by Patrick Thaddeus Jackson | 5 Jun 2009 |
I started this as a reply to Peter's post in the Comments thread, but a) it rapidly got too long and b) from analysis of the site traffic I know that many of our readers don't read comments, just top-level posts. So here is my final word on the subject for the time being -- final because it's also my final Duck post until September, since I have to get this book written this summer and so am taking a step back from blogging over here until it's...
by Peter | 4 Jun 2009 |
To respond to Patrick (and then I promise this will be the last I’ll say on this until late August…), I largely agree with important parts of what he says, but as a friend pointed out to me, to be able to occupy the position required to realize such a vocation requires a certain degree of luck and privilege. Moreover, I think it is perhaps time to apply some of Patrick’s own ontological commitments to the notion of a vocation itself.As Patrick...
by Charli Carpenter | 3 Jun 2009 |
Perusing Drew Conway's excellent blog Zero Intelligence Agents in response to his comment on a previous post, I came across this post of his, reacting to Joseph Nye and Daniel Drezner's recent bloggingheads diavlog on the theory/policy debate.You can watch the relevant portion above, though Conway has summarized a key point: Drezner notes that quantitative scholars tend to have a 'imperialistic attitude' about their work, brushing off the work...
by Patrick Thaddeus Jackson | 1 Jun 2009 |
I spent the weekend in Jyväskylä, Finland, serving as the "opponent" -- external examiner -- on a dissertation about the first George Bush's foreign policy towards Europe, and particularly the rhetorical justification of that foreign policy. Pekka Korhonen, supervisor of the dissertation and "custos" at the ceremony, is on my right in this photo; Aapo Jumppanen, the student who successfully defended his dissertation on Saturday, is on my left....
by Charli Carpenter | 1 Jun 2009 |
Henry Farrell at Crooked Timber alerted me to the fact that 3 Quarks Daily has instituted a quarterly award for the best blog post in the areas of science, politics, arts and literature, and philosophy. Starting next month, the prizes will be awarded every year on the two solstices and the two equinoxes. So, we will announce the winner of the science prize on June 21, the arts and literature prize on September 22, the politics prize on December...
by Charli Carpenter | 30 May 2009 |
by Charli Carpenter | 29 May 2009 |
From the Guardian: This autumn the UN general assembly will vote yes or no to a new "super-agency for women"; $1bn is being discussed as the starter annual budget.A major role for the new agency's work will be to close the gap between rhetoric and reality on existing international resolutions on sex discrimination and women's human rights. The priorities cover a lot of ground – to help women earn increased income, stay in education longer, have...
by Peter | 25 May 2009 |
Breaking news: North Korea has conducted a nuclear test, this one more successful and powerful than its initial test back in 2006.You can read some (very) instant analysis, but the short story is that this move seems puzzling, out of context, which is to say that it doesn't fit North Korea's existing pattern of telegraphing its moves and using its nuclear program to extract maximum bargaining concessions from the United States. An initial and...
by Peter | 24 May 2009 |
Sesame Street really has changed the way we think about our ABC's. My 2-year old is quite the fan, he's particularly into Ernie and Bert (though in our house, his Ernie has a special relationship with the teddy bear for some reason, not sure how Bert feels about that). Thanks to YouTube, we can spend a good half hour learning the ABC's. For your own entertainment, my current playlist:Elmo and India Arie do the alphabetSesame Street ABC’s Ray...
by Patrick Thaddeus Jackson | 22 May 2009 | Featured
This is just a quick observation for anyone who ever wondered about the value-added of IR theory -- "IR theory" being defined in the broad sense of "tools for systematically reflecting on world politics." The observation consists of four items, and deals with yesterday's non-debate between Cheney and Obama.1. theoretical claimAs a rule, not survival but other "national interests" are at stake such as the preservation of outlying bases and...
by Rodger Payne | 20 May 2009 |
Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich has declared war on current speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. Why? Well, Gingrich says Pelosi lied when she claimed that the CIA withheld information from her about waterboarding in 2002 briefings.Here's Gingrich on Fox News, May 17: I was really surprised and even stunned by her comments yesterday, where she alleged that the American intelligence agencies routinely lied to the Congress. I know it's...
by Rodger Payne | 20 May 2009 |
Republicans say they don't want terrorists in their backyard -- even if their backyard is a federal maximum security prison. Apparently, Democrats in Congress are somewhat frightened by this stance because they have refused to provide $80 million to finance the closing of Gitmo. They will deny funds until the Obama administration provides a plan to provide justice for the prisoners at Gitmo. While that use of leverage might make some sense, the...