Midterm 1 Flashcards
Is Marxism dead?
Yes, but it still offers the best critique of capitalism out there
What do Marxists believe foreign policy is driven by?
Corporate interests
What puzzles do Marxists claim to solve?
- What explains the inequitable distribution of wealth and why is nothing being done about it?
- War advances whose interests?
- Why does the US spend so much on defense?
What group of people owns almost half of US wealth?
The top quintile
Where are wealth gains going?
To the top 1%
Whose policies ended the postwar “equality” era?
Ronald Reagan in the United States and Margaret Thatcher in the United Kingdom
Is inequality reduced after taxes?
Not much
What economic class is most likely to die in war?
The poor and less educated
How much more does the US spend on their military than the next biggest country?
Twice the amount
What about Karl Marx’s upbringing influenced his view of capitalism?
He grew up at a time capitalism was at its worst, with brutal, inhumane conditions for workers
What are the key points of Marx’s Theory of Knowledge?
All knowledge comes from experience, no a priori ideas and different classes will have different ideas on how to organize and govern the economy
What happens when there is conflict, according to Marx?
Conflict leads to a bargain being reached, leading to new conflict, leading to a new bargain being reached, and so on forever and ever. This is the progression of history
What is historical materialism?
Material conditions, not ideology, drive history and political change
What are the stages of history, according to Marx?
Slavery, feudalism, capitalism, socialism, and communism
According to Marx, which is the only stage of history that does not include conflict?
Communism, he believed that without class divides, there would be nothing to fight about
What is Marx’s Theory of Capitalism?
Every economic system contains the seeds of its destruction
What does capitalism lead to?
Higher inequality, squeezing down of the middle class, and the growth of business
What happened in Europe that led to a wave of socialism and racism?
Inequality, with the rich getting richer, and the poor getting poorer and more numerous.
Who was Lenin?
Lenin was a political leader is Soviet Russia, who had his own theories and ideas about communism.
What did Lenin do to Marx’s theories?
He gave them a foreign policy, and extended his ideas to imperialism
What does Lenin say about how foreign policy is determined?
Corporate interests determine political interests which determines foreign policy
Why did Lenin think imperialism occurred?
Corporations needed materials and markets in underdeveloped countries.
What are the three categories of countries?
Core, semi-periphery, and periphery
Why is successful development of periphery countries rare, according to Marx?
Exploitation
How do core countries exploit periphery countries?
Colonialism, the slave trade, modern forms of resource extraction, sources of cheap labor, creating rules of international trade forcing states to liberalize before they’re ready, insisting on trade liberalization of industrial goods, while not allowing the same for agriculture
Why can’t workers across the world unite?
Because masses in core and periphery countries have opposing interests.
What is the relationship between policies and economics, according to realists?
Policies should determine national interest and economic policy.
What is the relationship between policies and economics, according to liberals?
Policies and economics should be separated, but they aren’t, and lobbying to affect economic policy undermines free markets
What is the relationship between policies and economics, according to Marxists?
They should be separate, but in real life economics determines policy.
What is the military industrial complex?
An unholy alliance between state and manufacturers of military technology
What is the iron triangle of the MIC?
Corporations donate to campaigns of congresspeople, congresspeople approve ever increasing dollar amounts to the Department of Defense, the DoD gives more contracts to corporations.
Who most famously opposed the military industrial complex?
Dwight D. Eisenhower
When did the United States start having a permanent arms industry?
After WWII
When did the United States start having a permanent large standing military?
After the Korean War.
What was Smedley’s solution to the MIC?
To take the profit out of war.
Why is the MIC so dangerous?
The people have no role in the system, and we are spending too much money on defense.
What was ZIliac’s argument for why Britain entered WWI?
A need for profit led corporations to go to members of the plutocracy in the British Foreign Office, where they decided to go to war with Germany to protect their colonial possessions, even though Germany didn’t pose much of a security threat to Britain, and the public was against the war
What is plutocracy?
Rule by the economic elite
Why did the Clinton administration not allow China to join the WTO?
They wanted China to fix human rights abuses before they became members
What allowed China to join the WTO in 2001?
Constant lobbying by Boeing eventually led to Congress allowing them in
What do Marxists believe the Gulf and Iraq Wars were truly about?
Corporations wanted to protect their oil interests from dictators
What are some criticisms of Marxism?
Foreign policies don’t always benefit corporations, what happens when corporations don’t have the same interests, and the growth of periphery/semi-periphery countries.
What explains the inequitable distribution of wealth in society and why is nothing done about it?
Exploitation of poor by the rich and corporate interests have become state interests
Whose interests does war advance?
Wealthy corporations and defense contractors
Why does the US spend so much money on defense?
Corporations profit from defense spending
What are the puzzles constructivists claim to solve?
- Why are 500 British nuclear weapons less threatening than 5 North Korean nuclear weapons?
- Why don’t states practice slavery or colonialism anymore?
- Why have ideas about sovereignty changed over time?
- Can states have friends or enemies?
Which theories are materialist?
Realism, liberalism, and marxism
How do constructivists view materialism?
Material factors have no meaning on their own.
What are ideas?
The values, norms, and beliefs actors hold
What does defining our identities do for us?
Gives meaning to material things and our identities share our interests
How are identities constructed?
Repetitive social interactions, identities are shared, emerge from shared knowledge participants develop through communication, and state identities emerge through interactions with other states
What current political candidate draws on shared identity?
John Fetterman
What do constructivists believe determines the nature of the international system?
Distribution of identities
What is external identity?
Identity determined by historical and external dialogue with other states.
What is internal identity?
Identity of a country that derives from unique national self-reflection and memory.
How do constructivists view anarchy?
It is what we make of it, it could be hostile or cooperative.
What is a security community?
A region where large scale use of violence has become unthinkable.
What is an example of a security community?
European Union, North America
Why is war unthinkable in security communities?
Shared identities of values and meetings, states began solving problems without force, so violent practices of conflict resolution are irrational
How are states defined, according to constructivists?
Defined by identities, not power realities.
What is the logic of appropriateness?
Doing what you think is appropriate in a situation even if it conflicts with self-interests. Following the value is automatic.
What are values?
Deep, moral convictions
What are beliefs?
Views on how the world works
What are norms?
Standards of behavior for actors with a given identity. They define what is right, or appropriate, in a certain situation
What are some examples of international norms?
Nuclear taboo, taboo on biological and chemical weapons, informal prohibition on state sponsored assassinations of heads of state, treatment of POWs, diplomatic immunity, norms against slavery
What is the power that norms have?
Norms shape interests, which shape actions; they reflect political behavior by raising the costs of inappropriate activity
What is the process that norms go through while changing?
Emergence of new norm, norm cascade, norm internalization, reconnection of interests
Why do constructivist believe that we intervene on behalf of people in other states?
Changing norms lead to new ideas about intervention
What do constructivists believe about international institutions?
They teach new norms, allow for the spread of new ideas through socialization, can change state behaviors through naming and shaming, and can change state interests.
What are some critiques of constructivism?
ideas are just excuses for states acting in a self-interested manor, norms only matter when it is in a states interest to follow them, and whether new norms succeed or fail is based on if they fit the goals of powerful states
Why are 500 British nuclear weapons less threatening than 5 North Korean weapons, according to constructivists?
We are in a security community and identify with the British
Why don’t states practice slavery or colonialism anymore, according to constructivists?
New norms, and the logic of appropriateness
Why have ideas about sovereignty/humanitarian intervention changed over time, according to constructivists?
Changing norms about humanity and our obligation to humanity
Can states have friends or enemies, according to constructivists?
Yes, through interactions
