Analyze – from a political economic perspective – the information in the article: China slowdown stokes fears of peak oil demand
You are required to analyze – from a political economic perspective – the information in ONE of the THREE online newspaper articles listed below.
1. Clive Palmer says he is not responsible for paying Queensland Nickel workers’ entitlements
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-01-26/clive-palmer-says-payouts-of-queensland-nickel-not-his-issue/7115856
2. China slowdown stokes fears of peak oil demand
3. James Hird says Essendon had no intention to cheat the system after players copped doping bans
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-01-17/james-hird-supplements-saga-essendon/7094054?section=sport
Your Mini-essay should carefully consider the political economic issues which the article raises. For this purpose you could usefully apply the five political economic questions described in the first chapter of Stilwell’s book Political Economy: The Contest of Economic Ideas. Having identified the relevant questions you can then draw appropriate conclusions about the significance of the particular issue.
In preparing the Mini-Essay you should draw on at least TWO scholarly sources related to the topic, which may be journal articles or chapters in books that you find through your own research (Go to this Library Guide for details about scholarly and non-scholarly references). These references may address the particular topic in your chosen newspaper article (e.g. giving a different perspective on the issue or more information about it) OR they may relate to a more general political economic analysis that is relevant to the topic.
The purpose of the Mini-essay is to start developing your general analytical and writing skills. It is intended as a step towards the development of your abilities to conduct critical analysis. It does not require significant knowledge of economic theory.
The Mini-essay should be about 750 words (not less than 700 and definitely not more than 800) plus a list of the references you have used.
