THE UNITED STATES IN THE 19TH CENTURY WORLD SYSTEM
What are settler colonies and occupied colonies?
Which type of colony develops and which doesn't?
How was the US south peripheralized by England?
What are the general trends in the three sectors of the US work force.
(Adam smith�s theory of markets/capitalism)
What are the two basic aspects of market capitalism?
How does the law of supply and demand operate in the market?
How is this like a process of natural selection?
Why is lowering the cost of production the key process of market competition?
What are the long-term effects of market competition on raw materials, profit margins, wages, etc.?
Why do large-scale capitalists eventually win the competition?
What is the overall effect of this on the capitalist and working classes?
What do workers sell in the capitalist marketplace?
What is the natural/free market level of wages, and why?
What did Adam Smith think about the impoverishment of the working class?
Marx�s theory of capitalist development & crisis
Why do wage workers eventually become the main consumers in capitalist society?
Why does (aggregate) production eventually exceed the (aggregate) ability of consumers to buy?
Why does the system cycle out of control and eventually collapse?
What are the two basic conditions of depression?
What brought an end to the depression in the US and why?
POST WORLD WAR II UNITED STATES
What are the two basic conditions of depression?
Why did the depression re-emerge following WW2?
How did the post WW2 socialist reforms relate to the two conditions?
How did these reforms stimulate growth of the service sector?
Why did the reforms require high tax levels?
What is the split in the service sector and why did it happen?
What continuing social problems did this split generate?
REICH, CLASS, AND CLASS REPRODUCTION
Why does Reich say that the US is a �region� of the global system (WSYS?)
Know general characteristics of Reich�s 3 private sectors + govt and poor.
How did the post WW2 socialist reforms create a new class system in the US?
Why do people know little about those in other social classes?
Know the general characteristics of each class.
How do area of residence, schools, and marriage each affect class reproduction?
Why is mobility between classes low?
THE QUESTION OF PROGRESS - CHAPTER 8
What is the usual (Core) assumption about progress?
What are the four areas that Sanderson uses to assess progress?
What are the three basic dimensions of standard of living used by Sanderson?
Why were HGs relatively healthy and why did health decline in agricultural societies?
What is "sedentism" and what problems does it cause?
Did lifespan increase in agricultural societies?
Why were agri peasants worse off overall than HGs?
Why was the workload larger for peasants?
Why was there more inequality in agricultural societies?
Why were agricultural societies less democratic than HGs?
What are the 3 meanings of freedom - how did they differ between HGs and peasants?
What are the "cage of kinship" and the "cage of power"?
(Contemporary)
How has the standard of living in Core countries improved?
Why does Wallerstein argue that people in the �Third World� are worse off than ever?
What is "relative immiseration"?
Why has the absolute number of impoverished people (worldwide) increased?
What has happened to the quantity and quality of work in modern societies?
What has happened to social and economic inequality in the modern world?
What has happened to democracy and freedom in the modern world?
How does Mark Cohen summarize the differences over the span of social change?
THE EVOLVING FUTURE - CHAPTER 9
What is "chaos theory" and how does it relate to predicting our future?
What is the present situation with respect to population growth and resource depletion?
What did the Club of Rome Report (1970s) conclude about the near future?
What did the new report Beyond the Limits (1990s) conclude?
How do major (Core) wars relate to Kondratieff Cycles?
Why does Sanderson think that nuclear war is very likely in the near future?
Why does Sanderson think a "world state" will form too late to stop nuclear devastation?
Does Sanderson think that capitalism can last much longer?
What are Goldfrank's four scenarios?
What are the strengths and weaknesses of capitalism?
What are the strengths and weaknesses of socialism?
What are Sanderson's predictions in the end?
OIL AND POLITICS ARTICLE
How much oil is left (proven reserves)?
How long will it last at the current rate of global consumption?
Where are most oil reserves located?
Who uses most of the oil and for what purposes?
What will happen to Core economies as oil supplies continue to decrease?
KIRKPATRICK SALE ARTICLE
What are the four basic reasons that empires collapse?
Why does Sale think that the US cannot avoid collapse?
HOW IT BEGAN ARTICLE
Is this similar to the way Americans think about things today?