Should The Government Maintain Social Contract?

Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness— these were the unalienable rights our forefathers bestowed upon our new nation when drafting the Declaration of Independence; what a far cry from independent our nation has become. Our forefathers guaranteed life and freedom, and the pursuit of happiness; happiness was not a guarantee, but set forth as a challenge for every individual to define and actively pursue for themselves. Surely, when our forefathers declared independence from an oppressive and overbearing king they did not intend for the American Government to become a maternal state that coddles its citizens. Sadly, we have become just that: a nation of citizens dependent upon our government for everything from putting food in our stomachs, to saving money for our retirement.

The responsibilities of government are to protect its citizens by such means as our armed services or military weapons. Government is to ensure there is a way of fairly maintaining order as an example our police, National Guard, and to ensure every citizen has equal access to items, products, goods such as schools, and highways. However, government or politics often has a negative connotation too many as it is viewed as a way for lobbyists and those with money to make policies that are important or in some way helpful to them. Many view politics as dishonest and that politics is a manner in which someone or group benefits for their own advantage and not for society as a

The government’s role for the people is to challenge them like how contestants from “The Amazing Race” or “Fear Factor” are challenged. Government should be like a reality competition show filled with adventure and danger (Amazing Race, 2003) (Fear Factor, 2005). Just like the government in “The Hunger Games” (Collins, 2008). People should compete for rights and liberties. The competitions can be held under the government’s supervision. These competitions can involve multiple life daring tasks and only the ones that survive win. The losers or the ones not so fortunate die in the process, a true fight to the death. Government works from a federal standpoint and does not get involved in local affairs.

There exists a fine line between the degree of responsibility a government has for its citizens, and the control it assumes to ensure the proliferation of its power. While freedom may be a traditional American value, how it is defined is a question that has long been a source of debate. Furthermore, when an institution follows a course of action that becomes detrimental to society, what responsibility, if any, do the citizens have to show their dissent, and what form should that dissent take?

The Preamble to the United States Constitution poses a series of ideals intended as foci for the American people to uphold through the government; one such ideal is to “establish justice.” That is to say, elected representatives are to ensure the treatment of those under its jurisdiction is truthful, lawful, and fair. For successful fulfillment, this must be completely upheld across space and within all communities― essentially, it must be observed with equal opportunity in all areas of governed life.

We as the people should maintain the most crucial political power within our designated states. Let’s not allow one entity to govern all of us, when those representatives do not know what each state and those who live in it need. Our focus must remain on us. A strong National Government under the Constitution would give them too much power.

“ continual fear and danger of violent death and the life of men would be solitary, nasty, brutish, and short.” I completely agree with him, life without government would cause massive chaos like division, so bad that nothing will get done and our chances for advancing as a civilization will be nearly impossible. Danger would be lurking around every corner because there will be no one and nothing that can stop the “criminals”.

Political liberty and citizen equality go hand in hand for several reasons (Wayne, 2014, p. 11-16). Citizen equality is

Philosophers have struggled with determining the proper role of government. In the absence of government and laws, people could do whatever they wanted, and some of them would try to slaughter others and steal their property. This is the state called anarchy. People have realized that the safety of the people and the country would be in jeopardy in such a state. Thus, it is necessary for a country to have a government and/or ruler. However, a ruler must not have absolute power nor lack authority. But the protection of the people and the country alone is not enough for a country to prosper. The property and the natural rights of the people and the government must also be protected. Thus, the proper role of government is to protect the

When man is born, he is born with a natural freedom; as man moves from a state of nature to a state of civil society (sovereign), he consents to give up a degree of that freedom for protection, liberty, and safety. When we form these societies, we form them with like-minded individuals, all working towards a common goal: the common good. The state owes the people the defense of their rights and ensures their wellbeing, while in turn, the people provide the state with taxes, labor, resources, and manpower. Although the state wields a large degree of power over its subjects, the people create the legitimacy that the government has because they consent to enter the social contract. Consent is the key to making the social contract work. If everyone buys into it and believes I

INTRODUCTION: According to Politics in States and Communities (Dye and MacManus, 2009), government in the constitutional form is primarily about conflict resolution. It exists to find solutions or at least to set parameters for implementing solutions within strict limitations. At the state and local levels (which operate together under state authority), governments have the freedom to address issues and conflicts very directly through the governance policies and restrictions they put in place. For the federal government, however, decisions are tied more directly to what the US Constitution says or what it has been interpreted to mean, and it is very difficult to change.

In the realm of international politics, the system of democracy, which requests the civic participation of the entire population in exchange for civic rights, has emerged as the predominant system. The United States of America has evolved an intricate balance of civic rights and responsibilities through years of constitutional amendments, movements for expanded civil rights, and the building of a system of public services. In return for the right to vote, to pursue any career of one 's choosing, and to freely trade goods and services to acquire private property, the public commits to the responsibilities of voting, of obeying laws, of paying applicable taxes, and of being active in local politics. All of these features are incorporated

Throughout history, government has been criticized and called out for it’s inability to do it’s job of protecting its people properly. People see the government as power hungry, cold, and corrupt. This is evident throughout time when the people are discontent with their government. Henry David Thoreau once said, “That government is best which governs least.” Henry David Thoreau lived two hundred years ago, but his statement is still relevant today. I neither disagree or agree with his statement. Both forms of government has it’s flaws and benefits and I feel it’s dangerous to only agree with one side. The government should not be intertwined with the lives of the citizens but the government should not have a hands off approach either. I believe the government should be a balance of the hands off approach and the government that utilizes it’s power.

is seen as an evil. In conclusion, it will discuss how the absence of government would affect people’s lives.

Despite this kaleidoscope of opinions, fortunately there is a unifying point of agreement: ‘the task of every legitimate government is to secure a good society for its citizens.’ Nearly every political and economic philosopher from the time of Aristotle to Max Weber has agreed that