St. Thomas Aquinas and Karl Marx

Political philosophy can best be understood as the philosophical approach to governing our societal, political, and economical lives. In this paper I will compare and contrast St. Thomas Aquinas and Karl Marx, two contributing political philosophers. I will concentrate on the views of these two famous philosophers specifically answering the question “what is the good society”?

St. Thomas Aquinas was born around 1224 in the city of Naples. He studied at the Benedictine monastery of Monte Cassino and the University of Naples. In 1245 he went to study in Paris, studying with Albert the Great and Augustine. Upon completion of his studies he returned to the University of Naples to be a Professor. St. Thomas Aquinas at the age of 49 died in 1274 (Deutsch, Fornieri, 2009).

St. Thomas Aquinas believed that it is natural for human beings to live in society but they need some sort of regulation. Due to the importance of regulation he believed that there needs to be someone or a group of individuals assigned to keep peace. This body of people he called the role of the state.  This group needs to be directed by a magnanimous (which he described as a great-souled person) and one who believes in God. He believes that tyranny should and can be avoided by appointing competent Kings and the structuring body. His thoughts were that one ruler in society will be able to keep the peace and flourish as a community. He did not believe that tyranny had any place in the role of the state. He believed that any tyrant should be removed from the state. To ensure transparency he created a set of preconditions that could indeed warrant revolution against anyone who is perceived to be a tyrant (Deutsch, Fornieri, 2009).

St. Thomas argues that the foundation of natural law, man’s natural inclinations, along with intellect connects them to eternal law. He believes that natural law is not born to man but rather inclinations and perceptions spontaneously formulate the concepts of natural law (Elders, 2006). 

St. Thomas Aquinas view on ethics is based on good and bad. He compares the good and bad and relates them ethically. First in identifying the goodness of things is their essential form. Material objects are related to the obligations of man. He also believed that the activities that we engage in agree with us and that certain activities are good. Moral qualifications of our actions indeed have influence on the good or bad of the acts that we perform. An act that is considered to be good can in fact turn bad due to circumstances that are presented. St. Thomas Aquinas looks at the conscience as practical in the speculative intellect (Elders, 2006). 

Karl Marx was born May 5, 1818 in Trier, Prussia. He studied at the University of Bonn and then continued his studies at the University of Berlin. In Berlin he became a part of a group of theorists called Young Hegelians. Upon completion of his studies he first became an editor and then travelled to Paris to begin work on essays that are known as “the Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1944”. From Paris he settled in Brussels and then moved to London in 1849. All of these moves are a result of Marx fleeing the countries due to his voiced beliefs.  In 1883 Karl Marx died in London (Deutsch, Fornieri, 2009).

            When I think of Karl Marx the word capitalism comes to mind.  Capitalism is the economic system in which the means of production as well as the distribution are owned by private parties or by corporations and are in existence for profit. Social contract is an agreement, entered into by individuals, those results in the formation of the state or of organized society, the prime motive being the desire for protection, which entails the surrender of some or all personal liberties (Deutsch, Fornieri, 2009).

Karl Marx’s theories about society, politics, and economics, states that human societies struggle through class conflict. These beliefs are widely known as “Marxism.” His thoughts envelop the beliefs that the owner class and the labor class are always at conflict. He believed that capitalism was the result of the upper class running business for their own benefit. He furthered believed that capitalism was the foundation for internal tension.

Socialism was seen by Marx as idealistic. He believed that the ideal society would consist

 of future and new trends, not existing trends. He firmly believed that individuals should be compensated related to the equity of the amount of labor that is performed. Further thoughts of Marx’s include the abolition of separating physical labor from mental labor in reference to the pay scale. He didn’t believe that a top level professional sitting at the executive desk should have the right to take home a larger salary than the laborer who was actually performing the hard, physical work. As far as leadership goes - Marx believed that the dictators should be the individuals doing the actual labor.  

Karl Marx was known as an economist. He felt as though human history is dependent on economics. Part of that economist belief was that everything should be equal. His views on economics included thoughts such as concentrating on wealth, profit rates decreasing, and value related to labor (Deutsch, Fornieri, 2009).

            Karl Marx was adamant that private ownership of capital goods was considered wrong and evil. His view as stated in the textbook is this: “ the correct means by which human beings can gain control of their lives and the universe is by working creatively to produce the necessary ingredients for survival” (Deutsch, Fornieri, 2009).

            Karl Marx’s work has been viewed by followers as an ethical act. His work is based on proof that he collected scientifically. His teachings were inspired by the real-life occurrences that were being seen in the development of the capitalist tendencies. His theory was introduced to the poorest of classes in an effort to provide education to them (Rubel, 1982).

            While researching these two philosophers it became very apparent to me the differences of their views associated to the times in which they lived. St. Thomas Aquinas’s beliefs were the foundation to what we know today as the governing body or government. His beliefs were basic in nature and I feel were a good start to what we know now.  Karl Marx on the other hand has built upon St. Thomas Aquinas’s beliefs and restructured them to envelop his own way of thinking. I see our society slowing moving in the direction of Karl Marx philosophy however in the end I do believe there will always be the gap of classes and social structure that has existed for many years and continues to exist today. While we would all like nothing more than to live in a perfect society we have to realize that isn’t a reality. What is reality though is that we have the ability to make our lives what we want them to be.

References

Deutsch, K., Fornieri, J. (2009). An invitation to political thought. St. Thomas Aquinas, Chapter 4, 105-142. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.

Deutsch, K., Fornieri, J. (2009). An invitation to political thought. Karl Marx, Chapter 12, 417-439. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.

Elders, L. J. (2006). THE ETHICS OF ST. THOMAS AQUINAS. Anuario Filosofico, 39(2), 439-463.  Retrieved November 8, 2013, from http://ehis.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.rasmussen.edu/eds/detail?sid=6e7851ea-21b5-425c-b88d-a4cf50ba9881%40sessionmgr10&vid=5&hid=7&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmU%3d#db=keh&AN=23506829

Mezhuev, V. M. (2012). The Idea of World History in the Doctrine of Karl Marx. Russian Studies In Philosophy, 51(2), 9-43. doi:10.2753/RSP1061-1967510201. Retrieved November 8, 2013 from http://ehis.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.rasmussen.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=5&sid=6e7851ea-21b5-425c-b88d-a4cf50ba9881%40sessionmgr10&hid=7

Peterson, G. (1994). Karl Marx and His Vision of Salvation: The Natural Law and Private Property. Review Of Social Economy, 52(3), 377-390. Retrieved November 8, 2013, from http://ehis.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.rasmussen.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=6&sid=6e7851ea-21b5-425c-b88d-a4cf50ba9881%40sessionmgr10&hid=7

Rubbel, M. (1982). The Ethical Work of Karl Marx. Retrieved December 15, 2013, from http://www.marxists.org/archive/rubel/1982/marx-ethics.htm

Electoral College PoV

My position on the Electoral College is it should remain as is, because it has provide stability and validity to our election process over 200 years as our founders intended under Article II, Section1, of the U.S. Constitution. The Founding Fathers intended that the states , not the people, select the president and vice president. According to James Madison's Federalist Paper No.10 our government is created as a republic and not as direct or pure democracy. The Electoral College represents and maintains a federal system of government by representing both the U.S. Citizens at large and the states. (American Government and Politics Today, pp. 74-75, 702-705, 2010)

It has become interesting how some people feel their one-vote is not being acknowledge or accounted for due to the Electoral College and that the nationwide popular vote would be a fairer method to determine the election of a president. If so, then why do we need Senators and so on to represent us. If we enjoy chipping away at our constitution, are we not chipping away at our republic form of government? Is this why James Madison and other Founders feared might happen with “pure democracy” the unchecked will of the people, that could possibly cause danger to the republic? May be not if there is an amendment to the Constitution for a change and ratified by ¾ of the states; however, our founders provided a constitutional limited republic that precisely protects our fundamental liberties from whims of the masses and excesses of democracy. (USelectionatlas, 2010), (Schulman, M., 2010)( Jacoby, J., 2008)(American Government and Politics Today, pp. 8-9, 9-10, 704-705, 2010)

The constitution has put checks on a national level on political power, the three branches of government and on the will of the people. It also has divided the power between states and the national government in order to preserve the rights of the people. The Founders took great strides to separate powers in order to prevent popular majorities. Direct elections for a presidential election sounds more like an unchecked “majority rule” concept. How will this change in the one-person-one-vote affect the states' participation in the election of the president? (American Government and Politics Today, pp. 704-705, 2010)( Jacoby, J., 2008)(Heritage.org, 2004)

The Electoral College electors provide representation to both the states and their citizens. The number of electors is proportion to the state's population which is equal to the state's members in the House plus two Senators. Will the abolishing of the Electoral College also rid the Senate and its representation? With direct elections, then how will we address fraudulent activity in the voting process that sometimes shows up or situation where a recount of votes is needed or where there is a close/tie election? The Electoral College is capable in taking steps in order to correct and monitor these problems that may arrive. For any fraudulent activity, the response of the electoral college is to confine the problem and take action on a particular state or handful of states where the fraudulent or questionable activity has happened such as the case in Florida in the 2000 election. In case of a close popular election, it is possible that the candidate may not be elected due to the weight of dispersing of the electoral votes for the other candidate. This depends on the candidate's popularity is condensed to a few states verses a variety of states in both popular and electoral votes. Steps taken by the electoral college is as such, if one candidate has a substantial range of popular votes on the whole, this usually means a given win; a close vote between two candidates, the election defaults will usually go to the candidate with the widely distributed majority of electoral votes. If no candidate obtains an absolute majority than the election defaults to the US House of Representatives, then the winning President-Elect must have enough supportive popular votes and sufficient elective votes. (Ross, T., 2004), (Jacoby, J., 2008), (USelectionatlas.org, 2010)

The Electoral Colleges has already integrated steps to maintain integrity to the presidential elections per William C. Kimberling, Deputy Director FEC Office of Election Administration which are the following: contributes to the cohesiveness of the country by requiring a distribution of popular support to be elected president, enhances the status of minority interest because the belief is even small number of minorities in a state can be influential in the outcome of the State's electoral votes in the difference in winning or not, contributes to political stability of the nation by encouraging a two-party system, and maintains a federal system of government and representation. (Kimberling, W.C., 2010)

I believe 270 of the 538 electoral votes is an excellent way to win the oval office. The Electoral College has held its position for over 200+ years in this diverse social, ethnic, complex nation of ours. According to Alexander Hamilton, in the Federalist Paper No. 68, “. . . if the manner is not perfect, it is at least excellent.” (Constitution, 2010)


References
Anonymous. (2010). The Pro's and Con's of the Electoral College System
Retrieved August 12, 2010, from USelectionatlas website
http://www.uselectionatlas.org/INFORMATION/INFORMATION/electcollege_procon.php
Schulman, M. (2010). Why Was the Electoral College Created?
Retrieved August 12, 2010, from Historycentral website
http://www.historycentral.com/elections/Electoralcollgewhy.html
Jacoby, J. (2008, July 16). The Brilliance of the Electoral College
Retrieved August 12, 2010, from Boston website
http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2008/07/16/the_brilliance_of_the_electoral_college/

Kimberling, W.C. (2010). The Electoral College
Retrieved August 12, 2010, from Heritage Foundation website
http://electoralcollegehistory.com/electoral/fecmemo.asp

Anonymous. (2010). Federalist Paper 68: The Mode of Electing the President
Retrieved August 12, 2010, from Constitution website
http://www.constitution.org/fed/federa68.htm

Ross, T. (2004, November 1). Executive Summary: The Electoral College: Enlightened Democracy
Retrieved August 12, 2010, from Constitution website
http://www.heritage.org/Research/Reports/2004/11/Executive-SummaryThe-Electoral-College-Enlightened-Democracy

Schmidt, S.W., Shelley, M.C., Bardes, B.A. (Ed.). (2010). "Direct Democracy as a Model"
American Government and Politics Today 2010 Edition. (pp 8-9) USA:
Course Technology.

Schmidt, S.W., Shelley, M.C., Bardes, B.A. (Ed.). (2010). "The Dangers of Direct Democracy"
American Government and Politics Today 2010 Edition. (pp. 9-10) USA:
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Schmidt, S.W., Shelley, M.C., Bardes, B.A. (Ed.). (2010). "A Democratic Republic"
American Government and Politics Today 2010 Edition. (pg 10) USA:
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Schmidt, S.W., Shelley, M.C., Bardes, B.A. (Ed.). (2010). "Majoritarianism"
American Government and Politics Today 2010 Edition. (pp. 11-12) USA:
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Schmidt, S.W., Shelley, M.C., Bardes, B.A. (Ed.). (2010). "Working Toward Final Agreement"
American Government and Politics Today 2010 Edition. (pp. 50) USA:
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Schmidt, S.W., Shelley, M.C., Bardes, B.A. (Ed.). (2010). "Article II - Executive Branch"
American Government and Politics Today 2010 Edition. (pp. 74-75) USA:
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Schmidt, S.W., Shelley, M.C., Bardes, B.A. (Ed.). (2010). "The Electoral College"
American Government and Politics Today 2010 Edition. (pp. 336-339) USA:
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Schmidt, S.W., Shelley, M.C., Bardes, B.A. (Ed.). (2010). "Federalist Papers No. 10"
American Government and Politics Today 2010 Edition. (pp. 702-705) USA:
Course Technology.

Tea Party

Our First Amendment has given United States' citizens the right to a 'peaceful assembly' and 'freedom' to speak out about issues in our government, society, laws, etc. in order to promote change or support. One influential group that will be reviewed in this paper is a newly formed group call the Tea Party. In the following paragraphs I well address the Tea Party's goals, their strategies in reaching their goals, and conclude if they have been successful or not in meeting those goals. (American Government and Politics Today, 124,136-43, 2010)

The tea party is a decentralized grass-roots group of people who didn't like what was going on in Washington. These people come from all walks of life, every race, every religion, every political view, such as Democratic, Republican, libertarian or Independent and are scattered throughout the 50 states of America. All these Americans that make-up the tea parties are like-minded and believe that our government should be fiscally responsible, Constitutionally limited, and favor that our economy rely on the free market concept (see exhibit A and B in the Ref pg.). The Tea Party is structurally composed of five separate national groups extending into local level Tea Parties. These groups network with each other and stand together to form a movement to save the republic. At present, there are five national groups which are the following: 9-12 project, Tea Party Patriots, Tea Party Federation, Tea Party Express, and Freedom Works. Along with the local Tea Parties, they are all non-partisan organizations, who are supporters of the Constitution, use peaceful endeavors and are non-racial. Anyone who promotes racism or violence is immediately denounced and asked to leave the organization. (9-12 Project, 2010) (GeorgiaTeaPartyPatriots, 2010)

Tea parties have penetrated America by using many communicational vehicles. They promote their likeminded message through word of mouth, the Internet, local newspapers, Fox News, some local and national news organizations and press, message boards, conventions, conservative radio talk hosts, and gatherings. There are some tea parties that develop a caravan and go state-to-state to rally. There seems to be a never-ending flow of exposure and the use of multiple avenues to express their message of fiscally responsible government that is constitutionally limited and the belief of economic growth through the free market. Some of the public who are also discontented with the government, like their message and also believe “We the people'' have a voice and want change, but without government intrusiveness on their 'Freedom, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness'. (libertarian party, 2010)

The big question is how successful have the Tea Parties been in meeting their goals. Time, perseverance and patience is working for them. At the present time, it is unknown in how successful they will be in their endeavors. The Tea Party have receive the attention of Senator Michele Bachmann of Minnesota, who now acts as chairman for the Tea Party caucus. This is a good start that someone in government is listening to them and is used as a conduit for the flow of information from the Tea Party to congress. The Tea Parties are an educated group of people who read, study and learn about the constitution and our founders and continue to enrich their data bank through further resources about government in general. This provides them with armor to promote their cause. Membership is growing. According to DesertConservative.com, Tea Party News on 07/15/2010, an article states per Winston Group polling (april 1, 2010) that there are 49 million active members in the Tea Party movement. Per a Rasmussen polling (June 2, 2010), 149 + million people believe that the Tea Party movement is a good thing for America. (.msnbc.msn.com, 2010)(Foxnews, 2010)( Desertconservative, 2010)

To agree or disagree with the Tea Party ideology, I can only conclude that the Tea Parties are making their mark as an influential political interest group. So far, the midterm elections have nominated four candidates backed by the Tea Parties, who are the following: Rand Paul

Kentucky GOP Senate candidate, Sharon Angle Nevada's Republican Senate candidate, Mike Lee Utah Republican Senate nomination, and South Carolina gubernatorial candidate Sharon Angle. How much impact they will have in the future, only time will tell, perhaps sooner than later, the November 2, 2010 elections may give some insight. (abcgo.com, 2010)

References
Anonymous. (2010, August, 15). Tea Party News
Retrieved August 2, 2010, from Desertconservative website
http://www.desertconservative.com/2010/07/15/tea-party-news-7152010/
Anonymous. (2010, August, 15). Georgia Tea Party Patriots
Retrieved August 2, 2010, from Georgeteapartypatroits website
http://georgiateapartypatriots.com/wordpress/
Russert, L. (2010, July, 20). Bachmann chaired tea party caucus
Retrieved August 2, 2010, from MSN website
http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2010/07/20/4717296-bachmann-chaired-tea-party-caucus-holds-first-meeting-tomorrow
Pergram, C. (2010, July, 19). House Gives Bachmann okay to form tea party caucus
Retrieved August 2, 2010, from Fox News website
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/07/19/house-gives-bachmann-okay-form-tea-party-caucus/
Tymann, J. (2009, March 28). Guest Commentary Tea Parties are only Beginning
Retrieved August 2, 2010, from Naplesnews website
http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2009/mar/28/guest-commentary-tea-parties-are-only-beginning-na/
Anonymous. (2010). The 9-12 Project
Retrieved August 2, 2010, from Fox News website
http://www.the912project.com/the-912-2/

Anonymous. (2010). Libertarian Party, Minimum Government, Maximum Freedom
Retrieved August 2, 2010, from Libertarian Party website
http://lp.org
Khan, H. (2010, July, 15). Tea Party Influence November mid-term elections
Retrieved August 2, 2010, from ABCNews website
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/tea-party-time-influence-november-mid-term-elections/story?id=11165237
Bardes, B.A., Shelley, M.C., Schmidt, S.W. (Ed.). (2010). "Chapter 4"
American Politics in Government, 2010 Edition. (pp. 124, 136-43) USA:
Course Technology.

Jeffersonian democracy

Dear Thomas Jefferson,

I want to thank you on the Jeffersonian democracy, because you really put a strict interpretation of the US Constitution. I support your ideal vision of governing in a lightly and promoting self-reliance and virtue. You said there must be a representative democracy to help the state, yet resist corruption. The federal government can't violate the rights of individuals or rights of the states. I think the freedom of speech and the freedom of press was a good method to keep the government in check. Alien and Sedition Acts was one act where you denounced it as a violation of the First Amendment of the United States Bill of Rights which deals with free speech. You also used the Tenth Amendment to argued that the federal government has overstepped it's bounds by exerting it's undedicated power. This federalist act became a thorn to its own party; whereby, you defeated the federalists and became the 3rd President of the United States. Your pardon to those people who fell victims under the Aliens and Sedition Acts was justly and honorable. (ourdocuments.com, 2010)(wordpress, 2010)(answers.com, 2010)

Your belief that an economic system should give people the right to work. Since your presidency of March 4, 1801, I am impressed with your endeavors to create peace, equality, and individual freedom. You restored the freedom of press, and gave the aliens opportunity to become citizens after five years of nationalization. Your efforts to reduce the debt by abolishing all internal taxation including the liquor tax. Best of all, you promoted fiscal responsibility by reducing governmental powers. I thank you for your service in the House of Burgesses. I thank you for your written paper " A Summary View of the Rights of British America," explaining that Great Britain couldn't legislate America. The King of England taxed the heck out of Americans and severely handicapping citizen rights. Your way ended the Federalist party rule, integrated it into the United States creating federal government, and split the Republicans from the Democrat-Republican. I thank you for heading the purchase of Louisiana. I liked how even when the Federalist John Adams was defeated, you peacefully transferred power of the oval office. You made great strides on how to maintain Congress with insurgencies from the Federalist Party. You did a great job revising the Virginia Constitution. Sadly, you had to give order to American ships which were in the middle of the Napoleon Wars to retreat. Thank you for avoiding the 1798 XYZ affair with France so US didn't bankrupt itself going to war at that time. (monticello, 2010)(answers.com)(USMilitaryHistoryCompanion, 2010 [answers])

You supported the Lewis and Clark expedition into the west in 1803. I thank you with trying to maintain United States neutrality in the Napoleon Wars in before 1812. I believe the Library of Congress thanks you for the collection of books that you donated in your last 17 years. I thank you for designing the University of Virginia buildings, doing the buildings. I thank you for drafting the Declaration of Independence. (notablebiographies,2010)

You will always be remembered for the Declaration of Independence and A Summary View of the Rights of British America.

Aristotle and Socrates

The good society in simple language is defined as a society with no corruption and people abiding to the rules. Today, the society has become what we did not hope for and it has turned into unequal and divided society. People view good happiness as the amount of cars one has, and also how much is in their account. For a good society to begin, the situation about gender, race, disability etc. needs to be redressed, the punishment for crimes should be made brutal, and in this case the crime would reduce. Finally, for a good society to be born, we the citizens need to come together and change the collective and democratic impulse for freedom, equality and unity.

Virtue can simply be put as the quality in someone to do what is right and reject what is wrong. Virtue enables people to conquer moral excellence. Socrates states that perfect world does exist beyond the world we live in while Aristotle states that our world is reality. However, Aristotle argues differently. He perceives life through a totally different perceptive that Socrates has. He says that pleasure as gets enjoyed by human beings is incomplete. He uses this argument to declare it as not a pleasant thing. However, he is quick to add that people will still perform worthwhile activities. The key element that shapes the virtues of a person is natural preference. A person has the urge to do either pleasant or unpleasant things by a systematic guide of his or her natural preference.

Consequently, by looking at the society today, there are quite a number of marks that make a good society. These marks consist of justice, equity, rule of law, economic opportunity, reciprocity, prosperity, critical thinking, ethical standards, and concern for good citizenship, right to defense, and right to private property. Aristotle believed that free men are responsible for their voluntary and involuntary actions and behaviors. He did not include slaves in this scheme because to him the society of ruling men was the basis upon which to build a good society.  “For Aristotle, a society or state is held together by friendship more than justice,” (Moss, 2011). He regarded men with many friendships as good men.

Aristotle had this view or outlook that humans do things to reach a higher level of good. Happiness is the highest good that people can attain. Though this is his view, Aristotle also says that people should not aim at happiness. He states that people do aim at what they believe to be happiness. Typically, happiness is not a satiable goal for most humans. Only through living a completely virtuous life can people really understand happiness. It is because people do not have enough virtue that they are not able to distinguish true happiness from the somewhat empty conception that they currently have.

Next, Socrates' concept of reality contrasts with Aristotle's concept. Socrates' theory of ideal forms claims that a perfect world exists beyond the world around us. Our world contains forms imperfectly copied from the ideal forms in the world beyond. In contrast, Aristotle's theory of the natural world states that our world is reality. Aristotle thought the world consists of natural forms, not necessarily ideal or imperfect. Our senses can correctly perceive the natural forms. Basically, reality became a debate between Socrates' two worlds and Aristotle's single world reality.
            Second, Socrates and Aristotle contrast in their view of what knowledge we possess at birth. “Socrates supports the doctrine of Innatism, which claims that we enter this world with prior knowledge” (Kamtekar, 2012). All people have immortal souls and therefore, the knowledge obtained in one life can be transferred into the next rebirth. However, we forget the knowledge at the shock of birth and we then spend the rest of our lives trying to regain the lost knowledge. In contrast, Aristotle states that we are born without any knowledge. Aristotle also claimed we possess souls, but he disagreed with Socrates on the soul's status of immortality.

Aristotle felt souls do not return to the world, so knowledge cannot be returned to the world either. In addition, not everyone lives a completely virtuous life. This is because we are just human. Aristotle does not expect everyone to be perfect and no one should be. So, it does not matter whether everyone has the correct view of happiness in Aristotle's eyes, but many can find happiness whether it is the correct view or not. Actually, anything that puts a smile on one’s face should be considered happiness.

A virtuous person, to Aristotle, will find virtue to be a good thing and so will find happiness in doing virtuous deeds. A person devoid of virtue will find happiness in avoiding virtue and thus will not be living a truly happy or good life. Neither will they have the right perception of what a good life might be. So Aristotle believed that reasoning is a function that distinguishes human beings from other beings. And that a human being who is able to perform that function well will count as a good human being.

Everything we do is done for some purpose. Some of these purposes though are themselves just means to an end, e.g. we exercise to get in shape and we get in shape because we want to look good on the beach and we want to look good on the beach etc. If every end were just a means to some other end, though, then there would really be no end or purpose to all that we do. If there is no ultimate point or in other words an end or purpose to everything we do, then ultimately there is no point to anything we do. Aristotle thinks that this cannot be right. So there must be at least one end that is not a means but is an end in itself. “This is the ultimate point of life, and Aristotle sets out to find and define it,” (Moss, 2011). In this case, the ultimate goal is happiness of which pretty much everyone agrees. But people disagree about what true happiness is. Most think it is pleasure, especially physical pleasure.

So, happiness can be seen as the feeling of satisfaction after any cause, be it virtue or vice. Aristotle theory states that the world we live today is reality. He thought that the world consist of, natural forms, inner virtues and free society. While Socrates theory states that a perfect world exists beyond the world we live in. He did not believe that people would deliberately act in a way to be unhappy. “Socrates identifies the four primary virtues in the different aspects today’s society possess wisdom, auxiliaries courage, justice, moderation” (Kamtekar, 2012).

In addition, the components of a good life have been discussed and debated for many years with leisure and economic growth existing as the two main reoccurring themes. Aristotle supported the leisure ethic stating many arguments in the favor of leisure and the absence of work. However, we are a society of reformation and constant change and mostly tend to value a work ethic opposed to the leisure ethic. Aristotle believed the good life required leisure. Nevertheless our society today does not reflect those values. We are a society bent on growth and efficiency and have allowed our leisure time to become dominated by work. To achieve the good life again we must become aware of our problems, make changes and regain the leisure ethic.

The ultimate question to life what every person is seeks is what is happiness and how can one achieve true happiness. Many feel that they have found their answer in belonging to the faith of their choice, but what is it that their faith teaches them that brings them happiness. The philosophers Socrates and Aristotle all have a similar view on what happiness is and how to achieve it. According to (Frede, 2009), “Aristotle's view is based on Plato's and Plato's is based on Socrates' teachings.” This is why they are similar but they are all important and different with each philosopher's personal views and beliefs.

Socrates was a great man who was assassinated for his beliefs on the purpose of life and how to live happily. He presented the excellence of function to determine how a person will truly be happiest. The true person is not what he is on the outside but what his soul is and when that is functioning well the person is happiest. Mind is the human capacity for reflective thinking and also the consciousness of the soul. According to (McPherran, 2010), "The unexamined life is a life not worth living." is a quote from Socrates that supports his views on mind. It states that when a person does not examine his life to find his true self, or excellence of function, that they are ignoring their true self and that a false life is not worth the time to live it. So an examined life will find its true self or what its function is and want to perform its function well.

Subsequently, Socrates devoted his life to finding out moral concepts, mainly trying to differentiate the difference between right and wrong. “The excellence of function is what person's virtue implies,” (McPherran, 2010). A person's virtue is where they will excel and function well at. So if a person is athletically talented in a sport and proceeds to play professionally they may be happy but if their soul was meant to teach young children to read that is where they will be the most pleased with their life. To find our virtue we must use our practical knowledge and wisdom in how to perform certain skills.

The version of Socrates views happiness as the end product of virtue. He thinks virtues will always follow personal pursuits. He argues that to be a happy one has to be good, morally. Socrates believed for a person to live well he or she should put more focus on self-development than putting more emphasis on material wealth. According to (Zhou, 2011), “Socrates thinks that material wealth cannot guarantee happiness.” On the other hand, he sees a probability of happiness bringing material wealth. Therefore, virtues of a man should guide him to becoming happy. To achieve everything desirable in life, a person should have virtue as it is the most valuable possession one can acquire.

As stated by (Frede, 2009) “Socrates had no particular beliefs on politics but did object to democracy, but disliked its Athenian form.” Basically, he objected to any government that did not run on the basis of his ideas of perfect governance. Socrates refused to enter politics because he could not tell other people how to lead their lives when he didn't know how to live his own. He thought he was a philosopher of truth, which he had not fully discovered. Towards the end of his life, democracy was supplanted by the Thirty Tyrants for around one year, before being restored. For Socrates, the Thirty Tyrants were no better and arguably worse rulers than the democracy they sought to replace.

Ultimately, Aristotle wanted his results to show happiness among the people. His opinion toward life was that all people should live a fair and happy life. After many attempts of forming the perfect government, his facts allowed him to believe that a perfect government could be formed only by those who have a middle class. To Socrates, the body is of the imperfect, sensible world, while the soul is of the perfect, real world. The sensible world is what we see all around us, but it is only an illusion. The real world is invisible to us, but it is where the Forms exist. The forms are bodies that provide us with standards. This gives a perfect picture on the similarities and differences between the two.

References

Frede, D. (2009). Socrates and Plato. Phronesis, 54(1), 76-100. doi:10.1163/156852808X375255

Kamtekar, R. (2012). Socrates and the Psychology of Virtue. Classical Philology, 107(3), 256-270.

Mansfeld, J. (2010). Plato and Aristotle in Agreement? Platonists on Aristotle from Antiochus to Porphyry. Mnemosyne, 63(3), 519-522. doi:10.1163/156852510X456291

McPherran, M. L. (2010). Socrates, Plato, Eros and liberal education. Oxford Review Of Education, 36(5), 527-541. doi:10.1080/03054985.2010.514433

Moss, J. (2011). 'Virtue Makes the Goal Right': Virtue and Phronesis in Aristotle's Ethics. Phronesis, 56(3), 204-261. doi:10.1163/156852811X575907.

Zhou, Q. (2011). On Thoughts of Socrates about Virtue in Menon and Whether Virtue is Teachable. Canadian Social Science, 7(2), 138-140.

judicial branch

It is an exciting time to be studying government and politics. Since the writing of the Constitution in 1787, our government has been divided in 3 separate branches: the executive, the legislative, and the judicial. Our fore fathers developed these 3 separate branches in order to maintain a strong and fair national government while protecting the individual freedoms and to prevent the government from abusing its powers. In other words, to maintain check and balances in the government. For the purpose of this paper, I will be narrowing-in on the judicial branch which I consider a very essential and interesting part of the government.

Judges of the judicial branch are appointed only by the president and confirmed by the senate. This is unlike members of the executive and legislative branch who are elected by the people. The judicial branch is established under Article III of the Constitution; whereby, the structure of the judicial branch is formed by the Congress of the United States. The Constitution does not include the number supreme court justices, the number of justices is only specified by Congress. At present there are eight associate justices and one chief justice. The members of the Supreme Court and federal court have no term limits. They adjudicate until they retire, or die, or have a conviction by the Senate. This designated term is to protect the justices from the liability of political views and whims of the day and also allows them to interpret laws only according to the Constitution. The Supreme Court is the highest court in the land and all their decisions are final and cannot be overturned by lower courts. The lower courts are 12 Courts of Appeals, 94 district courts in 50 states and federal courts that are located in larger cities. (lectlaw, 2010)(factmonster, 2010)(Cornell, 2010)

Federal courts take cases that involve the federal government and its officials or cases where state courts are inappropriate, such as bankruptcy cases. Federal courts may also hear cases where the citizens of the United States are affected by foreign relations or cases that involve laws created by the Constitution, Congress, treaties, and navigational waters depending on the case. (lectlaw, 2010)(factmonster, 2010)(Cornell, 2010)

Although the Supreme Court reviews a small number of cases each year, their main purpose is to oversee the United States court system. The supreme court interprets the law and decides if the law is relevant or not to a particular case; in which case, the supreme court rules whether something is constitutional or unconstitutional or whether or not something is permitted under the Constitution. Again, as previously mentioned, the Supreme Court ruling is final. As far as check and balances, if Congress does not like a Supreme Court decision, they can introduce a new piece of legislation; whereby, the process may start all over again. If a law that has been passed by Congress and people have considered it unfair, they may test it through the court system in order to rectify the law. (lectlaw, 2010)(factmonster, 2010)(Cornell, 2010)

The Supreme Court truly has a role in our government of the United States and guardian to our Constitution . It's been 223 years to be exact since our constitution has been written for the purpose of maintaining our fundamental values of liberty, order, equality , property, security, and freedom for all. It just like the pledge I spoke when I was young: "I pledge allegiance to the Flag / of the United States of America, / and to the Republic for which it stands, / one Nation under God, indivisible, / With Liberty and Justice for all." (lectlaw, 2010)(factmonster, 2010)(Cornell, 2010)



References

Anonymous. (2010). Article III Courts

Retrieved July 11, 2010, from Lectlaw website

http://www.lectlaw.com/def/a149.htm

Anonymous. (2010). Checks and Balances

Retrieved July 11, 2010, from factmonster website

http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0777009.html

Anonymous. (2010). Three Branches of Government

Retrieved July 11, 2010, from factmonster website

http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0774837.html

Anonymous. (2010). Current US Supreme Court Justices

Retrieved July 11, 2010, from Cornell University website

http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/justices/fullcourt.html

Plato and Rene

Plato and Rene

There are a few philosophers that are famous for different reason, such as the way they write, the way they, teach, or what type of education that took place to become what they are today in history. The two philosophers that I decided to write about is Plato, who was very education and decided that writing things down was a better way to teach then to keep in your head and just remember. Rene was also a great philosopher that was famous for his education background that was the founder of geometry. When I first started to do this project that is what interest me the most about the education. I will be talking about each of the family background and what leads the two philosophers to their being famous all these years.

So the first person I will be talking about is Plato because we have learned about him in class and thought he was interesting in how he grew up and his different way of teachings that he did. Plato was taught by Socrates because he thought he was interesting and the way Socrates was teaching. Soon was going to go into politics because of his background and was determined to study about law and politics, but Socrates turned Plato away from that idea around 399 bc. and got Plato’s attention to philosophy. (A+E Television Networks, LLC. 1996-2013) Socrates teachings were taught by Plato because Socrates didn’t believe in writing anything down, but rather speak his teachings from memory. Plato now on the other hand wrote everything down so that people could see and visualize his teachings. Following the death of Socrates Plato decided to travel the Mediterranean region for about 12 years to study mathematics and found that was important to learn and to master. Some of the other studies he was learning included geometry, geology, astronomy. That is one of the reason I have chosen to write about Plato because of how educated he was that inspired me. Philosophy is one of those subjects that I was never really good at, but I do like learn that keeps me going.

Rene interests me because he was the founder of geometry and is still being used today. Many people may not know anything about geometry but I thought any type of math is important as we move into the future. Rene was very educated and had a background that led him into study of law, politics and mathematics. After the opening of the college in 1604, he stayed there until around 6012. (Connor and E F Robertson, 1997) He had a hard time with a lot of subjects, but had found mathematics was the only thing that has satisfied him. He specialized in Algebra and Geometry. One of the things I have notice about Rene is that he looks more into actions then reason and he believes only his way was the right away. Rene has traveled all around Europe to write and to study law, politics, and mathematics that was important to him. His father was also into politics that maybe one of the reasons why Rene took interest in going to school to learn even if he didn’t like all the other subjects that were there that was offered to him.

With these two philosophers was easy to pick out and both had the same similarities that I have found interesting. Rene and Plato and the same type of goal I believe and studied the same thing is why they were made famous. I’m looking forward to learn more about their background in what they believe in, but a lot of documents are lost and is said be taking in from other scholars of their time.

           

References

A+E Television Networks, LLC. (1996–2013). Synopsis. Retrieved November 15,

     2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/plato-9442588

European Graduate School EGS. (1997–201). PLATO - BIOGRAPHY. Retrieved November

     15, 2013, from http://www.egs.edu/library/plato/

JOC/EFR. (1997, December). René Descartes. Retrieved November 15, 2013, from

     http://www-history.mcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/Biographies/Descartes.html

Rouse Ball., W. W. (n.d.). René Descartes (1596 - 1650). Retrieved November 15,

     201, from http://www.maths.tcd.ie/pub/HistMath/People/Descartes/RouseBall/

     RB_Descartes.html

University Press Inc. (2003-2012). Plato. Retrieved November 15, 2013, from

     http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/People/Plato/