Search

Begin New Search Topic Politics

1691. “Une Messe est Possible”: The Imbroglio of the Catholic Church in Contemporary Latin Europe

Author:
Paul Christopher Manuel and Margaret Mott
Publication Date:
04-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
Abstract:
Throughout the contemporary period, the Church-State relationship in the nation-states of France, Italy, Spain and Portugal – which we will refer to as Latin Europe in this paper – has been a lively source of political conflict and societal cleavage, both on epistemological, and ontological grounds. Epistemological, in that the person living in Latin Europe has to decide whether his world view will be religious or secular; ontological, in that his mortality has kept some sense of the Catholic religion close to his heart and soul at the critical moments of his human reality. Secular views tend to define the European during ordinary periods of life, (“métro boulot dodo,”) while religious beliefs surge during the extraordinary times of life (birth, marriage, death,) as well as during the traditional ceremonial times (Christmas, Easter). This paper will approach the question on the role of the Catholic church in contemporary Latin Europe by first proposing three models of church-state relations in the region and their historical development, then looking at the role of the Vatican, followed by an examination of some recent Eurobarometer data on the views of contemporary Catholics in each country, and finishing with an analysis of selected public policy issues in each country. Throughout, it is interested in the dual questions of whether religion still plays an important role in Latin Europe, and whether or not the Catholic church is still able to influence the direction of public policies in the now democratic nation-states of France, Italy, Spain and Portugal.
Topic:
Politics and Religion
Political Geography:
Europe, France, Spain, Italy, and Portugal

1692. The European Union: Democratic Legitimacy In A Regional State?

Author:
Vivien A. Schmidt
Publication Date:
04-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
Abstract:
Democratic legitimacy for the EU is problematic if it is seen as a future nation-state. If instead the EU were seen as a regional state—with shared sovereignty, variable boundaries, composite identity, compound governance, and a fragmented democracy in which the EU level assures governance for and with the people through effective governing and interest consultation, leaving to the national level government by and of the people through political participation and citizen representation—the problems of the democratic deficit diminish for the EU level. But they become even greater for the national level, where the changes to national democratic practices demand better ideas and discourses of legitimization. A further complicating factor results from problems of “institutional fit,” because the EU has had a more disruptive impact on “simple” polities, where governing activity has traditionally been channeled through a single authority, than on more “compound” polities, where it has been more dispersed through multiple authorities.
Topic:
Democratization, Government, Politics, and Sovereignty
Political Geography:
Europe

1693. The Age of Welfare: Patronage, Citizenship, and Generational Justice in Social Policy

Author:
Julia Lynch
Publication Date:
04-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
Abstract:
Welfare states' redistribution of resources across classes, occupations, and genders is the subject of intensive scholarly analysis. Yet we know very little about how and why welfare states treat different age groups differently. This article demonstrates that seniors' demand for welfare does not determine age-orientation. Rather, the “age of welfare” is a largely unintended consequence of the interaction between the structure of social policies and the way that politicians use these programs to compete for votes. An implication for the policy feedback literature is that constituency demand may be less important than the unintended consequences of welfare state institutions.
Topic:
Human Rights, Human Welfare, and Politics
Political Geography:
United States

1694. The “New World Order”: From Unilateralism to Cosmopolitanism

Author:
Jeffrey Herf and Jürgen Neyer
Publication Date:
03-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
Abstract:
On January 26, 2004, the topic of the CES-Berlin Dialogues was “The 'New World Order': From Unilateralism to Cosmopolitanism.” It was the second in a series of four meetings organized in Berlin under the heading “Redefining Justice.” The session was intended to examine successful and failed arenas of cooperation between the US and Europe; political misunderstandings and conscious manipulation; and models for future transatlantic relations. The presenters were Jeffrey Herf, Professor of History, University of Maryland, and Prof. Dr. Jürgen Neyer, Professor of International Political Economy, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, and Heisenberg Fellow of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft at the Department of Political and Social Sciences of the Freie Universität Berlin. Jeffrey Herf was asked to speak on the basic tenets of U.S. foreign policy in the administration of President George W. Bush, and Jürgen Neyer focused on the European view of international relations and conduct in the period since the invasion of Iraq.
Topic:
International Relations, Foreign Policy, and Politics
Political Geography:
United States, Iraq, Europe, and Berlin

1695. Party Competition in Post-Communist Europe: The Great Electoral Lottery

Author:
Abby Innes
Publication Date:
05-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
Abstract:
This article suggests that the academic emphasis on rational choice and political-sociological approaches to party development has led to a misleading impression of convergence with Western patterns of programmatic competition and growing partisan identification in the Central European party political scene. As an alternative thesis, the author argues that the very character of 'transition' politics in Eastern Europe and the necessarily self-referential nature of the parliamentary game has structured party systems in those countries, and that the differences between the party systems in this region are critically related to experiences under communism (–a political-historical explanation). The paper argues that, in order to cope with a practical lack of public policy options in major areas such as the economy, parties have had little choice but to compete over operating 'styles,' rather than over substantive (ideologically based) programmatic alternatives. The development of parties incumbent in government since 1989 may be compared to the development of catch-all parties in Western Europe in terms of the competitive logic of weakening/avoiding ideological positions in order to embrace a large constituency. However, successful parties in Eastern Europe lack the 'baggage' of an ideological past and the history of mass membership and a class or denominational clientele – their defining characteristic is that they try to appeal to all of the people all of the time.
Topic:
Education, Government, and Politics
Political Geography:
Europe and Eastern Europe

1696. Report on an Analysis of the Representativeness of the Second Audit Sample, and the Correlation between Petition Signers and the Yes Vote in the Aug. 15, 2004 Presidential Recall Referendum in Venezuela

Publication Date:
08-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Carter Center
Abstract:
This study was conducted by The Carter Center and confirmed by the OAS in response to a written request from Sumate presented to The Carter Center Sept. 7, 2004. Sumate asked that The Carter Center evaluate a study performed by Professors Ricardo Hausmann and Roberto Rigobon.
Topic:
Government, Human Rights, and Politics
Political Geography:
South America and Venezuela

1697. Audit of the Results of the Presidential Recall Referendum in Venezuela

Publication Date:
08-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Carter Center
Abstract:
The following questions are expected to be answered by this audit of the manual recount of voting receipts (comprobantes de votación) in the ballot boxes:Does the electronic result transmitted by the voting machines (shown on the respective tally sheets) coincide with the manual recount of the receipts deposited in the respective ballot boxes, or not? Is there a discernable bias in the discrepancies found in favor of either the “Yes” votes or the “No” votes?
Topic:
Government, Human Rights, and Politics
Political Geography:
South America and Venezuela

1698. The carter center financing democracy in guatemala. Final Report: Financing Democracy in Guatemala

Publication Date:
05-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Carter Center
Abstract:
In recent years discussions about the quality of democracy in the Western Hemisphere have focused increasing concern on the financing of political parties and their campaigns. Unlimited spending on campaigns is believed (correctly or not) to have raised the cost of elections to the point where poor candidates stand little chance of competing and the prospect of creating a level playing field for parties and their candidates has become decidedly remote. Undisclosed contributions of licit or illicit origin by wealthy donors have meanwhile intensified the dependence of elected officials on their campaign funders, increasing the likelihood that politicians respond to donor interests and hindering effective representation for the ordinary citizen in the making of public policy. In tandem, these trends are contributing to public cynicism about parties and candidates, and about the possibilities for meaningful citizen participation in politics.
Topic:
Democratization, Economics, and Politics
Political Geography:
Latin America and Central America

1699. Financing Democracy in the Americas

Publication Date:
05-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Carter Center
Abstract:
Citizens throughout the hemisphere increasingly question the integrity of political processes with opaque methods of financing and access. After a quarter-century of democratic governance, money-conscious voters in Latin America's troubled economies have begun to ask whether elections really allow them to hold governments accountable for enacting promised reform s or whether instead politicians respond primarily to the special interest groups who fund their campaigns. Democracy remains a valued good, but questions are being asked about how much it costs, who pays, and whether the need to raise funds distorts policy agendas.
Topic:
Democratization, Economics, and Politics
Political Geography:
Latin America and Central America

1700. Understanding Foreign Policy Debates: Towards a Critical Constructivist Methodology

Author:
Lene Hansen
Publication Date:
02-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Center for International Studies, University of Southern California
Abstract:
Constructivists and poststructuralists argue that identities, ideas, norms, culture and discourses are indispensable for understanding world politics. This seemingly innocuous statement has been at the centre of heated debates within the field of International Relations for the past fifteen years and there is little indication that discussions are ceasing. Great debates throw up a series of fundamental questions: what should be the scope or research questions of International Relations; should one ask questions related to state behavior, or should one ask questions about the processes through which this behavior is conceptualized and legitimated to domestic and international audiences? How should the field's primary unit – the state – be conceptualized; what is, in other words, the ontology of the state, is it a rational utilitarian actor, is it concerned with security, self-preservation and relative gains, or does its utilitarianism translate into economic concern with absolute gains? Or, is the state a politically contested and unstable actor who is constantly in the process of constructing its identity? Are states and international institutions motivated by material interests or are they equally concerned with promoting a particular set of norms and ideas? And, how should these questions be studied? Which epistemology and methodologies should be applied, should one opt for a positivist epistemology, or a “social science approach” and an ensuing use of falsifiable hypotheses and causal analysis? Or, are there non-causal research questions, which warrant an interpretive, constitutive, or discursive epistemology, and what kind of methodologies are appropriate for these non-causal studies?
Topic:
International Relations, Foreign Policy, Government, and Politics