Is state government an effective form of government - Essay Example

Government Is government an effective form of government There isn't any doubt regarding the existence of big differences among the s of the United States of America. Professor Maggiore (n. d.) pointed out that "the differences between the states are every bit as acute as the differences between nations." At the same time Maggiore (n. d.) suggested that "state governments have profound affects on the lives of state residents." These characteristics have to be taken into account at the time of assessing the state governments as entities that indeed need to have their own written Constitutions so that their laws are established in a formal way and are known appropriately by all the citizens.

This is a step forward in the process of decentralization out of federal power and of achieving efficiency by the state governments. Dr. Weiher stated that there are four general purposes of a written Constitution: "(1) Create a Form of Government; (2) Limit Governmental Power; (3) Define Who is a Citizen; and (4) Identify society's central values" (Weiher, 2002). This last point has to be emphasized. The values of any given society change frequently from territory to territory. People from different states have very different sets of values and a written Constitution is a reflection of the diversity of values among citizens of different states.

For example, people from Utah have in common their unique religious beliefs. The same can be said of other people from other states. The federal government provides the unity within the diversity, and each state is a symbolic pluralistic unit in the spectrum of all the states bound together under the U.S. Constitution. The Wikipedia points out that "the most obvious advantage of a codified constitution is the coherent and easily understood body of rules. A codified constitution at the least is simple to read, being a single document.

The US constitution, for example, is only about 7,000 words long, and can be bought in most bookshops in the United States, whereas an uncodified constitution such as that of the UK is often ambiguous and difficult to interpret." (Wikipedia, 2006). This is a big advantage that has to be taken into consideration when evaluating the importance of a state Constitution in written form. State laws are spread easily through a written document, but it is very important that state Constitutions shouldn't have any contradictory laws with the U.S. Constitution.

State government is really effective when it is founded on solid constitutional grounds. We have to consider that "every state, however, is to some extent unique, a product of its own blend of history, culture, and economic circumstances. Even though every state has a governor, a state legislature, and a court system, in no two states will these operate with exactly the same powers, structures, and inter-relationships." (Digby & Grant, 2003). The only way that a state government could be really effective is by adhering to the rule of law at all times.

In other words, to obey and follow its Constitution in order to establish the appropriate legal, economic, political, religious and cultural environment in which all the citizens would find protected by the rule of law. Obeying and following the laws by all the citizens in any given state is a safeguard against anarchy and chaos. All the government officials should adhere themselves to the rule of law in the first place as a commitment of working together for the benefit of the community.

In such a way any state government can be very effective. Unity within the diversity makes strong the Federal government that needs the state government as its representative in each and every state. So we can positively say that state government is indeed an effective form of government when it follows the guidelines set in this essay in relation to having a written Constitution and abiding on the rule of law.Works CitedDigby, Michael F. & Grant, Chris. "The Government of Georgia". (2003).

Georgia College & State University. (20 Jan. 2006). .Maggiore, Professor John. "State Politics". (n. d.). Political Science 311. University at Buffalo. The State University of New York. (21 January, 2006). .Weiher, Dr. "State Government". (Fall 2002). Political Science 3370. University of Houston. (20 Jan. 2006). .Wikipedia. "Constitution". (21 January 2006). (21 Jan. 2006). .