Ken Jowitt (UC-Berkeley): Setting History’s Course: Nations, identities, and influence. A review of Hollow Hegemony: Rethinking Global Politics, Power and Resistance by David Chandler. States are not so much declining, failing and yielding as transforming their very nature. An interview with David Kinley, author of Civilising Globalisation. The imaginary pirate of globalization: The terrorist, the hacker and the financier are the new pirates, taking advantage of the spatial revolution brought about by globalization. A review of Spaces of Security and Insecurity: Geographies of the War on Terror. Michael Vlahos on American power and the fall of modernity: Nation-state, identity and governance. From The American Interest, pillars of the Next American Century: James Kurth trace the foundations of American global strength, from past to future. America's Limits: The financial meltdown put America in a different mental place — President Obama’s challenge lies in how to manage reduced expectations. America's Image: U.S. standing in the world matters, Americans care about it, and a weakened stature continues to hamper U.S. policy. Twilight of Pax Americana: With American military and economic dominance waning, capitalism and global security are threatened. A review of After America: Narratives for the Next Global Age by Paul Starobin. While you are minding your own business, the US is constantly making war around the globe. A review of War, Revenue, and State Building: Financing the Development of the American State by Sheldon Pollack. Conservatives are all for shrinking government spending, except when it comes to the Pentagon; why more skepticism about military funding is a matter of national security. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates wants to overhaul the Pentagon.
