Political Science Commons^™

Careful What You Wish For: Thinking Through The Neoliberal Nation, Graham Macphee

English Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Fragility Of Consensus: Public Reason, Diversity And Stability, John Thrasher, Kevin Vallier

Philosophy Faculty Articles and Research

John Rawls's transition from A Theory of Justice to Political Liberalism was driven by his rejection of Theory's account of stability. The key to his later account of stability is the idea of public reason. We see Rawls's account of stability as an attempt to solve a mutual assurance problem. We maintain that Rawls's solution fails because his primary assurance mechanism, in the form of public reason, is fragile. His conception of public reason relies on a condition of consensus that we argue is unrealistic in modern, pluralistic democracies. After rejecting Rawls's conception of public reason, we offer an ‘indirect …

Talbott, John Daniel, 1883-1950 (Sc 2707), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and scan (Click on "Additional Files" below) for Manuscripts Small Collection 2707. Letter, 27 October 1939, from J. Dan Talbott to “All Employees of the Commonwealth of Kentucky,” with lists of duties to be performed before and on Election Day, 7 November, including letter-writing, personal contacts, providing transportation to the polls, and handing out sample ballots. The letter urges every employee to “do his duty” to ensure election of the Democratic ticket in the state.

Reconsidering The Right To Own Property, Rhoda E. Howard-Hassmann

Political Science Faculty Publications

This article considers whether there should be a separate international Covenant to elaborate on the human right to own property. Citing two contemporary cases—namely,the semi-starvation faced by many citizens of Zimbabwe and the shortage of food in Venezuela—I argue that a human right to own property protects the economic human rights to adequate food and freedom from hunger. The right to own property is also crucial to the economic development necessary to ensure that human beings can supply themselves with food and otherwise support themselves. As such, it is a strategic human right, a right that protects other rights. I …

China And The New Triangular Relationships In The Americas: China And The Future Of Us-Mexico Relations, Enrique Dussel Peters, Adrian H. Hearn, Harley Shaiken

Center for Latin American Studies Publications

This book advances the concept of “triangular relationships” by analyzing benefits and conflicts within US-Mexico-China relations as Chinas´ influence increases. The contributors examine this phenomenon from economic, political, and social perspectives. China´s deepening impact in the Americas suggests that triangular relation-ships, such as those examined in this volume, will necessarily weigh more heavily into other fields of research in the future.

Shattering The Political Or The Question Of War In Heidegger’S "Letter On Humanism.”, Babette Babich

Working Papers

Jean Beaufret’s question concerning humanism was “politically” framed on several levels as initially presented to Heidegger.1 Accordingly, Heidegger’s own response was itself political: invoking both technology and the self-same question of science that we remain—and to this day—still “too pious” (in Nietzsche’s words) to be able to frame as a question: the very same question Heidegger develops in his later lectures delivered to the businessmen of Germany, including his Question Concerning Technology. The preoccupation with thinking technology and thinking science remains with Heidegger to the end of his life. Even more significant perhaps (particularly in proximity with Heidegger’s focus …

Experiencing Citizenship In A Globalizing World: The Impact Of Off-Campus Programs, Ryan Owen Williams

Political Science - Dissertations

College serves as a critical time in the lives of young adults in the formulation of their identification with citizenship, of their sense of belonging or affiliation. In an era of increasing globalization, this psychological dimension of citizenship requires further research and elaboration. This project seeks to determine if and how the academic and off-campus choices students make in college impact their worldview, their loyalties and sense of responsibility toward others. How far do students' allegiances extend and what experiences in college help to create these bonds and commitments? This study asks whether international experience via study abroad is a …

The Presence Of Coups D'État Within Revolutions: Effects On Population Health, Rose E. Facchini

Master's Theses

The present study is a comparative approach to revolutions and their effect on population health during the post-conflict period. Specifically, it attempts to determine whether revolutions that are accompanied by a coup d'état have a significant negative impact on post-revolution population health. Degree of revolutionary violence, governmental structures, and pre-revolution health systems is of particular interest as relevant variables. The study focuses on the Latin American countries of Nicaragua and Chile due to their similar region and timeframe. The revolutions and accompanying coup d'état in both of these countries do not demonstrate different patterns on public health in the post-conflict …

“Normalizing” Japan?: Contestation, Identity Construction, And The Evolution Of Security Policy, Daisuke Minami

Political Science Honors Projects

In this thesis, I address two puzzles regarding Japan’s security policy: (1) its minimalist military posture despite its economic power during the Cold War and (2) the recent shift from this minimalist security policy to an assertive one marked by a strengthening of its international security role and military. I argue that although many IR scholars, mainly from the realist camp, claim that the formation of the original security policy (puzzle 1) and subsequent transformation (puzzle 2) is driven by the state’s rational response to external conditions in the international security environment, it can more adequately be explained by the …

The Development Of A New Paradigm Of Humanitarian Intervention: Assessing The Responsibility To Protect, Jayne Discenza

Political Science Honors Projects

The Responsibility to Protect (RtoP) concept aimed to clarify the relationship between state sovereignty and humanitarian intervention, and its invocation during the recent intervention in Libya provides an opportunity to assess its impact. This project compares the events of Libya with the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina of the early 1990s, examining the framing of these conflicts as well as the perceived role of other states, the engagement of international organizations with the concept, and the effect on operations during the humanitarian interventions themselves. Providing a historical comparison more accurately situates the contributions of RtoP in the re-prioritization of human rights over …

Making War And Securing Peace: The Viability Of Peace Enforcement As A Mechanism For Promoting And Securing Civil War Termination, Shawn H. Greene

Political Science Honors Projects

Peace enforcement—the threat or use of military force to compel belligerent adherence to a civil war settlement—has become increasingly salient in the past decade. Using a hazards analysis of all civil wars and associated third party interventions between 1945 and 2013 in addition to three structured, focused case studies, I argue that peace enforcement operations that 1) utilize the appropriate typological spoiler management strategy and 2) maintain legitimacy and impartiality through close cooperation with UN peacekeepers, are the most successful at catalyzing civil war termination and securing durable peace. I also provide a theoretical framework through which to study peace …

Virginia Woolf & Michel Foucault: Methods Of Justice, Elizabeth K. Doré

Senior Honors Projects

Virginia Woolf (1882-1941) is primarily known today as a central British modernist novelist. In addition, she was also an important theorist of power, subjectivity, and ethics, especially as she turned her attention in the 1930s--as fascism spread and intensified across Europe--toward the public sphere in which European women were still then more or less without (easy) access. I read her late novels and essays alongside her diary in order to excavate the theoretical/political/ethical premises of her thought. I contend that she shares with the late thought of French philosopher Michel Foucault (1926-1984) an original conception of ethics. Woolf and Foucault’s …

Guns Of Fortune: How Guns Move To Fulfill Demand, Michael J. Coates

Senior Honors Projects

Legislators face a compelling dilemma, how can they decrease the prevalence of gun violence? Cities and States around the United States have laws intended to prevent violent criminals from acquiring and using weapons, but it remains debatable whether these laws are effective.

This study posits that guns are subject to the laws of supply and demand and the variable gun laws in states across the country decreases the effectiveness of local and state gun legislation. In short, guns are trafficked across state lines to meet demand in states with stricter gun laws.

Data for the study was collected from the …

The Reorientation Of Iranian Trade From West To East Since 1979, Leslie Bilger

HIM 1990-2015

Iran, with its attractive geographical position and its abundant natural resources, has had an undeniable attraction for the world's greatest powers over the history. Well before the creation of the Islamic Republic of Iran, this country established high level of economic interactions with a great variety of political partners. In recent years, the country's change of regime has had a crucial impact on those relationships. By analysing the trade data between Iran and Western countries (the U.S.A., Canada, the U.K., France, Germany, and Italy) as well as the major Eastern countries (China, Russia, and India), it is possible to establish …

Enhancing Solidarity And Cooperation Social Identity Theory And China's Involvement In Africa, David Thomas Aston

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

China has increasingly intensified engagement with Africa since 2000. In 2001, trade between Africa and China was at $10.6 billion. In 2011, trade had exploded to over $160 billion.1 Chinese investment in Africa has grown from tens of millions of dollars to over $10 billion.2 This surge of trade and investment in Africa has not yet been matched by any other global power. Recently, Hu Jintao doubled China’s loan commitment to Africa to over $20 billion. This increase of trade and investment reflects a growing Chinese influence in Africa.3 What caused this increased Chinese interest in a continent that has …

Presidential War Powers, Matt Scott Formisano

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Even before the framing of the Constitution, the Framers feared an executive power that would grow too strong. This fear was reflected throughout debates held before, during, and after the American Revolution. Even today, debate still continues as to what the executive power entails when it comes to acts of war and treaties. The United States Constitution was framed with the purpose of dividing power between the branches of government in order to avoid abuse and tyranny. “The Constitution bestows enormous power and responsibility on the President to protect the nation’s security and safeguard the people’s liberty” (Matheson 1). Throughout …

The Place-Based Approach: Public Policy In Context, Neil Bradford

Data and Test Instruments

No abstract provided.

Imagining Jazzocracy: Notes Toward A New Democratic Subject, Mario Tofano

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

What does participatory democracy look like? This essay finds an answer in the indigenous art form of the United States—jazz. Political engagement in America must learn from the jazz aesthetic which realizes the communal projects of individuals in concert. After a brief survey of the biological, historical, and cultural formations that construct our political environment this essay advances equaliberty as the foundational concept for the Jazzocrat, the new political subject for tomorrow’s participatory democracy.

Deepening Democracy At The Grassroots Level: Citizen Participation In State Devolved Funds (Cdf) In Kenya, Fredrick Omondi Otieno

Pan African Studies - Theses

That democracy is the most suitable form of government is no longer contested. However many questions shaking this global consensus continue to abound. Why is there a growing cynicism and apathy with the notion of democracy across the globe? Why has the concept of democracy had to attract adjectives that attempt to qualify or categorize it in different parts of the world? And perhaps most importantly, if in deed democracy is such a good "thing" how can it be made meaningful? This thesis looks at citizen participation in a state devolved fund (CDF) in Kenya as a space through which …

Revisiting The Achievements Of The Ancient Celts : Evidence That The Celtic Civilization Surpassed Contemporary European Civilizations In Its Technical Sophistication And Social Complexity, And Continues To Influence Later Cultures., Adam Dahmer

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

No abstract provided.

Anti-Corruption Efforts And Russian Perceptions: Presidents Putin And Menvedev's Efforts To Influence Perceptions Of Corruption, Jeris Kendall

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The problems affecting Russia because of corruption are serious and pressing. Police officers, judges, government officials, and many others are involved in taking bribes for services or benefits they provide. These actions are contrary to the laws they are to follow, and they are preventing the rule of law from operating properly in Russia. In order to resolve this issue Russia needs to understand how corruption works against national progress, how society perceives the efforts of Russian presidents in the battle against corruption, and how those perceptions can be utilized to help improve the situation.

Advocate, May 2013, Vol. [24], No. [5], Advocate

The Advocate

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

From the Editor's Desk: Out with the Old, In with the...Same Old? (p. 3)

CUNY News in Brief (p. 5)

Political Analysis: Rent-Controlled, J. A. Myerson (p. 7)

Searching the CUNY Catalog not working for you? You’re not alone!, Reethee Antony (p. 9)

Guest Columnist: Terror in the West, Texas, Night, Amy Goodman (p. 10)

The Radical Greens: How Divestment, Direct Action, and Leftist Politics are Shaping the Environmental Movement, Mike Stivers (p. 13)

The Trouble with Professor Petraeus, Arun Gupta (p. 17)

Irregular Future: A Conversation with Matt Kennard, Michael Busch (p. 20)

Book Review: Recovering …

Political Performance, Leadership, And Regional Integration In Europe: An Examination Of The French And German Roles, Gaspare M. Genna, Birol Yesilada, Peter Andrew Noordijk

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Prior research on a regional leader’s role in the deepening of regional integration assumes that economic power translates directly into political capabilities. Relative political capacity among states is central to the creation and deepening of regional integration since it is this capacity that smoothes out the transition from a closed to an open economy. Should a state have low levels of this capacity but desire openness, it will partner with regional leaders given the leaders’ higher relative political capacity. However, the leaders’ subsidy of a partner’s capacity comes at a price. The leaders would trade political capacity for forming a …

The Dialectics Of Citizenship: Exploring Privilege, Exclusion, And Racialization, Bernd Reiter

Government and International Affairs Faculty Publications

What does it mean to be a citizen? What impact does an active democracy have on its citizenry and why does it fail or succeed in fulfilling its promises? Most modern democracies seem unable to deliver the goods that citizens expect; many politicians seem to have given up on representing the wants and needs of those who elected them and are keener on representing themselves and their financial backers. What will it take to bring democracy back to its original promise of rule by the people? Bernd Reiter’s timely analysis reaches back to ancient Greece and the Roman Republic in …

Society Contra State: Murray Rothbard’S Conception Of The Proper Role Of Coercion In Society, Alex Braud

Honors Capstones

No abstract provided.

Freedom Of Expression...With Attitude, Aimee Chalin

Honors Capstones

No abstract provided.

Political Twittoric : The Rhetorical Use Of Twitter By The Obama 2012 Presidential Campaign, Kainat Najmi Abidi

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

With the entrance of the digital age, the Presidential campaign has begun accommodating the growing trend of new technologies. A campaign can reach an audience in person, on the radio, through the newspaper, on television, and on the Internet. In 2008, President Barack Obama broke the limitations of campaigning by going social, which he continued in his run for reelection in 2012. Obama tapped into the popular social network of Twitter to run a portion his 2012 campaign. By utilizing this new network, Obama’s campaign accessed the multimodal quality of Twitter to benefit their goal of winning the 2012 election …

Massacre In Central Burma: Muslim Students Terrorized And Killed In Meiktila, Richard Sollom, Holly G. Atkinson

Publications and Research

This report details the results of a Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) investigation into the March 20 and 21, 2013, attacks on Muslim students, teachers, and residents in the Mingalar Zayyone quarter of Meiktila, a small town in central Burma.

A two-person team, the authors of the report, from PHR conducted 33 interviews about the attacks, which resulted in the deaths of at least 20 children and four teachers. The report details the attacks by the Buddhist mobs, provides evidence that local police officers were complicit in the crimes, and lists policy recommendations for the Burmese government and the international …

Explaining Conflicts In Japanese-South Korean Relations, Jonathan James Ence

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

South Korea and Japan usually cooperate but occasionally experience periods of conflict that disrupt their relationship. This paper seeks to explain those sporadic periods of conflict using a dynamic theory. This theory posits that South Korean leadership power status coupled with Japanese action on sensitive issues will lead to a period of conflict. President Kim Dae Jung’s administration serves as the case study for this paper.

Female Political Leadership In The Southern Cone : Roles And Perceptions Of Women In Formal Politics., Rosslyn Elliott Steinmetz

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

No abstract provided.