Discussion Question

 Please use the resources to Answer the questions!

1) Every year, Transparency International makes public its “Corruption Perceptions Index,” a measure of how corrupt different countries are in relation to each other. Go to http://www.transparency.org/research/cpi/overview and find the latest CPI report.

Where does the United States rank in the index?  Does the US ranking surprise you? Would you expect the US to have a more corrupt ranking or a less corrupt ranking? Why?  Although not required, feel free to comment on any thoughts you might have about Transparency International.  

2) Research “facilitating payments” (sometimes known as grease payments).  In the United States, The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) permits facilitating payments.  On the other hand, facilitating payments are prohibited under the United Kingdom's Bribery Act of 2010.  What are your thoughts? Should “facilitating payments” be prohibited by U.S. entities and individuals?