Sign Up Now
Get instant access to over 1 million+ study documents
OR
Already registered? click here to login
By creating your account, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and student honor code.
Power and authority seems as though they would be synonyms. However, they are different. Someone can have authority and not have power and vice versa. Authority denotes ability. Power denotes influence (Wrong, 2017). In government, authority is bestowed upon politicians or judges, and so forth when they assume office. A Justice of the Supreme Court has the authority to send someone to jail based on the case information. Power on the other hand is the ability to sway opinions and policy in one’s favor. For example, President Trump had the authority to strike Syria with missiles. However, he did not have the power to sway Congress to fund the wall project.
These are things to consider when examining government and politics. Within the realm of power and authority, it is important to have both as that way, things can be done effectively and quickly. For example, someone like Fidel Castro, who was a dictator had both authority and power. While technically he held the position of President, he was a dictator. He managed to sway enough people to support him and his rise to power and authority. He legitimized his power as authority and stayed in the position for decades (Quirk, 1995).
People always mention the idea that power is more important than anything else. While it is true, power is important, it requires some level of authority to maintain. Imagine the people working in mafias. They do not have legitimate authority, but exercise great power. If their power were legitimized through authority, their power would increase, and they would be able to do things in the open. The phenomenon of authority and power works best when they are experienced together. That is why those in power attempt to legitimize themselves by holding office through elections and political campaigns.
References
Quirk, R. E. (1995). Fidel Castro. New York: Norton.
Wrong, D. H. (2017). Power: Its forms, bases, and uses. Routledge.
Those officials who did look at the question of Japanese intentions decided that Japan would never attack, because to do so would be irrational. Yet what might seem irrational to one country may seem perfectly logical to another country that has different goals, values, and traditions. (Kessler 98) The failures apparent in the onset of World War II and during the course of the war led indirectly to the creation
Cuba's Future After Fidel Castro There are many schools of thought when considering the future of Cuba without its leader Fidel Castro. Many think that Cuba is on the cusp of greatness while others warn of coming doom. It can be difficult envisioning the true Cuba from an Americanized point-of-view. Many Americans cannot understand a socialist framework where everyone is treated equal because America is the land of unique opportunity and
United States and Fidel Castro's Cuba, now more than forty years old, is still a source of great political and moral contention. The collapse of the Soviet Union and, with it, the end of the Cold War, signaled a change in the implications of the type of socialism governing Cuba. The alleged threats that had hovered so close to the continental U.S. throughout these paranoid and dangerous days of
Guevara Perceptions of Che Guevera PERCEPTIONS OF CHE GUEVARA Che Guevara was born as Ernesto Guevara de la Serna in 1928 to a middle-class family (Castaneda 1998, 3). He was Argentinean by birth but was later awarded with an honorary Cuban citizenship in recognition of his contribution towards the armed struggle in the Cuban revolution. Studying to become a doctor, Guevara became influenced by Marxist ideals and teachings upon a motorbike trip across
The Church Committee concluded that these activities made the intelligence community a secret government that was illegal, unethical, and improper and did not reflect the people or the nation of America. Secret intelligence actions were used to disrupt, harass, and destroy domestic law-abiding citizens and groups. At the time, people were spied on with excessive intrusion with the methods being illegal. In addition, the intelligence agencies carried out secret infiltration
By the end of the year, United States wished to look for another person to replace Fulgencio Batista. It is also thought that Batista was suggested that the CIA should assassinate Fidel Castro but Batista rejected the offer (Hugh Thomas, p.30). The then Director of CIA, after Castro took over stated verified that Castro was not inclined towards Communism and that any American intervention before the takeover or at