Annual Editions: Social Problems

by Finsterbusch, Kurt

• ISBN13: 9781260488364
• ISBN10: 1260488365
• Additional ISBN(s): 9781259667558
• Edition: 42nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2019-02-14
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Education
• More Book Details
• Purchase Benefits

Table of Contents

Unit 1: Introduction: Clashing Values and Problematic Transformations of Social Life

The American Narrative: Is There One & What Is It? William H. Chafe, Daedalus, 2012

William H. Chafe shows that America has two major moral premises from the early Puritans until today: serving the public good and individual freedom. These more or less balance each other and over the long run serve us well. The current drive to undo the programs that assist the needy, including social security and Medicare, may destroy that balance if unchecked and weaken the country.

American Culture: Traditions and Customs of the United States, Kim Ann Zimmermann, Live Science, 2017

Zimmermann points out what is unique about American culture. She emphasizes its cultural diversity. America is the great melting pot and different groups melt at different rates. Over 300 languages are spoken in the United States but most official business is conducted in English. 83% identify as Christians. America also has an unusually large media and entertainment industries.

Is the American Idea Doomed? Yoni Appelbaum, The Atlantic, 2017

The American idea comprised three elements: that all people are created equal, that all possess unalienable rights, and that all should have the opportunity to develop and enjoy those rights. Securing them required “a government of all the people, by all the people, for all the people.” Appelbaum argues that currently this idea is under attack.

Culture as a Cause of Poverty Has Been Wilfully Misinterpreted, Jeremy Seabrook, The Guardian, 201

The “culture of poverty” thesis explains poverty in part by the culture that functions in some poor areas which encourages people to believe and behave in ways that reinforce their poverty.

Is Facebook Making Us Lonely? Stephen Marche, The Atlantic, 2012

Marche provides an extensive analysis of loneliness and its linkage with social media. Isolation was increasing before widespread social media, but social media, which is designed to better connect us, has decreased our connections with family and close friends on average and increased our loneliness. The current epidemic of loneliness is making us mentally and physically ill and harming our society.

Unit 2: Problems of the Political Economy

A Problem Only Politics Can Solve, Matt Mazewski, Commonweal, 2018

Mazewski reviews the book: After Piketty The Agenda for Economics and Inequality, Edited by Heather Boushey et.al., which deals with Piketty’s thesis that modern economic conditions are creating ever greater inequality. The main issue in the book is weather anything can be done to stop this trend. 

The New Era of Monopoly Is Here, Joseph Stiglitz, The Guardian, 2017

Stiglitz points out that competitive markets prevent gross inequalities of income because companies must keep their prices low to beat the competition. However, monopolies and oligopolies do not face effective competition and cause increasing income inequalities. Government regulations must prevent monopolies and oligopolistic restraint of trade. 

Corporate Collusion Is Rampant and We All Pay the Steep Price, Robert Reich, Robert Reich’s Blog, 2015

Reich has asserted for years that the corporations have too much power and largely control the government on issues that concern them. America used to have antitrust laws that stopped corporations from monopolizing markets, and often broke up the biggest culprits. No longer. Now, giant corporations are taking over the economy—and they’re busily weakening antitrust enforcement. 

 

A Fitful Union: What the Founders Wrought? James T. Kloppenberg, Commonweal, 2017

Kloppenberg argues that the current political conflicts are not peculiar to Trump but are congruent with American history going back to our founding fathers. Issues included states’ rights versus federal rights, struggles between branches of government, slavery versus anti-slavery, and states’ police powers that curtailed freedoms. 

Why the 14 Most Common Arguments against Immigration Are All Wrong, Cato Institute, 2018

Some of the key arguments are immigrants will take American jobs, lower our wages, especially hurt the poor, increase the budget deficit, become a major source of crime, and bring with them their bad cultures and ideas.

The Common Good, Manuel Velasquez, et al., Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, 2014

The authors argue that Americans must be strong advocates of the common good which benefits most people and reduce the popularity of groups selfishly protecting their own benefits. Our most fundamental social problems grow out of a widespread pursuit of individual interests. The key issue is whether our institutions and practices benefit individuals or all people.

Unit 3: Problems of Poverty and Inequality

Serving No One Well: TANF Nearly Twenty Years Later, Kristin S. Seefeldt, Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare, 2017

Seefeldt tries to find out the longer term results of the 1996 welfare reform which converted the Aid to Families with Dependent Children, a cash welfare program, to a time-limited, work-based program, TANF. Welfare caseloads dropped by more than half but TANF did not help them find job, did not assist those with personal and family challenges, and failed to serve as a safety net.

How Should Governments Address Inequality? Putting Piketty Into Practice, Melissa S. Kearney, Foreign Affairs, 2017

Kearney reviews a book about Piketty’s thesis that conditions since the 1970s are causing a massive increase of income inequality in America. The reviewed book brings in important trends that Piketty underplays such as trends in technology, trade, unionization, and the minimum wage which greatly affect the lower half of the income distribution. However, this book does not counter Piketty’s thesis.

United States Welfare Programs: Myths versus Facts, Kimberly Amadeo, The Balance, 2018

Amadeo develops no thesis but just reports the facts about the U.S. welfare system. This report is informative and to the point.

Black Pathology and the Closing of the Progressive Mind, Ta-Nehisi Coates, The Atlantic, 2014

Ta-Nehisi Coates acknowledges that the cultural argument against Blacks is still prevalent. The conservative version leaves out the role of white supremacy and is theoretically weak. The liberal version notes that structural conditions shape the Black culture which then is responsible for Black shortcomings. The structural conditions can be labeled white supremacy. Coates examines the facts and finds a strong Black culture that highly regarded family life and education when possible. Conditions have changed but white supremacy is still strong.

When Slavery Won’t Die: The Oppressive Biblical Mentality America Can’t Shake, Valerie Tarico, AlterNet, 2015

Tarico traces current racism and injustice toward blacks to “the ancient strands of brutality and inequality that are woven into the fabric of our society.” She focuses on police behavior toward blacks and explains how police behavior can be improved.

Joe Biden Takes a Marriage Equality Victory Lap, Jay Michaelson, The Daily Beast, 2015

Though Biden came late to the side of LGBT he became a strong supporter of their equal rights. In this article he makes a good case for legalizing LGBT marriage.

Unit 4: Institutional Problems

The American Family: An Endangered and Disappearing Species, Lynn Wardle, CNS News, 2015

Wardle presents many more facts than Krogstad about the American family today. The key point is traditional families (husband and wife with children) and family life are significantly declining in America. This process has adverse impacts including lower grades, less accomplishments, psychological problems, behavioral problems, suicide, and higher poverty rates.

The Case for Single-Price Health Care, Paul S. Hewitt and Phillip Longman, Washington Monthly, 2018

Washington makes the case for single price health care which would reduce health care costs. Obama Care expanded coverage but health care costs increased greatly hurting the public. The article argues that this problem is mostly the result of monopolistic hospitals engaging in price discrimination as they exploit their increasing market power over private purchasers of health care.

Why Is Health Care So Expensive? Consumer Reports, 2014

Health care in the United States costs about twice as much as it does in the rest of the developed world and is not as good as the European systems. There is a lot that health insurance does not cover in America and drugs and doctor fees are very high.

The War on Public Schools, Erika Christakis, The Atlantic, 2017

Christakis cites Bush, Obama, and Trump blasting public schools for poor performance. However, few people care more about individual students than public-school teachers. 21st-century public schools, with their record numbers of graduates and expanded missions, are nothing close to the cesspools portrayed by political hyperbole. But we’ve underestimated their strengths. I am concerned with how the current discussion has ignored public schools’ victories, while also detracting from their civic role which is to prepare people to work together to advance society.

Protecting Religious Liberty, Bernard G. Prusak, Commonweal, 2018

The role of religion in America today is complex. The religious ideas of one religious group should not be legally prescribed to force other Americans to do or not do what they may want. The law should apply to everyone equally. Religious minorities should be protected not prosecuted. Scripture denies gay rights, but gay marriage is legal. Prusak presents many applicable thoughts of the past to guide our thinking about the proper standing of religion today.

Unit 5: Crime, Violence, and Law Enforcement

Sex Slavery/Trafficking, Soroptimist, 2012

Sex slavery and trafficking are horrible crimes that are under the radar. Soroptimist describes this problem including its surprising and brutal aspects. It is a $32 billion industry and involves 2.5 million people. Women and girls are typically trafficked into the commercial sex industry, i.e. prostitution or other forms of sexual exploitation. Not all slaves are trafficked, but all trafficking victims are victims of slavery. This slavery removes the victim from all that is familiar to her, rendering her completely isolated and alone, often unable to speak the language of her captors or fellow victims. Women and girls are typically trafficked into the commercial sex industry, i.e. prostitution or other forms of sexual exploitation. Organized crime is largely responsible for the spread of international human trafficking.

Getting Tough on Devastating Corporate Crime, Ralph Nader, Huffington Post, 2013

Do you think that the U.S. is tough on Crime? Many people are in prison, police arrest many young men in poor neighborhoods, and many complain that sentences are too tough. However, Nader points out that the legal system is way too lenient on corporate crime which is responsible for much greater financial costs than “street” crime and almost no one goes to jail for these crimes. 

Rough Justice, Mychal Denzel Smith, The New Republic, 2018

Smith’s thesis is that America is over policed. He covers a lot of history to establish why the public currently has a high regard for the police. He also points out that 31 percent of people killed by police in 2012 were black. However, most of the book is dedicated to describing the consequences of over-policing.

Public Safety, Public Justice, Daniel Rose, Harlem Times, 2015

Rose argues that we must change our criminal justice philosophy and our punitive laws.  Imprisonment rates are too high and unfair to Blacks who are imprisoned six times as much as whites. Rose advocates rehabilitation and many other reforms.

This Man Was Sentenced to Die in Prison for Shoplifting a $159 Jacket: This Happens More Than You Think, Ed Pilkington, AlterNet, 2013

Timothy Jackson was caught shoplifting a jacket and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. He has already served 16 years. He is used by the author to prove that the criminal justice system in many parts of the United States is too punitive. There are 3,281 people incarcerated for life in America for non-violent crimes. One was sentenced to die in prison for siphoning gas from a truck. The point of the article is that some laws and some judicial judgments are crazy but "the law is the law" so petty criminals die in prison. Change is needed.

The Price of Justice, Peter Edelman, The Nation, 2017

Edelman presents evidence that state and local governments are plundering the poor. His first story is about a woman who rolled through a stop in 2014. The judge hit her with a $135 fine and ordered her to pay it in full immediately which she could not do. It is a long story but the upshot is that the system took hundreds dollars from her and was about to jail her but she got a lawyer and got off. Many other stories and evidence show how cruel our legal system is to the poor.

Statement for the Record: Worldwide Threat Assessment of the US Intelligence Community, James R. Clapper, Office of the Director of National Intelligence, 2015

Clapper presents the official assessment of worldwide terrorist threats. This report covers cyber-attacks, potential use of weapons of mass destruction, and other terrorist attacks. We must remain on the alert but this report does not suggest that the American mainland has a lot to be afraid of.

Low-Tech Terrorism, Bruce Hoffman, The National Interest, 2014

This article is a rather extensive assessment of all (despite the title) current terrorist threats to America. Fortunately, terrorists have not yet acquired and successfully set off a weapon of mass destruction, though they have tried. The article extensively reviews Al Qaeda's and other terrorist groups' considerable efforts to acquire such weapons and their failure. As a result, most terrorism involves guns and bombs.

Unit 6: Problems of Population, Environment, Resources, and the Future

How Will We Feed the New Global Middle Class? Charles C. Mann, The Atlantic, 2018

Mann introduces his article with the statement “In 2050 the world population will be 10 billion. Can everyone eat without destroying the Earth?” Mann uses Voigt to present the pessimist answer to this question and Borlaug to present the positive answer. The green revolution saved the day in the 1970s and 1980s, but world food production has been declining ever since so the question is Germaine today. Technology plays a decisive role in this issue and is thoroughly discussed by Mann. However, some very productive technologies have negative effects on the environment, so the issue is somewhat in determinant. 

Can a Collapse of Global Civilization Be Avoided? Paul R. Ehrlich and Anne H. Ehrlich, Proceedings of the Royal Society, 2013

The Ehrlichs with many other authors and many contributors try to give a full assessment of the current state of the planet and what lies ahead. They identify about 20 problems and provide footnotes which supply the evidence for their assertions. Their major issue is anthropomorphic global warming. Then they try to solve the problems which they identify but with much less authority. They are pessimistic that the needed changes will be made because actions must be taken now to bring about a good future, but humans do not sacrifice the present for the future. 

The Uninhabitable Earth, David Wallace-Wells, New York Magazine, 2017

Wallace-Wells is a doomsday prophet. Indeed, absent a significant adjustment to how billions of humans conduct their lives, parts of the Earth will likely become close to uninhabitable, and other parts horrifically inhospitable, as soon as the end of this century. He cites fact after fact which suggests horrible future consequences including widespread heat deaths, the end of food, unbreathable air, permanent economic collapse, perpetual wars, climate plagues, and poisoned oceans.

Climate Change 2017: What Happened and What It Means, Bruce Melton, Truthout, 2017

Melton is also a doomsday prophet, but he limits himself to climate change and its consequences. He is discouraged by how this problem has been ignored for 30 years, and denial is strong today in America. Some of the problems that he discusses are Hurricane Harvey, fires in California and the far west, extreme precipitation, droughts, sea level rises, loss of Arctic and Antarctic ice, and unanticipated consequences.

The Role of Government in the Transition to a Sustainable Economy, Steven Cohen, The Huffington Post, 2014

The readings up to this point demonstrate the need for a transformation to sustainability and Cohen provides a method for one. The private sector cannot make the transition from a waste-based economy to a renewable one by itself. This transition can only happen if we can create a public-private partnership. The role of government in building the sustainable economy includes: 1) funding the needed science, 2) using financial tools to steer private capital toward sustainability, 3) investment in sustainability infrastructure, 4) regulating land use, 5) developing appropriate measurement tools, and 6) transferring sustainability technologies to the developing world.

Is a Digitally Connected World a Better Place? Dan Hesse, Vital Speeches of the Day, 2015

Hesse argues that the explosion of worldwide digital connections is revolutionizing the world and will have gigantic impacts in the next five years. There are some risks like cyber hacking but the gains from worldwide accessibility to near infinite information will revolutionize businesses, products, institutions, governments, education, media, cultures, behaviors, freedoms, etc.

How Innovation Could Save the Planet, Ramaz Naam, The Futurist, 2013

Ramez Naam points first to the great progress the world's population has made in prosperity and health. Then he points to a bevy of environmental problems that the abundant production has caused and the potential crises that they may produce. Ideas, however, are the great resource expander, resource preserver, and waste reducer so ideas and innovation will lead to a wealthier and cleaner future.

Globalization Is Good for You! Ronald Bailey, Reason, 2015

According to Bailey there are many ways that globalization will benefit almost everyone. It will improve personal and national economies, benefit the poor, help the environment, make life healthier and longer, increase jobs, and make life better. To fight it