Sheet A (Fairness and Equity)

prepared by:

Joseph Malkevitch
Department of Mathematics and Computing
York College (CUNY)
Jamaica, New York 11451

email: malkevitch@york.cuny.edu
web page: http://www.york.cuny.edu/~malk

Be prepared to discuss in class your thoughts about the following:

1. a. Give examples of countries that you think are democracies and countries which are not democracies.

b. Do different democracies have different approaches to issues of fairness and equity?

c. What are some of the different ways that the "political system" of a country can be classified?

2. Has what is considered fair changed with time in America? (For example, during the period when the country was first founded were there things considered fair that we would not consider fair now?)

3. a. What is an election?

b. Describe as many situations as you can think of where elections or voting take place.

c. How are these situations alike and how are they different? (For example, how does a citizen voting for a mayor differ from voting for a treaty if you are a US Senator?)

d. Are elections held only in democracies?

e. What are the desirable features of an election in a democracy?

4. How are the economic system of a country and the political system of that country related?