from outside interference, and resource exploitation. It’s difficult to think of how else a country could operate since I’ve only grown up understanding a democratic society.
Below are two links to articles I found on the Huffington Post website explaining a couple ways China takes control, & how maybe it’s for the better.
I have also grown up in a democratic society and do not have the sense of another country. But the media, has done a great job in showing me that other third world countries are not a great place to live. The only country that I think that does great is Sweden because it has a lot of civil services. The democratic system is the best way until somebody else comes and revolutionist a new system that is better. The book also has a very western look at government systems and does not show other systems that might be going strong.
ReplyDeleteYou make a very good point about how the textbook is written.
DeleteAlthough living in a democratic country does seem to be better than to live in an authoritarian country, it does not mean that it is the best answer to every countries problems. Most countries do need that that upper division power to help control and manage the state. The people in the country wanting to be democratic might not have the correct knowledge to what a democratic system means. this would create problems in the state and ultimately lead to another similar type of government like the one they had before.
ReplyDeleteI agree.
DeleteI get what you're saying about protection from outside interference, but having an authoritarian rule over people eventually gets old. In China, they take it to a whole different level by even censoring their google search engines! Did you know that terms like "democracy" and "human rights" are banned from their search feeds? These are some of the extremities they go to. I lived in Asia for 9 years so I have the perspective of someone who did not grow up in the US; not saying the US has the perfect democracy either since there is a lot of weirdness going on here too. But thankfully, I was in the Philippines and not China!
ReplyDeletehaha I like your response!!! And I totally agree, China though it has been successful in certain respects, definitely is not an example of a perfected political system.
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