just half page " response" for each one.

Key Idea #1:       The Fragmented Metropolis (Judd & Swanstrom, pages 7-9)

The Fragmented Metropolis was an insightful topic presented by Judd and Swanstrom (7) because they clearly described how cities grow and become collages of various small communities.  A well-known example is New York City due because of its overall diversity.  Some neighborhoods are defined by the ethnic heritage, like Canal Street has Chinatown and Little Italy.  Other neighborhoods like Park Avenue accommodate the more affluent while others house the less privileged.  It is noteworthy to point out that even with that level of diversity, the city came together in great force after the September 11 attacks.  However, Judd and Swanstrom (9) illustrate the paradox of urban growth promoting greater isolation.  After having lived in cities, suburbs, and isolated islands (where the closest McDonald’s was 1500 miles away) the paradox of urban growth has greater significance with me.  In essence, the lesser the concentration of people leads to a greater sense of community in many instances.   

Key Idea #2:       The Political Process (Peters, pages 11-12)

Peters (11) argues that the government is growing because the public demands more services. This is a fundamental supply and demand issue, but government growth is generally affected by several factors.  One of these growth factors are external influences.  External influences like political interest groups may influence the government leadership to shift funds to keep or increase some of services.  Eventually, this may lead to situations where the fiscal limitations are overlooked and overspending leads to growth.  It is unfortunate, that in most instances, the political interest groups may not have the public interest at hand according to Peters (11).   A good example is found in a community where the property tax was increased to fix the potholes on the streets, but the money ended up in making improvements to a local community park.  The potholes were not fixed because a special interest group of community residents put pressure on the local government to make improvements to the park.  Eventually, the municipality buckled and shifted their spending away from fixing the streets and moved toward making park improvements.   

Key Idea #3:       Trust in Government (Peters, pages 45-47 and 63-65)

According to Peters (64) lack of confidence in the government is a common sentiment among citizens of industrialized democracies.  Scandals in recent years like the IRS lavish spending and NSA covert surveillance programs have tarnished the government’s image and lowered the public’s trust in government.   According to Peters (45) the customer service provided by the government is critical relationship between the public and the government servant is dependent on the public servant/entity level of performance.  It can be argued that trust in the government depends on how well the public is served, but trust also stems from how the government is perceived.  Many government agencies are striving toward better customer service with the hope to reestablish and improve the public’s trust in government.  Lastly, Peters argues (46) that public service is being stereotyped as an inefficient and indifferent to the public’s needs.  In reality, the public sector practice is comparable to the private sector.

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