Ideology

Ideologies Are the sets of basic beliefs about the political, economic, social
and cultural affairs held by the majority of people within a society. - It
connotes a set of doctrines or beliefs that are shared by the members of a
social group or that form basic of a political, economic, or other system.
Guide the formation of a political pattern or subculture that bicomes an
acceptable political norm or leaning over time

The political Ideology is defined “as a set of opinions underpinned by doctrines,

values, and perceived moral truths that guide behavior towards a specific social
order” (Johnson & Roberto, 2018).

Political ideologies are powerful such that they shape the structure of a society,
institutions and the ways of doing things. These ideologies are comprised of beliefs
and value systems that give rise to political processes; they also constitute ideas
about change and its desired future.

A discussion of the nature of “ideology” is also marked by a problem similar to

any discussion of the nature of politics and power. Like politics and power, there is
also no settled or agreed definition of ideology.

Oftentimes, “political ideology” is confused with “political culture.” Both concepts

refer to political attitudes, values, and beliefs, but ideologies are more coherent and
often codified while political culture is more general and rather abstract (Mendoza,
1999b).

An Ideology is a more or less coherent set of ideas that provides the basis for
organized political action, whether this is intended to preserve, modify, or
overthrow the existing system of power. All Ideologies therefor (a) offer an
account of the existing order, usually in the form of “world-society’ (b) advance a
model of desired future, a vision of the ‘good society’, and (c) explain how
political change can and should be brought about – how to get from A to B
(Heywood 2003, 12).
1. Anti- government Ideologies The most common example is Anarchism. It
is political ideology that literally wants to abolish the government, usually
through violence and acts of lawlessness. The good side of this however, is
its goal- a society of self- governed individual with better freedom. R

 This ideology argues that everything about governments is repressive and

therefore must be abolished entirely

ANARCHISM

The term anarchy comes from the ancient Greek word anarchos, meaning
“without rulers
It can also refer to any country or community that is temporarily or permanently
under no system of governmental control

or example, when Black Lives Matter movement protestors took control of areas

of Portland, Oregon, and Seattle, Washington, in the summer of 2020,
President Donald Trump declared the cities to be in a state of anarchy and
dispatched federal law enforcement agents to restore order

 Political authority in all its form, and especially in the form of the state, is both
evil and unnecessary (anarchy literally means ‘without rule’).  The sovereign,
compulsory, and coercive authority of the state is seen as a nothing less than
legalized oppression operating in the interests of the powerful, propertied, and
privileged.  Anarchist prefers a stateless society. Individuals can best manage
their own affairs through voluntary agreement and cooperation.

The French Revolution stands as a landmark in the history of anarchism. The use of
revolutionary violence by masses would captivate anarchists of later centuries, with
such events as the Women's March on Versailles, the Storming of the Bastille and the
Réveillon riots seen as the revolutionary archetype.

SOCIALISM 

An authoritarian and revolutionary approach to achieving socialism. As an

ideology, communism emphasizes a classless society in which all members jointly
share the means and output of production. 
Communism is a political, social, and economic ideology that advocates the
replacement of private ownership and profit-based economies with a classless
economic system under which the means of production—buildings, machinery,
tools, and labor—are communally owned, with private ownership of property
either prohibited or severely limited by the state. Because of its opposition to
both democracy and capitalism, communism is considered by its advocates to be
an advanced form of socialism.

Contemporary communism was inspired in Western Europe by the Industrial

Revolution of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The revolution, which
allowed some to attain great wealth at the expense of an increasingly
impoverished working class, encouraged Prussian political activist, Karl Marx, to
conclude that class struggles resulting from income inequality would inevitably
give rise to a society in common ownership of the means of production would
allow prosperity to be shared by all.   

e The Communist Manifesto, in which they concluded that the problems of

poverty, disease, and shortened lives that afflicted the proletariat—the working
class—could be resolved only by replacing capitalism with communism. Under
communism, as envisioned by Marx and Engels, the major means of industrial
production—factories, mills, mines, and railroads—would be publicly owned and
operated for the benefit of all.

Marx predicted that a fully realized form of communism following the overthrow
of capitalism would result in a communal society free of class divisions or
government, in which the production and distribution of goods would be based
upon the principle “From each according to his ability, to each according to his
needs

e Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) under Vladimir Lenin in 1922. By

the 1930s, Lenin’s brand of moderate communism had been replaced by the
Communist Party of the Soviet Union, which under Joseph Stalin, exerted
absolute government control over all aspects of the Russian society. 

Despite the incalculable human cost of his iron-fisted, authoritarian application

of communism, Stalin transformed the Soviet Union from a backward country
into a world superpower.

By the 1990s, the prevalence of communism as a global political force quickly

diminished. Today, only the nations of China, Cuba, North Korea, Laos, and
Vietnam continue to function as communist states.
Belief in the community highlights the degree to which the individual is connected
with others. Identify is therefore a product of social interaction more than innate
qualities. 

Brotherhood or fraternity speaks of a shared common humanity Socialist thus

prefer cooperation rather than competition and collectivity rather than
individualism. 5 

Socialists look at society in terms of differences in the distribution of income or

wealth. Social class is believed to be an important social cleavage, which divides
societies. The interests of the working class and the oppressed should be upheld.
With this, eradicating economic and social inequalities is deemed as the primary
goal of socialism. 

Common ownership is also central to socialist thought. Unlike private property,

common ownership is a means to harness material resources for the common good.

Democratic Socialism
• A peaceful and democratic approach to achieving socialism.
• As an ideology, democratic socialism also emphasizes a classless
society in which all members jointly share the means and output of
production.
• But unlike communism, democratic socialism attempts to achieve its
goals peacefully via the democratic processes. Democratic socialists
reject the need for immediate transition to socialism in favor of a
gradualist approach, achieved by working within a democratic
government. Economic inequalities should be remedied through
a Welfare State, a system that provides aid to the poor and help to
the unemployed.

basic tenets
higher minimum wages, universal health care, free education, workers controlling the
means of production, and an innate belief in democracy.

LIBERALISM 

Belief in individualism underscores the importance of the human individual

compared to any other group. 

Liberty of the individual must be protected. An individual has freedom when he or

she is able to act as he or she pleases. 

Reason can lead individuals to make wise judgments, which could solve issues or
differences. 
Equality implies that individuals are born equal, at least in moral terms. Equal
rights and entitlements are at its core. It must be noted , however, that liberals do
not endorse social equality or equality of outcome, 
Tolerance is willingness of individuals to allow others to think and behave in ways
they do not approve. It is a guarantee of individual liberty. 
Authority and social relationships must also be based on agreement and consent.

Conservatismg
greater attention to the entities than to individual freedom

The early stages of Conservations are outline to be reaction to the events

surrounding the French Revolution of 1789.

And then the modern conservative school of thought can be found from the
18t century British philosopher Edmund Burke and his work Reflection on
the Revolution in France. Despite the reality of unequal status and wealth,
humans are interdependent.

The central theme of conservation is to conserve.

It rejects change to protect tradition and practice's in politics and in society.
It has institutions tested by time and wisdom from past generations.
Tradition also promotes security and stability, and gives a sense of
belongingness through historical backgrounds. We have to see ourselves
as involved in a partnership not only between those who are living, but
between those who are living, those who are dead, and those who are to
be born. Simplest or most abstract form, the conservative in inclined to hold
onto what he has rather than seek what he does not have.

Issue Liberalism Conservatism

Only valuable if it serves a
purpose; we should not be afraid Repository of acquired wisdom; collection of best
Tradition to overturn tradition knowledge from many years of practice
Essential for human flourishing;
people are free to do as they Excessive freedom is bad; lets people ignore
please as long as they do not hurt
societal responsibilities and overlook social
Freedom others customs
Relies on reason; the great Thinks reason is fallible and prone to error; human
success of the scientific beings cannot discover the best way to govern
revolution can be repeated in through thinking. Instead, we must base our
Reason human affairs if we use reason judgments and decisions on experience.
Dangerous because it breaks down traditional
Valuable because it unleashes economic roles. The profit motive corrodes
Free tremendous economic growth and customary mores and reduces all relationships to
Market efficiency, enriching society cash transactions.

2. Right- Wing Ideologies Ideologies that oppose change, looking into

the past for wisdom. Uncommon for some people to be afraid of change,
especially if they have seen a more effective type of ruling. Ideologies on
the right have shown its effectiveness already. thus clarifying reason why
some people would rather choose ideologies from the right. Goal of this
types of ideologies is to have order and piece.

Manifested during Mussolini’s facist dictatorship in Italy and Hitler’s dictatorship in Germany
Ultranationalist ideology. As such, it subscribes to the idea of a supreme race, whose members
should enjoy the natural resources. It is by nature exclusive as it excludes nonmembers of the
race.

The Philippines has the most persistently undemocratic democracy in Asia. Except
for the period of dictatorship under Ferdinand Marcos between 1972 and 1986, the
Philippines has had a functioning democracy since independence from the United
States in 1946. At the same time, a small group of powerful families has dominated
politics and kept the economic benefits of power to themselves. Many analysts use
the modifier "elite" when referring to Philippine democracy. (Bello and
Gershman,1990)

Effective participation by citizens outside of elections is limited. Unlike Malaysia and

Singapore (much more obviously unlike the military dictatorship in Burma) with
their Internal Security Acts, the Philippine state does not impose too many formal
limits to the self-organization of disadvantaged groups. But a combination of
bureaucratic rules and informal means including violence continues to make
organizing difficult. Without effective popular pressure, government is generally not
accountable.

While labor and peasant organizations remain weak, other civil society
organizations, NGOs and new social movements groups including women and
environmental groups are strong and continue to build significant political
capability. Initiatives to build new kinds of political parties come from this section of
Philippine society. They also constitute a strong base of support for initiatives to
reform Philippine politics, to transform a weak, incompetent government
dominated by rent-seeking elites.

Today's renewed focus on the state's role has been inspired by the dramatic events
in the global economy which have fundamentally changed the environment in
which states operate. The global integration of economies and the spread of
democracy have narrowed the scope for arbitrary and capricious behavior. Taxes,
investment rules and economic policies must be ever responsive to the parameters
of a globalized world economy. Technological change has opened new
opportunities for unbundling services and allowing a larger role for markets. These
changes have meant new and different roles for government - no longer a sole
provider but as facilitator and regulator". (World Bank, 1997:1)

The most important reason for problematizing "governance and democratization"

discourse is that it is being pushed by international capitalism, by multilateral
institutions such as the World Bank and the governments of advanced capitalist
countries led by the United States. After supporting authoritarian regimes
throughout the world from Somoza to Marcos to Mobutu for decades, why has
international capitalism shifted to support for democracy? Why is democratization
in countries of the South in the interest of international capitalism?

The attempt to equate democracy with capitalism by neo-liberal ideologues is only

one part of the problem. Surely, history will 'end' much later than Francis
Fukuyama. Arguing against the proposition that markets lead to democracy should
not be too difficult given the many examples of markets prospering under various
forms of authoritarianism in the past and today. The opposite direction of the
argument, that 'democracy requires markets' demands more attention because it
leads to the issue of state building under conditions of accelerating globalization
under the aegis of capitalism.

The question might be posed in the following manner. If globalization is the current
stage of the expansion of capitalist relations into countries of the South, what is it
about the particulars of this expansion that makes "democratization" the preferred
political strategy of international capitalism? Is it part of the anti-state aspect of
neo-liberalism? Does movement away from authoritarian states in the South mean
weaker governments? Or is international capitalism mainly interested in moving
against protectionist, nationalist ruling class fractions to enable "modernizing elites"
to come to power and make way for the expansion of capitalist relations into new
areas of the economies of the South?

We might begin to answer these extremely complex questions with some initial
clarifications. To start with, the kind of democracy that is being pushed by the North
is very specific. It is formal, constitutional, Western-style democracy. It is a form of
democracy that separates politics from the structures of power in the economy.
Ideologically, it is very much part of the "anti-state aspect of neo-liberalism".
Harking back to Lockian arguments, but with a more modern Thatcherite patina,
democracy here is understood in the simplest of ways as "less government".

In its academic garb, the argum

Class discussion

1. National ID system
a. Liberal vs. conservativism

2. Privatization of public utilities

a. Socialist vs. capitalist
3. 1987 People power revolution
a. Anarchy vs. conservatism

4. Onion and Sugar shortage

a. Liberal vs. conservatism
5.