Critical Response - Essay Example

Critical Response Critical Response Basic Components and goals of a liberal government Liberalism refers to a political ideologythat considers government as a fundamental part of the society. One of the components of liberalism includes protection of people against abuse of their rights by the government. Therefore, liberalism holds that the government should not deny a person his or her rights. The other core component of liberalism is that the government has to limit the activities it conducts. Thus, the government should only carry out the activities, which it is supposed to carry and leave the rest to other agencies in society. One of the main goals of a liberalist government includes advocating for the rule of law. Therefore, a liberalist government ensures that all persons are subjected to the same laws (Hobhouse, 2009).
Basic Components and goals of a socialist government
A socialist government refers to a government, which is characterized by the basic components of a society that has no social classes. Thus, this form of government aims at controlling all the production and distribution means. According to socialist governments, this control is essential since it does away with competition and makes people equal. Another component of socialism includes the absence of private property. As such, every member of the society gets an equal share of medical care, earnings, and necessities. The main goal of a socialist government is to ensure that all member of society achieve equality, thus eliminating inequality and large gaps between the rich and the poor (Jennings, 2004).
How the two ideologies differ from one another.
Liberalism is different from socialism since liberalism advocates for adherence to the rule of law (Hobhouse, 2009). On the other hand, socialism holds that the state should be the sole producer and distributor of goods and services (Jennings, 2004).
Examples of governments that have utilized the two ideologies and their successes
One of the governments that have utilized liberalism is the Canadian government. Canadian politics started to be dominated by the idea of liberalism before the 1960s. Liberalism had immense success in Canada as it helped achieve individual rights, liberty, and free markets (Hobhouse, 2009). With regard to socialism, one government that has succeeded in using the ideology is the Chinese government. The People’s Republic of China can be termed as one of the most successful form of a socialist government. Socialism in China has been effective in meeting the goals of the liberal ideology (Jennings, 2004).
References
Hobhouse, L. T. (2009). Liberalism. Middlesex: The Echo Library.
Jennings, J. (2004). Socialism: Critical Concepts in Political Science. London: Routledge. Read More