Political Science Commons^™

Policy Memo: Political Violence And Terrorism On The Mexico-Us Border, Terence Garrett

Political Science Faculty Publications

The shooting and mass murder in El Paso that occurred recently is an example of a toxic mix of a number of elements typical of the USA political violence culture – a few of which will be analyzed in this memo. Two elements are permanent features and the third is subject to temporal and spatial limitations. These elements are: (1) extraordinary accessibility by almost anyone to military-grade weapons used in mass shootings; (2) white nationalist ideology and the propensity towards dehumanizing the “other” – or using Giorgio Agamben’s term, homo sacer,1 - those who may be sacrificed without rights, including …

Happiness Theory And Worker Cooperatives: A Critique Of The Alignment Thesis, Mark J. Kaswan

Political Science Faculty Publications

Work may provide subsistence, but for most people it is a necessary evil. For communities, businesses lie at the heart of our economic system, but often come with negative externalities. This article considers whether worker cooperatives will tend to have more positive impacts on the happiness of their workers and of the community than do traditional businesses. Worker cooperatives are businesses, but they are rooted in the community. Based on the work of 19th-century political economist William Thompson, I examine what I call the alignment thesis, which suggests that the democratic and ownership structure of cooperatives will align the interests …

A Crude Bargain: Great Powers, Oil States, And Petro-Alignment, Inwook Kim

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Petro-alignment, a quid pro quo arrangement whereby great powers offer security in exchange for oil states’ friendly oil policies, is a widely used and yet undertheorized energy security strategy. One consequential aspect of this exchange is that great powers choose different levels of security commitment to keep oil producers friendly. With what criteria do great powers rank oil states? How do we conceptualize different types of petro-alignments? What exactly do great powers and oil producers exchange under each petro-alignment type? I posit that a mix of market power and geostrategic location determines the strategic value and vulnerability of individual client …

Thailand's 2019 Vote: The General's Election, Jacob Ricks

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Thailand’s March 2019 ballot was the first for the country since 2011, and for many it signaled the potential end of the military junta’s five-year rule. But was it truly a return to democracy? This essay argues that the election was far from a democratization event. Instead, it was a highly orchestrated exercise to ensure authoritarian longevity. The junta employed techniques of institutional engineering as well as managing the election’s outcomes in an effort to extend the premiership of Prayuth Chan-ocha despite increasing pressure for a return to civilian rule. The results of the election suggest that Thai society continues …

Children Caught In A ‘Net: As Online Threats To Children Multiply, Challenges For Parents Increase, Erika Simpson

Political Science Publications

The article emphasizes that simple software and blocking methods can give parents a false sense of security online, as children can easily bypass these measures. Instead, it advocates for open communication and active digital supervision by caregivers.

It calls for increased efforts from law enforcement and anti-abuse groups to monitor dark web activities and combat pedophilia. Despite legitimate uses, the majority of traffic on hidden internet services involves child abuse materials.

The need for more research is highlighted to understand offender trends and the dynamics of child victimization. This includes studying relationships between victims and their abusers.

South-South Cooperation Or Core-Periphery Contention? Ghanaian And Zambian Perceptions Of Economic Relations With China, Colin Flint

Political Science Faculty Publications

The geopolitics of development are explored through an examination of development assistance to two African countries as a mechanism of competition between China and the US. The processes of competition include the actions and rhetoric of African leaders. We define a geopolitical context for the agency of political leaders and opinion-makers in Ghana and Zambia. The geopolitical context consists of the structure and dynamics of the world-economy; especially the competition to capture the newest round of innovations and the related need to establish supply chains of raw materials from peripheral countries. By analysing quotes from Ghanaian and Zambian elites we …

Stuart E. Eizenstat To Senator James O. Eastland,, Stuart Eizenstat

Eastland Correspondence: Carter Administration

Typed letter signed undated from Stuart E. Eizenstat to Eastland, re: undocumented aliens. Typed memorandum on Eastland Senate letterhead entitled Tentative Plans (Frank Moore), re: presidents trip to Jackson & Yazoo City, Mississippi.

Leap Of Faith Megaprojects: The Effect Of Civic Dialogue On Megaproject Legacies In The St. Louis Region, Nathan Theus

Theses

Megaprojects are unique capital improvements that are defined by their large-scale development plans and construction budgets. Industrial Belt cities, like St. Louis, are no stranger to these projects, and both government actors and private developers have walked hand in hand in planning and constructing megaprojects, while assuring the general public that the benefits would always outweigh the costs. Though there has been considerable quantitative research analyzing the statistical economic effects of various megaprojects, there has been relatively little discussion on other, specifically, qualitative means of analysis. This paper will examine the role civic dialogue has on the perceived and real …

Africa Faith And Justice Network And The Damages Of Land Grabbing: The Case Of The Brewaniase Community, Ghana, Sr. Eucharia Madueke

The Journal of Social Encounters

This essay discusses the procurement of farmland around the town of Brewaniase in the Volta Region of Ghana by the New York based agribusiness Herakles Farm (HF). The essay highlights some of the repercussions of land grabbing by foreign corporations that seek only profit and do not fulfill promises made to locals who lease their land for a better life. It provides information on the efforts of Africa Faith & Justice Network (AFJN), a faith-based Washington DC non-governmental organization, to enable the local communities to avert land grabs and its damages. The essay aims to help African communities and individuals …

Foreword, John Merkle

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Comparative Models In German Elections: Using The German Far-Right Party As A Proxy For Ethnic Conflict, Clay H. Parham

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

In 2017, the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) became the first the far-right party to win seats in the Bundestag since 1933. By campaigning on ethnic division, the AfD saw an unprecedented rise in support, especially in East Germany. This paper tests two models of ethnic conflict within comparative politics, primordialism and constructivism, to see which better explains the result of the AfD’s 2017 election. By examining the rhetorical use of political advertisements, the Manifesto Project’s analysis of the AfD’s platform, and differences of support between East and West Germany, the paper finds that constructivism better shows that highly-educated elites within …

Pipeline Or Pipe Dream: The Potential Of Peace Pipelines As A Solution To Fragmentation And Energy Insecurity In The European Union, Afton J. Apodaca, Julia Greensfelder

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

In recent years, the European Union (EU) has developed its energy policy to adapt to an evolving global market calling for cleaner energy while maintaining and enhancing its energy security as consumption has remained constant. While the EU works towards this goal, it also seeks to reduce Russian dominance in its energy markets. The EU’s internal politics have become more fragmented with the Eurozone and refugee crises, which has made the coordination of Union policies difficult as leaders are unable to form strong domestic policy alone to counter Russian presence in the energy market. Lacking a united energy policy against …

Europe's (Lack Of) Welfare Chauvinism: Evidence From Surveys And Spending, Ethan Davis

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

Immigration’s effect on European welfare states is complicated. On one hand, increased immigration might undermine social solidarity and impose greater fiscal burdens on redistribution, reducing support for welfare spending. On the other, natives could respond to greater globalization with economic anxiety, increasing support for redistribution in order to mitigate risk. Welfare chauvinism predicts a mixed effect—increased spending for programs that middle-class natives use and reduced spending for programs that benefit immigrants disproportionately. I test this theory by analyzing (1) European attitudes towards immigration and welfare spending and (2) actual spending on these programs, particularly social housing. Additionally, I present a …

Uneven Influence: Why Female Representation Affects Some Migration Policies But Not Others, Lauren M. Olsen

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

In the wake of the 2015 migration crisis, immigration policy has become one of the most critical topics of academic scholarship and political debate. Despite this prolific response, very little research has investigated how the gender of policymakers affects immigration policy. This raises an interesting question: is there any difference in immigration policy among countries with high and low numbers of female legislators? To investigate this matter, I use panel fixed-effects regression to systematically compare the immigration policies of the original EU-15 from 2000 to 2010. As a single policy area, I find female representation has no significant impact on …

A Moral Bureaucracy: Enforcement Of Eu Fundamental Values In Central And Eastern Europe, Sarah L. Sheets

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

There is growing sentiment that the rise of illiberal democracy in Central and Eastern Europe poses a serious threat to fundamental European values. Within the framework of the European Union (EU) legal system, how do post-socialist member states actually comply with fundamental European values? While there are multiple contradictory theories about the success or failure of assimilation in the region, there is surprisingly little datadriven literature which directly compares post-socialist member state compliance to the rest of the European member states. This paper fills the gap by comparing post-socialist compliance patterns with the rest of the EU, using data on …

The Finch Effect: Evolutionary Metaphors And Illiberal Democracy In Central And Eastern Europe, Abigail Woodfield

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

In recent years, several states in Central and Eastern Europe have seen democratic digression. Such illiberal resurgences came as a surprise to the many political scientists who assumed that the future of these states was democratic. Indeed, after the fall of the Soviet Union, the world largely regarded liberal democracy as the predominant system of government. The future seemed bright, and it was tempting to understand that future in evolutionary terms—just as humans evolved under natural selection to become the dominant species, democracy had survived a similar competition and defeated all other systems of government to become the dominant regime. …

Is Turkey A Rival To The European Union? Neo-Ottoman Influence In The Balkans, Ghazi Ghazi

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

Turkey, under Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s presidency, has begun to re-animate some aspects of its predecessor, the Ottoman Empire. Many observers of Turkey speak of “Neo- Ottomanism,” both at home and in its foreign policy. With respect to the latter, aspects of neo-Ottomanism are very evident with Turkey’s engagement in the Balkans. As European Union (EU) accession seems more and more unlikely for Turkey, one might wonder if Turkish actions in the Balkans can be seen as trying to rival the EU for influence. This paper thus seeks to answer two questions. First, what factors are motivating Turkish foreign policy, and …

Experience With And Perceptions Of Immigrants In Italy, Arianna Babraj

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

This research explores Italians’ experiences with and perceptions of immigrants, along with their ideas of how the government should formulate immigration policy. Using in person surveys, 117 subjects were interviewed in the northern, central and southern regions of Italy. After accounting for variables like age, gender, and region, the data revealed interesting trends. Overall, the main findings of this study hold that there is a connection between the proximity of a subject’s relationship with immigrants and how positive their experiences are. These experiences can influence how the subject then views immigrants as either an advantage or a disadvantage, however, other …

Understanding The Rise Of Far-Right Populist Parties In Europe, Alina L. Sobolik

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

This paper seeks to answer the question: what drives the recent electoral success of far-right populist parties (RPPs) in Europe? I will argue that it is supply factors, rather than demand factors, united under the theme of mistrust, that drove the recent electoral success of RPPs. To support my argument, I will summarize the ‘losers of globalization’ theory and apply it to the financial and economic crises, the migration crisis, the polarization of politics, and mistrust in governments, and categorize them as supply or demand factors according to Matt Golder’s definitions. For the sake of this paper, I will use …

Thank You, Next: An Analysis Of Sweden's Non-Compliance With Its Country-Specific Recommendations, Malcolm E. C. Thomson

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

The Eurozone crisis forced the European Union (EU) to reconcile with the absence of supranational macroeconomic and fiscal coordination within its Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). Efforts to minimise this imbalance are seen in the creation of the European Semester, a comprehensive framework that includes the issuing of voluntary Country-Specific Recommendations (CSRs) by the Commission to EU member states. This paper analyses Swedish CSR compliance and argues that Sweden’s persistent level of non-compliance is caused by contrasting positions that exist between the Swedish government and the Commission in the area of European macroeconomic integration. This contrast sees the Swedish government …