OPINION ESSAY #2 DUE 2/20 INSTRUCTIONS The purpose of this assignment is to give you an opportunity to go in a further direction with course material and to give you practice in expository writing. You will need to incorporate what we have covered in lectures along with your own research in each opinion essay. This is not merely a regurgitation of course material – this is your opportunity to respond to and interact with the course material. The opinion essay will be a 600 to 900 word "Op-Ed style" essay with a strong, central argument. You must support your argument with economic reasoning and reputable research. You must cite at least two valid sources in your essay. Valid sources include the following: academic journal articles, books, government reports, or think tank/policy center research reports. Wikipedia is never a valid source. Your essay should consider other points of view in developing toward your conclusion. Opinion essays are graded on the structure and quality of the argument and writing. Spelling, grammar, punctuation, and structure are graded. A paper copy of your opinion essay must be turned in at the start of class on the due date. You must also upload an electronic copy to www.turnitin.com using the following: Class ID: 9312545 Password: econ Failure to upload an electronic copy by 11:59 pm on the due date will result in receiving a zero. No late work is accepted.

SUGGESTED TOPICS The following are suggested topics to spur your thinking about the subject of your opinion essay. They are meant only as suggestions. If you have your own idea for a direction you wish to go that differs substantially from any of these, please run it by me first. 1) Troubled Asset Relief Program 2) Quantitative Easing 3) new bank regulations 4) the Sequester 5) Social Security 6) Medicare 7) Medicaid Hint: Pick a narrow direction within one of these topics. Depth is better than breadth for this assignment. Focus on a narrow question or issue.