What is the purpose of Government? Does politics support or impede that purpose?

The purpose of govenment is most simply, to safeguard the liberty of those whom they have power over. Government is power and in a Republic or Democracy, the government has the job of exercising its power to support the general interest of the people. The problem which arises is that the people do not for the most part represent their interests directly, not do they all share the common interest or the interest those with whom they disagree.

In this manner, politics serves as a means more accurately serve the interest of the people engaged in the politics. Since each and every citizen is not likely to have his personal interests served through government action, politics attempts to call attention to the interests which are not being represented. It is a two way road, however, as politics in reality may turn into a dirty business of coersion, bribery, and other forms of corruption. While politics allow the voices of those who opt for change to be heard, there is no gaurantee that those voices will be heard or at least responded too.

So the relationship which emerges between government and politics is one of checks and balances: politics must exist so that a government cannot serve ONLY the interests of a minority or majority, yet government must also intervene and regulate should politics get out of hand and violate the law. It seems as if neither can operate independently of eachother and they continually complicate eachothers roles, especially with the introduction of corruption and self interest.