Politics, Government, and Economy: Interplay and Challenges

Political, Government, and the Political Economy - Politics is the social institution through which power is acquired and exercised by some Individuals and groups - Government – a formal organization that has legal and political authority to regulate Relationships among people in a society and between the society and others outside its Borders - Economy is the social institution that ensures the maintenance of society throughout the Production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services - Political economy – the interdependent workings and interests of political and economic Systems Economic Systems and the Underground Economy - Capitalism - Characterized by private ownership, from which personal profits can be derived Through market competition and without government intervention - Socialism - Characterized by public ownership of the means of production, the pursuit of collective Goals, and centralized decision making. - Mixed economies - A system that combines characteristics of capitalism and socialism - The underground economy Problems in the Global Economy - Inequality based on uneven economic development

- Primary-sector production – the extraction of raw materials and natural resources From the environment - Secondary-sector production – the processing of raw materials into finished products - Tertiary-sector production, which means that workers provide services rather than Goods as their primary source of livelihood - Multinational, Transnational, and international companies, and the lack of accountability - Multinational corporations operate in more than one country, have a centralized Management system and have vast investments in other countries. - Transnational corporation – a large scale, complex business organization that is Registered and operates in more than one country at a time and that has the Legal power to enter contracts. - Concentration of wealth - Monopoly exists when a single firm control an industry and accounts for all sales in A specific market - Oligopoly – a situation in which a small number of companies or suppliers control an Entire industry or service - Corporate welfare - The national debt and consumer debt - Unemployment Problems in U.S. Politics - Political parties, elections, and public discontent - Political party is an organization whose purpose is to gain and hold legitimate

Control of government - Partisanship, voter participation, and the gender gap - Gender gap – the difference between a candidate’s number of votes from women and men