SOC 320 Week 1 Journal Recent

Reflections on Federal Environmental Policy. For your journal entry, you will explore aspects of your personal experience and/or beliefs regarding significant public policies and what you have learned in your readings. As you reflect, please address the following questions:
What are the current major environmental issues?
What policies are currently in place to address these issues?

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What policy would you like to see enacted to address a major environmental issue?
What, if anything, has changed or is changing, and how does it affect you personally?
What were your thoughts prior to reading this week’s reading assignment?
How has your perspective been either reinforced or changed now that you are more informed?

Lobbying. When we refer to lobbying in United States politics, we are referring to the practice of organizations and corporations with special interests hiring well-connected professional advocates to influence legislation and policy making, usually directly with decision-making bodies such as the United States Congress.

For this discussion, read this article When Lobbyists Literally Write the Bill and review the Center for Responsive Politics list of top spenders on lobbying in 2015. Next, address the following:
Explain in greater detail what lobbying is and how it impacts the policy process from problem identification to agenda setting to policy implementation.

Critics argue that lobbyists have undue influence on the political process in the United States. Explain their reasoning behind this concern.
Do you think lobbying is a fair process and should be a part of the American political process?

Select one of the organizations or corporations from the Center for Responsive Politics list of top spenders on lobbying in 2015. Why would this organization/corporation employ a lobbyist? What is the benefit to the organization/corporation? Do you think this process is controversial? Why or why not?