Digital Commons Network^™

Oppositional Identities: The Military Peace Movement’S Challenge To Pro-Iraq War Frames, Lisa A. Leitz

Peace Studies Faculty Articles and Research

In the United States, rhetoric in support of the Iraq War often focuses on discourses of patriotism and supporting the troops. These discourses hold enormous sway over the American public because of the discursive legacies of the Vietnam War and the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. In response, members of the peace movement who are veterans, soldiers, and military families stress their military identities during activism. These individuals have organized as an important branch of the U.S. antiwar movement that challenges the pro-war framing of patriotism and troop support by strategically deploying 'oppositional identities.' The oppositional identity strategy involves highlighting …

Book Review: Mao Zedong And China In The Twentieth-Century World, Jeremy Tai

China Beat Blog: Archive 2008-2012

Mao Zedong may no longer be the sublime object of desire in China, but in recent decades his image has been continuously invoked and consumed in countless guises – both familiar and new – ranging from pop art portraits to the ubiquitous face of Chinese banknotes, from Cultural Revolution kitsch to the ObaMao souvenirs currently found in tourist traps around China. The reproduction of Mao in his various postmodern manifestations suggests a loss of meaning and depoliticization; at the same time, however, the deep-seated clash between sentimental and polemical cultural representations also makes clear that there is still much at …

Commitment Beyond Morality: American Complicity In The Massacre At El Mozote, El Salvador, 1981, Dustin Hill

Online Theses and Dissertations

In order to highlight the complicity of the American government, this thesis will discuss in depth the most important massacre perpetrated by the Salvadoran military. While the American government maintained publicly that respect for human rights was one of the main goals of its mission in El Salvador, the six billion dollars of aid and American actions in the region belied another reality. This examination argues that it is clear that the massacre at El Mozote in late 1981 was the direct result of U.S. foreign policy initiatives. Although the Americans kept themselves insulated to provide for plausible deniability, the …

Paul Timmermans On Invisible War: The United States And The Iraq Sanctions. By Joy Gordon. Cambridge, Ma: Harvard University Press, 2010. 359 Pp., Paul Timmermans

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Invisible War: The United States and the Iraq Sanctions. By Joy Gordon. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2010. 359 pp.

Security Now: Addressing The Needs Of Darfur’S Children, Nicole Judd

Human Rights & Human Welfare

In the Darfur region of Sudan, over 2.3 million children have been affected by the ongoing genocide (UNICEF 2008). Unlike their adult counterparts, children are impacted more severely by the consequences of warfare as they are undergoing a fragile developmental process. While each one of the affected children has had their basic human rights violated in some form, the narrative of trauma differs between groups. Sexually-exploited girls, boy soldiers, unaccompanied children, and those who remain in under-resourced camps have experienced the protracted violence in unique ways. To mitigate the effects of war, each group should receive individualized humanitarian assistance as …

Non-State Actors In Jamaican Economic Policy, Matthew W. Jarrett

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The relevance in understanding local dynamics or political culture is that as Neuman has pointed out, many traditional theories have not taken them into account and have thus failed in explaining political occurrences in the lesser developed world. For example as she has stated, "domestic factors" have not been considered into "systems theories". (Neuman, 1995, p.16) On this basis, it is necessary to point out these local factors, and furthermore, the role of non-state actors within the realm of internal dynamics, since international relations theory also aims to understand the formation and motivation behind economic policy. Therefore, to produce a …

The Global War On Terror: Who Wins, Who Loses?, G. Simon Harak S.J.

Theology Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

Risk Taking And Force Protection, David Luban

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

This paper addresses two questions about the morality of warfare: (1) how much risk must soldiers take to minimize unintended civilian casualties caused by their own actions (“collateral damage”), and (2) whether it is the same for the enemy's civilians as for one's own.

The questions take on special importance in warfare where one side is able to attack the other side from a safe distance, but at the cost of civilian lives, while safeguarding civilians may require soldiers to take precautions that expose them to greater risk. In a well-known article, Asa Kasher and Amos Yadlin argue that while …

Responses To The Ten Questions, Aziz Rana

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

This essay responds to a question posed by the William Mitchell Law Review for its annual national security issue: Has Obama Improved Bush's National Security Policies? I maintain that Obama Administration practices have been marked by striking continuities with those of the previous Administration. I then attempt to explain these continuities by discussing how American policymakers across the political spectrum share basic assumptions about the concept of national security and the need for an aggressive and interventionist foreign policy.

The Impact Of Development On Terrorist Activity: Does Development Decrease Terrorism?, Mark Daube

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This study examines the relationship between the level of development in a country and the likelihood of terrorism incidents occurring in that country. The central argument of this paper is that the level of development of a country has a curvilinear impact in the shape of an inverted-U on the likelihood of terrorist activity. This paper used a negative binomial regression in order to analyze 119 countries from 1675 to 2000. The empirical results indicate that there is support for the hypotheses of this thesis and that there is a statistically significant relationship in the shape of an inverted-U between …

The Modern Day Gold Rush ; Private Military Corporations, Deirdre Kornhiser

Dissertations and Theses

Since wars have existed, there have been soldiers for hire. As the state evolved, originating during the peace of Westphalia, and matured, the definition and the business of mercenarism have gone through many mutations. Today, and particularly since the 1970s, mercenaries have banded together, incorporating themselves as private military firms, some of which are units of multinational corporations. Private Military Corporations (PMCs) offer expertise ranging from construction to logistics but a number of contractors have been accused of human rights violations, particularly in the current theatres of war in Iraq and Afghanistan. The theme of this thesis is that PMCs …

Climate Torts And Ecocide In The Context Of Proposals For An International Environmental Court, Patrick Foster

Dissertations and Theses

"This thesis is an exploration of two questions that are neither novel nor lacking in exploration: Is an International Environmental Court (IEC) needed? Is such a court feasible? Proposals for an IEC have a rich history, are well founded and numerous. On the issue of necessity, this thesis attempts to pull together historical and current information on two distinct areas of international environmental law and use these analyses to contextualize the need for an international environmental tribunal. Arguments for and against an IEC are presented within a discussion of environmental diplomacy. This thesis begins with a legal discussion of potential …

The Difficult Relationship Between Haiti And The Dominican Republic, Wilfred Morfa

Dissertations and Theses

No abstract provided.

Marxist Insurgencies And Indigenous Rights; The Cases Of Guatemala And Peru, Cocco Valentina

Dissertations and Theses

"The main purpose of this research is to understand the nature of the relationship between leftist armed guerrillas and indigenous rights in the Latin American region. I argue that the ethnic component and indigenous mobilization have greatly determined the political and social achievements of Marxist insurgencies active in many countries of the sub-continent during the second half of the twentieth century. In order to test my hypothesis, I devote particular attention to the historical exposition and critical analysis of both the ethnic problem and Marxism, in its European, Russian, Chinese, and Latin American versions. Subsequently, I focus on the case …

Failure To Adapt; Intelligence Failure And Military Failure As Functions Of Strategic Failure?, David Firester

Dissertations and Theses

The following paper looks at intelligence failures and military failures through the lens of adaptation failure. This paper asserts that there is reason to believe that certain causal elements of alleged intelligence failures reside more so in the province of politics, than in the collection and analysis domain of intelligence tradecraft. This is not to say that failures are exclusively of a political nature, but that looking at politics and the relationship of policymakers to the Intelligence Community yields a preponderance of causal evidence. Secondly, it is suggested that a parallel set of underlying assumptions evident in adaptation failure theory …

Extra-Sovereign Institutions; The Ties That Bind, Daniel Spitaliere

Dissertations and Theses

"Governance, globalization, and regionalism are all statements regarding the nature of integration in the current international relations system, but they do not readily explain what brings nation-states together in the first place. At first glance, regional institutions seem to be established on a basis of proximity, suggesting a spatial model of regional integration. However, a deeper investigation of the motivations and factors that lead to the creation of these institutions show this is not the case. In considering regional integration movements, this study establishes three core principles. First, that the creation of a successful extra-sovereign institution is dependent on specific …

History Education And Identity Formation: A Case Study Of Uganda, Takako Mino

CMC Senior Theses

History education builds the foundation of a common past necessary for the formation of group identity. Evaluating History curricula is important because group identity guides people’s political behavior. This Uganda case study demonstrates how different actors have manipulated History education in order to enhance the saliency of ethnic, national, and regional identities. The expansion of nationalized education and the teaching of Ugandan, East African, and African history have contributed to fostering the rise of national consciousness in Uganda. Greater awareness of national identity has promoted national integration while marginalizing non-school educated people.

The Drug War In Mexico: Consequences For Mexico's Nascent Democracy, Katrina M. Weeks

CMC Senior Theses

In recent years Mexico has been confronted with accelerating levels of violence related to drug trafficking organizations and counter-drug efforts. This paper examines the consequences of Mexico’s current drug trafficking situation on the country’s fledging democracy. In particular, the impact of the drug war on Mexico’s democratic consolidation is evaluated through civil-military relations, the judicial system, and the press. Conclusions about the prospects for Mexico’s nascent democracy are then examined.

Understanding Terrorism In The Horn Of Africa: American Perceptions Of Somalia, Kenya, And Al Qaeda, Victoria L. Din

CMC Senior Theses

A number of factors contribute to the enigmatic nature of terrorism. As popular perceptions of the act and of the actor evolve, there is a corresponding desire to change the definition. The act itself has stayed largely the same; however, developments in politics and culture have changed our perceptions of terrorism and subsequently our usage of the term. As such, it has been imprecisely applied to a diverse and perpetually changing set of actors, institutions, and actions.

From Korea To Vietnam: The Origins And Mindset Of Postwar U.S. Interventionism　朝鮮からヴェトナムへ−−戦後米国の軍事干渉の起源と考え方, Mel Gurtov

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

The wars in Korea and Vietnam were of a piece, directly related by virtue of U.S. global strategy and China’s security concerns. This paper, focusing mainly on the U.S. side in these wars, argues that three characteristics of American policy had enduring meaning for the rest of the Cold War and even beyond: the official mindsets that led to U.S. involvement, the centrality of the China threat in American decision making, and the common legacy of intervention against nationalism and in support of authoritarian regimes. It is part of a continuing Asia-Pacific Journal series on the Korean War on the …

War Powers In The Obama Administration, Ryan C. Hendrickson Dr.

Faculty Research and Creative Activity

With the arrival of a new American president in 2009, the power and constitutional authority of the commander in chief to engage in military action remains as relevant as ever. Barack Obama inherited a war in Iraq, has worked with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to initiate a 17,000 American combat troop surge in Afghanistan in March 2009 and another increase of 30,000 personnel later that year, more than doubling the total American presence. He also permitted American Navy Seals to use force against Somali pirates in the first months of his presidency. In addition, nuclear development and proliferation concerns …

Managing Complexity And Change In International Relations: The Case Of Yemen, Michael J. Culton

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

Matters of war and peace may be as old as civilization itself but the definitions and practices of each are constantly evolving. Innumerable theories and models have been developed over the past few centuries, which are designed to explain modern international politics. As academics and policymakers debate their assumptions regarding conflict and cooperation, current events challenge their intellectual foundations and may even serve to overturn them. The scholars and practitioners of foreign policy may have reached the point where the traditional explanations of political behavior can no longer account for the pressing issues of the day. In such an age …

Islam, Globalization, And Freedom Of Expression, Muhammad Daiyabu Hassan

Journal of Global Initiatives: Policy, Pedagogy, Perspective

The exercise of freedom of expression by a segment of the secular establishment, mainly among members of the literary and intellectual elite in the West, in relation to Islam, constitutes a major obstacle in the search for common grounds between the Islamic world and the West. Due to historical factors, the church seems to have assented to the continuous secular attacks on Christianity. Some examples in this regard are Dan Brown's Da Vinci Code and Martins Scorsese's film adaptation of Nikos Kazanstzaki's The Last Temptation of Christ. To this segment of Western secular cultural thinkers, nothing is sacred. The …

Turkey: Politics At The Crossroads Of Civilizations, Maia Carter Hallward

Journal of Global Initiatives: Policy, Pedagogy, Perspective

This article discusses how Turkey is often under-studied due to the fact that it does not fit neatly into the analytical "boxes" used to discuss international politics. Not only does Turkey straddle Europe and Asia, but it is one of few Middle Eastern countries that was not ruled by Western empires (and, in fact, controlled parts of Europe). It is a non-Arab secular democracy currently governed by a Muslim-oriented party. Because of these unique characteristics, scholars and policy makers have much to learn from Turkey and its approach to challenging issues of regional concern.

Maritime Terror: A Comparative Study Of The Barbary Corsairs And Modern Somali Pirates, Lauren M. Halton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Maritime piracy off the Horn of Africa, although not a new security threat, has grown at an alarming rate in the twenty-first century. This study compares modern Somali piracy with the Barbary Corsairs problem of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries to understand what policy responses might be most effective. The comparison focused on pirate characteristics and motives; targeted ships; attack frequency; hostage treatment; counter measures to combat piracy; and outcomes.

Financial motivation, level of organization, and viciousness of attacks are all characteristics the Somali pirates and Barbary Corsairs share. They differ in that the Corsairs operated as part of a …

Covert Or Overt Intervention? The Reagan Administration In Latin America, Marika S. David

Honors Scholar Theses

In my thesis I looked at Cold War interventionism by America. In the Post WWII period, many countries were searching for freedom from colonial rule, and many were attracted to the idea of communism or socialism. In this context of a destabilized world and power struggle between the U.S.A and the U.S.S.R., revolutions often became points of interests and parts of this larger power play. Any type of revolution was a destabilization, in a system that was unstable at best, and peace between the powers rested precariously on the idea of “Mutually Assured Destruction.” I would like to look more …

Under The Volcano: Emergency Management And The Eyjafjallajokull Eruptions, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull eruptions that began on April 14^th, 2010 have exemplified challenges for transportation in a world of globalization, and ever-present need for preparation for emergencies.

Peace Agreements And International Peace Operations: The Case Of Sierra Leone, Haruyuki Irie

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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Containing Iran: Sanctions And The Iranian Nuclear Program, Greg Forsythe

Honors Capstone Projects and Theses

No abstract provided.

A Body Evolved : The Un Security Council And Its Role In International Politics., Matthew Brandon Davis

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

No abstract provided.