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Chapter 1: The Basics of Democracy

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Flash Cards

Practice Quiz

Critical Thinking and Learning Exercises

1. What percentage of Whites, Hispanics, African Americans, Asians, and Native Americans do you think live in the United States? What is the average income level in the United States? What is the average level of education in the United States?
Check your answers using the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Fact Finder website, found here: http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/nav/jsf/pages/community_facts.xhtml.
2. Go to the following link, http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/Mississippi_Flag_Referendum_(April_2001), and research the history of the Mississippi state flag. Based on the referendum, discuss the outcome. One approach is that democracy worked. Another perspective is that African Americans are forced to live under a flag laced with a horrid past. Have there been any times when the results of a direct democracy were overturned? What institution made that decision?
3. Connect to the following link for a lesson on “Appreciating Democracy,” prepared by political scientist Alan Rosenthal, and follow the directions there: http://www.leg.wa.gov/BackToSchool/Documents/AppreciatingDemocracyLesson_CompleteDocument.pdf.
4. Article V of the U.S. Constitution details how the Constitution can be altered. Read the full Constitution (here) and indicate what amendment you plan to alter and provide research to support your proposed change.

5. The United States prides itself on individualism, where everyone is expected to pull themselves up by the bootstraps. Hence, from a normative perspective, equality should exist in the United States. Research the empirical evidence based on wealth and income disparities that exist based on racial categories. In your opinion, explain why do these differences exist? Websites you may find useful for this exercise are the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the U.S. Census Bureau’s Statistical Abstract, especially the section on Income, Expenditures, Poverty, and Wealth.

Links to further Resources

Politics: Who Gets What, When, and How

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjapkY9ODPQ

This short YouTube animated video explores Laswell’s famous definition of politics—“who gets what, where, and when.” Do you find the comparisons between individual behavior, such as bargaining for a good price when you buy something, and governmental behavior, such as legislative debate, to be valid comparisons? Does Laswell’s definition contribute to the common public perception that politics is a “dirty word”?

We the People: Your Voice in Government

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/

Democracy is a system of government in which the people have the opportunity to participate in the process of decision making and the freedom to express their preferences to elected leaders. The White House site for citizen petitions allows citizens to suggest new policy ideas to the president.

Diversity in the United States

http://www.npr.org/2013/03/26/175361662/how-will-america-cope-with-diversity-changes

In this recent panel discussion on National Public Radio, participants discuss the challenges posed by increasing population diversity in the United States. Democracy is designed to balance these competing demands in a manner that promotes fairness, transparency, and a sense of governmental legitimacy.

http://www.census.gov/2010census/news/releases/operations/cb11-cn125.html

Every 10 years the U.S. Census Bureau collects data on population trends in the United States. Why is it important for a democratic government to understand these trends? What challenges are presented by the changing demographic makeup of the nation? Exploring the Census website can provide a deeper appreciation of the unique challenges faced by a democratic system whose population is both large and incredibly diverse.

President Franklin Roosevelt on the “Four Freedoms”

http://millercenter.org/scripps/archive/speeches/detail/3320

In his State of the Union Speech from 1941, President Roosevelt articulates his vision of the freedoms that American democracy strives to protect.

Famous Political Speeches

http://www.famousquotes.me.uk/speeches/

This site provides a fairly comprehensive list of famous speeches by former presidents and prominent American leaders expressing how the core principles of democracy have guided our nation throughout its history.

Smith Lectures on Political Philosophy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhm55mIdSuk

Professor Steven Smith of Yale University offers a series of lectures covering the philosophical foundations on which our system of government was built. The ideas explored in these lectures exemplify normative theories of politics.

Rational Choice Models: What Is Economics?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YULdjmg3o0

This short video description of the field of economics elaborates on two important concepts presented in Chapter 1: empirical (described here as “positive”) versus normative questions, and the relevance of economic, “rational choice” approaches to the study of politics. Why do political scientists find it useful to borrow economic theories and methodologies in their efforts to understand political phenomena?