Drawing upon philosophy and social theory, Social Theory of International Politics develops a theory of the international system as a social construction. Alexander Wendt clarifies the central claims of the constructivist approach, presenting a structural and idealist worldview which contrasts with the individualism and materialism which underpins much mainstream international relations theory. He builds a cultural theory of international politics, which takes whether states view each other as enemies, rivals or friends as a fundamental determinant. Wendt characterises these roles as 'cultures of anarchy', described as Hobbesian, Lockean and Kantian respectively. These cultures are shared ideas which help shape state interests and capabilities, and generate tendencies in the international system. The book describes four factors which can drive structural change from one culture to another - interdependence, common fate, homogenization, and self-restraint - and examines the effects of capitalism and democracy in the emergence of a Kantian culture in the West.

/pdf/social-theory-of-international-politics-3eegdnnwai.pdf

Social Theory of International Politics

The debate between realists and liberals has reemerged as an axis of contention in international relations theory.’ Revolving in the past around competing theories of human nature, the debate is more concerned today with the extent to which state action is influenced by ‘structure’ (anarchy and the distribution of power) versus ‘process’ (interaction and learning) and institutions. Does the absence of centralized political authority force states to play competitive power politics? Can international regimes overcome this logic, and under what conditions? What in anarchy is given and immutable, and what is amenable to change?

/pdf/anarchy-is-what-states-make-of-it-the-social-construction-of-39pmlbk9ww.pdf

Anarchy is what states make of it: the social construction of power politics

Aspect] is a simple and practical aspect-oriented extension to Java With just a few new constructs, AspectJ provides support for modular implementation of a range of crosscutting concerns. In AspectJ's dynamic join point model, join points are well-defined points in the execution of the program; pointcuts are collections of join points; advice are special method-like constructs that can be attached to pointcuts; and aspects are modular units of crosscutting implementation, comprising pointcuts, advice, and ordinary Java member declarations. AspectJ code is compiled into standard Java bytecode. Simple extensions to existing Java development environments make it possible to browse the crosscutting structure of aspects in the same kind of way as one browses the inheritance structure of classes. Several examples show that AspectJ is powerful, and that programs written using it are easy to understand.

An overview of AspectJ

Twenty years ago, in the pages of the Journal of Common Market Studies, Hedley Bull launched a searing critique of the European Community’s ‘civilian power’ in international affairs. Since that time the increasing role of the European Union (EU) in areas of security and defence policy has led to a seductiveness in adopting the notion of ‘military power Europe’. In contrast, I will attempt to argue that by thinking beyond traditional conceptions of the EU’s international role and examining the case study of its international pursuit of the abolition of the death penalty, we may best conceive of the EU as a ‘normative power Europe’.

/pdf/normative-power-europe-a-contradiction-in-terms-1xp5k91f3a.pdf

Normative Power Europe: A Contradiction in Terms?

Acknowledgements 1. The World in English Introduction: from Hurt Waldheim to Johnny Clegg The natural, neutral and beneficial spread of English The social, cultural and political contexts of English The worldliness of English Conclusion 2. Discourse and Dependency in a Shifting World Introduction: rethinking internationalism Development, aid and modernization Dependency and imperialism Culture, discourse, difference and disjuncture Criket, English and cultural politics 3. English and Colonialism: Origins of a Discourse Introduction: the complexities of colonialism Anglicism and Orientalism: two sides of the colonial coin English for the few: colonial education policies in Malaya Anglicism and English studies Conclusion 4. Spreading the Word/Disciplining the Language Introduction: anti-nomadic disciplines The disciplining of linguistics The disciplining of applied linguistics The spreading and disciplining of discourse of EIL 5. ELT From Development Aid to Global Commodity From cultural propaganda to global business: The British Council 'The West is better...': discourses of ELT English Language Teaching practices as cultural practices Conclusion: the compass of discourse 6. The Worldliness of English in Malaysia Contexts Cultural politics after independence Malay nationalism and English English, class and ethnicity English adn Islam English and the media The debates continue 7. The Worldliness of English in Singapore English as a useful language The making of Singapore Singapore English Pragmatism, multiracialism and meritocratism Pragmatic, multiracial and meritocratic English Conclusion 8. Writing Back: The Appropriation of English Postcolonial English Re-presenting postcolonial worlds Worldy texts in a worldly language Decentered voices: writing in Malaysia Centered voices: writing in Singapore From aestheticism to yuppyism: the new writing in Singapore From writing back to teaching back 9. Towards a Critical Pedagogy for Teaching English as a Worldly Language Critical pedagogies Discourse, language and subjectivity Insurgent knowledges, the classroom and the world References Index

http://www.tnewfields.info/Articles/PDF/reviewPennycook.pdf

The cultural politics of English as an international language

Although comparatively rare, political resignations are essential for the health of democracy and political institutions. Protagonists risk their political careers when resigning but can hold governments to account and make real the Nolan principles of public life. In July 2022, an unprecedented 62 resignations ended Boris Johnson’s time as British prime minister to be replaced first by Liz Truss and then, 44 days later, by Rishi Sunak, the second minister to resign. An inductive, qualitative, content analysis of the resignation letters elucidates the reasons for the resignations and highlights the ethical dilemmas that confronted would be resignees. Events lessened the effectiveness of government, triggered fears for the electoral prospects of the Conservative Party and separately challenged individuals’ personal integrity. Considerations that prevented resignees acting earlier—promises that things would change, competing loyalties, fear of reprisal, love of job, attachment to status and allegiance to ideological faction—may partially explain why much of government remained in post in July. 

/pdf/boris-johnson-the-moral-case-for-government-resignations-in-28khkq2s.pdf

Boris Johnson: the moral case for government resignations in July 2022

East Wind, West Wind: Civilizations, Hegemonies, and World Orders

When specific musical cultures are considered, the focus is on a comparison of J. S. Bach and the lturi Pygmies, where, not surprisingly, there is not much common ground. Pygmy music would, in the days when such things mattered, be classified as \"primitive\", while the court music of India or Japan would be classified as \"art\" or \"classical\", which is an obvious strategy by the West to simulate understanding based on the notion of an elite common ground. The comparison of Bach and the Pygmies can only suggest a negative answer to the original question. The paradox is that, to reach this conclusion with any certainty, one must be able to understand the culture(s) under consideration, so the answer to the question must always be affirmative! Is this a playful way of saying that the question cannot be answered, and does not need to be? We can only try to understand.

A Reply to the Commentaries

Restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic have led to increased screen-viewing among children, especially during strict periods of lockdown. However, the extent to which screen-viewing patterns in UK school children have changed post lockdowns is unclear. The aim of this paper is to examine how screen-viewing changed in 10-11-year-old children over the 2020-21 COVID-19 pandemic, how this compares to before the pandemic, and the influences on screen-viewing behaviour.This is a mixed methods study with 10-11-year-olds from 50 schools in the Greater Bristol area, UK. Cross-sectional questionnaire data on minutes of weekday and weekend television (TV) viewing and total leisure screen-viewing were collected pre-COVID-19 in 2017-18 (N = 1,296) and again post-lockdowns in 2021 (N = 393). Data were modelled using Poisson mixed models, adjusted for age, gender, household education and seasonality, with interactions by gender and household education. Qualitative data were drawn from six focus groups (47 children) and 21 one-to-one parent interviews that explored screen-viewing behaviour during the pandemic and analysed using the framework method.Total leisure screen-viewing was 11% (95% CI: 12%-18%) higher post-lockdown compared to pre-COVID-19 on weekdays, and 8% (95% CI: 6%-10%) on weekends, equating to around 12-15 min. TV-viewing (including streaming) was higher by 68% (95% CI: 63%-74%) on weekdays and 80% (95% CI: 75%-85%) on weekend days. Differences in both were higher for girls and children from households with lower educational attainment. Qualitative themes reflected an unavoidable increase in screen-based activities during lockdowns, the resulting habitualisation of screen-viewing post-lockdown, and the role of the parent in reducing post-2020/21 lockdown screen-viewing.Although screen-viewing was higher post-lockdown compared to pre-COVID-19, the high increases reported during lockdowns were not, on average, sustained post-lockdown. This may be attributed to a combination of short-term fluctuations during periods of strict restrictions, parental support in regulating post-lockdown behaviour and age-related, rather than COVID-19-specific, increases in screen-viewing. However, socio-economic differences in our sample suggest that not all families were able to break the COVID-19-related adoption of screen-viewing, and that some groups may need additional support in managing a healthy balance of screen-viewing and other activities following the lockdowns. 

/pdf/screen-viewing-behaviours-of-children-before-and-after-the-1qy4c4af.pdf

Screen-viewing behaviours of children before and after the 2020–21 COVID-19 lockdowns in the UK: a mixed methods study

Resume Meme si la zone Asie-Pacifique est caracterisee par une grande diversite, son ensemble merite attention. De grandes choses ont ete accomplies ces dernieres annees pour favoriser la croissance economique, bâtir une securite sociale et faire reculer la pauvrete, mais il reste des obstacles gigantesques, qu'on peut chiffrer a neuf. Cinq sont analogues aux problemes qui sevissaient en Europe il y a soixante ans: indigence, insalubrite, chomage, manque d'instruction et manque d'hygiene. Les quatre autres, a savoir croissance inequitable, discrimination, corruption et vieillissement demographique nuisent a l'efficacite des politiques ciblant les cinq premiers. On esquisse ici en reponse une strategie quadruple. Elle comprend des mecanismes visant aetendre l'emploi dans le secteur structure, aelargir la couverture de la securite sociale dans le secteur structure et dans le secteur non structure et, enfin, a creer et a maintenir des filets de securitea l'intention de ceux qui se trouveraient autrement exclus de la protection sociale.

Robert Walker

Papers

Boris Johnson: the moral case for government resignations in July 2022

East Wind, West Wind: Civilizations, Hegemonies, and World Orders

A Reply to the Commentaries

Screen-viewing behaviours of children before and after the 2020–21 COVID-19 lockdowns in the UK: a mixed methods study

Anciens et nouveaux géants: favoriser sécurité sociale et croissance économique dans la zone Asie‐Pacifique