Political Science Commons^™

Chelf, Carl Philip, 1937-2011 (Sc 2256), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and scan (Click on "Additional Files" below) for Manuscripts Small Collection 2256. Transcript of an interview with Tim Lee Carter, former U.S. Representative of Kentucky's 5th Congressional district, by Dr. Carl P. Chelf, government professor at Western Kentucky University, 21 October 1982.

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.

The Future Of The Rhode Island Economy, James C. Leshane

Senior Honors Projects

No one would argue that the economy in the United States has been faltering in recent years; due in part to global factors, and even with stimulus plans offered by the Federal Government, there is increased burden on states to find forms of revenue. More and more, states must compete not only with other states, but also on the global market, for a share of decreasing revenues. Since the decline of manufacturing and a move towards a service economy, states like Rhode Island which in the past depended heavily on the manufacturing sector to provide jobs for its’ citizens, have …

Global Agricultural Price Supports: The Political And Economic Forces That Drive Unsustainable Agricultural Protectionism Policy, John Francis Hays

Dissertations

Agricultural tariffs and price supports are the last bastion of US and European protectionism. While all other areas of commerce have embraced change and welcomed open-market international commerce, agriculture has remained the lone holdout.

The small farmers for whom these support programs were designed no longer exist. Yet governments appropriate billions of dollars annually for the continued support of these outdated programs.

The fact that these governmental agencies resist change, even in an age of economic crises, record national debt, and one of the highest negative trade balances in history, is testimony to American civic indifference.

Public apathy precludes timely …

Twenty Years Of Forest Service National Environmental Policy Act Litigation, Amanda M.A. Miner, Robert W. Malmsheimer, Denise M. Keele, Michael J. Mortimer

Political Science Faculty Publications

The USDA Forest Service is sued more often than any other federal agency under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). This analysis examines Forest Service land management cases initiated from 1989 to 2008 to understand how the agency fared in NEPA cases. Of the 1,064 completed cases, 671 (63.1%) involved a NEPA challenge. The agency won the final outcome of 343 cases (51.1%), lost 176 (26.2%), and settled 152 (22.7%). Case characteristic analyses indicate that case decisions peaked at the end of the 1990s, occurred mostly in the Ninth Circuit, and predominately involved vegetative management, forest planning, roads, …

“Pilot Implementation Of An Interdisciplinary Course On Climate Solutions”, Lawrence Quill, Jinny Rhee, Eugene Cordero

Faculty Publications

A pilot implementation of an experimental interdisciplinary course on climate solutions was undertaken at San Jose´ State University in the fall semester of 2008. The course, co-taught by seven faculty members from six colleges, was approved for a general education requirement and was open to upperclass students campus-wide. A course with such a breadth of topics and range of student backgrounds was the first of its kind here. The lessons learned from the pilot effort were assessed from student, faculty, and administrative perspectives. The educational benefits to students from the interdisciplinary format were found to be substantial, in addition to …

Tax Increment Financing In Missouri: An Analysis Of Determinants, Competitive Dynamics, Equity, And Path Dependency, Susan Mason, Kenneth P. Thomas

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Tax increment financing (TIF) has been a popular and controversial economic development tool for several decades. This research considers the determinants of competitive dynamics, equity, and path dependency on TIF use. We use logistic and ordinary least squares regressions on the approval, number, and value of TIFs in Missouri to flesh out the way the determinants contribute to TIF approval, value, and frequency of use. This study finds that there are competitive dynamics that affect TIF use: being adjacent to another city that uses TIFs increases the likelihood that a city will approve a TIF. The study finds evidence that …

Human Rights Pragmatism Under Obama, Sonia Cardenas

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Bypassing realists and idealists, President Obama has staked out a boldly pragmatic approach to human rights. Critics depict the policy shift as “the downfall of human rights” and a set of “empty promises.” The problem is not with Obama’s embrace of pragmatism, or his rejection of ideology, to advance human rights. The problem is in the emphasis: human rights pragmatism should not privilege external inducements over vital on-the-ground domestic realities.

Lessons From Nuclear Reversal: Why States Reverse Ballistic Missile Policy, Cyndi Mellen

Political Science

Nuclear reversal is the decision by a state, which has a nuclear weapon or the technical capabilities to produce a nuclear weapon, to give up their nuclear weapons program. This paper employs the tenets of nuclear missile reversal to the dismantling of ballistic missile programs through case studies of the six states (Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, Iraq, Libya, and South Africa) that have abandoned their missile programs since 1987. The study hopes to promote further research concerning the behaviors associated with abandonment of nuclear reversal to that of ballistic missile reversal. This research concludes that the principles of nuclear reversal do …

The Televised Presidential Debate: Decreasing Effectiveness And The Impact Of The New Media Spin In The Fourth Age, Marcus Stevens

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

This Capstone Project focuses on the entire history of televised presidential debates in America. Beginning with the Kennedy-Nixon debates of 1960 and ending with the Obama-McCain debates of 2008, I examine and analyze academic books, articles and data in order to answer several questions: Did the American public continue to tune in to televised debate for information throughout the years? Have the debates lost their ability to maintain interest, change or affect electoral outcomes, or help inform the masses of the actual policies and promises of the candidates? Have the advances in technology and media had any effect on these …

Changing Constituencies And International Trade: The Role Of Organized Labor On The Trade Platform Of The Democratic Party, Chad Ivan Brooker

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

Abstract

Problem:

There has been much talk over the past 50 years of the role of American labor in a changing American industrial market. As the world has become increasingly connected, American workers who tout high levels of labor rights, high wages, and safe working conditions have been hard pressed to compete with emerging economies that often share little of these same principles or legal decrees.

The debate over American competitiveness in the world has been fought on the picket lines, on the streets, in back rooms and most importantly in the stolid, white, columned halls of Congress. While liberalized …

Dual Citizenship In Asia, Mindy Eiko Tadai

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

Among all regions, Asia lags behind in terms of the number of countries that recognize dual citizenship, but why have some Asian countries permitted dual citizenship while others have not? As of 2009, only seven countries in Asia recognize dual citizenship: Sri Lanka, Cambodia, the Philippines, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Vietnam. This study analyzes data for twenty-two Asian countries and conducts four case studies. The first two cases, India and the Philippines, recognize dual citizenship, while the second two cases, Nepal and Mongolia, do not. I examine three hypothesized factors that contribute to state recognition of dual citizenship in Asia: …

Reflections Of A Young Journalist Working Within The Parliament Of The United Kingdom, Joe Frandino

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

The purpose of my Capstone project is to present a personalized insight into the British political and journalistic systems, and how they contrast with their respective American counterparts. As an intern in the British Houses of Parliament, and with the news department of the Liberal Democratic Party of the United Kingdom, I will present my significant experiences and understandings, as well as the changes I underwent during my study-abroad semester in London, England during the spring of 2009.

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.

Religion And Regionalism: Congregants, Culture And City-County Consolidation In Louisville, Kentucky, Joshua D. Ambrosius

Political Science Faculty Publications

Literature on religious involvement in public affairs typically examines the national scene, particularly public opinion and political behavior in presidential elections. Few scholars examine religious actors in urban politics and policymaking. Those who do study local politics emphasize morality policy and ignore issues of metropolitan governance and institutional design, central concerns of the urban politics field. This dissertation fills that gap by studying Louisville, Kentucky, site of the first large-scale city-county consolidation since 1969. I ask: does religion affect how people vote in a consolidation referendum and shape their opinions about merged government? I employ a survey instrument (N=807), collected …

Partisan Defection And Change In The 2008 Us Presidential Election, Herbert F. Weisberg, Christopher J. Devine

Political Science Faculty Publications

Party identification remained an important determinant of vote choice in the 2008 election. Indeed, the extent to which people voted according to their partisanship remained as exceptionally high as it had been in the 2004 election. The Democrats led in partisanship, with a greater lead than in 2004. The ANES four‐wave panel survey shows that some change occurred in the Democratic direction during 2008. The Democrats gained among most population groups, with the exception of older citizens. Obama's victory margin was due to his carrying pure independents and the growth in strong Democrats as opposed to strong Republicans. Both candidates …

Review Of "Capitol Men: The Epic Story Of Reconstruction Through The Lives Of The First Black Congressmen" By P. Dray, Richard M. Valelly , '75

Political Science Faculty Works

With complete narrative control Dray also locates the public history of Reconstruction's openness to both black and white male political ambition against the counterpoint of white conspiracy and violence that, like termites, ate away at the foundation of the new era. [...] Dray does a fine job of carrying the stories past the Compromise of 1877, treating the Exodusters, the post-Reconstruction black congressmen, such as George H. White of North Carolina, and the final days of the men whose lives he chronicles.

Competing Formal And Informal Institutions In A Democratizing Setting: An Institutional Analysis Of Corruption In Romania, Mihaiela Ristei

Dissertations

This dissertation explores the interaction between formal institutions and the informal institution of corruption in Romania from 1997 until 2006. I argue that corruption is an informal institution that creates incentives incompatible with the formal rules, alters the effectiveness of formal institutions, undermines the rule of law, and threatens democratic consolidation. Specifically, I test the capacity of formal institutions to counteract the informal institution of corruption and thus to reduce corruption in four sectors: the judiciary, customs, health care, and public procurement. The research project investigates the methods to restructure incentives and increase the effectiveness of formal institutions, the factors …

Latino Locales: Does Context Matter?, Matthew C. Dempsey

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This thesis examines the influence that contextual factors have on the political behavior of Latinos in the United States. I argue that, due to the unique immigration and socialization experiences of Latinos, context will play a role in the political behavior of Latinos. The hypotheses are tested against data collected from a national survey of Latinos conducted in 2006 and the National Election Studies from 2000, 2002, 2004, and 2008. The results of the analysis indicate that context does influence the partisanship of Latinos; however, the effect of descriptive representation for Latinos at the Congressional level does not mirror the …

Civil-Military Relations: A Case Study Of Pakistan, Najiyah Khan

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Pakistan is a young and violent nation. It has been under military rule for more than half of its existence and the presence of Islamists in the country has been increasing in recent years. These two actors have played a crucial role in creating the Pakistan of today: a violent, unstable system with revolving governments. What role have civilian governments played while interacting with the Islamists and the ever present military? What has led to the Pakistan we see today? Is there any hope that Pakistan can remove the violent actors within its borders and create real change to become …

Explaining Variations In Response To The Threat Of Climate Change, Catherine Callahan

Political Science

No abstract provided.

To Fight Or Not To Fight: Examining Violence As An Organizational Choice, Jayson Kratoville

Political Science

Non-governmental organizations have become a key concern for international relations theorists and comparative thinkers. While most NGO’s promote their social, political, and economic interests through peaceful means, some use violence; this study seeks to understand why. I assert that the use of violence is a tactical decision made at the dyadic level in consideration of resources that are vital to the organization’s survival. This investigation uses principles from the theory of resource dependency to analyze cases where one NGO uses violence in the same ‘system’ as another that does not. I conclude that organizations dependent on social actors for vital …

Bits And Bytes On The Front Lines An Examination Of Distributed Denial Of Service Attacks As A Terrorist And/Or State-Based Threat, Ben Spear

Political Science

No abstract provided.

What Role For Ethnicity? Political Behavior And Mobilization In Post-Conflict Sierra Leone And Liberia, Fodei Joseph Batty

Dissertations

This dissertation examines political behavior in Sierra Leone and Liberia following the end of their civil wars. Dominant theories on politics in African societies suggest that ethnic interests underpin political behavior and elections are mere censuses of ethnic support for co-ethnic party elites. Yet, while using a proportional representation electoral system that is expected to result in splintered vote shares for multiple political parties, Sierra Leone's elections in 2002 concentrated votes around one presidential candidate and political party. Conversely Liberia's elections in 2005, held using a first-past-the-post electoral system that expectedly discourages multiple vote shares, diffused votes among several political …

The Supreme Court That Stole…Christmas? Measuring The Fallout From Lynch And Allegheny: A Critique Of The Establishment Clause And Religious Displays, Deidre E. Kalenderian

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

Lynch v. Donnelly in 1984 and County of Allegheny v. ACLU in 1989, the only holiday themed religious display cases decided by the Court on the grounds on Establishment Clause violations, demonstrate the inadequacies of the Court’s Establishment Clause jurisprudence. The precedent set out by the Supreme Court in Lynch v. Donnelly and Allegheny v. ACLU compromise lower courts’ decision making process. Discrepancy in methods, results, and opinions threatens the credibility of the Court. This not only confuses the idea of religious freedom, but it also threatens its very core.

Lynch and Allegheny were intended to clarify Establishment Clause jurisprudence …

The Backyard Effect How The Experience Of Impacts Of Climate Change Affects Opinion And Discourse, Kevin Eggleston

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

“The Backyard Effect” hypothesizes that for an issue as potentially abstract, complex, and vast-in-scope as climate change, it will take experiential evidence of impacts in order for people to change and view the problem as urgent – and take action. In order to test this hypothesis, this project set out to interview citizens in climate change-impacted regions around the world in order to explore any connections between personal experience and personal opinion and action. The methodology involved personal interviews with residents, analysis of poll numbers, and use of media reports in locations currently experiencing the impacts of climate change.

Based …

201014 Obiter Dicta: April Showers Bring May Flowers 2010, Steven Samson

Faculty Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

201015 Obiter Dicta: Pomp And Circumstance, Steven Samson

Faculty Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

Paths To Citizenship: A Comparative Study Of Japan, Germany And Sweden, Marisha L. Lecea

Masters Theses

This paper examines citizenship policy in Japan, Germany and Sweden in an attempt to explain why some rich, democratic nations have high rates of naturalization and non-restrictive paths to citizenship, while others have negligible rates of naturalization and very restrictive policies. Japan has a very restrictive policy while Sweden has a very open policy. Germany is a mid-level case that has moved from more restrictive to less restrictive over the last several years. In this paper I look at the explanatory potential of internal, institutional, and external variables. I use data from the W orId Values Survey to compare domestic …