- Cultural Region (Sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East, Central Asia, East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Oceania, or Latin America)
- MLA Citation
- Concise (no more than 5 sentences) summary with a clear thesis statement
Wednesday, September 2, 2015
FI Question #43
To complete question #43 on the "Foundations Investigation," select an article from a PRINT issue of Current History. Your comment should include the following:
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Cultural Region: Middle East
ReplyDeleteMLA Citation:
Dunne, Michele. "Libya's Revolution: Do Institutions Matter?" Current History
110 (2011): 370-71. Print.
Summary:
Libya is rebelling against their dictator, and the author of the article notes that this could be a hasty move on their part. Libya's judiciary system is not terrible, but it is challenged by the People's Court and Revolutionary Courts. Lybians are now changing their views on democracy, and are no longer seeing it as a way to keep people from expressing themselves directly. It is unknwon who will advance fastest to fair democracy; Lybia, Egypt, or Tunisia. Though Lybia seems to have advantage over the others, its low level of human development holds it back.
Cultural Region: Europe
ReplyDeleteMLA Citation:
Muller, Jan-Werner. "Which Way Out?" Current History 114 (2015): 118-19. Print.
Summary:
Germany has been prevailing in the face of defeat concerning the Eurocrisis. The country's export industry has seen the better end since the European currency is at a relatively low exchange rate. It is in, however, a heated debate concerning democracy and welfare. This debate is a result of the financial troubles, and the economic indicators are bound to get worse. This creates a problem filled of political and economical issues, which expands the urgency of the problem.
Cultural Region: Sub-Saharan Africa
ReplyDeleteMLA Citation:
Epprecht, Marc. "Africa's New Political Homophobia." Current History 113.763 (2014): 203-04. Print.
Summary:
Uganda and Nigeria have many problems with both their governments and their populations and the author notes this. He notes that these problems and the incompetence of the governments has lead to politicians singling out homosexuals for their lack of answers because the general public in these countries does not support homosexuals. However there are Africans who are attacking this supposed "Political Homophobia" and are doing it in many ways, through the health system and through the governments. The best solution however is most likely patience and in due time the political homophobia will disappear.
Cultural Region: South Asia
ReplyDeleteMLA Citation:
Zamindar, Vazira. "South Asia in Dark Times: Homogenizing Nation-States and the Problem of Minorities." Current History 114.771: 149-53. Print.
Summary:
Minorities in India and Pakistan are becoming more aggressive against each other. A man named Bhimrao Ambedkar had suggested that all minorities live in different nation-states. This move would require the move of up to 50 million residents. There were others, such as Joseph Schechtman, who supported the move, and called it a "necessary evil." Muslims in India have become political outcasts.
MLA Citation:
ReplyDeleteTaylor, Matthew M. "Brazil's Ebbing Tide." Current History (2014): 57-63. Print.
Summary:
As the title suggests, this article is about the political problems in Brazil, including protests, corruption, and fraying policies. Many protests started up after the FIFA Soccer World Cup was held in Brazil; the people were complaining that the cup harmed the public and helped the private. Corruption has occured when many of Brazil's leader's cronies were sentenced to abridged terms in jail compared to what they should have recieved for what they had done. There is frayed policy in the new policy issued by the president prviding the country with a floating exchange rate, fiscal surpluses, and inflamation targets. All of these are harming the brazillian government.
MLA Citation: Cruz, Jose Miguel. "The Root Causes of the Central American Crisis." Current History 114.769 (2015): 43-48. Print.
ReplyDeleteSummary: Cruz looks at the defining factors of the current day migration crisis encompassing America. The article describes the political, economical, and social insecurity surrounding the "northern triangle." Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras faced daunting detriments such as crime, poverty, and even natural disasters that disrupted the democratic transition, mounting public opinion against the institutions that be. Cruz points to such factors as being a catalyst in Central America's rush for our Southern border, today.
Cultural Region: East Asia
ReplyDeleteMLA Citation:
Merkel-Hess, Kate. "Forbidden Memories of 1989." Current History: 252-53. Print
Summary: The Tiananmen Square protests in China in 1989 was a large student protest that had a very strong impact because it displayed the weaknesses in the Chinese Government and policies. As the pro-democracy supporters in Tiananmen Square increased in numbers, conflict ensued and there was mass bloodshed. Over 1,000 supporters of democracy were killed, and groups of Chinese families and people demand government acknowledgement and compensation for the massacre of their relatives.
Cultural Region: South Asia
ReplyDeleteMLA Citation:
Bagchi, Indrani. "The Struggle for Women's Empowerment in India." Current History: 144-49. Print.
Summary: When a young woman was raped as a punishment for being with a muslim man in India, it triggered outrage and grief on a scale that has never been seen in India before. It led to many women gathering together to fight against the small power that Indian women are given. After sometime the government introduced new laws that gave stricter sentences to criminals. But this is just a start for the Women's struggle for more equal power and existence amongst men. This is because it is related to the transition of the Indian society, so it will be a long battle.
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ReplyDeleteCultural Region: Europe and America in the Middle East
ReplyDeleteMLA Citation: Kupchan, Charles A. "Europe and America in the Middle East." Current History 106 (2007): 137-39. Print.
Summary: After George Bush’s second term the relationships between the United States and Europe recovered and W. Bush decided to contact the European Union because he knew Europe would help and support with the difficulties in the Middle East. The Middle East, however, were blamed for the tensions between the US and Europe due to Suez Canal, the Palestine-Israel conflict, and Iran’s Islamic revolution. Europe made a triumph in the Middle East with the EU-3 which included Britain, France, and Germany in cooperation to persuade Iran to stop their nuclear program. The EU-3 program not only helped the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, but also with the Palestine-Israel front. The involvement between Europe and Iraq, however, provoked a political separation with the European Union causing a war led by Britain.
Cultural Region: Europe
ReplyDeleteMLA Citation: Moravcsik, Andrew. "Europe, the Second Superpower." Current History 109 (2010): 91-98. Print.
Summary:
The three most commonly known and accepted superpowers of the world would be the United States, China, and India. However, as Andrew Moravcsik explains in "Europe, the Second Superpower," another superpower could be the continent of Europe. Europe contains all of the qualities and requirements that one needs such as it competes globally and succeeds among competitors, it has a strong international military, and does very well financially and economically. European economy is heavily affected by trade, education, investments, and foreign aid. These traits are all needed to have a well-functioning economy and all of them are present within Europe; which could lead to Europe being classified as a global superpower in the near future.
Culture Region: Europe
ReplyDeleteMLA Citation:
Hamilton, Daniel. "Time for a Transatlantic Pivot." Current History 113.761 (2014): 123-24. Print.
Summary:
The United States and Europe have come together in order to make the European continent less likely to give way or overturn to deal with the twenty-first century changes in economics, politics, and also in the security. However, the United States and Europe both need to straighten themselves out before working together by fixing current situations in their own economy such as a slow growth of jobs being created in Washington. The United States is hopeful that the Europeans up their game in the security field yet will not receive any positive feedback due to the dwindling size of the European military from the pressure of the economy. Europe and the United States are establishing a new trade partnership in which there will be free goods and services and also allows Europe to receive exported energy from the United States.
Cultural Region: Middle East
ReplyDeleteMLA Citation:
Nakhleh, Emile. "Propaganda and Power in the Middle East." Current History 112.758 (2013): 356-7. Print.
Summary: In the Middle East, there has been a great usage of "soft power," in countries like Syria and Egypt. "Soft power" is the use of platforms like news outlets and social media to spread a political message to a very large crowd. Egypt has been using these soft powers to discredit its opponents, like the Muslim Brotherhood, and other countries, like Syria, have been using its soft powers in a similar way. Syria has been using them to link its opponents to terrorist organizations, and sectarianism. This form of propaganda heavily effects the positions of the Middle Eastern people, pitting them against groups which would not effect them, furthering their government's agendas.
Cultural Region: Middle East
ReplyDeleteCitation: Gerges, Fawaz A. "ISIS and the Third Wave of Jihadism." Current History: A Journal of Contemporary World Affairs 113 (2014): 339-40. Print.
This article explains that ISIS was formed from a union between an Iraq-based al-Qaeda offshoot and the defeated Iraqi Baathist regime of Saddam Hussein. The cause of ISIS's excessive extremism lie in its origins in al-Qaeda, founded by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was killed by the United States in 2006. The U.S.-led invasion and occupation of Iraq has caused an outbreak in an already fractured Iraqi society. ISIS's swift military expansion comes from its ability to not only terrorize enemies but also to do-opt local Sunni communities. ISIS's rise in power comes from a combination of United States' involvement and lack of but also ISIS's theocratic leadership and horrendous tactics.
Cultural Region: Middle East
ReplyDeleteMLA Citation: White, Jenny. "Turkey at a Tipping Point." Current History Dec. 2014: 356-61. Print.
Summary: This article discusses the recent changes that Turkey is experiencing, which are causing rifts in political and social groups within the country. The author analyzes these changes by looking at Turkey’s Justice and Development Party, also referred to as the AKP, who attacked rival countries and went through multiple trials to prevent any future attempts. In addition, ISIS may be able to penetrate Turkey’s borders and begin recruiting as a result of the AKP attempting to unify the Muslims. Turkey also has built a powerful, stable economy and formed a branch of “Muslimhood”. To put it simply, Turkey is divided amongst those who want more freedom and those who want more order.