coldness

Yesterday (February 24) was the anniversary of Estonia's first independence. Every year on Freedom Square, Tallinn holds a huge parade, but this year- because of the cold (it went down to -22 degrees F on Friday night)- it was cancelled. Too cold for the musicians to play, according to Eesti Paevaleht.

the airline industry can suck it

i have a new enemy.

constructed identities: historical, complementary, conflictual

In 1995, Estonian politician and artist Jaak Olep told Postimees:
'The historical frontier of Estonia is not only an interstate border, but one part of the long boundary line running between the Western Christian and Eastern Orthodox civilisations' (Olep, PM, 5 January 2005).

A month later, the Electoral Union Better Estonia-Estonia Citizen noted:
'...Let us keep in mind how the Second World War broke out and how the Estonian Republic was annexed. Thereby, the present control line must be controlled and defended even more rigorously than state borders' (Parem Eesti-Eesti Kodanik, RH, 13 February 1995).

The same year, Estonian president Lennart Meri argued that '...Estonia has been part of the Roman-Germanic legal system for over 700 years... This legal basis... is a nursery where everything else springs up; it is the prerequisite, the basis and the very guarantor of the survival, the development and the sucess of our modern state.' (Meri, 1995b).

Here we can see three attempts to construct the Estonian post-Soviet identity: along the lines of the conflicting other (internal as well as external, as it is defined along lines of 'civilisations'), as a historical construction (Estonia as a victim to both East and West aggression), and along the lines of the complementary other (Europe as different, but still similar, in 'legal' ways). Although these identity sentiments have died down a bit in recent years, they still play into conflicts such as the (seemingly endless) discourse surrounding the Russian-Estonian border, attempts to integrate the Russian speaking community into Estonian society, and day to day debates over, for example, whether to remove the bronze soldier statue.

Speaking of the bronze soldier statue, I passed it this morning on my way to the Estonian National Library, where I am sitting right now, and is decorated quite elegantly with red carnations.

“It’s a man’s world, sweetie, and the sooner you learn that the better off you’ll be.”

thus spoke the mother of drew gilpen faust.

much has been discussed in the media over the weekend about the naming of harvard's twenty-eight (and first female) president, dr. drew gilpen faust. although i tend to object to over-emphasizing 'firsts,' i am quite happy about this choice, whether or not she has a uterus. dr. faust, the civil war historian and president of the radcliffe institute at harvard, was educated at bryn mawr and penn, and was a professor of history at penn for 25 years. she is a feminist and civil rights activist, starting at the age of nine, when she wrote a letter to president eisenhower asking him to end segregation. i am confident that dr. faust will cease to suggest that differences in 'innate abilities' help to explain why more men become scientists or engineers than women.

the only distressing thing i find about this choice is not the choice itself (although as mr. anarchov pointed out, it might not be the best PR move to have your university president named dr. faust) but the fact that it took an institution that is 140 years older than the country to choose a female president. will it be another 140 years before the american public is ready for a female president?

What Would the Lorax Do?

Joe Lieberman, a self-dubbed "Lorax" of "Islamist extremism," is the subject of a piece in the most recent issue of the New Yorker. In it, it is mentioned that Lieberman is reading America Alone,

a book by the conservative commentator Mark Steyn, which argues that Europe is succumbing, demographically and culturally, to an onslaught by Islam, leaving America friendless in its confrontation with Islamic extremism.

“The thing I quote most from it is the power of demographics, in Europe particularly,” Lieberman said. “That’s what struck me the most."

How dare he try to conflate the Lorax, that great Seussian speaker for the trees, with racism and Islamophobia. (I mean, let's be honest, "the power of demographics" is really just a way to talk in polite company about there being too damn many Arabs and Muslims.)


I just wish that Joe Lieberman would pick himself up by the seat of his pants and carry himself away.

Possibility is not Probability

From Alexander Wendt's 'Constructing International Politics.' International Security, Vol. 20, No. 1. (Summer, 1995).
"Mearsheimer thinks it significant that in anarchy, states cannot be
100 per cent certain that others will not attack. Yet even in domestic
society, I can not be certain that I will be safe walking to class.
There are no guarantees in life, domestic or international, but the
fact that in anarchy war is possible does not mean 'it may at any
moment occur' (Waltz 1959). Indeed, it may be quite unlikely, as it is
in most interactions today. Possibility is not probability. Anarchy as
such is not a structural cause of anything. What matters is its social
structure, which varies across anarchies. An anarchy of friends
differs from one of enemies, one of self-help from one of collective
security, and these are all constituted by structures of shared
knowledge. Mearsheimer does not provide an argument for why this is
wrong; he simply asserts that it is" (pp. 78-9).

sovereignty and civilization narratives in conflict

From Merje Kuus: 'European Integration in Identity Narratives in Estonia: A Quest for Security.' Journal of Peace Reseach, vol. 39. no I, 2002, p. 91-2:

'Security is the key concept in both the integration and sovereignty narratives. International integration, particularly membership in the European Union (EU) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), is pursued as the ultimate expression and codification of Estonian identity and Estonian values, as well as a security guarantee for the preservation of Estonia's identity and independence. Security and identity are represented as Estonia's primary motives for integration; they are accorded higher priority than the anticipated economic benefits of the process. Yet the security threats invoked in the integration and sovereignty narratives contradict one another between as well as within these narratives. On one hand, Estonian identity is presented as a European or Western one, and similarities between Estonia and Western European countries are stressed. On the other hand, Estonian identity is presented in exclusively ethnic terms and linked to the territory of the nation state.'

Today, I also learned that Huntington's Clash of Civilization is the most cited academic text in Estonia. That said, I am late for my IR class.

Eternal Love?

I was browsing the al-Jazeera English site and came across an article on the archaeological find in Italy of two 5,000 to 6,000-year-old skeletons of a young man and woman embracing (see photo below).


All I'm saying is that a discovery like this (unprecedented according to the dig team leader), a week before Valentine's Day? I'm sure there are some people with dollar signs in their eyes making that "ka-ching" sound right now!

Politics of Credibility

I recently read 'Power and Interdependence in the Information Age'(Foreign Affairs 77(5): 81-94) by Robert Keohane and Joseph Nye. The two authors argue that, with the rise of the information technology revolution, geographic states as the dominant actor in international relations will 'continue to structure politics' but state power 'will rely less on material resources and more on their ability to remain credible to a public with increasingly diverse sources of information' (p. 94). Although I agree that the information technology revolution will not deem the nation state irrelevant in IR, there is a fundamental flaw in arguing that credibility brings power, when in fact credibility is a subjective term, perceptions of what is credible can easily be molded by actors holding the most material resources. Their theory illustrates credibility as the independent variable, and power as dependent on credibility, where as, in reality power is the independent variable, on which credibility is dependent. Maybe that sounds too cynical. What can you do, it's February in Estonia.

Artistic Freedom?

While perusing the New York Times' Arts section yesterday, I was startled to find an article on the tension raised by a piece (pdf) written by American Jewish Committee executive director David A. Harris as the introduction for an AJC publication focused on the role of "Progressive" Jews (their quotes, not mine) in forwarding the "new anti-Semitism" (i.e., criticism of Israeli policy). I have tons to say about the actual content of the AJC's publication and the equating of criticism of Israel with anti-Semitism (the equivalent of saying that criticism of Mugabe's "land reform" in Zimbabwe is tantamount to racism), but a significant issue, in my eyes, is that this was published in the Arts section of the Times. I'm sorry, but I fail to see any connection whatsoever to the arts (the only tenuous thread I can think of is that Tony Kushner is among those called out in the publication as aiding and abetting anti-Semitism). Why wouldn't this be much better suited for the politics section?

Anyhow, I apologize for the non-Estonia-related post, but I guess it's relevant to ethnic democracy, right?