Societal concerns

Write TWO double-spaced, 3-page essays in MLA format with 1-inch margins
on one topic from each section below (6 full pages total). Indicate the number
of each topic you have chosen. Write your two essays in a single document
(one right after the other). Note that the system will not accept more than
one submission from a student, which is why it is very important to
submit both essays in a single document.
Alert! Each of the two essays you must submit will be worth 50% of your
final exam grade. Therefore, you must submit both essays to get any
points for the final exam because if you submit only one essay, the highest
score you can get is 50% out of 100%, and 50% is an F and carries no points.
If you quote and/or paraphrase, include a separate Works Cited section at the
end of each essay. Do not to use “I,” “my,” “we,” “you” or “things.” The final
exam is designed to test your knowledge and ability to support an argument,
so using outside sources is discouraged. If you do use sources in Section One, do
so sparingly (your Originality score should not exceed 15%). Do not use sources
on the Internet unless they are mentioned in the Prompt. Class videos, our text
and RCC library database articles are all fine for Prompts in Section One if used
sparingly, but no use of outside sources is allowed for Prompts in Section Two.
The overall goal of the essays is to test your critical thinking skills/ability to make
reason-based arguments on topics related to politics/political philosophy.
Final Exam Due Friday, 7-29 on Canvas before 11:00 PM
Be sure to submit your exam in Canvas under “Assignments”
where you see the final exam assignment.
No late exams will be accepted.
Section One (write on ONE topic only)
1. Thomas Jefferson warned of an “aristocracy of our monied corporations which .
. . bid defiance to the laws of our country.” Considering interest groups and
corporate power, discuss whether Jefferson’s concern about excessive corporate
power is still relevant. You should also link Jefferson’s statement to the current
issue of increasing income/wealth inequality and its impact on our political
system. Use specific examples to support your position. Note: You should
review Chapter 7 of REVEL and Reich’s film Inequality for All if you choose
this topic.
2. Where to Invade Next contains episodes that show domestic policies in various
countries (eight episodes in eight different countries). After watching the film,
choose three foreign countries featured in the film and discuss their
programs/policies in detail. Also explain whether you think their
programs/policies would be good for the United States if implemented here and
the reasons for your opinions. Devote one page of your essay to each country
you choose for a total of three pages.
3. This prompt requires developing a well-argued viewpoint on societal concerns
such as opportunity, effort, and privilege. The documentary White Like Me,
which you were required to watch in Part One of Week Five of our course,
explores what is often called white privilege–in a more general sense that
would be applicable to most all societies, this would refer to privilege based on
race/ethnicity/caste. In the following linked lecture, Professor Sandel discusses
several other types of privilege resulting from the circumstances of birth that
give some people measurable advantages in where they end up economically.
One example: Those who attend the top colleges and universities in the U.S. are
overwhelmingly the first-born in their families.

Another privilege I’ve heard students discuss is “pretty privilege.” Sandel
discusses more examples of advantages based on circumstances of birth that
many people are not aware of. With many types of privilege that give some
people unearned economic advantages over others, develop your thoughts about
which type of system discussed in the Sandel video would be most workable to
have everyone at least start at the same place in the economic race.

Section Two (write on ONE topic only)
(No use of sources is allowed for essays in Section Two except those linked.)
1. State and review briefly the three main principles of libertarianism discussed in
the Sandel videos. Then, apply these principles to the controversy surrounding
Cliven Bundy, a Nevada rancher who has refused to pay use fees to the U.S.
Bureau of Land Management for grazing his cattle for over 20 years on
federally-owned land because he does not recognize the authority of the federal
government in this issue. Should Bundy be forced to pay like 18,000 other
ranchers do for using federally-owned lands to graze their cattle? After detailing
what the libertarian position would be on this issue and why, argue for or
against it. Be sure to support your position with logical reasoning.
Note: A use fee is not a tax. For example, if you decide to visit a national park,
you will be required to pay an entry fee which is used to help maintain the park
(thus the name “use” fee). It is, for example, unlike income taxes because you
have a viable choice not to pay—you just don’t go to the park.
Alert! This is not a simple topic although it may seem like one. All aspects
of the case need to be considered in detail. Note: Do not use sources for
this topic. Base your essay only on libertarian principles presented in the
Sandel videos as well as the facts of the case as stated here, not on any
other information that you might find in an outside source.
2. There is a court case that potentially involves the free political speech section of
the First Amendment. Go to the following article for details of the case:
https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/us-supreme-court-takes-up-
web-designers-bid-rebuff-gay-weddings-2022-02-22/ . The case as you will
see involves a Christian web designer in Colorado who wishes to design
wedding websites but says that designing same-sex marriage websites would
conflict with her religious beliefs. She also says that she has no issue doing
work for LGBT persons generally and has previously done such work, but
cannot design a website with content that runs counter to her religious beliefs.
Do an analysis of this case by considering possible arguments on both sides,
and then reach a conclusion as to whether the United States Supreme Court
should rule for or against the website designer (and why), and how you think
the Court would rule if the case comes before them (and why).
Alert! Do not use sources for this topic: Base your essay only on the facts of
the case as stated here and in the linked article, not on any additional facts
or assumptions about the case that you might find in an outside source. Do
not presume the Supreme Court’s motives or either side’s motives as that
would be an assumption, not a fact. Stick to the legal issues and facts of the
case as presented here and in the linked article.
3. A Christian adoption agency in New York is in a dispute with the state because
of its policy of “placing each child with a married mother and father and
referring unmarried or same-sex couples to other adoption agencies because of
its religious beliefs.” The agency has placed more than 1,000 children in homes
and is a private agency that does not accept state funding. The state says that the
adoption agency is discriminating against same-sex couples and is threatening
to shut it down, whereas the agency says that they are practicing their religious
beliefs and do not adopt to unmarried opposite-sex couples either—also
because of their religious beliefs about marriage. Before taking a position on
this case, objectively examine possible arguments that each side might use to
support its position. Then, argue for the side that you think has the best legal
case and support your position with logical arguments.
Alert! Do not use sources for this topic: Base your essay only on the facts of
the case as stated here, not on any additional facts about the case that you
might find in an outside source. Do not presume either side’s motives as
that would be an assumption, not a fact. Stick to the legal issues and facts
of the case as presented here.

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