How might interest groups use their money to influence policy outcomes in Congress? What effect does the timing and targeting of money have on their effectiveness? How exactly might we go about measuring such influence, in both contributions and results? It is an open secret that private interest groups wield enormous influence over the Congress….
Category: Politics
All the articles that come under politics domain.
Industrialization after the Civil War
The Civil War is a cornerstone event in American history. Beyond its obvious political relevance, the culmination of the war influenced American society, economy and culture. This essay will argue that the rapid industrialization following the war gave rise to two major features of national identity: American capitalism and American culture. One could identify 3…
Decisions within US Congress: How Human Resource Management principles can help
What is the Issue? Oftentimes, decisions within the US Congress are not made in a straightforward, transparent manner. Although elected Congressmen and Congresswomen are representatives of their respective constituencies, multiple external factors influence their decisions. Corporate lobbies are a major external factor intruding on the democratic foundation of the Congress. Likewise, political ideology, as in…
Commentary on In Retreat by Mindy Fullilove
The House of Joshua: Meditations on Family and Place is a testament to the power of geographic location. Although purportedly an autobiographic work, it is equally a sociological treatise on the themes of ‘rootedness’ and ‘displacement’. Author Mindy Fullilove links these concepts to the process of identity formation. She contends that, on par with culture…
Funeral Oration and the Old Oligarch: Two views of Athenian Democracy
The two documents in question are well regarded for their political and historical comment. Both talk about Athenian democracy and its pros and cons. While Pericles Funeral Oration is an elogé to martyrdom and democracy, the Old Oligarch (Pseudo-Xenophon) takes a rather pessimistic view of democracy. In the Funeral Oration, Pericles pays rich tribute to…
Propaganda Analysis: Apparatus of Lies – Saddam’s Disinformation and Propaganda (1990-2003)
Almost every theoretical type of propaganda was employed by Saddam Hussein. Some of the prominent types are agitation, white, black and vertical propaganda. As the example of mass funeral of dead babies illustrates, Saddam intended to appeal to the emotions of the audience, circumventing deliberation on fact and logic. It served to agitate the minds…
The Revolutions of 1830 and1848
Pan-European revolutions of 1830 manifested in different forms in different regions. In Netherlands and France they took a romantic hue, whereas in Poland and Switzerland the impact on the political establishment was less pronounced. In the United Kingdom of Netherlands and in France, the impact of the revolution was to establish constitutional monarchies (also called…
Democracy and the Media: The relationship between Public Relations industry and democratic process.
The four-part documentary series The Century of the Self captures the rise of one of the definitive industries of the 20th century, namely, Public Relations (PR). The term Public Relations is somewhat of a euphemism, for far from maintaining healthy relations with consumers the industry actually acts against their interests. It is true that the…
Can political regimes have legitimacy without democracy?
It is imperative that any political regime first gains its legitimacy before enforcing its authority on people. At the outset, it is important to differentiate legitimacy from legality. Legality is a technical concept, which may or may not always satisfy criteria for legitimacy. Legitimacy, on the other hand, is ascertained through an ethical evaluation of…
Stalin’s Barber by Paul M. Levitt
Consciously or not, Stalin conjoins religion and politics. Why? Religion, especially the monotheistic religions profess the idea of damnation and divine retribution for sinners. Stalin must have thought that where bullets and the baton are inadequate in suppressing dissent, the fear of God would serve as a complete deterrent. Another explanation for Stalin’s mixing of…