Article Alert

October/November   2007

ALERT, a monthly publication of the Information Resource Center at Public Affairs Section of American Consulate General Shenyang, offers abstracts of current articles in major areas of U.S. domestic or international affairs. Full-text articles are available to you upon request. To request articles, please contact the Information Resource Center by telephone , fax, e-mail xiaob@state.gov, or by mail. To request mail, please circle the articles you wish to receive, include your name, address, and telephone number and return this list to us.  DISCLAIMER: articles and links to non-U.S. government Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views contained therein.

The Rule of Law

1.    BRIDGING THE GENDER GAP IN BILL SPONSORSHIP 
      Barnello, Michelle A. And Bratton, Kathleen A. 
      Legislative Studies Quarterly, Vol. 32, No. 3, August 2007, pp. 449-474

The authors explore how gender, race, education, age and other factors influence sponsorship of legislation on women’s issues in the U.S. Congress. Traditional women’s issues include pay equity, domestic violence, child care, and health issues that concern women and children. Personal characteristics have a marked influence on bill sponsorship. Younger, well-educated, and married men with children sponsor more measures focusing on children’s policy than do others. The authors found that African-American men were more likely than other men to align themselves with women in support of women’s issues. Service on committees concerned with health, education and welfare influenced men to lend greater support to women’s interests as did legislative position. Democratic men were more likely to sponsor such legislation than Republican, and partisan differences on such issues had become more polarized. The authors note a trend towards men in general supporting traditional women’s issues as a result of societal changes, but women still take the lead on issues that specifically concern them.

2.    CHINA : FROM DEMOCRACY WALL TO THE SHOPPING MALL AND BACK
       Gardels, Nathan
       New Perspectives Quarterly, vol. 24, no. 4, Fall 2007, pp. 2-5

The wrath of the American consumer over tainted pet food and toys may prove to be more effective than anything tried so far in pushing China ’s leadership to institute reforms, says Nathan Gardels, editor of New Perspectives Quarterly. “Unlike organized labor or human rights groups,” Gardels writes, “consumers don’t have to mobilize to effect change; they only have to demobilize by not spending.” China ’s export reliance on the U.S. market will force it to curb corruption and strengthen regulation through rule of law. “Americans won’t hesitate one moment to cut the import lifeline and shift their allegiance from Chinese products that might poison their children or kill their pets,” he predicts, “and their bargaining agents -- Wal-Mart, Target, Toys R Us -- have immensely more clout than the AFL-CIO and Amnesty International ever had in fostering reform in China ... Of course, a move toward the reliable rule of law is not democracy,” he says,” “but a big step on the long march in that direction.”

3.    CRIME WITHOUT PUNISHMENT: THE LITVENENKO AFFAIR AND PUTIN’S
       CULTURE OF VIOLENCE
       Walker, Edward
        Georgetown Journal of International Affairs, vol. 8, no. 2, Summer/Fall 2007, pp. 97-105

The author argues that the ongoing aftermath from the November 2006 radioactive poisoning of former Russian intelligence officer Alexander Litvenenko is only one of several illustrations of the continued lawlessness in Russian politics, business and society. While president Vladimir Putin has succeeded in his goals of establishing a “verticality of power” by centralizing control of the regions in Moscow and “sovereign democracy” by using its energy wealth to pay off its debts and become a more aggressive regional player, he has been less successful in his pursuit of what he called a “dictatorship of law,” -- achieving at best what the author describes as “rule by lay” which seems to constrain all but the political leadership and their associates. A prevailing culture of corruption, the elevation of many security services veterans into senior positions, and a shift from the business-related murders of the 1990s to the seemingly politically-motivated killings of critical journalists, bankers, and government officials of today bode ill for Russia ’s future, regardless of who succeed Putin in next year’s elections.

4.    JUDGING THE 2008 HEALTH PLANS
       Serafini, Marilyn Werber; Barnes, James
       National Journal, vol. 39, no. 43, October 27, 2007, pp. 20-23

In this article examining the top presidential candidates’ plans for reforming the American health care system, the authors interview ten non-partisan health care specialists to assess the candidates’ proposals. The experts assess each plan’s potential impact on the uninsured, the economy, the quality of health care, the cost to consumers and the cost to employers. They also rank the feasibility of each candidate’s plan. Overall, the experts found that the Clinton and Edwards plans were closest to achieving universal health coverage, while the Republicans’ plans were more likely to curb federal spending on health care.

Economics and Trade

5.    THE FOUR MODELS OF CORPORATE ENTREPRENEURSHIP 
       Wolcott, Robert C.; Lippitz, Michael J. 
       MIT Sloan Management Review, vol. 49, no. 1, Fall 2007, pp. 75-82

The authors, with the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University , studied close to 30 corporations to see how established organizations strive to create new businesses, also known as corporate entrepreneurship. The authors came up with four different models, ranging from the opportunist model, where the company has no deliberate approach but rely on grassroots efforts to the producer model, where a full service group has a mandate for corporate entrepreneurship established and supported by the company. Regardless of which model is chosen, the authors argue that corporate entrepreneurship needs to be nurtured and managed as a “strategic, deliberate act.”

6.    GLOBALIZATION 3.0
       Walker, Martin
       Wilson Quarterly, vol. 31, no. 4, Autumn 2007, pp. 16-24

The author, a senior scholar at the Wilson Center , writes that “Globalization 2.0” –- the network of Western-dominated international organizations founded after World War II to foster global trade -- gave way to “Globalization 3.0” when China was granted WTO membership. With that event, a new era of globalization dawned, in which the West can no longer set the rules for world trade. Walker notes that globalization has been “one of the greatest achievements of the human race”, in which hundreds of millions of people worldwide have been able to pull themselves out of abject poverty. However, it also represents an unprecedented transfer of economic power from the West to the rising economies of Asia and the Middle East . Emerging countries in Africa and Latin America are no longer dependent on the World Bank or the IMF for economic development; China , with its colossal foreign-currency reserves and insatiable appetite for resources, has become the developing world’s biggest customer and investor.

7.    THE NEW FINANCIAL HEAVYWEIGHTS
       Ewing, Jack
       Business Week, Nov. 12, 2007, pp. 52-55

Developing nations in Asia and the Middle East are rapidly accumulating large pools of wealth. These governments are creating sovereign funds, whose purpose is to make investments, often in developed nations. The author notes that Russia , the Persian Gulf states, China , and others have “amassed fortunes from exports of gas, oil, or manufactured goods, and now they're looking to supercharge the returns.” Ewing voices a concern of many, that foreign governments could exert undue political or economic influence by purchasing shares in many U.S. businesses, particularly as these nations' sovereign funds become more sophisticated investors. Yet, Western financial institutions are greatly in favor of these funds, as they are potential sources of vast amounts of capital. For now, the U.S. and Europe are encouraging the sovereign funds to become more transparent. A potential drawback is that the funds may decide to pull out of the U.S. and invest in emerging markets, causing the dollar to weaken against other currencies.

8.    AN OPPORTUNISTIC ALLY
       Shinn, David
       Harvard International Review, vol. 29, no. 2, Summer 2007, pp. 52-56

In this article on Chinese-African relations, the author, professor at the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University , notes that China has had trading ties with Africa for centuries. In the late 1950s, Chinese Communist Party formed closer ties with African liberation movements. As the West became reluctant to help build infrastructure in Africa, China stepped in to provide it, in return for gaining trade to obtain raw materials. However, China ’s growing trade surplus with Africa and its support of Sudan and Zimbabwe -- two countries with poor human-rights records -- is drawing criticism from both Africa and the West. In order to maintain its strong relations with Africa, the author believes that China has to maintain balance in its economic and strategic interests.

9.    OUR FINITE WORLD: IMPLICATIONS FOR ACTUARIES
       Tverberg, Gail
       Contingencies, May/June 2007, pp. 18-23

The author, writing in a professional actuarial publication, notes that the evidence is growing that we are reaching many of the Earth’s physical limits; remaining supplies of fossil fuels and minerals are shrinking, and topsoil and fresh water are dwindling, all with profound implications for the environment and climate change and debt-based economies. Yet, Tverberg notes, we are still acting as if natural resources are inexhaustible. Much of the problem is that for the past two centuries, the global economy has experienced continued growth; modern economic theory has arisen during this period, and humanity has become accustomed to a culture of exponential growth. The past sixty years may not be a good indication of what the next sixty years will look like, Tverberg writes, noting that many analysts are warning that global oil and natural gas production may be on the verge of terminal decline in the next few years, yet replacement technology could take decades to implement. Actuaries, known for long-term thinking, should be questioning the current economic models, and pointing out long-term trends to decision-makers.

Global Issues

10.    CLIMATE CHANGE, MASS MIGRATION AND THE MILITARY RESPONSE
         Smith, Paul
         ORBIS, vol. 51, no. 4, Fall 2007, pp. 617-633

The displacement of thousands of U.S. Gulf Coast residents in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina is emblematic of a human migration challenge that will likely become more severe in the years and decades ahead, notes the author, professor of national security affairs at the U.S. Naval War College. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicts that climate change will manifest itself in dramatic ways, such as extreme weather events and a rise in sea levels, and some of these effects may induce large-scale human migration, both within and among countries. The increasing trend of environmental migrants is clashing with widespread anti-immigrant sentiment in both developed and developing countries around the world. Some countries are describing migration, particularly unauthorized international migration, as a “security threat” and are turning to military forces to deter or manage the human flows, a trend that is likely to grow.

11.    LYING TO GET THE TRUTH
         Lisheron, Mark
         American Journalism Review, vol. 29, no. 5, October/November 2007, pp. 29-35

Should reporters use deception to get a story? Lisheron, AJR contributing writer and a reporter at the Austin American-Statesman, examines this question in a lengthy article revolving around a story written by Ken Silverstein and published in Harper’s Magazine’s July edition. To get the story -- “Their Men in Washington: Undercover with D.C.’s Lobbyists for Hire” -- Silverstein posed as a consultant for a firm needing help in enticing investments to Turkmenistan, a country with a dismal human rights record but rich in oil. The companies he targeted were APCO Associates, and Cassidy & Associates, one of the most powerful lobbying firms in Washington . Although Silverstein was able to extract interesting information about the sleazy lobbying culture and its impact on domestic and foreign policy, his undercover techniques aroused debate in the journalism establishment -- most especially Howard Kurtz, Washington Post media writer, who feels the companies targeted should have had at least an opportunity to Silverstein’s allegations. Is there room in the modern world for the “muckraking” tradition in journalism? Lisheron seems to think not, writing that “without at least some standard, the 230,000 subscribers to Harper’s are on their own, trusting that liars and deceivers are telling them the truth.”

12.    OIL FROM THE DEEP
         Little, Amanda Griscom
         Wired, vol. 15, no. 9, September 2007, pp. 110-120

Attempting to tap oil reserves deep beneath the floor of the Gulf of Mexico will require drillers to press through freezing waters, boiling oil, and seismic uncertainty. The author visits an offshore rig operated by Chevron to explain the technological and geologic challenges the crew is facing in its attempt to drill 8 kilometers into the Earth. The author describes ultra deep-sea drilling as the newest, riskiest and most technologically challenging drilling frontier. Drilling equipment is capable of going down twice as far as it did just a decade ago, at the same time estimates are rising about the amount of oil that lies under the gulf, perhaps enough to boost U.S. oil reserves by 50 percent. That discovery has made oil companies pour massive new investments into the region, but they come at great risk. A hurricane two years ago battered an offshore platform and cost BP $250 million.

Regional Security

13.    THE DISPENSABLE NATION?
         Scowcroft, Brent
         National Interest, No. 90, July/August 2007, pp. 4-6

Scowcroft, former national security advisor to Presidents Gerald Ford and George H.W. Bush, notes that the U.S. is still the only country that can “mobilize the world community to undertake the great projects of the day ... but we are not indispensable in the sense that those of us in Washington are the only ones who know what needs to be done for the good of the entire human race.” Scowcroft believes that the U.S. must “come to terms with its own post-Cold War euphoria” -- we had the power to transform the world along liberal and democratic lines, and many U.S. policymakers were impatient with the traditional methods of forging alliances and building international organizations, believing it would take too long. Scowcroft argues that America ’s recent penchant for unilateral initiatives are destined to fail in a globalized world where more nations seek a voice and non-state groups have a major impact.

14.    EUROPEAN MISSILE DEFENSE: THE VIEW FROM THE PENTAGON
         Obering, Henry A.
         Arms Control Today, vol. 37, no. 8, October 2007, pp. 6-8

The director of the U.S. Missile Defense Agency says it is time for allied partners to develop and deploy long-range European missile defenses. Such a defense would protect European allies from Iranian intermediate- and long-range ballistic missiles, says the Lieutenant General. Because there is a shared perception that something must be done to counter an Iranian threat, Obering notes that the U.S. has been negotiating to put limited elements of a defensive system in Poland and the Czech Republic . Iran poses a growing concern, he says, not only for the increasing ranges of its missiles, but for its nuclear enrichment activities which could provide fissile material for nuclear weapons. Absent a defense against such weapons, populations leave themselves vulnerable to intimidation or coercion. Further, Obering writes that limited missile defense deployments in Europe would not change the strategic balance of power there. Ten European-based missile interceptors “cannot catch Russian ICBMs [intercontinental ballistic missiles] because of the engagement distances and greater speeds of the Russian missiles,” he says, and such interceptors have no ability to defend the United States against a Russian attack. 

15.    IN THE CROSSFIRE OR THE CROSSHAIRS? NORMS, CIVILIAN CASUALTIES,
         AND U.S. CONDUCT IN IRAQ
         Kahl, Colin
         International Security, vol. 32, no. 1, Summer 2007, pp. 7-46

The author, a professor from Georgetown University, disproves the widely-held assumption among overseas public audiences that U.S. military forces do not strive to avoid foreign casualties during combat operations, arguing that the Pentagon’s organizational culture contributes to a uniquely “American way of war.” Through field research and a literature review, the author tracks the genesis of the “noncombatant immunity” doctrine since its development in the post-Vietnam era, which has given rise to the “annihilation-restraint paradox,” a commitment to using overwhelming, but lawful levels of force. Despite a few high-profile incidents, which the author recommends addressing by increased vigilance and closer tracking of civilian casualties, U.S. forces have exercised restraint and have proven even more cautious in response to perceptions about their performance.

16.    IRAN AND THE UNITED STATES: THE EMERGING SECURITY PARADIGM IN
         THE MIDDLE EAST
         Bahgat, Gawdat
         Parameters, vol. 37, no. 2, Summer 2007, pp. 5-18

The author, political science professor at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, examines Iran ’s rising power. This country currently has the largest army in the Middle East, greater than all other Persian Gulf countries combined. Iran ’s nuclear ambition and potential conflict with Western powers are major concerns for Arab states in the Persian Gulf . Better relations between America and Iran , combined with reduced Israeli-Iranian tensions, would go a long way towards promoting greater stability in the region.

17.    MARITIME STRATEGY IN A GLOBALIZING WORLD
         Till, Geoffrey
         ORBIS, vol. 51, no. 4, Fall 2007, pp. 569-575

The author, professor at the Defence Studies Department of King’s College ( London ), writes that the future of globalization is the crucial issue facing naval planners in deciding future mission priorities and programs. The world is witnessing a shift from traditional “modern” preoccupations to less-familiar “postmodern” ones. Increasingly, navies, including the U.S. Navy, are departing from the Cold-War-era balance-of-power approach on the open oceans, and are now concerned with coastal operations as part of a broader notion of maritime security; this has a profound effect on the types of missions and acquisition programs. The author writes that the future of globalization will play a major role in naval planning; he believes that globalization “may be frailer systematically than we think,” noting that globalization depends upon sufficient resources, notably oil.

18.   THE NEW MARITIME STRATEGY: CONFRONTING PEER COMPETITORS,    
           ROGUE STATES AND TRANSNATIONAL INSURGENTS
           Kurth, James
           ORBIS, vol. 51, no. 4, Fall 2007, pp. 585-600

As with all militaries, the U.S. armed forces have time-honored service traditions, stable bureaucratic structures, standard operating procedures, and distinctive weapons systems, notes the author, professor of political science at Swarthmore College and editor of Orbis. Additionally, they should also have a coherent military strategy, one which will guide them in how to fight wars or how to deter wars from taking place. The U.S. Navy is now reworking its maritime strategy for the first time since the 1980s. Long focused on a single adversary, the former Soviet Union , the Navy’s new strategy now reflects the new reality of competing economic and military powers, rogue states and transnational terrorists. The new strategy encompasses traditional concepts of containment and deterrence, but also focuses on “command of the commons” and denial of access to sea lanes of communication and commerce by rogue states.

19.    THE ROLE OF SAFE HAVENS IN ISLAMIST TERRORISM
         Kittner, Cristiana C. Brafman
         Terrorism & Political Violence, vol. 19, no. 3, Fall 2007, pp. 307-329

Terrorist networks rely on safe havens for their very survival. Denying safe havens to terrorists serve two important anti-terrorism functions – preventing the movement from growing and keeping it from flourishing, writes defense analyst Cristiana C. Brafman Kittner of Decisive Analytics Corporation. In order to defeat the purpose safe havens perform for terrorist groups, it is critically important to fully understand the four specific conditions necessary the establishment of a safe haven. The conditions are geographic features, weak governance of the host country, a history of corruption and violence, and poverty, she says. Rather than poverty leading to terrorism, Kittner argues that it is inherent poverty in the host country can be used by terrorists to exploit the local population. A vulnerable population that is susceptible to financial rewards and filled with economic hopelessness provides not only a willing recruitment pool but also facilitates the opportunities for a support network as increased violence and disrespect for the rule of law undermine good governance, she says. Additionally, corruption fuels poverty, which helps illustrate the interconnectedness of these four conditions.

U.S. Society and Values

20.    ACADEMIC BUSINESS
Delbanco, Andrew
New York Times Magazine, September 30, 2007, pp. 25//30

The author, director of American studies at Columbia University , questions whether the modern university has become just another corporation. To maintain their tax-exempt status, hospitals are required to care for indigent patients and charitable foundations are required to give away a hefty percentage of their money but what exactly are colleges doing to justify their public subsidies? Private colleges and universities pay no taxes on tuition revenues or on income from their endowments, of which Harvard boasts the largest ($35 billion). Driven by big science and global competition, top universities now compete for “market share” and “brand-name positioning,” employ teams of consultants and lobbyists, furnish their campuses with luxuries to attract paying “customers” and earn royalties from technologies developed with the help of government grants, thanks to the 1980 Bayh-Dole Act which permitted patents on discoveries made with public funds.

21.    THE ART OF INFLUENCE
         Duncan, Michael
         Art in America , vol. 95, no. 5, May 2007, pp. 172-177

A useful way to reevaluate the work of artists is to examine how, over time, their work has changed due to the influence of other artists, notes the author, an independent curator, in an article about two recent exhibitions in Los Angeles . “Enigma Variations” at the Santa Monica Museum of Art explores the effect that the work of Italian painter Giorgio de Chirico had on American postmodernist Philip Guston, demonstrating surprising thematic and stylistic connections between the two; as a teenager in Los Angeles, Guston was dazzled by de Chirico’s early work. “Magritte and Contemporary Art” at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art features the work of Magritte side-by-side with that of 31 contemporary American artists, including Jasper Johns. In his own time, Magritte was regarded as an outsider to the Surrealist movement; however, the exhibition shows Magritte’s continuing importance over the past 40 years. Magritte’s turn away from abstraction to surrealism was also influenced by de Chirico. Although Magritte’s influence on popular culture was not a primary focus of the Los Angeles exhibition, his early career in advertising explains how many of his surrealist images are more recognizable than those of Salvador Dali.

22.    BACK TO THE FUTURE: RELIGION, POLITICS, AND THE MEDIA
         Winston, Diane H.
         American Quarterly, vol. 59, no. 3, September 2007, pp. 969-989

The author, who holds the Knight Chair in Media and Religion at the Annenberg School for Communication, University of Southern California , believes that since 2000, many American journalists have had a “come to Jesus” experience. Spurred by the rise of increasingly politicized religion and religious politics, they have rediscovered the role of religion in public life. But is this current fascination only the latest two-step in a longstanding dance? When New England ’s earliest colonists began circulating news of important events, they framed their stories with a religious perspective: divine providence played a decisive role in covering and interpreting everyday occurrences. Since then, religion has continued to play an important role in the both the news media and in the news narratives that helped shape Americans’ self-understanding. The author examines the religious tropes of the “beloved community” (left) and the “promised land” (right) that continue to dominate media coverage of American politics. Focusing on the twentieth century, she explores how the mainstream media’s hostility to religious conservatism has changed, and why progressive religious politics are rarely covered.

23.    RECLAIMING A TOXIC LEGACY THROUGH ART AND SCIENCE
         Reece, Erik
         Orion, November/December 2007

The community of Vintondale, Pennsylvania, like many former Appalachian coal-mining towns, is plagued by a poisonous discharge of sulfuric acid and iron known as acid mine drainage; in the 1990s, the Environmental Protection Agency designated acid mine drainage as the most serious environmental problem in the eastern mountains. T. Allan Comp, a historic preservationist who specializes in industrial sites, approached local people in Vintondale about a reclamation project he called Acid Mine Drainage And Art (AMD&ART). His idea was to reclaim toxic coal mine sites not only physically, but using elements of design, sculpture and local history, which would spur community involvement. The author writes that Comp met with a lot of suspicion at first, noting the traditional lack of civic involvement in former coal company towns, where such activity usually meant union organizing, that would result in being blacklisted or fired. Reece notes that Vintondale has since become a model for renewal of former industrial towns, and that “arts and the humanities are absolutely necessary to environmental recovery.”

24.    SELLING AMERICAN DIVERSITY AND MUSLIM AMERICAN IDENTITY
         THROUGH NONPROFIT ADVERTISING POST-9/11
         Alsultany, Evelyn
         American Quarterly, vol. 59, no. 3, September 2007, pp. 593-622

The author, an assistant professor in the Program in American Culture, University of Michigan , explores how nonprofit advertising participated in refiguring an imagined American community in relation to Islam after 9/11 when patriotic advertising campaigns flooded highway billboards, radios, magazines, newspapers, and television. Examining how Muslim identities were packaged, marketed, and sold through nonprofit advertising, the author compares three campaigns: the Ad Council’s “I am an American,” the Council on American-Islamic Relations’ (CAIR) “I am an American Muslim,” and the U.S. Department of State’s “Shared Values Initiative.” It demonstrates how a nonprofit organization, a civil rights group, and the U.S. government sought to deconstruct the binary opposition between American citizen and Arab Muslim terrorist that emerged after 9/11 and produced a diverse imagined American community. The least effective one, according to the author, was that of the U.S. government as part of its expensive public diplomacy campaign. The Ad Council’s PSA was presumably successful effective while the CAIR ad was hard to evaluate as it was not widely circulated.

25.    TEAMING UP WITH THOREAU
         Nijhuis, Michelle
         Smithsonian, vol. 38, no. 7, October 2007, pp. 60-65

Al Gore’s award of the Nobel Peace Prize for his work on behalf of global warming is not the first time that a famous American has lent his name and his efforts to such a cause. One hundred fifty years after the publication of WALDEN, Henry David Thoreau is helping scientists monitor global warming and other environmental concerns. Thoreau was a member of the group of radical Transcendentalists who lived in New England in the mid-nineteenth century; he is known today for two written works, both still widely read, and for his interests in conservation, environmentalism, ecology, natural history and the human species. In fact, he was one of the first ecologists, closely observing the growth of forests. Since then, hundreds of writers, including Gore, have joined Thoreau in censuring the materialist root of current environmental problems. Today, a group of scientists are building a national network of observers, ranging from schoolchildren to amateur naturalists to professional ecologists, to collect data on flowering times, bird migrations and other signs of the seasons. They are studying Thoreau’s meticulous notes on local flowers and vegetation. The goals are not only to understand how plants and animals are responding to climate change but also to fine-tune future environmental restoration efforts and even allergy forecasts.

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