Different Types of Government

Justice, equality, civil liberties all of these are examples of values and rights that are protected by the government. Often, the government is the only institution capable of making these core political values a reality. Without the public sector in play, these values usually come in short supply. The governments goal should be to do what is best for the people by installing a healthy and active group of leaders. Take for example the first words expressed in the U.S. Constitution, We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union The Founding Fathers of the American Nation established government, knowing that in doing so, they would be able to form a more perfect union. Citizens must recognize this same truth government is the only institution capable of protecting and nourishing a nation. In order to truly appreciate the role a superior government plays, one must fully understand the differences between a republic, a democracy and a dictatorship. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a republic as, a country that is governed by elected representatives and by an elected leader (such as a president) rather than by a king or queen. A republic is run by elected representatives and is ruled by set laws, with a constitution to guide what laws may be instituted. The earliest form of this type of government was the Roman Republic. The Roman Republic operated by a system that elected officials to the Roman Senate. The elects then governed the country by passing new laws that were in line with the constitution or by insuring that previous laws continued to be followed. A republic, by numerous standards, is the highest form of government nevertheless, others believe differently. Secondly, many scholars believe a democracy is a favorable form of government. Originating from Ancient Athens, a democracy in the Greek language translates to demo and kratia, which, literally, means rule of the people. In a democracy, the people are the government. For example, when a law needed to be presented in Ancient Athens, all the people would gather together to hear the idea, then they would vote either yes or no. While the thought of a government run fully by the citizens sounds wonderful, strong limitations present themselves in large societies. Consider all the chaos when voting for a law in a country like America with approximately 953 million citizens. How could a government ensure everyone was present to hear the idea Hence the reason most nations only democratically elect leaders. Yet, certain leaders are not ideal or beneficial for countries. Finally, the least superior method of governing is a dictatorship. Merriam-Websters dictionary defined the word as, a government or country in which total power is held by a dictator or a small group. Dictatorships can be frightening since the people have no real say for example, Nazi Germany. Adolf Hitler, along with his National Socialist Party, controlled the German government. They changed laws to suit themselves, declared war on several nations and released propaganda to manipulate the people into believing in their decisions. When citizens began speaking out, they were arrested or killed for not submitting to the dictatorship. One can see how this, versus the republic and democratic, is not a positive way of governing. To recapitulate, by examining a republic, a democracy and a dictatorship, one can clearly see the differences between these three forms of governments and that a republic stands higher than all. In a republic form of a government, the citizens still possess personal freedom, but are governed by a higher authority in order to protect and serve the people. Sequentially, since the people are the ruling authority in a democracy, there leaves room for error and chaos due to a plethora of opinions. Finally, the most restraining style of government, a dictatorship, not only frustrates the citizens but puts them in harms way due to having only one governing authority. Given this information, people still refuse to agree on the highest form of government. So the question remains, which is the superior authority Alyse Randolph English II Example Essay 09/12/14