Without some kind of government,
anarchy
develops. Anarchy means there is no ruling body in
power, which results inmass chaos, confusion, and
civil war for citizens. This often happens when
agreement for government cannot be reached among
the warring groups within some region or country. The
citizens of Somalia, which is located in East Africa,
have been contending with anarchy since 1991. This
is an example of why it is so important to have a
strong effective government—to prevent anarchy.
Governments can be strong, but they are not
necessarily good for citizens. For example, rulers who
remove the rights and freedoms of their residents are not
interested in fairness and justice. They are not interested
in elections where people are free to vote for the
candidate of their choice. Such rulersmay be found in a
theocracy, one-party state, dictatorship, or military regime.
The formof government in the United States is
considered amulti-party
democracy
. Thismeans that we
are governed by people who have been appointed or
elected to office. It means elections in which citizens
have the right to vote for candidates they think can do
the best job in running the government. This formof
representative democracy is known as a
republic
. In our
Pledge of Allegiance, does the phrase “. . . and to the
republic, for which it stands . . .” sound familiar?
Many people take our democratic formof government
for granted. To take for grantedmeans that we expect
something (our freedoms) to always be available, but we
forget how fortunate we are to have them. Although our
democratic government may not work well all of the time
for all of the people, it does provide us with written sets
of rules for governing us. If all of the freedoms we have
acquired were suddenly abolished, life would bemuch
more difficult. One only needs to view the world nightly
news to be reminded of this.
A country that is ruled by one person with absolute authority.
People do not have the right to vote or disagree, nor do they
have any freedoms.
A country that is governed by kings and queens.
A country in which power is held by a religious ruler or rulers.
A country in which all power is held by one political party. A
communist
government is an example of this kind of system.
A country where the armed forces (usually the army) seizes
power froma weak government. Power is held by at least one
military officer. Sometimes, the officer becomes a dictator.
In this country, people are given the choice to elect candidates
fromamong several parties. There are two forms of democracy.
A. In a
constitutional monarchy
, themonarch has no real
power. Power is nationally held by the PrimeMinister who is
the leader of the largest party in the law-making body.
B. In a
constitutional republic
, the voters choose a leader and
elect people to the law-making bodies. This is now themost
common formof government in the world.
Dictatorship:
Monarchy:
Theocracy:
One Party
State:
Military:
Multi-party
Democracy:
DIFFERENT TYPESOF GOVERNMENT
Why is Good Government So Important?
105
Pictured are
Somalian refugees in
Kenya. Somalia has
been fighting a civil
war since 1991.
Many Somalians
have left their homes
to escape the fighting.
Some of these refugees
are living in huts and
plastic tents.
NorthKorean dictator Kim
Jong-il, who exercises
absolute control over the
government and the country.
