250-300 words
Replies: 2 replies; at least 100 words; critical and constructive criticism; useful feedback/ideas
how to strengthen argument
Required readings and presentations
Biblical reference
Kevin,
I enjoyed reading your post about the types of local governments and which one you
believe is the best. I also like how you introduced the concept that what is the best form is
dependent upon the population of the geographical area. However, I would go even further as to
compare it to the representative bureaucracy concept in our reading – that the “major groups in
society” should be represented and “participate proportionately in government work” (Bowman
& Kearney, 2014). This representative bureaucracy will expand just beyond population and reach
into "socioeconomic characteristics (income and education levels, for example) and political
structural factors (the amount of competition between political parties)” (Bowman & Kearney,
2014). "The concept of representative bureaucracy...suggests that the structure of government
employment should reflect major sexual, racial, socioeconomic, religious, geographic, and
related components in society. The assumptions behind this idea are that (1) bureaucrats have
discretion; (2) a workforce representative of the values, points of view, and interests of the
people it governs will be responsive to their special problems and concerns; and (3) a
representative bureaucracy provides strong symbolic evidence of a government 'of the people, by
the people, and for the people’” (Bowman & Kearney, 2014). A representative bureaucracy is
defined as "the concept that all major groups in society should participate proportionately in
government work” (Bowman & Kearney, 2014).
After a representative bureaucracy arises, any local government will thrive more than it
could before. A lot of the issues with local government, especially towns and townships, there
has been a lowering of participation rates and the “demise of township type of government has
long been expected” (Bowman & Kearney, 2014). Therefore, I believe that when more interests
are represented, participation apathy will decrease. I believe that the heart of our constitutional
government is to ensure that people are represented and oppression falls by the wayside. Exodus
23:9 (NLT) instructs us by stating, "You must not oppress foreigners. You know what it's like to
be a foreigner, for you yourselves were once foreigners in the land of Egypt.” Although we may
not understand the concept of being a foreigner in the sense of being from another country,
foreigners of any kind would fall under the “neighbor” concept that Jesus introduced – and
instructed us to love them all. Therefore, it is vital to not oppress any group in society, not
dependent upon a population but rather the sum of representation.
References
Bowman, Ann O’M., and Richard C. Kearney. State and Local Government. 9th ed. Boston:
Wadsworth, Inc., 2014. ISBN: 9781435462687.
Xavier,
I enjoyed reading your post about the five types of local governments. I also wrote that
municipal government is the best form of local government because of its wide variety of
interests, processes and tasks in addition to the dispersion of power amongst the political groups.
Although we possess power, it is given to us from God, who is the source of all power. 1
Corinthians 8:6 says, “But we know that there is only one God, the Father, who created
everything, and we live for him. And there is only one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom God
made everything and through whom we have been given life.”
Similarly to what I wrote in another response, I believe that there may not be a “better”
form of government if there is a representative bureaucracy, regardless of what kind of local
government it is. A representative bureaucracy is a concept in our reading that the “major groups
in society” should be represented and “participate proportionately in government work”
(Bowman & Kearney, 2014). This representative bureaucracy will expand just beyond population
and reach into "socioeconomic characteristics (income and education levels, for example) and
political structural factors (the amount of competition between political parties)” (Bowman &
Kearney, 2014). "The concept of representative bureaucracy...suggests that the structure of
government employment should reflect major sexual, racial, socioeconomic, religious,
geographic, and related components in society. The assumptions behind this idea are that (1)
bureaucrats have discretion; (2) a workforce representative of the values, points of view, and
interests of the people it governs will be responsive to their special problems and concerns; and
(3) a representative bureaucracy provides strong symbolic evidence of a government 'of the
people, by the people, and for the people’” (Bowman & Kearney, 2014). A representative
bureaucracy is defined as "the concept that all major groups in society should participate
proportionately in government work” (Bowman & Kearney, 2014).
After a representative bureaucracy arises, I believe any local government will thrive more
than it could before. A lot of the issues with local government, especially towns and townships,
there has been a lowering of participation rates and the “demise of township type of government
has long been expected” (Bowman & Kearney, 2014). Therefore, I believe that when more
interests are represented, participation apathy will decrease. I believe that the heart of our
constitutional government is to ensure that people are represented and oppression falls by the
wayside.
References
Bowman, Ann O’M., and Richard C. Kearney. State and Local Government. 9th ed. Boston:
Wadsworth, Inc., 2014. ISBN: 9781435462687.
“Legally, there are five types of local governments: counties, municipalities, towns and
townships, special districts, and school districts” (Bowman & Kearney, 2014). General purpose
local governments include “counties, municipalities, and towns and townships” and they perform
a “wide variety of functions” (Bowman & Kearney, 2014). Special districts and school districts
are single purpose because they perform “a single specific function” (Bowman & Kearney,
2014).
Counties were created by states to “function as their administrative appendage” (Bowman
& Kearney, 2014). Their functions include but are not limited to collecting property taxes, “law
enforcement, elections, record keeping, and road maintenance” (Bowman & Kearney, 2014).
Because of the growing population, there is also a growth in demands on municipalities.
(Bowman & Kearney, 2014) Counties also handle “health care, pollution, transit, social services”
and the like. (Bowman & Kearney, 2014) They are “more prominent” than they have been in the
past. (Bowman & Kearney, 2014) Similarly, municipalities are general purpose and offer a “wide
array of services” including: “public works, parks, city-run docks, city-sponsored festivals, trash
removal, street sweeping, inspecting of restaurants and the maintenance of traffic” (Bowman &
Kearney, 2014). However, municipalities are also known as cities and more are created every
year. (Bowman & Kearney, 2014) Also a general purpose entity, towns and townships are
generally smaller than cities and counties but their “governmental power depends on state
government” (Bowman & Kearney, 2014). They have become increasingly “more formalized”
but continue “their tradition of direct democracy through town meetings in which residents make
decisions on policy matter” (Bowman & Kearney, 2014). The democracy manifests itself through
the election of “town officials, pass[ing of] local ordinances, [levying of] taxes, and the
[adoption] of a budget” (Bowman & Kearney, 2014). However, there is a lowering of
participation rates and the “demise of township type of government has long been expected”
(Bowman & Kearney, 2014).
Single purpose entities called special districts are built to complete what “local
governments cannot or will not do” (Bowman & Kearney, 2014). They are “established to meet
service needs in a particular area” and are created through legislation. (Bowman & Kearney,
2014) Service districts in cities nationwide cannot reach beyond their geographical boundaries,
which is why special districts are vital. (Bowman & Kearney, 2014) School districts, also single-
purpose, are run by a school board. (Bowman & Kearney, 2014) The school board is the “source
of power and authority in the district” and generally includes “five to seven members [that are]
elected in nonpartisan, large elections” (Bowman & Kearney, 2014). The current trend is that
“the fewer school districts, the better” and their one “persistent conundrum” is securing
“sufficient funding for public education” (Bowman & Kearney, 2014).
Personally, I believe that municipalities have the best structure, considering finances,
representation, power, leadership and relationship with the state’s authority. They are large
enough to stand up to a powerful state authority, if need be, but also small enough for the major
interests to be represented. The power is more evenly dispersed opposed to towns and townships,
where there is very little participation. Because of the larger amount of residents, there is a
higher amount of funds to work with on various community activities, and plenty of volunteers
to help. Although there may be circles of power within the municipality, it has been my
experience that it is easier to infiltrate those circles when showing a genuine interest opposed to
some smaller circles in townships or larger circles among a larger geographical region of
counties. The bible has countless examples of the importance of dispersion of power, because
people can become arrogant with too much power. Jeremiah 17:9 says, "The human heart is the
most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?”
Therefore, a dispersion of power is absolutely vital to ensuring fairness, justice and equality.
References
Bowman, Ann O’M., and Richard C. Kearney. State and Local Government. 9th ed. Boston:
