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1732. "The Kitsch of War: Misappropriating Sun Tzu for an American Imperial Hypermasculinity
- Author:
- L.H.M. Ling and Ching-Chane Hwang
- Publication Date:
- 04-2008
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The New School Graduate Program in International Affairs
- Abstract:
- Sun Tzu seems more popular than ever. The Bush Administration attributes its successful invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq to tactics in The Art of War such as “shock and awe” and “decapitation.” However, neither exists in Sun Tzu's manual. More seriously, this misappropriation reinforces an imperial hypermasculinity in US foreign policy given its neoliberal logic of “conversion or discipline” for Self/Other relations. Rival camps of imperial hypermasculinity arise in reaction, thereby rationalizing the US Self's resort to such in the first place. Locking the world into ceaseless rounds of hostility between opposed enemies, we argue, contradicts Sun Tzu's purpose. The Art of War sought to transform, not annihilate, the enemy as mandated by the cosmo-moral, dialectical world order that governed Sun Tzu's time. In misappropriating Sun Tzu, then, the Bush Administration turns The Art of War into mere kitsch.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, War, and Political Theory
- Political Geography:
- Afghanistan, United States, and Iraq
1733. 9/11 and the Paradox of American Power
- Author:
- Carl Conetta
- Publication Date:
- 12-2008
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The New School Graduate Program in International Affairs
- Abstract:
- The September 2001 attacks on the United States facilitated the formation of an effective domestic consensus on post-Cold War US globalism – a goal that had eluded the Clinton administration. The centerpiece of that consensus is the "war on terrorism." This puts US global engagement in a "war-fighting" framework, which has strong institutional, cultural, and ideological resonances in the American polity. And it admits both neo-conservative and neo-liberal varieties. However, the attendant surge in US military activism has proved both fabulously expensive and largely counter-productive. Moreover, it has helped undermine America's already-troubled hegemonic position within the Western and allied camp.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Foreign Policy, Imperialism, Terrorism, and War
- Political Geography:
- United States and America
1734. Fighting the 'Good Fight': An Assessment of Democratic Proposals For a New National Security Strategy
- Author:
- William D. Hartung
- Publication Date:
- 12-2008
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The New School Graduate Program in International Affairs
- Abstract:
- Many Democratic Party security policy proposals have been developed in response to the Bush Administration's actions. Ranging from Peter Beinart's The Good Fight to the Democratic Leadership Council's Progressive Policy Institution book to left-leaning think tank proposals, this material contains positives, negatives, and “sins of omission” that need to be fully addressed. The first priority is to broaden the definition of security to include protection from threats to human life, with the military as one of many tools available. Strength should not be equated with spending, but with the application of the right tools to the right problems.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Security, and Foreign Policy
- Political Geography:
- United States
1735. The European Union and the Promotion of Good Governance in its Near Abroad. One Size Fits All?
- Author:
- Tanja Anita Börzel, Yasemin Pamuk, and Andreas Stahn
- Publication Date:
- 12-2008
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Collaborative Research Center (SFB) 700
- Abstract:
- With the end of the Cold War, states and international organisations have systematically mainstreamed good governance in their development strategies for third countries. The European Union is no exception. The promotion of good governance ranks particularly high in the EU's “near abroad”, which has become a focal point for EU foreign policy making since the 2004/2006 enlargement rounds. This paper seeks to systematically compare the EU's approach to promoting good governance in the Southern Caucasus. Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia are equally marked by bad governance. Arbitrary rule and pervasive corruption are common in all three countries. Nonetheless, they significantly vary with regard to the degree of statehood, and the quality of the political regime. Our aim is to explore to what extent these variations have affected the EU's strategy of promoting good governance. Looking at the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP), a rather recent policy framework, we seek to give some answers to the question whether the EU sticks to a “one-size-fits-all” approach, or whether it has started to practice some differential treatment.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Development, and Regional Cooperation
- Political Geography:
- America and Europe
1736. Populism and Foreign Policy in Venezuela and Iran
- Author:
- Michael Dodson and Manochehr Dorraj
- Publication Date:
- 01-2008
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- The Journal of Diplomacy and International Relations
- Institution:
- School of Diplomacy and International Relations, Seton Hall University
- Abstract:
- The remarkable ascendance of Venezuela's president, Hugo Chávez, has generated new interest in Latin America's recurrent populism. Like the charismatic populists that preceded him, Chávez rose to power rapidly and became a symbol of deepening social polarization. He is seen as a pivotal figure in promoting a sharp leftward shift in Latin American politics and has been criticized for his authoritarian tendencies. In the words of Jorge Castañeda, “Chavismo” is the “wrong left” for Latin America. Hugo Chávez has become a much discussed leader for all these reasons, but he is perhaps most notorious for his aggressive foreign policy and for the strongly confrontational posture he has adopted toward the United States. Chávez has pursued high profile efforts to check US influence in Latin America, assert his own leadership in the region, and demonstrate that developing countries can act more independently of Washington's wishes.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy
- Political Geography:
- United States, Iran, Washington, Latin America, and Venezuela
1737. Identity and the Bomb
- Author:
- Michael Busch
- Publication Date:
- 09-2008
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- The Journal of Diplomacy and International Relations
- Institution:
- School of Diplomacy and International Relations, Seton Hall University
- Abstract:
- Given the increasingly grim forecast of a “nuclear renaissance,” and renewed concerns of uncontrollable atomic weapons proliferation, Jacques E.C. Hymans's The Psychology of Nuclear Proliferation provides a refreshingly positive antidote to the glum literature on international security. Traditional security studies generally seek to explain why so few countries have acquired nuclear arsenals, despite widespread desire and technical capacity in the international arena. In stark contrast, Hymans asks why any nation-state has the bomb at all. Rejecting conventional realist, institutionalist, and constructivist approaches to understanding foreign policy decision-making, Hymans crafts a new theoretical model for shedding light on why certain countries make the “revolutionary” decision to go nuclear. Drawing deeply from social psychology perspectives on human behavior, Hymans counter-intuitively argues that most decision makers are not naturally inclined to want nuclear weapons, nor are they willing to assume the grave responsibilities of having them.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy and Nuclear Weapons
1738. In Her Own Words: Hillary Clinton on the Middle East
- Author:
- Larisa Baste
- Publication Date:
- 12-2008
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
- Abstract:
- On December 1, President-elect Obama announced his nomination of Senator Hillary Clinton as U.S. secretary of state. The following are her remarks on key Middle East issues made during the course of the Democratic presidential primary campaign.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Islam, and War
- Political Geography:
- United States, Iraq, and Middle East
1739. The EU and Syria Move Closer
- Author:
- David Schenker
- Publication Date:
- 12-2008
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
- Abstract:
- On December 14, the European Union is slated to initial an association agreement with Syria. The pact had been on hold since 2004 because the EU "deemed that political circumstances were so far not right for its signature and ratification." These "circumstances" mostly concerned Damascus's pernicious policies in Lebanon, including its presumed role in the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese premier Rafiq Hariri. In recent months, however, Syria has rehabilitated its image in Europe, helping the pariah state end a lengthy period of international isolation. If it is signed, the agreement would be the latest in a series of cost-free diplomatic gains for Damascus in Europe.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy and Bilateral Relations
- Political Geography:
- Middle East, Lebanon, and Syria
1740. Not a Zero-Sum Game: Atlanticism and Europeanism in Italian Foreign Policy
- Author:
- Osvaldo Croci
- Publication Date:
- 12-2008
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- The International Spectator
- Institution:
- Istituto Affari Internazionali
- Abstract:
- In Italy, Atlanticism and Europeanism should not be seen as two alternative and therefore mutually exclusive policies. Strengthening Atlanticism, for instance, does not necessarily correspond to an equal weakening of Europeanism, as implicitly assumed by those who expect a tilt one way or the other each time a centre-right government replaces a centre-left one or vice versa. Rather, the two policies are hierarchical and constitute a "nested game", with Europeanism nested, as it were, in Atlanticism. Italy's foreign policy choices thus result from a double constraint, one of which, Atlanticism, is more important than the other, Europeanism. More precisely, Italian foreign policymakers have traditionally regarded Europeanism as a policy aimed at reinforcing Atlanticism.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy and Government
- Political Geography:
- Europe