Political Culture and Ideology

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Political Culture and Ideology

• Applying the Principles of the Declaration of
  Independence

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Major Themes of the Declaration of Independence
Self evident truths
We hold these truths to be self-evident
Human equality
All men are created equal
They are endowed by their Creator with certain
unalienable rights
Among these rights Life Liberty Pursuit of
happiness
Natural rights
Purpose of govt
To secure rights
Measure of Justice
Consent of the governed
Whenever any form of govt is destructive of the
security of natural rights
Right of revolution
Prudence Long-established govts shouldnt be
overthrown for light and transient
causes Experience Men are more disposed to
suffer while evils are sufferable than to right
themselves
Limits to the right of revolution
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Political Culture

• A general set of Ideas, attitudes and beliefs
• Shapes a regions politics
• Political Cultures in the US may identify with
  certain principles in the Declaration of
  Independence
• Political culture sometimes confused with
  ideology
• Most communities in the US participate in at
  least one of the following
• Traditionalism
• Individualism
• Moralism

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Traditionalism
Basic features
Associated region
Advantages
Disadvantages
Stability Predictability Laws and customs tend to
remain constant

• Strong attachment to long-established
  institutions
• Preference for traditional modes and orders
• Suspicion of change
• Family legacies

The Old South South Carolina North
Carolina Virginia Tennessee Georgia Mississippi Al
abama Louisiana Texas
Inflexibility Lack of social mobility Tolerance
of corruption in the public sector Hostility to
reform Fatalism
Examples If it aint broke, dont fix it. You
cant fight city hall. Uncontested
elections Political Dynasties (Bush, Thurmond,
Moncrieff, Kennedy)
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Individualism
Basic features
Associated region
Advantages
Disadvantages
Opportunity Privacy Recognition of individual
efforts Accountability

• Strong belief in self-reliance
• Preference for individual and independent action
  free enterprise
• Suspicion of public institutions
• Resistance to regulation
• The Self-Made Man

The Old West Wyoming Texas Colorado New
Mexico Arizona Nevada Montana North Dakota South
Dakota
Isolation Lack of community support Intolerance
of public sector involvement Tolerance of
corruption in the private sector, provided one
isnt caught
Examples Youll get my gun when you pry it from
my cold dead hands. Youve got nobody to blame
but yourself. Entrepreneurs, independent
contractors Caveat emptor
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Moralism
Basic features
Associated region
Advantages
Disadvantages
Community Accountability Active social support
structures safety nets

• Strong belief in community, commonwealth
• Preference for formal community action
• Suspicion of private institutions and interests
• Strong regulatory presence

New England Massachusetts New
Hampshire Connecticut Maine New
York Pennsylvania Also prevalent in the Pacific
NW and in capital cities

• Intrusiveness
• Tolerance of corruption in the public sector if
  it serves the moral duty of serving the
  commonwealth
• Inaction unless initiated by community officials
• High public debt high taxes

Examples Did you bring enough for
everybody? Were from the government and were
here to help you. Social Security, social
welfare programs Public education programs
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Political Culture v. Ideology

• Political Culture
• A set of general attitudes, ideas and beliefs
• Broadly informs and shapes a regions politics

• Ideology
• A set of specific attitudes, ideas and beliefs
• Provides or advocates a coherent plan for social,
  political, or economic action

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Examples of ideologies

• Economic ideologies
• capitalism
• communism
• globalism
• protectionism
• Keynesianism
• monetarism
• Market fundamentalism

• Political ideologies
• Libertarianism
• Liberalism
• Conservatism
• Anarchism
• Socialism
• Fascism
• Communism
• Communitarianism
• Statism

• Social ideologies
• Tribalism
• Ethnocentrism
• Nationalism
• Feminism
• Multiculturalism
• Supremacism

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What ideology Is

• A set of specific ideas, attitudes and beliefs
• Provides or advocates a coherent plan for social,
  political, or economic action
• Plan is consistent with, and is explained in
  terms of, the ideas, attitudes and beliefs held

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What ideology is not

• Ideology is not political culture
• Traditionalists are not necessarily conservatives
• Liberals are not necessarily moralists
• Ideology is not partisanship
• Democrats are not necessarily liberal
• Republicans are not necessarily conservative
• Ideology is not a policy position
• E.g. Abortion
• advocates are not necessarily libertarian or
  liberal
• opponents are not necessarily conservative or
  libertarian
• E.g. Immigration
• Open border advocates are not necessarily
  libertarian globalists
• Closed border advocates are not necessarily
  conservative ethnocentrists

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Comparative Ideology 1 Left and Right Wings
Motto of the French Revolution Liberté,
Egalité, Fraternité (liberty, equality,
brotherhood)
Origins in the French National Assembly
Advocates of Liberté and Fraternité, sympathetic
to the ancien régime, sat on the right side of
the room
Revolutionary Advocates of Liberté and Egalité,
opposing the ancien régime (the Old Order) sat on
the left side of the room
This distinction grafted onto the American
Congress in the early 19th Century
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Left and Right The Political Spectrum
The most common comparative model of ideological
preference in the US
Left Wing
Right Wing
Liberalism
Conservatism
Centrism
Socialism
Communism
Statism
Fascism