To what extent has the Labour Party today abandoned its core values?
To what extent has the Labour Party today abandoned its 'core values'? Introduction The rise of New Labour has been fraught with controversy, with regards to extensive policy change as well as ideological change. It is certain that Labour has shifted; hence this is not in question. What is in question however is how much Labour has changed and how far Labour has shifted, from its core Socialist roots. To answer this, one must initially take into account electability. During Labour's extensive time in the political wilderness, when Thatcher reigned supreme, a new group of reformers began to emerge within the Labour Party. They realised that in order to gain electoral support, they would have to leave the core socialistic values of 'old' Labour behind. This is because left-wing ideals at this time were hugely unpopular with the electorate. To achieve this electability, New Labour was less dogmatic than the old, socialist core of the Party. Many policies were toned down, especially economic ones. This general shift to the centre ground gained voters back, who had previously been Labour, but had voted Conservative recently. These reformers, were not against socialism however and previously, many were socialists, yet they saw the need for electability, rather than ideology. However, the account above is merely a brief outline, and hence, one must look specifically at major
To what extent is Marxism a flawed political ideology?
To what extent is Marxism a flawed political ideology? Ever since Marxism was established as a political ideology it has been subject to much scrutiny; as Karl Marx gave his opinions of society based on either scientific evidence or personal belief, it was only natural that some would disagree and thus criticise his convictions. The majority of Marx's ideology was based on the idea that the superstructure of society was totally dependent on the economic base (and any changes made to it), and that the capitalist society in which we currently live would create a revolutionary working class which would ultimately lead to a communist society. Essentially, Marx claimed that communism was inevitable, and this was a heavily criticised aspect of Marx's overall ideology. As this suggested that human history is not something that individuals have any control over, critics argued that Marxism was more comparable with a religion rather than a scientific theory. This was further reinforced by Karl Raimond Popper's argument that Marxism was unscientific as it could not be disproved. Defenders of Marx claimed that although Marx had publicly used the term 'inevitable' on several occasions, it was only to emphasise the importance of his ideas; in his more serious works he did not suggest that communism and other stages of history which he discussed were inevitable. For example, it is argued
Why did Marx Criticise Liberal Democracy?
Why did Marx Criticise Liberal Democracy? Bourgeois democracy is a political system where the government and agencies of the state are made up of those in the ruling class. The bourgeoisie are not owners of land as in the feudal system but owners of capital. They control the finance, the factories and the machines upon which modern industrial production is based. Therefore, the bourgeoisie can exploit the industrial workers and proletariat and just as in the feudal aristocracy exploited the peasants. The state and its instruments support the beliefs and values of the bourgeois democracy and portray the exiting state of affairs as natural and right for all society's interest. ('The state is the form in which the individuals of a ruling class assert their common interest'.) Marx believed that the most basic fact about any society is the nature of its economic organisation that involves two things: the methods of production and its social organisation. Therefore wealth and work is distributed on the basis of class and Marx insisted that in any society with a class system there would always be a fundamental division between those who own the means of production (the ruling class) and those who do the work. There are two essential elements of liberal democracy that are: the government is a neutral state based on the free consent of the people and is secondly responsible for the
To what extent has the Labour government been following liberal or socialist principles since 1997?
To what extent has the Labour government been following liberal or socialist principles since 1997? At present, it is argued that British politics is heading for an era of ideological unity; Ian Adams 'Political Ideology Today' states '...the Conservative party is to a considerable degree no longer inspired by conservatism; that pure liberalism is no longer the doctrine of the Liberal party; and that the Labour party has finally given up socialism.' It has been implied that all political doctrines have evolved and are now open to more broad interpretation. The Labour party's political pattern seemed indefinitely fixed only a few years ago, yet now the typically 'Looney left' has questionably achieved a customisation of liberal and socialist principles, affectionately known as 'left of centre'. Liberalism, by definition, is based on personal liberty, tolerance and limited state power, which is generally divided into 'Welfare liberalism' of the Liberal Democrat party and 'economic' and Neo - liberalism of the New Right. Socialism is divided broadly into revolutionary and democratic definitions, which until recently were both identified with providing large-scale public services through economy management from a bureaucratic state. However, all socialists have now found it necessary to re-evaluate their ideas to what constitutes socialism, in particular from the latter
Why did Stalin make the "Great Turn"?
Why did Stalin make the "Great Turn"? Many Communists saw the NEP as a retreat from Communist Ideology. It was seen as a promotion of private ownership, trade and profit, as well as being responsible for the rise in new "petty bourgeoisie" classes such as NEP men and Kulaks. It was seen as a policy that promoted the interests of the peasantry, a group that were seen as generally capitalist and potentially threatening to the pace of revolution. Thus a policy of increased state control of industry and commerce would rid the state of these contradictory classes. It would push Russia further onwards in terms of a state free from private trade and ownership. However ideology is often seen as Stalin's weak point however, since he is often thought of as frequently changing policies to further his political aspirations. The leadership challenge of 1925 - 1928 showed how Stalin changed his policies to decimate both the left and right wing of the party and strengthen his position over the party, by varying his beliefs in order to outmanoeuvre his political opponents. On the other hand, some historians (such as Viola) argue that the NEP was causing extensive discontent within the party, and that rather than being as capricious as is often presumed, he can be seen as a pragmatist in the face of the will of the party. His "Great Turn" can be seen as a realistic and attractive policy,
Assess the reasons for and the success of the liberal welfare reforms 1906 - 1911
Assess the reasons for and the success of the liberal welfare reforms 1906 - 1911 In the election of 1906 the liberal party won an amazing land slide victory over the conservatives. One of the main reasons for this was the lack of social reform passed by the conservatives while they were in power. The liberal party knew that the public were unhappy about this and because of this they used the offer of social reform in their election campaign. Many historians have argued that the Liberal parties new found wish for more social reform was due to the idea of 'new liberalism' that was popular at the time. It has been said that new liberalism was one of the most important forces in the fight for social reform. The new liberals such as Lloyd George and Churchill were much more concerned with the lives of the working classes than previous political groups. They did not believe in retrenchment as gladstonian liberals had done, thei meant they did not mind spending money on reforms. They claimed that reforms would actually be profitable for the economy, watts writes "New liberals argued that the system on uneven distribution of wealth was harming the economy, it was deprving an entire class from the ability to buy goods". Although it would seem that the new liberals only had the interests of the general public in mind there have been questions of their motives in wanting these
Extended Essay on Bentham's Utilitarianism.
Extended Essay on Bentham's Utilitarianism 1) Outline the main features of Bentham's guide to making moral decisions. Bentham's type of Utilitarianism is Act Utilitarianism and he is hedonistic. The definitive feature of his theory is that each individual action is judged to be good (or bad) purely on the maximum (or minimum) amount of pleasure over pain the action produces. Hence being Act Utilitarianism. Also quantitive theory is a main aspect. Bentham's primary concern was with the amount of pleasure produced; rules and laws are of secondary importance. The Hedonic Calculus is the major factor that guides an individual to making moral decisions in Bentham's eyes. It is a moral theory that promotes pleasure over pain and has seven criteria; o Intensity o Duration o Certainty o Extent o Remoteness o Richness o Purity These criteria would be taken into consideration when making a moral decision which could have an effect on the happiness or pleasure of people in a community. Therefore a moral decision, using Bentham's theory, may go something like this; A Benthamite would know that a good action is one which benefits society and the individual involved in making that decision, and one that promotes pleasure over pain. Furthermore, Bentham's concept, promotes the Greatest Happiness For the Greatest Number (GHFGN) theory. When a decision has to be made over a
Karl Marx and Communism.
Eva Rich English 101 October 10, 2003 Karl Marx and Communism Karl Marx, a philosopher in the mid 1800s, is known for his theories of socialism. According to Marx, an ideal economic system would involve exchanges of equal value for equal value, where value is determined simply be the amount of work put into whatever is being produced. He says Capitalism interrupts this ideal because it involves profit. People are driven to work harder and be better at what they do for profit. This profit allows for ownership of property which in turn is a mark of power. Power, property, and wealth create a division of labor and a separation of classes. On the other hand, Communism is built on the statement, "from each according to his ability, to each according to his needs." Marx is a misunderstood visionary philosopher. In a communistic society, the State has many responsibilities toward the people. First of all the government is the servents of the people, as in a capital society. The State holds all property and trust of the people and the workers. Since the State holds all property, then the State in turn is responsible to provide the means for production. The communist state is governing on behalf of the proletariat (the common people). The State also provides diversity of life experiences and allows people to see their potential. Also in a communist society, people
To what extent is “adversarial politics” an accurate description of British inter-party conflict since 1945?
To what extent is “adversarial politics” an accurate description of British inter-party conflict since
Useing decision maths to help me find out what I have to do in the process of planning a party.
Samantha White Feb 03 USING DECISION MATHS TO ORGANISE A PARTY... In this coursework I am going to use decision maths to help me find out what I have to do in the process of planning a party. This is a good topic to choose because there are many factors that go into organising a party, and they take certain times and a number of workers to make it possible. Because of this it would be easy to use organising a party for decision maths. Another reason I chose this project instead of for example building a house, was because it would appeal to me more, and I think id find it interesting. The results that I find are going to be helpful for people who want to organise a party in this manner. Firstly I will plan out a precedence table for what to do when organising a party, and then develop from this an activity network, forward and backward passes and other techniques used in decision maths... IDENTIFYING THE PROBLEM: I have been asked to set out a rota for organising an 18th birthday party. I have to make sure that everything that needs to be done is included in this list... ACTIVITY TIME (days) IMMEDIATE PREDECESSORS A - Write list of guests 2 - B - Book the hall - C - Write out the invites 3 A D - Send out the invites C E - List number of people coming from replies 2 D F - Buy decorations for hall 3 B G - Buy food for guests 4 E H
