Any political science students out there?

[BerkeleyPremed]

What poli sci classes are you guys taking over the summer+fall? I'm taking an upper division class on democracy and another upper div on "war, violence, and terrorism" over the summer (total of 8 credits). In the fall, I'll have international relations, transitions to democracy, regional politics of latin america, and a history class. Also...what are the big authors to read in international relations? I'm planning on making IR my emphasis within poli sci so I'll probably end up doing my senior thesis in IR.

As of right now...I'm just trying to read any IR books I can get my hands on. I'm currently reading The Future of Freedom by Fareed Zakaria and The Crisis of Islam by Bernard Lewis. I already read The Clash of Civilizations and Remaking of World Order by Samuel Huntington (I heard this guy is huge in the field) and Of Paradise and Power by Robert Kagan. I'm thinking about getting a subscription to Foreign Affairs, but my friend says I'm going a little too far...lol.

edit: **bracing self for the onslaught of posts that read, "Why aren't you taking frog physio classes? Are you ignoring your frog research?"**

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[pbehzad]

Hey I'm an International Politics major, and love it more than anything. My emphasis is on West Africa especially since I believe that West Africa will be al-Qaeda's next hotbed (which it already is). I'll be taking Minorities in the Arab World and Comparative Politics in the Fall. I'm also doing a 3 credit independent study with a professor on most likely the civil war in Chad, but I may do something on Central Asia since it seems to be a neglected region of the world.
All those books you listed are real good. I'm assuming your emphasis on the Middle East? Being Iranian and Muslim I wanted to move away from the Mideast, and specializes in a different region of the world.

Enjoy the readings.

 

[pbehzad]

PS if you want a real good book then read Blood Diamonds by Greg Campbell. It talks about the whole illegal diamond industry in Sierra Leone and how former Liberian President Charles Taylor had connections with al-Qaeda. You'd be surprised how many Islamic terrorists organizations would be in W. Africa. Hezbollah has a major following in Conakry, Guinea of all places.

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

PS if you want a real good book then read Blood Diamonds by Greg Campbell. It talks about the whole illegal diamond industry in Sierra Leone and how former Liberian President Charles Taylor had connections with al-Qaeda. You'd be surprised how many Islamic terrorists organizations would be in W. Africa. Hezbollah has a major following in Conakry, Guinea of all places.

I'll definitely look into that book because I really don't have a good background in African politics. I know a little about the politics of South Africa, Sudan, Nigeria, and a few other countries...but most of it is a mystery to me. In addition, I've heard some really disturbing things about the diamond industry in Sierra Leone...Bill Maher (commentater..not academic...just thought I'd warn you) talks about it briefly in his book When You Ride Alone, You Ride With Bin Laden. He mentioned that children have had their limbs severed because of the cruel, inhuman labor practices that rebel forces in Sierra Leone use when mining for diamonds.

People have recommended Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond but I'm not sure if I want to read that because Diamond is an evolutionary biologist...the history of imperial conquest, native subjugation, and what not is not exactly his field of expertise so I'm not exactly sure why he even wrote that book. Even examining these events through the lens of evolutionary biology seems a little suspect...but I'll probably end up reading it anyway just out of curiosity. (You can't refute someone if you don't know what their arguments are.)

 

[Cuteasaurus]

Jihad vs McWorld by Barber is pretty interesting too...

 

[LoneCoyote]

Jihad vs McWorld by Barber is pretty interesting too...

Definitely. It's a great one. I had Barber for my Political Science 101 and he got me hooked enough to almost major in it, though I ended up doing history in the end. It is interesting because he really predicted the conflicts we would see before they had started to unfold on the scale we see today.

 

[merle]

To understand the Christian right better, I'm reading Fundamentalism and American Culture: The Shaping of the Twentieth-Century Evangelicalism. It's supposed to best historical survey of American Christian Evangelicalism available. Religion is an under-studied topic in poli sci depts, I believe.

Walter Russell Mead's Special Providence: American Foreign Policy and How It Changed the World is recommended by many as one of the best critical surveys of US foreign policy. I haven't had time to read it, yet. A history of British imperialism might also be apropos, if time permits.

 

[Spitting Camel]

Poly Sci, huh? So you took the easy way out of college, then?






















Totally kidding. But seriously, why do people hate you?

 

[Eraserhead]

Poly Sci, huh? So you took the easy way out of college, then?
















Totally kidding. But seriously, why do people hate you?

I'm constantly told that Psych was the "easy way out." That's really annoying.

 

[Spitting Camel]

I'm constantly told that Psych was the "easy way out." That's really annoying.

Aww, does it hurt your feelings? Who cares what other people think, man? You go to college to study what you love, not what will impress people!

 

[smuwillobrien]

Rotfl. I'm sorry, Berkley. It's just that taken a look at your post history you've gone from hardcore biologist to hardcore political scientist. You're funny, and you're also a toad.

 

[Cerbernator]

you are nothing but a biobot BPM, dont run from your lameness.

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

Definitely. It's a great one. I had Barber for my Political Science 101 and he got me hooked enough to almost major in it, though I ended up doing history in the end. It is interesting because he really predicted the conflicts we would see before they had started to unfold on the scale we see today.

I'll definitely look into Barber's book. I heard an article from that book is usually slipped into most readers for poli sci (especially for students of IR), so I'll definitely add that to the reading list. I should probably also read The Anarchical Society because I heard it's one of the most fundamental books in IR. Thanks for the reponses guys.

 

[hamhamfan]

Totally kidding. But seriously, why do people hate you?

They sometimes disagree and dislike some of the things he says. It doesn't help that they post some things that make them look bad, and then BPM takes advantage of that.

 

[Gleevec]

They sometimes disagree and dislike some of the things he says. It doesn't help that they post some things that make them look bad, and then BPM takes advantage of that.

In the same way people sometimes disagreed with and disliked things Hitler said? (just to BPM understands, this is once again hyperbole, or an exaggeration if hyperbole is too big a word for BPM)

Judge for yourself though, take a look at BPM's post history. The proof is in the pudding, and it looks like troll pudding is on the menu.

 

[hamhamfan]

I've seen several of BPM' threads and posts, courtesy of some people who seem to hate him. It's like people put him into a corner... it's usually a whole ton of people against just him. Put yourself in his position and understand that it's not easy being attacked constantly. Look at how certain posters practically stalk him and invade his threads.

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

Poly Sci, huh? So you took the easy way out of college, then?









Totally kidding. But seriously, why do people hate you?




Basically, it all started with one thread called "Columbia vs. UCSF." The guy was trying to decide between the two schools. I gave my vote to Columbia mainly because a) the guy said he lived in the bay area for most of his life AND b) columbia can draw the best students from around the country whereas UCSF can only draw the best from in-state (80% are from in-state). Then the clinically braindead posters (Gleevec and PeteRockDumb), started saying stuff like, "You think UCSF doesn't have top students!!!!! Wtf are you talking about?????" (even though I did say that UCSF has stop students...just that the majority of those are from in-state)

Then I pointed out what was happening to the UC schools (and yes..this does affect UCSF...UCSF is still a UC campus)...the UC schools were suffering from the state budget cuts, horrible fiscal management from Ahnold, and increasing tuition (40% tuition hike was expected). I used an example of how a professor from Berkeley was being courted by a lesser private school (Duke) with a higher salary, better perks, etc...it just so happened that this endocrinology prof was studying genetic mutations in frogs...then the same braindead posters started saying stuff like, "Why are you talking about a frog professor??????!!! Why are you obsessed with frog research!!?????? "

Oh...before I forget...I posted in this one thread about Indian people not liking Indian food. I posted that I consider myself an American (I was born and raised here...have lived in the US my whole life...english was my first language)..then a ton of braindeads started telling me what my identity in the country should be and why I was wrong about my own identity here...lol. Then this one idiot named "MustafaMond" said I'd make a horrible med student and horrible intern...but this guy said that he went to med school in India...so someone that couldn't get into a single US school and had to go to a foreign school is calling me a poor student...something doesn't seem right there.

Then 74884273 frog threads popped up. lol

proof that the UCs are having their professors stolen away by privates:
http://evcp.chance.berkeley.edu/RegentsPresentationMarch2004/regentpresentation_files/frame.htm

Scroll down to slide 10

 

[TTSD]

nono.. poli-sci is definitely the easy way out ;-).

But you know what? I think certain courses, for most of people, are a matter of your natural intelligence while others are a matter of intelligence AND discipline.

For instance, the undergrad humanities such as social studies, economics, political science, history, etc.. are a matter of having a good base of knowledge and common sense. Putting 2+2 together and following something to its conclusion. For instance, in History, it's all a matter of how much History Channel you watch, amaglamate all that knowledge and throw together your hypothesis on why X occured based off of C and D.

Now, science is somwhat similar but requires magnitudes of meticulous and dilligent studying (unless you're blessed with a wonderful memory, in which case, F-off!). A lot of times you're going to have to understand with Z occurs, but you're going to have understand why A-Y occured as well and their various offshoots. And even then, at times, it's like pissing when drunk because sometimes they defy logic.

 

[Premedtomed]

[

Oh...before I forget...I posted in this one thread about Indian people not liking Indian food. I posted that I consider myself an American (I was born and raised here...have lived in the US my whole life...english was my first language)..then a ton of braindeads started telling me what my identity in the country should be and why I was wrong about my own identity here...lol. Then this one idiot named "MustafaMond" said I'd make a horrible med student and horrible intern...but this guy said that he went to med school in India...so someone that couldn't get into a single US school and had to go to a foreign school is calling me a poor student...something doesn't seem right there.

And I got pissed at the wrong people. I still have some anger left if you wish to argue about identity crisis

 

[Cerbernator]

BPM, I hated you WAY before that thread

 

[Gleevec]

BPM, I hated you WAY before that thread

Agreed, also its easy for hamhamfan as BPMs new beeyatch to look at recent posts and say BPM has been cornered, yet then BPM instigates on the beer thread in the lounge and then hamhamfan just laughs. So your explanation is weak at best, and frankly its pretty hypocritical.

Frankly, there are very few SDNers I have a problem with, trolls like BerkeleyPremed, PrincetonRocks, etc I do have a problem with. You say he is cornered, but you have to ask yourself, what started it all? Do you think Cerberus and I (and the host of other users) just randomly searched the members list and said "lets rag on this BerkeleyPremed guy"? Obviously not. So that begs the question, how could it be that so many people cant stand BPM? Ill let you draw your own conclusions.

 

[Peterock]

I wub BerkeleyPremed. He is my little personal ray of sunshine and hope. A fresh breeze in a biobiotic world AND humble too!

 

[hamhamfan]

Agreed, also its easy for hamhamfan as BPMs new beeyatch to look at recent posts and say BPM has been cornered, yet then BPM instigates on the beer thread in the lounge and then hamhamfan just laughs. So your explanation is weak at best, and frankly its pretty hypocritical.

Frankly, there are very few SDNers I have a problem with, trolls like BerkeleyPremed, PrincetonRocks, etc I do have a problem with. You say he is cornered, but you have to ask yourself, what started it all? Do you think Cerberus and I (and the host of other users) just randomly searched the members list and said "lets rag on this BerkeleyPremed guy"? Obviously not. So that begs the question, how could it be that so many people cant stand BPM? Ill let you draw your own conclusions.

I honestly have no idea when all this BPM hate started. I don't ever recall so much hate against him as I see now.

Looking at the more recent threads, they usually involve BPM posting some opinions that are unique and distinct from many other opinions. Oftentimes, he sounds preoccupied with numbers and stuff. Other times, he gives opinions that may not be PC or kind. I find that refreshingly blunt.

Really, check out all the recent threads with BPM. It's just him battling all of these other posters. They intrude in threads that have nothing to do with rankings or anything (like this one!) It's a constant battle where he has to defend against accusations of being a troll and other ad hominems. Put yourself in his spot and see how you feel. Perhaps he has been beaten down so much by you guys that he has the need to retaliate once in a while. It's like he needs a release for all that pain that you guys have given him.

As for BPM's thread in the Lounge. It was funny, and I smiled. I meant no offense to any of the other posters on the board.

Notice how Peterock can post nice things about BPM. Perhaps you would do well to follow his example.

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

Steering thread back to the topic in the original post:

I'll probably head to Cody's bookstore on Telegraph and buy Jihad vs. McWorld by Barber. I'm thinking about buying one of Francis Fukuyama's books as well...The End of History is his most famous work (foolishly optimistic in my opinion...I read an excerpt in my comparitive politics class). I think he just released a new book though but I can't recall the title at the moment.

 

[care bear]

i just wanted to chime in that i was a poli sci and bio double major in college and *loved* the contrast of the 2 disciplines; just when my brain needed a break from memorizing i could sit down and write a paper about the evils of colonialism

i concentrated on african politics somewhat, but development issues/politics in general was my real concentration.

so i can't recommend that much in IR b/c i didn't really focus too much on traditional IR.

anyhow -good for you for being interested in diverse areas of study

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

i just wanted to chime in that i was a poli sci and bio double major in college and *loved* the contrast of the 2 disciplines; just when my brain needed a break from memorizing i could sit down and write a paper about the evils of colonialism

i concentrated on african politics somewhat, but development issues/politics in general was my real concentration.

so i can't recommend that much in IR b/c i didn't really focus too much on traditional IR.

anyhow -good for you for being interested in diverse areas of study

Bio and poli sci is awesome double major...I'd imagine you graduated with a very well-rounded education. I really don't have a strong background in African politics so I'm going to buy Phillip Gourevitch's book about the Rwanda genocide (I forgot the title at the moment). I'll try to see what other titles I can get my hands on (with regards to African politics). I'm glad to see other SDNers who have already walked down the road I'm currently on (poli sci). Thanks for the post.

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

Just bought Jihad vs. McWorld. I'll probably start reading it later tonight. I'll probably buy Fukuyama's book next.

 

[IndyZX]

clapton is god.
bpm is a tool.





and im not buying his whole act, anyway...

 

[Cerbernator]

clapton is god.
bpm is a tool.

never a truer post

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

Trying to save thread from the Nth hijack attempt:

Any other titles out there that you guys recommend?

 

[IndyZX]

read GGaS, your reasons from wanting to avoid it are irrelevant.

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

read GGaS, your reasons from wanting to avoid it are irrelevant.

Just outta curiosity...if you think I'm a "tool" (as evidenced above)...then why would you continue posting in this thread and recommending books? I'll read "GGaS" when I have the time for it.

 

[dmk724]

Trying to save thread from the Nth hijact attempt:

Any other titles out there that you guys recommend?

I was a history major (focus on western European politics, mostly Spain), but I don't know if I would recommend Huntington's books. Yes, he is huge in the political science field, for reasons that completely escape me. He recently wrote an article on the "Hispanic Challenge" in Foreign Policy Magazine, which was one of the most poorly researched articles with the weakest evidence I have seen in a long time - statistics taken totally out of context, and a totally myopic view of the real situation. But, if you're interested in African politics, I totally recommend Gourevitch's book - I think the title is "We wish to inform you that tomorrow we will be killed with our families," and it's a great book. PBS did a great documentary on the Rwanda genocide and they have a website on it - http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/evil . It's really sad, but important to learn about.
And I think it's great that you're premed and poli sci. I was history and premed, and I think I learned a lot more that way. It worked for me, anyway. Good luck!

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

I was a history major (focus on western European politics, mostly Spain), but I don't know if I would recommend Huntington's books. Yes, he is huge in the political science field, for reasons that completely escape me. He recently wrote an article on the "Hispanic Challenge" in Foreign Policy Magazine, which was one of the most poorly researched articles with the weakest evidence I have seen in a long time - statistics taken totally out of context, and a totally myopic view of the real situation. But, if you're interested in African politics, I totally recommend Gourevitch's book - I think the title is "We wish to inform you that tomorrow we will be killed with our families," and it's a great book. PBS did a great documentary on the Rwanda genocide and they have a website on it - http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/evil . It's really sad, but important to learn about.
And I think it's great that you're premed and poli sci. I was history and premed, and I think I learned a lot more that way. It worked for me, anyway. Good luck!

The Clash of Civilizations and Remaking of World Order was the Hungtington book I was referring to. I thought it laid out a realistic perspective of the change in power balances between the core states of the world's civilizations. Hungtington also lays out possible outcomes if these core states don't check the deleterious effects of lax immigration policies, lack of adherence to international laws and regulations, and lack of attention to fundamentalist movements that have been fomenting against the West. Huntington approaches the material with a theoretical framework and uses many data sets to support his IR paradigm.

I'm surprised this article you speak of was not approached in a scholarly fashion. I'm shocked that Hungtington didn't practice sound statistics and didn't analyze the data sets correctly. I'll have to get a hold of this issue of Foreign Policy and take a look at the article. Dr. Huntington is a professor of political science at Harvard and President of the American Political Science Association.

After I'm done with Jihad vs McWorld, I'll probably read Gourevitch's book. I really want to read Francis Fukuyama's The End of History and the Last Man because it seems like every big name in the field completely disagrees with Fukuyama's position and subsequently refutes his main arguments in their books. I read an excerpt of Fukuyama in comparitive politics and wasn't very impressed.

 

[smuwillobrien]

Let me clarify some of your previous assertions [and by your I mean several people on this thread]: I don't dislike Berkley because I think he is stupid, or a show-off. I dislike Berkley because he can't think for himself. He has absolutely no sincerity in anything he does, and he'll never be happy until he stops trying to do something he feels will make he something relative to everyone else.

Hey Berkley. You're obviously a smart and ambitious person. If you're interested in something go pursue it, and do it outside of this pre-med clique. If you're really into International Relations I'm sure there are better sites than studentdoctor? Good luck with whatever you do, but why don't you spend some time analyzing your sincerity? Oh, and stop trying to be so altruistic.

 

[merle]

Yeah, if it's not about medical school or how I can get into medical school or whether guys or gals in medical school are hot or not, I don't want to hear about it.

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

Let me clarify some of your previous assertions [and by your I mean several people on this thread]: I don't dislike Berkley because I think he is stupid, or a show-off. I dislike Berkley because he can't think for himself. He has absolutely no sincerity in anything he does, and he'll never be happy until he stops trying to do something he feels will make he something relative to everyone else.

Hey Berkley. You're obviously a smart and ambitious person. If you're interested in something go pursue it, and do it outside of this pre-med clique. If you're really into International Relations I'm sure there are better sites than studentdoctor? Good luck with whatever you do, but why don't you spend some time analyzing your sincerity? Oh, and stop trying to be so altruistic.

I'm not trying to be altruistic at all...where you got that idea is absolutely beyond me. As for better sites for students of IR...I don't know of any. Plus, I knew there were other social science majors here who would've probably taken similar courses so I decided to post here...why not? Aren't there lots of premeds out there who venture outside of biology? If you're not interested in this thread...why waste your time posting in it?

 

[Peterock]

I'm not trying to be altruistic at all...where you got that idea is absolutely beyond me. As for better sites for students of IR...I don't know of any. Plus, I knew there were other social science majors here who would've probably taken similar courses so I decided to post here...why not? Aren't there lots of premeds out there who venture outside of biology? If you're not interested in this thread...why waste your time posting in it?

I dunno, retribution perhaps? Maybe if you weren't such a toolshed people would have responded.

Shouldn't you be complaining about how you can't cope with your roommate?

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

I dunno, retribution perhaps? Maybe if you weren't such a toolshed people would have responded.

Shouldn't you be complaining about how you can't cope with your roommate?

People did respond...scroll above. You, Gleevec, and Cerb are basically the only tools in here that came strictly for the purpose of bashing.