World government is the notion of a single common political authority for all of humanity. Its modern conception is rooted in European history, particularly in the philosophy of ancient Greece, in the political formation of the Roman Empire, and in the subsequent struggle between secular authority, represented by the Holy Roman Emperor, and ecclesiastical authority, represented by the Pope.
As of 2012, there is no functioning global international military, executive, legislature, judiciary, or constitution, with jurisdiction over the entire planet. While the United Nations exists, its authority is limited to a mostly advisory role, and its stated purpose is to foster cooperation between existing national governments, rather than authority over them. Furthermore, there are several states which are not included in the United Nations.
Read more about World Government: Existing Regional Unions of Nations, United Nations Parliamentary Assembly, Current Global Governance System
Famous quotes containing the words world and/or government:
“Three words that still have meaning, that I think we can apply to all professional writing, are discovery, originality, invention. The professional writer discovers some aspect of the world and invents out of the speech of his time some particularly apt and original way of putting it down on paper.”
—John Dos Passos (1896–1970)
“I do love this people [the French] with all my heart, and think that with a better religion and a better form of government and their present governors their condition and country would be most enviable.”
—Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)