Nondemocratic regime research

Research a nondemocratic regime not included in our core countries and answer the following questions/prompts:
1.  How is legitimacy established in your country and who/what group has the power?
2.  Explain how they maintain their power.  Give specific examples to back up your explanation.
3.  Which type of rule would you say best describes the type of rule in the country you chose?  Explain.
4.  Does your country have any democratic elements?  If so, what are they?  If not, what are some reasons why they do not?

Supreme Court in UK overturns law passed by Welsh assembly

Read the two linked articles about a recent Supreme Court decision that overturned a law passed by the Welsh assembly in 2013 and answer the following questions.

1.  Explain how this decision illustrates the purpose and responsibilities of the UK Supreme Court.  How is this different from the role of the US Supreme Court?  What exactly did the Supreme court decide?  Who benefited from this decision? Do you think it was the right decision?  Why or why not?

2. How does this article illustrate the concept of devolution?  How does this article illustrate the concept of a welfare state?

Should a democracy ban hate speech?

There has been a rise in Anti-Semitic speech and propaganda on social media in the UK over the last year, which coincides with a broader anti-immigrant element that is becoming disturbingly prevalent. Read this article about many British MPs, including David Cameron calling for a possible ban for racists and other internet users who spew hateful and racist comments on social media.

Do you think it is in the best interest of a democracy to make such speech illegal? Why or why not?  Clearly we would all agree that this hate and intolerance is foul, but is it up to the government to ban it?    Must the speech intentionally incite people to violence in order for it to be banned?

The Special Relationship

1. What does this movie illustrate about the political culture and nature of political leadership in the UK? Give two examples to support your analysis.

2. What insight did this movie give you about the nature of the special relationship between the US and the UK? Does this dramatization differ from the impression you got from the reading? If so, how? If not, how were they similar?

3. Do a little research on how the US-UK relationship changed after Bush became POTUS. How did the relationship change and why? Compare the approval of Blair in 2000 and then in 2007, when he left office and was replaced by Gordon Brown, another Labour PM. What was the difference in approval ratings (cite your source)? Identify and explain two reasons for this change in approval.

A terrible tragedy in Mexico comes to an official close, drawing skepticism from many of the victims families

Last fall 43 students from a teaching college were traveling through Iguala, a rural town in Mexico and disappeared after a confrontation with local police.  Today, the Mexican government officially declares the missing students dead, based on forensic evidence and confessions from the perpetrators.  Read the two linked articles in this post for more details. President Nieto's reaction has been largely criticized for being indecisive following the tragedy and also for corruption in the investigation. 

All I ask is for you to take a moment of silence for the student teachers and the countless Mexican people who have to live with this type of fear every day.  This is a terribly harrowing story that serves as an example of police and government corruption.  It also illustrates the hold the murderous drug cartels have on many towns in Mexico.  If you'd like to spread the word and try to help make a change via social media use #YoSoy132 and #Ayotzinapa with a link to the story.  You can also contact the Mexican Embassy here. 

Real world - concept connections

Post a link to the article you found in class below, with a brief explanation of the concept or concepts it helps to illustrate.

Should Nigerian elections be postponed amid security threats?

Read this article form BBC about the possibility of Nigeria pushing back their scheduled elections for next month because of the violence and turmoil recently embroiling the country.  What do you think they should do?  Does a delay in the elections just give Boko Haram what they want or should the legitimate security concerns be the priority? What concepts does this illustrate about the difficulty of institutionalizing a democracy?  What about state capacity and autonomy?  Do you think the corruption and violence will ever be rooted out in Nigeria?  Why or why not?  Did you learn anything new from this article?  Is there anything in particular you would like to discuss or study about Nigeria?  Respond to this article (or any others about the current state of Nigeria) and let me know.