POLI 355 Research Paper

POLI 355 Research Paper

These instructions explain in detail what I expect from you on the assignment. Read this carefully.

First, the paper is due at the start of class on the date indicated by the syllabus. You have months to do the assignment, so there is no reason anyone should feel the need to skip class to finish the paper. Papers that are not turned in at the start of class will be considered late one day. My late policy in general is simple. I will mark late papers down one grade for each day late. That means that an almost perfect paper -- one that I would give 98 points to -- becomes an 88 if one day late, 78 if two days late, etc. all the way down to 8 points if nine days late, and zero points if ten days late. Talk to me if you are having some family or personal problems. If there is a serious need to get an extension on the paper, I will give you an extension. I do realize that there are more important things in life than this class and this assignment. So if you run into a problem, talk to me. Computer problems do not count as a problem that warrants an extension. If you are writing your paper at the last minute and you have a problem, the moral of the story is that you should not have been writing your paper at the last minute. If you have a printer problem, no problem, give me your disk and I will print up the paper, or come to my office hours and we'll print up the paper at my office. If you have some kind of computer problem, and you are not writing your paper at the last minute, let me know. Maybe I can help. If you have any questions about any aspect of the assignment or research methodologies or anything about the paper talk to me, early and often.

Rough Drafts

Up until the rough draft deadline indicated on the syllabus I will look at anything you’d like me to look at regarding the paper. Anything from outlines, bibliographic sources, or even completed drafts can be turned in for comment up until that date. I will go over what you have, mark it up, and if you like give you a hypothetical grade. You can then make revisions based on my comments.

Topic

On the date indicated on the syllabus you should turn in a one-paragraph outline of your chosen topic. It should include the following:

what question you are asking;
how you will attempt to answer that question;
A small bibliography including four sources you might use

The purpose of this is to let me know what you are working on. This way I can help steer you in the right direction, warn you about troubles you may encounter, and generally deal with any questions you might have.

Of course, the big question is: what is the assignment? You've got a lot of leeway here. What I want is for you to do some real comparative politics. Pick two nations and compare some political, social, or economic change within them. For the given subject you picked, what are the similarities and differences between the two nations and the causes of those similarities and differences. How do I define Asia geographically: anything from Afghanistan and Pakistan in the West to Japan in the East to Australia and New Zealand in the South to Mongolia in the North. If you have questions about this, let me know. What kind of issues am I looking for? Anything you find interesting is fine with me as long as I approve it. Limit this to events since World War II, preferably since 1960. Try to pick as narrow a topic as you can. I can help you with this. For example, a comparison of economic policies in Japan and South Korea is too broad a topic. That’s a book, not a paper. A comparison of anti-trust policies in Japan and South Korea is more like it. A comparison of the decline of Congress Party in India to the decline of the KMT in Taiwan might be too big as well. This you could tweak to compare the fate of these parties in the most recent election. It gets you at the subject you’re interested in, but in a more manageable way. All kinds of issues are potential topics. Here are some examples: comparison of Islamic political parties in Indonesia and Malaysia; comparison of women’s participation in government in any two nations; comparison of any two nations trade with another major nation (Japan, China, the US); comparison of the security of military relationships between any two nations and the big players in the region (US, China, Russia, India, Japan); a comparative study of the role of the military in politics in any two nations (this is not relevant for all nations); the relationship between ASEAN and some of the larger players in the region; civil liberties policies in any two nations; tariff policies of any two nations; health care systems in any two nations; minority rights in any two nations; regionalism as a factor in politics in any two nations; political participation in any two nations; voting turnout in any two nations. Get the topic to me and then we can tinker with it to make it as interesting and as doable as possible.

Paper Requirements and Tips on Writing Good Papers

Below are several sections of instructions and guidelines. This is important. It tells you a lot of important things you can use for any research paper in any class. It also tells you what I expect. Use what follows and I guarantee that you will get a much better grade on your paper, and more importantly you will learn how to do research and write an organized paper. In particular, pay special attention to the section on sources (bibliographies and references). If you choose to ignore what follows, you do so at your own peril and risk everlasting doom. (Am I being subtle enough?)

Source requirements

· You must use at least ten sources.

· At least two of those sources must be from the web.

· One source must be from a journal that you found in the library, or on the web.

· None of the assigned readings for the class count as a source. You can use them, but they do not count as part of the ten sources required.

· You must use at least one book though I would recommend more. Books have knowledge; the internet has information. There is a difference. See below.

· Wikipedia cannot be used as one of the ten sources. It is an encyclopedia and encyclopedias were off limits as research sources when you were in High School.

A note on the internet: I don't think I need to tell you much about the web. In college I wrote papers on a manual typewriter and I took my SATs on stone tablets. But if you do have any questions about it let me know. The following is important. What is crucial about any webpage is that you and I know who the source of the information is. All information on the web is not equal. Before you trust any information on the web you must know who runs the websites. Who is the source of the information? The US Nazi Party has many websites. Their information is probably not a source you want to use for research on Israeli foreign policy, for example. Also, if you find a website that deals with human rights in China, you need to know if it is run by the Chinese government; its views will be a bit biased. So you need to know who runs the site, and you need to tell me that in the notation. In your bibliography you must cite internet information properly!!!! There are several established formats. Here’s one that I use:

A government document:

George W. Bush. The National Security Strategy of the United States of America. September 2002. Available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/nsc/nss.pdf. Accessed October 2, 2002.

A newspaper article

Stephen Farrell. “Palestinian Bomb Attack Threatens Hopes for Peace.” Times On Line. January 13, 2005. Available at http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,251-1437764,00.html Accessed January 13, 2005.

For a document/article you found on the web (This doesn’t have an author, so start with the title, but if it does have an author start with that.

“What Can the US Do In Iraq?” Middle East Report No. 34. International Crisis Group. 22 December 2004. Available at http://www.crisisweb.org/home/index.cfm?id=3196&l=1 Accessed January 13, 2005.

So, you must include the following: author (if identified); title of article, essay, database, document; organization that sponsors the posting of the information; web address (use this form: Available at http://whatever); and date accessed (because information on the internet is updated and frequently reedited or eliminated). If you have questions about this, ask me. But, if you don’t ask me and you simply give me the web address, I will take points off your paper.

There are excellent journals that you can use that deal with the range of issues we’ll address in class. We have on line access to a lot of great journals and there are hard copies of many as well on the second floor of the library. Use the Public Affairs Information Service or ABC POL SCI indexes. Those are the hard copy indexes, both located in the library reference section. You may use the on line ones instead. PAIS is also online. Ask a reference librarian to help you find these indexes. Of course, the on line library data bases are great as well. On any of them you can search under several keywords (George Bush and Department of Homeland Security for the example above) or under a subject and a journal title (to get the works on a given subject from a specific journal that you have found useful, for example GHW Bush and Asian Survey to get info on GHW Bush policy toward China). If you have problems getting the journals on line, let me know. Look up either a country or an issue and you will find excellent lists of articles.

Use books too! For this assignment, books are your best resource. The web is nice, but again, it includes information, not knowledge. The difference is simple. Information is up to the minute data, piles and piles of facts and figures. Knowledge is data plus perspective, plus analysis. What does the data mean in the context of history, of theories about the issue you are studying, of the developments in that nation and the world? The internet does not contain books yet, and therefore it will tell you what happened yesterday, but not if what happened yesterday is typical, unusual, or fits a pattern that goes back 10,000 years. Everything on the internet is new and it has the perspective of newness – everything is happening for the first time. That is simply not true. The internet is also generally not peer reviewed. This means that what you see on the internet is generally not reviewed by anyone. I can post an essay on how to do brain surgery. It will sound very authentic (Dr. William W. Newmann), but I have a Ph.D. in Public Policy. I can tell the difference between a brain and a lung, but that’s not really enough to perform brain surgery. So if you like conspiracy theories, particularly about 9/11, notice how very few of the Professors who preach conspiracy theories are Professors of Political Science or International Relations. It tells you something, doesn’t it (I’m part of the conspiracy!). So, use books or journals. The answers may be there. Books and journals are reviewed by scholars before they are ever published, reviewed and reviewed and reviewed, so that every word and fact is checked and double checked. This is why it takes forever to publish books and journals, but they get the facts right and they ideas and examined. Sometimes this is not true these days. There are publishing house that specialize in right wing or left wing books, so they publish propaganda, not scholarship. Check to see who the person is. Is it a scholar attached to a university or a journalist attached to a newspaper? Those are generally good sources. Or is it a pundit, someone linked to a political party, whose job is to write books that use junk scholarship and junk science to perpetuate a political ideology.

Requirements

This paper should be 8-10 pages of text, with references (footnotes, endnotes, parenthetical references) and a bibliography. The bibliography does not count as a page in the 8-10 page requirement.

For proper style of notes and bibliography see Kate Turabian, A Manual for Writers or the MLA Handbook or some other recognized resource on style, or copy the style used by one of the books you used for your research. Pay attention t this! You must learn how to reference information properly, and how to write a bibliography with the correct and complete information. This is easy to do, but more important than you think. Whether you go into academia or business you will be judged on the quality of your information, and that means people will want to know where you found your information. They will judge you at first, before they read your text, on your bibliography and citations (footnotes/endnotes/parenthetical references). So make sure you include all the important information in both notes and bibliography. Since I have instructed you to pay attention to notation and bibliographic style, and have provided you with a specific place to look for the proper styles, I will take points off of your paper if you do not do this in the correct manner. This is simple. If you do not do it correctly it means one or both of the following: 1) you are not taking the assignment seriously or are too lazy to do the paper correctly; and/or 2) you are doing the paper at the last minute. Both of these are good reasons why you will not get the grade you are able to earn. Most importantly, you need to get used to doing things the proper way. In college I will take points off if you do something the wrong way or don’t try to find out the proper way to do something. In the business world your boss will simply fire you. This is particularly true about finding information. In the business world you will be judged on the quality of your knowledge, the information that you can provide to potential clients or your boss. Everyone needs to be able to judge the quality of your in formation and they can only do that if they know the source of the information. Get used to this.

Nitpicks

1. Papers should be doubled-spaced with one-inch margins, and reasonable sized font (11 or 12 point). Shorter pages with wide margins and large print size font will be penalized.

2. Make sure you have a subject and verb in every sentence. (You would be surprised how many important journals and books allow non-sentence sentences). This is non-fiction, not fiction. So you need to observe the basic rules of grammar. A long sentence is not necessarily a better sentence -- each sentence should express only one thought. Don't be afraid to break up a long sentence into two or three shorter ones. It will usually flow better that way.

A long sentence is not necessarily a better sentence -- each sentence should express only one thought. Don't be afraid to break up a long sentence into two or three shorter ones. It will usually flow better that way.
I realize that in many cases instructors in ENGL 200 are telling you to include reference material in the text of the paper. However, this is exactly the wrong way to reference in social science. What I mean is the following. Don’t do this: Gabriel Weimann, a Professor of Communications at Haifa University, states in his book Terror on the Internet that the internet enhances terrorist power to organize and recruit. Instead do this: Weimann states that the internet enhances terrorist power to organize and recruit. (add footnote or endnote or parenthetical reference here.) Please only give someone’s title in the text if they are an elected official (Tim Kaine, Governor of Virginia) or a member of a campaign staff, whose opinion is somewhat official.
Quotes: Do not include long quotes!!! You can quote actual participants in an event, but do this sparingly if you feel it is necessary. You can use lots of quotes if you are examining candidate rhetoric for example, but then your paper must be longer than 7-8 pages. I’m looking for 7-8 pages of your work. So don’t quote general information that you found in a scholarly article and don’t quote the conclusions of other scholars. Paraphrase the information or the idea in your own words and then cite the source. Do not give me a sentence in your paper that quotes that information directly from the source. It is basic factual information and does not need to be quoted, but it does need to be cited. Even if it is an analyst’s opinion, it does not need to be quoted. Just paraphrase it in your words and cite the source. Reserve quotes for direct participants: candidates and their staffers, or a voter. The exact words matter in theses cases. In general though, go easy on quotes. Too many quotes means that you’re just cutting and pasting, not writing. It doesn’t teach you anything and your grade will suffer horribly, terribly, and painfully. So, for example, if noted terrorist scholar Reed Richards says in his book that “Al-Qaeda probably only consists of 10,000 people world wide.” Do not give me a sentence in your paper that reads: Reed Richards says that “Al-Qaeda probably only consists of 10,000 people world wide.” Give me something that says: One scholar estimates that al-Qaeda only has 10,000 active members globally. (Richards, 2003, p. 27). The book doesn’t actually exist, but in the example, I’ve used a parenthetical reference, which gives the author’s name, the year of publication, and the page number. You can use footnotes or endnotes too. The full bibliographic information will be in the bibliography at the end of the paper. Or if Ben Grimm concludes in his book (not a real book) that: “Al-Qaeda’s growth depends on economic reform in the Middle East. Elimination of poverty is not the biggest problem. Rather it is the ability of the middle class to gain social and economic mobility.” Don’t quote that, but say: Grimm’s conclusions suggest that economic reforms designed to allow the middle class to grow and prosper will be the key to battling al-Qaeda in the future. (Grimm, 2004, p. 235). A good quote is this: According to Osama bin-Laden, “for over seven years the United States has been occupying the lands of Islam in the holiest of places, the Arabian Peninsula, plundering its riches, dictating to its rulers, humiliating its people, terrorizing its neighbors, and turning its bases in the Peninsula into a spearhead through which to fight the neighboring Muslim peoples.” (Bin-Laden, 1998). This is an excerpt from the 1998 fatwa of OBL. Bin-Laden is a participant, a historical figure. His exact words are important.

6. Make a copy of the paper for yourself before you hand it in to me. There are two reasons for this. If you have a copy, you don't have to worry about me losing a copy. I have never lost anyone's paper, but just in case you should always make sure that you have a copy of your paper with you, in any class, not just this one.

7. WHEN YOU TYPE YOUR PAPER ON A COMPUTER MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A BACKUP DISK WITH THE PAPER ON IT. AS YOU TYPE THE PAPER SAVE THE FILE TO THE BACKUP DISK EVERY TEN MINUTES OR SO. This is especially important if you type on the university computers. Putting your paper on the hard drive in the computer lab is useless if they sweep the hard drives of files at night. Keep a backup copy for yourself. I have several backup copies of anything I write. You don't ever want to lose work because you didn't back it up.

8. Do not use Wikipedia. It is unreliable and you should have stopped using encyclopedias for research in elementary school.

9. Important point: Ten sources are required for each paper. The books listed above on reserve and the books assigned for class do not count as part of the ten sources required. Use them and cite them and put them in bibliography, but you must also have ten sources you found yourself. (Hey, this is the same thing that’s a few paragraphs up the page. It’s on here twice. Maybe it’s important.)

10. Include a bibliography that uses an established bibliographic style. Do not make up your own!

11. Include footnotes, endnotes, or parenthetical references, whatever style you prefer. However, you must follow standard citation rules and formats and that means page numbers in books or articles. If you have questions about this, ask me. For footnotes, endnotes, parenthetical references: if you are referring to specific information that you found on a specific page in a source (if the source has page numbers, unlike some web sources), you must include the page number where you found the information. Let’s say you found information in a book that is 450 pages long. Citing the book and not the page number is not very helpful for anyone who thought that the information was interesting and wanted to learn more about it. You’re forcing that person to scan through 450 pages of text to find the info. Instead, cite the page number and then the reader can just turn to that page number. This is the established method of citation.

12. The use of “I”: Try to avoid using “I” in non-fiction. Instead of “I will discuss three problems…” say “This essay addresses three problems…”

13. The use of a semicolon: Semicolons connect two complete sentences that are related to each other. For example: “I went to the pizzeria to get a pie; it was closed so I had Chinese food instead.” You could also write them as two separate sentences if you wanted. The following would be an incorrect use of a semicolon: “I had six very tasty pizzas last week; except for that crappy one from the big chain store.” That should be a comma, not a semicolon. The test is this. If the two sentences you are connecting with a semicolon could stand alone as complete sentences then use a semicolon. So it becomes obvious: “Except for that crappy one from the big chain store” is not a sentence.

14. The use of “however”: This trips everyone up. It’s a bit similar to semicolons. “I went to the pizzeria; however, when I got there, it was closed.” Notice the semicolon, not the comma. That’s because “When I got there, it was closed” could be a complete sentence by itself. Also, this sentence is like the use of a semicolon. You are connecting two complete sentences. In this case, you’re connecting two sentences that are related, but related in a very specific way. The second sentence is adding the “however” to show a different expectation than the first sentence implies. The first sentence implies you were going to eat pizza. The second sentence says you didn’t. On the other hand, look at this example: “I went to the pizzeria. Upon arriving, however, I found out it was closed.” The “however” is surrounded buy commas. That’s because “upon arriving” is not a sentence by itself. Here’s another aspect of this. “I went to the pizzeria, the one with the best pizza in the world.” There is a comma there because “the one with the best pizza in the world” is not a sentence by itself. These are the non-fiction rules. In fiction, you can do anything you want.

15. Some useful rules:

1. Numbers under 100 should be written as out. So you would not have this sentence. “President Bush met with 3 advisers.” It would be “President Bush met with three advisers.”

2. When you have an acronym, such as NSDD-75 or UN. First write out the name in full: National Security Decision Directive (NSDD) 75, or United Nations (UN) then use the acronym.

3. The first time you mention a person say their full name and position. After that you can just use last name.

4. When you mention a senator of representative, say: Senator John Warner (R-VA) to introduce and after than you can just say Warner or Senator Warner.

5. Capitalization: On capitalizing the words “congress” or “president”:

a. The president signed the bill vs. President Johnson signed the bill using his presidential power.

b. The 109^th Congress passed legislation vs. the president introduced a bill into congress on congressional appropriations.

16. LATE PAPERS: Papers are due at the beginning of class on the date indicated in the syllabus. After about 10 minutes of class has passed, your paper is one day late. I will mark late papers down ONE GRADE for each day late. That means that an almost perfect paper -- one that I would give 98 points to -- becomes an 88 if one day late, 78 if two days late, etc,... all the way down to 8 points if nine days late, and zero points if ten days late. Talk to me if you are having some family or personal problems. If there is a serious need to get an extension on the paper, I will give you an extension. I do realize that there are more important things in life than this class and this assignment. So if you run into a problem, talk to me. Computer problems do not count as a problem that warrants an extension. If you are writing your paper at the last minute and you have a problem, the moral of the story is that you should not have been writing your paper at the last minute. If you have a printer problem, that doesn’t have to be a problem. Give me your disk and I will print up the paper, or come to my office hours and we'll print up the paper at my office. If you have some kind of computer problem, and you are not writing your paper at the last minute, let me know. Maybe I can help.

17. Electronic Submissions: Once again. The paper must be handed to me in person at the beginning of class the day the paper is due.

Make a copy of the paper for yourself before you hand it in to me. There are two reasons for this. If you have a copy, you don't have to worry about me losing a copy. I have never lost anyone's paper, but just in case you should always make sure that you have a copy of your paper with you, in any class, not just this one.

WHEN YOU TYPE YOUR PAPER ON A COMPUTER MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A BACKUP DISK WITH THE PAPER ON IT. AS YOU TYPE THE PAPER SAVE THE FILE TO THE BACKUP DISK EVERY TEN MINUTES OR SO. This is especially important if you type on the university computers. Putting your paper on the hard drive in the computer lab is useless if they sweep the hard drives of files at night. Keep a backup copy for yourself. I have several backup copies of anything I write. You don't ever want to lose work because you didn't back it up.

Make sure you have a subject and verb in every sentence. (You would be surprised how many important journals and books allow non-sentence sentences). This is non-fiction, not fiction. So you need to observe the basic rules of grammar. A long sentence is not necessarily a better sentence -- each sentence should express only one thought. Don't be afraid to break up a long sentence into two or three shorter ones. It will usually flow better that way.

As always, ask me questions, early and often.

On the Bibliography. A bibliography is an alphabetical by author list of all the sources you used for the paper, whether you cited them or not in the paper. It is not the same as your endnotes. Whether you use parenthetical references, footnotes, or endnotes, you must include a bibliography with proper format. See Kate Turabian, A Manual for Writers or the MLA Handbook or the Chicago Manual of Style or use the style from any book with a bibliography.

On footnotes and endnotes. Please learn to do footnotes and endnotes properly. That means full bibliographic information and standard formatting. If you have questions about this, see Kate Turabian, A Manual for Writers or the MLA Handbook or the Chicago Manual of Style or the examples I will provide below. But here are some tips:

Footnotes and endnotes are numbered consecutively (1, 2, 3, 4…)
You can have more than one source cited in a single footnote or endnote
A web address is never enough for a citation from the web
The footnote or endnote should come at the end of the sentence, except in cases where you have several ideas in one sentence which come from different sources and you think it is important to identify the sources very specifically.
When you have cited something specific information from a source you must cite the exact page number where you found the information. This way if you cite information that you found in a 450 page book or a 30 page article, the reader knows where to look if he/she wants more information on the issue. Just citing the entire source is not very helpful. Who wants to scan through 450 pages to find the information?
The only time you do not need page numbers is if they are unavailable (as in the case of some web sources) or if you are citing an entire book or article. This is done in cases where you may be citing background information on a subject.
If you have several sentences with very specific information and that information all comes from the same source, you may place the footnote at the end of the paragraph and the reader will understand that the information from the paragraph all comes from the same source. Don’t forget the page numbers.
Do not number your sources in the bibliography and then use that numbering as the numbers in the endnotes or footnotes. Since you are required to include the page numbers if you have them, this method does not work. It is a standard citation method for some natural science disciplines in which the author is citing entire studies, but not for social science where you may be citing specific information.
Below is an example of one way of using endnotes. It includes formats for just about everything you might need. Use this as a template if you like. The endnotes appear at the end of the document.

The Union of Islamic Courts in Somalia

Political Linkages/Regime Stability: Somalia is another case of state collapse leading to the greater opportunities for radical Islamists. Somalia has been a weak state buffeted by greater regional powers and a divided state fractured by clan rivalries since before independence in 1960.

[1] Radical Islam became a factor in Somalia in the 1970s as Somalia’s entry into the Arab League expanded ties with more conservative Arab states. Mohammed Siad Barre’s response to political Islam was to arrest and execute Islamic leaders.[2] The key development in the growth of radical Islam was the formation of the al-Itahaad al-Islaami (AIAI) during 1982-1984 through the merger of two smaller groups. From 1989 to 1991, AIAI transformed itself from a political-religious organization focusing on the spread of ideas into a political-religious organization with a strong military wing. Continued repression against Islamic clerics, the defection of Colonel Hassan Dahir Aweys to AIAI in 1990, and an infusion of Somali veterans from the Afghan War in 1991 convinced the organization that its capacity to survive depended on its ability to field a militia.[3] When Siad Barre’s government fell to a large coalition of clan militias in 1991, Somali plunged into a multi-sided clan-based civil war, which caused famine, and political chaos.[4] It was this anarchic context that allowed radical Islam to flourish.

External Support: Iran, Sudan, and AQAM all saw the civil war in Somalia as an opportunity for expanding the reach of their ideas and activities. The Bashir regime in Sudan, hosts to al-Qaeda since 1991, became the locus for these activities. A joint Sudanese-Iranian committee channeled funds to the Somali Islamic Union Party, while Iran created a radical militia, the Somali Revolutionary Guard.[5] The ill-fated 1992 US/United Nation’s humanitarian intervention was a shot of adrenalin to AQAM. Islamists of all stripes saw the intervention as a western attempt at re-colonization; its failure – and AQAM’s alleged involvement in the Battle of Mogadishu – led to expanded AQAM ties to AIAI and General Mohammed Farah Aidid’s militia.[6] However, Sudan’s shift toward more moderate Islam and its expulsion of al-Qaeda in 1996 and AQAM’s decision to concentrate on Kenya and Tanzania lessened the impact of foreign forces.[7]

Coalition Building: AIAI hoped to build multi-clan coalitions, using Islam as a unifying factor.[8] Under the leadership of Aweys, the AIAI built itself into a formidable fighting force. From 1991 to 1996 AIAI became the dominant power in the Gedo region. However, its attempts to rise above clan rivalry met with considerable backlash. AIAI members were too often seen as outsiders by local clans. It balanced local clan interests with its call to universal Islam well enough to hold its base, while expanding its proselytizing and military terrorist activities to Kenya, Djibouti, and Ethiopia. Attacks against Ethiopia led Ethiopia to invade in August 1996, essentially wiping AIAI out as a fighting force. Further defeats by Ethiopia and Aidid’s forces in 1998 and 1999 forced AIAI to shift strategy toward local proselytizing, and working with, not against, the government, particularly the judiciary.[9]

Popular Support: The public desire for some type of local order in the midst of civil war, order that successive international-sponsored governments could not provide, led to the UIC’s formation and popular support. As lawlessness, clan violence, and famine took its toll Islamic courts based in local mosques or subclan leadership began to spring up to restore order by mediating local disputes. In 1998 Aweys created a southern Mogadishu court based in militarized radical Islam. Successive international sponsored governments failed to quash the growing popularity of the courts. The Transitional National Government (2000 to 2003) attempted to co-opt them. Aweys worked with the TNG, accepting a governmental role as head of a Sharia Implementation Council. The Transitional Federal Government (TFG) formed in 2004, however, tried to exclude the courts.[10] To counter the TFG, a new court-based organization, eventually called the UIC, with Aweys as a key leader, recruited a militia and grew in power over 2004 and 2005. A US-led attempt to build an opposition movement based in secular militias and funded by local businesses pushed the conflict to a head. The new Alliance for Restoration of Peace and Counter-terrorism formed in February 2006 and almost immediately went into battle with UIC forces. The UIC defeated these militias, captured most of Mogadishu, and declared itself the new government of Somalia in June 2006.[11] The victory for radical Islamists was temporary; Ethiopian troops, backed by the US, overthrew the UIC in December 2006, returning the TFG to power. The UIC then splintered. Its main force moved to insurgent tactics. The youth wing, Al Shabbab, allied itself with AQAM and moved to terrorism tactics.[12] Other members attempted to forge ties to the TFG. Following Ethiopia’s withdrawal in January 2009 a new government was formed under moderate Islamist Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, and pledged to implement shariah. Interestingly, divisions over the interpretation of Islam in the nation are now publicly the dividing lines. The role of Islam in politics is not.

As always, ask me questions, early and often.

On Writing a Good Introductory Paragraph

This is the key to writing a good paper so I am providing detailed instruction on this. What I’m looking for here is a solid introductory section for your paper. The paragraph should include the following:

In other words, the introduction should provide your reader with a "road map" that explains exactly what you will say during the paper. This is not as difficult as it sounds. Basically, what you need to do is write the outline you have for your paper in sentences in the first few paragraphs of the paper. Your opening paragraph (or couple of opening paragraphs) should also give the reader some reason to be interested in your topic and in your argument. Tell the reader why this subject is important. Here is an example of an opening paragraph: (I’ll use a topic that won’t overlap with anyone’s potential topic.)

This paper will analyze the origins, objectives, and doctrines of al-Qaeda (AQ). AQ is currently the world’s largest and most active terrorist organization – global in activity, recruitment, and mission. It is a curious mixture of 21^st century technology and medieval ideology. (That’s the topic.) Its origins date back to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 when militants from all over the Middle East and Asia came to Afghanistan to fight the “infidel” invaders. Its goals are diverse, but call for the alteration of the political landscape of the Middle East and an end to US influence in that region. The doctrines are a mixture of radical Islamic ideas (indeed in many ways very un-Islamic) and Arab nationalism. (That’s how you will explain your issue—by discussing three sub-topics: 1) initial origins; 2) its goals; and 3) doctrines.) Overall, the goals don’t sound very realistic, or very negotiable. While AQ can launch terrorist activities around the world, its ability to actually control territory or capture a nation state is limited. However, it may have the ability to harass, damage, and attack the targets for decades to come. (Those are your conclusions.)

You can use lots of topic headings and subheadings to correspond to the points on your "road map" -- they'll help you organize your thoughts, and they'll help your reader clearly identify where he is on the "road map." The above paper might have five main sections:

Or another example:

The George W. Bush administration’s decision to invade Iraq can best be described as a collegial decision making process, in which the president relied on all his advisors to give him options and evaluations of options. However, the final decision was made by Bush himself after close consultation with National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, who appears to have been a “first-among-equals” adviser for Bush. (There's the topic and conclusion). During the deliberations in 2002 and 2003 all senior advisers participated in the decision making process. Even Secretary of State Colin Powell, a known supporter of continued sanctions against Iraq was always allowed to air his views in the National Security Council. While divisions did exist between the Dept. of Defense and Vice Presidents office (supporters of intervention) and the Dept. of State (supporter of sanctions) and the White House and NSC staff (less committed supporters of intervention) no views were left out of the debate (the specific argument and your evidence). This decision making process will be illustrated and analyzed through a focus on the intra-administration debate between January of 2002 and March of 2003, with a brief introduction on pre-September 11, Bush policy on Iraq. The narrative of the decision will be followed by an analysis of the decision process in the context of the presidential management models. (your road map).

So, this paragraph tells me what you think, summarizes why you think that is true, and explains how you will illustrate your point.

Introduction: Your intro paragraph(s)
Pre-9/11 Policy on Iraq
Divisions within the Administration on Intervention
Key Meetings
Analysis: Collegial Decision Making
Conclusion:

Here’s another example that uses GW Bush and the creation of the DHS:

The creation of the Department of Homeland Security reveals a classic struggle between the president and congress over control of governmental policy. Following the September 11 attacks both the president and congress saw the need for new administrative arrangements for organizing the new counterterrorism and homeland security agenda. Not surprisingly, the president created White House-based institutions in the fall of 2001 (Homeland Security Council – HSC – and Office of Homeland Security –OHS), while congress argued for a new cabinet department over which it would have oversight and spending control (that explains how the face off between congress and the administration began and what the two positions were). Bipartisan congressional legislation creating and Department of Homeland Security that had been proposed in the House and Senate in 2002 gained public support, but the president opposed any such Department until late spring of 2002, surprising congress and many in his own administration with a proposal for a new department, designed by a secret task force (this identifies congressional and presidential actions). Three key issues seem to have changed the president’s mind: 1) Joe Lieberman, a frontrunner for the 2004 democratic nomination sponsored the bill and was gaining popularity from his support of a DHS; 2) public approval for the idea was very strong; and 3) the development of a plan to use a DHS bill to counter democratic gains by placing anti-union amendments in the legislation, forcing democrats to choose between union support and support of the DHS (there’s the analysis).

Again, you can have subheadings, easy in this case:

The Bush Administration Organizational Changes: HSC and OHS
The Congressional Support for a New Department
The June Surprise
Conclusions: Why the DHS was Created

As you make the points that support your argument, you'll probably be aware of the places in which your argument is controversial or in which a reasonable person might disagree with you. Preempt those controversies in your text. Point out what those opposing arguments might be, and why you think your point of view is more accurate or reasonable.

On Writing a Good Comparative Politics Paper

Make an argument in the paper. Have a conclusion about the issues you are comparing and state it forcefully. If you’re examining freedom of the press in Malaysia vs. Indonesia ask a question and seek an answer. Is there press freedom in these nations? Which one is freer? Is there a difference between print, television or internet freedoms? I want to know what you think. Analyze the issue and come up with some conclusions.
What do I mean by comparative? Read the comparative method essay if you have more questions or ask me, but the bottom line is this: You want to ask a set of questions and find answers to those questions. You want to ask the same questions of each nation you are examining. Take the example from above. If you want to know the difference between print, television, and internet media freedoms in Malaysia and Indonesia, examine the level of freedom that each type of media has within each country. Then you can compare print freedom in both, television freedom in both, and internet freedom in both. Then make conclusions. What has the research led you to believe? Are here any patterns there? Similarities? Differences? And what do you think accounts for those patterns?

So, here’s an example:

This essay examines the levels of media freedoms in Indonesia and Malaysia. For each nation, levels of government interference in print, television, and internet media are compared. In particular, special attention will be given to the changes in news media freedom during the recent political transitions: from dictatorship to democracy in Indonesia since 1998 and from the leadership of Mahathir Mohammed to Abdullah Badawi then Najib Razak in Malaysia. Both nations are experiencing more press freedom than they have in the past. In particular, Indonesia’s courts are striking down governmental attempts to sue media centers for reports critical of the government. In Malaysia, internet news is making attempts to censor the press nearly impossible. However, after improvement in press freedoms under Prime Minister Abdullah, the government of Prime Minister Najib has implemented many policies that inhibit media freedoms. At its most basic level, the difference between the two nation’s media environment is the difference between a nation becoming more democratic (Indonesia) and a nation still clinging to some authoritarian traditions (Malaysia).

You will then have a paper with subheadings such as this:

· Introduction

· Media freedom under Suharto in Indonesia

· Media freedom under Mahathir in Malaysia

· Media and the Democratic Transition in Indonesia

· Media and the Post-Mahathir Governments

· Conclusions: Media Freedom in Indonesian Democracy and Malaysian Soft Authoritarianism

Use this as a template if you want.

One last point: As you make the points that support your argument, you'll probably be aware of the places in which your argument is controversial or in which a reasonable person might disagree with you. Preempt those controversies in your text. Point out what those opposing arguments might be, and why you think your point of view is more accurate or reasonable.

Plagiarism: The VCU honor system covers plagiarism. It is not a fine line. Either ideas are yours, or they are not. But just because someone else has already written an idea that you agree with 100% doesn't mean you can't discuss it in your paper. Just point out whose idea it is; paraphrase it in your own words, cite the source of the idea, and expand upon it. Generally, that is how Political Science works. 90% of all Political Science articles and books do the following (I give you another example that is not topically relevant to the class):

There are various explanations for the Moscow coup in August 1991. Stan says the military instigated the overthrow (Stan 1994, 1-34). Kyle disagreed, saying the military prevented the coup from being successful (Kyle 1997, 17-29). Cartman says the coup failed because its leaders were inept (Cartman 2000, 307-332). However, all three authors understate the impact of public opinion; the coup really failed because of the Russian people's yearning for Democracy.

The article would then outline the theories of Stan, Kyle, and Cartman, criticize each one, and then develop the fourth theory. There is no problem as long as Stan, Kyle, and Cartman get credited with developing their theories, and the fourth theory is yours. If the fourth theory belongs to a fourth author (Kenny? Timmy? Professor Chaos?), the reader must be told that the fourth theory is Kenny's and your article will show why his theory is superior to the other three. The point here is that you may find sources which have different opinions on an issue. For example, one source may say that Hizbullah has ties to Syria and another may say it doesn’t. You need to decide who’s right. State that there are differences of opinions. Cite the sources. Who says there are ties? Who says there aren’t? Then you can, if you want, suggest what you think based on your research. Or you can simply say that a dispute exists and leave it at that.

Checklist for a solid research paper

___Have you read the paper instructions to make sure you are doing the right assignment?

___Do you have the required number of sources? Fewer than the required number of sources is an automatic deduction of at least 10 points.

___Do you have the required number of pages? Fewer than the required number of pages is an automatic deduction of at least 10 points.

___Is your font 12 point or smaller? Is your font too big – automatic deduction.

___Are the margins 1 inch or smaller? Are your margins too big – automatic deduction.

___Does your introduction state your research questions? This is one of the key mistakes people make. What is the question you are asking or what is the subject you are investigating?

___Does your introduction briefly summarize your conclusions? This is generally the difference between an excellent paper that gets a grade of “B” and an excellent paper that gets a grade of “A”. This is not a mystery novel. You should tell me your conclusions in the first paragraph. Summarize them briefly.

___Are your references in proper format? If not, this is an automatic deduction.

___Do your references from books and journals include the page numbers of the information?

___Is your bibliography in alphabetical order?

___Are the bibliographical references in proper format?

___Quotes: Do you have large quotes? Do you have too many quotes? The rule in a small paper is this: Reserve quotes for official sources or direct participants in an event. For scholars and journalists, do not quote; paraphrase in your own words then cite the source of the idea.

___Its and It’s: It’s = It is. Its = possessive form. Talking about China, for example, would be “Its economy; its industry; its people.”

___Have you performed a spell check?

___Have your performed a grammar check?

___Have you read the VCU Honor Code sections on plagiarism? http://www.vcu.edu/provost/univ_policies/honor.htm