Who Enters Politics And Why

Exploring unique survey and interview data on the personality characteristics of British politicians, this book provides a timely psychological analysis of those individuals who pursue political careers and how they represent their constituents once elected. Focusing specifically on the Basic Human Values of more than 150 MPs as well as hundreds of local councillors, Weinberg offers original insights into three compelling questions: Who enters politics and how are they different to the general public? Do politicians’ personality characteristics matter for their legislative behaviour? Do voters really get the ‘wrong’ politicians? Taking a fresh psychological approach to issues that are predominant in political science, this book casts new light on the human side of representative democracy.

George Orwell set out ‘to make political writing into an art’, and to a wide extent this aim shaped the future of English literature – his descriptions of authoritarian regimes helped to form a new vocabulary that is fundamental to understanding totalitarianism. While 1984 and Animal Farm are amongst the most popular classic novels in the English language, this new series of Orwell’s essays seeks to bring a wider selection of his writing on politics and literature to a new readership. In Why I Write, the first in the Orwell’s Essays series, Orwell describes his journey to becoming a writer, and his movement from writing poems to short stories to the essays, fiction and non-fiction we remember him for. He also discusses what he sees as the ‘four great motives for writing’ – ‘sheer egoism’, ‘aesthetic enthusiasm’, ‘historical impulse’ and ‘political purpose’ – and considers the importance of keeping these in balance. Why I Write is a unique opportunity to look into Orwell’s mind, and it grants the reader an entirely different vantage point from which to consider the rest of the great writer’s oeuvre. 'A writer who can – and must – be rediscovered with every age.' — Irish Times

Twenty-three centuries after its compilation, 'The Politics' still has much to contribute to this central question of political science. Aristotle's thorough and carefully argued analysis is based on a study of over 150 city constitutions, covering a huge range of political issues in order to establish which types of constitution are best - both ideally and in particular circumstances - and how they may be maintained. Aristotle's opinions form an essential background to the thinking of philosophers such as Thomas Aquinas, Machiavelli and Jean Bodin and both his premises and arguments raise questions that are as relevant to modern society as they were to the ancient world.

Written by leading scholars in the field, Causes of War provides the first comprehensive analysis of the leading theories relating to the origins of both interstate and civil wars. Utilizes historical examples to illustrate individual theories throughout Includes an analysis of theories of civil wars as well as interstate wars -- one of the only texts to do both Written by two former International Studies Association Presidents

If he had been pressed, Macaulay would probably have admitted that there are cases in which human acts and impulses to act occur independently of any idea of an end to be gained by them. If I have a piece of grit in my eye and ask some one to take it out with the corner of his handkerchief, I generally close the eye as soon as the handkerchief comes near, and always feel a strong impulse to do so. Nobody supposes that I close my eye because, after due consideration, I think it my interest to do so.

Intro -- Half Title -- Series Page -- Title Page -- Copyright -- Dedication -- Contents -- Prologue. The Best Job in Politics -- Part One -- 1. Where'd You Go to High School? -- 2. How Chemistry 101 and a Disco Changed My Life -- 3. Why Run? -- 4. Aren't You on City Council? What Are You Going to Do About That? -- 5. Fifth in a Five-Way Race -- 6. My Name Is Olivia Nutter and This Is My Dad -- Part Two -- 7. Budgets and Roses -- 8. The Last Call You Ever Want to Get -- 9. Getting to the Brink of Plan C -- 10. We're Not Running a Big Babysitting Service. We're Running a Big Government -- 11. Why Not a Tax on Cheesesteaks Instead of Soda? -- Part Three -- 12. There Was Never an Earthquake Here Before You Were Mayor -- 13. A Cool and a Hot City: Attracting the New and Retaining the Old -- 14. Tragedies, Frustrations, Accidents, and a Holy Visit -- Conclusion. United Cities of America -- A photo gallery appears between pages 68 and 69

This best-selling dictionary contains over 1,700 entries on all aspects of politics. Written by a leading team of political scientists, it embraces the whole multi-disciplinary specturm of political theory including political thinkers, history, institutions, and concepts, as well as notable current affairs that have shaped attitudes to politics. An appendix contains timelines listing the principal office-holders of a range of countries including the UK, Canada, the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Russia, and China. Fully revised and updated for the 3rd edition, the dictionary includes a wealth of new material in areas such as international relations, political science, political economy, and methodologies, as well as a chronology of key political theorists. It also boasts entry-level web links that don't go out of date. These can be accessed via a regularly checked and updated companion website, ensuring that the links remain relevent, and any dead links are replaced or removed. The dictionary has international coverage and will prove invaluable to students and academics studying politics and related disciplines, as well as politicians, journalists, and the general reader seeking clarification of political terms.

The Oxford Handbook of Canadian Politics provides a comprehensive overview of the transformation that has occurred in Canadian politics since it acheived autonomy nearly a century ago, examining the institutions and processes of Canadian government and politics at the local, provincial and federal levels. It analyzes all aspects of the Canadian political system: the courts, elections, political parties, Parliament, the constitution, fiscal and political federalism, the diffusion of policies between regions, and various aspects of public policy.