8. Unlike the United States, there is no way to become fully Japanese except to be born of Japanese parents. True or False

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1 American Government 100 Part 1 Patterson, pgs. 1-27, A:AG1-15 Woll, pgs. 3-9 Political Thinking: Becoming A Responsible Citizen Questions 1. Because of the sophisticated and knowledgeable nature of the American electorate, the Bush administration was unable to manipulate them into believing that Saddam Hussein was responsible for 9/ Contrary to fact, about half of the American public believed that Iraq was aligned with al Qaeda, the terrorist group that had attacked the United States on September 11, Americans can feel reassured that the electorate is well-informed, reacts based on facts, and uses logic and effective reasoning in selecting their political leaders. 4. Political thinking is critical thinking focused on deciding what can reasonably be believed and then using this information to make political judgments. 5. Democracy gives citizens the opportunity to personally develop but it has a double-edged sword. There is nothing to stop citizens from believing the world is flat rather than round. 6. A paradox of modern communication is the fact that although political information is more widely available than ever before, it is also less trustworthy than ever before. 7. John Stuart Mill argued strongly that if an individual functions based on the strength of his convictions, it is not necessary to listen to alternative points of view. 8. Unlike the United States, there is no way to become fully Japanese except to be born of Japanese parents. 9. America s cultural ideals begin with the premise that government is paramount and the role of the individual is to protect it. 10. The idea of liberty means that America has the right to bring democracy to those that yearn for it in such places as Iran, Syria, and North Korea. 11. Jefferson professed to know what the meaning of equality stood for in his Declaration, arguing that it requires wealth and opportunity be widely shared. 12. In the European revolutions, economic and social equality was also at issue, because wealth was held by hereditary aristocracies. 1-1

2 13. When it comes to military expenditures, the United States spends about twice as much compared with the average European country. 14. At the height of the Civil War Abraham Lincoln emancipated the slaves. 15. Compared with Great Britain or France, for example, the United States spends about 30 percent more per pupil annually on its primary and secondary schools. 16. Even the American states with the lowest proportion of college graduates have a higher percentage of residents with a bachelor s degree when compared to the typical European country. 17. A year after the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, with the economy still reeling, a CNN poll showed that 56 percent of Americans viewed the stimulus bill as a mistake. 18. According to Robert Dahl, most democracies operate as majoritarian systems as opposed to pluralistic systems. 19. When President Obama decided in 2009 to increase troop levels in Afghanistan, polls showed that the majority of the American people supported him. 20. One of the most significant benefits that occurs whenever a democratic system has prevailed is the fact that majority tyranny disappears. 21. When surveying the political history of the United States, periods of bipartisanship are the exception rather than the rule. 22. Identical to communism, under socialism the government owns most if not all major industries. 23. In a free market system individuals depend largely on government regulation and support to assure economic security for its people. 24. The U.S. minimum wage is higher compared to France or Great Britain s. Multiple Choice Questions 1. Which of the following is true about Iraq and the September 11 th attack? a) Iraq had nothing to do with the attack, b) The Iraqi government provided only logistical support for the attack, c) Iraq secretly provided funds for the attack, d) The Iraqi government and the Afghan Taliban were loyal allies. 2. He said, While men are willing to admit there are two sides to every question, they do not believe 1-2

3 that there two sides to what they regard as fact. a) Benjamin Franklin, Abraham Lincoln, c) Bill Clinton, d) Walter Lippmann. 3. According to Newsweek, of the thousand Americans that were given the standard immigration exam, how many failed it? a) 4 out of 10, b) 5 out of 10, c) 6 out 10, d) 7 out He said that democracy is the best form of government: a) Karl Marx, b) Benito Mussolini, c) John Stuart Mill, d) Thomas Aquinas. 5. What is the major barrier to political thinking? a) the government, b) the unwillingness of citizens to make the effort, c) the corporate, distorted media, d) corrupt and powerful interest groups. 6. From the following, where do most Americans today get most of their news? a) newspapers & magazines, b) think tanks & books, c) talk shows or Internet blogs, d) the nightly news & documentaries. 7. During the buildup to the Iraq invasion, individuals who got their news from cable television shows were: a) the best informed, b) the most misinformed, c) no better or less informed than those who did not watch cable news, d) to confused to know what Iraq and al Qaeda were all about. 8. Studies indicate that when misinformation is presented to someone who is primarily in touch with like-minded people for information, it tends to cause the following: a) expand his/her thinking, b) narrow and distort his/her thinking, c) compel him/her to think more critically, d) significantly improve his/her analytical skills. 9. The Intercollegiate Studies Association has found that the best predictor of students later participation in the nation s civic and political life is based on the following: a) they come from a wealthy family, b) they have a solid understanding of public affairs, c) they happen to be a member of the majority ethnic/racial group, d) they attended college. 10. One of America s foremost political scientists was the chief architect of the U.S. Constitution and later a president: a) Thomas Jefferson, b) George Washington, c) Alexander Hamilton, d) James Madison. 11. The widely shared and deep-seated beliefs of its people about politics: a) political landscape, b) political culture, c) political history, d) political system. 12. What are America s core values? a) liberty, equality, justice, diversity, b) fraternity, property, liberty, piety, c) liberty, individualism, equality, self-government, d) social justice, political fairness, religious protection, personal security. 13. He saw fit to note that liberty in America, as in no other country, is tied to a desire for economic independence: a) Thomas Smith, b) Karl Marx, c) Paul Revere, d) Alexis de Tocqueville. 1-3

4 14. The principle that the people are the ultimate source of governing authority and should have a voice in their governing: a) rugged individualism, b) self-government, c) liberty, d) freedom of speech. 15. How long did slavery last in the United States? a) 150 years, b) 200 years, c) 250 years, d) 400 years. 16. An era of legal segregation where black people in the South were forbidden by law to use the same schools, hospitals, restaurants, and restrooms as white people: a) Jim Crow, b) Dred Scott, c) Defacto segregation, d) miscegenation. 17. When were anti-discriminatory policies removed from immigration laws directed at Chinese, Japanese, and other Asians? a) 1932, b) 1945, c) 1965, d) no such laws ever existed since they violated the Constitution. 18. Those who prevail in political conflicts are said to have: a) collateral nuggets, b) assets, c) power, d) capital refinements. 19. The French philosopher Michel Foucault called politics: a) a means to an end, b) war by other means, c) absolute power corrupts absolutely, d) that government is best that governs least. 20. The following country blocks Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and other internet outlets including those within the country that convey messages contrary to what the government supports: a) China, b) India, c) Malaysia, d) the Philippines. 21. A system of government where control rest with only a few people or small group: a) autocracy, b) theocracy, c) dictatorship, d) oligarchy. 22. A system of government where control rests with a single individual, such as a king or dictator: a) autocracy, b) federalism, c) implied power, d) constitutionalism 23. With the near collapse of the financial sector in 2008, sending the economy into a downward spiral, in 2009 Congress enacted the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act which amounted to how much money? a) $245 billion, b) $527 billion, c) $787 billion, d) $1.2 trillion. 24. The following holds that on most issues the preference of the special interest largely determines what government does: a) pluralism, b) confederation, c) unitary, d) majoritarianism. 25. The recognized right of officials to exercise power: a) appointed, b) elected, c) selected, d) authority. 26. In 1786, debtors had gained control of the following state s legislature and made paper money a legal means of paying debts, even though contracts called for payments in gold: a) Connecticut, b) Massachusetts, c) North Carolina, d) Rhode Island. 1-4

5 27. How does the Constitution limit the power of oppressive majorities? a) majority rule, b) separation of powers, c) the filibuster, d) the bill of rights. 28. The following holds that there are lawful restrictions on government s power; that there are basic rights that government cannot deny or abridge. a) constitutionalism, b) socialism, c) utopianism, d) realism. 29. The landmark Supreme Court decision that resulted in requiring a defendant an attorney at the cost of government, if necessary: a) Conrad v. Smith, b) Gideon v. Wainwright, c) Brown v. Florida, d) Miranda v. Arizona. 30. Why is the U.S. tax rate lower in the United States than in European countries, according to Patterson? a) Americans traditionally despise government regulation and the poor, b) The U.S. makes less of an effort to redistribute income from the rich to the poor, c) The U.S. government is far too weak to compel people and institutions to pay their fair share of taxes, d) U.S. tax rates are actually higher than they are in Western Europe. 31. What percent of all lobbyists in the nation s capital represent business firms? a) 19%, b) 33%, c) 66%, d) 73%. 32. The following refers to the power exercised by well-positioned and highly influential individuals. a) imperialism, b) elitism, c) autarky. d) mercantilism. Fill-in Questions 1. Political thinking enables citizens to: a) act, b) whether in casting a, c) forming an about a public policy, d) or contributing to a political. 2. In the words of the Declaration of Independence: a) We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created ; b) that they are endowed by their Creator with certain rights; c) that among these, are life,, and the pursuit of happiness. d) That, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the of the governed; e) that, whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to it, and to institute a new government. 3. Today, African Americans have equal rights under the law, but in fact they are far from equal. a) Compared with white children, children are b) as likely to live in 1-5

6 c) and to die in. 4. Politics is the means by which: a) society settles its and b) allocates the resulting and. 5. Under communism, the government: a) owns most or all major and b) also takes responsibility for overall of the, including c) production, supply points, and. 2nd Treatise of Civil Government, John Locke Woll, pgs According to Locke, in the state of Nature men have absolute freedom, equality, and liberty? 2. Locke argues that human beings have the right to commit suicide. 3. When does someone have the right to take the life of another in the state of Nature? a) when he feels like it, b) when his own life is being threatened, c) to achieve an ideal government, d) to destroy his enemy. 4. Locke believes that in the state of Nature, each individual has the right to not only punish the criminal, but to also determine the level of punishment to be inflicted. 5. Why would anyone in the state of Nature give up any part of his freedom and power over his dominion? a) Because he wants to be friends with his neighbors, b) Because he wants to expand his power, c) Because his life is uncertain and he is constantly exposed to danger, d) Because he fears no one and feels confident that he can assert his will over others. 6. According to Locke, what is the great or chief end of uniting into a commonwealth and forming a government? a) preservation of law, b) preservation of property, c) securing the country, d) punishing the transgressors. 7. In the state of Nature, argues Locke, men being passionate and vengeful may not be impartial when deciding the punishment of a criminal. 8. When someone commits a crime in the state of Nature, there is always the means (power) available to punish the transgressor. 9. In forming a government, individuals give up their right to determine the punishment of a criminal. 1-6

7 10. In the system formulated by Locke, which branch of government is supreme in a commonwealth? a) executive, b) legislature, c) judiciary, d) military 11. For Locke, the legislature is to govern according to the following principle: a) it maintains its lawmaking authority to itself, b) it should create separate laws for the rich and the poor, c) it should serve only the interests of the powerful, d) it should tax without the consent of the people. 12. According to Locke, people must obey even those laws passed by someone who has usurped (seized by force) governmental power. 13. Locke believes that once an individual gives up his freedom to establish a society, such authority can never revert back to the individual again. Patterson, pgs Answers 1. False 3. False 5. True 7. False 9. False 11. False 13. True 15. True 17. True 19. False 21. True 23. False Multiple Choice Questions 1. a 3. a 5. b 7. b 9. b 11. b 13. d 15. c 17. c 19. b 21. d 1-7

8 23. c 25. d 27. d 29. b 31. c Fill-In Questions 1. a) responsibly, b) vote, c) opinion, d) cause 3. a) black, b) twice, poverty, c) infancy 5. a) industries, b) management, economy, c) quotas, pricing Woll, pgs False 3. b 5. c 7. True 9. True 11. a C:AG