Political Science Commons^™

Applying The Information Age Combat Model: Quantitative Analysis Of Network Centric Operations, Sean Deller, Shannon R. Bowling, Ghaith A. Rabadi, Andreas Tolk, Michael I. Bell

Computational Modeling & Simulation Engineering Faculty Publications

The nature of and the approach to command and control is evolving in order to meet the challenges of Information Age warfare. One of the main tasks of command and control is the arrangement of the assets within a combat force in order to ensure their ability to manage and exploit information. Connectivity between the various assets represents existence, capacity, reliability, and other attributes of links establishing the connectivity. The Information Age Combat Model was introduced by Cares in 2005 to contribute to the development of an understanding of the influence of connectivity on force effectiveness that can lead eventually …

A Miscarriage Of Juvenile Justice: A Modern Day Parable Of The Unintended Results Of Bad Lawmaking, Amy Vorenberg

Law Faculty Scholarship

Sensationalized cases increasingly create the context for public policy discussion. Stories about violent crime are a common feature of the local evening news and their emotional nature can often create the hook politicians need to showcase their “tough on crime” agendas. Often anecdotal and lurid, stories of criminal misdeeds are widely used to convince the public of a need to create or change laws. This article demonstrates the perils of making law by extrapolating from a few random, albeit attention-grabbing, events. Specifically, the article examines the impact of a 1995 change in New Hampshire state law that lowered the age …

Exceptionalism As Foreign Policy: U.S. Climate Change Policy And An Emerging Norm Of Compliance, Elizabeth L. Chalecki

Political Science Faculty Publications

Climate change is not only an environmental problem but a foreign policy problem, for the United States and indeed any country. Our best scientific knowledge about the effects of global warming predicts negative changes, from precipitation to agriculture to disease vectors. As such, it is axiomatic that nations would want to mitigate this phenomenon as early as possible. However, our current system of international law places no involuntary obligations, such as compliance with a climate mitigation treaty, on any state. In the past, if a state refused to become party to a treaty, this refusal was assumed to be without …

The European Court’S Political Power Across Time And Space, Karen Alter

Faculty Working Papers

This article extracts from Alter's larger body of work insights on how the political and social context shapes the ECJ's political power and influence. Part I considers how the political context facilitated the constitutionalization of the European legal system. Part II considers how the political context helps determine where and when the current ECJ influences European politics. Part III draws lessons from the ECJ's experience, speculating on how the European context in specific allowed the ECJ to become such an exceptional international court. Part IV lays out a research agenda to investigate the larger question of how social support shapes …

Pass The Plate: The Legend & Legacy Of United States Congressman Kenneth J. Gray, Marleis A. Trover

Faculty Research and Creative Activity

Pass the Plate, the Legend and Legacy of United States Congressman, Kenneth J. Gray is told by stories that showcase one the most effective Congress-man of the Twentieth Century--the Congressman that made deals to actualize his visions and the visions of individuals who identified the nation's common good. Kenny was an ordinary person from an ordinary place that was able to accomplish extraordinary things for the people. As writers, the primary strategy of this book is to convey his success from the perspective of two citizen educators.

For any organization to succeed, the leader must provide hope--hope that something better …

Political Islam In Jordan And Morocco: Changing Tides?, Andrew Johnson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study seeks to assess if the 2007 electoral failures of the Islamic Action Front (IAF) in Jordan, and the Justice and Development Party (PJD) in Morocco, represent a weakening of power, or merely a minor diversion in the quest of Islamists to attain greater political voice in both countries.

Religio-Political Groups And The Israeli-Palestinian Peace Process, Catherine Ruth Orsborn

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a quagmire of interests working against one another. In this paper, I explore the specific role of religio-political groups in the conflict. I particularly examine the ideological political and religious foundations of Gush Emunim and Hamas, paying much attention to the question of why they are attractive to people in our current era. I argue that these groups are continuously effective in opposing the current quest for a peaceful resolution to the conflict, and that they continue to grow as the result of an identity crisis brought about by factors related to globalization and the failure …

Becoming Good Europeans? Globality, The Eu And The Potential To Realize Nietzsche's Idea Of Europe, Michael J. Mcneal

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation takes up Friedrich Nietzsche’s notion of ‘good Europeanism’ and his related idea of Europe to show how the former disposition may be cultivated to achieve the latter—a reinvigorated culture on the continent. It does so by applying his vitalist politics and power ontology (will to power hypothesis and theory of decadence) to critique European integration in the broader context of globalization. The analysis enables me to theorize how “healthy” individuals might exploit opportunities in the present to become 'good Europeans', with the aim of realizing Nietzsche’s quasi-cosmopolitan idea of Europe. It is my primary contention that Nietzsche’s diagnosis …

God, Civil Society, And Congregations As Public Moral Companions, Gary M. Simpson

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

2009: Mandate

CACTUS--Citizens' Assembly for Critical Thinking About the United States

The 2009 Citizens' Assembly for Critical Thinking about the United States (CACTUS) must study proposals for changing the current legal drinking age, identify and analyze the perceived problems leading to these proposals as well as arguments in support of the current legal drinking age, and decide if a change is warranted, at what level of government it should be implemented, and whether other provisions should be mandated as a part of the change.

2009: Public Submissions

CACTUS--Citizens' Assembly for Critical Thinking About the United States

Is it time to change the DRINKING AGE in the United States?

2009: Final Report "Is It Time To Change The Drinking Age In The United States?"

CACTUS--Citizens' Assembly for Critical Thinking About the United States

The 2009 Citizens' Assembly for Critical Thinking about the United States must study proposals for changing the current legal drinking age, identify and analyze the perceived problems leading to these proposals as well as arguments in support of the current legal drinking age, and decide if a change is warranted, at what level of government should it be implemented, and whether other provisions should be mandated as part of the change.

The Managing Of The Presidency: Applying Theory-Driven Empirical Models To The Study Of White House Bureaucratic Performance, Justin Vaughn, José Villalobos

Selected Works Temporary Series

We argue that scholars of the presidency should begin to apply their rich descriptive understanding of White House organization and personnel to questions of causality. To help guide this effort, we offer a theory-driven empirical model that explains organizational performance. Importing theory from the public management literature, we show how scholars can use the Meier-O'Toole (MO) model to explain performance outcomes and dynamics for key political and policy functions within the institutional presidency. We introduce the MO model and discuss its potential impact on the field of presidency studies.

Obama’S Empty Cupboard: Contending With Administrative Vacancies And The Threat To Neutral Competence, Justin Vaughn, José Villalobos

Selected Works Temporary Series

In this essay, we focus on the public administration challenge concerning the rising number of politically motivated administrative vacancies resulting from George W. Bush's tenure in office with which President Barack Obama must now contend. We argue that the hyper-politicization of personnel decision-making during the presidency of George W. Bush left many parts of the federal bureaucracy understaffed, yet more densely populated by staffers chosen more for ideological and political congruence than administrative competence. For President Obama to achieve key aspects of his policy agenda, he must first attend to fixing these staffing problems and then to reforming the personnel …

Presidential Staffing And Public Opinion: How Public Opinion Influences Politicization, José Villalobos, Justin Vaughn

Selected Works Temporary Series

Scholars traditionally frame presidential efforts to politicize the federal bureaucracy as the result of divergence between the president's preferences and an agency's output. The authors argue that presidential concern with agency output is dynamic and is in part conditioned by the president's relationship with the public. To assess the relationship between politicization and public opinion, the authors use a data set that combines information on presidential efforts to politicize the Council of Economic Advisers from 1989 to 2004 with that of public attitudes concerning the president's handling of the economy. Their results indicate that public opinion does indeed bear a …

Lessons From Fdr, Robert A. Slayton

History Faculty Articles and Research

"President Barack Obama has made it clear that FDR is one of his key role models. The appeal is understandable. Both men assumed the presidency during a major economic crisis. Both men were also the first of their respective minorities to gain the White House. Thus, it might help to consider what Obama could learn from studying his predecessor's life: Roosevelt, in dealing with his disability, learned the importance of working with others and bringing them into his decision-making loop. He also learned to draw on personal strengths as well. For FDR, the private became political."

Coughlin And Cleveland, Karen G. Ketchaver

Masters Theses

Father Charles E. Coughlin was one of the most prominent, and most controversial, figures in the United States in the 1930s and in the early years of the 1940s. This Canadian-born cleric rose from the life of an ordinary parish priest to becoming one of the leading radio phenomena of his day, masterfully using the new medium to command a vast audience. Coughlin began his radio career addressing religious subjects, but he expanded into the realm of politics by the early 1930s. His views became more and more extreme, and, by the latter part of the decade, he became increasingly …

A Comparative Analysis Of The New York Times [U.S.A.] And The Nation Media Group [Kenya] Presidential Opinion Polls Coverage 90 Days Prior To Election Day, David Okoth

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

This study seeks to find out whether there exists a relationship between the New York Times (U.S.) and the Nation Media Group (Kenya) coverage of presidential opinion poll results 90 days prior to Election Day. One research hypothesis was identified; (_H1) that there is a relationship – of difference – in how the two publications cover presidential opinion poll stories. The study identified 440 presidential opinion poll stories over a 90- day period prior to Election Day. It analyzed election coverage from October-December 2007 for the Nation and August-November 2008 for the Times. The study established that …

Comparative Study Of Transition To Democracy In Portugal And Iran, Loosineh Markarian Senagani

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The thesis compares the period of transition to democracy in Portugal and Iran after the collapse of the authoritarian regimes through revolutions in 1974 in Portugal and 1979 in Iran. Despite the similarities the cases share, the outcome of the transition in Portugal was a political democracy while Iran faced the rise of authoritarianism. The research compares the similar and dissimilar variables between Portugal and Iran such as the form of the break with authoritarianism and holding of initial elections, institutional design, involvement in wars, and popular mobilization. By keeping respecting factors as control variables, the thesis argues for the …

Role Expectations And State Socialization: Germany's Rediscovery Of The Use Of Force 1990–1995, Thorsten Spehn

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation engages the question of why German political elites accepted the use of force during the 1990s and started to commit the country's armed forces to multilateral peacekeeping missions. Previous governments of the Federal Republic had opposed foreign deployment of the military and Germany was characterized by a unique strategic culture in which the efficacy of military force was widely regarded as negative. The rediscovery of the use of force constituted a significant reorientation of German security policy with potentially profound implications for international relations.

I use social role theory to explain Germany's security policy reorientation. I argue that …

Institutional Pluralism From The Standpoint Of Its Victims: Calling The Question On Indiscriminate (In)Tolerance, Jose M. Gabilondo

Faculty Publications

Borrowing from postmodernity, new Right intellectuals have become adept at plucking core terms from the liberal register, stripping away their history and social context, and making them do the conceptual work of backlash. A recent example is the theme of the 2009 annual meeting of the AALS: institutional pluralism. The phrase has a surface resemblance to traditional liberal values but, in truth, acts as a Trojan horse for discrimination projects that many may find troubling. By putting the phrase in its social context, this essay reveals the ideological interests at work in the idea.

Nato Secretary General: A Changing Job Description?, Ryan C. Hendrickson

Faculty Research and Creative Activity

The position of leading NATO is unrecognisable from its early roots. Ryan Hendrickson explains how the role has changed, and why.

Beyond Corporatism And Liberalism: State And Civil Society In Cooperation In Nicaragua, Hannah Pallmeyer

Hispanic Studies Honors Projects

The Nicaraguan state has historically attempted to control Nicaraguan civil society using corporatist and liberal-democratic frameworks. This has created a difficult organizing environment for civil society organizations to struggle for social change. In this thesis, I argue that civil society organizations, operating in 2008 in a corporatist or liberal framework, were less effective in achieving national social change than organizations that worked cooperatively with the state, yet maintained some autonomy. This hypothesis is developed using the case study of three water rights organizations, and is further tested using the case of corporatist-structured Citizen Power Councils, created in 2007.

Of Government, Innovation And The Social Sector: An Interview With Ngiam Tong Dow, Tong Dow Ngiam

Social Space

With homelessness and unemployment looming large in the 1960s, the pioneer public service team turned the situation around within a span of 10 years. Veteran civil servant Ngiam Tong Dow shares his insights from the days of coming nose-to-nose with social breakdown – a time when creative resourcefulness was the only option. Retired and with the benefit of hindsight, he shares with Social Space his thoughts on innovation, government and the way forward for the social sector.

'Wars The Like Of Which One Has Never Seen', Tracy B. Strong

Research Resources

'WARS THE LIKE OF WHICH ONE HAS NEVER SEEN': READING NIETZSCHE AND POLITICS

Tracy B. Strong

Reconceptualizing The 2006 Qdr Threat Categories, Robert J. Bunker

CGU Faculty Publications and Research

Projections of the future national-security environment are always laden with uncertainty and ambiguity. However, they help to serve an early-warning function concerning emergent threats and the nationalist capabilities that will be required to respond to them. With this in mind, I would like to offer a reconceptualization of the 2006 Quadrennial Defense Review, or QDR, threat categories by viewing these threat potentials through a modified perceptual lens.

Inauguration, 2009, St. Mary's University, Texas

Democracy/Government

Bibliography and photographs of a display of government documents from St. Mary's University, Texas.

From The Suburbs To The House: The Metropolitan–Rural Population And The Success Of Women Candidates, Elizabeth A. Stiles, Larry Schwab

Political Science

We analyze the voting behavior of metropolitan and rural residents in relation to women’s legislative representation. Examining election data on the U.S. House and all lower state houses, we find that the greater the metropolitan population in a legislative district, the more likely it is to be represented by a woman. We extrapolate from these findings that the modern increase in women’s representation can be attributed in part to the rural-to-suburban shift in population and legislative seats.

Canada (En)Counters Terrorism: Us-Canada Relations And Counter-Terrorism Policy, Veronica Kitchen, Karthika Sasikumar

Faculty Publications

This paper examines the role of identity in shaping counter-terrorism policy in Canada. We show that identity functions in three ways: constitutively by defining the range of choices a state is likely to consider; strategically by being a resource to buttress arguments based in economic or sovereignty interests; and heuristically by using identity as a marker for risk. This three-faceted explanation helps explain why, despite close economic, social, and political links between Canada and the United States which might lead us to expect Canada to follow American counter-terrorism policy, Canadian counter-terrorism policy often diverges from the American lead.

Think Big And Ignore The Law: U.S. Corn And Ethanol Subsidies And Wto Law, Phoenix X.F. Cai

Sturm College of Law: Faculty Scholarship

Everyone should care about what happens at the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva. This Article argues that new challenges to US corn and ethanol subsidies are highly likely. Even though at first glance this Article deals with the specialized and esoteric field of international trade law, its sweep is much broader. The subject of this Article is also both timely and salient. Part I explains the multi-layered WTO regime on agriculture and subsidies, with particular emphasis on the delicate interplay among multiple WTO agreements. Part II discusses the Upland Cotton case in detail, highlighting in particular the implications for …