Digital Commons Network^™

Colin Dueck: Reluctant Crusaders Study Guide, Steven Alan Samson

Faculty Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

Community Knowledge And Attitudes Toward Refugees And Asylees In Miami-Dade And Broward Counties: An Analysis For The International Rescue Committee, Brianne Gilbert

Political Science and International Relations Faculty Works

This paper presents the findings of a research project on knowledge and attitudes about refugees and “asylees” in two South Florida counties. The project was a collaboration between the International Rescue Committee (IRC), an international NGO that assists refugees and asylees with resettlement in the United States and other countries, and four graduate students in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Florida International University in Miami. South Florida receives large numbers of refugees and asylees, principally from Latin America and the Caribbean, and the IRC was interested in finding out more about the knowledge and attitudes in the community …

What Is Democracy, And Is It The One?, Scott Smith

The University Dialogue

No abstract provided.

Non-State Actors And Asymmetric Warfare: A New Paradigm For International Relations, Matthew H. Wahlert

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

A billiard table metaphorically explains the conduct of states within the international system- sometimes clashing and other times tenuously co-existing. Yet, the international system ultimately remains a construct and pattern for the state actors. Spatially, the dimensions and context of the system fit the needs, requirements, and structure of the states. However, the system is one dimensional and does not account for the realities of the complexities inherent to the post Cold War Era. Currently, the state actor does not maintain an exclusive monopoly in the formation of the playing field. However, non-state actors usurp space and dimensions not defined …

Japanese National Identity And National Security, Christopher Gene Phillips

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

This thesis examines the interrelation between national security and nationalism in Japan. Beginning from the stance of classical realism as put forth by Hans Morgenthau, the essay takes a "culturalist" view as its starting point. The culturalist view, in accepting the basic assumptions of classical realism as given, understands that all states act freely and rationally to maximize their interests, defined in terms of power. Power, as Morgenthau points out, is not a fixed concept, its definition being subject to the vicissitudes of time and culture. The culturalist model attempts to understand how each civilization understands power by examining its …

Noble Human Rights Defender Or International Band-Aid? On Contemporary Humanitarianism, Kurt Mills

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

The Humanitarians: The International Committee of the Red Cross by David P. Forsythe. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005.

A Survey Of Terrorism And Human Rights In Uganda, Arika Long

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Tragically, Uganda is a primary example of a country dominated by terror and human rights violations. In a 2006 interview with Integrated Regional Information Networks IRIN, the news department of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), Under Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Jan Egeland, called the conflict in Uganda “the worst form of terrorism in the world.” Defining terrorism as indiscriminate violence against civilians, he declares that nowhere in the world is there a more concentrated area where so many people are being terrorized, and have been for such a long period of time. According to …

Chechnya: Human Rights Issues, Latife Bulur

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Chechnya is a country plagued by terrorism and human rights abuses. A primary source of these issues is the unsettled situation between local insurgents and the Russian military. This conflict, increasing in magnitude over time, makes it incredibly difficult to negotiate the terms of Chechnya’s independence perpetuating the crisis. Rising violence fuels Russia’s frustration in addressing the conflict with Chechen groups. Russia has and continues to employ various tactics to minimize the violence, but such tactics have all so far been unsuccessful.

Violations Of Human Rights In The Russian Military, Cathy Smith

Human Rights & Human Welfare

In 2005, an estimated 450 deaths were caused by injuries due to internal military violence. The degradation inflicted on Russian soldiers within their regime necessitates reformation by the government and implementation of resolutions. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Russian military has been experiencing heightened levels of personnel decline despite the compulsory draft. The prestige that the Soviet Army of the 1950s received through the late 1980s is dwindling rapidly. Despite the military code of conduct, today’s army is afflicted with perpetual violations of human rights. For the future of the Russian military, extensive action must include systemic …

Sudan: A Survey Of Terrorism And Human Rights, Arika Long

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Sudan is a primary example of a country dominated by terror and human rights violations. Upon the release of Amnesty International’s 2007 annual report, Secretary General Khan described the continuing conflict in Sudan's Darfur region as a “bleeding wound on the world’s conscience.” In the report, the authors declare that the world has been “impotent” in the face of major crises like Darfur. They state that policies linked to the “War on Terror” are creating a more polarized and dangerous world, with grave effects in Sudan. In addition to the terror and human rights violations permeating the North, frustration also …

Ethnic Conflict, Kristina Libby

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Since the fall of the Soviet Union, Russia has experienced high levels of ethnic conflict with regard to exit claims by former satellite states that no longer want to be part of the federation. Exit claims often antagonize the state. However, political leaders of titular ethnicities maximize ethnic revivals to keep traditions alive, and to minimize the amount of exclusion vis-à-vis the center. Massive human rights violations have resulted because of misperceptions between the center and the periphery, especially in Chechnya, the Volga-Ural’s Region and Eastern Siberia.

Violations Of Human Rights During Military Operations In Chechnya, Federico Sperotto

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The case-law of the European Court of Human Rights concerning violations of human rights law during armed conflict has been extended after the first decisions on cases arose from violations, committed during the war in Chechnya between 1999 and 2000. In the words of the Court, at that time the situation called for exceptional measures, in order to regain control over the Republic and suppress an illegal armed insurgency. The Court has been ready to admit those measures, including the deployment of army units equipped with heavy combat weapons, military aviation and artillery, were necessary to counter the aggressiveness of …

Pre-Tipping Point Operations As A Strategy For Maritime Security In The Global War On Terror, John W. Snedeker Jr.

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

This thesis proposes US maritime forces adopt a new strategy of pre-tipping point operations that involve proactive measures to enhance maritime security. At its core is the premise that since the attacks of September 11, 2001, the propensity of efforts in GWOT have focused on defeating terrorist organizations and denying sanctuaries on land, leaving the maritime operating environment open to the next wave of terror attacks.1 With the preponderance of commercial goods shipped through the maritime commons, this critical nexus remains valuable and vulnerable. Fragile states and ungoverned regions have become safe havens for a host of criminal elements including …

Historical Background: Evolution Of The International Criminal Law, Individual Criminal Accountability And The Idea Of A Permanent International Court, Cenap Cakmak

Human Rights & Human Welfare

© Cenap Cakmak. All rights reserved.

This paper may be freely circulated in electronic or hard copy provided it is not modified in any way, the rights of the author not infringed, and the paper is not quoted or cited without express permission of the author. The editors cannot guarantee a stable URL for any paper posted here, nor will they be responsible for notifying others if the URL is changed or the paper is taken off the site. Electronic copies of this paper may not be posted on any other website without express permission of the author.

Judgments About Cooperators And Freeriders On A Shuar Work Team: An Evolutionary Psychological Perspective, Michael E. Price

Department of Political Science: Hendricks Symposium

Evolutionary biological theories of group cooperation predict that (1) group members will tend to judge cooperative co-members favorably, and freeriding co-members negatively and (2) members who themselves cooperate more frequently will be especially likely to make these social judgments. An experiment tested these predictions among Shuar hunter-horticulturalists. Subjects viewed depictions of pairs of workers who varied in the extent to which they had contributed to, and benefited from, a team project. Subjects were then asked to judge which worker deserved more respect, and which deserved more punishment. When judging between unequalcontributors, all subjects tended to favor more cooperative (i.e., higher-contributing) …

'Heroism' In Warfare, Oleg Smirnov, Holly Arrow, Doug Kennet, John Orbell

Department of Political Science: Hendricks Symposium

The willingness of people to risk their lives fighting on behalf of their nation (which we call heroism) is a background assumption in the study of war, thus of international relations, but also an evolutionary puzzle. We use two computer simulations to explore the possibility that heroism could have evolved as a domain specific form of altruism, selected through humans’ ancient past as a consequence of warfare. In the first, “altruism” is modeled as a generalized disposition that promotes both heroism and other, non-military, forms of group-benefiting behaviors—which we call communitarianism. In the second, heroism and communitarianism are modeled …

Track Two Diplomacy: The Work Of Healing History, Joseph V. Montville

Journal of Diplomacy and International Relations

No abstract provided.

Water, Development, And State Security In South Asia: Scenarios For China And India, Ray Chandrasekara, John M. Polimeni

Reconstruction: Studies in Contemporary Culture

Conflict over water resources is rare and has not occurred for thousands of years. However, the dynamics in South Asia are changing so rapidly that a conflict in the not-so-near future may be unavoidable. Water shortages could have the nonlinear effects of food shortages, political instability, migration problems, and diminished economic growth. All of these factors, caused by water shortages, could be a driver of conflict in the region, causing territorial disputes. Global instability would be sure to follow as both the U.S., attempting to protect their national security interests, and China, reacting as the regional power, tries to intervene. …

On Moral Arguments Against A Legal Right To Unilateral Humanitarian Intervention, David Lefkowitz

Philosophy Faculty Publications

As the international response to recent events in Darfur demonstrates, the restriction of authority to intervene to the United Nations poses the greater legal barrier to intervention. From a practical perspective, then, the more pressing question may be whether international law ought to be modified to permit states, or multi-state organizations, to carry out unilateral humanitarian interventions; that is, interventions that are not authorized by the United Nations. The issue here is essentially a moral one: would the incorporation of a right to unilateral humanitarian intervention entail a moral improvement to international law – for example, a decrease in the …

Book Review, Robert W. Gordon

Journal of Legal Education

No abstract provided.

Why Human Security?, P. H. Liotta, Taylor Owen

Journal of Diplomacy and International Relations

No abstract provided.

Human Security, Mutual Vulnerability, And Susatinable Development: A Critical View, Jorge Nef

Journal of Diplomacy and International Relations

No abstract provided.

Outlaws And Barbarians: The Bush Administration's Revolution In Sovereignty, Eric Patterson, Kendra Puryear

Journal of Diplomacy and International Relations

No abstract provided.

Us And Uk Cooperation In Missile Defense: Strategic Reasons Or Business As Usual?, Basil Polemitis

Journal of Diplomacy and International Relations

No abstract provided.

A New Type Of Insurgency? A Case Study Of The Resistance In Iraq, Stephen D. Curtas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Insurgency is considered to be the principal form of conflict in the world today. Since the end of WWII, large-scale conventional war between states has been minimal. In Iraq, a band of insurgents are attempting to defy the strongest power in the world. This insurgency in Iraq may be the beginning of a new phenomenon of insurgency conflict.

This thesis argues that the Iraqi insurgency has no center of gravity, with no clear apparent leader or leadership. As seen in other examples of insurgency throughout history, no leadership has emerged in response to any of the conditions present in Iraq. …

Freedom Of Speech And Press: A Casebook For Undergraduates, Frank Harrison

Political Science Faculty Research

This book is the product of two semesters of academic leave, in the Fall of 1998 and 2005, for which I am grateful to Trinity University. Substantively, it is in (almost) final form but even the most casual reader will notice that it needs extensive editing, mainly of formatting, consistency of style and, to some extent, spelling and grammar. A few cases also need a "headnote" and/or some "Comments and Queries." More importantly, the second half of the text might be reorganized to place greater emphasis on more current issues involving competition between constitutional rights. My syllabus for "Freedom II," …

Oversight Of Dual-Use Biological Research: The National Science Advisory Board For Biosecurity, Dana A. Shea

Congressional Research Service Reports

Policymakers have addressed the threat of biological weapons and biosecurity issues for many years. An issue garnering increased attention is the potential for life sciences research intended to enhance scientific understanding and public health to generate results that could be misused to advance biological weapon effectiveness. Such research has been called “dual-use” research because of its applicability to both biological countermeasures and biological weapons.

The federal government is a major source of life sciences research funding. Tension over the need to maintain homeland security and support scientific endeavor has led to renewed consideration of federal policies of scientific oversight. Balancing …

Assessing Past Strategies For Countering Terrorism, In Lebanon And By Libya, Louis Kriesberg

Program for the Advancement of Research on Conflict and Collaboration

American strategies to deal with terrorist attacks against Americans in Lebanon in the 1980s and by Libya since the beginning of the 1980s are examined. The consequences of the various strategies employed by U.S. government officials over time and the strategies employed by American non-governmental actors and by international organizations are compared. In addition, alternative strategies that might plausibly have been employed are also discussed. Official actions that relied largely on military methods and were conducted unilaterally tended to be less effective, even counterproductive, compared to actions that were multilateral and relied significantly on diplomatic approaches, often aided by intermediaries.

Reverse Engineering Asymmetric Warfare: Applying Space-Time, Matter-Energy And Organizational-Doctrinal Analysis To Al Qaeda Operations, Robert J. Bunker

CGU Faculty Publications and Research

The ‘crime-war’ operational environment, found in failed and failing-states dominated by non-state (criminal) soldiers, has been increasing in scope for decades. This trend is viewed as part of the process of transition from the modern (Third) to the post-modern (Fourth) epoch. Within this environment, non-state entities utilize asymmetric warfare against nation-states. The most dangerous of these opponents are those whose approach is asymmetric by nature (due to their network-type organization) and who thereby represent a direct challenger to the nation-state form. Al Qaeda fits both of these conditions and enough is known about its operations and structure to allow its …

Combatants Or Non-Combatants?: Where Private Military Companies Fit In Modern, Classical And Legal Definitions, Robert J. Bunker

CGU Faculty Publications and Research

Many perspectives exist for why private military companies have emerged over the last decade or so: cost-effectiveness, fact reaction cycles, lack of will or inability of governments to send their own troops into peace operations. This short essay will not attempt to debate these traditional reasons given for PMC growth and operational fielding. Rather, it will make some basic observations concerning the changing nature of warfare, attempt to place PMC ascendancy within the historical context, and make some policy suggestions concerning the relationship of PMCs to international law and the state.