Pros And Cons Of American Government

A lot of our government structure is derived from Greek and Roman practices; from how we call out government systems, like the Senate, to the architecture, and even the governmental structure and power concentration. How can this be done? Looking at the very earliest of western civilization's roots, we have two seemingly contradictory government systems, the Spartans, and the Athenians. The Athenians took the government of a democracy. In this system, every man gets a vote on the political practices. He did not have to be a part of a class or wealth class. They would vote for a council that would manage the legal and governmental systems of Athens, called the Council of the 500. They could only serve a maximum of two years and they were picked

In terms of management and flexibility, the Democratic system was harder to manage. There were more people to gather and there were systems that took a long time to process or implement. Though the Oligarchy is more hierarchical, having less people makes their structure easier to manage and flexible for quick decisions. It would be better for the city to consult a few leaders during a time of duress, rather than gathering the whole city for decision making activities. Another management structure that should be noted in an Oligarchy is that they had more people in charge who knew more about political affairs. The elite had been taught about politics, government and war from a young age. They knew strategies, whereas in a democracy, the common man did not know anything about war or strategy. In comparison, in a democracy, the policy that went through was not necessarily the one that was the most knowledgeable, but the one spoken by the person with the best rhetoric. Though both have their pros and cons, both are exclusive to the male

In an Oligarchy, the only people who would be put in positions of power were those who were rich and elite. This kind of thinking not only leads to discrimination, but it also leads to a lack of understanding of the people’s needs and perspectives. By cutting out the poor and women from decision making, they are looking at an incomplete picture. Last of all, the Oligarchy system could lead to a tyrannical rule. By increasing the power to a few, then the power could corrupt and create a huge problem for the people who can do nothing. But even in a democracy there is potential for corruption. According to Plato, when you have people’s power based on rhetoric. This system can bring more power to one person (Plato, n.d.). Take celebrities, because they are beautiful and talented, people listen to them. In a purely democratic system, these people could have an abnormal concentration of power, increasing their grip until the people are all under the power of one. Looking at the morality aspect, which structure is better in upholding morality? In an Oligarchy, the people in charge knew what they were doing. They should have known how to run the city and had a better understanding of political