When government is created, what gives them authority?

Answer 1

Government is the will of the People
(or at least it's suppose to be)

Answer 2

The power of coercive force -- it's the fundamental governmental "authority" of the old days, and is alive and well in all military dictatorships.

Often, a ruler will rely on a god or gods to legitimize his/her rule, or will claim a superior genetic line to establish an inherited authority.

When the English had a little revolution, and dumped their King, and were sick of the continual royal squabbles, they had to develop a new kind of legitimacy.This was done by John Locke, with the concept that "governments are formed among men," meaning that the "ruler" rules soley by implied and explicit consent of the governed. A real republic or democracy requires this concept of sovereignty of the the individual citizens, and therefore the authority of the leader to lead is by "rule of law," not by brutal coercive force.

English speaking countries generally follow this concept of democracy, and the leadership is always bound by laws which control their actions.

In dictatorships, like Saddam's Iraq or the mullah ruler-ship of Iran or Stalinist Russia or Hitler's Germany, the leader IS the law, and claims authority based solely on the fact that they can kick everybody else's butt whenever they feel like it. (As long as they can keep their secret police and soldiers loyal to them..)

Rule of Law vs Rule of Force is the one great cultural factor that has led to so much conflict during the 20th Century; and it's still the primal difference between the developed West and the War-Lord nations.

Answer 3

The authority of a democratic government comes from the people. A government is of the people, by the people and for the people.

Answer 4

The will of the people to obey them. This is often either a massive consensus support of a leader or process, or support based on the military strength. It will usually be combined with a fear of not following the government.

Answer 5

The consenting people give them authority.
The economic constituency gives them power.
The intimidation of this power often compells people to endure the existing authority,
Even after it has changed to something different that what they gave their authority to in the first place.

Answer 6

remember "of the people, by the people and for the people"?

The government rules with the "consent of the governed".

Answer 7

Either power through technology or sheer numbers.

Answer 8

sovereingty

Answer 9

MONEYY!!

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