Deck 2: The Idea of the Public Good: Ideologies and Isms

Question 1

Fascism appeals to people's ideals of nationalism, ethnicity, and/or race.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Laissez faire capitalism emphasizes the importance of central state planning in the success of the economy.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Which of the following would be considered a totalitarian political system?

A)Capitalism
B)Fascism
C)Anarchism
D)Communism
E)Socialism

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Libertarians believe in the violent destruction of government to promote individual liberty.

Question 5

In the United States, both liberalism and conservatism developed from a common set of fundamental political principles.

Question 6

What is the term for the filter that we use to interpret events?

A)Social environment
B)Capitalism
C)Ideology
D)Politics
E)Gradualism

Question 7

John Stuart Mill advocated for an individualist viewpoint that became a key component of liberalism.

Question 8

Ideology is a set of fixed, predictable ideas on how to serve the public good.

Question 9

Following World War I, extremists of the right became dominated by what ideology?

A)The Religious Right
B)Libertarianism
C)Fascism
D)Monarchism
E)None of the above

Question 10

The modern welfare state is the invention of European social democracy.

Question 11

Aristotle regarded democracy as the best form of government.

Question 12

The idea of the commercial republic was popularized by Adam Smith.

Question 13

Compared to many other countries, the political spectrum in the United States is shifted to the right.

Question 14

Which ideology is opposed, in principle, to the existence of any form of government?

A)Gradualism
B)Communism
C)Anarchism
D)Totalitarianism
E)None of the above

Question 15

Which of the following would favor a public assistance program, cuts in military spending, more regulation of business and industry, and a progressive tax system?

A)Capitalists
B)Liberals
C)Libertarians
D)Marxists
E)Conservatives

Question 16

Left-wing ideologies posit a view of human beings living together cooperatively, free from demeaning social divisions.

Question 17

Communism is the most prevalent and powerful ideology in Europe and Asia today.

Question 18

Liberals generally use the past for guidance when meeting the challenges of the present.

Question 19

Until the twentieth century, monarchism was the most prevalent form of government in the world.

Question 20

The election of Ronald Reagan served as a catalyst for accelerating the efforts of the Religious Right.

Question 21

Which ideology tries to achieve collectivist ends by using democratic means?

A)Communism
B)Liberalism
C)Capitalism
D)Conservatism
E)Democratic Socialism

Question 22

Which theorist argued that the main purpose of government was to protect private property?

A)John Locke
B)Adam Smith
C)Milton Friedman
D)Baron de Montesquieu
E)None of the above

Question 23

Which of the following policies could be linked to the notion of racial superiority?

A)Foreign policy
B)Civil rights
C)Immigration
D)All of the above
E)None of the above

Question 24

Compare and contrast the recent political history of the United States with the recent political history of Europe. Explain the differences and similarities.

Question 25

Which of the following do conservatives tend to stress the most?

A)Increased military spending above all other concerns
B)The rejection of property ownership free from government's interference
C)Egalitarian ideals and civil liberty above all other concerns
D)The right of people to pursue economic rights
E)All of the above

Question 26

Capitalism supports which of the following theories?

A)Market forces
B)Government regulation
C)Trickle-down theory
D)Both a and c
E)Both a and b

Question 27

Explain how the capitalist system is doomed to failure, according to the theories and ideas of Karl Marx.

Question 28

The statement, "That government is best, which governs least" best characterizes which ideology?

A)Liberalism
B)Libertarianism
C)Communism
D)Conservatism
E)None of the above

Question 29

Discuss the current, polarized political climate in the United States. Is this a reflection of specific disagreements on policy positions, or a symptom of the differing views of human nature that liberals and conservatives have?

Question 30

According to Baron de Montesquieu, what are the advantages associated with business and commerce?

A)Nations that trade extensively with other nations are predisposed toward peace.
B)More just political orders would enhance the chances for individual self-advancement.
C)Focus on wealth creation that would combat religious fanaticism.
D)A commercial democracy would foster certain modest bourgeois attitudes.
E)All of the above

Question 31

Who did not influence the theory of revolutionary communism?

A)Karl Marx
B)Friedrich Engels
C)V.I. Lenin
D)Aleister Crowley
E)All of the above

Question 32

What role do economic systems play in informing political ideologies? Could a state choose to implement contradictory political and economic systems? Explain.

Question 33

Who was the main architect behind the restoration of classical liberalism in economics during the twentieth century?

A)Friedrich Hayek
B)Milton Friedman
C)Adam Smith
D)Helmut Kohl
E)Ronald Reagan

Question 34

What theory is collectivism fundamentally opposed to?

A)Capitalism
B)Revolutionary communism
C)Democratic socialism
D)Communism
E)Fascism

Question 35

Who did not influence the ideas of conservatism?

A)Adam Smith
B)Baron de Montesquieu
C)G.W.F. Hegel
D)Friedrich Hayek
E)John Locke

Question 36

What is the term for Karl Marx's theory of historical progression that is focused on class struggle?

A)Monopoly capitalism
B)Law of capitalist accumulation
C)Gradualism
D)Dialectical materialism
E)Law of pauperization

Question 37

The root of the differences between liberals and conservatives can be found in

A)their views on what role government should play in shaping society.
B)their views of human nature.
C)the fact that liberals tend to be less hard-working than conservatives.
D)their views on the human condition in an evolving historical process.
E)the fact that liberals are more compassionate than conservatives.

Question 38

Who developed the idea of laissez-faire capitalism?

A)John Locke
B)Adam Smith
C)Baron de Montesquieu
D)Friedrich Engels
E)François Noël Babeuf

Question 39

Liberalism and conservatism are both rooted in principles found in the political philosophy of

A)John Locke.
B)Adam Smith.
C)Friedrich Hayek.
D)Baron de Montesquieu.
E)G.W.F. Hegel.

Question 40

Are there any circumstances where a radical ideology of the left or the right might take hold in the United States? What might help this ideology spread? What might work against it?

Question 41

In the United States, both libertarians and the Religious Right are considered to be conservatives. How similar are they? What accounts for their common designation? How might a libertarian and a member of the Christian Coalition respond to a piece of anti-pornography legislation? What do the differences in their likely responses tell you about the American political spectrum?