What is Comparative Politics? A personal reflection

As my experience in Comparative Politics comes to a close, I have been asked to answer the question of what Comparative Politics is.  A person can just look at the two words “Comparative Politics” and think that Comparative Politics is just about comparing the different politics in different countries.  Although part of it is that, it goes much deeper.  Comparative Politics involves an in-depth analysis of the different ideals and types of governments that people value, as shown by the World Values Survey that we frequented multiple times in class and for papers.  Our first paper in Comparative Politics asked us to analyze and compare two states in the failed states index.  This meant that we had to choose on state that is considered failed, and on the other hand choose a state that is still intact.  Analyzing these states involved looking into the capacity of the government, the history of the state, and the way in which the government is running today.  All of these items are an important part of Comparative Politics, showing that Comparative Politics involves deep research to understand a government.  Our second paper asked us to look into how culture and religion influence government.  We looked at three quotes by Huntington that addressed how religion plays a part in different states, governments, and cultures.  Our assignment was to analyze these quotes and agree or disagree with them.  This analysis allowed me to see how big of an impact culture and religion play in determining the type of government that is present in a country.  We were also asked to find states today in which Islam and Confucianism still play a role and have an impact in the government of those states.  I chose Iraq and China, two states that are influenced by Islam and Confucianism respectively.  It was interesting to see how Islam and Confucianism still play a role in their government today.  Therefore, Comparative Politics involves looking back in history at the different aspects of a state, such as religion and culture, to see how the government in the state is what it is today.

German Election

I enjoyed performing a mock version of the German election as it gave me a look inside the German political system. I found it interesting to listen to everyone’s speeches and the different ways in which they wanted to benefit or change the face of the German nation. It was also interesting to see how the party with the most seats can be teamed up against by other parties forming a coalition. This teaming up shows that even the parties with the most power can see their downfall.

I was a part of the SPD and I enjoyed creating and performing my speech in front of the class. Reading about my party and it’s ideals and values allowed me to understand how the SPD in Germany views politics. My party worked well together in class in forming a coalition and getting the cabinet positions we wanted. Achieving these cabinet positions allows us to influence the parts of politics that we care about most.

Overall, the German election was an educational activity that enhanced my understanding of German politics and opened up my eyes to the way in which the rest of the world runs their political system. I am so used to the American elections and it’s politics, so it was odd but interesting to see how the election works in another country.

Democracy and Immigration

The strictness of immigration policy in a state depends on to what degree the democracy is liberal. Immigration laws in a democracy tend to vary based on the culture and how the native culture responds to outsiders, yet in a democracy there is greater inclusion of more people in the decision-making process over what the national policy is. Unlike an autocracy, which lacks rule of law over immigration and where only a few at the top have authority, democracy typically provides legislation that is agreed upon by the government and takes in the views of more people over who should be let into the country. Also, immigration policy cannot be radically changed as it could in an autocracy and thus laws in a democracy are more moderate and are changed slowly and procedurally, wit multiple checks in the legislation process that could veto such change.

Nations and Society

A nation’s society differs from nation to nation. By studying a nation’s society, a political analyst can better understand a countries political system. Studying and understanding the different ethnicities in a nation is an integral part of getting to know a culture. Ethnicities lead to ethnic conflict, so studying the ethnicities of a country allows one to better comprehend how an ethnic conflict came into place. When looking, one must also gauge the level of nationalism that exists within a country. A nation’s nationalism shows how much pride the citizens take in their own people. Looking at citizenship is also an important part of comparative politics, for citizenship differs from nation to nation. For example, in a democracy, citizens have the right to vote, but in a different type of government, such as a totalitarian one, citizens may not have the right to vote. Another analytical tool is measuring patriotism, because a nation’s level of patriotism shows how much pride citizens take in their own country.  All of these items are important parts of comparative politics.

The rational choice/political culture debate and immigration policy

In the terms of rational choice, a nation’s people will examine the benefits of immigration.  If the immigrants coming in are highly skilled and trained, then they may benefit the economy by performing well at certain jobs.  However, the immigrants could also take away the jobs of the current residents, a thought that may make a person turn away from immigration.  Immigration policies differ between nations because each nation has it’s own culture.  In some countries, the culture of the nation is more accepting of immigration, while others are less accepting.  If a country has a culture that dislikes immigration, then the politics of that nation will be anti-immigration.  On the other hand, if a country has a culture that approves of immigration, then the politics of that nation will be pro-immigration.

Topic of Investigation for Semester

What are some of the reasons for immigration policy differences between the United States, the European Union, countries of Asia and countries of Africa? What factors are important for each nation in determining immigration policy? Does it have to do with political institutions, historical background, national sentiment, or other factors? Why is it such a major political issue here in the United States and around the globe?

Black Women in Election ‘08

Analysts say black women this year never have been more engaged in a political campaign or held such power in determining the Democratic nominee.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/01/21/blackwomen.voters/index.html

Bill Clinton gets heated with reporter

January 17, 2008

Bill Clinton gets heated with reporter

Posted: 01:20 PM ET

 

Watch Bill Clinton get upset with a reporter.

(CNN) — Bill Clinton became visibly combative with a reporter Wednesday after being questioned about a lawsuit in Nevada that is seeking to ban caucus meetings in nine casinos on the Las Vegas strip.The lawsuit, filed by the state teacher’s union — an organization that has backed Hillary Clinton’s White House bid — came Friday, shortly after Barack Obama was officially endorsed by the Culinary Union. Culinary Union members primarily work in casinos, and could constitute the majority of participants at caucuses held at those locations.The teacher’s union is claiming the at-large caucus sites would unfairly have more weight in terms of delegate allotment than caucuses throughout the rest of the state. The lawsuit also takes issue with caucuses being held midday at those sites – which could make it easier for culinary workers to caucus than it will be for other Nevadans.Critics of the lawsuit say it is a clear attempt to suppress Obama’s support, a notion with which the former president sharply disagreed.”Do you really believe that all the Democrats understood that they had agreed to give everybody who voted in a casino a vote worth five times as much as people who voted in their own precinct? Did you know that?” the former president said, growing visibly upset. (Watch Clinton’s back and forth with the reporter)”What happened is nobody understood what had happened. Now everybody’s saying, ‘Oh, they don’t want us to vote.’ What they really tried to do was to set up a deal where their votes counted five times, maybe even more.”Clinton also maintained that his wife’s campaign had “nothing to do” with the lawsuit,” and claimed the reporter was taking an “accusatory tone.”"Get on your television station and say, ‘I don’t care about the home mortgage crisis, all I care about is making sure that some voters have it easier than others should count five times, and when they do vote, when its already easier for them, their vote should count five times as much as others,” Clinton said in a raised voice.”If you want to take that your position, get on the television and take it,” he added, as aides pulled him away. “Don’t be accusatory with me, I had nothing to do with this lawsuit.”A judge is expected to rule on the lawsuit later Thursday. The ruling could have a decisive effect on the result in the state given that recent polls show a dead heat between Clinton, Obama, and John Edwards.Related: Clinton, Obama battle for upper hand in Nevada

– CNN’s Alexander Mooney and Rebecca Sinderbrand

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