The State

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power – the potential to do, coerce, or deceive

sovereignty – sufficient power to defend one’s liberty or property

State – the Society in a territory that cooperates to organize collective or public force to apply the Law to and for everyone in the territory

public force or power – the ability to apply the Law in a territory, writing and enacting legal rules, judging if the Law has been violated, and penalizing those who have violated it

People – the basis for public force in a State; those who judge the performance of government and elect the individuals who exercise public power

government – the organization that administers public force

constitution – the written or customary social contract of a State that defines the structure of government and the freely acquired rights and obligations between the members of the State and government

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CONTEXT FOR THE TERMS

The State is a Society that organizes collective force in a territory to defend the liberty and property of the persons in that territory. That State is sovereign if it can defend itself the liberty and property of its members. It is free if it’s not subject to coercion or deceit.

The State is divided into People and government. The government is the organization that the Society entrusts collective force to and pay taxes to so that the Law will be enforced. The People are the part of the State that judges the performance of government and votes for the candidates to fill the positions.

The constitution of a State is the social contract, formal or informal, that defines the structure or organization of the government and the freely acquired rights and obligations between the members of the State and government.

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Photograph: Unseen Histories on Unsplash.