Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Clashing Views in World Politics, Fifteenth
Edition
Unit 1 Globalization IssuesIssue 1.
I s Economic Globalization Good for Both Rich and Poor?YES:
International Monetary Fund Staff, from Globalization: A Brief
Overview, Issues Brief (May 2008)NO: Ravinder Rena, from
Globalization Still Hurting Poor Nations, Africa Economic
Analysis (January 2008)Staff members of the International
Monetary Fund conclude on the basis of experiences across the world
that unhindered international economic interchange, the core
principle of globalization, seems to underpin greater prosperity.
Ravinder Rena, an associate professor of economics at the -Eritrea
Institute of Technology, contends that globalization creates losers
as well as winners and the losers are disproportionately found
among the worlds poorer countries.Issue 2. Is Capitalism a
Failed Model for a Globalized Economy?YES: Walden Bello,
from Capitalism in an Apocalyptic Mood Foreign Policy In Focus
(February 20, 2008)NO: Dani Rodrik, from Coming Soon:
Capitalism 3.0, The Taipei Times (February 11, 2009)Walden
Bello, the president of the Freedom from Debt Coalition, examines
on the part played by events in the United States in creating the
global financial crisis beginning in 2008 and argues that
capitalism is failing as a national and global model. Dani Rodrik,
a professor of political economy at Harvard -Universitys John F.
Kennedy School of Government, concedes that various aspects of
capitalism caused the crisis, but contends that capitalism can be
reformed and remain as the prevailing economic model across the
globe.Issue 3. Does Globalization Threaten Cultural
Diversity? YES: Allan Brian Ssenyonga, from Americanization
or Globalization, Global Envision (October 2, 2006)NO:
Philippe Legrain, from In Defense of Globalization, The
-International Economy (Summer 2003)Allan Brian Ssenyonga, a
Ugandan freelance writer for The New Times, an English daily in
Rwanda, claims that one of the negative effects of globalization is
cultural assimilation via cultural -imperialism. Philippe Legrain,
the chief economist of Britain in Europe, an -organization
supporting the adoption by Great Britain of the euro as its
currency, counters that it is a myth that globalization -involves
the imposition of Americanized uniformity, rather than an
-explosion of cultural exchange.Unit 2 Regional and Country
IssuesIssue 4. Is the United States a Declining Power?
YES: Christopher Layne, from Graceful Decline: The End of Pax
Americana, The American Conservative (May 1, 2010)NO: Alan
W. Dowd, from Declinism, Policy Review (August 1,
2007)Christopher Layne, who holds the Robert M. Gates chair
in National Security in the George H. W. Bush School of Government
and Public Service at Texas A&M University, argues that the
United States is declining in its power and increasingly unable to
play a dominant role on the world stage. Alan W. Dowd, a senior
fellow at the Sagamore Institute for Policy Research, contends that
there have been previous pronouncements of the end of U.S.
dominance on the world stage that have proved to be incorrect and
the current ones may well be wrong also.Issue 5. Should the
JacksonVanik Amendment Targeting Russia Be Repealed?YES:
Stephen Sestanovich, from Testimony during Joint Hearings on A
Relic of the Cold War: Is It Time to Repeal JacksonVanik for
Russia? before the Subcommittees on Europe and on Terrorism,
Non-Proliferation, and Trade, Committee on Foreign Affairs, U.S.
House of Representatives (April 27, 2010)NO: David Satter,
from Testimony during Joint Hearings on A Relic of the Cold War:
Is It Time to Repeal JacksonVanik for -Russia? before the
Subcommittees on Europe and on Terrorism, Non-Proliferation, and
Trade, Committee on Foreign Affairs, U.S. House of Representatives
(April 27, 2010)Stephen Sestanovich, the Kathryn and Shelby
Cullom Davis Professor at the School of International and Public
Affairs at -Columbia University, says that it is hard to think of
another piece of legislation with such an honorable past that has
sunk into a comparable state of purposelessness and confusion as
the JacksonVanik amendment. David Satter, a senior fellow at the
Hudson Institute and a fellow at the Foreign Policy Institute,
Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies,
contends that the -JacksonVanik amendment is far from obsolete
when applied to Russia today and should be left in
force.Issue 6. Will China Soon Become a Threatening
Superpower?YES: John J. Tkacik, Jr., from A Chinese
Military Superpower? Heritage Foundation Web Memo #1389 (March 8,
2007) NO: Samuel A. Bleicher, from China: Superpower or
Basket Case? Foreign Policy In Focus (May 8, 2008)John J.
Tkacik, Jr., a senior research fellow in China policy at the Asian
Studies Center of the Heritage Foundation in -Washington, DC,
contends that the evidence suggests instead that Chinas intent is
to challenge the United States as a military superpower. Samuel A.
Bleicher, principal in his international consulting firm, The
Strategic Path LLC, argues that while China has made some
remarkable economic progress, the reality is that the Chinese
Communist central government and Chinese economic, social,
political, and legal institutions are quite weak.Issue 7.
Would It Be an Error to Establish a Palestinian State?YES:
Patricia Berlyn, from Twelve Bad Arguments for a State of
Palestine, An Original Essay Written for This Volume
(2006)NO: Rosemary E. Shinko, from Why a Palestinian
State, An Original Essay Written for This Volume (October
2006)Patricia Berlyn, an author of studies on Israel,
primarily its -ancient history and culture, refutes 12 arguments
supporting the creation of an independent state of Palestine,
maintaining that such a state would not be wise, just, or
desirable. Rosemary E. Shinko, who teaches in the department of
politi-cal science at the University of Connecticut, contends that
a last-ing peace between Israelis and Palestinians must be founded
on a secure and sovereign homeland for both nations.Issue 8.
Is Patient Diplomacy the Best Approach to Irans Nuclear
Program?YES: Christopher Hemmer, from Responding to a
Nuclear Iran, Parameters (Autumn 2007)NO: Norman Podhoretz,
from Stopping Iran: Why the Case for Military Action Still
Stands, Commentary (February 2008)Christopher Hemmer, an
associate professor in the Department of International Security
Studies at the Air War College, Maxwell Air Force Base, Montgomery,
Alabama, writes that while a nuclear-armed Iran will pose
challenges for the United States, they can be met through an active
policy of deterrence, containment, engagement, and the reassurance
of Americas allies in the region. Norman Podhoretz,
editor-at-large of the opinion journal Commentary, argues that the
consequences of Iran acquiring nuclear weapons will be disastrous
and that there is far less risk using whatever measures are
necessary, including military force, to prevent that than there is
in dealing with a nuclear-armed Iran. Issue 9. Is U.S.
Policy Toward Latin America on the Right Track?YES: Arturo
A. Valenzuela, from Testimony during Hearings on U.S. Policy
Toward the Americas in 2010 and Beyond before the Subcommittee on
the Western Hemisphere, Committee on Foreign Affairs, U.S. House of
Representatives (March 10, 2010)NO: Otto J. Reich, from
Testimony during Hearings on U.S. Policy Toward the Americas in
2010 and Beyond before the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere,
Committee on Foreign Affairs, U.S. House of Representatives (March
10, 2010)Arturo A. Valenzuela, the U.S. assistant secretary
of state for Western Hemisphere affairs, describes the views and
policies of the Obama administration regarding the Western
Hemisphere, as -focused on three priorities critical to everyone in
the region: promoting -social and economic opportunity, ensuring
safety, and strengthening effective institutions of democratic
governance. Otto J. Reich, the U.S. assistant secretary of state
for Western Hemisphere affairs during the administration of
President George H. W. Bush, tells Congress that he believes the
U.S. government today is underestimating the security threats in
the Western Hemis-phere.Unit 3 Economic IssuesIssue
10. Does Chinas Currency Manipulation Warrant International and
National Action?YES: C. Fred Bergsten, from Correcting the
Chinese Exchange Rate: An Action Plan, Testimony during Hearings
on Chinas Exchange Rate Policy before the Committee on Ways and
Means, U.S. House of Representatives (March 24, 2010)NO:
Pieter Bottelier and Uri Dadush, from The RMB: Myths and
Tougher-To-Deal-With Realities, Testimony during Hearings on
Chinas Exchange Rate Policy before the Committee on Ways and
Means, U.S. House of Representatives (March 24, 2010)C. Fred
Bergsten, the director of the Peterson Institute for International
Economics and former (19771981) assistant secretary of the
treasury for international affairs, argues that China is
manipulating the value of its currency in a way that is harming the
U.S. international economic position and that it is time to use
international and, if necessary, national pressure to remedy the
situation. Pieter Bottelier, the senior adjunct professor of China
studies at the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns
Hopkins University and the former chief of the World Banks
resident mission in Beijing, and Uri Dadush, the director of the
International Economics Program at the Carnegie Endowment for
International Peace and former (20022008) World Banks director of
international trade, contend that dangerous myths about Chinas
currency may unwisely touch off a strong U.S. reaction while more
effective solutions will be overlooked.Issue 11. Is
Immigration an Economic Benefit to the Host Country? YES:
Dan Siciliano, from Testimony during Hearings on Immi-gra-tion:
Economic Impact, before the Committee on the Judiciary, U.S.
Senate (April 24, 2006)NO: Barry R. Chiswick, from Testimony
during Hearings on Immigration: Economic Impact, before the
Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. Senate (April 24, 2006)Dan
Siciliano, executive director, Program in Law, Business, and
Economics, and research fellow with the Immigration Policy Center
at the American Immigration Law Foundation, Stanford Law School,
contends that immigration provides many economic benefits for the
United States. Barry R. Chiswick, UIC Distinguished Professor, and
program director, Migration Studies IZAInstitute for the Study of
Labor, Bonn, Germany, takes the position that legal immigration has
a negative impact on the U.S. economy and that illegal immigration
increases the problems.Issue 12. Should Export Controls on
High Technology Be Eased Substantially? YES: John L.
Hennessy, from Testimony during Hearings on The Impact of U.S.
Export Controls on National Security, Science and Technological
Leadership before the Committee on Foreign Affairs, U.S. House of
Representatives (January 15, 2010)NO: William C. Potter,
from Testimony during Hearings on The Impact of U.S. Export
Controls on National Security, Science and Technological
Leadership before the Committee on Foreign Affairs, U.S. House of
Representatives (January 15, 2010)John L. Hennessy, the
president of Stanford University, focuses on export control that
involves sharing knowledge and says that it is negatively impacting
Americans ability to conduct fundamental research that can benefit
the United States economically and militarily. William C. Potter,
the founding director of the James Martin Center for
Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of International
Studies, urges caution when deciding what export control to loosen
or abolish.Unit 4 Armament and Violence IssuesIssue
13. Is U.S. Strategic Nuclear Weapons Policy
Ill-Conceived?YES: Ariel Cohen, from Dangerous
Trajectories: Obamas Approach to Arms Control Misreads Russian
Nuclear Strategy, Backgrounder on Arms Control and
Non-Proliferation, Nuclear Arms Race and Russia and Eurasia, The
Heritage Foundation (November 9, 2009)NO: Robert Farley,
from The Nuclear Posture Attack, Right Web (June 2, 2010)
Ariel Cohen, a senior research fellow in Russian and Eurasian
studies at the Heritage Foundation, charges that President Obamas
arms control strategy is overambitious and based too much on
unilateral concessions that will not prevent a new arms race.
Robert Farley, faculty member of the University of Kentuckys
Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Commerce, defends
the Obama administrations nuclear weapons policy and characterizes
the arguments from groups like the Heritage Foundation as outdated,
nostalgic concepts from the heyday of the cold
warriors.Issue 14. Should U.S. Forces Continue to Fight in
Afghanistan? YES: Barack Obama, from The Way Forward in
Afghanistan and Pakistan, an address to the nation, delivered at
the United States Military Academy at West Point (December 12,
2009)NO: Dennis Kucinich, from Removal of United States
Armed Forces from Afghanistan, Debate on House Concurrent
Resolution 248, Congressional Record (March 10, 2010)Barack
Obama, the 44th president of the United States, tells the cadets at
West Point and, beyond them, the American people that the United
States did not ask for a war in Afghanistan but must successfully
wage it. Dennis Kucinich, a member of the U.S. House of
Representatives from Ohios 10th Congressional District, explains
to members of the House why he sponsored a resolution demanding the
president to withdraw U.S. military forces from Afghanistan by
December 31, 2010, and urges the members to pass the
legislation.Issue 15. Does Using Drones to Attack Terrorists
Globally Violate International Law? YES: Mary Ellen
OConnell, from Lawful Use of Combat Drones, Testimony during
Hearings on Rise of the Drones II: Examining the Legality of
Unmanned Targeting, before the Subcommittee on National Security
and Foreign Affairs, Committee on Oversight and Government Reform,
U.S. House of Representatives (April 28, 2010)NO: Michael W.
Lewis, from Examining the Legality of Unmanned Targeting,
Testimony during Hearings on Rise of the Drones II: Examining the
Legality of Unmanned Targeting, before the Subcommittee on
National Security and Foreign Affairs, Committee on Oversight and
Government Reform, U.S. House of Representatives (April 28,
2010)Mary Ellen OConnell, a research professor at the Kroc
Institute, University of Notre Dame, and the Robert and Marion
Short Professor of Law at the School of Law, University of Notre
Dame, tells a congressional committee that the United States is
failing more often than not to follow the most important single
rule -governing drones: restricting their use to the battlefield.
Michael W. Lewis, a professor of law at Ohio Northern -Universitys
Pettit College of Law, disagrees, contending that there is -nothing
inherently illegal about using drones to target specific terrorists
or groups of terrorists on or away from the battlefield.
Unit 5 International Law and Organization Issues Issue
16. Is UN Peacekeeping Seriously Flawed? YES: Brett D.
Schaefer, from Testimony during Hearings on United Nations
Peacekeeping: Challenges and Opportunities, before the
Subcommittee on International Operations and Organizations,
Democracy, and Human Rights, Committee on Foreign Relations, U.S.
Senate (July 23, 2008)NO: William J. Durch, from Peace and
Stability Operations: Challenges and Opportunities for the Next
U.S. Administration, Testimony during Hearings on United Nations
Peacekeeping: Challenges and Opportunities, before the
Subcommittee on International Operations and Organizations,
Committee on Foreign Relations, U.S. Senate (July 23,
2008)Brett D. Schaefer, the Jay Kingham Fellow in
International Regulatory Affairs at the Heritage Foundation, a
conservative think tank in Washington, DC, contends that the
increased number and size of recent UN deployments have overwhelmed
the capabilities of the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations,
leading to problems that make support of UN peacekeeping
questionable. William J. Durch, senior associate at the Henry L.
Stimson Center, an internationalist-oriented think tank in
Washington, DC, acknowledges that UN peacekeeping has had problems,
but argues that the UN is making major reforms and deserves strong
support. Issue 17. Is U.S. Refusal to Join the International
Criminal Court Wise?YES: Brett Schaefer and Steven Groves,
from The U.S. Should Not Join the International Criminal Court,
Backgrounder on International Organization, The Heritage Foundation
(August 18, 2009)NO: Jonathan F. Fanton, from The Challenge
of International -Justice, Remarks to the U.S. Military Academy at
West Point, New York (May 5, 2008)Brett D. Schaefer, the Jay
Kingham fellow in international -regulatory affairs at the Heritage
Foundation, and Steven Groves, the Bernard and Barbara Lomas fellow
in the Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom, a division of the
Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies
at The Heritage Foundation, contend that although the courts
supporters have a noble purpose, there are a number of reasons to
be cautious and concerned about how ratification of the Rome
Statute would affect U.S. sovereignty and how ICC action could
affect politically precarious situations around the world. Jonathan
F. Fanton, president of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur
Foundation, which is headquartered in Chicago, IL, and is among the
worlds largest independent foundations, maintains that creation of
the International Court of Justice is an important step toward
creating a more just world, and that the fear that many Americans
have expressed about the court has not -materialized.Issue
18. Should the United States Ratify the Convention to Eliminate All
Forms of Discrimination Against Women?YES: Harold Hongju
Koh, from Testimony during Hearings on Ratification of the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
Against Women, before the Committee on Foreign Relations, U.S.
Senate (June 13, 2002)NO: Grace Smith Melton, from CEDAW:
How U.N. Interference Threatens the Rights of American Women,
Heritage Foundation Backgrounder #2227 (January 9,
2009)Harold Hongju Koh, the Gerard C. and Bernice Latrobe
Smith Professor of International Law at Yale University and former
U.S. assistant secretary of state, contends that the United States
cannot champion progress for womens human rights around the world
unless it is also a party to the global womens treaty. Grace Smith
Melton, an associate for social issues at the United Nations with
the Richard and Helen DeVos Center for Religion and Civil Society
at The Heritage Foundation, contends that ratifying would neither
advance womens equality nor serve American -foreign -policy
interests, including the security and advancement of women around
the globe.Unit 6 The EnvironmentIssue 19. Are
Warnings About Global Warming Unduly Alarmist?YES: James
Inhofe, from Remarks on the Floor of the U.S. Senate, Congressional
Record (October 26, 2007)NO: Barbara Boxer, from Remarks on
the Floor of the U.S. Senate, Congressional Record (October 29,
2007)James Inhofe, a Republican member of the U.S. Senate
from Oklahoma, tells the Senate that objective, evidence-based
science is beginning to show that the predictions of catastrophic
humanmade global warming are overwought. Barbara Boxer, a
Democratic member of the U.S. Senate from California, responds that
Senator Inhofes is one of the very few isolated and lonely voices
that keeps on saying we do not have to worry about global warming,
while, in reality, it is a major problem that demands a prompt
response.About the Author
John T. Rourke, Ph.D., professor emeritus, is former head of the
Department of Political Science at The University of Connecticut.
He is author of International Politics on the World Stage, Eleventh
Edition (McGraw-Hill, 2007); the author of Presidential Wars and
American Democracy: Rally Round the Chief (Paragon House, 1993); a
coauthor of Direct Democracy and International Politics: Deciding
International Issues through Referendums (Lynn Rienner, 1992); the
editor of Taking Sides: Clashing Views in World Politics, Twelfth
Edition, expanded (McGraw-Hill, 2007) and You Decide: Current
Debates in American Politics (Longman, 2005); the author of Making
Foreign Policy: United States, Soviet Union, China (Brooks Cole,
1990), Congress and the Presidency in U.S. Foreign Policymaking
(Westview, 1985), and numerous articles and papers. He continues to
teach and especially enjoys introductory classes. His regard for
the students has molded his approach to writinghe conveys
scholarship in a language and within a frame of reference that
undergraduates can appreciate. Rourke believes, as the theme of
this book reflects, that politics affect us all and we can affect
politics. Rourke practices what he propounds; his career long
involved the universitys internship program and advising one of its
political clubs. Additionally, he has served as a staff member of
Connecticuts legislature, and has been involved in political
campaigns on the local, state, and national levels.
