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Begin New Search Political Geography America Content Type Journal Article

61. A Muslim Mystic Community in Britain: Meaning in the West and for the West

Author:
Ali Murat Yel
Publication Date:
02-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Insight Turkey
Institution:
SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
Abstract:
THE NAQSHBANDIYYA is perhaps one of the widest-spread Islamic religious brotherhoods due to its active involvement in political affairs. Its 'strength' comes from the fact it could trace the sheiks of the order as far back as to the Prophet of Islam through his companion Abu Bakr. The silsila (the chain of transmission) of the order also contains some very important figures in Islamic history, like Salman al-Farisi and Bayazid al-Bistami. Despite the importance of the order and its worldwide expansion, the published works on the subject could fill only a small shelf. The order also has a great number of followers in Turkey, including some prominent political figures. Since Shah Bahauddin Naqshband, the founder of the order, the succeeding sheiks of the Naqshbandiyya tarikat (religious order) have currently been handed to Sheikh Nazim al-Kibrisi al-Haqqani, a Turkish Cypriot. The Sheikh has been given the task of expanding the order to the West, and as a result of arduous efforts he has been able to establish some centers in various European and American cities, with the biggest one being in London. Author Tayfun Atay studied this center for his Ph.D. thesis submitted to London University.
Topic:
Islam
Political Geography:
Britain, America, Europe, Turkey, and London

62. Chinese Scholarship on Iran and the Middle East

Author:
Nadia Helmy
Publication Date:
03-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Iranian Review of Foreign Affairs
Institution:
Center for Strategic Research (CSR)
Abstract:
In the past three decades, Chinese Iranian and Middle East Studies have become more and more systematic, which is reflected not only in the great volume of publication, but also in the varied research methodologies and the increase in Iranian and Middle East academic journals. The development of Chinese Middle East studies have accelerated in particular after Arab Spring revolutions and the political changes in the Middle East (2000- 2013). Research institutes evolved from state-controlled propaganda offices into multi-dimensional academic and non-academic entities, including universities, research institutes, military institutions, government offices, overseas embassies and mass media. At the same time, publications evolved from providing an introduction and overview of Iran and Middle Eastern states to in-depth studies of Middle East politics and economics in three stages: beginnings (1949- 1978), growth (1979- 1999), and dealing with energy, religion, culture, society and security. The Middle East-related research programs' funding provided by provincial, ministerial and national authorities have increased and the quality of research has greatly improved. And finally, China has established, as well as joined, various academic institutions and NGOs, such as the Chinese Middle East Studies Association (CMESA), the Asian Middle East Studies Association (AMESA) and the Arabic Literature Studies Association (ALSA). However, Chinese Middle East Studies remain underdeveloped, both in comparison with China's American, European, and Japanese studies at home, and with Middle East studies in the West.
Topic:
Security, Energy Policy, Government, Politics, Religion, Culture, and Authoritarianism
Political Geography:
Japan, China, America, Europe, Iran, Middle East, and Arabia

63. Anglo-Saxon Axis in 2003: Blair's Doctrine and Bush Invasion of Iraq

Author:
Seyed Vahid Karimi and Amir Hooshang Mirkooshesh
Publication Date:
03-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Iranian Review of Foreign Affairs
Institution:
Center for Strategic Research (CSR)
Abstract:
What is the relationship between the doctrine of Tony Blair and America's invasion of Iraq? This paper tries to answer this question. So, it looks at the American invasion of Iraq and the British response, and argues that Brain always prevails over brawn. United States was and still is a hard power. Britain plays a soft power role in international relations. Britain usually uses the American strength and resources for the benefit of Britain. When the British describe their relations with the United States as "special," they mean that they have the power to influence and direct US foreign policy. For an understanding of the international politics, we must concentrate on Anglo-Saxon "interdependency" through the "special relationship" which often exists between British Prime Ministers and US Presidents. Winston Churchill, British Prime Minister of the 1940s, Harold Macmillan in the 1960s, Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s and Tony Blair in the 2000s, all had special relationships with their US counterparts. While not always the case, the relationship between Tony Blair, British Prime Minster, and George Bush, American President, was beneficial to British interest and Blair's doctrine of International Community declared in 1999. it is imperative not only to understand international politics, but also to react properly to international politics. As it has been proven in the Iraq case, Tony Blair manipulated US foreign policy during the George Bush presidency.
Topic:
International Relations and Foreign Policy
Political Geography:
Britain, United States, Iraq, and America

64. Understanding The Arctic Council: A 'Sub-Regional' Perspective

Author:
Alyson J. K. Bailes
Publication Date:
03-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Military and Strategic Studies
Institution:
Centre for Military, Security and Strategic Studies
Abstract:
The international architecture of the circumpolar Arctic region is unusual in several ways. All countries directly involved – Canada, the USA, Russia and the five Nordic nations, who are also the states members of the Arctic Council – are regarded in other contexts as part of a 'Euro-Atlantic' nexus, and all belong to bodies like the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). Yet the classic Euro-Atlantic institutions have so far barely engaged with the new issues created by the opening up of the region though ice melting. NATO does not have an Arctic policy as such, while the OSCE itself and the Council of Europe have been only marginally involved. The European Union has a de facto presence in several dimensions (climate management, the energy market, shipping, research and monitoring etc), but has so far failed to secure the status of an observer at the Arctic Council.
Political Geography:
Russia, America, Europe, Canada, and Nordic Nations

65. Political Bubbles: Financial Crises and the Failure of American Democracy

Author:
Mark A. Calabria
Publication Date:
03-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The Cato Journal
Institution:
The Cato Institute
Abstract:
The majority of books on the recent financial crisis tend to be written either by economics/finance experts or by journalists. While the journalistic accounts occasionally focus on political actors, it is usually in the manner of "bad people doing bad things" rather than with a theoretical framework. The economic accounts, with some exception, rarely incorporate the politics of finance. It is this vacuum that Political Bubbles attempts to fill.
Political Geography:
America

66. Women's Rights U.S. Foreign Policy

Author:
Melanne Verveer
Publication Date:
03-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Americas Quarterly
Institution:
Council of the Americas
Abstract:
When I attended the first Summit of the Americas in Miami in 1994, only two female heads of state represented their countries: Dominica and Nicaragua. This past April at the Sixth Summit of the Americas in Cartagena, Colombia, five of the presidents and prime ministers representing the 33 participating countries were women: from Argentina, Brazil, Costa Rica, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago. Their presence was an important example of the progress the hemisphere—and its women—have made. In fact, the region continues to make progress in a variety of areas. Latin America and the Caribbean are tackling ongoing challenges head-on, including promoting girls' education, improving women's and girls' health, facilitating women's political participation, and expanding women's economic opportunities. Governments throughout the hemisphere are increasingly recognizing that no country can get ahead if it leaves half of its people behind.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Economics, and Government
Political Geography:
America, Brazil, and Caribbean

67. Higher Education in Chile

Author:
Richard André
Publication Date:
03-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Americas Quarterly
Institution:
Council of the Americas
Abstract:
The quality of Chile's universities is well known across the Americas. Two of these—Pontificia Universidad Católica de ChileUniversidad de Chile—rank in the top five of the 2011 U.S. News and World Report list of the 100 best schools in the region. Unfortunately, high-quality education comes at a high cost. Chile has the second most expensive private university system of any OECD country, after the United States. And due to the lack of financial aid, Chilean families shoulder 85 percent of the cost of a university education—more than any other developed nation.Until recently, most Chilean youth accepted the cost of education as the price of social mobility. Gabriela San Martín, 24, considered a university degree a ticket to a stable, decent-paying job. She took out a government-financed loan, known as crédito con aval del estado (CAE), to pay for her studies in early childhood education at Universidad Andrés Bello.
Topic:
Education
Political Geography:
America and Chile

68. Structures, environnement et basculement dans le jihadisme

Author:
Luis Martinez
Publication Date:
04-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Cultures & Conflits
Institution:
Cultures & Conflits
Abstract:
Comment expliquer l'attrait pour le courant jihadiste de certains jeunes musulmans en France ? Cet article montre comment se construit la justification de la radicalisation et les étapes qui rendent légitime le passage à l'acte violent. Le processus de justification du passage à l'acte violent - à l'attentat-suicide par exemple - s'inscrit dans un contexte qu'il faut comprendre : quelles sont « les structures sociales et organisationnelles qui peuvent promouvoir dans un moment donné, l'attentat-suicide ? ». Aussi, l'analyse du basculement dans la violence doit-elle recontextualiser les engagements et les trajectoires individuelles, car l'environnement dans lequel se construit le processus de justification apparaît comme déterminant. Le basculement dans la violence n'est pas le produit d'une frustration ou d'un symptôme psychologique. L'attentat-suicide, par exemple, est un véritable instrument de guerre. Il a un sens, répond à une logique et s'inscrit dans une finalité : un territoire à libérer, une communauté à reconquérir . Les entretiens réalisés auprès de jeunes musulmans d'origine nord-africaine permettent ici de souligner comment se construit la justification du passage à l'acte violent ; ils permettent aussi de comprendre que, pour que l'acte violent se réalise, des conditions générales et structurelles sont nécessaires, sans quoi la justification du passage reste de l'ordre du discours.
Political Geography:
Afghanistan and America

69. L'altermondialisme et la recherche sur les mouvements sociaux. Quelques réflexions

Author:
Donatella Della Porta
Publication Date:
04-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Cultures & Conflits
Institution:
Cultures & Conflits
Abstract:
Le 30 novembre 1999, à Seattle, ville américaine devenue le symbole de la New Economy, environ 50 000 personnes protestent contre la 3e conférencede l'Organisation mondiale du commerce (OMC) réunie pour lancer leMillenium Round, un nouveau cycle de négociations visant à poursuivre lalibéralisation du marché, en particulier celles des investissements et des services publics. Les manifestations de Seattle avaient été lancées en 1999 à Genève parune coordination d'organisations de provenances diverses, qui s'étaient déjàmobilisées avec succès pour empêcher la signature d'un traité international, leMultilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI), accusé de réduire, au nom dulibre-échange, la capacité des Etats à intervenir sur les enjeux sociaux et environnementaux.Les manifestations contre le Millenium Round–précédéesd'assemblées et d'initiatives de diffusion d'informations dans le monde entire3x2013;ont été organisées par 1 387 ONG, syndicats, écologistes et églises de différentes confessions. Parmi les slogans des manifestations, on trouve ceux-ci : « Theworld is not for sale » ; « No globalization without participation » ; « We arecitizens, not only consumers » ; « WTO–Capitalism without conscience » ;« Trade: clean, green and fair ».
Political Geography:
America

70. A propos des "disparus" de la guerre civile espagnole (suite)

Author:
Antonio Garcia Castro
Publication Date:
04-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Cultures & Conflits
Institution:
Cultures & Conflits
Abstract:
Nous publions ici trois documents étroitement liés au dossier consacré à la question des « disparus » de la guerre civile espagnole, paru dans notre précédent numéro. Ces documents, conçus comme des annexes dudit dossier, entendent introduire, pour ainsi dire fugacement, d'autres regards sur ce qu'engagent les actuelles exhumations des fosses communes de la période franquiste.
Political Geography:
America