An Interview with Joshua Muravchik
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In Conversation with Adam Curtis, Part III Will Take Place As a Live Interview at E-Flux, New York, on April 14Th
Since the early 1990s Adam Curtis has made a number of serial documentaries and films for the BBC using a playful mix of journalistic reportage and a wide range of avant-garde filmmaking techniques. The films are linked through their interest in using and reassembling the fragments of the past – recorded on film and video―to try 01/13 and make sense of the chaotic events of the present. I first met Adam Curtis at the Manchester International Festival thanks to Alex Poots, and while Curtis himself is not an artist, many artists over the last decade have become increasingly interested in how his films break down the divide between art and modern political reportage, opening up a dialogue between the Hans Ulrich Obrist two. ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊThis multi-part interview with Adam Curtis began in London last December, and is the most In Conversation recent in a series of conversations published by e-flux journal that have included Raoul Vaneigem, with Adam Julian Assange, Toni Negri, and others, and I am pleased to present the second part in this issue of Curtis, Part II the journal in conjunction with a solo exhibition I have curated of Curtis’s films from 1989 to the present day. The exhibition is designed by Liam Gillick, and will be on view at e-flux in New York from February 11–April 14, 2012. In Conversation with Adam Curtis, Part III will take place as a live interview at e-flux, New York, on April 14th. – Hans Ulrich Obrist ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ→ Continued from “In Conversation with Adam Curtis, Part I.” ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊHUO: I wanted to ask you about collage, and t the way you use archival film footage as a s i r b storytelling technique, but also as a way of O h revisiting the recent past. -
Democratic Vanguardism
Democratic Vanguardism Modernity, Intervention, and the making of the Bush Doctrine Michael Harland A Thesis Submitted in Fulfillment of The Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History Department of History University of Canterbury 2013 For Francine Contents Acknowledgements 1 Abstract 3 Introduction 4 1. America at the Vanguard: Democracy Promotion and the Bush Doctrine 16 2. Assessing History’s End: Thymos and the Post-Historic Life 37 3. The Exceptional Nation: Power, Principle and American Foreign Policy 55 4. The “Crisis” of Liberal Modernity: Neoconservatism, Relativism and Republican Virtue 84 5. An “Intoxicating Moment:” The Rise of Democratic Globalism 123 6. The Perfect Storm: September 11 and the coming of the Bush Doctrine 159 Conclusion 199 Bibliography 221 1 Acknowledgements Over the three years I spent researching and writing this thesis, I have received valuable advice and support from a number of individuals and organisations. My supervisors, Peter Field and Jeremy Moses, were exemplary. As my senior supervisor, Peter provided a model of a consummate historian – lively, probing, and passionate about the past. His detailed reading of my work helped to hone the thesis significantly. Peter also allowed me to use his office while he was on sabbatical in 2009. With a library of over six hundred books, the space proved of great use to an aspiring scholar. Jeremy Moses, meanwhile, served as the co-supervisor for this thesis. His research on the connections between liberal internationalist theory and armed intervention provided much stimulus for this study. Our discussions on the present trajectory of American foreign policy reminded me of the continuing pertinence of my dissertation topic. -
Introduction
NOTES Introduction 1. Robert Kagan to George Packer. Cited in Packer’s The Assassin’s Gate: America In Iraq (Faber and Faber, London, 2006): 38. 2. Stefan Halper and Jonathan Clarke, America Alone: The Neoconservatives and the Global Order (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2004): 9. 3. Critiques of the war on terror and its origins include Gary Dorrien, Imperial Designs: Neoconservatism and the New Pax Americana (Routledge, New York and London, 2004); Francis Fukuyama, After the Neocons: America At the Crossroads (Profile Books, London, 2006); Ira Chernus, Monsters to Destroy: The Neoconservative War on Terror and Sin (Paradigm Publishers, Boulder, CO and London, 2006); and Jacob Heilbrunn, They Knew They Were Right: The Rise of the Neocons (Doubleday, New York, 2008). 4. A report of the PNAC, Rebuilding America’s Defenses: Strategy, Forces and Resources for a New Century, September 2000: 76. URL: http:// www.newamericancentury.org/RebuildingAmericasDefenses.pdf (15 January 2009). 5. On the first generation on Cold War neoconservatives, which has been covered far more extensively than the second, see Gary Dorrien, The Neoconservative Mind: Politics, Culture and the War of Ideology (Temple University Press, Philadelphia, 1993); Peter Steinfels, The Neoconservatives: The Men Who Are Changing America’s Politics (Simon and Schuster, New York, 1979); Murray Friedman, The Neoconservative Revolution: Jewish Intellectuals and the Shaping of Public Policy (Cambridge University Press, New York, 2005); Murray Friedman ed. Commentary in American Life (Temple University Press, Philadelphia, 2005); Mark Gerson, The Neoconservative Vision: From the Cold War to the Culture Wars (Madison Books, Lanham MD; New York; Oxford, 1997); and Maria Ryan, “Neoconservative Intellectuals and the Limitations of Governing: The Reagan Administration and the Demise of the Cold War,” Comparative American Studies, Vol. -
Neoconservatives Among Us? Astudy of Former Dissidents' Discourse
43 L 62 Neoconservatives Among Us? A Study of Former Dissidents’ Discourse* JENI SCHALLER Abstract: Neoconservative political thought has been characterized as “distinctly American”, but could there be fertile ground for its basic tenets in post-communist Europe? This paper takes an initial look at the acceptance of the ideas of American neo- conservative foreign policy among Czech elites who were dissidents under the communist regime. Open-ended, semi-structured interviews with eight former dissidents were con- ducted and then analyzed against a background of some fundamental features of neocon- servative foreign policy. Discourse analysis is the primary method of examination of the texts. Although a coherent discourse among Czech former dissidents cannot be said to ex- ist, certain aspects reminiscent of American neoconservative thought were found. Key words: neoconservatism, Czech dissidents, foreign policy, discourse analysis I. INTRODUCTION Neoconservatism, as a strain of political thought in the United States, has been represented as “distinctly American” and Irving Kristol, often considered the “godfather” of neoconservatism, emphatically states “[t]here is nothing like neoconservatism in Europe” (Kristol 2003: 33). Analyst Jeffrey Gedmin writes that the “environment for neoconservatism as such is an inhospitable one” in Europe, especially Germany (Gedmin 2004: 291). The states of Cen- tral Europe, in contrast to many of the established continental EU members, represent a rather more pro-American stance. With groups of former dissi- dents whose political leanings are in part informed by the American anti- communist, pro-democracy policies of the 1970s and 1980s, could there be a more hospitable environment for neoconservative ideas in a Central Euro- pean state such as the Czech Republic? The Czech dissident community was not as extensive or well-organised as that in Poland or even Hungary, largely due to the post-1968 “normalisation” in Czechoslovakia. -
Interview with Frank Watson # ISL-A-L-2012-036 Interview # 01: August 7, 2012 Interviewer: Mark Depue
Interview with Frank Watson # ISL-A-L-2012-036 Interview # 01: August 7, 2012 Interviewer: Mark DePue COPYRIGHT The following material can be used for educational and other non-commercial purposes without the written permission of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library. “Fair use” criteria of Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976 must be followed. These materials are not to be deposited in other repositories, nor used for resale or commercial purposes without the authorization from the Audio-Visual Curator at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library, 112 N. 6th Street, Springfield, Illinois 62701. Telephone (217) 785-7955 A Note to the Reader This transcript is based on an interview recorded by the ALPL Oral History Program. Readers are reminded that the interview of record is the original video or audio file, and are encouraged to listen to portions of the original recording to get a better sense of the interviewee’s personality and state of mind. The interview has been transcribed in near- verbatim format, then edited for clarity and readability, and reviewed by the interviewee. For many interviews, the ALPL Oral History Program retains substantial files with further information about the interviewee and the interview itself. Please contact us for information about accessing these materials. DePue: Today is Tuesday, August 7, 2012. My name is Mark DePue, Director of Oral History for the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library. Today I’m in Greenville, Illinois with former Senator Frank Watson. Good afternoon. Watson: Mark, good afternoon. DePue: I hope this is the first of many sessions that we have. Watson: It’s hopefully not as many as Jim Edgar had (laughs). -
Making the World Safe for Partial Democracy? Making the World Safe Arthur A
Making the World Safe for Partial Democracy? Making the World Safe Arthur A. Goldsmith for Partial Democracy? Questioning the Premises of Democracy Promotion Should the United States promote democracy abroad? Will moves toward democracy, particularly in the Muslim world, advance U.S. interests? To what extent can the United States bring about democratic change? What are the odds of success, and how great are the risks should democracy promotion fail? The answers to these questions are vital to U.S. foreign policy. Even after the debacle in Iraq, there remains broad agreement in Washington that the United States should work to foster a less autocratic world, which, in turn, is predicted to lead to less anti- Americanism and diminished threats to U.S. interests. This article calls attention to two errors in reasoning and evidence that al- most everyone in the debate over democracy promotion seems to have over- looked. First, if democracy enhances international security, that does not necessarily mean that “every step toward freedom in the world makes our country safer,” to quote President George W. Bush.1 Frequently, the suc- cessor regime to a dictatorship is a partial democracy, which can pose an even greater security threat. Second, having the laudable purpose of furthering democracy is not a relevant reason for claiming that this goal is attainable. De- spite its signiªcant inºuence, the United States cannot consistently shape for- eign political systems to its liking, particularly in the short term. Democracy promotion’s limitations were brushed aside in the Bush admin- istration’s “forward strategy of freedom” or “freedom agenda,” which became the cornerstone of its foreign policy. -
Introduction Chapter 1
Notes Introduction 1. Thomas S. Kuhn, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, 2nd ed. (Chicago: Univer- sity of Chicago Press, 1970). 2. Ralph Pettman, Human Behavior and World Politics: An Introduction to International Relations (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1975); Giandomenico Majone, Evidence, Argument, and Persuasion in the Policy Process (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1989), 275– 76. 3. Bernard Lewis, “The Return of Islam,” Commentary, January 1976; Ofira Seliktar, The Politics of Intelligence and American Wars with Iraq (New York: Palgrave Mac- millan, 2008), 4. 4. Martin Kramer, Ivory Towers on Sand: The Failure of Middle Eastern Studies in Amer- ica (Washington, DC: Washington Institute for Near East Policy, 2000). 5. Bernard Lewis, “The Roots of Muslim Rage,” Atlantic Monthly, September, 1990; Samuel P. Huntington, “The Clash of Civilizations,” Foreign Affairs 72 (1993): 24– 49; Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of the World Order (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1996). Chapter 1 1. Quoted in Joshua Muravchik, The Uncertain Crusade: Jimmy Carter and the Dilemma of Human Rights (Lanham, MD: Hamilton Press, 1986), 11– 12, 114– 15, 133, 138– 39; Hedley Donovan, Roosevelt to Reagan: A Reporter’s Encounter with Nine Presidents (New York: Harper & Row, 1985), 165. 2. Charles D. Ameringer, U.S. Foreign Intelligence: The Secret Side of American History (Lexington, MA: Lexington Books, 1990), 357; Peter Meyer, James Earl Carter: The Man and the Myth (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1978), 18; Michael A. Turner, “Issues in Evaluating U.S. Intelligence,” International Journal of Intelligence and Counterintelligence 5 (1991): 275– 86. 3. Abram Shulsky, Silent Warfare: Understanding the World’s Intelligence (Washington, DC: Brassey’s [US], 1993), 169; Robert M. -
Islamic Movements Syllabus
Islamic Movements Tugrul Keskin Portland State University 1. Course Overview This course will review and analyze the increasing trend of Islamic movements (IM) and Islamic parties (IP) around the world in the global age of capitalism and the contemporary Muslim world. In the course, we focus on IM and IP and their relationship with global capitalism, democracy, free speech, human rights, inequality, colonialism/imperialism, modernity, secularism and governance. All of these concepts are directly related with the conditions of modernity which have been created by the free market economy; therefore, I perceive Political Islam (IM and IP) as a product of modern conditions, such as urbanization, the emergence of a manufacture-based economy, the increased availability of higher education, women’s participation in education and the workforce, and the elimination of traditional social values. The conditions of modernity created the concept of democracy in the modern world. Christianity and Judaism have consequently been struggling to redefine themselves under the new rules and regulations – not revelations - for over 200 years; whereas in Muslim Societies, the conditions of modernity challenge Islam and Muslims. Therefore, Muslims will be forced to decide between the expression and practice of Din/Religion and the material world in their daily life. There is therefore an ongoing struggle between the observance of God and the pursuit of material conditions. Although Political Islam could be seen as a direct reaction to modern politics, Islam is actually an inherently political religion that rules and regulates every aspect of a believer’s daily life, much in the same way as economic conditions do. -
Neoconservatism: Origins and Evolution, 1945 – 1980
Neoconservatism: Origins and Evolution, 1945 – 1980 Robert L. Richardson, Jr. A dissertation submitted to the faculty of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of History. Chapel Hill 2009 Approved by, Michael H. Hunt, Chair Richard Kohn Timothy McKeown Nancy Mitchell Roger Lotchin Abstract Robert L. Richardson, Jr. Neoconservatism: Origins and Evolution, 1945 – 1985 (Under the direction of Michael H. Hunt) This dissertation examines the origins and evolution of neoconservatism as a philosophical and political movement in America from 1945 to 1980. I maintain that as the exigencies and anxieties of the Cold War fostered new intellectual and professional connections between academia, government and business, three disparate intellectual currents were brought into contact: the German philosophical tradition of anti-modernism, the strategic-analytical tradition associated with the RAND Corporation, and the early Cold War anti-Communist tradition identified with figures such as Reinhold Niebuhr. Driven by similar aims and concerns, these three intellectual currents eventually coalesced into neoconservatism. As a political movement, neoconservatism sought, from the 1950s on, to re-orient American policy away from containment and coexistence and toward confrontation and rollback through activism in academia, bureaucratic and electoral politics. Although the neoconservatives were only partially successful in promoting their transformative project, their accomplishments are historically significant. More specifically, they managed to interject their views and ideas into American political and strategic thought, discredit détente and arms control, and shift U.S. foreign policy toward a more confrontational stance vis-à-vis the Soviet Union. -
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD— Extensions of Remarks E2151 HON
October 20, 2005 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks E2151 become a teacher. In fact, before joining the Kemble, who was one of its most ardent, elo- where he was a small but feisty football Army, he worked one-on-one with special quent, and effective defenders. Although he player in high school. His political activism needs students at the Kennedy Krieger High died at the relatively young age of 64, after a began at the University of Colorado, where he helped establish the Colorado chapter of School Career and Technology Center in Balti- year-long struggle with brain cancer, Penn the Young People’s Socialist League. more. One of his colleagues at the school said was an activist on behalf of social causes for After receiving a bachelor’s degree in 1962, that Spc. Ceo was a thoughtful, introspective more than 40 years. Whether arguing on be- he moved to New York and took a job as a young man who was an excellent employee, half of civil rights, supporting organized labor, copy boy at the New York Times. His jour- and would have made an outstanding teacher. which he considered the ‘‘balance wheel of nalism career ended shortly afterward, when Spc. Ceo joined the Army to help pay for col- democracy,’’ or advocating on behalf of demo- the typesetters went out on strike and he re- lege and alleviate financial strain on his family. cratic movements around the world, Penn fused to cross the picket line. Along with his professional goals, Spc. Ceo brought an unparalleled passion combined He stayed in New York and immersed him- was also making plans to marry his longtime with a hardheaded realism to every cause he self in socialist politics, seeking to resurrect girlfriend, Dajae Overton. -
Cheek, James R
The Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training Foreign Affairs Oral History Project AMBASSADOR JAMES RICHARD CHEEK Interviewed by: Charles Stuart Kennedy Initial Interview Date: September 13, 2010 Copyright 2012 ADST TABLE OF CONTENTS Background Born in Georgia, raised in Arkansas Racial segregation University of Arkansas; Arkansas State Teachers College (Re-named University of Central Arkansas)% American University US Army, ermany (195,-195-) .ashington, D.C.0 National 2ducation Association (12A) 1959-19-1 2ntered the Foreign Service in 19-1 3arriage Philip 4aiser State Department0 Foreign Service Institute0 Spanish 19-1-18-2 language study Santiago, Chile0 Rotation Officer 1982-1988 President 2duardo Frei 9ohn 9ova Strikes and violence 2conomy 2nvironment Political Parties Communists Alliance for Progress USAID Population Ambassador Charles Cole Allende London, 2ngland0 Consular/Political Officer 1988-19-- 3iddle 2ast, 2ast of Suez 9udy arland 1 Liaison with Foreign Office Vietnam Flags Over Vietnam Ambassador David Bruce Adlai Stevenson death Operations 9ack Vaughn Ditchley House Conference Congressional Delegations 9oan Auten Visas Charley ilbert Department of State0 Desk Officer, Newly Independent 19---19-7 British Colonies Countries covered Leeward and .indward Islands Cuba Puerto Rico British AAssociated StatesB Antigua Tracking Station US official recognition of States Barbados delegation British policy ambling casinos Puerto Rico independence USAID Labor Party Rio de 9aneiro, Brazil0 Deputy Director, Peace Corps 19-7-19-9 Circumstances of assignment Program Operations Housing overnment US Ambassadors Rio de 9aneiro0 Transportation and Communication Officer (TCO) 19-9-1971 Operations Ambassador .illiam Rountree Steven Lowe 2mbassy Brasilia Civil aviation overnment Brazilian diplomats State enterprises 2 Brazilian army 4ubitschek Human Rights Ambassador Burk 2lbrick kidnapping 4idnappings Human Rights Soviets 3anagua, Nicaragua0 Political Counselor 1971-197, Ambassador Turner and 3rs. -
Lawrence Irvin Collection
McLean County Museum of History Lawrence Irvin Collection Processed by Rachael Laing & John P. Elterich Spring 2016 Collection Information: VOLUME OF COLLECTION: Three Boxes COLLECTION DATES: 1939-2002, mostly 1950s-60s RESTRICTIONS: None REPRODUCTION RIGHTS: Permission to reproduce or publish material in this collection must be obtained in writing from the McLean County Museum of History. ALTERNATIVE FORMATS: None OTHER FINDING AIDS: None LOCATION: Archives NOTES: See also—Photographic Collection—People: Irvin; Bloomington Housing Authority Brief History Lawrence E. Irvin, son of Patrick and Mary Irvin, was born May 27, 1911 at Lake Bloomington, Illinois. He attended Trinity High School and Illinois State Normal University. In 1930, he and his two brothers started the Evergreen Beverage Co. (later known as the Pepsi Cola Bottling Company). He took an administrative post as business manager at the Illinois Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Children’s School (ISSCS) in Normal, then was appointed business manager at Illinois State Normal University. During World War II, Irvin served as a Red Cross field director in North Africa and Europe. Upon returning home after the war, he accepted a position as the administrative assistant to Governor Adlai Stevenson II. He held this job from 1949-1953. During this tenure he became close with many politicians, such as Paul Douglas and Paul Simon. He was the Executive Director of the Bloomington Housing Authority from 1953 until he retired in 1985. Irvin was an active participant in Bloomington politics. He was a member of the City Planning and Zoning Board, as well a member of the Bloomington Association of Commerce, the Human Relations Commission, the Citizen’s Community Improvement Committee, and the Urban Planning and Renewal Committee.