Unit 1 - Power and GP basics

Terms:

Actors – those with power to bring about change (worker protesting with sign, factory owner that gives higher wages)

Stakeholders – person that is affected by political change / issues. Often have little to no power (or not aware they could, or have no interest in doing so)

State – understanding comes from Treaty of Westphalia (1648) and Montevideo Convention (1933)

Characteristics of a state:

• independent gov that has control over clearly defined area – area must have internationally recognized borders
• generally seen having absolute control over its own territory and people
• having right to defend territory within borders and being recognized as a state by other states and actors
• systems of gov, which can be national, regional and or local, some kind of legal system in place
• having permanent population
• having exclusive rights within its own territory, including:
  • use of force
  • control of the money and currency
  • laws and other requirements, such as taxes and rules abt citizenship

Nation – ethnic or cultural group with common, defined culture

nation state – may have sovereign territory, or may not (do include Japan, Iceland). Stateless nations include Kurdish, Rohingya, and Roma people

linear representation of political systems:

• Far left = communism
  • – private ownership must be abolished, all people have equal say in state production
• Left = Socialism
  • – fairer distribution of wealth within society, can be done with capitalist society
• Centre left = Social democracy
  • – state provides for all citizens. think wealth must not be concentrated
• Centre = Liberalism
  • – believe states + other actors play important role in global politics. concerned with justice, liberty, and equality, placing importance on individual rights
• Centre right = Conservatism
  • – traditions, norms (maybe religious beliefs) are foundation of stable society, change is threatening. Individual responsible for welfare, state should not interfere beyond protecting lives / property
• Right = nationalism
  • – every indiv must always place needs of state above anything else. Must be loyal, often accompanied by sense of superiority over others
• Far right = Fascism
  • – beyond nationalist openly embraces aggression and conflict to assert authority. Can lead to genocide

sub-national & local governments

intergovernmental organizations (IGO) – typically established through treaties, ex. UN, WHO, world bank

organized civil society (civil society) – orgs / groups of people not linked to government. Ex. charities, churches

non-governmental organizations (NGOs) – similar to above, because they are. NGOs always try to remain independent from any government influence. Types include:

• charitable NGOs – receivers have no role other than accepting offerings
• service NGOs – provide ppl service (ex family planning / education). Receiving expected to actively participate in process
• Participatory NGOs – provide ppl with tools, land / materials
• Empowering NGOs – aim to empower by helping those understand social, political, economic rights

Private actors – those not directly involved w/ government, but have ability to influence ppl & make change

Private companies – not directly involved w/ the gov, usually motivated by profit

Social movements

flowchart TB
Emerge --> Coalesce
Coalesce --> Bureaucratize
Bureaucratize --> Success
Bureaucratize --> Failure
Bureaucratize --> Cooptation
Bureaucratize --> Repression 
Bureaucratize --> Go_mainstream
Cooptation --> Decline
Decline --> Success
Decline --> Failure
Decline --> Repression
Decline --> Go_mainstream

Resistance movement:

The line between violent resistance movement and terrorist group can get blurry – some go by goals and motives

Interest Groups: organized group aiming to influence public policy

Pressure groups: very similar to above, often terms used interchangeably, Usually found within interest groups – openly work towards influencing those w/ power. Tactics to draw attention: marches, sit-ins, petitions. Ex. BLM, PETA

Forums: meetings of actors to discuss / debate perspectives on political issue

Formal forums: regulated & definitive structure, rules. Ex. UN meetings

Informal forums: ranging from group of residents in city meet to global meetings. Not restricted by complex structure and rules

Power (as defined by Joseph Nye (guy who came up with soft power) in 2021, in the context of global politics) – the capacity to do things, but more specifically in social situations, the ability to affect other to get the outcomes one wants. Many factors affect our ability to get what we want, and they vary with the context of the relationship.

Soft Power, Smart power, Hard power

• Soft power:
  • emphasizes influence a state can exert w/ attraction, culture, values, and diplomacy
• Hard power:
  • includes force and money to push a political actor into doing something they may not have otherwise done.
  • Often understood with lens of sticks, carrots, and sermons
    • Stick is something used to threaten an actor into doing something they would not otherwise do
    • a carrot is a desirable reward for acting in a way that one would have otherwise not acted
    • Sermons may include verbal warnings, directives or position statements sent directly to gov's or as a speech condemning the actions of a state or non-state actor
  • “A carrot is more effective than a stick if you wish to lead a mule to water, but a gun may be more useful if you aim to deprive an opponent of his mule” Joseph Nye
• Smart Power:
  • a strategic mix of hard & soft power
• Resource power – comes from assets an actor possesses (population, economy, military), noticeable and often quantifiable
• Relational Power – focuses on actual outcome or influence that comes out of the resources (Nye calls this ‘power conversion’). Considers how resources, when used in circumstances, produce (or fail to) the desired outcomes. Resources don't always equal having influence, measure of power lies in outcomes assisted by paying attention to circumstances and strategies used for power conversion

Notes:

 

The media: Some states feel power is threatened by social media, may attempt to restrict access. Disinformation can shape and manipulate pulbic attitudes, opinions

Case study: 2014 ebola outbreak in west africa – After restricting traditional buroal practices, people got mad - many community stakeholders questioned weather the virus was real. Led to conclusion to respect community stakeholder to control disease outbreak

Discussion: as local gov is overwhelemed, why would they turn to central gov before seeking help from IGOs and outside actors?

 

An actor's military strength is not solely a function of the size of its military weapons / num of troops. The resources of the enemy should be taken into consideration when weighing strength of state, capabilities of adversaries can drastically shape outcome of conflict. Also, contributions from allies / parterns can sway balance of power and expand military capabilities (through logistics, weapons, or direct intervention). Quality also matters (age, maintenance, training)

Factors influencing how well a military can respond:

• ability of state's logistical and economic frameworks to support military

• ability of economy to sustain warfare

• capacity of an actor ensuring supplies consistently reach front lines

A defining characteristic of modern economic power is precision – used to target key decision makers and political allies while preserving well being of most citizens (oftentimes cannot be done with military), some unintended consequences:

• rich and powerful can evade forms of economic power, like sanctions
• when economic measures used against interconnected economy can inadvertently cause disruptions that go beyond targeted state - ex. Russian blockade increasing cost of Ukrainian wheat in African countries

Resistance Movements

	Level 1 – Social unrest (peaceful protest)	Level 2 – Civil disorder (unarmed mob violence)	Level 3 – Mob rule (unarmed mob violence with no law enforcement)	Level 4 – Rebellion (armed organized insurrection)
Desc	sit-ins, demonstrations, non-violent	potentially illegal - riots, looting, arson – blocking places like highway, not responding to clearing orders	serious – systematic destruction (things deemed threat/opposition to cause). State violence – evac of schools / gov. buildings. Things in society basically halt	Civil war, sectarian violence – elite factions may flee, or get protected by military
Ex	flight attendant strike			Find examples (last 5 years) Haiti conflict (2020-Present) Jan 6, armed
Causes	infringement of civil rights, unfairness, economic conditions	economic inequality, unemployment, food price increases – slightly deeper consequences	racial / ethnic tensions, religious tensions, lack of food & water	sectarian violence, elite factionalism, wide-scale civil unrest
Characteristics	generally peaceful and isolated	high potential for damage and unrest to grow & spread	law enforcement forced to withdraw temporarily	often protracted violence with the potential to spark regional conflagration
Destructiveness

When state misresponds to social unrest can devolve into civil disorder

– “cannot kill ideas”

some outside actors intervene to sow chaos, while genuine third party support may not be as common

Real world: Find examples for each level(1 historical - over 20 years, 1 current situation (past 5 years))

Historical	Martin Luther King Jr.	Winnipeg labor strike	Regina riots	French Revolution
Current	Roe V Wade protest / abortion rights	George Floyd / BLM protests	January 6 insurrection? (3/4)	Myanmar civil war Sudan civil war

Arab Spring, Haitian conflict, Bangledesh, Nepal, ondonesia protest

 

loudest voice will be heard