Excerpt from Problems in Political Evolution
Never before, perhaps, has there been so keen and widespread an interest in questions of governmental organization and function as exists at present. The extension of political authority to all classes within the state furnishes a means of adding legal effect to public opinion and gives importance to the political views of the masses. The complex social and economic life of to-day offers an enormous field for the extension of state activities in ways that fundamentally affect the interests of every citizen. Political forms and methods, considered ideal and permanent a half century ago, are breaking down under the strain caused by the rapidly changing conditions of modern life; and states show little hesitation in making important and far-reaching reforms in their efforts to secure better adjustment.
Moreover, modern states are seriously and honestly trying to apply scientific methods in their attempted reforms. Statistical materials, records of past politics, and data gathered from the four corners of the earth are at the disposal of modern lawmakers and administrators. At the same time, the nature of political problems is often imperfectly understood. Devices of government or methods of regulation that have worked well in one place or at one time are applied in others with the expectation of equally good results, regardless of the fact that different conditions may nullify their expected benefits and produce entirely unlooked-for consequences. The assurance with which politicians refer to the fate of the Roman Empire as an example of what will happen to the United States if it retains its colonial possessions, and the light-hearted and haphazard manner in which lawmaking bodies enact sweeping legislation with no apparent realization of its direct or indirect results, suggest the desirability of a more accurate knowledge of the laws of political causation and of the complex nature of political evolution.
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