Participatory Budgeting, Poverty, and the Commitments of Liberalism

Politics
Name
Institution
Politics
Question One
Participatory budgeting is a process in which citizens are involved in the allocation of part of public funds through deliberation and decision-making (Gilman, 2016). As such, governments can choose this process so as to circumvent various challenges such as reducing citizens’ distrust that is often associated with public officials and public funds management. Gilman(2016) reveals that participatory budgeting allows members of the public to make funds allocation decisions publicly and as such, this process enhances accountability and transparency. In addition, participatory budgeting effectively enhances civic engagement and public participation in community issues and development.
Question Two
Poverty has been persistent among some of poorest countries in the world. As Collier(2007) reveals, the four major factors that have contributed to this persistent poverty are violence and conflict, natural resources, landlocked and poor governance. Specifically, poor governance is the most dominant factor in this case because it influences all other factors. For instance with good governance, these countries can be able to utilize their abundant natural resources and promote economic growth. Persistent poverty is a global justice issue that requires global attention because more than one region is affected and as Collier(2007) indicates, the bottom billion countries are imposing serious costs to the whole world.
Question Three
Freedom and equality play an essential role in the liberalism ideology. However, there exists a difference between classical and reform liberalism. Classical liberalism focuses on limiting government intervention to ensure there is individual freedom (Deneen, 2018). It emphasizes private property, rule of law, individual rights, economic freedom and open competition, which can bring about inequality. Reform liberalism focuses on solving the inequality brought forth by classical liberalism. Reform liberalism emphasizes on the importance of economic equality while still encouraging economic liberty and individual freedom (Deneen, 2018). To achieve this, reform liberalism encourages government involvement, especially in social welfare and taxation.
Question Four
The Nazi’s and Stalin’s regime share some similarity in the sense that in both regimes, leadership was authoritarian and inhuman practices were employed in order to keep people in check (Traverso, 2017). In addition, both regimes were controlled by a single party namely the Nazis in Germany and the Communist in the Soviet Union. Thus, the two can be classified as totalitarian regimes. However, despite the violence associated with the two regimes, in a way, Nazism was irrational, especially in the elimination of Jews. Traverso(2017) posits that the Nazism was mainly focused on destroying lives whereas Stalinism was focused on building a new society. This is because Stalin wanted to enhance communism, which was the rationality behind his violence.
Question Five
Climate change poses one of the ...