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Lauer: Social Problems and the Quality of Life
Social Problems and the Quality of Life, 8/e
Robert H. Lauer, U.S. International University
Jeanette C. Lauer, U.S. International University
Work and the Economy

Internet Exercises

  1. Open the Electronic Policy Network Website. (http://www.epn.org) Examine this site and try to determine the nature and mission of Public Citizen, the organization that sponsors it. From the homepage, on the upper right, select IDEA CENTRAL. This will take you to an index for this "Virtual Magazine of the Electronic Policy Network." Under the heading "The Economy," select "Articles from The American Prospect." On the archives contents page that results, scroll down to and select Vol. 9, Issue 40, "The Rhetoric of 'Corporate Welfare,'" by Frank N. Laird and Robert B. Reich. Read through the entire article to see what it is about, but focus on the text under the heading "Robert Reich." Reich is the person who coined the term "corporate welfare."
    1. Explain and illustrate the concept of "externalities."
    2. What, in Reich's view, are the appropriate purposes of private-sector regulation and subsidies?
  2. For a view on the economy from the perspective of organized labor, explore the LaborNet Website. (http://www.labornet.org) From the list at the top left of the home page, select "Viewpoints" and then "Articles by Harry Kelber." Click on "Bush's 'Poison Pill'" to access his article, "LaborTalk: Bush's 'Poison Pill'" (January 29, 2001).
    1. What, in Kelber's view, is the significance of the "paycheck protection" measure proposed and supported by the G.W. Bush administration?
    2. How, in fact, are union political-action committees funded?
    3. In light of the defeated McCain-Feingold legislation, what is the AFL-CIO view on "soft money"?
  3. For a well-informed view of one specific issue worrying many Americans, go to the Urban Institute: Widening Wage Inequality Website. (http://www.urban.org/periodcl/prr25_1b.htm) Read the article entitled "Widening Wage Inequality," by Nobel laureate Robert Solow.
    1. What are the two forms of wage inequality noted by Solow?
    2. What three specific remedies does Solow suggest for addressing the wage gap?








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