An open society is a concept originally developed by philosopher Henri Bergson. In open societies, government is responsive and tolerant, and political mechanisms are transparent and flexible. The state keeps no secrets from itself in the public sense; it is a non-authoritarian society in which all are trusted with the knowledge of all. Political freedoms and human rights are the foundation of an open society. Liberalism is an ideology, philosophical view, and political tradition which holds that liberty is the primary political value. ... The Politics series Politics Portal This box:      Politics is the process by which groups of people make decisions. ... Liberalism is an ideology, philosophical view, and political tradition which holds that liberty is the primary political value. ... Contributions to liberal theory is a partial list of individual contributions on a worldwide scale. ... Classical liberalism (also known as traditional liberalism[1] and laissez-faire liberalism[2]) is a doctrine stressing the importance of human rationality, individual property rights, natural rights, the protection of civil liberties, constitutional limitations of government, free markets, and individual freedom from restraint as exemplified in the writings of Adam... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Cultural liberalism is a form of liberalism which stresses the freedom of the individual from what Lord Acton called the tyrany of the majority, the right of the non-conformist to march to a different drummer. ... The liberal theory of economics is the theory of economics begun in the Englightenment, and believed to be first fully forumulated by Adam Smith. ... This article does not adequately cite its references. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... This article is about political philosophy of Ordoliberalism. ... This article is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedias deletion policy. ... Social liberalism is either a synonym for new liberalism or a label used by progressive liberal parties in order to differentiate themselves from the more conservative liberal parties, especially when there are two or more liberal parties in a country. ... Contributions to liberal theory is a partial list of individual contributions on a worldwide scale. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... Individualism is a term used to describe a moral, political, or social outlook that stresses human independence and the importance of individual self-reliance and liberty. ... Laissez-faire is short for laissez faire, laissez passer, a French phrase meaning to let things alone, let them pass. First used by the eighteenth century Physiocrats as an injunction against government interference with trade, it is now used as a synonym for strict free market economics. ... Liberal democracy is a form of government. ... Liberal neutrality is the idea that the liberal state should not promote any particular conception of the good. This idea formed a cornerstone of John Rawls work and has been developed by many other liberal thinkers e. ... The philosophical concept of negative liberty refers to an individuals liberty from being subjected to the authority of others. ... Positive liberty is an idea that was first expressed and analyzed as a separate conception of liberty by John Stuart Mill but most notably described by Isaiah Berlin. ... Liberty is generally considered a concept of political philosophy and identifies the condition in which an individual has immunity from the arbitrary exercise of authority. ... A free market is an idealized market, where all economic decisions and actions by individuals regarding transfer of money, goods, and services are voluntary, and are therefore devoid of coercion and theft (some definitions of coercion are inclusive of theft). Colloquially and loosely, a free market economy is an economy... It has been suggested that Definitions of capitalism be merged into this article or section. ... A mixed economy is an economy that has a mix of economic systems. ... For the direction right, see left and right or starboard. ... This article discusses liberalism as a major political current in specific regions and countries. ... Liberal International is a political international for international liberal parties. ... The International Federation of Liberal & Radical Youth (IFLRY) is an international grouping of Liberal parties - it is the youth wing of the Liberal International. ... The European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party (founded in 1993) is a liberal party, mainly active in the European Union, composed of 49 national liberal and centrist parties from across Europe. ... ALDE logo The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (French: Alliance des Démocrates et des Libéraux pour lEurope) is a Group in the European Parliament. ... European Liberal Youth (LYMEC - Liberal Youth Movement of the European Community) is an international organisation of Liberal youth movements - mostly the youth wings of members of the European Liberal, Democrat and Reform Party. ... The Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats is a regional organization of liberal and democratic political parties in Asia. ... The Africa Liberal Network is composed of 16 parties in Africa, from 14 different countries, and is an associated organisation of Liberal International, the political family to which Liberal Democratic parties belong. ... The Liberal Network for Latin America (Red Liberal de América Latina, RELIAL) is an international network founded in 2003 with the official launch taking place in Costa Rica November 2004. ... Henri-Louis Bergson (October 18, 1859–January 4, 1941) was a major French philosopher, influential in the first half of the 20th century. ... A state is a political association with effective dominion over a geographic area. ... Bold text:This article applies to political ideologies. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Human rights are rights which some hold to be inalienable and belonging to all humans. ...

In Karl Popper's definition, found in his two-volume book The Open Society and Its Enemies, he defines an "open society" as one which ensures that political leaders can be overthrown without the need for bloodshed, as opposed to a "closed society", in which a bloody revolution or coup d'état is needed to change the leaders. Democracies are examples of the "open society", whereas totalitarian dictatorships and autocratic monarchies are examples of the "closed society". Sir Karl Raimund Popper, CH, FRS, FBA, (July 28, 1902 – September 17, 1994), was an Austrian born naturalized British[1] philosopher and a professor at the London School of Economics. ... The Open Society and Its Enemies is an influential two-volume work by Karl Popper written during World War II. Failing to find a publisher in the United States, it was first printed in London, in 1945. ... The storming of the Bastille, 14 July 1789 during the French Revolution. ... // A coup dÉtat (pronounced ), or simply coup, is the sudden overthrow of a government, often through illegal means by a part of the state establishment — mostly replacing just the high-level figures. ... The concept of Totalitarianism is a typology or ideal-type used by some political scientists to encapsulate the characteristics of a number of twentieth century regimes that mobilized entire populations in support of the state or an ideology. ... Forms of government Part of the Politics series Politics Portal This box:      A dictatorship is an autocratic form of government in which the government is ruled by a dictator. ... Autocracy is a form of government where unlimited power is held by a single individual. ... “Kingdom” redirects here. ...

The Popperian concept of the open society stems from his philosophy of science. Since no one has the perfect knowledge on the perfect government, the next best thing is a government that is ready to change the politics it runs. An open society also has to be pluralistic and multicultural, in order to benefit from the maximum number of viewpoints possible to the given problems. Philosophy of science is the study of assumptions, foundations, and implications of science, especially in the natural sciences and social sciences. ... Pluralism is used, often in different ways, across a wide range of topics: In science, the concept often describes the view that several methods, theories or points of view are legitimate or plausible, see Scientific pluralism. ... Multiculturalism or cultural pluralism is a policy, ideal, or reality that emphasizes the unique characteristics of different cultures in the world, especially as they relate to one another in immigrant receiving nations. ...

Open society advocates most often see the civil society as the engine of the evolution of the open society. The Politics series Politics Portal This box:      Civil society is composed of the totality of voluntary civic and social organizations and institutions that form the basis of a functioning society as opposed to the force-backed structures of a state (regardless of that states political system) and commercial institutions. ...

See also

• Liberal democracy
• Open Society Institute
• Open systems
• Sunshine law
• The Transparent Society
• Open society news aggregator