Student Seminars Counter, Expand Ec 1 Curriculum

An Ec 1 section man and one of his students have set up a group of non-credit seminars to "counter and expand" what is presently taught in Ec 1.

Their main criticism of the course is that "serious problems of poverty and wealth inequality have been skimmed over as has been the government's role in contributing to these problems," according to Thomas Dublin '67-4, one of the organizers of the seminar. "There is no consideration that the results of economic policy favor big businesses in war-related industries," he said.

'Bland Complacency'

Dublin also criticizes Ec 1 for the "bland complacency" of the reading list. Included on his and Ec teaching fellow John Curtis' seminars' reading list are: Gabriel Kolko's Wealth and Power in America, Philip Stern's The Great Treasury Raid and articles from Dissent and The Great Society Reader.

The seminars will concentrate on specific economic conditions in America today, how the government affects those conditions, and the possibilities for changing them. Topics will include: "Tax Policy and Income Inequality," Government Spending and the Great Society," and "Propects for Ending Poverty."

The five seminars will be led by students and organized around current Ec 1 sections.

Last year, similar criticisms were raised about the course, and the reading list for this year's Ec 1 was in part revised to these complaints.