Civics is the study of citizenship and government with particular attention given to the role of citizens― as opposed to external factors― in the operation and oversight of government.

Within a given political or ethical tradition, civics refers to educating the citizens about their obligations and rights within that tradition. Ethics is a branch of Philosophy dealing with right and wrong in human behavior Education encompasses both the Teaching and Learning of Knowledge, proper conduct, and technical competency When these change, so often does the definition of civics. Related education in history, religion and media literacy is often included. History is the study of the past particularly the written record Those who study history as a Profession are called Historians Etymology A religion is a set of Tenets and practices often centered upon specific Supernatural and moral claims about Reality, the Cosmos Media literacy is the process of accessing analyzing evaluating and creating messages in a wide variety of media modes genres and forms In the United States, this is the explicit rationale for public education—to ensure the United States Constitution is upheld by citizens who must, at least, know what it is. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Public education is education mandated for or offered to the children of the general public by the Government, whether national regional or local provided by an institution The Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme Law of the United States.

When applied to cities and their organization, it is often very difficult to distinguish civics from theories of urban planning. When applied to rural areas, it is difficult to distinguish from theories of rural development. Note This article provides definition of Rural development See Rural Development for Rural Development Agency of the United States Department of Agriculture ( USDA The history of civics dates back to the earliest theories of these by Plato in ancient Greece and Confucius in ancient China. Biography Early life Birth and family Plato was born in Athens Greece The term ancient Greece refers to the period of Greek history lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca Confucius ( lit " Master Kung " September 28, 551 BC - 479 BC) was a Chinese thinker and social philosopher China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National These in general have led to modern distinctions between the West and the East, and two very different concepts of right and justice and ethics in public life. The term Western world, the West or the Occident ( Latin: occidens -sunset -west as distinct from the Orient) can have multiple meanings The term Eastern world refers very broadly to the various Cultures social structures and philosophical systems of " the East " JUSTICE is a Human rights and law reform organisation based in the United Kingdom. Ethics is a major branch of Philosophy, encompassing right conduct and good life

Of special concern are the choice of a form of government and (if this is any form of democracy) the design of an electoral system and ongoing electoral reform. A system of government is a term that refers to the set of political Institutions by which a Government of a State is organized in order to exert its powers Democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is held completely by the people under a free electoral system A voting system allows voters to choose between options often in an Election where candidates are selected for public office. Electoral reform is change in Electoral systems to improve how public desires are expressed in election results This involves explicitly comparing voting systems, wealth distribution and the decentralization of political and legal power, control of legal systems and adoption of legal codes, and even political privacy—all seen as important to avoid a dystopic carceral state or a lapse into some undesirable state of totalitarianism or theocracy. A voting system allows voters to choose between options often in an Election where candidates are selected for public office. Wealth derives from the old English word "weal" which means "well-being __FORCETOC__ Decentralization or Decentralisation (see Spelling differences) is the process of dispersing Decision-making governance closer to the people Power is a measure of a person's ability to control the environment around them including the behavior of other people The three major legal systems of the world today consist of civil law, Common law and Religious law. A Code is a type of legislation that purports to exhaustively cover a complete system of laws or a particular area of law as it existed at the time the code was enacted by a Political privacy has been a concern since Voting systems emerged in ancient times A carceral state is a state modelled on the idea of a Prison. Totalitarianism (or totalitarian rule) is a concept used to describe Political systems where a State regulates nearly every aspect of public and private Theocracy is a form of government in which a god or deity is recognized as the supreme civil ruler Each of these concerns tends to make the process of governance different, as variations in these norms tend to produce a quite different kind of state. Civics was often simply concerned with the balance of power between say an aristocracy and monarchy—a concern echoed to this day in the struggles for power between different levels of rulers—say of the weaker nation-states to establish a binding international law that will have an effect even on the stronger ones. Aristocracy is a form of Government, where rule is established through an internal struggle over who has the most status and influence over society and internal relations A monarchy is a Form of government in which supreme power is actually or nominally lodged in an individual who is the Head of state, often for life or For the online game see Jennifer Government NationStates. The nation-state is a certain form of State that derives its legitimacy International law is the term commonly used for referring to the system of implicit and explicit agreements that bind together nation-states in adherence to recognized values and standards Thus world government is itself properly a civic problem. World government is the concept of a political body that would make interpret and enforce International law.

On smaller scales, modern human development theory attempts to unify ethics and small-scale politics with the urban and rural economics of sustainable development. Human development theory is a theory that merges older ideas from Ecological economics, Sustainable development, Welfare economics, and Feminist Ethics is a major branch of Philosophy, encompassing right conduct and good life Politics Politics is the process by which groups of people make decisions Economics is the social science that studies the production distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Sustainable development is a pattern of resource use that aims to meet human needs while preserving the environment so that these needs can be met not only in the present Notable theorists including Jane Jacobs and Carol Moore argue that political secession of either cities or distinct bioregions and cultures is an essential pre-requisite to applying any widely shared ethics, as the ethical views of urban and rural people, different cultures or those engaged in different types of agriculture, are irreconcilably different. Jane Jacobs, OC, OOnt ( May 4, 1916 – April 25, 2006) was an Carol Moore (born 1948 is an Ethicist and systems theorist best known for her theories of Secession and her analysis of Mahatma Gandhi 's Secession (derived from the Latin term secessio is the act of withdrawing from an organization union or especially a political entity Urban secession is a city's Secession from its surrounding region to form a new political unit Bioregionalism is a term used to describe a political cultural and environmental system based on naturally-defined areas called bioregions or Ecoregions Bioregions are defined This extreme advocacy of decentralization is hardly uncommon, and leads to the minimal theory of civics - anarchism. __FORCETOC__ Decentralization or Decentralisation (see Spelling differences) is the process of dispersing Decision-making governance closer to the people Anarchism is a Political philosophy encompassing theories and attitudes which support the elimination of all compulsory Government, i

Contents 1 Civic theory 2 Notes 3 See also 4 External links

Civic theory

Most civic theories are more trusting of public institutions, and can be characterizing on a scale from least (mob rule) to most (the totalitarian) degree of trust placed in key public institutions. Ochlocracy ( Greek: οχλοκρατία or okhlokratía; Latin: ochlocratia) is government by mob or a mass of people Totalitarianism (or totalitarian rule) is a concept used to describe Political systems where a State regulates nearly every aspect of public and private At the risk of extreme oversimplification, an historical view of civic theory in action suggests that the theories be ranked as follows:

• Ochlocracy (aka: Mob Rule) — trusting of the instincts and power of large groups—no consistent civics at all. Ochlocracy ( Greek: οχλοκρατία or okhlokratía; Latin: ochlocratia) is government by mob or a mass of people ^[1]
• Anarchism — no government or other hierarchy, a common ethical code enforced only by personal governance and voluntary association. Anarchism is a Political philosophy encompassing theories and attitudes which support the elimination of all compulsory Government, i In the context of a code that is adopted by a profession or by a governmental or quasi-governmental organ to regulate that profession an ethical code may be styled as a code of professional A voluntary association or union (also sometimes called a voluntary organization, unincorporated association, or just an association) is a group ^[2]
• Minarchy — a minimal hierarchy—e. In Civics, minarchism, sometimes called minimal Statism, small government, or limited-government Libertarianism g. sometimes said to include eco-anarchism
• Libertarianism — a philosophy based on the premise that in order to maximize personal freedom, society should value the acquisition of private property over the public good. Green anarchism is a school of thought within Anarchism which puts an emphasis on Environmental issues. Libertarianism is a term used by a broad spectrum of political philosophies which prioritize individual Liberty and seek to minimize or even abolish the Property is any physical or virtual entity that is owned by an individual In Economics, a public good is a good that is non-rivaled and non-excludable.
• Direct democracy — decisions made directly by citizens without guidance or moral suasion, e. Direct Democracy is a movement within the British Conservative Party dedicated to localism and Constitutional reform as a means of reviving public g. as advocated by H. Ross Perot, usually relying on multiple choice laid out by experts
• Deliberative democracy — decisions made by locally-grouped citizens obligated to participate in consensus decision making process, e. Henry Ross Perot (born June 27 1930 is an American businessman from Texas, who is best known for seeking the office of President of the United States in For the 1974 John Wayne Crime drama movie see McQ. Multiple choice is a form of Assessment in which respondents Deliberative democracy also sometimes called discursive democracy, is a term used by some political theorists to refer to any system of political decisions based WikipediaConsensus here as this is the article namespace and that information is irrelevant to the reader g. as advocated by Ralph Nader
• Bioregional democracy — a deliberative democracy regulated by a caste of highly-qualified scientific advisors (both ecologists and ethicists) who can use scientific method to challenge or veto major ecological decisions, means of measuring well-being or selecting criteria for moral purchasing by the entire bioregional state
• Technocracy — reliance on castes of scientists, e. Ralph Nader (born February 27 1934 is an American Attorney, Author, Lecturer, political activist, and independent candidate for President Bioregionalism is a term used to describe a political cultural and environmental system based on naturally-defined areas called bioregions or Ecoregions Bioregions are defined Deliberative democracy also sometimes called discursive democracy, is a term used by some political theorists to refer to any system of political decisions based Ecology (from Greek grc οἶκος oikos, "house(hold" and grc -λογία -logia) is the scientific study of An ethicist is one whose judgment on Ethics and Ethical codes has come to be trusted by a specific Community, and (importantly is expressed in some way Scientific method refers to bodies of Techniques for investigating phenomena A veto, Latin for "I forbid" is used to Denote that a certain party has the right to stop unilaterally a certain piece of Legislation. Quality of life is the degree of well-being felt by an individual or group of people Ethical consumerism is buying products and services that are made ethically. Technocracy: A form of government in which scientists and technical experts are in control "technocracy is described as that society in which those who govern justify themselves A scientist, in the broadest sense refers to any person that engages in a systematic activity to acquire Knowledge or an individual that engages in such practices g. doctors to rule society, and define risk for the whole society - sometimes generalized into anticipatory democracy. A physician, medical practitioner or medical doctor who practices Medicine, and is concerned with maintaining or restoring human Health Risk is a Concept that denotes the precise probability of specific eventualities Anticipatory democracy is a theory of Civics relying on democratic Decision making that takes into account predictions of future events that have some credibility Can be interpreted as leading to or including kleptocracy
• Theocracy - government lead by religion, beliefs or culture. A kleptocracy (sometimes cleptocracy, occasionally kleptarchy) ( root klepto+kratein = rule by thieves) is a term applied to a Theocracy is a form of government in which a god or deity is recognized as the supreme civil ruler May be led by powerful religious figures such as the Pope and follows rules based on religious documents.
• Aristocracy — general trust in one class in society to rule and protect, e. Aristocracy is a form of Government, where rule is established through an internal struggle over who has the most status and influence over society and internal relations g. members of particular noble families that have worked for and/or defended the community across many generations (i. e. "old" money), upholding traditions, standards of living, art, culture, commerce, and defense. Not to be confused with plutocracy, where rule is based solely on financial wealth. Plutocracy is rule by the wealthy or power provided by wealth
• Constitutional monarchy — a monarch, possibly purely symbolic and devoted to moral example, avoiding vesting such popularity in any less trustworthy political figure—typically tied to at least some deliberative institutions, and making the monarch a tiebreaker or mediator or coach, e. A constitutional monarchy, or a limited monarchy, is a form of Constitutional Government, wherein either an elected or hereditary Monarch is Moral example is trust in the Moral core of another a Role model, without the obvious mediation of any theory or language g. Queen Elizabeth II and Tony Blair
• Representative democracy — a political class of elected representatives is trusted to carry out duties for the electors - these may be responsible to any group in society, or none, once elected. For the ship see RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Context States headed by Elizabeth II Anthony Charles Lynton "Tony" Blair (born 6 May 1953 is a British Politician who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to Representative democracy is a form of government founded on the principles of the people's representatives
• Absolute monarchy — a monarch who rules for life and can pass on this rule to his or her heirs, but is responsible to some social ideal or culture that has trained him or her to carry out these duties, e. Absolute monarchy is a monarchical Form of government where the king and queen have absolute power over everything g. Louis XIV, Hirohito, most dynastic Emperors, Augustus Caesar. Early years Birth and ancestry Louis XIV was born in the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye on September 5 1638 and bore the Heir apparent also known as, (April 29 1901 – January 7 1989 was the 124th Emperor of Japan according to the traditional order reigning from December 25 1926 until his death Augustus ( Latin: IMPERATOR·CAESAR·DIVI·FILIVS·AVGVSTVS September 23 63 BC – August 19 AD 14) born Gaius Octavius Thurinus, was
• Dictatorship — a political or military ruler who has the powers of the monarch, but whose basis for rule is not hereditary, but based upon military or political power, or by popular election, e. A dictatorship is usually defined as an autocratic Form of government in which the Government is ruled by a Dictator. g. Benito Mussolini, Napoleon Bonaparte, Adolf Hitler, Julius Caesar, Josef Stalin, Mao ZeDong.
• Socialism - a broad array of ideologies and political movements with the goal of a socio-economic system in which property and the distribution of wealth are subject to control by the community for the purposes of increasing social and economic equality and cooperation. Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the Means of production and distribution An ideology is a set of beliefs aims and Ideas especially in politics A political movement is a Social movement working in the area of Politics. Socioeconomics or socio-economics is the study of the relationship between economic activity and Social life. ^[3]

Note: examples are included only to help familiarize readers with the basic idea of the scale—they are not intended to be conclusive or to categorize these individuals other than the civics that they exercise or exemplify.

Civics refers not to the ethical or moral or political basis by which a ruler acquires power, but only to the processes and procedures they follow in actually exercising it. Thus, some figures, e. g. Napoleon, count as totalitarian because they instituted a legal code and altered rules of succession to favor themselves and their families. A Code is a type of legislation that purports to exhaustively cover a complete system of laws or a particular area of law as it existed at the time the code was enacted by a Meanwhile, other figures who were arguably more cruel or arbitrary are ranked as examples of lesser public trust, because in practice they followed clearer procedures.

Notes

See also

• List of civics topics

• Activism
• Election
• Ethics
• Forms of government
• Lobbying
• Mob rule
• Politics
• Public trust
• Secession
• Urban secession

External links

• From fallacious politics to sound civics An essay on discovering civics beyond politics. Civics is usually considered a branch of Applied ethics. Within any given political tradition or Ethical tradition, civics refers to Education Activism, in a general sense can be described as intentional action to bring about social or political change An election is a Decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold formal office Ethics is a major branch of Philosophy, encompassing right conduct and good life A system of government is a term that refers to the set of political Institutions by which a Government of a State is organized in order to exert its powers Lobbying includes all attempts to influence Legislators and officials whether by other legislators constituents or organized groups Ochlocracy ( Greek: οχλοκρατία or okhlokratía; Latin: ochlocratia) is government by mob or a mass of people Politics Politics is the process by which groups of people make decisions The concept of the public trust relates back to the origins of Democratic government and its seminal idea that within the public lies the true power and future of a society Secession (derived from the Latin term secessio is the act of withdrawing from an organization union or especially a political entity Urban secession is a city's Secession from its surrounding region to form a new political unit

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