Option A: ‘Critically assess the claim that states are necessary evils’. The world is made up of many states. An elected government controls each of those states; this includes political rulers, laws and authority. The government of a state is elected by the people for the people and it is that government who enforces the rules, the regulations and the law. The state might be considered by some, to be a problem, a necessary evil but, they are well aware that without one the people of the state would run riot and do what they want, meaning that chaos would prevail. Now why some consider the state as a necessary evil is debatable. A state contains more than just a government and part of the machinery of that government is based on ‘authority to rule’. Laws, courts and the police are employed to do this, but they also rely on the Military force “to defend the country against external and internal enemies”. (Bromley & Clarke, 2009. p. 327). The biggest tool a government has is authority and authority is needed to control the people. If people were generally well behaved, we would not need a state to control us, and without one, people would eventually revert back to the old ways of stealing, raping and even murder to get what they want. We would have a war against everyone and there would be no peace or stability. States are considered to be evil by some who fall in the social inequality category being that they believe their taxes are too high and struggle to survive, but on saying that, “about 15% of pupils in state schools are now entitled to free meals because their parents receive welfare payments or earn below £15,575 a year”. (Bromley & Clarke, 2009. p. 332). Even though the government do try to help in some areas, the article on page 334, of Bromley and Clarke, 2009, taken from The Guardian in May 2009 stated that “This Page 1 of 4
government’s promise to make Britain a fairer place, where income does not affect a child’s life chances, rings hollow....