We shall then categorize political systems in two ways: by their goals and by their method of organization. The goals of a government (i. e., the goals sought by its leaders and officials) are of paramount importance, since they directly determine what actions that government takes and therefore how it impacts the lives of citizens. But its organizational structure—the distribution of power and authority—is also of great significance, because it may in the long run affect the goals pursued by those who compose the government. In other words, these two aspects of government may impact each other over a period of time. Therefore, if we wish to construct an ideal political system (that is, one that will operate ideally in practice), we must first study the inherent tendencies of different kinds of systems, discovering which are stable and which may degenerate into something far from the ideal that they were intended to embody.

For such analysis we shall use some tools from cybernetics, particularly the concepts of positive- and negative-feedback loops and some ideas about information flow. We shall also draw upon praxeology, recognizing that individuals within a government act to maximize their personal goals—and that the goals that lead to long-term political success may depend on the very structure of the political system. We shall then apply these tools to analyze the dynamics of three possible kinds of political systems, all having wide popular appeal: a mixed-economy democratic system, a socialist system, and a free society.