Discussion

1. Define: unconventional, petty, rupee, legal tender, Gandhi, expatriate, extortion, importuning, solicited

2. What is corruption? Why do most people in America believe that corruption is wrong?

3. In what situations are people expected to help themselves, their friends, their family, or their locality above others? In what situations are people expected to pursue the good of all?

4. The Indian officials have something valuable. Why shouldn’t they sell it?

5. Why do people in some countries or cultures place high importance on following rules that benefit everyone, including people they do not know, rather than taking advantages that may help themselves or people they care about? Why do you think that people in other cultures are less likely to view their obligations that way?

6. What are the consequences of widespread bribery? How does it make worthwhile projects more difficult?

“When India’s government put online the names of officials facing trial for corruption, the list became a convenient guide for whom to bribe.”

7. What is the difference between having to bribe an official for something that you are entitled to and being able to bribe officials for something that you are not supposed to have? What are the costs to society of the each type of bribe?

“Ordinary people are more willing to protest, since the notes have an organization behind them and they do not feel on their own.”

8. Why do people perceive themselves as part of a larger entity even though they are, in fact, alone with the corrupt official? Do you feel like part of a bigger group when you watch TV or listen to the radio by yourself, participate in an online network, or in other situations? How might this feeling change people’s behavior?

9. Why do people sometimes feel weak on their own?

10. What are social norms? How do they differ from written rules? Why is an official in India more likely to get away with taking a bribe than an official in America?

11. What are some examples of things that violate American social norms but are not illegal? Can you think of anything that is illegal in America that does not violate social norms?

http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displaystory.cfm?story_id=15393714