Deck 4: Masses in the United States

Question 1

Increased trade with less developed economies that have large numbers of low-wage workers has the effect of

A) pressuring Americans to keep wages lower.
B) creating global competition for American workers.
C) encouraging companies to move production offshore.
D) All of the above are true.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

In the United States, the top one-fifth (or 20 percent) of income recipients earns

A) about the same as its percentage of the population.
B) about a quarter (~25 percent) of all income.
C) about half (~50 percent) of all income.
D) about two-thirds (~67 percent) of all income.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

The _________ of society are the most willing to apply democratic values in specific situations.

A) masses
B) elites
C) lower classes
D) extremists

Answer 3

B

Question 4

The single best predictor of sustained political activity is

A) education.
B) marital status.
C) age.
D) union-membership.

Question 5

"Wage stagnation" refers to

A) family incomes falling since the 1980s.
B) hourly and weekly earnings of U. S. workers.
C) the elites get richer, so do most people.
D) the rise of the costs of goods and services.

Question 6

Mass confidence in Congress

A) is the lowest of any institution.
B) is higher than Presidential approval.
C) is at an all-time high.
D) is rising since 9/11.

Question 7

According to the Gallup poll, ____________ is considered the greatest threat to American democracy by the masses.

A) economic crises
B) Big Government
C) big business
D) labor unions

Question 8

Trust in government is needed to maintain critical resources of democratic government. When there is, however, a decline in trust, there may be no

A) mass compliance with laws.
B) financial support of government through taxes.
C) willingness of people to enter government service.
D) All of the above are true.

Question 9

Which theory has been suggested to explain the rise in income inequality in the United States?

A) The decline of the manufacturing sector
B) A rise in the number of two wage families
C) Unskilled labor overseas
D) All of the above are true.

Question 10

In 2010, the top 1.2% of wealth-holders in the United States owned about _____________ of all net worth.

A) 20 percent
B) 40 percent
C) 50 percent
D) 75 percent

Question 11

Poll responders regularly exhibit ______________, resulting in inconsistency in poll results.

A) responding positively to positive phrases
B) responding negatively to negative phrases
C) giving socially approved responses to questions
D) all of the above

Question 12

Based on public opinion polls, the masses believe that government should have the most responsibility over which area?

A) protecting against foreign threats
B) protecting consumers from unsafe products
C) providing a minimum standard of living
D) providing Americans with adequate healthcare

Question 13

Despite overall economic growth, wages have remained stagnant despite being at _______ in 2014.

A) $7.50
B) $9.13
C) $8.40
D) $8.76

Question 14

Deunionization refers to the fact that the percentage of workers in the American workforce who are members of a union has dropped; at their peak some fifty years ago unions counted for nearly 35% of the workforce, today only about _________ are unionized.

A) 31 percent
B) 23 percent
C) 12 percent
D) 7 percent

Question 15

Americans most strongly support ________________.

A) the President
B) the Supreme Court
C) military
D) Congress

Question 16

________________ is a very important factor in developing tolerance and respect for civil liberties.

A) Education
B) Occupation
C) Social class
D) Ideology

Question 17

Public activity promotes tolerance by

A) exposing people to a wide variety of attitudes, opinions, and lifestyles.
B) broadening perspectives.
C) generating empathy for others.
D) All of the above are true.

Question 18

When civil rights issues come up for a popular vote (in states with initiative and referendum), the result is that

A) civil rights are overwhelmingly supported by the voters.
B) surprising levels of tolerance are demonstrated.
C) people regularly support elite attitudes of tolerance.
D) the anti-civil rights side regularly wins.

Question 19

Mass support for fundamental democratic values, such as freedom of speech, is best characterized as

A) superficial.
B) deeply ingrained.
C) misunderstood.
D) growing over time.

Question 20

Looking at the richest people in America, excluding those who inherited their wealth from Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton, they became wealthy due to

A) buying and selling international currencies. .
B) companies they created or run.
C) investments in future markets.
D) overseas trading .

Question 21

What U.S. President suspended the writ of habeas corpus (the requirement that authorities bring defendants before a judge and show cause for their detention) during wartime?

A) Abraham Lincoln
B) Franklin Roosevelt
C) George W. Bush
D) John Adams

Question 22

Family income in the U.S. has risen due to an increase in ____________.

Question 23

Although outsourcing by U.S. corporations can be found all over the world, it is primarily found in ______________________.

A) Asia
C) Europe
C) South America
D) Africa

Question 24

__________________ is the total value of a person's assets, such as stocks, bonds, houses, etc, less debt.

Question 25

The survival of democracy depends on ________________________.

A) political non-participation among the masses.
B) commitment to democratic ideas.
C) political apathy.
D) all of the above

Question 26

The average wage of a non-union worker is ____________ while a union worker earns __________per week.

Question 27

Which groups exhibits the lowest level of political participation?

A) minority groups
B) less educated
C) women
D) all of the above

Question 28

In response to the 2001 terrorist attacks, the elite in the United States responded by enacting the PATRIOT act which __________________.

A) restricted freedom in the name of protecting democracy.
B) promoted freedom in order to irritate Osama bin Laden.
C) ejected terrorist sympathizers from the elite.
D) tried to reverse a loss of mass confidence in government.

Question 29

One important difference between the Tea Party and the Occupy Wall Street movement is that

A) the Tea Party can accept donations.
B) the Tea Party can propose and endorse policy.
C) the Tea Party won seats in the U. S. house of Representatives in 2010.
D) the Occupy Wall Street movement is recognized as an interest group.

Question 30

Typically, only 20-35 percent of eligible voters turn out in these elections.

A) Mid-term elections
B) Primary elections
C) City or county elections, when held separately
D) All of the above

Question 31

Based on the book, the greatest threat to democracy in the United States is violence by _________________.

A) left-wing extremists.
B) right-wing extremists.
C) Al-Qaeda terrorists.
D) single-issue interest groups.

Question 32

Mass unrest can be inspired by

A) increased wage stagnation.
B) bad economic times.
C) electoral turnover.
D) all of the above.

Question 33

The Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street members include which group?

A) Primarily male
B) Younger people
C) Highly educated
D) All of the above

Question 34

The Tea Party is a product of ______________________.

A) a right wing segment of the Republican Party.
B) the GOP leadership
C) the elite Bildeberg group
D) an on-air rant on CNBC by Rick Santelli

Question 35

The Supreme Court response to elite repression in cases such as the internment of Japanese-Americans in World War II or the prosecution of communists advocating the overthrow of the American government in the 1950s was to

A) declare such acts unconstitutional.
B) uphold these acts as constitutional.
C) explain that the Constitution is not applicable in such cases.
D) declined to hear the relevant cases.

Question 36

In 2007, masses were willing to vote for a minority for president unless that person was ________________.

A) Black
C) Homosexual
C) Woman
D) Atheist

Question 37

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, hourly earnings suggest that education

A) has no effect on pay once workers have obtained a bachelor's degree.
B) increases with each degree received by workers.
C) has not brought about a major increase in wages.
D) does not create a divide between workers due to globalization.

Question 38

Since the 1970s, income inequality has ______________in America.

Question 39

The decline in the earnings of American workers coincides with the increase of __________________.

Question 40

The Occupy Wall Street movement ___________.

A) was started by a Canadian anti-capitalist magazine.
B) was created to overthrow the government.
C) is a leftist extremist faction of the Democratic party.
D) is an elitist group of wealthy people.

Question 41

The continued increase in global trade has led to a(n) ____________ in aggregate income in the United States.

Question 42

Voter turnout only exceeds 50 percent in __________________ elections.

Question 43

Since the 1960s, there has been a __________________ in mass trust of the government.

Question 44

________________ was passed after September 11, 2001, to prevent future terrorist attacks but violated most Americans' civil liberties.

Question 45

More than ___________ of Americans do not know that the first 10 Amendments to the Constitution of the United States are the Bill of Rights.

Question 46

__________________ are theories about power, and their existence marks places in the political system where segments of the population feel powerless.

Question 47

Wage stagnation occurred simultaneously with the growth of international trade.

Question 48

To be truly rich in America, one must be worth __________________.

Question 49

Income inequality is a result of the failure to raise minimum wage.

Question 50

_________________ affects tolerance by influencing an individual's ability to apply an abstract principle to a concrete situation.

Question 51

The institution with the strongest support among the masses is the __________________.

Question 52

Mass polling done by different organizations, such as Gallup, are _____________ due to the wording of questions and a lack of political knowledge.

Question 53

In the United States, income inequality and the gap between economic classes is decreasing due to global trade.

Question 54

Americans with the most ____________ have the highest political participation among all social groups.

Question 55

The U.S. economy performs generally poorly, which creates a great inequality in the distribution of economic assets.

Question 56

Based on public opinion polls, _______% of Americans disapproved of the expansion of government power to deal with the economic crisis of 2008-2009.

Question 57

Which political scientist stated, "Extremist and intolerant movements in modern society are more likely to be based on the lower classes than the middle and upper classes?"

Question 58

Controlling for inflation, wages have remained stagnant since the 1970s.

Question 59

The Tea Party and the occupy Wall Street movement have almost __________ political views.

Question 60

As globalization makes the value of and the pay for unskilled labor decline, this results in __________________ in the gap in earnings differentials and income inequality.

Question 61

According to public opinion polls, a majority of Americans believe the government is to provide a minimum standard of living.

Question 62

The masses in the United States clearly have antidemocratic attitudes; however, Elites tend to show more tolerance and acceptance. Why is there a difference regarding tolerance between classes?

Question 63

Public opinion surveys show that more than half of Americans do not know each state has two Senators and cannot name their Representative in the House.

Question 64

The reporting by media elites contributes to the negative popular attitudes towards government.

Question 65

Only 10% of all American make financial contributions to a candidate or political party.

Question 66

Masses want the government to continue its large and significant role in many different areas of life.

Question 67

A major problem with pluralist theory is the notion that the masses control public policy through elections. Explain how and why examining turnout and political knowledge.

Question 68

Left counter elites consist of wealthier, educated young people who are disillusioned with the system.

Question 69

The majority of Americans support civil liberties, such as mass demonstrations for an unpopular cause that Americans oppose.

Question 70

Discuss the basis of political distrust in relation to the emergence of the Tea Party? Why has this enabled the Tea Party to elect Representatives in the House and Senators? Will the Tea Party be a lasting presence in American politics?

Question 71

Mass support for civil liberties is consistent, even in times of national crisis.

Question 72

How might economic crisis make anti-democratic mass activism more likely? Why?

Question 73

The most consistent support for democratic values in American society comes from the lower classes.

Question 74

The protection of First Amendment rights rests principally upon the very groups the Amendment was designed to control.

Question 75

Americans are more patriotic than the citizens of other most countries.

Question 76

The masses in the United States have antidemocratic attitudes but also avoid political activity making our democracy secure.

Question 77

Living in a female head of household is the strongest predictor of poverty in the United States.

Question 78

The top richest people in America all inherited their wealth.

Question 79

Membership has shrunk in the major industrial unions.

Question 80

There is little doubt that there is income inequality in the United States. Explain why there is such a large income gap and why it is continuing to grow.