EVR 3020

Session 7 Economic Ethics: The Battle for the World Economy Part Three

Reading Assignment:  Etienne-Gabriel Morelly (1755) "Code of Nature," Frederic Engels (1880) "Utopian Socialism," "Dialectics" and "Historical Materialism" Karl Marx & Frederick Engels (1848) "The Communist Manifesto" p. 1-21. de Soto, Hernando (2000) The Mystery of Capitalism (first two chapters).

Video Assignment: The Commanding Heights Episode Three ;Part Three: Heaven on Earth: The Rise and Fall of Socialism. Hernando de Soto - Interview; Hernando de Soto - Saving the World's Poor; Hernando deo Soto - People Have the Right to Buy and Sell; Hernando de Soto - The Economic Roots of the Arab Spring;

Homework Assignment:

1. Differentiate between utopian socialism as described by Engles and communism as described by Marx and relate both concepts to Morelly's "Code of Nature."
2. Explain the "Mystery of Capitalism" as described by Hernando De Soto.
3. Speculate, based upon the final portion of the Commanding Heights film series how the events of the late nineties and early 21st century may relate to current economic conditions and the policy climate around which environmental policy initiatives might be considered and enacted. In other words, how do you think historic and current economic conditions contribute to the pursuit of environmental agendas in public policy.