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POS 101 R. R. Pope

Citizens & Governance Summer 2000

2^nd EXAM

1. A political system that claims "superiority" over other nations and which requires that citizens support the state.

1. Feudalism
2. Socialism
3. Democracy
4. _X_Fascism

2. The major characteristic of a feudal political system is its emphasis on

1. protecting the welfare of all of the population.
2. _X_ "loyalty" in return for "security."
3. individual rights.
4. technological change.
5. political and economic efficiency.

3. The appropriate label for a political system that in fact makes it a priority to try to provide equally good quality medical care to pretty much everyone in the society is

1. Totalitarian
2. Democratic
3. Fascist
4. Communist
5. _X_ None of the above.

4. A significant difference between "capitalism" and West European-style socialism is

1. the level of taxes-which are generally significantly higher in a "capitalist" system.
2. the emphasis on individual rights-which is greater under socialism.
3. the official encouragement of "greed" by the government-which turns out to be higher under socialism than under capitalism.
4. _X_the assumption under capitalism that an "invisible hand" can guide the economy vs. the assumption under socialism that the government needs to play a major role in "guiding" business activity.
5. None of the above-all of the above state the opposite of what in fact is the case.

5. Which of the following is argued or at least implied by the article, "Capitalism: Frequently Asked Questions"?

1. The essential nature of capitalism is social harmony through the pursuit of self-interest.
2. The only purpose of government in a capitalist society is to protect citizens from force or fraud.
3. Capitalism is in fact a more truly "just" social system than socialism.
4. An absolute democracy, which means unlimited majority rule, is incompatible with capitalism and freedom.
5. _X_All of the above are argued or implied by this article.

6. In his essay, "Why Socialism?" Albert Einstein does not argue which, if any, of the following?

1. The "scientific method" cannot be depended on to provide us with a definitive answer to the question of which type of social system is best for society.
2. Private ownership-and the competition it encourages-creates "economic anarchy" which is harmful to society.
3. Only a socialist economy can eliminate the "grave evils" of capitalism.
4. _X_ Einstein argues all of the above.

7. In the article "Socialism vs. Capitalism: Which is the Moral System?" the author does not in effect argue which, if any, of the following?

1. Socialism is a form of "legalized theft."
2. Under socialism the state takes from those who do the work and gives to those who don't work.
3. Because the consumer is free to judge what has "value" and what does not, capitalism guarantees the greatest degree of "true justice" that is realistically possible.
4. _X_The one exception to "justice under capitalism" is the role played by genuine bad luck such as having your business destroyed by a hurricane.
5. The author argues all of the above.

8. Which of the following, if any, is/are not included or at least implied as a reason for the failure of the Soviet system in the article "Why the Soviet Economy Failed"?

1. The inability of the system to incorporate new technology.
2. A highly ineffective planning system.
3. Reliance on overlarge enterprises that were inflexible and inefficient.
4. Failure to meet consumer demand.
5. _X_All of the above are either stated or implied reasons for the failure of the system.
   
   

9. Out of the following, in which area is there the greatest difference between Western-style socialism and communism

1. _X_The degree to which the government attempts to control the system.
2. The emphasis, at least in theory, on equality.
3. The effort, at least in theory, to maximize the public's economic welfare.
4. There are no significant differences between socialism and communism in any of these areas.

10. According to the "Greed" video, which of the following, if any, is not supported by our experience with private enterprise?

1. The profit motive encourages businessmen to try to find ways to "do a better job" of meeting consumer demand.
2. Meeting consumer demand more often than not results in genuine benefit to society.
3. More often than not private enterprise does a better job than government.
4. Investing to make a profit may very well benefit society more than giving to charity.
5. _X_All of the above are argued, or at least suggested by the "Greed" video.

11. Which of the following, if any, would someone who strongly supports the argument presented in the "Greed" video probably not agree with?

1. There are some significant things which could in principal be "privatized," but which government nonetheless should take care of such as postal service and medical care for the elderly.
2. Encouraging economic competition benefits society.
3. _X_Encouraging experiments in education such as the private for-profit Edison project is a good idea.
4. A strong supporter of the "greed" argument would probably agree with all of the above.
   
   

12. Based on the lectures, which of the following, if any, can reasonably be considered a shortcoming of capitalism?

1. The "profit motive" encourages the production of at least some goods and services which do not really benefit society.
2. Competition can result in superficial efforts to make one product appear to be at least different if not better from similar products.
3. Economic competition doesn't always result in the best idea or product "winning."
4. _X_All of the above can reasonably be considered shortcomings of a capitalist system.
   
   

13. Based on the lectures, which of the following, if any, can reasonably be considered a shortcoming of socialism?

1. It is much more difficult for a socialist system to be democratic than a capitalist system.
2. All socialist systems severely restrict all private initiative.
3. Socialism attempts to undermine "family values."
4. _X_Socialism tends to encourage at least some people to try to "get by" without making their fair contribution to the economy.
5. All of the above can reasonably be considered shortcomings of a socialist system.
   
   

14. According to the lectures, which, if any, of the following did not make a significant contribution to the failure of the Soviet system?

1. Claims that the Soviet system was superior to other systems that increasingly could not be backed up by what the Soviet public was learning as a result of, for example, increased tourism.
2. The inability of the Soviet system to keep up with the rapid technological change that was occurring in the West.
3. A growing gap between what the Soviet leaders promised and what the system in fact delivered.
4. Frequent shortages of basic consumer goods, including even matches and toilet paper.
5. _X_All of the above made a contribution to the failure of the Soviet system.

15. It can reasonably be argued that the major shortcoming of all non-democratic systems is which, if any, of the following?

1. An inability to achieve any major accomplishments.
2. An inability to select capable leaders.
3. _X_The absence of consistently strong and effective restrictions on the exercise of power by the people running the country.
4. The absence of talented people in pretty much all the top decision making positions.
5. None of the above is in fact a significant shortcoming of non-democratic systems.
   
   

16. According to Shively,

1. in the nineteenth century "socialists" believed that government should play a significant role in people's lives.
2. nineteenth century "liberals" believed that government should interfere as little as possible in people's lives.
3. nineteenth century "liberals" were very suspicious of the concentration of government power.
4. _X_Shively stated or implied all of the above.

17. Which of the following, if any, distinguishes a "dictionary conservative" from a "political conservative"?

1. A "dictionary conservative" opposes a strong central government and a "political conservative" opposes significant political change, regardless of the nature of that change.
2. _X_A "political conservative" wants government functions to be performed at the lowest possible level of government, even if this means making significant changes in the current system while a "dictionary conservative" tends to oppose change of any kind.
3. A "political conservative" wants a strong military while a "dictionary conservative" does not.
4. None of the above distinguishes a "political" from a "dictionary" conservative.
   
   

18. Which of the following, if any, is a major reason not all Republicans are "conservative" and not all Democrats are "liberal"?

1. _X_ What the majority of the voters in the state or district want has a major bearing on how "conservative" or "liberal" a candidate can afford to be-and still have a chance of winning the election.
2. Some Republicans and some Democrats want to demonstrate their independence from the leaders of their respective parties.
3. In the southern states a lot of people who were really Republicans at heart had to go with the Democratic party because Abraham Lincoln was a Republican.
4. All of the above are major factors explaining the lack of complete ideological consistency in both the Republican and Democratic parties.

19. Which of the following, if any, might reasonably be considered to be a legitimate reason for considering capitalism to be a better system than socialism? (An exaggeration should not be considered a "legitimate reason"....)

1. _X_The profit motive appears to be the most effective way to encourage innovation and efficiency.
2. When you get right down to it, capitalism is clearly "more moral" than socialism in every significant situation.
3. Capitalism guarantees the solutions to all significant problems-the "profit motive" gives people the incentive to do what needs to be done. (As the "Greed" video noted, "Where people are complaining the most is where the money is to be made.")
4. All of the above are good reasons for considering capitalism to be superior to socialism-and are not exaggerations.
   
   

20. Which of the following, if any, might reasonably be considered to be a legitimate reason for considering democracy to be the best available political system? (Once again, watch out for exaggerations....)

1. Thanks particularly to freedom of speech and press, especially over the long run, democracy generally does a better job than non-democratic systems of identifying and dealing with problems.
2. By protecting the rights of minorities, democracy makes it possible for good ideas that are initially unpopular to ultimately win majority support.
3. By protecting the rights of individuals, democracy promotes a sense of fairness that makes a positive contribution to the legitimacy of the system.
4. _X_All of the above can reasonably be considered to be strengths of democracy.

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