WikiRevolution?

Did WikiLeaks change the world? Lost in the sensationalism, personalization and media spasm of the event was any historical or political assessment of how or even whether the revelation of state secrets actually a ects the conduct of diplomacy and war. Taking one step back, two steps forward, this essay compares historic whistle blowing – like Trotsky’s opening of the Tsarist diplomatic archives after the Russian revolution and Wilson’s call for a transparent new diplomacy after the First World War – to the polarized reaction that fol- lowed the passing of over a half million classi ed documents and two videos by Private Bradley Manning to WikiLeaks. e signi cance of the event should be judged less by the content of the documents and more by the emergence of a new networked medium of global transmission that further erodes the institutions and prerogatives of statecraft.

Stretching the IR theoretical spectrum on Irish neutrality: a critical social constructivist framework

In a 2006 International Political Science Review article, entitled "Choosing to Go It Alone: Irish Neutrality in Theoretical and Comparative Perspective," Neal G. Jesse argues that Irish neutrality is best understood through a neoliberal rather than a neorealist international relations theory framework. This article posits an alternative "critical social constructivist" framework for understanding Irish neutrality. The first part of the article considers the differences between neoliberalism and social constructivism and argues why critical social constructivism's emphasis on beliefs, identity, and the agency of the public in foreign policy are key factors explaining Irish neutrality today. Using public opinion data, the second part of the article tests whether national identity, independence, ethnocentrism, attitudes to Northern Ireland, and efficacy are factors driving public support for Irish neutrality. The results show that public attitudes to Irish neutrality are structured along the dimensions of independence and identity, indicating empirical support for a critical social constructivist framework of understanding of Irish neutrality

Quantum and systems theory in world society: not brothers and sisters but relatives still?

Albert M, Bathon FM. Quantum and systems theory in world society: not brothers and sisters but relatives still? In: Der Derian J, Wendt A, eds. Quantum International Relations. A Human Science for World Politics. Oxford: Oxford University Press; In Press: 280-300