CHAPTER seventeen
Social Policy

Exercises

Differences in environmental quality

1. Go to the Environmental Protection Agency's web site.
2. Click on "Where you live" on the left-hand side of the page.
3. Click on "Envirofacts."
4. Choose a topic (e.g., air, radiation, waste, water).
5. Type in three or four different states and cities. (Use a combination of rural areas, urban areas, states on the coast, states inland, and the like. You might want to compare your hometown to your college town if they are different.)
   • What differences do you see regarding the environmental quality in the various places you chose?
   • Why do you think these differences exist?
     
Public opinion on health care
1. Access the Kaiser Family Foundation's web site.
2. Under the "Special Features" heading on the left-hand side of the page, click on "Kaiser Polls."
3. Choose a poll to analyze.
4. Click on "Toplines."
5. Answer the following questions:
   • What kinds of questions are asked on the poll? On what issues is the public polled?
   • Are there any poll results that strike you? Any that are counter to what you might have expected?
   • What differences in opinions do you see based on age? What might account for these differences? Are there any issues on which the opinions of younger respondents are similar to those of older respondents? Why do you think similarities exist on these issues?
     

Calculating your Social Security

1. Go to the Social Security Administration's web site.
2. Under the "Retirement" heading, click on "Calculate Your Benefits."
3. Click on "Quick Calculator."
4. Play around with a variety of different wages and retirement ages. What differences do you see in monthly benefits based on income and age? You might want to calculate the benefits for your grandparents or parents.