POLS 207 1nd Edition Lecture 2 Outline of Last Lecture I Professor Tucker s Contact Info II Supplemental Instruction III Political Beliefs VS Political Facts Outline of Current Lecture I Political actors commentators and scientists II Skill Development Goals of POLS 207 III Statements that seem to contradict each other can all be true or correct IV Most important ideas in the course V Change of the Texas demographic VI Definition of Politics VII Tucker on Politics Current Lecture I II What are their goals and how do they use political facts a Political Actors i Acquire and retain political power ii Telling the whole truth or all the facts may not help political actors achieve their goal b Commentators i They are in the entertainment industry ii Political commentators are trying to promote themselves so telling the whole truth may not help c Political Scientists i Try to put things into perspective ii They tell the facts the whole truth which can make you sadder Skill Development Goals of POLS 207 a You are not memorizing facts you are developing skills b To understand what others are saying or writing even when it is boring c Distinguish between beliefs and facts i Facts are more reliable ii However facts may not change someone s beliefs d Assess what others are saying i Information completeness and context ii Use and misuse of information These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor s lecture GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes not as a substitute III IV V VI VII 1 Taking information out of context iii Conclusions e Dr Tucker won t contradict the book just update it f You can predict the wording of the questions on the exams i Look at the book ii Section headings tell you the topics Statements that seem to contradict each other can all be true or correct a Sum of percent employed and percent unemployed must be 100 yet employment can increase while unemployment increases i Unemployment is percent of those seeking employment while not having a job b The Texas state budget can be balanced and have a 4 3billion deficit at the same time i The budget is JUST the plan Most important ideas in the course a Winning vs losing b Individuals vs groups i What the group wants is not the same as what all the individuals want c Today vs tomorrow i Change over time d Motivated vs scientific use of information i Out of context incorrect data v contextual correct data Change of Texas demographic a Texas today 50 Anglo b Texas population when you are your parent s age more than 50 Hispanic c By 2040 Hispanics will be a much larger percentage than Anglos Definitions of Politics a Politics is concerned with the authoritative allocation of values Easton i Shows that it is more than the authoritative allocation of values ii Other people get to decide the values iii This definition came first very well received b Political endeavor seeks to bring about a maximum degree of change in the opposing group with a minimum of change in one s own group Deutsch Tucker on Politics A VALUE DEFINITION a It is better to win big than to win small b It is better to win small than to lose small c It is better to lose small than to lose big