Assignment

The objective of discussion is to engage with your fellow classmates on topics revolving around the themes in the readings and lectures. Your first assignment is to post an initial answer to a discussion question (1 of 3, listed below) of your choosing.

You should keep all of your work on this discussion civil, articulate, and well-informed by the readings. You will be graded on the quality of your work and its relevance to the topic and readings. Each response should be 1 paragraph at most. The online discussions are worth 6 points: 3 points for your initial answer and 3 points for your critical response.

Question 1: Do you agree with Gerald Friedman that the labor movement needs to become more radical (through the use of strikes) in order to stay relevant, or is there something else needed to "reignite" it?

Question 2: We talked about many of the problems of egalitarian communities and workplaces - free riding, brain drain, and negative selection. Do egalitarian societies also fail because they are forced to exist in an economic system that is predominantly capitalist? Why or why not?

Question 3: We talked about how American families are working more hours today than they did 30 years ago. Will this trend continue over the next 10 years? Why or why not?