At its core, the current war in Ukraine reflects an incompatibility of nationalist narratives. Many Ukrainians want to escape Russia’s imperial shadow. Putin wants to reextend that shadow – to erase Ukraine as an independent national identity.
At its core, the current war in Ukraine reflects an incompatibility of nationalist narratives. Many Ukrainians want to escape Russia’s imperial shadow. Putin wants to reextend that shadow – to erase Ukraine as an independent national identity.
Sorry, clickbait! But admit, it, after an apology of race science in Quillette or “The Case for Colonialism” in TWQ you probably rage-clicked on the thumbnail to let me have it. Periodic IR Twitter...
I've been watching the current debate over nationalism with some interest. Donald Trump identified himself as a nationalist in the run-up to the mid-term elections. He contrasted this with his foes,...
While there is a big debate in the US about the old monuments, Russia is erecting new ones. Starting with the eye sore of a Kalashnikov statue in Moscow that had a bit of a glitch of sporting a...
In this, the first of a sequence of posts addressing Brexit in one way or another, I want to take a look at the shifting systems of authority in the current political climate and comment on how they might impact international relations into the future. At the time of the Brexit vote, commentators and news reports drew parallels between the British decision to the leave the EU and the tumult of the US elections, particularly the rise of Donald Trump. Many pointed to the resurgence of nationalism, but here I want to argue that while the concept of nationalism as a practice of identity...
Its World Cup season again. That time a year when I start getting interview requests about soccer/football, fandom, and loyalty. The assumption for many seems to be if you are a citizen of a state, you must give a certain amount of loyalty to said state. Fixed nationalism for many is an assumption. With global immigration patterns and international connectivity, these sorts of ideas can no longer be assumptions. This leads us back to the mythical test of national loyalties. Can you pass your local cricket test? It’s a simple proposition, basically, do you support your national team...
This is a guest post by Peter S. Henne. Peter is a doctoral candidate at Georgetown University. He formerly worked as a national security consultant. His research focuses on terrorism and religious conflict; he has also written on the role of faith in US foreign policy. During 2012-2013 he will be a fellow at the Miller Center at the University of Virginia. Are some nations more real than others? Does it matter? Wednesday on MSNBC's 'Morning Joe," Joe Klein was a guest, discussing the current showdown over Iran's nuclear program. Klein is a smart and reasonable man, and most of what he said...
My colleague, Charles King, has a great piece (gated) in Foreign Affairs on what the success of the Scottish National Party says about secesssionist movements everywhere.Opinion polls suggest that the Scots are unlikely to approve independence outright. Instead, they will probably settle for some form of "enhanced devolution," an increase in the considerable policymaking power granted to Scotland over the last decade and a half. But the rise of Salmond's SNP has sent an unexpected shudder through British political life. The outcome of Scotland's vote will also reverberate throughout Europe,...
Andrew Sullivan's blog has been running a series of reader reactions on the subject of the Olympics and nationalism. A recent entry:Gabby Douglas' gold medal is being hailed all over the place as a first for an African-American gymnast. But I believe it's actually much more than that: Gabby is the first black athlete from anywhere to win the title, and one of very few to compete for it. I'm a good liberal, and all for the term "African-American" in its proper context, but in this case it seems to shrink the scale of Ms. Douglas's first - and America's. (Afro.com covers it here.) The fact...
In my previous post I mentioned the recent broadside against Brave for its anti-Pictish discourse and representations. I'm not being fair, of course, as its author, Melissa McEwan, doesn't use the term "Pict" any time during her essay. Which is interesting, insofar as Brave is saturated with Pictish symbols. As an astute commentator notes:The Scots are represented not as a homogeneous group but as a diverse people, including ethnic differences from Pictish, Celtic, and Viking ancestries. While you may choose to see this as an Othering, it is a step above the kind of racial elisions that tend...
Not long ago, Robert Elias, a Professor of Politics at University of San Francisco (and editor of Peace Review), published The Empire Strikes Out: How Baseball Sold U.S. Foreign Policy & Promoted the American Way Abroad (The New Press, 2010). Unfortunately, I have not yet had a chance to obtain a copy of the book -- or read it. However, thanks to my SABR membership, I learned this week of his related article "Baseball and American Foreign Policy," which came out in Transatlantica in 2011 (but was just published on-line this month).As both a baseball fan and an academic who has taught a...
For Canada Day I wanted to post my favourite Canadian short film ever - The Sweater by Sheldon Cohen. It's based on the story by Roch Carrier (who narrates with the most awesome Quebecois accent ever). It's so popular among both Anglo and Franco-Canadians that they printed an excerpt on our $5 Bill.I just feel that it really helps to understand what Canada "is" because we're so often defined by what we're not.Quite frankly, we make Constitutional Monarchy look pretty sexy. And here is some Stan Rogers. Because he's awesome. PS: Go Leafs Go!