Study Guide for SOC248 Exam 2

Chapter 5: Crime

Whats the connection between crime and poverty? People that are in poverty are more

likely to commit crimes than people who arent poor

Mertons strain theory- crime is a result of social limitations and inequalities. Intel. Drug

trade such as Opium

How are drugs related to power and violence? Drugs have been bound up with power and

violence since the early 1800s; British east India equals first drug lords.
Opium War of 1838-1842 Addictive drugs is profitable, good way to maintain a war

effort effective social control.

Where and why do US tobacco companies aggressively market their products today?
How did cocaine transform entire regions of Central and South America? The rise of
cocaine trade transformed entire regions of central and South America. It caused war of

drugs.
US holds ___% of the worlds prison population - 25%
Biggest factor in US incarceration rates- Drug Sentencing
Deterrence and effectiveness regarding drugs (Middle East & Asia; Mexico; Europe; US)

middle east and Asia have strict laws and social controls over the drugs.
Political conservative vs. political progressive approaches to reducing crime rates

Political conservatives: need to restore order through effective policing

o Strict law enforcement, uniforms, weapons
o But how do we eliminate police corruption, especially in the drug trade?
Political progressives: need opportunity through educational improvement and full
employment
o How can mainstream, law-abiding values be lived out in neighborhoods
abandoned by legitimate businesses, institutions, and alternatives to criminal
activity?
o What is Reimans main claim? The criminal population in our nations hail is
distorted by the criminal justice system that excludes the wealthy.

o When does the weeding out process begin? The very definition of crime begins
the process.
o How does TV distort our sense of crime? The TV over represents violent crimes.
We get a false sense of most crimes
o Who actually commits more crimes? Black men are 5 times more likely to serve
jail time.
o How are decisions about arrest made? The decisions about whom to arrest are not
mad simply on the basis of offenses committed. It relies on stats about who gets
arrested and convicted not who commits the crime.
o What factors determine who is convicted? The only thing that should count in
court is whether the suspect is guilty and this can be proved beyond reasonable
doubt. Other factors irreverent to guilt change the outcome. Ability to be free on
bail prior to trail or access to legal counsel.

Chapter 6: War
o How did rapid industrialization change the face of war? The idea of industrialization,
they realized that weapons technology could destroy the world changed the nature of war
again.
o When did total war reach its peak? When it reached total war was WW2 the bombing
in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
o What are the continuing legacies of the Cold War? Hugely expensive arms race and world
full of weapons.
o Who is the top arms supplier? The U.S.
o Who spends most on military expenditures? The U.S.

o What will bring about peace and stability? Increase militarization and spread democracy.
And preemptive strike- war prevention or war expansion
o Whats the relationship between military expenditures and human development? A
fraction of the worlds military spendings would be enough to meet Sachs to eliminate
poverty.
o How is sexual violence a weapon of war? It is constantly used as a weapon for
humiliation, fear holds communities hostage, pregnancy/STDS that means social outcast.
o Role of refugee camps and peacekeepers in human trafficking- they move around and
search for work. They make operations to stop human trafficking but it is problematic.
o How is sexual violence addressed in peace agreements? Sexual violence is the least
condemned war crime addressed in 16/300 countries.
o Why do children become child soldiers? They are forced to join because of poverty,
abandonment, and homelessness. Some are even abducted and forced into the army. But
some join to get protection and provision,
o What are the challenges of reintegrating child soldiers back into society? It is a challenge
because paid military service, which means it has to be rebuilt. Also lack of access to
education in conflicted areas.
o Which country is responsible for the rapid increase in refugees in the last several years?
The developing countries host over 80% of refuges. Half are children. Life in refugee
camps and problems for neighboring countries.
o Where are most refugees hosted? Why does this matter? Refugees destabilize
neighboring countries spread disease, put pressure on resources like clean water and
food, cause political instability due to terrorist planning activity in refugee camps. Near
neighboring countries spread diseases.
o What are the consequences of refugees for other countries that surround a violent
conflict? They are caught in the warfare because they are constantly moving around, and
also the spread of diseases. They destabilize neighboring countries.

o What is Colliers main claim? Civil war occurs where rebel organizations sustain
themselves financially.
o What are the risk factors for civil war, according to Collier? The economic declines
primary commodity exports. Others such as geography, history, and ethnic dominance.
o What are his solutions? What are some of the problems with those solutions? Protect
minority rights constitution, international aid to increase economic growth, diversity
economy, and government transparency, share wealth with rebels.

Chapter 7: Democracy
o Difference between nation, state, and nation-state Nation: group of people who share
common culture customs, language, religion, ethnic identity
State: a sovereign entity with recognized borders, centralized power, and the ability to
exercise force. A territory with a central government. Sovereignty means that the state is
not dependent on or subject to any other power. Sovereignty means self-determination the right to determine what happens in your country.
Nation-state: This is when the above 2 overlap. A territory that also represents a
homogenous group of people, or a common land and common culture
Nationalism: intense belief in the rightness and worthiness of ones group
o Growth of nationalism (ancient empires Europeans during imperialism break up of
Soviet Union) In ancient times (2300BC 1500AD), kings were in an almost constant
state of war and established empires through conquering other kingdoms. As a result, the
empires that they created werent nation-states at all. They were conglomerations of
groups that they had conquered, full of different ethnicities, languages, and cultures.
There was no real sense of belonging to a particular state or country and no real reason to.
States hadnt really even been formed yet.

But in the next 500 years or so, rulers in England, France, and Spain found that the best
way to consolidate power was to create national identities within their territories. They
united their people in common languages and ethnicity. Whereas rulers in the past had
ruled over many different nationalities and languages, these leaders were the first to
create nation-states. In this way, nationalism is a social construction thats used to unite
people in a common bond.
Over time, we very slowly see an increase in the importance of nationalism that has
increasingly led to the desire for separate states. In the 1990s we saw the dismantling of
big multiethnic states into smaller versions of nation-states. The Soviet Union and
Yugoslavia broke up into smaller nation-states.
Ugliness of nationalism- it has been a favorite tool of dictators to win elections and
rally the masses, and ultimately justifies violence.
o How quickly has democracy spread across the world? The rise of democracy from the
1970s to today has been tremendous, from 30 countries to 117
o Why is democracy difficult to achieve with population growth and the increasing division
of labor? This is clearly difficult to achieve as populations grow because not every voice
can be heard. Its infeasible for a country of millions of people to engage in participatory
democracy.
o What is the instrumental and constructive importance of democracy, according to
Amartya Sen? Political Freedom and economic needs,
o Examples of relatively recent demands for democracy
1) Four practical problems of democracy- what should be done when an undemocratic group is
poised to win an election? (Ex. Hitler)
2) How many political parties effectively represent the population without crippling decisionmaking?
3) How do you create effective government without autocracy?
4) Effectiveness of political freedom depends on how its used
o War Powers Resolution of 1973- intended to check power of president
-President has 48 hours to ratify congress
- Clinton (bombing in Kosovo 1999) and Obama intervention.

o Trends in voting in the US- Only old people vote; young people tend not to vote.
o According to Amartya Sen, which is more important, eliminating poverty or political
rights? Political rights because political rights should already allow people to demand
attention to economic needs.
o Lee Thesis and counter-argument- Poor countries need a strong hand the developing
countries cant afford the luxury of democracy. Need a strong leader, no bias, and one
person to make decision to make things great. Counter argument- most of the evidence
shows democracy increases economic growth, health, and education. But that relationship
isnt guaranteed- Ex. Kerala and Costa Rica- democratic and healthy places, but no
economic progress. Ex. Libya nondemocratic but Gaddafi invested in health/educ.
Chapter 8: Race/Ethnicity
o Difference between race and ethnicity- Ethnicity is based on presumed common ancestry
Race is based on physical characteristics, beliefs that link physical appearance to
intellectual, behavioral, and moral qualities.
o How is race a category of privilege, not color? Example is Brazil very high strict
hierarchy in skin tone because of intermixing and marrying. (Pardo VS. Mulatto) used as
skin identifier but Pardo is wealthy and Mulatto is poor. Ex. History of Italians in U.S.
faced racism, lynched, and considered the lowest of the low.
o How many were killed in the Rwandan genocide? With what kind of weapons? 800,000
people died in 100 days. They used large machetes.
o Original source of distinction between Hutus and Tutsis Hutus tended to be the farmers
and the Tutsis were the herdsmen, which means they had the cattle. Cattles made them
wealthier. More money so favored by military and police officials they got elite.
Socioeconomics was the reason.

The Belgians brought race science, physical measurements on what race you fit into.
Also agreed that the Tutsis were more white. Belgians dismantled the local
governments, put Tutsis in charge and issued ethnic identity cards.

Revolution of 1959 Hutu activist beaten by Tutsi activists > violence spread Belgian
colonel allied with Hutus in name of democracy and held elections More pessimistic
version of history Tutsis wanted independence and Belgians thought Hutus would be
easier to control Hutus come to power replacement of one racial dictatorship with
another, masquerading as democracy Genocide 1990:Rwandan Patriotic Front (Tutsi
army from refugee camps) invaded Rwanda 1994: Assassination of President (who
did it) Coordination of government, military, civilians, and even the church The other
parts of the story... Many accounts blame the conflicts on age-old racial/ethnic hatred.
Was it? Belgians transformed the economy > coffee exports 1989: coffee prices
collapsed > famine 1990:IMF structural adjustment > collapse of education and
health systems Economic collapse + military attacks > French-supported buildup of
Hutu armed forces US refused to acknowledge "genocide" Why? Failure of UN
peacekeeping operations-didn't know any background info at the time, goes in blindly