Digital Commons Network^™

"Cooperation, Not False Competition." Fragmented Families And Splintered Classes: Why So Much Churning? What Can Be Done? What Will America Come To Look Like? A Symposium., Matthew J. Lindstrom

Political Science Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Jurisdiction‐Granting: Legislative Capacity And Ideological Distance, Seth W. Greenfest

Political Science Faculty Publications

This paper examines the conditions under which Congress passes jurisdiction-granting legislation, legislation that expands the discretion of the federal district courts by designating them as venues in which policy questions are to be heard. This project extends existing research that has demonstrated that Congress manipulates the parameters of jurisdiction by examining the manner in which Congress routinely engages in this activity. I construct and evaluate a comprehensive dataset of laws in which Congress grants jurisdiction to the district courts for the period between 1949 and 2000 with the goal of explaining conditions under which Congress grants jurisdiction Two explanations are …

Intelligence Gap: Advanced Military Technology And Law Of War Compliance, Christi Siver

Political Science Faculty Publications

Many states justify their use of technology and tactics as consistent with international law. These appeals to legitimacy suggest that legal norms serve some role in limiting the use of force, particularly in promoting discrimination between combatants and civilians. The United States justifies drone attacks as more efficient means than the use of troops to attack suspected terrorists. Many civilian and military leaders argue that these attacks are more moral than alternative tactics because they target the individuals directly responsible for attacks on the United States and its allies. However, these justifications assume that the military has accurate intelligence. However, …

Getting Potomac Fever: Increasing Civic Engagement Through Experiential Learning Communities, G. Claire Haeg, Matthew J. Lindstrom

Political Science Faculty Publications

Drawing upon the literature on experiential learning, learning communities, and the scholarship of civic engagement, this paper assesses the outcomes of the Washington D.C. Summer Study Program developed by the College of St Benedict and St. John’s University. We are especially interested in examining the extent to which students who undertake this two month, eight credit internship learning community experience engage with politics and political life. Do students learn more about the US political system, its operation and opportunities? Are they more enthusiastic about public policy and politics? Do they increase their level of trust in government or their feelings …

The Other Forgotten War: Understanding Atrocities During The Malayan Emergency, Christi Siver

Political Science Faculty Publications

In this chapter, I briefly outline the dependent variable in this case, the various units actively engaged in combat in Malaya between 1948 and 1952. I then explore the most common explanations for the Scots Guards’ actions and reveal why they are not helpful in explaining why other units did not similarly kill civilians. To better understand this variation, I explore three alternative explanations: Did the military socialize units in the laws of war and appropriate behavior toward civilians? Did government leaders encourage units to kill civilians? Finally, did different units’ subcultures make them more likely to kill civilians? I …

Reflections On The Cuban Revolution, Gary Prevost

Political Science Faculty Publications

When I visited Cuba in the first few days of 1992, it was not clear that the revolution would survive. Food was in relatively short supply and electricity blackouts were common. Even long-time supporters of the revolution were pessimistic about the future. Everything that had been accomplished in its first 32 years seemed in jeopardy when the Soviet Union went out of existence at the end of 1991 and canceled most of its trade deals with Cuba. The country’s gross domestic product was in the process of shrinking by 50 percent. How did the Cuban Revolution survive that shock, and …

The Dark Side Of The Band Of Brothers: Explaining Unit Participation In War Crimes, Christi L. Siver

Political Science Faculty Publications

On July 25, 1950, an American infantry unit killed a large number of refugees near the South Korean village of No Gun Ri. On December 12, 1948, a British patrol killed twenty-five civilians near the Malayan village of Batang Kali. On March 16, 1993, members of the Canadian Airborne Regiment beat a Somali teenager to death. While each of these events is horrific, they also represent only one side of the story; many units in these conflicts, facing similar threats, did not kill civilians. This variation raises a critical question: why do some units participate in war crimes while others …

India: Grassroots Hiv/Aids Activism Growing, Manju Parikh

Political Science Faculty Publications

In the last ten years, we have seen frequent news reports on the spread of the HIV/AIDS virus in the Indian subcontinent, each one stressing the dire economic and social consequences if urgent attention is not paid to the problem. Although the Indian government has responded by adopting many policies and by establishing an organization — the National Aids Control Organization (NACO) — to deal specifically with HIV awareness, treatment for HIV infected individuals, and prevention of further spread of HIV/AIDS, many critics do not find these measures adequate.

The campaign to create awareness and check the spread of AIDS …