PUP 3002 Final
Define expected utility theory.
Used by Becker to define the rationality behind criminal behavior; weighing the costs.
Who is likely not to be harmed by immigration?
Unskilled laborers
What is the resource allocation of the DHS?
(Protection) Domestic measures that make it difficult for an attack to succeed (Policing) Involves domestic and foreign operations that reduce the ability of an adversary to carry out an attack at home (Mitigation) Policies that reduce the consequences of an attack (Resilience) Emphasize diversification of critical infrastructure and assets
What are the steps to increase the cost of crime via public education?
**Education is one of the greatest deterrents. Public education programs are those which emphasize the negative effects of committing crimes (at the rate of overemphasizing them). If people perceive the costs of getting caught/punished as higher, they will have less incentive to commit crimes. Generally, spawn from some major epidemic (ex. drug rates in the 1980's) Examples: 'Just Say No'; 'DARE' ; 'MADD' Efficacy of such groups is mixed. 'Just say no' and 'MADD' seem effective, original DARE wasn't, but has been improved.
What is a bureaucracy? What does it consist of?
-A system of government in which most of the important decisions are made by state officials rather than by elected representatives. -Created by elected leaders and are charged with carrying out specified goals. -Leaders of bureaucracies are generally put in place by elected officials -Hiring and firing of members are done at the bureaucratic level
What does the 14th Amendment state?
-"All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside." *The 14th Amendment grants citizenship to anyone born in the US
Define the Colonel Blotto Game.
-2 Players *Defender *Attacker -2 Cities; Zero-sum game *Defender wins if they defend both *Attacker wins if one is destroyed -Resources *Defender Gets 3 Resources *Attacker Gets 2 Resources *Distribute them between the two cities -Win *The player with more resources in each city wins that city *Tie goes to the defender
Define the Coordination Game.
-2 players *Olga and Sven -Decision *They want to go to a movie *Sven wants to see a *Schwarzenegger film *Olga wants to see the new Meryl Streep flick *Both would rather see the movie with the other actor, rather than see any movie alone -Problem *They can't communicate *They have to go to one movie theatre without speaking to one another -Payoffs *Sven **If Sven and Olga both pick Schwarzenegger, Sven is really happy **If Sven and Olga both pick Streep, Sven is less happy **If Sven and Olga pick different movies, Sven is least happy *Olga **If Sven and Olga both pick Streep, Olga is really happy **If Sven and Olga both pick Schwarzenegger, Olga is less happy **If Sven and Olga pick different movies, Olga is least happy
What is a focal point to an actor?
-A focal point is something easily identifiable for the actors involved *If Olga and Sven want to be in before midnight and the Streep movie starts at 8pm while the Schwarzenegger movie does not have any show times before 10pm, then the movie start time serves as a focal point and helps them coordinate *Focal points are great for resolving coordination problems, but they are not always present.
What is a minimax strategy?
-A government's 'best strategy' is to allocate resources in a manner that minimizes an attackers' maximum payoff. Basically, minimize the loss and maximize the profit. -The defender should protect its most valuable targets in rank order: *Protect most valuable *Protect second most valuable **Continue this process until you are out of money
What is a refugee? What is an asylum seeker?
-A refugee is a person fleeing their home country because of a well-founded fear of persecution -An asylum seeker is a person requesting refugee status in another country Difference: A refugee applies for residence outside of host country; an asylum seeker applies from within a host country
Name some examples of violations of civil liberties.
-Alien and Sedition Act of 1798 -Sedition Act -Suspension of Habeas Corpus in 1861 -Espionage and Sedition Acts of 1917 & 1918 -Japanese Internment Camps 1942
Define the relationship between gender and equal pay. What does the equal pay act state?
-Although the 5th and 14th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution appear to secure the right for women and men to be paid equally, they have never been interpreted that way. -The Equal Pay Act (1963) states that: "No employer having employees subject to any provisions of this section [section 206 of title 29 of the United States Code] shall discriminate, within any establishment in which such employees are employed, between employees on the basis of sex by paying wages to employees in such establishment at a rate less than the rate at which he pays wages to employees of the opposite sex in such establishment for equal work on jobs[,] the performance of which requires equal skill, effort, and responsibility, and which are performed under similar working conditions, except where such payment is made pursuant to (i) a seniority system; (ii) a merit system; (iii) a system which measures earnings by quantity or quality of production; or (iv) a differential based on any other factor other than sex [ . . . . ]"
When does bureaucratic change occur?
-As previously stated bureaucracies are created and changed when there under the 'fire alarm' model -Security measures are created when there is a 'fire' but do not fundamentally 'change' when there is a lull in the problem
What does the family path of immigration entail?
-Awards immigration status to family members of US citizens. -Immediate family members have precedence over siblings and their children
What did Citizens United accomplish?
-Citizens United v. FEC (2010) that expanded the speech rights of organizations and businesses was supported by Heritage and the ACLU. -Independent groups can now make unlimited donations to political campaigns; protected under the first amendment.
What are some examples that show how rights can change?
-Civil War and the 14th, 15th, and 16th Amendments ended slavery and made blacks citizens. But laws were passed to limit those rights, led to new laws, like the Voting Rights Act in 1965 that ended unequal voter registration. -Newer laws, like Shelby County, AL v. Holder (2013) weakened the preclearance protection of that law. -New administration means that understandings of rights will change; ex: Trump's enactments of laws on travel vs. Obama's. Often a struggle with legislative change affecting laws, etc.
How does security relate to civil liberties? How does the public feel about it?
-Civil liberties: Personal guarantees and freedoms that the government cannot abridge, either by law or by judicial interpreta7on -Examples----freedom of speech, privacy, due process, from torture and disappearance, etc. -During times of war the executive branch of the government often takes actions that restrict civil liberties. Both liberal and conservative leadership have done this; Often, the public supports these restrictions
Define civil rights.
-Civil rights come from government: they can be granted, and taken away. -Hobbes: life without government is "solitary, nasty, brutish, and short."
Where do coordination problems arise from?
-Coordination problems arise because there are different preferences and the absence of clear rules.Both have the same underlying goal, but have different preferences of how to attain it. -When making decisions, they are unable to coordinate and end up making suboptimal choices
What is the Department of Homeland Security? Why was it created?
-Created in the Homeland Security Act of 2002 -"To prevent terrorist attacks within the United States, reduce the vulnerability of the United States to terrorism; and minimize the damage, and assist in the recovery, from terrorist attacks that do occur within the United States." " *Their goals are: **Prevent major disasters (terrorist and natural) -When disaster occur, minimize damage (terrorist and natural)
What are the factors of psychic impacts?
-Cultural threat: One's view about changes to the world around them. -If one views these changes negatively, then they are classified as a threat *Empirical analyses find strong support that those that perceive immigration as a cultural threat, as well as chauvinistic individuals, are less likely to support immigration
How are rights costly?
-Due process for persons with disabilities is expensive. Requirements, providing adequate access to restroom facilities. -Conflict between regulators and businesses with ADA compliance.
Why do people immigrate?
-Economic Opportunity mostly -Political (asylum, refugees, etc.)
How does English and education relate to immigrants?
-English as a spoken language: *A little over 40% of Mexican immigrants in the US for less than five years spoke only Spanish in 2000 *Among Mexicans who had lived in the United States more than 20 years, only 7 percent of men and 10 percent of women remained monolingual -Education *The average immigrant in the US has less education than the average American. Children of immigrants stay in school longer than children born to parents who were born in America
Espionage and Sedition Acts of 1917 & 1918
-Espionage Act---Restricted information sharing -Sedition Act--- outlawed 'disloyal' and 'profane' comments about the US government
What does the UCR do, what are its measurement errors?
-Established in 1930. Data is voluntarily submitted to it by about 17,000 local law enforcement agencies -Measurement error: some agencies may interpret the FBI's guidelines differently or not report certain crimes for political reasons -Measurement error: many victims do not report crime
What is the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA)? What does it allow?
-Established in 1978: FISA allows the government to wiretap the international phone calls of suspected foreign agents with a warrant -Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) *Reviews applications for wiretaps *Only hears from government and prosecution -Now applied to 'suspected terrorists' -Now regulated: phone calls, e-mails, text messages, internet activity, or other forms of communication *Constitutional Problems: **Monitoring Domestic Systems **Data Mining -Government justification: the original FISA was not built with modern technology in mind.
What are the implications of the game?
-Even though the defender was stronger (had more resources and the defensive advantage) they lost 50% of the time. -This shows the difficulty of protecting multiple areas at one time. -Given limited resources the USDHS must protect all sites in the U.S. -This is difficult, if not impossible, to do
What are the externalities of crime, and how are they related to abortion rates?
-Externalities—Effects that are not directly intended -Positive Externality: They produce a socially desirable consequence -Negative: The produce a socially undesirable consequence *Donohue and Levitt (2001) contend that the legalization of abortion as a result of the 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision is central to explaining the crime decline of the 1990s -Why? Most abortions occur because the pregnancy is not wanted; unwanted children are at a higher risk of committing crime Therefore: legalizing abortion lowered crime rates.
Define the Fairness Doctrine (1949).
-Fairness Doctrine (1949) required broadcasters to allow presentation of opposing views. -If you have a candidate on air, you must give the opponent a chance to retort to give the people a concise view of both people. Dropped it in 1985 as part of Reagan administration's deregulation. *FCC argued that cable made it unneeded; Argued there'd been a chilling effect
What do Fire Alarm approaches show?
-Fire alarm approaches show that the state will only act when the public perceives there to be a BIG PROBLEMS with a bureaucracy *When failing to correct this costs a leader votes, they have incentive to act. -Often BIG PROBLEMS are due to events or catastrophes
Define the variables of the probability of being caught.
-For deterring crime, what is even more important than actual punishment is a person's perception that they will be caught and convicted. *How many cops are in the area? *Do I possess the skill set to get away with it?
What are the perceptions of the identities of immigrants? What does research find?
-Greater degrees of patriotism are associated with higher levels of assimilation *Research indicates that there is no difference between immigrants and natives -Research finds that those with dual citizenship maintain lower levels of patriotism and connectedness to the US
What happened with Snowden and the principle agent problem?
-He leaked info from the NSA to the American people that they were being spied on by the NSA. -He gave away the practice of what the NSA was doing; considered to be a "traitor"
How is disaster response seen as a coordination problem?
-If a major terrorist attack or natural disaster does occur, then the Department of Homeland Security oversees the government's response -The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is the lead organization within the DHS for coordinating disaster response activities *Emergency response involves: **Preparation for an emergency **Response to an emergency **Recovery from the emergency
Why is there illegal immigration?
-Illegal immigration is driven primarily by economic motivations -Labor abundant countries export products that are labor-intensive or labor itself -Officials estimate that about 60% of all agricultural workers in the US are illegal immigrants
How is economics related to immigration?
-Immigration, on average, benefits the economy of the host nation. Some individuals in the host country benefit, some suffer -Immigration is particularly beneficial when the influx has skills that are scarce in the host country. -In the US (which is capital rich and labor scarce), influx of low-skilled immigrants filled a gap *This decreases the cost of goods and services produced by labor, benefiting consumers of the good *The increase in labor potentially hurts low skilled workers from the US---- decreases wages and job availability
What does the Brady Act accomplish? How does Ludwig and Cook (2000) relate to it?
-Imposes stricter restrictions on who can buy a handgun. -Ludwig and Cook (2000) show that the Brady Act did not impact homicide rates. -Ludwig and Cook's data only analyzes the effect of legal handgun purchases, but not ownership, which makes estimation difficult
What does the demand for rights include?
-In the pursuance of rights, there are several strategies that groups can take: 1: Getting the majority on your side: *Empathy *Public Campaigns 2: Increasing the potential costs of failing to give the group rights. -Naming and Shaming (International) -Perceived threat (revolt, coup, etc)
What does the Stolper-Samulson theorem state?
-Individuals working in an abundant factor benefit from trade, while those working in the scarce factor experience the costs of trade. *In rich states individuals with capital benefit from trade while laborers suffer the cost. *In the US, people with capital support free trade and immigration and laborers don't because they suffer the costs.
What does Goelzhauser (2012) find? Why is it important?
-Investigates whether there is a relationship between capital punishment conviction rates and judicial elections. It finds that states in which judges are elected have more capital punishment convictions than states without judicial elections -Importance: *Judges are agents *They work for the public, and the public, or principal, has ways of influencing the agent's behavior
Do immigrants use more welfare?
-It depends; Immigrants with white-collar skills are much less likely to be on welfare than Americans born in the US -Refugee groups tend to exhibit much higher rates of welfare participation. *In 2002, about 22% of all immigrant households received some type of welfare, while only about 15% of non-immigrant households received welfare
What are the arguments for repealing the 14th amendment?
-It encourages illegal immigration -In 2008, 1 in 12 births in the US were born to illegal immigrants -Principle of jus soli ("right of the soil;" birthright citizenship) is held by a minority of countries
What does the NCVS do?
-Managed by the Bureau of Justice Statistics. Established in 1972 -A large survey of randomly selected American households regarding crime victimization. -Generally, finds more crime than reported in the UCR
What are remittances
-Money transferred back to home country from workers in host country -Often generates substantial economic gains to home country
What is the border fence? What does the Secure Fence Act accomplish?
-Most illegal entrants in the US come from the US-Mexico Border -Secure Fence Act (2006) *Constructed 700 miles of fence between US and Mexico *Costs- Making the fence about 2.9-4 million per mile *Benefits (decreased immigration)? -Is it really a benefit or a cost? *GAO 2017: breached > 9000 times since 2010 with a cost of about $800 per breach to repair; CRS 2010, appears people found new routes *Environmental damage *More violence as drug turf changes
How is collective action related to immigration?
-Most people aren't affected significantly by it. Some illegal immigrants collect public assistance, but they pay into Social Security and other taxes so that's a wash. *Policy entrepreneurs heighten the debate through issue framing *There are unequal benefits and costs of illegal entry *Credible commitment problems exist that make compromise hard.
What is PRISM? What does it do?
-NSA program Launched in 2007. Collects internet communications of foreign nationals from at least nine major US internet companies. -PRISM data using terms intended to identify suspicious communications of targets whom the analysts suspect with at least 51 percent confidence to not be U.S. citizens -Immunizes private companies from legal action when they cooperate with U.S. government agencies in intelligence collection. *Allegations of abusive practices: Monitoring foreigners regardless of terrorist suspicion Data gathered is not solely that that of foreigners
Define natural rights.
-Natural rights are inherent: Locke wrote of the right to life, liberty and property. -US Declaration of Independence; Lockean: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
How does one become a legal resident?
-Non-citizens may become legal immigrants through one of four paths: *Family based system *Employment based system *Refugees and asylum seekers *Diversity Lotteries
What are the tradeoffs to rights?
-Often the expansion of rights reduces the rights of other groups. -When granting a civil right to a portion of the population, it restricts how other members of the population can behave. *Example: Fair Housing Act (1963) *Prevents landlord from discriminating housing opportunities to renters of protected classes (race, gender, citizenship, etc.) *Says nothing about sexual preferences. -This is great for protected classes that may potentially be discriminated against. -But some would say that this imposes costs on landlords as they can no longer selectively choose who they rent to.
How is public opinion related to immigration?
-Two sets of factors influence most individuals' views of immigration: economic and psychic. *Economic **Monetary influences on opinion **Does immigration help or hurt me in the pocket? *Psychic **Non-monetary influences on a person's opinion
How does one become an illegal immigrant?
-Overstay on visa *All 9/11 terrorists did this -Illegal entry (most common) -Green card marriage
What are push and pull factors for immigration?
-People migrate when they believe their aggregate utility will increase, relative to staying put. -Pull Factors (pulling them to the new country) *Factors that increase the expected utility of moving *Economic opportunities, political freedom, and connectedness in host country *People with skillsets will often move to countries that have scarce populations with such skill sets (labor moves to capital intense and vice versa) -Push Factors (pushing them out of their home country) *Declining opportunities in home country *War, economic decline, environmental devastation, etc.
Define the variables of the utility of not being caught.
-People tend to commit crimes because they want monetary value, prestige, etc. -Personal costs are factored in. -Variables *Will committing a crime hurt one's self (Tell Tale Heart; Crime and Punishment) *One's valuation of personal harm can be predicted by several variables: mental illness; empathy; morals -Social Groupings: Is this simply part of my group identity? Does helping the group make this okay?
What does an increase in police accomplish?
-Police are law enforcement agents. Through their presence and work, they aim to stop and deter crimes, thereby providing order to a community and enhancing the common good. -More police are associated with a higher level of competency and an increased probability of catching criminal activity *Generally, there is support for this hypothesis
What does the employment path entail?
-Priority is based on skillset. -Priority I: Extraordinary abilities---H1b visas -Priority II: Exceptional abilities -Priority III & IV: Regular workers that lack advanced degrees -Priority V: A Person has to invest $1 million and create 10 US jobs
What are the proponents and opponents on owning firearms?
-Proponents of firearm restrictions: *Most murders involve firearms *Some think that firearms increase the number of homicides for the simple reason that they make it easier to kill -Opponents of firearm restrictions *If more people had guns, people would think twice before harming someone else
Where do rights arise or change?
-Public officials push for or against the expansion of civil rights. The stance of the official is often responsive to the preferences of their constituents *In the South in the 1960s, strong objection to VRA *More support in the North and West
What does the Immigration and Naturalization Services do? (INS)
-Regulates immigration into the US -Immigrants *Green Cards -Non-immigrants *Work visas *F1 visas
Is capital punishment realistic? What does research say?
-Research tends to support the counter capital punishment arguments. Most research finds that "for crimes that are comparable, the death penalty is between three and four times less likely to be imposed in cases in which the victim is white rather than black." *Capital punishment is much more common in the South, but the South also has the highest murder rate. -Capital punishment is financially questionable *Much more expensive than life in prison without parole *Electrocution cost about $3.2 million, while a life imprisonment sentence only costs about $600,000
What is the definition of a right?
-Rights are contracts that require others to either do something or not do something. -Civil rights are rights that ensure fairness and prevent discrimination for a specific segment of the population; civil rights are given and regulated by the government
Our utilization of Minimax probably won't change. Elected officials with more high risk areas want more, elected officials with less high risk areas do not want less; there are more elected officials in lower risk areas.
-Self-interested officials will block any change *Example: Attempted reform in 2006 blocked in Senate
Alien and Sedition Act of 1798
-Signed by John Adams *Alien Friends Act & Alien Enemies Act **Alien friends Act: gave the president the authority to determine if an alien was "dangerous to the peace and safety of the US," And if so, he could deport the person. **Alien Enemies Act: allowed the president to deport aliens if they came from a country at war with the US.
How has the US addressed illegal immigration?
-Since 2001, addressing illegal immigration has been a greater concern to the US -In 1997, there were 6300 border patrol agents -In 2010, there were 17000 border patrol agents
What does the Hescksher-Ohlin theory state?
-States that are rich (capital-abundant) export capital-intensive products and import labor-intensive products. -Poor states tend to do the opposite.
What are the arguments against repealing the 14th amendment? (keeping it)
-The US receives many more immigrants than most nations; dealing with so many undocumented aliens would be a nightmare -The 14th amendment does not increase illegal immigration -It is politically un-savvy and unlikely
What problems arise regarding protection?
-The USDHS has a finite budget; About 60 Billion There are countless spots to defend *Problem: With the finite resources, how can it accomplish its goals (prevent disaster, mitigate disaster)?
Define audience cost.
-The concept that suggests that when the majority is forced to backtrack on its well-publicized policy to expand minority rights, their supporters may punish them for their broken promise.
What does bureaucracy change and creation entail?
-The creation of and major changes to bureaucracies are rare. They require significant efforts by elected officials. Officials have little incentive to devote such effort. *Voters are often uninformed of bureaucracies *Voter apathy incentivizes officials not to act *Officials pick other battles -Bureaucratic creation change takes a 'fire alarm' approach rather than a 'police-patrol' approach
What does the diversity lottery entail?
-The diversity lottery awards up to 50,000 visas annually -To be eligible, a person must be from a country that sends few immigrants (generally Europe and Africa)
What is the public opinion on capital punishment?
-The majority of the population supports the death penalty *This trend seems to be decreasing: **In 1994, 80% favored **In 2009, 65% favored *Favorability towards capital punishment is highly politicized: **In 1988: 81% of Republicans and 63% of Democrats favored the death penalty **In 2008: 84% of Republicans and 54% of Democrats favored the death penalty
What is the principal agent problem of civil liberties? Who is involved?
-The people are the primary Principals -They demand some civil liberties but also protection -The government is the Agent *They want the people to perceive that they have security and civil liberties The civilians cannot see the day to day operations but evaluate the government on outcomes (was there a terrorist attack, have my daily liberties come into question) -The Government passes laws and hires new agents (The NSA, FBI to carry them out) *The government stipulates security goals *The government stipulates restrictions that they cannot cross -The Agents (NSA, FBI) want to make the government happy *The government does not observe all of the actions (nor do civilians) *The government evaluates the agents on outcomes (how many terrorists did we catch, etc) *The agents want to maximize success without being caught breaking the rules -Main principle agent problem applied to NSA: It's not illegal to obtain information from citizens by the NSA because they aren't analyzing the information.
What are the arguments regarding capital punishment?
-The primary arguments in support of capital punishment are twofold: *Capital punishment increases the cost of crime, and therefore decreases the probability it occurs. *It balances the scales of justice -The primary arguments against capital punishment are: *The sentence of capital punishment can be unfairly and incorrectly given out. *Capital punishment is not an effective deterrent to crime.
What are the two public views towards the government?
-The public wants privacy from the government. -BUT the public wants to government to have information that helps keep them safe. *This occurs with public views of the press as well.
What are the collective action problems?
-The vast majority of people benefit a small amount from immigration; benefits are spread among the majority but costs are concentrated (better able to mobilize) *They have little incentive to fight for it *Their individual participation in the debate means very little, and is costly -A small amount of people is harmed by immigration *They have strong incentive to fight against it *Every individual's participation means a lot -Basically; Collectively, those that favor restricting immigration are better able to mobilize----forcing politicians to hear their demands
Do immigrants assimilate to their new country?
-There is considerable ethnic diversity in the US yet only minor ethnic conflict. -Communities often hold on to key aspects of cultural diversity/uniqueness. -More often than not, such enclaves tend to still have be reasonably assimilated
What are the factors of the economic impacts?
-Those in competition with immigrants. In rich countries like the US, we are most likely to receive high influxes of labor *Empirical studies find strong support for this hypothesis
What is a solution to commitment problems? What is a commitment device?
-To avoid reneging temptation, sufficiently high costs must be imposed on each of the parties to offset their incentive to violate the terms of the agreement *Commitment devices: **A sanction for reneging **Even though an actor may no longer want to commit, reneging is costly, making it less likely -The greater the cost of the commitment device, the less likely reneging will occur.
What is the USA Patriot Act?
-Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 *"removed the major legal barriers that prevented the law enforcement, intelligence, and national defense communities from talking and coordinating their work," and increased punishments for those committing acts of terrorism -Loosened procedures for getting information, especially from suspected terrorists/information from outside of the United States. -Notable clause: National Security Letters *National Security Letters (NSL) are subpoena (created in the 1970s) which enable the FBI to collect consumer information/records of suspected agents. Now enables the FBI to use NSL to scrutinize US residents and visitors not alleged to be spies -NOT subject to judicial review (i.e. warrants) -Ex: phone data, purchasing reports, etc.
How does the fire alarm approach relate to the USDHS? (US Dept. Homeland Security)
-Various small problems existed before 2002; One major problem occurred: 9/11 -9/11 acted as a punctuation *It showed the public that a huge national security problem is prevalent -In order to gain public support: *Homeland Security Office (2001) *Homeland Security Act (2002)
How does the US use the minimax strategy? Will this change?
-We don't utilize the minimax strategy. Instead, federal funds are not allocated strictly on risk management. -75% of defense funds are across states, not accounting for the level of risk in each. -State's with more risk sites have less money to dedicate to each site *Ex: The port of NY/NJ allocated $6.6 million -Houston allocated $35.3 million -Not likely to change.
How do we deter crime from happening?
-We must deter individuals from viewing crime as a 'rational choice.' -Strategies: *Reduce the perceived benefits of crime *Increase the probability of getting caught *Increase the cost of crime
What do successful and unsuccessful bureaucracies have?
-Well working bureaucracies accomplish the goals of the elected officials: *Have adequate funding *Have incentives for accomplishing goals *Goals are 'reasonable' **Ex: EPA and the Clean Air Act pre 2017 -Failing bureaucracies do not accomplish the goals of the elected officials *Have inadequate funding *Do not have incen7ve to accomplish goals *Goals are 'un-reasonable' **Ex: EPA and the Clean Air Act post 2017
What does the Western Hemisphere Initiative accomplsish?
-Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (2004) *All persons entering the US from other Western Hemisphere countries present a valid passport **Even if you are a citizen, you need a passport to get back in
What should the defender do?
-What maximizes the probability that they win (i.e. destroy at least one site) is contingent on what the Attacker does. If the attacker sends all resources to one site the defender should split resources between sites, as they will win 100% of the time. *If the attacker sends all two resources to the same site, the defender will win 50% of time if they split resources (2 for one site; 1 for the other). *If the attacker sends all two resources to the same site, the defender will win 50% of the time if the send all resources to the same site -So, splitting resources is never a disadvantage regardless of what the attacker does. The Defender will split resources
What will the attacker do?
-What maximizes the probability that they win (i.e. destroy at least one site) is contingent on what the defender does. -The attacker knows that the Defender maximizes payoffs by splitting resources between sites. -The only way to win is to send both resources to one site. The attacker wins 50% of the time
What is coordination? Why is it important?
-When an emergency occurs, questions often arise about who is in charge, who is doing what, who knows how to do what, and where are the appropriate tools and supplies. As we know from Hurricane Katrina, federal, state, and city governments did not plan and execute very well. 80 percent or more of the problem lies with planning. -Agencies were not aware of their responsibilities and did not effectively coordinate to minimize damage -There are different preferences and the absence of a clear protocol/set of rules for every given situation. Difficult to have an optimal ending.
How do civil rights relate to cooperation? How do minorities and majorities affect this?
-When the majority promises to respect the rights of any minority, they face a standard commitment problem. The minority will always be left wondering, "why should I believe the majority will respect my rights when abiding by their promise is costly to them?" -Often those demanding rights are part of a minority community. Granting these rights often deters from the rights of the majority *In order to get government officials on board, enough of the majority has to be willing to sacrifice these rights
What did the equal pay act accomplish?
-While the Act decreased the discrepancy in pay between men and women, marked differences are still present. In 2013, the median pay between women and men was 77%, meaning that women earned about .77 cents for each dollar earned by men (AAUW 2014) -Critics often call this finding the "myth of the gender wage gap", citing that the differences are attributable to several CONFOUNDING factors--- education level, training, degree, years working, job choice, marital status
How are institutions and focal points related?
-Without a clear rule or institution determining which movie the two will see, they are likely to end up at different movies -For instance, there is a norm that Olga picks the movies but then has to buy all the popcorn
Define pseudo policy.
An enacted policy that is not strongly enforced/followed.
What defines a legal immigrant?
An immigrant is a person who leaves one country to become a permanent resident another country
Define Human Capital.
An individual's skill set
Crime
Any violation of the law.
The DHS is responsible for preventing major terrorist attacks and minimizing damage when they occur. The department has a finite budget to do do. According to the minimax strategy, how should the DHS allocate resources?
Assign resources to specific sites according to their individual values
What are commitment devices?
Attempts to lock in the parties to their agreement; they try to make it costly to renege on their promise or threat.
Sedition Act
Became illegal to publish "false, scandalous, and malicious writing" against the government. **Most damaging to civil liberties.
What did Becker (1968) argue?
Becker (1968) argued that crime is a function of: -the punishment associated with being arrested and convicted -the probability of being arrested and convicted -the return or benefit from crime, which is also weighed
What does Borjas (2008) find?
Borjas (2008) concludes that immigration is a net wash for the U.S. economy
How is crime seen as a science?
Certain variables affect an individual's probability of crime.
Define Chauvinism.
Chauvinism: The belief that you cannot be a member of a country if you are not fully assimilated into it
What was Becker's argument?
Crime is a function of 3 things: 1. Probability of being caught 2. Benefit from the crime 3. Punishment associated with the arrest
How do the perceived benefits of crime relate to the economy?
Crime is often seen as a way to make money. Individuals that have less opportunity to make money through legal means have greater incentive to resort to crime When the economy is good, more (and better) jobs are available. When the economy increases, crime tends to decrease Remember, crime is more appealing to those who earn less money As we know, education and wage rate tend to be strongly related. Those with better education tend to have jobs that make more money, decreasing their rate of committing crime. Those with more education, even when unemployed, have a higher probability of getting a good job in the future They have less incentive to commit crime in fear of screwing up their chances of unemployment
Which variables affect an individual's probability of crime, what are their values?
Dependent Variable= Crime 1=Criminal; 0=Non-criminal Independent Variables (for an individual) Wealth (-) (aka any value that is a negative) Education (-) Family (-) Independent Variables (for a community) Law enforcement (?) Community with crime (+)
How do we calculate the wage gap?
Dividing the median annual earnings for women by the median annual earnings for a men; or dividing the median annual earnings for a race by the median annual earnings for the majority race.
Why allow immigration?
Economic need & incentives. Ideology and ethics
What is time inconsistency related to rights?
Even if the terms of a deal are beneficial early on, one party may find that as time passes conditions change and they have an incentive to violate their promise.
When does a credible commitment problem occur?
Exists when at least one actor has an incentive to renege.
State the equation for crime as a rational choice.
Expected Utility (Crime) = Probability (Not Caught) * Utility of Not Caught + Probability(Caught) * Utility Caught
What are the main agencies of the DHS?
FBI Coast Guard Border Patrol Local Police
What are the two major data sources that measure crime?
FBI's Uniform Crime Report (UCR) National Crime Victimization Surveys (NCVS)
How much does crime cost us?
Financial Cost: 200 billion a year (1990s) Emotional Cost: Unmeasurable, but assumed high
What is the greatest cost of the border fence between the US and Mexico border?
Financial by far.
Define work force audits.
Government matches social security numbers on a payroll with security numbers with W-2 certificates in attempt to catch illegal immigrants
Why has support for capital punishment decreased?
Growing awareness of errors in conviction
Suspension of Habeas Corpus in 1861
HC: detainees can seek relief from unlawful imprisonment. Signed by Abraham Lincoln. Suspended for some parts of the Union Admittedly unconstitutional (court ruled against it but was still kept)
Define human rights.
Human rights seem closest to natural rights: UN states that everyone has a right to freedom, liberty, etc.
How does Prospect Theory differ from typical expected utility theory?
Incorporates human psychology into expected utility theory; very similar
What does protesting do?
Increases the potential costs of failing to give the group rights (naming and shaming /perceived threats/economic costs)
Define the variables of the utility of being caught. (costs for getting caught)
Individuals who commit a crime experience three types of costs: 1. Punishment by the state—fines, imprisonment 2. Social costs—mom yells at you, partner leaves you 3. Economic opportunity costs—what are you giving up to commit these crimes
How many illegal immigrants are in the US?
It is estimated that there were about 11 million illegal immigrants in the US in 2008
The 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) does what?
Made it illegal to knowingly hire undocumented immigrants.
What do critics say about PRISM?
Many say that it's unconstitutional, as it gives the NSA the ability to collect data from US citizens not suspected of terrorism.
What is the public opinion on the security and civil liberty tradeoff?
Most members of society are willing to give this up, at least to some extent. People tend to highly value civil liberties, but the value attached to this decreases as perceived threat increases.
Does the US Constitution explicitly guarantee privacy?
No
Define the Police Patrol approach.
Problem 1—Government Reform—Problem 2—Government Reform
Define the Fire Alarm approach.
Problem 1—Ignore—Problem 2, and Problem 1 to deal with; ignore— Big problem 3— Solution: Either radical Change or Creation
How do civil rights pose a commitment problem?
Problems of commitment arise when actors fail to achieve their objectives given their inability to make credible promises or threats.
Social factors, like attaining social prestige or social disapproval, and emotional rewards are benefits and costs just like material rewards and punishments. What are these called?
Psychic rewards
What have recent studies found on immigration economics?
Recent empirical studies find little support for the negative impact of immigration for native workers
Define the "Three Strikes Law"
Require judges to give mandatory extended sentences to anyone convicted of 3 serious offenses.
An individual can choose to receive a guaranteed $5 or take a 50% chance of receiving either $0 or $12. Someone who chooses the $5 is:
Risk averse
Japanese Internment Camps 1942
Signed by FDR. Relocated Japanese Americans into Internment camps.
What is the status quo?
The existing state.
Is there a pattern in the probabilities of committing crimes?
The expected probability of committing a crime are different from individual to individual, but TRENDS are identifiable
What "level" does a bureaucracy work at?
The implementation level; it does not define the goals, but it makes sure that the goals are carried out.
Crime can be affected by what three factors?
The known punishment, the probability of being caught, the benefit from the act.
According to the subgame perfect equilibrium, a majority who controls rights will submit rights to the minority when:
The utility that the majority gets from withholding rights from the minority are lower than the costs of denying those rights
Define Opportunity Cost
The value an individual could have received but gave up to pursue another option.
US businesses seek to increase the number of H class visas issued each year, so that:
They may increase the number of low skilled workers allowed to enter the US
How do US Citizens who work in high technology trades feel about granting the H1-B visas?
They strongly dislike it.
What are the 5 types of crimes?
Violent White Collar/Corporate Organized Property Drug
What does a zero-sum game mean?
Whatever one player wins, the other player completely loses.
Define 'broken windows' with respect to the probability of getting caught. What are the solutions?
When individuals perceive the probability of getting caught as high, they are less likely to commit crimes.
When is immigration economically beneficial?
When the influx has skills that are scarce in the host country (in the US for example, labor)
What did Roe V. Wade accomplish?
Women had the right to privacy in determining whether to seek an abortion.
Broken window theory
eliminating signs of disorder signals to communities that the community is under control. If you minimize small crimes, then those who are likely to commit more crimes will be less prone to do so in that area -If you don't, small crimes lead to more serious crimes -Solution--- police patrols in neighborhoods So, go after small offenses before bigger problems occur
