Consider the following questions:
How does the seemingly endless violence in Mexico illustrate problems of governance for this newly industrialized country (NIC)? Does the Pakistan-Iran gas pipeline create problems for the US? Should the US block their development with sanctions? Why or why not? What does legalized discrimination against homosexuals say about Nigerian democracy?
In your responses, always keep in mind how these articles can be used to help illustrate important COGOPO concepts.
Who's who in these articles -- Nieto is the newly elected Mexican president and belongs to PRI - he ousted the Calderon administration in elections last year. Goodluck Johnathan is the president of Nigeria and belongs to the PDP - the dominant party in Nigeria. Ahmadinejad is the President of Iran and won elections ( with accusations of fraud) 4 years ago against the opposition party whose leaders have since been detained.
ReplyDelete"Since his inauguration, on December 1st, there have been more than 3,150 violent deaths in Mexico."
ReplyDeleteThis is a horribly high statistic, and until the government can become more stable and cut corruption, instances such as these are going to continue to occur. Mexicos title of newly industrialized takes a hit, as well as their possible tourism income due to the high crime rate as Americans and others don't want to risk their life to a cartel or other violence for a vacation. If the country could be tougher on crime and cut corruption they could improve the standard of living among their citizens but also the amount of income due to tourism that Mexico receives which could help them become further industrialized.
Tourism is a big industry in Mexico and unless the government can curb the violence it will impact their economy in a negative way. Good point Taylor!
DeleteI also feel it brings up and important issue of the difficultly of leaving illegal activity behind for those in Mexico who want to or have left such activities. Sure you no longer have extra money, but once you leave that kind of life there is no guarantee for safety.
DeleteThis is very true! I was going to go to Guadalajara over last summer but there were so many stories in the news about violence that my parents said no! If they had the ability to crack down on violence and make their image reflect this then they would have a better shot at a successful tourist industry.
DeleteThe fact that lesbian players can be banned because their existence is considered "spiritually and morally wrong" illustrates the extreme conservatism of the nation. This sport is a reflection of a quasi-theocratic principles that the country is governed by in that the regime is able to dictate aspects of citizens' personal lives that are less controlled in liberal democracies like the US and UK.
ReplyDeleteQuasi-theocratic is a great way to describe it. Often we only here of Muslim extremists and theocracy but in this case it is Christianity that is mandating social norms. These types of liberties are constantly curbed, or in this case banned in illiberal democracies like Nigeria.
DeleteThe idea that Nigeria can actually ban homosexuality is absurd, but even more shows how little concern the Nigerian government has for the civil liberties of the people. But as an American I find it hypocritical to condemn Nigeria for anti-gay marriage legislation as my own country has failed to allow gay marriage though many including me believe gays should be allowed to marry, but I can criticie Nigeria for their anti-gay/ pro-discrimination against gays policies. Overall this is just a despicable display of discrimination and hatred toward a group solely for the reason that they are different and that is wrong.
ReplyDeleteI can see the hypocrisy you're talking about, but it is illegal to even be gay in Nigeria. I would say that is a bit more extreme than the current laws here in the states
DeleteThis restriction on Pakistan places an unfair burden on the people more so than the regime. I don't like either the Pakistani or Iranian regimes but it's still unfair that were acting like bullies in the region. It is part of the reason why we're detested in parts of the
ReplyDeleteMiddle East.
I believe that the Pakistani Iran pipeline is a good project that will not only bring energy to Pakistan but will encourage trade and growth between the two states. The U.S. sanctions on Iran are just preventing the growth of the region by preventing the trade. I believe this would be an example of "dollar diplomacy" since the U.S. is trying to buy the Pakistani government with the pressure of ending the financial support. Pakistan's government has the legitimate right to try to provide what they can for their citizens and another state should not get involved. The U.S. believes that this pipeline will just increase the power of Iran's regime and that it will fuel the nuclear developments.
ReplyDeleteThe key thing for the US here are priorities. Should we allow for their economic development and hope they don't use the money to build a nuclear arsenal or do we try to stop them from doing so at all costs, essentially becoming the enemy they portray us as? It is a difficult situation to say the least.
DeleteI think that the article about the violence in Mexico shows just how much of an impact the often random, civilian deaths will have on Mexico's tourism industry (as the death of a key figure in the industry obviously isn't good for Mexico's reputation as a safe destination for tourists), which has traditionally been one of it's key industries. I think as the drug war continues to rage and the cartels get more and more out of hand, Mexico's tourism industry will continue to suffer and it will become harder for the NIC's economy to recover from the strain this violence/lack of tourism/illegal trade is imposing.
ReplyDeleteYou make a great point that this won't help Mexico's reputation as a safe vacation spot but then again who in the world was under the impression that Mexico was the place to go when looking for a safe family fun vacation spot
DeleteIn the 2011 Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI) report, which is a measurement of the factors that make it attractive to developing business in the travel and tourism industry of individual countries, Mexico was ranked 43th place in the world's ranking, which is fourth in the Americas.[3] In considering simply the subindex measuring human, cultural, and natural resources, Mexico ranks in the 13th place on a worldwide level, 10th for the natural resources criteria and 19th for the cultural criteria.[3] The TTCI report also notes Mexico's main weaknesses, which includes ground transport infrastructure (ranked 79th), insufficient health and hygiene (ranked 64th) and safety and security concerns (ranked 128th).[3]
DeleteStats!!! Excellent use of quantitative research to prove your point!
DeleteThe article never states who targeted Galegos and why, but hinted that it had to do with his former job, not current, so I dont think tourism will be any more affected than it is now, after all he was tourism director not the head of the police. This is simply lawlessness.
DeleteHaha taken from Wikipedia, but I also read that Mexico's tourist industry hit an all time low in 2009, and then started to slowly improve for the next couple of years. I was just trying to say that occurrences like this will surely stifle whatever little progress the country has been able to make.
DeleteI'm thoroughly impressed that you looked that up but Mexico is still sketch
DeleteThe article on the death of the Mexican tourism official is a prime example of the the problems facing NICs. These countries have to learn to change these ways from their government ideals from before their change to become a democracy. Leading to issues such as the assassination of government officials. However in the case of this event, I think this is more influenced by the background of these government officials dealing with risqué business rather than political opinions.
ReplyDeleteI don't mind the Pakistanis doing business with the Iranians. It's their country and their energy sector could use a boost. Ever since a series of events between the US and Pakistan, our raid in Abottabad, accidently killing 24 members of the Pak military, and other negative events, no wonder Pak doesn"t really care what the US wants out of this issue. The US has very little cred with Pak right now, and this is in fact a little bit of a " show of resistance" as Ahmadinejad said.
ReplyDeleteAnd all just in time for the upcoming elections as the article stated.
DeleteBoth Pakistan and Iran are sovereign countries and must be treated as such. The current gas pipeline is obviously not in US interests due to the tension between the US and Iran, however foreign countries should be let to deal with their own issues as they see fit. If Pakistan is suffering from energy shortages and blackouts, and then decides that importing gas from Iran is the best solution, then that decision should be left to the states involved. It will then be those same countries' responsibility to deal with future consequences from their own actions. I believe that it is not the US's responsibility to "police"the world and solve the entire world's problems, often at the expense of the civilians in the region.
ReplyDeleteI agree completely and I think that this policy is going to cause long term problems in the region that will "demand" more American intervention. we are fueling our own problem.
DeleteIf this pipeline is in violation of international law as determined by the UN, then why shouldn't the US impose sanctions? As brought up in the article there are ways to relieve Pakistan's energy crisis (a pipeline through Afghanistan) without getting tied up in Iran's mess. As for whether it poses an actual threat to the US, perhaps; but it is more about Iran skirting around international law than it is about a direct threat to the United States.
ReplyDeleteThe concern about Pakistan and Iran sharing nuclear power being connected to the new pipe is simply based on facts on assumptions in my opinion. In addition the US's alternative plan would probably cost more for Pakistan. It is more convenient for them to have their own pipeline, in which they have already invested time and money to build then to give up on the plan and start importing oil.
ReplyDeleteMexico needs to establish a reputable government. It has since lost its legitimacy to the people, where the government has no control and thus why there is an abundance of crime and corruption. The government needs to take action to control the people in order to re-obtain their legitimacy so their economy does not suffer as a result from the loss of tourism that may occur.
ReplyDeleteInteresting point about how the government needs to INCREASE control to obtain legitimacy. It is a tricky balance that sometimes makes me think that we don't have it so bad here.
DeleteWe have already mentioned how Nigeria is an illiberal regime, meaning they appear to be just like other democratic regimes, so people have the right to vote and be in political parties etc, however many "democratic" rights are not followed. This can be seen in the article about the illegality of same-sex unions. In Nigeria, Homosexuals have had their rights infringed upon. homosexuality is already illegal, however, there is a Same-Sex Prohibition Law that is under scrutiny which could make gatherings of homosexuals illegal for a sentence of up to 14 years. It also says that if one is aware of such acts and doesnt say, they could be arrested along with doctors who perform HIV tests. All of this, at least it probably would to our Western culture is clearly infringing on their rights, however, i'm not sure if that means we have the right to interfere. The president of the senate said that they would not want anyone interfering in their culture, so why should the UK and US do so Nigeria. It's hard to take sides on this issue.
ReplyDelete