An entertaining and thought-provoking guide to what laws are, who makes them and how people enforce them. It covers crime and punishment as well as social and citizenship issues such as politics and international law, using a mixture of debates, cartoon strips and clear diagrams. Chapters in this book include:- What is politics?- Who's in charge?- What is a government?All kinds of governmentsHow societies have run themselves from Ancient Athens and Rome, to China, Europe and the Birth of the United States pf AmericaPolitical systemsHow does democracy actually work? How do countries get things done? And what about the alternatives - dictatorship, communism and even total anarchy?Elections and votingWho can vote? Who can't? And is there a way to count all the votes up that's fair to everyone?Political changeHow can people influence their governments in between elections - or in countries where elections don't happen at all?Political ideologiesWhat are the big ideas that politicians use to decide how to run a country? What's the difference between 'left' and 'right' in politics, and why does it matter? How can work out where YO are on the political spectrum?Big questionsSometimes what matters most isn't who is in charge, or what they stand for, but what they're actually going to do to fix the world's problems... - Is there such a thing as 'human rights'?- Can war ever be justified?- Why are some countries poor?- What is terrorism?- What is prison for?- What is freedom of speech?- How does the media affect politics?- What is immigration?- Am I a feminist?- Who's responsible for the planet?- Is corruption inevitable?- How to argue- Learn to debate- What next?