Political Sociology test

1. Discuss some of the reasons (at least two) why more women do not run for political office (from federal to local positions). Would you be for or against a gender quota system in our congress, in other words, a policy saying, for example, that at least 30% of our congressional representatives had to be women? Explain you answer. If we had such a quota system, which state theory from chapter five would best explain such as system? Explain your answer

Although in the last century there have been some accomplishment to reduce the gender gap and enhance the political participation of women, gender inequality does still exist. Women is still disenfranchised in the political process from local to national levels, for instance the fact that there is still a gap between men and women to run for political office. There are several reason that can be taken in account to explain this system of inequality, some of them are:
• People learn political behavior in their occupational context, family, church, school, and organizational involvement. Thus women learn from those institutions roles and gender stereotypes in which men are encourage to have an active political behavior meanwhile women are persuade to take care of the house and children. As a result of this socialization process women have not as high self confidence as men to run for political office.
• Social media is a powerful institution of political socialization that promote the dominance of men in policy. There is a dominance of men figure in social media as the more capable to run in political office positions. I firmly believe that gender quota systems in the congress would be a good way to minimize the gender gap in this institution. Some European countries have been set up the quota system in order to make a balance between the proportion of women and men who can be elected to legislative office. For example, major political parties in Germany have voluntarily adopted gender quotas that have helped increase the number of women in the congress. meanwhile in United State women hold just 18.3%, of seats in the Congress. If the quota system is successful, and it helps to reduce gender politic gap in others developed countries I agree with it implementation in United State or any other country. The quota system would be explain for the State Centered Structuralism theory . The nature of the State in this theory is "organization and unit in a system of increasingly complex bureaucracy ." The fact of have an specify quota of women assigned to run for political office would increase the bureaucracy thus would fit in the nature of the State of the State Centered Structuralism theory.

2. Summarize Alexander’s argument in her book “The New Jim Crow.” In other words, what are the racialized policies that comprise the “New Jim Crow”? Do you agree with the argument; why or why not? How might a “capitalist state structuralist” disagree with a “state-centered structuralist” over the policies presented in this book (refer to lecture and discussion of chapter five)?

 Alexander argues that many years ago the racial caste system had different characteristic and forms that included the slavery and Jim Crow . Those appeared to die but they did not in contrast they reborn in a new form tailored to currently time and its traits. proponents of racial hierarchy created a new caste system. This new system has been achieve for the racism of lower class whites. The new pattern of racial caste system is the mass incarceration that dating back to slavery. This new racial caste system do not violate the law or the new limit of acceptable because it demand "law and order" rather than "segregation forever." The public debate shifted focus from segregation to crime. Positions taken on crime policies typically cohered along lines of racial ideology. The mass incarceration as the new caste system that affect communities of color (blacks but also immigrants and Latinos) is now explain in race neutral terms. Although the focus in the book is the experience of African American men in the new caste system it also the experience of Latinos and immigrants in the criminal justice system. I am agree with Alexander argument. I think the racial hierarchy system that at the beginning was open racist and segregate has been changing to a functional structuralism idea of "law and order." Latinos and black do still suffer disadvantage in the criminal justice system. However, the civil right movement and the currently time force to change the speech of segregation for another of order based in the implications of mass incarceration. the evidence of a new racial caste system is that more than half of the young black men in many large American cities are currently under the control of the criminal justice system. The capitalist State Structuralism CSS states that the nature of the State is organize in class dominance according to class position and economic structure; focus in secure the condition of capital accumulation. By the other hand the State Centered Structuralism SCS theory has organization and unit in a system of increasing complex bureaucracy. Therefore the CSS follow the capitalist idea of order and progress giving support to the new racial hierarchy system of "law and order" in order to maintain the class position and economic structure. In opposition the SCS looks for a bureaucratic system in which the order is not based in a classes structure.

 3. Does capitalism need political and economic crises in order to survive (and even thrive— at least for the wealthy)? This is Naomi Klein’s assertion in the “shock doctrine.” Is she right; why or why not (use examples from the reading in your answer)? Which state theory from chapter five would best align with her argument? Explain your answer.

Klein's argue in the Shock doctrine that capitalism is a violent system that requires a sort of crisis to do its job. She proposes that a great rupture such as flood, war o terrorist attack can generate big changes in the world. Free market is the one that lead the process because it has the power to remark the world. She explains the economic history of the last years and the rise of free-market fundamentalism around the world. According to her proposal free market ideology lead the processes during crisis and disasters. Therefore, her assertion that political crisis are necessaries to keep alive the capitalism system is right because all the "accidents" or "crisis" in the last years happened as part of the normal process of capitalism. there are no accidents as seen by Klein due to the disaster capitalism complex is part of the emergency market and emergency technology explosion. She provide some examples like the Augusto Pinochet's coup in 11, 1973 in Chile. When thousands of people were tortured and killed and the Friedman theory was applied in order to provide a "therapy" for the resistance of the free market called "shock treatment" Moreover, September 11, 2011 was the beginning of declared war against which allow Bush's government to launch a war aimed at producing a free-market Iraq. Also she made reference about the tsunami in 2004 enabled the government of Sri Lanka to force the fishermen off beachfront property so it could be sold to hotel developers. Those examples are sore of crises that have been necessary in order to maintain the free market and capitalism system. The Instrumentalism Business Dominance would be the best align with her argument. According to this theory the Elite pressures for cohesion, domination or cooptation of the masses. Klein's propose that in a rupture or crisis the free market is the one that lead the process in order to keep save the elite interest like the example of Chile in 1973 when it was a domination of the state by corporate interest (free market) in service of the elite.