“When evening has come, I return to my house and go into my study. At the door I take off my clothes of the day, covered with mud and mire, and I put on my regal and courtly garments; and decently reclothed, I enter the ancient courts of ancient men, where, received by them lovingly, I feed on the food that alone is mine and that I was born for.

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PADM 5388 Ethics in Government R M Bittick, MPA, PhD

Sam Houston State University Spring 2018

Paper #1 Instructions: Dialogue – Decision Makers

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“When evening has come, I return to my house and go into my study. At the door I take off my clothes of the day, covered with mud and mire, and I put on my regal and courtly garments; and decently reclothed, I enter the ancient courts of ancient men, where, received by them lovingly, I feed on the food that alone is mine and that I was born for. There I am not ashamed to speak with them and to ask them the reason for their actions; and they in their humanity reply to me. And for the space of four hours I feel no boredom, I forget every pain, I do not fear poverty, death does not frighten me. I deliver myself entirely to them.”

· Niccolo Machiavelli to Francesco Vettori, Translated by Harvey C. Mansfield, in The Prince, 2nd ed. (Chicago, 1998).

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Due Date: Upload Word document in Blackboard by 9:00 pm Wednesday, 27 February 2018.

Points: 100 points possible.

Topic: “Who should be the decision-maker(s) regarding your issue?”

Assignment: To complete this assignment, you must finish reading the assigned texts for Plato (The Republic and The Laws), and John Locke (Second Treatise of Government and A Letter Concerning Toleration).

· Setting and Audience: Pretend you are in a meeting with Plato and John Locke, who are consultants in your organization. The purpose of this meeting is to determine who the proper decision makers should be regarding the issue you have chosen (see Memo #1). You are to provide a short transcript of the discussion, with a recommendation that you would provide to your supervisor.

· Task: Write a short dialogue between Plato and Locke discussing who should be the decision makers regarding the subject issue. Then, synthesize these ideas and provide a recommendation for your supervisor.

· Goal: Your goal is to determine which aspects of the issue are specialized concerns requiring expert decision makers, and which aspects of your issue are community concerns requiring majority or representative decision making by the community. In doing this, you must determine where this issue falls on the Expertise-Community spectrum, that is, whether this is primarily a specialized decision-making issue or primarily a community decision-making issue.

NOTE: we know Plato and Locke did not agree on the form of government that should govern a polity. HOWEVER, focus your dialogue on the issue, not the form of government.

Format: – Length: about 7-10+ pages in addition to the Works Cited section.

· Font: Times New Roman or similar font, 12 pt.

· Citations: APA style using the parenthetical method of documentation. Cite the texts by section number or page number within the dialogue.

· Format: Title page; Numbered pages; Double spaced; 1” margins; PROVIDE NUMBERED HEADINGS FOR EACH SECTION OF THE PAPER AS INDICATED IN THE OUTLINE, BELOW!

Paper Outline: (use numbered headings and subheadings, as indicated)

I. Introduction: about a 1 page.

· Describe the purpose of this meeting, including the attendees (yourself, Plato, and John Locke), and briefly describe the issue being addressed.

II. Dialogue: about 5-7+ pages.

· Begin your dialogue with Plato as he explains to you and Locke why specialists should be the decision maker (based on Platonic criteria we have covered in class). Have Locke respond by both critiquing Plato and explaining to you and Plato why the community must be involved as decision makers (based on Lockean criteria we have covered in class). Continue the dialogue by having each philosopher respond to the arguments raised by the other.

· Identify who is speaking in capitals (e.g. “PLATO:” and LOCKE:) in the dialogue.

· Provide citations using the APA parenthetical method within the dialogue to the assigned texts.

III. Recommendation: about 1-2 pages.

· Synthesize Plato and Locke’s ideas in the meeting. Indicate who should be the decision makers regarding this issue by determining where this issue falls on the Expertise-Community spectrum (see lecture slides). Indicate which aspects of the issue are specialized concerns requiring expert decision makers, and which aspects of your issue are community concerns requiring majority or representative decision making in the community. Is this issue primarily a specialized decision-making situation or primarily a community decision-making situation?

IV. Works Cited.

Grading Criteria: My focus in grading your papers is as follows:

· Format and dialogue (10%). This concerns the degree to which you followed the format instructions and write a dialogue, not a monologue or essay, and use proper grammar.

· Plato (30%): This concerns the degree to which you explained and referenced the foundational ideas that serve as criteria for specialized decision making.

· Locke (30%): This concerns the degree to which you explained and referenced the foundational ideas that serve as criteria for community decision-making.

· Synthesis (30%): This concerns the degree to which you explained the aspects of the issue that require specialized decision-making and the aspects that require community decision-making. Also, this concerns how well you explained to what degree the issue requires community or expert decision-making, as a whole.