Reflection Week 13

The Major Simulation project seemed to dominate this week, not only over other parts of World Politics but over all of Leonard 7 and certainly in my case the entire week. This simulation was certainly more complex than the previous simulation and I felt like it demanded much more research and much more general knowledge than the previous one. In relation to that, this project made me wish that I had more of a background in economics. I felt that while research was useful I would have been able to do a better job if I knew more about global economics. I think that I learned a lot more during the project about international economic relations and about my individual country, Ukraine.
Furthermore, I agree with Rachel that it seemed like consensus would be difficult because of the different positions represented. While the jury is still out on that point it appears to me that this will be the case. However, I think that adds another layer to the simulation because, while it is not entirely accurate, the simulation does reflect certain realities when it comes to international cooperation. Our difficulty coming to a consensus is only a fraction of that which it is in the real world because we are dealing with specific outlined issues and we only represent a few nations, among which the United States is absent. We are dealing with developing nations, international organizations, and the European Union. Tension has been developing between the Ukraine, Doctors Without Borders, the EU, and McDonalds who wish to eliminate corruption and Uganda and the Dominican Republic who deny corruption exists. While this makes consensus difficult it does not make it impossible especially because we have other issues to discuss.
In the real world, however, the WTO must balance the needs of all nations throughout the world including the United States. So in many ways this simulation is a microcosm of what happens in the real world concerning varying opinions and a lack of consensus. This is further evidenced in the United Nations. While I believe the UN is a useful tool in international diplomacy, it is also difficult for it to reach consensus on anything because of the different perspective that each nation brings to the table. I think the simulation gives an accurate picture of how difficult it is to reach international consensus even under the best possible circumstances, which rarely happen.

The Great Capitalist Peace

The Great Capitalist Peace is an ideal that can never be achieved in reality due to the fallen nature of mankind. Lieven and Hulsman contrast the philosophy of the Great Capitalist Peace with the philosophy of the Democratic Peace which states that if all nations were democracies war would cease to exist. I think their emphasis on economics, rather than on political structures is important because democracies are not all the same and they have fought each other in the past. However, the Great Capitalist Peace emphasizes that if all nations share in the global economy they will be less likely to go to war. This is more feasible than the argument about democracies, though it is a goal that can never be obtained. Humanity is naturally flawed and constantly seeks greater and greater advantages at the expense of others. Therefore nations, composed of humans seek conflict with their enemies to achieve the goals for which they strive. Not all nations would voluntarily agree to such economic conditions and even if they did this will not lead ultimately to universal peace. Just because economic connections provide a disincentive for nations to go to war with one another that does not mean that such economic interconnectedness will eliminate conflict altogether.
While it is a noble goal the Great Capitalist Peace is an ideal that simply can never be achieved. This is because universal peace is not possible no matter the mechanism used to achieve it. While I believe that the Great Capitalist Peace, in which all people have a stake in the international economy, is the best hope at eliminating conflict to a certain extent. When all people have a stake in the global economy they will be less likely to jeopardize that prosperity through conflict and a relative peace will result. However, in certain situations the desire for conflict will exceed the desire to maintain trade relations and the nation will be willing to sacrifice its economic success for military struggle in hopes that it will obtain even greater success. Subsequently the Great Capitalist Peace will fail to eliminate all conflict.

Reflections on Week Ten

The main excitement of week ten for me was Embassy Trick-or-Treating on Halloween. Since I heard about it I looked forward to it, and it was really cool. It was fun to get to see all the embassies, as well as the reactions on people’s faces to the large groups of costumed college students walking around all afternoon. We were greeted warmly at the embassies we came to and received lots of compliments on our costumes. Wearing my Russian Ground Forces uniform, complete with gas mask, I got quite a few comments from embassy personnel, as well as several people on the street. In one embassy they took my picture, and in the South Korean embassy a man put a Snickers bar in my hand, clasped them together, shook my mask a bit, and exclaimed, “Holy shit!” I think we were both quite amused, he by the unexpected appearance of a fully-uniformed Russian soldier, and I by his reaction. One thing I was set on doing that day was going to the Russian Embassy to see what their reaction would be to my uniform. After several hours of bad directions and searching, I finally made it there with an exhausted Gunperi in tow. It was by far one of the biggest embassies in D.C. I knew they weren’t giving out candy, but I had hoped to see the reactions of the Russians and get a picture. I didn't see any embassy personnel outside, but I can bet all the guards were looking at me through the one-way glass windows in the guard building wondering what this American was doing. We went to take a picture, but were told it was not allowed by a voice over a small speaker near the entrance. I guess the fact that they used aggregate as a siding material is considered a state secret.

-Gregory Proulx

"other" or brother?

The quote " The man who finds his country sweet is only a raw beginner; the man for whom each country is as his own is already strong; but only the man for whom the whole world is as a foreign country is perfect" is somewhat misguided. It is my belief that "the man for whom each country is as his own" is the most perfect. The reasoning behind this is that this man would be inclined to look out for the best interests of every country, as he thinks of each as his own. On the contrary the man who approaches every country as a foreigner could be trying to exploit every country as he considers none of them his own. Therefore the first man would be the one more likely to carry himself in a morally responsible manner because he would see everyone as his equal and none as the "other" , while the second would be more likely to see himself as above all those he encountered. So the question is which is more perfect: to think of every man as your brother?, or to think of every man as "other". Who would you treat kinder? Who is more likely to trade with you, help you, merge with you to become stronger? I think we can all agree that the answer would be your brother and that the more perfect man is he who sees each country as his own.

The Question of Poverty

Does the government have an obligation to address poverty? Is this a legitimate issue for public policy to take on?

Absolutely.

Throughout human history, poverty has always been a persistent issue. In ancient and medieval societies, the wealth gap between rich and poor was enormous. The wealthy minority was composed of royalty and high-level clergy, while the majority was composed of poor peasants. As history has progressed this system of economic polar opposites has lessened somewhat, due to numerous factors including new technology, ideas, and practices. The “first world,” or countries that are technologically-advanced democracies whose citizens have a high standard of living, include countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, and those of Western Europe. The economic class structure in many of these countries consists of a large middle class and smaller low and high classes. However, it should be noted that this does not indicate a global decrease in poverty; instead, it highlights a shift in these countries from exploiting domestic labor to exploiting foreign labor. The North-South gap is a lasting legacy of such colonial imperialism. Millions of people live in abject poverty with no access to clean water, proper nutrition, medical care, education, and the myriad of other things that we in the United States take for granted. I think tackling the monumental challenge of poverty is possibly one of the most pressing obligations of the world’s governments. Not only is it a monumental challenge, but it is one governments and people everywhere must address so as to build a better, more equal and just future for all mankind.

-Gregory Proulx

Fevers and Reflections

When I reflect back on this week, there isn't too much to reflect on. I was sick, I slept a lot, I couldn't really do much of anything.....doesn't make for that much of a reflection; but it did get me thinking.
Think back to a time when you were really sick. You probably didn't have much energy, and you probably felt pretty awful. You may have vomited until all that came up was a watered down form of stomach bile. You may have had a fever so high that the room wouldn't stop spinning. You definitely stayed home, or got sent home from school. You may have been hospitalized. You may have gotten medication, maybe it helped a lot maybe it helped a little - but chances are it helped some. You may have been cold, in which case you used a ton of blankets - you may have still been cold but hey, you tried.....or some one tried for you. Chances are you had some one to take care of you. If you didn't have someone to take care of you then you probably had some where that you could be where you didn't have to do much, if anything. If your reading this, then you got better.

For people living in severe poverty, this wasn't the case. They may have felt the same as you, at first. Then you got medicine, and they didn't. You got blankets, and they didn't. You had a hospital to go to if it came to that, chances are, they didn't.

When we try to rank what issues are most important when addressing global poverty, it is all fine and well to say the education will solve all the problems....but a person cannot get that education if they cannot get to school. They can't get to school if they don't have roads to get there, and they certainly can't walk down the roads if they are too sick to stand. While there is certainly an order of things that people need it is unquestionable that basic needs: food, water, shelter, and overall physical health are the most important. Imagine if you felt the worse you've ever felt. Some people feel that way every day. Think about it.

Deadly Legacy: The Soviet Union’s Ravaging of the Environment

The Russian Federation faces a variety of societal problems. Government corruption and suppression of democracy are rife, and human rights violations abound. The Russian military faces numerous operational challenges, including low morale and budgetary problems. Issues regarding Chechnya and terrorism continue to plague the government. Crime and drug use are on the rise, and the population is declining at an alarming rate. Such issues are well-known, often making their way into the public’s eye via the Washington Post or BBC news.

However, one, lesser-known but equally serious issues it that of Russia’s ecological malaise.

The environmental legacy of the Soviet Union is one of mind-boggling disregard and destruction. Soviet industries operated unhindered by environmental regulations which, although stringent, were seldom enforced, releasing massive amounts of pollution into the air, land, and water. In fact, the former Soviet Union is home to some of the world’s most polluted places. The Blacksmith Institute, an environmental organization dealing with pollution problems, ranked Sumgayit in Azerbaijan, Dzerzhinsk and Norilsk in the Russian Federation, and Chernobyl in Ukraine among the top 10 in its annual report, “The World’s Worst Polluted Places: The Top Ten of the Dirty Thirty” (The World’s Worst Polluted Places 6). Of the further twenty locations, six are located in the former Soviet Union. Pollutants at these sites include heavy metals, chemicals and toxic byproducts, harmful particulate, and radioactive materials, which have resulted in increased mortality rates and a myriad of health problems, such as cancer, genetic defects, and respiratory diseases. Still worse is the fact that many sites like these exist across the country. However, industry was not the only source of pollution—agriculture was also to blame. Poor farming practices resulted in major erosion, and the improper use of pesticides—tons of which lie abandoned across the country—contributed to contamination of the soil and water.

The Soviet armed forces also contributed significantly to the destruction of the environment, regularly dumping old munitions, jet fuel, and other hazardous wastes without regard for the health of the environment or citizenry. Clandestine dumping of chemical weapons was widespread, and took place at locations such as the pine forests of Leonidovka and the Baltic Sea. Lev Fedorov, activist and president of the Union of Chemical Safety, estimates that the Soviet military dumped half a million tons of chemical weapons between the end of WWII and the late 1980s, tens of thousands of tons of which still sit buried in “unmarked and still undisclosed graveyards” throughout the former Soviet Union (Hoffman). Military facilities with huge stores of deadly chemical weapons slated for destruction also dot the country, such as those at Gornyy, Maradykovsky, and Shchuchye (“SGP Issue Brief”). The Soviet Navy had the particularly appalling practice of nuclear disposal at sea, dumping large quantities of radioactive waste and submarine reactors with spent fuel into the Barents and Kara Seas, the Seas of Japan and Okhotsk, and the North Pacific Ocean (Steinhardt et al 9-11). Many decommissioned Soviet nuclear submarines sit rusting in port and awaiting dismantlement, adding to the threat of further contamination or accidents. Norway has raised concerns about accidents at Andreyeva Bay, a storage facility for radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel of the Russian Northern Fleet located 45 kilometers from the Russian-Norwegian border and 100 kilometers from Murmansk, and the Bellona Foundation has labeled Andreyeva “a ticking time bomb” after research confirmed the possibility of an uncontrollable chain reaction, and small nuclear explosion, at the facility (Alimov). Radiological pollution at Russian nuclear weapons facilities was and continues to be endemic, as highlighted in a publication by the Pacific Northwest Center for Global Security:

“Three of Russia’s nuclear materials production sites, referred to historically as Chelyabinsk-65, Tomsk-7, and Krasnoyarsk-26, have accounted for over 95 percent of the world’s radioactive waste released to surface and subsurface water systems” (qtd. in Fuller and Leek).

Unsound operating practices and accidents have plagued these facilities, further adding to the threat they pose to the environment and the local population. One of the most serious accidents occurred at Chelyabinsk-65, home to the Mayak Chemical Combine, in 1957 when a radioactive waste storage tank exploded, contaminating some 20,000 square kilometers of land and exposing over 272,000 people to radioactive fallout (Kudrik et al 66-69). This accident, as well as numerous others, has earned Chelyabinsk-65 the infamous reputation of being the most radioactively polluted spot on the planet. Another accident at Tomsk-7 in 1993 resulted in the contamination of 100 square kilometers of land (Kudrik et al 78). Various other sources of radioactive pollution, such as the approximately 1,000 radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) built to power remote navigation beacons and lighthouses, remain scattered throughout the former Soviet Union, posing lingering health and environmental risks.

Unfortunately, this trend of criminal disregard for environmental protection and human health still continues to a large degree. Many of Russia’s industries continue to function as they did in Soviet times, unfettered by environmental regulations which remain inadequate or unenforced. A recent plan was hatched by Minatom, Russia’s nuclear ministry, to receive foreign shipments of nuclear waste at Chelyabinsk-65 in an attempt to raise much-needed funds; however, this plan was condemned in 2002 by Gosatomnadzor, the ministry’s own nuclear regulator (“Russian Regulators Condemn Own Ministry”). Russia’s pristine forests are facing the threat of increased logging, and the accelerated extraction of natural resources, such as oil and gas at the Sakhalin I and II projects, risks further environmental destruction.

With all this in mind, a prudent question to ask is what is being done about these issues? Many NGOs, such as Greenpeace Russia, the Blacksmith Institute, and the Bellona Foundation, are working towards remediating the ecological devastation of Soviet times. Governments and international organizations, including the United States, Norway, the World Bank, and the European Union, are also helping the Russian Federation by providing environmental assistance in the form of funding and joint cleanup programs. However, many challenges still remain. The Soviet government’s tradition of hostility towards the environmental movement continues to this day, with activists often facing harassment, beatings, and arrest at the hands of Russian authorities. Many are suspicious of government involvement in the beating death of a Siberian anti-nuclear protestor in July 2007 (Kopeikina). Years of Soviet rule also bred indifference towards the well-being of the environment, a trend persistent in many of the former Soviet republics. It is important that the international community continue and expand efforts to deal with the ecological damage caused by the Soviet Union, as well as work to foster environmental consciousness. Such efforts will benefit not only the Russian Federation and the former Soviet republics, but the greater global community by preventing further environmental tragedies like those at Mayak and Chernobyl and building a better, cleaner future for the next generation.

-Gregory Proulx

Works Cited

Alimov, Rashid. “Andreyeva Bay is a Ticking Bomb, Bellona’s Documents Prove.” Bellona Foundation. Trans. Maria Kaminskaya. 7 June 2007. 15 Nov. 2007 <http://www.bellona.org/articles/andreyeva_ticking_bomb>.

Fuller, James L., and K. M. Leek. United States. Pacific Northwest Center for Global Security. Department of Energy. Debt for Ecology: a Concept to Help Stabilize Russian Nuclear Cities. 2001. 11 Nov. 2007 <http://www.nti.org/e_research/official_docs/labs/debt_ecology.pdf>.

Hoffman, David. “Wastes of War: Russia’s Forgotten Chemical Weapons.” Washington Post 16 Aug. 1998. 13 Nov. 2007 <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/coldwar/leonidovkaa.htm>.

Kopeikina, Victoria. “Investigators Seek to Frame Environmentalists in Attack on Siberian Ecological Protest Camp.” Bellona Foundation. Trans. Maria Kaminskaya. 8 Aug. 2007. 14 Nov. 2007 <http://www.bellona.org/articles/angarsk_attack>.

Kudrik, Igor, Charles Digges, Alexander Nikitin, Nils Bøhmer, Vladimir Kuznetsov, and Vladislav Larin. The Russian Nuclear Industry: The Need for Reform. Bellona Foundation, 2004. 14 Nov. 2007 <http://www.bellona.org/filearchive/fil_Bellona_2004_RedReport.pdf>.

“Russian Regulators Condemn Own Ministry Over Nuclear Dump Plans.” Greenpeace International. 21 June 2002. 12 Nov. 2007 <http://www.greenpeace.org/international/news/russian-nuclear-dump-plan-cond>.

“SGP Issue Brief: Implementing Chemical Weapons Destruction in Russia.” Strengthening the Global Partnership. Center for Strategic and International Studies. 15 Nov. 2007 <http://www.sgpproject.org/publications/SGPIssueBrief/Annex%201.PDF>.

Steinhardt, Bernice et al. United States. Resources, Community, and Economic Development Division. Government Accountability Office. Nuclear Safety: Concerns with Nuclear Facilities and Other Nuclear Facilities and Other Sources of Radiation in the Former Soviet Union. Nov. 1995. 11 Nov. 2007 <http://www.gao.gov/archive/1996/rc96004.pdf>.

The World’s Worst Polluted Places: The Top Ten of the Dirty Thirty. New York: The Blacksmith Institute, 2007. 9 Nov. 2007 <http://www.blacksmithinstitute.org/wwpp2007/finalReport2007.pdf>.

Reflections Week XII

This week’s class was interesting with the use of two simultaneous conversations, one using AIM and the other natural. To be honest, however, I was not a huge fan of the distraction that came with the two types of conversation because, even though I was not part of the AIM chat, the entire time I was very curious as to what was being said electronically. I regret not joining the online chat because I think I might have shared my thoughts more spontaneously, as compared to the more directed discussion of the isolation group. Some of the comments made during class seemed, from my point of view, to stem from the online conversations and sometimes tied into the discussion, yet it was apparent that the two conversations were touching on different material. As a result, I thought the spectrum of ideas brought up out loud did not always follow the directed discussion, which could be positive, yet often the shared ideas seemed more scattered than they followed a focus. The online chat seems to be a great conversational tool, especially to brainstorm the ideas of many people effectively in a short period of time, yet I think the discussion might be most effective if the whole class was involved in only one method of interaction.

reflection week 12

The discussion on Tuesday with the online chat going throughout the discussion was, I think, the most interesting part of this week. I was skeptical at first, since I’m not really technologically savvy, as to whether the online chat would benefit or hinder our discussion. I was pleasantly surprised to realize that the online chat really did contribute to our discussion. I felt like I was able to better contribute to the discussion on the chat because I could get my ideas out before I was able to forget them and before the topic moved on. Often in discussions there are so many hands raised that it takes time before you are able to speak and then you have either forgotten your point or it is completely irrelevant. However, with the online chat I felt like not only was I able to express my views but I also heard from many different people both on the chat and in class. Therefore many more different opinions were aired and I think it added a new dimension to the discussion which was refreshing. I definitely think this is a worthwhile format that should be used again in this class, if time permits, and certainly in future classes.
All week I have been wondering about the world politics significance of Conquest of America and the visit to the Museum of the American Indian. Initially it seemed like a domestic issue to me rather than one of world politics. I see now many of the connections that were not initially apparent. First of all I think it is telling that the United States, a major world power, would not exist as it does had the native civilization not been destroyed. This does not mean that the action was justified but I think it means that sometimes good results can come from horrible actions. Also the book chronicles an historical clash of civilizations and it illuminates how various cultures respond to one another and how conquest happens. This is critically important in today’s world because nations need to be wary of the consequences both for their own nation and for others when the seek conquest. Furthermore the aspect of cultural interaction is pertinent anytime an individual or group encounters and new culture. By knowing what our responses tend to be we can hopefully morph them into something that is more constructive for all parties involved.

Reflections on Week Nine

Week nine was a good week, and was made even more so by parents weekend. My parents came into class on Friday and participated in our advertisement activity, which was a very interesting one at that. The first advertisement we saw was a recruitment ad for the US Army which, although I thought it was a “cool” ad, displayed a clear jingoistic trend starting in the middle and increasing towards the end. I feel like the claim, “There is nothing on this green earth that is stronger than the US Army…because there is nothing on this green earth that is stronger than a US Army soldier” really damaged the credibility of the ad because it just sounded, well, foolish. I think a majority of class agreed, because when the ad came to that section a good number of people laughed in a, “wow, that’s a joke” kind of way.

Although understandable in the context of the military, I felt uneasy when the words, “The strength to obey” appeared on the screen due to controversies involving US personnel in the last several years, such as Abu Ghraib, Haditha, Mahmudiyah, Guantanamo Bay, Hamdania, and Shinwar. I am disgusted by the abuse, torture, and murder of civilians and prisoners these events reek of. Such terrible actions portray the United States in a very negative light, damaging our image with the international community and harming US efforts to combat global terrorism by providing justification to our enemies’ claims that we are an “evil” country. Further, crimes like these give our armed forces a bad name, flying in the face of the strength of character, purpose, and ability to do good that the ad talked about, and deeply wound our national morale.

Reading about these atrocities, it hurt me to know that they were perpetrated by people from my own country.

It made me feel ashamed.

I know that the US military is not made up of cruel, malicious individuals looking to hurt other people. I know some people in the military: I have a friend in the Army and a cousin in the Air Force, as well as a friend whose father is in the Air Force. However, I cannot say that I am any more familiar with the US military on a personal basis than that. Hence, I can see how easy it is for people in other countries to look at headlines reporting such events and make negative generalizations about our country and our military—they are even less familiar with the our military (and country), having to base their perceptions on our foreign policy and how it affects them (be it food aid or invasion). Such events even make me want to generalize sometimes, but it is easier for me to put things in perspective and look at the overall picture than it is for the Iraqi civilians whose friends and family were brutally murdered by a small group of reckless, cruel Marines. I think that what those soldiers did was of the utmost repulsiveness and cruelty, and I think they should be punished for it. However, it is important to remember that those soldiers were there because our political administration got them sent there on an agenda crafted of deceit, greed, and fear. Whatever actions stem from such an agenda are likely to be corrupted because, as the pivotal NSC-68 foreign policy recommendation so wisely states:

“If we do not in the application of force demonstrate the nature of our objectives we will, in fact, have compromised from the outset our fundamental purpose.”

-Gregory Proulx

reflection week 11

This week we discussed the issue of poverty which I personally believe is a much larger issue than we were able to cover but this week did give a good brief introduction. Wednesday we visited Bread for the City which I thought was really interesting. It is an incredible organization that should have a much broader reach than it does currently. When the presenter discussed her personal views about the programs needed to help solve the issue it revealed many aspects to poverty that I had not previously considered, such as stress management. That was something that I had overlooked when considering the issue of poverty but once she mentioned it I saw that a lack of it was a very important component of the problem and its presence a key to the solution. Also I found it pertinent how she discussed the issue of racism within the public planning of the city. The historically African American areas of the city are the last to receive a grocery store and the most affected by the problem of poverty. This reveals certain social values that are still present in American society as much as we would like to pretend that they are not.
During our UC Common Event I also saw how film can reflect the social values of a society and in many ways challenge those values. I was in the Critical Approach to the Cinema group and for our assignment we had to watch the movie, “Night of the Living Dead” which was a black-and-white zombie movie made in the 1960’s. The film was made at a time when racism was still a part of American society and very few African American actors appeared in films at all and when they did they often played murders, rapists, or drug dealers. However, the lead actor in “Night of the Living Dead” was an African American man named Ben and at first in the movie you think that he is a zombie, one of the monsters. This reveals society’s widely held view that African American men are monsters meant to be feared. However, as character after character is killed Ben holds onto life until the very end and he is clearly shown as the only intelligent, responsible, and moral character in the film. Not only did this movie reveal the commonly held social views of the time but it also challenged them and attempted to convince people to reevaluate their perspectives.
This concept relates to world politics because the way we view people as a society determines how we treat them and whether or not we marginalize them whether domestically or internationally. Our public policy is a reflection and a product of our societal views and often these policies can lead to the marginalization and oppression of people and a piece of that is the poverty that many people are subjected to because of these policies. Sometimes it takes a nongovernmental force to come in and change the situation such as Bread for the City or cultural forces including art and film to change public opinion and help reverse some of these situations albeit slowly.

Reflections Week XI

Friday’s simulation, through a black and white approach to solving poverty, through a consensus of the groups as to how the funding should be utilized, allowed for dramatic controversy. Through my groups debate over the most effective use of funds to make the most significant impact on poverty, it became apparent that most of our group could agree on a set of objectives, yet the flip to their agreement was the idea of spending all the funds on education. Ian and I saw this as more of a long-term solution, as it would more effectively reach the root of the problem. While we realized the necessity of immediate aid in the form of water and shelter, in a black and white situation where singular decisions must be made, we felt it best to “pull the root out” than “trim the growth,” despite the consequences of many not surviving during the time with which a few would manage to be educated and eventually help the rest of the population. While both sides of the argument understood the same concepts, each of the theories as to how they should be attacked could not be fully grasped by either side because each party simply “doesn’t see it that way.” There is a point that is reached where every path to explain one’s reasoning is exhausted and while a compromise might be reached, opposing parties must “agree to disagree” on their differing perspectives, as each theory can only be open to new to new evidence to such a point, assuming the theory still defines the belief system of the supporter.

Essential Government Intervention

The first and foremost task of the government is to govern a nation and not meddle in the lives of its citizens - macro versus micro management. Therefore, for a society to run optimally, the government should create the best circumstances to where people can help themselves and live up to their potential: It should implement flexible labor laws and a favorable investment and business climate, thus safeguarding a finely tuned and steadily growing and producing economy; and it should provide affordable and high quality education, health care, and infrastructure. However, society also has an ethical responsibility for those who truly cannot help themselves, such as young children, the elderly, and the disabled. It would not be just to leave those people to their own devices and society as a whole must see to their care, not only because it is the morally right thing to do but also because it would negatively affect the welfare of a nation and its economy if these people were left to suffer and die since potential resources are going to waste and social problems would drag down the performance of society as a whole. There are various ways for a government to deal with those issues; it can either directly administer a social welfare system that is funded by tax revenue and/or it can subsidize private organizations to administer these services.

In practice, considering a state’s existing poverty level and the resulting social problems, predominantly in its low-income areas, such as inner city ghettos and slums, the problem has potential to become chronic and without the necessary changes. Much of the time the poor are impoverished either because they do not have the capacity to acquire wealth due to a lack of education (either because of poor quality or because they choose not to take advantage of educational opportunities) or through a cultural passage of values that continually places a group of people in a position of deficit. The most obvious example of the latter is seen in the high number of black children who are raised by single mothers because of teen pregnancies and the high percentage of young black males occupying prisons, as many of them are motivated by negative peer influences and get involved with crime and only a select few force themselves “out of the projects.” While the government could and should provide the opportunity and circumstances as described in the opening paragraph, additionally, the cultural forces shape the future of many and continue the cycle through the generations. Changing a culture would have to be done by those who are part of it, but it is the responsibility of the government to facilitate those changes by doing its job (as described in the opening paragraph). Without opportunity, proper education, health care, and infrastructure, the impoverished are totally dependent on society through government intervention in the form of food stamps, welfare payments, medicaid, etc., and aid provided through private donations. People are generous and private organizations do a remarkable job with the help of significant private donations, but the care of the needy should not fall solely on their shoulders, unless there arrangements are made in the form of subsidies funded through taxes. Even if fellow citizens were generous enough to act like good Samaritans, without the authority and the means to make structural changes that would efficiently solve poverty the way a government would and should, the solution would be temporary, as the only way to nix the root of the problem is to provide the impoverished the ways and means to attain their own wealth. Government is the only structure that can enact laws and put systems into place that provide the structure needed for the impoverished to help themselves while providing the necessary assistance, with the support of private organizations and donations, to those who truly cannot help themselves.

The "other" (reflection)

So, despite the fact that our response for the week isn't even due yet, I am going to post my reflection for this week.
In the world of theatre actors and actresses are given the opportunity to portray characters different from themselves. Whether the difference be in personality, situation, upbringing, social standing, occupation, or place of birth it always places the actor in a position to be something other than what they are; after all, if their character was exactly the same then they wouldn't be acting, would they? This brings about the question of the other, something that always surfaces when addressing issues such as poverty. In our discussion on Tuesday Professor Jackson started off with the question "are you poor?" and after some silence Stephan answered "no". We are not poor, at least not in the way that first comes to mind when we first hear the word. We have beds to sleep in, food to eat, and the ability to get an education - we wouldn't be here if we didn't. So when we talk about those who are poverty stricken, the clients of Bread for the City for example, we are essentially talking about the other.
For UC common event I was placed into the theatre UC. Our homework was essentially to observe people, notice things that we wouldn't ordinarily give a second look to, witness how others behave and react in different situations, etc. We were also told to read a play "ClassyAss" written by Caleen Jennings. Both had the purpose of educating us in the ways of the other, with "ClassyAss" particularly addressing poverty in its own unique way. To be able to truly embody a character or create one, you must be able to see things from their point of view and understand the world, its people, and all of the situations they encounter as they understand them. I believe that the same goes for discussing world politics. In order to be truly constructive in discussing sides of a situation you must first understand where they are coming from and why they would view the situation in such a way. We have all heard the people who criticize those on welfare, saying they should just get up and get a job. The majority of these naysayers do not know, nor do they care to know that going off of welfare and getting a job could be detrimental to a person's well-being, causing them to lose insurance and childcare and creating further strain on their family economically. However at bread for the city, which is helping the impoverished these ideas are understood; the workers do their best to understand the view points and situations of those they are trying to help, and that is perhaps the best way to help them. How is anyone to be expected to make a difference on an issue to which they are ignorant?

Responsible for Poverty

Governments have to maintain the support of their people whether the government is a democracy or a dictatorship because the leader will cease to be the leader if the people as a whole are unhappy. This means that a government must keep the majority of its population content in order to remain in power. People tend to be unhappy when their basic needs are not met; they can be unhappy even after they have their basic needs but they are definitely unhappy if their basic needs are not met. Most people view these basic needs such as food, clean water, shelter, health, and safety as fundamental rights and in fact Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights affirms these as human rights as well. Therefore the interest of the people clearly lies in obtaining these rights for themselves and there is a strong international consensus that governments have the duty to assist in alleviating poverty.
These standards are, obviously, not always met since there are many people in this world without the basic necessities of life. There is no enforcement mechanism other than the will of the people to make sure that governments implement measures to alleviate poverty, and the will of the people is only successful if enough people are willing to jeopardize the continued existence of the government’s power. This is easier in a democracy but it still requires a substantial quantity of people to take a substantial risk which is why this does not happen very often and governments can often dodge the duty of providing for their citizens’ basic needs. Furthermore the United Nations does not have the power to force nations to attempt to reduce poverty, it can only suggest that the y should do so which it does in the Universal Declaration for Human Rights. There are repercussions if a nation does not provide programs to try to eliminate poverty such as a disgruntled segment of the population that is less likely to cooperate. These repercussions are often not a significant enough disincentive for a government to take action but the disincentives exists which further shows that the government has a responsibility in this field.
This argument becomes more difficult if you do not define poverty on an absolute level but on a relative level because if everyone is poor relative to someone else the government has an obligation to provide finances to all members of society and I do not think this is true. In a way this relative definition can be partially true while still applying this philosophy. One can be poorer than their counterparts but there is also a bottom line when it comes to poverty and the bottom line is what governments should be concerned about since that type of poverty poses the greatest risk to the livelihood of the citizenry.

Poverty - why should governments care?

It isn’t a surprise that we were unable to come up with a clean-cut definition of poverty withing the confines of our 1 hour and 15 minute class period. However to correctly answer the question posed it is necessary to do so, or at least clarify what definition we are basing our answer off of.

Poverty –

· 1) the state of condition of having little or no money, goods,

or means of support; condition of being poor; indigence

2) denotes serious lack of the means for proper existence

3) Implies a state of privation and lack of necessities

(dictionary.com)

If we apply this definition to the basic level of human needs that is implied (i.e. nourishment, shelter, etc.) then it is safe to say that a person living in poverty is not in a well or healthy state. An impoverished person’s basic needs are not being fulfilled, and in most cases there are large numbers of impoverished people centralized in different areas throughout a state.
To decide if a government has a commitment addressing the issue of poverty let’s look at social contract theory. This theory states that governments “are created by the people in order to provide for collective needs……….(and) thus exist for the purpose of serving the needs and wishes of the people.”(reference.com). In return for this service the people under the jurisdiction of the said government abide by its laws, however if they are unhappy and do not have what they require they will be less apt to comply and the system would suffer. It is because of this idea that the government exists to serve the people that the government most certainly has a commitment to addressing poverty. The primary purpose of a government is to care for its citizens and if they are living in poverty, deficient in even their most basic needs then they are most obviously not well cared for. Furthermore the governments purpose in preserving the welfare of its people is made even more tangible by the existence of so many programs, laws, and services to do so. These programs which address poverty in the sense of basic needs for sustaining life are found not only in the US, but all over the world and are in fact quite common within state governments. In fact not only are their programs to address this most basic form of poverty, but also poverty in other senses such as intellect, the arts, etc. This goes to show that not only do governments have a responsibility to address poverty; they accept that responsibility and often times take measures to go even beyond the bare minimum of necessities. However, whether or not the measures taken to dull these pains are successful is an entirely different story.

Embedded Liberalism Is Much Preferred

I would much rather have embedded liberalism that disembedded liberalism. Like Nate said in his response to Caitlin’s post, “[t]he emphasis is on the cheapest skilled labor and when technology changes many people are left behind. Ultimately they say that disembedded liberalism is a short-term solution.” This blind race for profit cannot continue any longer, and the myriad of “short-term solutions” must stop. If all the stops were pulled out and laissez-faire capitalism was allowed to flourish, the consequences would be disastrous. The lack of regulation would result in economic instability, environmental destruction, social injustice, and conflict. Looking back on the Enron and MCI Worldcom scandals, Hooker Chemical Company’s Love Canal, Union Carbide’s Bhopal Disaster, Halliburton’s past and present bad behavior, and the endless list of other corporate malfeasance, I can be sure that embedded liberalism is much preferred to disembedded liberalism and the great harm it could cause.

-Gregory Proulx

http://www.reclaimdemocracy.org/
http://www.corpwatch.org/

embedded, disembedded, and the veil of ignorance.

Friday's simulation reiterated the question: which is better, embedded or disembedded liberalism?
There is no set answer to this question, it is dependent on how rich or poor your country is to start off. In the first portion of the simulation it seemed easier for a poorer country to gain riches, mainly because richer countries were more willing to trade with them to procure what they needed themselves. That being said, embedded liberalism would benefit poorer countries. In the second half of the situation it was more difficult for the poorer nations to get ahead because the rich were less likely to trade with them. Unless poorer countries had something that a rich country really wanted it was near impossible for them to get ahead. So in the grand scheme of things which system is better?
Let's look at this situation under a veil of ignorance. Under this veil you do not know whether you are male or female, black or white, rich or poor, Catholic or Muslim, you only know that you exist as a human being. Now lets say that under this condition you are required to make a choice on economics, human rights, freedom of religion. You will always choose the option that is better for everyone because you do not know who you are. It is my belief that under this veil everyone would choose disembedded liberalism simply because they would benefit more if they happened to end up a citizen of a poorer nation, and it is for this reason that I believe disembedded liberalism to be the overall better system.

Reflections Week X

This week, aspects of the UC common event particularly interested me as many got up, partially excited by Halloween, and headed off with comparatively low expectations for the “ice breaker” feel of the mixed groups they would be rejoining with. As I walked into my room, the group seemed comatose and regretful of the few hours to be spent discussing the subject of the “hero’s journey” together. Yet as our leader Tiffany started us off with name games, the rolling eyes become more alive as we were throwing three balls in the circle and calling off each others names to achieve the time limit Tiffany kept lowering. After three high energy name games everyone seemed much more relaxed, awake, and happy. Discussing the hero’s journey was interesting as more people felt comfortable speaking and relaying their thoughts on the stories we read. When we broke off into groups to create our own story, my group felt very comfortable together and discussed our different UC classes and their similarities. We looked forward to telling our hero’s journey of “Pete the Penguin” to the class, or at least felt very proud of the creation. As class ended, I felt even more curious of the other UC classes, like Cinema, and how their experiences compared to ours. Yet as we waited for lunch to begin, the discussion of our experiences expressed many similarities as far as the way we live together and interact together (although World Politics is obviously in another league☺ ). The lunch was spirited with costumes and good food, reflecting the same energy many of us bring when presented with opportunities to excel.

reflection week 10

Friday’s class was one of the most beneficial to me probably of the entire semester thus far. This is not to say that the other classes were not beneficial but after Friday’s class I understood embedded and disembedded liberalism much more than I had previously. On Tuesday I came to class thinking I had a vague understanding of the topic but as we got into the fishbowl discussion the conversation would take us into a new arena. At that point what I heard seemed to contradict what I thought I knew about the subject so I kept thinking that my understanding was either incorrect or just incomplete. However, since I had a model with which to place the concepts during Friday’s class I understood the basic ideas about embedded and disembedded liberalism much better. The concepts seemed so easy during that class I could not believe I could not understand it after reading a thirty page article on the topic. This is in no way to say that the article was not useful but I think it shows how learning is much easier when you have a concrete example to accompany the theories. They say a picture is worth a thousand words and I definitely think that is true and it goes even deeper than a simple picture. It extends even to physical models like the candy game that we played in class on Friday. I think I could have read thousands of pages of writing about embedded liberalism but it was one of those things that I needed to see in practice in order to actually understand.
At first, though, I was skeptical about the activity because I did not understand the rules of the game and once the rules changed I was even more annoyed that I had to give up my precious candy to comply with the arbitrary rules set by individuals who possessed no candy and did not have to play the game themselves, in other words, group 2. I would imagine this is how nations, especially wealthy ones, feel when they are expected to comply with the rules set forth by international organizations. They are going along making money, accumulating resources and then all of a sudden they are expected to give up their resources arbitrarily without even the threat of punishment for noncompliance. This happened in the game as well. Our group had candy stolen from it by the ICF over our strong objection, but since the ICF had no concrete authority over us and the ICF’s candy reserves were not well guarded, we stole it back. However, by the end I was very content with what we had accumulated though perhaps others had more because we saw our candy as valuable so we stopped trading. Essentially we were a country that has the resources it needs and believes its own resources are superior to its counterparts and therefore there is no reason to trade.
The activity displayed the concepts of embedded and disembedded liberalism very well and it helped me understand them. I think activities like this are very helpful in understanding the complex philosophies that we discuss in this class. I would certainly like to do more of them in the future.