pols 110a   "the politics of everyday life"

 

Ira Rohter Fall 2005

irohter@hawaii.edu

956-7277   732-5497

 

Although Iraq, "Reforming" Social Security, and a host of political issues dominate today's news, this class explores deeper questions about the nature of U.S. society.  Beyond the hoopla and the momentary, we consider:

 

* How are our personal lives greatly shaped by society's economic and political priorities? 

* Why are many important human and environmental concerns ignored or downplayed by our dominant political and economic values?  

* Can our governing Liberal and Conservative ideologies adequately address these deeper questions, and provide viable solutions to meeting our needs?  

* What alternative visions of people's needs, goals, and values are contained in contemporary movements for social and environmental change around the world?

* Mechanisms of political consciousness formation. From Orwell's 1984 to today's "War on Terror" and Fox News, how are our beliefs formed?

 

We will examine three arenas that illuminate ways public policies affect everyday life in America: (1) the U.S. political- economy (work, the economy, sense of self); (2) the American belief-system and mindset (media-formed reality, the commandments of consumer society and capitalism); & (3) new understandings and visions: an emerging new democratic and ecological perspective for America?

 TEXTS

 

Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal -- by Eric Schlosser; Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America by Barbara Ehrenreich;  George Orwell'S 1984.  Make-Believe Media: The Politics of Entertainment by Michael Parenti [xeroxed excerpts]; Mediated Political Realities" by Dan Nimmo & James Combs. [xeroxed excerpts]; Brian Tokar, Earth for Sale: Reclaiming Ecology in Age of Corporate Greenwashing [xeroxed excerpts available at Professional Image duplicating service on King St near University.

    

Thematic Outline

SECTION I— The New American Society: Work And The New

 Economy

     A. The [New] American Way Of Life ("Fast Food Nation")

                      [Weeks 1-2  Aug 22- Sept 2]

     B. The New Job System ("Nickel and Dimed")

                      [Weeks 3-4  Sept 5-16]

SECTION II— Manufacturing Political Consciousness.

     A. 1984 by George Orwell

                      [Week 5  Sept 12-16]

     B. Application to U.S. Today

                 Political Reality As Mediated By The Media (Handouts)

                      [Weeks 6-7-8-9  Sept 19-Oct 21]

     C. Climate Change      

                      [Week 10  Oct 24-28]

SECTION III— Industrializing (And Profitizing) the Food

 System

     A. Fast Food Nation 

                      [Weeks 11-12-13 Nov 1-Nov 18]

     B. Agriculture Solutions           

                      [Week 14 Nov 21-25]

SECTION IV — Political Change 

                      [Weeks 15-16  Nov 28-Dec 7]

weekly Readings for pols 110a

 

SECTION I-- The New American Society: Work and the New Economy

 

Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side Of The All-american Meal by Eric Schlosser

 

            a. The [New] American Way of life

Introduction [overview of book];

Chapter 1. "The Founding Fathers" [growth of fast food industry.]

Chapter 2. "Your Trusted Friends" [mass marketing system]

"Hey Kid Buy This!" Business Week.

Chapter 3. "Behind the Counter"  [The new job system —  Minimum-wages, no benefits, the WalMarting of America.] 

 

            B. The new job system

Nickel and Dimed; On not getting by in America. Barbara Ehrenreich.

 

"America losing middle class as extremes grow," Paul Krugman, NY Times.

Can you pay for your health care?  Parade Magazine , August 15 2004.

"More people lacking health insurance."  Honolulu Advertiser.

"Middle age bankruptcies said to be rising.  Job woes, illnesses and family concerns driving trend."  Wall Street Journal.  8-8-2004 .

"Working and Poor ." Business Week , May 31, 2004.

"The liberal myth of the working poor ." Thomas Sowell

"Productivity; who wins, who loses?" Business Week,  March 22, 2004

"Offshore in; you ain't seen nothing yet" Business Week, June 21, 2004 .

"The harsh truth about outsourcing"  Business Week , March 22, 2004

"Women's Remittance Pay; why the gap remains a chasm"  Business Week June 14, 2004

"Why Women Have To Work" Time March 22, 2004.  March 22

"Is America Becoming A Class Society?"  business week, Feb 26, 1996.

"Richest leaving even the rich far behind — chart," NY Times, 6/5/05

Solutions.

U.S workers should try for French Family Values," Paul Krugman.

Kerry's health plan, Business Week , August 16, 2004

"The Costco Way: higher wages meet higher profits.  Business Week, April 12, 2004

"Major swipe at sweatshops," business week, May 23, 2005

 

SECTION II — Manufacturing Political Consciousness.

 

            A. George Orwell's 1984. Published in 1948 and set thirty-six years in the future, 1984 is George Orwell's dark vision of the future.  A chilling depiction of how powerholders controls the lives of individuals through cultural conditioning. Power comes not only out of the barrel of a gun — as China's Chairman Mao famously said — but thru managing what people believe.  Newspeak, the official language of Oceania, designed by the political consciousness-makers to perpetuate the reign of its ruling élite.  Doublethink, another form of  mind-manipulation, inoculates loyal citizens against contradictions to what Big Brother tells them — only the Party and its Ministry of Truth can distinguish between Right and Wrong.

 

            B. Political Reality as Mediated by the Media

 

"Mediated Political Realities" by Dan Nimmo & James Combs. [xeroxed excerpts]

            Intro -- "How real is politics": mediation; soap opera templates.

            Ch.1 Presenting "THE news."

            Ch. 2  "Political campaigns": scripted as horse races, soap operas.

 

"Make-Believe Media: The Politics of Entertainment" by Michael Parenti  [xeroxed excerpts]

            Intro: seeing is believing, shaped by political ideas

            Ch. 2  "Blue-Collar Blues -- presentation of "class"

            Ch 11  Profits and Censorship

            Ch 12  Myth of Cultural Democracy

           

                        *** Article to fill in with: ***

"Bush playing to his strength."   Honolulu Advertiser, August 15, 2004.

"All the Presidents spin."  Intro from Book on Bush administration's tactics of media manipulation.

"How Bush plans to win" Time, August 9, 2004

"Privatizing social security fake solution," Paul Krugmanm NY Times.

"Let them eat words; linguistic lessons from Republican master strategist." The American Prospect, September 2003.

"Framing the Dems; how conservatives control political debate and how progressives can take it back ." and

"The liberal label." The American Prospect, September 2003.

"Media uses faulty evidence" newspaper March 16, 2004 .

"Media takes blame for that coverage" on Iraq war," Honolulu Advertiser , March 21, 2004.

"Pitching It to Kids," Time, June 28, 2004

"Getting to the hipsters," Jon Fine, business week, 7/11/05

"McDonald's clown gets makeover,"  the honolulu advertiser, 6/10/05

 

            C.  PROFITS FIRST VS. GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE

"Global Warming" Business Week , August 16, 2004.

Top US Polluters closely tied to Bush campaign"  May 8,2004 Honolulu Advertiser

"Climate of Denial," Bill McKibben, Mother Jones, May/June 2005 (xerox).

Solutions:  "Natural Capitalism" by Paul Hawkens

 

 

SECTION III — Industrializing (and Profitizing) the Food System

Fast Food Nation

ch 4. "Success"--  [business methods, franchises.]

ch 5. "Why the Fries Taste Good."    [expansion of mass manufacturing into food system].

ch6. "On the Range"  [mass chicken & beef production].

ch7. "Cogs in the Great Machine"  [cattle monopoly / ConAgra]

ch8. "The Most Dangerous Job"  [meat packing industry workers] + "Report slams treatment of meat-industry industry," 1/26/05.

ch9. "What's in the Meat"  [health (non) regulations].

ch10. "Global Realizations."

Epilogue and afterward.

 

"Where Have All the Farmers Gone?" Brian Halweil (ch 18), (environment 03/04)

 

            agriculture solutions. 

"Patriot foods.  US farmers and ranchers are taking on food importers in Washington-they want you to buy American."  Time, September 2004

"A gold rush to organic foods."  Brian Halweil, WorldWatch Magazine, June 2001.

"Obesity Warriors."  Time, June 7, 2004

"The coffee clash: many firms see a market advantage in selling politically correct beans."  Time, April 2004.  

 

SECTION IV .  POLITICAL CHANGE

"Korea's 386 Generation"  business week

"New Activism" Brian Tokar, Earth for Sale

"Follow the River" Collaboration and sustainability in Chattanooga.

 

============================================

course requirements

 

1. read assignments on-time and attend class regularly.  This course requires a considerable amount of reading, which is discussed and debated in class.  Altho I usually open each class with a brief commentary on this week's topics, I do not recapitulate the readings.  Since much of unique value happens in class, reading the assigned materials on time, and regular class attendance, is expected and required

2. written assignments: papers.
Bi-weekly think-about papers:  Each week I will hand out sample questions to guide your reading and reactions for the following assignments.  Each student is required to write up and hand in a succinct (2 page) reactions / reflections paper every other week.  These short papers are due the first day the material is discussed in class.  Late papers are accepted, but reduced in grade.

Mini-studies: Each student will write 3 short reports throughout the semester that interrogate class readings against recent writings and/or our personal experiences living in Hawai`i.  They will be short (5 pages) well-focused projects, easily done in a few days.  One or two can be done as team projects. 

3. GRADES.  The "C" and "B" grades are given for (1) completing in a satisfactory or above average manner bi-weekly papers, 3 mini-reports, and the final essay; (2) regular class attendance and participation.  Approximately 20% of each paper is based on how well you communicate what you intend.  Drafts must be rewritten and handed in. 

The "A" grade is awarded for extra-ordinary involvement in the course, over and above what is called for in the preceding paragraph.  This extra commitment is demonstrated through making special efforts in written assignments and class discussions, by showing that you are seriously grappling with the materials and their implications and sharing this exploration with others in the classroom.

GRADING CRITERIA FOR COURSE

                 30%     Biweekly Think-About papers based on class readings

                 35%     Three Mini-Study Reports

                 25%     Final essay

                 10%     Class attendance and participation

 

 

4. THE WRITING INTENSIVE REQUIREMENTS. 

My emphasis is on analysis and clarity of presentation more than fine details of grammar.  We are reading a great deal that must be integrated and matched against our own experiences. 
            The Process.  Each mini-study report requires that you raise and answer a question provoked by a topic, then collect and analyze information, cast it into an outline, write a rough-draft, and revise and turn in an Initial Draft for my perusal and in-class discussion.  On the basis on class comments and my editing suggestions, you then turn in a revised version.  

 

The Final Essay involves preparing two preliminary drafts: [i] an initial outline, [ii] an annotated outline that contains at least a one paragraph summary of each topic in the outline.

 

As "editor" I will primarily focus on the clarity of your analyses.  The question you examine must be well formulated and focused to guide the collection and analysis of information.   Use TOPIC HEADINGS to inform the reader of each segment's major point [like magazines do].  Class comments and my editing suggestions are then incorporated into a revised version.   Quality of writing and rewrites is worth 20% of a paper's grade.