As well as these official barriers to the role of the Diet's lower house, there also existed the informal Genro, a small cadre of elder statesmen whose role was also to advise the emperor on political matters. ... Finally, the role of the emperor himself as the ultimate source of Japanese authority meant that any action on the part of government could be overruled by recourse to an imperial prerogative. ... The ambiguity surrounding the role of the emperor and the military in the structure of Japanese government is commented on by Kato Shuichi, saying that 'the very fact that ther...

• Word Count: 2458
• Approx Pages: 10
• Grade Level: Graduate

Democracy as a form of government has been viewed through the prism of western liberal ideological thought. This has resulted in the critics of Indian democracy emphasizing the unique limitations on its operation and considering it India's weakness rather than strength. However such critiques ignore...

• Word Count: 797
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Graduate

Civil society and the government have different roles to fulfill and should remain distinct and independent. ... Therefore, the government should stick to its distinct role as provider of legal framework and rules, and not be involved in civil society, as any involvement by the government in civil society will be perceived negatively as an attempt to control civil society and to curb its freedom. ...

• Word Count: 817
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Graduate

However, Harrop overlooks that as society adopts new behaviors and evolves in an increasingly digital world it is inevitable that democracy will also evolve and play a different role rather than being diminished. ...

• Word Count: 806
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Graduate

Over the course of eighty years this resulted in a dramatic increase in both the number of interest groups wanting to play a role in the American political process and in their ability to influence government decisions. ... The significant role money has in government decisions and elections pose a threat to democracy, with interest groups giving the vast majority of contributions. ...

• Word Count: 1921
• Approx Pages: 8
• Grade Level: Graduate

The Role of Interest Groups in Government, by Pendelton Herring, states that "federal administrative services do not constitute an overpowering monolithic entity but rather an uneven array of agencies, each with its own constituency of supporters and often facing its specialized critics" (Herring). ...

• Word Count: 1119
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: Graduate

Through this brief yet inclusive account of the army's different roles and positions throughout the different stages Egypt has gone through over the past three years one comes to the realization that the only thing that has remained constant in Egypt is the relentless attempts by every regime to reconstruct the authoritarian regime that reigned before the 25th of January. ...

• Word Count: 1377
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: Graduate

So as to overcome these problems and move towards democracy, Kazakhstan should enhance the role of civil society, it should give more opportunities to intelligence and social forces like Non-Governmental Organizations and other public organizations, which are able to awaken the consciousness of civil society in Kazakhstan, because it is undeniable that a healthy democracy requires the active, freely chosen participation of citizens in public life. ...

• Word Count: 1572
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: Graduate

And although the majority is, not wrongly presumed, composed of peaceful citizens wanting the good of their country, by being omnipotent – assuming the role of the sovereign, the absolute power -, defences against it are nonexistent, so the majority in a democracy feels like it is not answerable to the minority, at which point one can speak of a 'despotic' system, or what Tocqueville calls "tyranny of the majority". ...

• Word Count: 2076
• Approx Pages: 8
• Grade Level: Graduate

With the collapse of the Soviet Union and the concomitant demise of communism in the twentieth century which shed abroad a spirit of triumphalism through the West, came the euphoric impression that, "history had finally ended with the universal victory of Western liberal democracy as the final form of human government". Put differently, Chandran Kukathas claims, "we live in an age of democracy fetishism" and "global political phenomenon of 'democratization." That is, Democracy was hailed as the best form of government hence, an increasing process of democra...

• Word Count: 2047
• Approx Pages: 8
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Graduate

Introduction Having experienced a recent economic boom prior to the 2008 global financial crisis and a flourishing tourism industry, Cambodia lies at the forefront of becoming a rising star within the Southeast Asian region. However, in order to do so there are major political issues and concerns dealing with democracy, which need to be combatted. This paper will aim to analyze the challenges that Cambodia has faced on its road towards democracy by giving a brief historical insight before focusing more specifically on issues dealing with corruption, civil liberties and political freedom, as w...

• Word Count: 3095
• Approx Pages: 12
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Graduate