A distinctly unoriginal take on the pathologies of overvaluing academic “novelty.”
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Twitter Status
I recently posted "I'm done." I then axed every other tweet on my timeline, and I disabled automatic x-posting between Twitter and Mastodon. Still, I'm not ready to delete my account; I've been trying to decide what to do about automated posting at @dhnexon, @DuckofMinerva, and @WhiskeyIRT. Odds are that you're reading this on Twitter, and therefore know that I haven't disabled this functionality. I'm facing the same dilemma that a lot of...
Ok, students think race and climate change matter. Now what?
When I first started teaching intro to IR, I closed the semester with lectures on climate change and the second Congo war (or "Africa's world war"). This was part of my effort to include current and overlooked aspects of international relations. As time went on, and discussions spread about how IR should deal with racial and environmental issues, I expanded these lectures. The former now looks at whether IR is up to the task of addressing...
Whiskey and IR Theory Stuff
As listeners of the podcast know, PTJ and I have trouble keeping a consistent release schedule. We average about two months between episodes. In order to address the problem, we're looking at doing more articles. That suggests themes. Current plan: relationalism. We've already recorded an episode on Emirbayer's "Manifesto," so why not continue? We're also considering a guided tour through a synthesis of our Science Fiction and International...
Critical Strategic Studies, or Where Are the Peace Strategists?
We need a critical strategic studies, or maybe a strategic peace studies. Critical security studies, of course, is a venerable research tradition that I sometimes identify with. There are also scattered references to the phrase “critical strategic studies” out there in the literature, though it appears to be synonymous with critical security studies. And there is a pretty robust peace studies and “conflict...
Are you not entertained?
At least so far, my basic Twitter experience hasn't changed much — thanks to more liberal use of the "block" and "mute" buttons. Not being "big time" enough or, frankly, interesting enough to target probably helps. Still, I'm not finding it terribly rewarding. Lord Prince Musk's Duchy of Freebird is not unlike Twitter in the Trump era, but with lower stakes and a more articulate despot. What crazy, trollish, logically incoherent thing will Elon...
(Social) Network Patrimonialism
Moderating a Reddit channel is hard. Moderating a massive, social, user-generated content site like Twitter? Sisyphus would take one look and go back to his boulder. This assumes you approach moderation with a legal-rational mindset — one that aims for — and is judged by its ability to deliver — a fair and consistent application of publicly legible rules concerning, on the one hand, acceptable behavior and, on the other hand, the penalties for...
Pos(t)essive Individualism
Adam Serwer doesn't break new ground when he argues that "The consistency here lies in the belief that corporations and people have freedom of speech as long as they exercise that right on behalf of right-wing causes." But he does provide the receipts. I think that's only part of the story. For the last few weeks I've been ruminating on a series of fragmentary ideas and questions. These include: The marketplace of ideas is at best a mediocre...
Welcome to the Microblog
Since its founding in 2005, the Duck of Minerva has been home to many experiments. Some failed, and were abandoned. Some succeeded, and were abandoned. Given current uncertainties (and, let's face it, "ick factor") about Twitter, I thought it might be interesting to shift microblogging to... a blog. We'll see how this works. Or doesn't.
Indeterminacy, Uncertain Contexts and the Dual Nature of Norms
When it comes norm dynamics and how we theorize them, uncertainty presents something of a paradox. We study norms because we think that they matter. But if norms are inherently uncertain, then how is it possible that they constitute, constrain, and otherwise shape the behavior of global actors? Unless norms produce stable and defined expectations, then how can they have the power to structure international politics?
Is the World Cup a soft power win for Qatar? It’s too early to tell
Millions of people around the world are watching breathlessly as teams compete in the World Cup, held in Qatar. Many others--like me--tune it out, turned off by that guy in grad school who spent a semester in Barcelona and then pretended to be a life-long Spain fan. But this year, the World Cup caught my attention for a nerdier reason: the constant talk of Qatar's "soft power" through the tournament. My fraught relationship with soft power Soft...
A Message from the Executive Editor of International Security
I write to you as the new executive editor of International Security, the first woman to hold this position. I am taking the opportunity graciously provided by the Duck of Minerva team to introduce myself to you. I also want to thank my most recent predecessors, Sebastian Rosato (pro tem), Morgan Kaplan, and Sean Lynn-Jones – himself an institution -- for their contribution to the continued excellence of International Security and for their...