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Introduction to IJWP, June 2010
With the rise of the sovereign nation-state, after the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, came a period of great scientific and technical advancement as well as the rise of national and international wars in which millions of people have perished. The modern state, which has the capacity for efficiently providing rule of law in which large populations can live peacefully, is more often than not a tool used by powerful people to exploit masses, or an instrument of power through which to seek world dominance.
The United Nations Security Council, organized by the major powers after two devastating world wars and the development of weapons of mass destruction, has provided deterrence against powerful states entering into traditional wars against other states. However, the state, as the center of sovereign power, has been the target for control by unscrupulous individuals and groups everywhere. The result is a world in which individuals and groups are oppressed by those who control state power. Continue reading Resolving Ethnic Conflicts in Nation-States
 March 2010 IJWP
Introduction to March 2010 IJWP
We can better understand the War on Terror and the role of Western military forces in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan by learning the history of the politics in the region. Southwest Asia is marked by many weak state governments and competition for control of them by more powerful neighbors, international superpowers, and non-state actors that include religious jihadists and independence movements. In the September 2009 issue of IJWP we discussed anarchy in unsecured territories, with an emphasis on Africa. Southwest Asia suffers from many of the same political dynamics: (1) state borders that were created by past political conquest, either by expansion by indigenous rulers or conquest by colonial masters, (2) the collapse of European colonialism and the rise of the bi-polar world of the Cold War that had rewarded dictatorial allies, (3) the collapse of the Soviet Union and the rise of hopes around the world for self-rule, and (4) new contests for state power based on self-determination movements, regional hegemons, and non-state religious and ideological actors.
Continue reading Power Politics in Southwest Asia
Introduction to December 2009 IJWP
Realpolitik is a term derived from German. It refers to a politics based on practical and material factors rather than on theoretical or ethical objectives (Merriam-Webster dictionary). Historically, many political platforms have been based on theoretical, religious, ideological, or moral arguments.
Most visions of ideal societies, as disparate as Plato, Confucius, Jesus, and Marx, all rely on changing basic human behavior. If we can only learn to love one another, to share with one another, to accept a Christian, Muslim, or socialist theory of justice, or change our selfish and exploitative behavior in some way, then we can create an ideal world. As we recently learned from the efforts of the Soviet Union to create a “new man,” one that is rational and scientific, the laws of nature are not easily trumped. Instead of getting a “new man” who gives according to his abilities and receives according to his needs, the Soviet Union got the Nomenklatura, the“old man” in a new bureaucratic class, who used position and power in the Soviet political system for personal and selfish desires.
Continue reading Realpolitik and World Peace

Introduction to September 2009 IJWP
The modern desire for democracy and self-rule is largely a reaction against a history of oppression and exploitation following military conquest and imposed rule. World history is predominantly shaped by conquerors, yet most people desire to live their own lives and not serve as a means to someone else’s ends. While self-rule requires the overthrow of imposed rule, it is more difficult than the mere overthrow of a régime and the declaration of freedom and of rule of law. Self-rule requires self-discipline and the willingness to use force, when necessary, against foreign aggression and civil violence. Continue reading Anarchy in Unsecured Territories

Introduction to June 2009 IJWP
Our lead article by James Yunker suggests ways in which global governance could be improved, ways that could create a “more perfect union” than the League of Nations, or the United Nations, which he compares to the Articles of Confederation of the United States. This more perfect union would involve three principles not present in the world government proposals of the twentieth century. First, voting principles must be changed so that an involuntary redistribution of wealth could not occur. Second, there should be an inalienable right to withdraw from the Union. Third, each nation should be allowed to keep whatever military power they desire. Continue reading A More Perfect Union
New Book on Fixing Government
Released September 2009. Order from Paragon House, Amazon.com, or your local bookstore.
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