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Hayley Robbins
March 22, 2016
English Composition 2: Harry Potter
Unit 3
Government Corruption: The Breakdown
Outline:
I.

Working Title: Government Corruption: The breakdown

a. Government corruption: The Breakdown is a good working title because it
explains to you what I am going to be talking about and that it will be a
breakdown of the way government corruption effects our way of life. I want to let
the readers know the main point of my essay right away, and this title is the

II.

easiest way to go about that.

Working Introduction: Quote
a. For the introduction to my assignment I want to provide a quote from the movie
The Wolf of Wall Street that can effectively relate to government corruption.
Considering this movie is about fraud on Wall St. then it will be particularly easy
to find a quote that expresses the importance of a stable government in our

III.

society.
Working thesis: I want to argue in my paper that there is too much power given to a
government that is not stable enough that they have the will to abuse our rights.
a. Knowing that this is a very messy thesis, I still have time to fix it in terms of how
I explain my argument. I generally want to cover the bases of giving the
government more power than they need or than the current members of our
government can handle.
b. Comparing between the government crisis in our history, our country has not
experienced the same economic or general hard times as we have in the past, so
we arent fully prepared to carry a government full of people who only want for

IV.

themselves, not as much for the people they say to govern.

Entry 1: Cartoon

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a. For my first entry I want to draw a cartoon. Even though Im not the most
creative, I plan to draw a man wearing an American flag suit stealthily carrying
away a bag of money with the People written on it, with uncle Sams back
turned in the background. I think this will give a very interesting outlook on the
way I feel about my topic.
b. I will have a one page explanation about my drawing to give my audience a better
understanding of whats happening in the cartoon and how it relates to my main
V.

point.
Entry 2: Timeline
a. I would like to do a timeline on the conspiracies and events that revolved around
government corruption in the United States history.
b. I will include real events, theories, and conspiracies from that time period and
what the outcome of the event was to our country. With that, I will also include a

VI.

brief summary of the events that took place and the people who were involved.
Entry 3: article
a. I want to use a newspaper article to add a more factual base to my argument. I
would like to use the article Report of the Select Committee on Assassinations of
the U.S. House of Representatives, because I feel like it covers the basis of what

VII.

Im arguing.
Entry 4: Recipe
a. I would like to create my own recipe for the right way to successfully whip up
some corruption in your government. I would like to use the article I chose as a
spice to make it more relatable to.
b. Even though the article Ive chosen covers President John F. Kennedys
assassination, its still a very good conspiracy to use to argue that we have been

VIII.

giving these official positions to those unworthy and unstable.

Entry 5: Speech
a. I would like to write a speech for my final paper that comes from a Presidents
perspective on interference in our government.

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b. Im not quite sure how Im going to come from a presidents point of view, but
IX.

with previous speeches online Im sure it wouldnt be too hard.

Entry 6: Diary entry
a. For my diary entry I would like to come from the perspective of Jaqueline
Kennedy. Its going to be a little challenging considering this was a very big event
and its quite a controversial thing to write about, but I have some ideas that I

X.

could put in here with her point of view.

Entry 7: Letter
a. For my final entry I want to compose a letter from an American citizen on their
views of John F. Kennedys assassination and how it makes them feel as a part of
this country. Considering theres a wide range of information on this incident, and
having gone over it in history, I feel I can express my emotions on our
governments ways of working better through a very intellectually written letter to
our government.

Gilbert, Jo-Anne, and J. C. Sharman. "Turning a Blind Eye to Bribery: Explaining Failures to
Comply with the International Anti-corruption Regime." Political Studies Polit Stud (2014): n.
pag. Web.
A review on the openness of bribery in corruption in international anti-corporations. The
explanation of failures to comply with the international Anti-corruption regime.
Graycar, Adam. "Awareness of Corruption in the Community and Public Service: A Victorian
Study." Australian Journal of Public Administration73.2 (2014): 271-81. Web.
In this study of corruption in the Victorian age, shows that the ideals of one part of the
community does not influence the thoughts of the others. The Victorian community believes that
corruption is on the rise, as the public servants are un aware of it. Almost half of the study
participants felt that they wouldnt be protected from victimization had they reported corruption.
Jang, Hyunseok, Joongyeup Lee, and Jennifer C. Gibbs. "The Influence of the National
Government on Confidence in the Police: A Focus on Corruption." International Journal of Law,
Crime and Justice 43.4 (2015): 553-68. Web.

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In this journal they discuss the relationships between the law enforcement and the public.
The confidence that the public hold in the police relates to the corruption levels at which they
feel they can get away at.
Roberts, Robert. "The Supreme Court and Federal Prosecution of State and Local Government
Corruption." Public Integrity 14.4 (2012): 399-412. Web.
In Skilling V. United States, the Supreme Court limited the use of the honest service
doctrine of the federal mail fraud statute to prosecute local and state officials on public
corruption charges. The application of the doctrine is limited to bribes and kick-backs.
Sikka, Prem, and Glen Lehman. "The Supply-side of Corruption and Limits to Preventing
Corruption within Government Procurement and Constructing Ethical Subjects." Critical
Perspectives on Accounting 28 (2015): 62-70. Web.
Questions about corruption amongst rationalist and constructivists of expectations that
democracies are conditioned to comply with international rules. Successive Australian and
British governments have turned a blind eye to un-willingness in the governments.
Teachout, Zephyr. Corruption in America: From Benjamin Franklin's Snuff Box to Citizens
United. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print.
In 1785, Louis XVI gave Benjamin Franklin a snuff box encrusted with diamonds and
inset with the King's portrait. Americans felt that it could possibly change his feelings towards
the French in a psychological way. In 2010, the courts decided to grant the ability wealthy
corporations the right to spend unlimited money to influence political elections.
The Wolf of Wall Street, IMDb. IMDb.com, n.d. Web. 27 Mar. 2016.
In this movie they tell the story of a man who creates his own stock holders business that
lands himself a slot in Wall Street. Full of corruption and politics it is a very good movie to quote
in the opening of my final assignment.
Zhang, Yahong, and Cecilia Lavena. Government Anti-corruption Strategies: A Cross-cultural
Perspective. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print.
This book contains a list of anti-corruption strategies to help prevent public corruption. In
general, public corruption costs many businesses and the government trillions of dollars each
year. It contains many case studies from around the world each year as examples of preventable
corruption practices that could take place. It gives you a basic understanding of certain instances
of government corruption and how to prevent those weve already experienced.