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All 8 Flashcards — What is the state?
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Question
State vs government?
Answer
The state is the lasting political body over a territory; the government is just the team currently running it.
Question
State vs nation?
Answer
A state is a political body over a territory; a nation is a people who feel they belong together. One state can hold many nations.
Question
Power?
Answer
The plain ability to make people do things, including by force if needed.
Question
Authority?
Answer
The RIGHT to be obeyed — accepted as rightful, not merely obeyed out of fear.
Question
Sovereignty?
Answer
Being the top authority over a territory — no one above the state giving orders inside its borders.
Question
Civil society?
Answer
The organised life between the individual and the state — clubs, charities, faiths, unions — where people organise themselves.
Question
Is a state just a big gang?
Answer
It may start as the strongest gang, but becomes a state only when it gains authority — the accepted right to rule.
Question
Power vs authority in one line?
Answer
Power is the muscle; authority is the right to be obeyed. A state claims both, a gang only the first.
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Topic 7.1 hub
The state
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