I suspect that the other bloggers at the Duck have been relatively silent lately for the same reasons that I have been quiet. We're grading stacks of student midterm exams (or papers) and writing our own papers for the upcoming International Studies Association Annual Meeting.If you need something to do while we're temporarily distracted, I suggest renting "Owning Mahowny" and "Freeway." The former features a first-rate performance by...

Duck of Minerva has been nominated for two Koufax blog awards, given annually to the best "lefty" blogs. To vote, simply go to the link and leave a comment in favor of Duck of Minerva.Best New BlogBest Group BlogWhile you're voting, cast a ballot for Phronesisaical for Most Deserving of Wider RecognitionFiled as: Koufax awards

The Bull Moose says we're in a "clash of civilizations." Not that long ago, Marc Schulman made the same point. Marc notes, quoting Pew data, that the Bush administration's repeated claims that the war on terror is not directed at Islam have "failed to impress" many Muslims:Sizable percentages of Muslims in many countries with significant Muslim populations also believe that suicide bombings can be justified in order to defend Islam from its...

States I've visited--and I'm not counting the inside of airports or the corridors of an interstate.Create your own visited states map.I can't, unfortunately, come up with any sort of "cute" pattern for my travels.UPDATE: my international travel? Not so impressive.Create your own visited countries mapVia Republic of Heaven.Filed as: geekery

Oxblog's David Adesnik and Michael McFaul just published an article (PDF) in the Washington Quaterly entitled "Engaging Autocratic Allies to Promote Democracy." They discuss how, during the 1980s, US influence facilitated democratic transitions in the Philippines, South Korea, and Chile.Its an evenhanded and thoughtful piece.But I can't read it without thinking that their examples of how American diplomatic pressure, triangulation, and prudence...

That is, if we were both in the eighth grade. When it comes to manipulating network data? Not so much.You Passed 8th Grade MathCongratulations, you got 10/10 correct!Could You Pass 8th Grade Math?Filed as: geekery

So, when the Iraqis get out and vote, write a constitution, and form a functioning government it is proof that the Bush strategy is working--but if sectarian violence erupts and civil-war looms it is also proof that the Bush strategy is working. Karl Popper is turning over in his grave...Filed as: Iraq

Yesterdays Washington Post ran a guest column by Ron Asmus in which he lays out an argument for using NATO to contain Iran if it develops nuclear weapons. The plan calls for bringing Israel formally within NATO as a way of making the implicit defensive commitments the West shares with Israel more formal and therefore more credible.The column is less than impressive. The greatest problem with the piece is that Asmus manages to go the entire...

It appears as if the Horowitz crowd is conducting an on-line straw poll to identify the "worst" of the 101 most dangerous professors in America.So far, the results are not encouraging for the IR competitors: Professor School VotesMichael Bérubé Penn State University 150931[skip dozens of names]Ali al-Mazrui SUNY,Binghamton 79[skip another dozen names or so]Matthew Evangelista Cornell University 19Richard Falk Princeton University 16Lisa...

Last week, Prime Minister Tony Blair told the BBC he thought that his government had "won the argument" about its identity card plan. The House of Lords voted overwhelmingly in late January to make any plan voluntary, but the House of Commons voted last week to compel people applying for passports to obtain the new biometric cards.Despite Blair's proclamation of victory, it is clear that his government continues to encounter opposition. While...

Okay, so now President Bush wasn't properly notified about the pending sale of shipping operations at major US ports to a firm from the UAE. It seems that the President is always willing to tout his accomplishments and leadership when things go well, but when they don't he simply wasn't aware (read: some lower-level bureaucrats undercut his authority and I will now throw them under the bus). Even if we believe the White House spin I don't think...

If there remained any doubt about just how scrumtralescent mothers are I think this story should erase it:Bear crashes hockey game, mom saves kidsEspn.comFiled as: Moms