DVC Political Science 120 - Introduction to Politics

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Lecture Outlines:

(September 9) Lecture One - The Study of Politics and Human Nature

Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the September 9, 2024 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] The Study of Politics and Human Nature
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: Scientists Probe Human Nature -- and Discover We Are Good, After All - Ward
  • 5. Video Presentation: Understanding Human Nature with Steven Pinker
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • The Study of Politics and Human Nature [PowerPoint Presentation]
  • Who's Correct About Human Nature, the Left or the Right? - Rooksby
  • What Are We Like? 10 Psychology Findings That Reveal The Worst Of Human Nature - Jarrett
  • Hobbes vs Rousseau: Are We Inherently Evil? - Douglass
  • The Myth of Human Progress - Hedges
  • Human-Made Evolution - Hunziker
  • (September 9) Lecture Two - Understanding and Critically Analyzing Politics and Buddhism

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the September 9, 2024 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Understanding and Critically Analyzing Political Theory and Buddhism
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: Is "Social Science" an Oxymoron? Will That Ever Change? - Horgan
  • 5. Video Presentation: The Lottery of Birth
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • Analyzing Political Theory and Buddhism [PowerPoint Presentation]
  • Philosophy of Social Science - Fay
  • Thomas Kuhn: The Man Who Changed the Way the World Looked at Science - Naughton
  • What Thomas Kuhn Really Thought about Scientific "Truth" - Horgan
  • How Reliable Are the Social Sciences? - Gutting
  • The Political Compass
  • (September 16) Lecture Three - Our Pre-Modern Heritage - Part I: Plato, Aristotle, and Cicero

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the September 16, 2024 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Our Pre-Modern Heritage - Part I: Plato, Aristotle, and Cicero
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: Notion of Elite Guardian Class Dates Back to Founding of US - Chomsky
  • 5. Video Presentation: What is Democracy?
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • Our Pre-Modern Heritage - Part 1 [PowerPoint Presentation]
  • War and Power in Classical Greece: Lessons for Superpowers and the World - Vallianatos
  • The Shaping of American Character - Robbins
  • The Coming Collapse of the American Economic System - Hedges and Wolff
  • The Kavanaugh Battle, Viewed from Rome- Weigel
  • Philosophy: Socrates, Plato and Aristotle - Khan Academy
  • (September 16) Lecture Four - Our Pre-Modern Heritage - Part II: God, the Bible, Augustine, and Aquinas

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the September 16, 2024 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Our Pre-Modern Heritage - Part II: God, the Bible, Augustine, and Aquinas
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: More Public Schools Are Embracing the Bible. Is It literature, or Religion? - Sheasley and Jonsson
  • 5. Video Presentation: Waiting for Armageddon
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • Our Pre-Modern Heritage - Part 2 [PowerPoint Presentation]
  • Why Thomas Aquinas Stands The Test Of Time - Chalk
  • Down the Memory Hole: Living in Trump's United States of Amnesia - Gordon
  • Resist the Lure of Theological Politics - Hamid
  • Fake News? Or Fake Faith? - Alberts
  • Empire Files: Chris Hedges & Abby Martin - Trump, Fascism & the Christian Right
  • (September 23) Lecture Five - Liberalism and Kant

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the September 23, 2024 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Liberalism and Kant
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: Liberalism and Fascism: Partners in Crime - Rockhill
  • 5. Video Presentation: The Most Dangerous Thing In The Western Hemisphere
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • Liberalism and Kant [PowerPoint Presentation]
  • Immanuel Kant on Our Duty to Obey Government - Smith
  • Great Thinkers: Immanuel Kant
  • Liberalism's Failures in a Time of Increasing Violence, Racism, Inequality and State Terrorism - Poulin
  • The Liberal Apologies for Obama's Ugly Reign - Street
  • Surviving Progress - Documentary
  • The Inadequacies of Liberalism - Martin and Pimentel
  • (September 30) Lecture Six - Conservatism and Islam

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the September 30, 2024 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Conservatism and Islam
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: The Essence of Conservatism - Kirk
  • 5. Video Presentation: Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • Conservatism and Islam [PowerPoint Presentation]
  • The West's Moral Panic Behind The Threat Of Radical Islam - Burchill
  • What Americans Mean When They Say They're Conservative: Freidersdorf
  • Understanding the Complexity of Islamism - Venturini
  • Rationalism in Politics - Oakeshott
  • The Eternal Return of Compassionate Conservatism - Teles
  • (October 7) Lecture Seven - Marxism

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the October 7, 2024 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Marxism
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: Why Socialism? - Einstein
  • 5. Video Presentation: Marx Reloaded
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • Marxism [PowerPoint Presentation]
  • Marxism Basics - Socialist Revolution
  • COVID-19 and Catastrophe Capitalism - Foster and Suwandi
  • Understanding Marxism and Socialism with Richard Wolff
  • Kshama Sawant on Malala Yousefzai - Democracy Now
  • The Not-So-Small Voice of American Socialism - Hirthler
  • (October 14) Lecture Eight - Darwinian Theories and Western Political Thought

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the October 14, 2024 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Darwinian Theories and Western Political Thought
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: Darwin's Influence on Modern Thought - Mayr
  • 5. Video Presentation: Human Zoos: America's Forgotten History of Scientific Racism
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • Darwin and Western Political Thought [PowerPoint Presentation]
  • Darwin's Living Legacy - Garcia, Jr.
  • The Paradigm Shift in Our Understanding of Human Evolution: An Interview With Chris Stringer - Ritch-Frel
  • Meet the Woman Who Decided to Take on Darwin's Sexist Scientific Theories - Saini
  • Defending Darwin - Dougherty
  • Darwin and the Theory of Evolution Documentary
  • (October 21) Lecture Nine - Political Parties and Sartre

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the October 21, 2024 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Political Parties and Sartre
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: X-Risks and Existentialism - Alessandri
  • 5. Video Presentation: Sartre: Leading an Authentic Life
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • Political Parties and Sartre [PowerPoint Presentation]
  • The Political Compass (Find Out Where You Are!)
  • Think Big, Be Free, Have Sex! 10 Reasons to Be an Existentialist - Bakewell
  • Humanism - Helping People - Haught
  • Jean Paul Sartre: Existentialism
  • The Transformation of the Democratic and Republican Parties - Against the Grain
  • In An Age of Hollow Men and Existential Angst, Re-read Sartre - Escobar
  • Overcoming the Divide and Conquer Strategy -- The Economic Elite Vs. The People of the USA - DeGraw
  • (October 28) Lecture Ten - Interest Groups and Freud

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the October 28, 2024 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Interest Groups and Freud
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: Anti-Abortion and the Lives of Children: A Freudian Perspective - Deutsch
  • 5. Video Presentation: The Century of the Self - Part 1: "Happiness Machines"
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • Interest Groups and Freud [PowerPoint Presentation]
  • How 7 Historic Figures Overcame Depression Without Doctors - Levine
  • Interest Groups: Pathways to Participation and Influence - Lumen
  • Interest Groups and Theories of Power in America - McFarland
  • The Freud-Einstein Correspondence of 1932: Theories of War - MacQueen
  • Finding the Lost Voters - Sifry
  • (November 4) Lecture Eleven - Public Opinion, the Mass Media, and B.F. Skinner

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the November 4, 2024 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Public Opinion and the Mass Media
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: 15 Reasons Why Media Don't Do Journalism - Johnstone
  • 5. Video Presentation: United States of Distraction: Fighting The Fake News Invasion
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • Public Opinion and the Mass Media [PowerPoint Presentation]
  • Herman and Chomsky's 5 Filters on the Media - Al Jazeera
  • Shadows of Liberty - Documentary
  • Corporate Media: the Enemy of the People - Street
  • News Content and Illusion: Four Information Biases That Matter - Bennett
  • Power of Majority Opinion in America Over Thought - De Tocqueville
  • Post-Fact Politics: Reviewing the History of Fake News and Propaganda - DiMaggio
  • It's the Media, Stupid - McChesney / Nichols
  • (November 18) Lecture Twelve - Leadership Dynamics, Executive Offices, Bureaucracies, and Confucius

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the November 18, 2024 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Leadership Dynamics, Executive Offices, Bureaucracies, and Confucius
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: Why Confucius Rubs America the Wrong Way - Moss
  • 5. Video Presentation: Confucianism in Modern Society
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • Leadership and Confucius [PowerPoint Presentation]
  • Get Over It: Asia Rules - Escobar
  • An Emergent Leadership Model Based on Confucian Virtues and East Asian Leadership Practices - Lang
  • Gen Z National Student Leadership Begins Fightback for College Relief - Moses
  • China's Quest for Moral Authority - Schell
  • Cold War II - Lind
  • (November 25) Lecture Thirteen - Legislative and Judicial Systems and Upanishadic Hinduism

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the November 25, 2024 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Legislative and Judicial Systems and Upanishadic Hinduism
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: Why Khanna Denounced Trump's White Supremacy, But Not Modi's Hindu Supremacy - Shrivastava
  • 5a. Video Presentation: In Search of India's Soul: From Mughals to Modi - Episode 1
  • 5b. Video Presentation: In Search of India's Soul: From Mughals to Modi - Episode 2
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • Legislative and Judicial Systems and Hinduism [PowerPoint Presentation]
  • Why the Trump-Modi Friendship Is So Dangerous - Sen
  • What Democracy? The Case for Abolishing the United States Senate - Rosenfeld
  • Congress: The Pocketing of Power - Parenti
  • Life Tenure Is Too Long for Supreme Court Justices - Taylor Jr.
  • The Triumph of Hindu Majoritarianism - Chandra
  • For Richer - Krugman
  • (December 2) Lecture Fourteen - New Directions in Political Science and Important Cognate Fields

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the December 2, 2024 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] New Directions in Political Science and Important Cognate Fields
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: On the Cowardice & Irrelevance of Social Science Scholars - Dimaggio
  • 5. Video Presentation: Four Horsemen
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • New Directions in Political Science [PowerPoint Presentation]
  • Ecological Politics for the Working Class - Huber
  • The Myth of a 'Value-Free' Social Science Or The Value of Political Commitments to Social Science - Petras
  • The Politics of Social Science - Vidal
  • A Message to the African Political Scientist - Quigley
  • Resistance and the Left with Paul Street - On Contact with Chris Hedges
  • Canvas Journal Responses - Due: Subject to Change. Check Canvas Assignments Page for Final Due Date

  • For the following lectures, please respond to the highlighted question from each lecture from the "Study and Discussion Question" section. Responses should be at least one page in length (approximately 350 words, double-spaced). Most importantly, these journal responses should not just SUMMARIZE the question, but ANALYZE and EVALUATE them!
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Politics and Human Nature), Question 7 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Critically Analyzing Political Theory), Question 2 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Plato, Aristotle, Cicero), Question 2 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (God, the Bible, Augustine, Aquinas), Question 4 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Liberalism), Question 3 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Conservatism), Question 4 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Marxism), Question 1 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Darwinian Theories), Question 7 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Political Parties and Sartre), Question 2 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Interest Groups and Freud), Question 6 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Public Opinion and the Mass Media), Question 5 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Executive Agencies, Leadership, Bureaucracies and Confucius), Question 4 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Legislative and Judicial Systems and Hinduism), Question 5 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (New Directions in Political Science and Cognate Fields), Question 7 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Fall 2024 Research Project: Due - Monday, November 18, 2024

    Human Nature and the Fate of Our Species - POLSC 120 Fall 2024 Research Project

    Books / Articles / Reports / Documents / Websites (Evidence from Science)
  • Beyond Hegemony - Sachs
  • The Role of Ancient DNA in Modern Traits - Hecht
  • Choosing to Evolve - Short
  • [Book] The End of the World: The Science and Ethics of Human Extinction - Leslie
  • [Book] The Recurring Dark Ages: Ecological Stress, Climate Changes, and System Transformation - Chew
  • [Book] The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History - Kolbert
  • The Sixth Extinction: Elizabeth Kolbert on How Humans Are Causing Largest Die-Off Since Dinosaur Age - Democracy Now!
  • Science and Human Nature - Samuels
  • Humans v Nature: Our Long and Destructive Journey to the Age of Extinction - Weston
  • Extinction Crisis Threatens Humanity - Cwienk
  • Humans Are Causing Life on Earth to Vanish - Begum
  • Humans Are Speeding Extinction and Altering the Natural World at an 'Unprecedented' Pace - Plumer
  • Should We Pay People to Take Care of Nature? A Possible Solution to the Mass Extinction Crisis - Rozsa
  • Ideas in Philosophy on Human Extinction Are Toxic Seeds That Must Be Dealt With - Reville
  • Why Superintelligence is a Threat That Should Be Taken Seriously - Torres
  • You Can't Characterize Human Nature If Studies Overlook 85 Percent of People on Earth - The Conversation
  • Why Do We Ignore Warnings About Earth's Future? - Sarchett
  • Hunter-Gatherers and the Origins of Religion - Peoples, Duda, and Marlowe
  • Galileo vs. God: The Father of Modern Science on Religion, Truth, and Human Nature - Popova
  • Religion Understood in Relation to the Human Nature - Nazerian
  • Countdown to Zero - Documentary
  • Human Nature is Here to Stay: Why Biotechnology Will Not Change Our Bodies, Brains, and Desires - Arnhart
  • Books / Articles / Reports / Documents / Websites (Evidence from Religion)
  • Human Nature: Views from Major World Religions - Educational Psychology Interactive
  • In Theory: If the Human Race Becomes Extinct, Will the Concept of God Exist Elsewhere in the Universe?
  • A Christian Perspective on the Sixth Mass Extinction - Rana
  • Daring to Dream: Religion and the Future of the Earth - Tucker and Grim
  • The Human Extinction Movement Targets God and You - Horvat II
  • Welcoming the End of Our World - Jolley
  • The Religion of Environmental Alarmism - Tobin
  • Will Humans Go Extinct? - Bennett
  • The Purpose of Dinosaurs: Extinction and the Goodness of God - Sollereder
  • Human Nature and the Purpose of Existence: Islam - Religion Library
  • Human Nature and the Purpose of Existence: Hinduism - Religion Library
  • Human Nature and the Purpose of Existence: Christianity - Religion Library
  • Human Nature and the Purpose of Existence: Judaism - Religion Library
  • Human Nature and the Purpose of Existence: Confucianism - Religion Library
  • Human Nature and the Purpose of Existence: Buddhism - Religion Library
  • If We Don't Take Human Extinction Seriously, How Integral Are We? - LeVasseur
  • What Does Christianity Say About The Nature Of Humans? Five Honest Realities - Wallace
  • Books / Articles / Reports / Documents / Websites (Evidence from Philosophy)
  • Prologue: Why You Shouldn't Let Collapse Get You Down - Sid Smith
  • Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy - Human Nature
  • Human Extinction! Don't Panic; Think About It Like a Philosopher - Hendricks
  • Science, Religion & Human Nature - The Chomsky Sessions
  • On Human Nature - Hull
  • Humanism's Faith in Reason Represents Our Best Hope - Grayling
  • Does Human Nature Exist? On the Philosophy of Human Nature - Danaher
  • Human Nature Matters - Cleary and Pigliucci
  • This Is Not the Sixth Extinction. It's the First Extermination Event - McBrien
  • The Ethics of Human Extinction - Torres
  • How Human Extinction Would Change the Earth - Geere
  • When It Comes to Human Extinction, We Could Be Our Worst Enemy and Best Hope - Carson
  • Solve Suffering by Blowing Up the Universe? The Dubious Philosophy of Human Extinction - The Conversation
  • Is It Natural to Drive Species to Extinction? - Michael
  • Civilization of Its Discontents - Freud
  • The Bright Side of Extinction - Torres
  • Why I Have Hope in the Face of Human Extinction - Korten
  • Is Biology Destiny? - Gaspar
  • Environmental Law's Extinction Problem - Akhtar-Khavari
  • Do Humans Have a 'Religion Instinct'? - Ambrosino
  • Feuerbach and Comte: Religion and Human Nature - Voegelin View
  • Research Projects and Examinations:

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    Readings, Documentaries, and Websites of Interest for Political Science 120 Students!

    World's First Trillionaire Just 10 Years Away as Richest Men Double Their Wealth - Johnson

    How to Unf*ck America - Dean Baker and The Institute for New Economic Thinking

    The War on Journalism: The Case of Julian Assange

    A Message From the Future II: "Years of Repair"

    The World in Economic Depression: A Marxist Analysis of Crisis - Tricontinental

    Testing Theories of American Politics: Elites, Interest Groups, and Average Citizens - Gilens and Page

    Measuring Rates of Return for Lobbying Expenditures: An Empirical Analysis Under the American Jobs Creation Act - Alexander, Scholz, and Mazza

    The Crisis of Democracy - The Trilateral Commission (1973)

    The Powell Memo (also known as the Powell Manifesto) - Reclaim Democracy!

    A Century of War - RT Documentary

    The Collapse of the American Empire? - The Agenda with Steve Paikin

    Corruption is Legal in America - Represent.Us

    Unbreaking America: A NEW Short Film about Solving the Corruption Crisis - Represent.Us

    The Lie We Live [Smart Kid - A Nice Wake-Up Call] - Spencer Cathcart

    Understanding Marxism and Socialism with Richard Wolff

    War Is A Racket - Major General Smedley Butler

    Four Horsemen - Documentary (Great Stuff! Check This Out!)

    Empire Files: Peter Joseph & Abby Martin on Abolishing Capitalism

    Destroying the Myths of Market Fundamentalism - The Real News Network

    Tipping Point: The End of Oil - Documentary

    The Propaganda Multiplier:How Global News Agencies and Western Media Report on Geopolitics - Swiss Propaganda Research

    Capitalism Never Solves Its Crises; It Moves Them Around Geographically - RSAnimate

    Two American Families - Frontline Documentary

    Global Wealth Inequality: What You Never Knew You Never Knew - therules.org

    Wealth Inequality in America - therules.org

    Billionaire Bonanza: The Forbes 400 and the Rest of Us - Institute for Policy Studies

    Park Ave: Wealth, Poverty, and the American Dream - Documentary

    Shadows of Liberty - Documentary (Mass Media)

    Plutocracy in America - Brenner

    The Progressive Movement is a PR Front for Rich Democrats - Stauber

    Consent Without Consent: Reflections on the Theory and Practice of Democracy - Chomsky

    Obamacare: A Deception - Roberts

    The Purchase of Our Republic - Falkson

    The Crisis of Civilization - Documentary

    Let Your Life Be A Friction That Stops The Machine - Class War Films

    Political Fraud - Class War Films

    Financial Crime - Class War Films

    Military Cancer - Class War Films

    Imperial Decay - Class War Films

    Overdose: The Next Financial Crisis - Documentary

    What Democracy? The Case for Abolishing the United States Senate - Rosenfeld

    Making Every Vote Count: The Case for Proportional Representation - Amy

    Ignoble Liars: Leo Strauss, George Bush, and the Philosophy of Mass Deception - Shorris

    Barack Hoover Obama: The Best and the Brightest Blow It Again - Baker

    The Great American Bubble Machine - Taibbi

    Why Isn't Wall Street in Jail? - Taibbi

    Empire Under Obama: Counterinsurgency, Death Squads, and the Population as the Target - Marshall

    Smash the Control Machine - Otep Rocks!

    Rise Rebel Resist - Otep Rocks!

    The World is Coming to an End - Prince Ea

    The Final Word from My Two Favorite Comedians of All Time on "The Big Question"