Instructor: Dr. Daniel Skubik, PhD JD MDiv
Voice: 909.343.4288 / Fax: 909.343.4437
Web: http://www.calbaptist.edu/dskubik
E-Mail: dskubik@calbaptist.edu

This Interdisciplinary Studies Division senior seminar, funded in substantial part through the generosity of The Templeton Foundation under the auspices of its Freedom Project, extends the study of basic economic theory introduced in courses such as Macroeconomics, Microeconomics, and Political Economy to cover broader and interdisciplinary concerns in normative economics, political science and philosophy. It will thematically address key questions, such as "is economic freedom congruous with political freedom?"; "is economic liberty compatible with ethical behavior?"; "are economic and political freedoms consonant with development of a [more] just society?"; and "are such freedoms universal?"

Seminar participants will be expected to engage the texts and one another in order to develop their own responses to these guiding queries. Web-based discussion groups, including moderated discussions with business students and leaders from East Asia, will significantly augment in-class activities. In addition, two guest speakers with international business and government experience are to be featured during the semester.

The seminar will meet each Wednesday evening, from 6:30-9:30pm, on the main campus of the University throughout the course of the Spring semester (January - May). The moderated Web-based discussion with East Asian nationals is scheduled to begin during March, under the direction of Dr. Skubik, who will be at the Australian National University for this discussion’s initiation. (Seminar meetings will continue on the CBU campus, and will be supervised by Dr. Scott Key during Dr. Skubik’s web-only presence.) The seminar will conclude with formal presentations by each student (or student team), highlighting the results of their research into selected topics related to the seminar’s readings and discussions.

You are encouraged to contact us during the semester, whether in person or via telephone, email or through the seminar’s website and Internet discussion forum (at http://www.calbaptist.edu/dskubik). Passwords for copyrighted, protected materials on the Web will be distributed during the first class session. Links to all material referenced in lectures will also be posted on the website as they become available.

Required Readings

Norman Barry and Arthur Seldon, Hayek’s serfdom revisited: Essays by economists, philosophers, and political scientists on The Road to Serfdom after 40 years (excerpts collected in coursepack)

Jacques Ellul, Money & Power (excerpts collected in coursepack)

Isaiah Berlin, Four Essays On Liberty

Athol Fitzgibbons, Adam Smith's System of Liberty, Wealth, and Virtue: The moral and political foundations of The Wealth of Nations

Francis Fukuyama, The End of History and the Last Man

Ronald Inglehart, Modernization and Postmodernization: Cultural, economic, and political change in 43 societies (excerpts collected in coursepack)

Odd Langholm, The Legacy of Scholasticism in Economic Thought: Antecedents of choice and power (excerpts collected in coursepack)

Herman Schwartz, States Versus Markets: History, geography, and the development of the international political economy (excerpts collected in coursepack)

Amartya Sen, Development as Freedom (excerpts collected in coursepack)

----------, On Ethics and Economics (excerpts collected in coursepack)

Georg Simmel, The Philosophy of Money (excerpts collected in coursepack)

Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations (excerpts collected in coursepack)

Friedrich A. Von Hayek, The Road to Serfdom (with Introduction by Milton Friedman)

Web pages will be referenced throughout the term, contents of which you also will be responsible.

Assessment & Grading Scale

Four (4) response papers must be completed during the course of the semester. Prepare three (3) of these papers on the basis of your reaction to and analysis of the arguments presented by any three (3) of our primary authors (viz. one paper per author). Prepare the fourth paper as a response to the presentation by one of our guest speakers. Each paper should run 1500-2000 words (standard format and fonts), setting forth the key points made by the selected author/speaker alongside your considered response. Papers are due no later than one week after we have discussed the material/heard the speaker in class.

In consultation with the instructor, students are to select a topic or theme for development into a major paper, the highlights of which will be formally presented to the seminar group at the conclusion of the semester. (See the sample themes at the end of this syllabus.) Topics can range across a wide spectrum of course concerns, but the final product must grapple with at least one empirical module and one theoretical module in developing answers to key questions raised in the paper's investigations. Small groups of two or three students may, with the advice and consent of the instructor, tackle a single, larger project for this assignment; but note that the assignment will be graded as a whole, each student sharing the same grade for a single, end product. The assignment should run 7500-10,000* words (standard format and fonts), as a research paper (including footnote or endnote and bibliographic styles appropriate to your discipline). *[12,000-15,000 words for groups]

At the end of the semester, each student (or team) will formally present their findings to the seminar participants, explaining the empirical and theoretical highlights of their investigations. No particular presentation format is strictly required, but use of computer-assisted or other visual and auditory aids (e.g. overheads, photocopied handouts, computer-generated screen shows and video clips) are strongly encouraged. Equipment needs will be met by the university, but be sure to allow sufficient time to schedule whatever equipment you may need to prepare and present your material.

Although speaking in class, publicly putting and defending a position, can be daunting, you are strongly encouraged to learn to think through your own and others' experiences and insights within the context our discussions. In short, you are encouraged to demonstrate your internalization of our material for application in the real world. In this context, you are not being evaluated for reaching "right" conclusions, but for demonstrating your facility in forming arguments for any conclusions put, given the material we will cover in class.

To give direct incentive to so engage, 15% of your mark for the course will be comprised of our assessment of your classroom participation during the semester. In addition, a separate and additional 15% will be assigned comprising our assessment of your participation in email and Web-based forums, including asynchronous discussion threads and the moderated discussion sessions with our overseas guests. The point is not to create undue angst, but to determine your active engagement with the material in the context of the class.

This syllabus is composed in good faith, with a schedule of readings, assignments and discussions which will guide us throughout the term. Still, the instructors reserve the right to make adjustments to this schedule as deemed necessary for the overall enterprise of the seminar. Any changes will be communicated as far in advance as feasible, and you are responsible for knowing if and when any changes have been made.

There is a Course Organizer slideshow accompanying this syllabus, prepared in Lotus Freelance Graphics format. The slides lay out the basic questions and procedures we will cover, and graphically shows relationships between the various components of the course. Download the Course Organizer from my site and open it in any Freelance Graphics program.

If you do not have Lotus Freelance Graphics installed on your machine, you can use a copy of the Lotus Mobile Slideshow program to view the Course Organizer. You can download a copy of the mobile slideshow as a self-unpacking program here from my site, or direct from the Lotus web site. Once you have downloaded the file from either site, double-click to open the file and it will automatically install itself on your machine. Then, download the Course Organizer file from my site, and open it in the Mobile Slideshow program for viewing.

• What are the economic, social and political consequences (costs and benefits) associated with developed country companies operating production facilities in host developing countries? [E.g. Nike operating in Indonesia and Vietnam, or Royal Dutch Shell operating in Nigeria.] How ought governmental, intergovernmental, and non-governmental agencies respond?

• What are the economic, social and political consequences (costs and benefits) associated with developing country companies marketing politically or economically sensitive products and services in overseas developed countries’ markets? [E.g. Acer (Taiwan) seeking to dominate the North American chip market, or Taiwan's government seeking to develop long-term depositories for nuclear spent-fuel in Australia’s outback.] How ought governmental, intergovernmental, and non-governmental agencies respond?

• What are the economic, social and political consequences (costs and benefits) associated with development of a duty-free foreign or enterprise export zone (contiguous with the municipal airport) in the City of Riverside, California? Does such a zone make overall sense for the City?

• What are the economic, social and political arguments associated with calls for "environmental justice"? (Include discussion of a specific project, whether domestic or international.) Are these calls coherent and justifiable? How ought governmental, intergovernmental, and non-governmental agencies respond?

• Evaluate the economic, social and political consequences associated with recent welfare reform measures in the United States? Do current federal or state policies need to be altered?

• Evaluate the history and justification for linking/de-linking foreign trade and human rights concerns. [E.g. United States’ trade policies towards the People’s Republic of China, the European Union’s policies towards privacy of consumer data in the United States, or the role of non-governmental organizations calling for changes in intergovernmental rules or laws – as in the recent protests in Seattle concerning World Trade Organization conventions.]