DVC Political Science 220 - Comparative Politics

Course Syllabus and Outline

Spring Supplement: Online Instructions for Classes

Weighted Grade Calculator

Basic Essay Structure

How to Analyze the Logic of an Article, Essay, or Chapter

Grading Rubric for Research Essays

Setting Up APA Formatting for Research Papers, 7th Edition

Owl Purdue APA Citation Style

Grading Codes for APA Research Papers (Quickmarks)

Reviewing Your Grade and Instructor Feedback on Turnitin

How to Format the References Page in APA

Click Here to See a Perfect References Page

Annotated Film Bibliography

Procedure for Challenging Your Final Grade

Click Here to Download the Latest Version of Adobe Acrobat Reader

Part One Lecture Outlines: A Framework for Understanding Comparative Politics

(January 27) Lecture One - Introduction to Comparative Politics

Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the January 27, 2025 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Comparative Politics: What Is It? Why Study It? How to Study It?
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: Make America....More Like Canada - Pizzigati
  • 5. Video Presentation: Where to Invade Next (first hour)
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • [PowerPoint Presentation] Comparative Politics: What Is It? Why Study It? How to Study It?
  • Democratic Backsliding in the U.S. and Why the Rest of the West Should Care - Portzer
  • Spectrums of Nationalism: A Comparison of American and Chinese Nationalism - Roach
  • Foreign versus Domestic Bribery: Explaining Repression in Kleptocratic Regimes - LaPorte
  • What's Behind the G7's Rival to China's 'Belt & Road' Initiative? - Al Jazeera
  • (February 3) Lecture Two - The Modern State

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the February 3, 2025 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] The Modern State
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: Understanding the Modern State - D'Amato
  • 5. Video Presentation: Where to Invade Next (second hour)
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • [PowerPoint Presentation] The Modern State
  • Big Shorts & Failed States - Dreher
  • 'Failed State' Status Here We Come? - Pizzigati
  • The Roots of Jacobinism - Hilditch
  • A World of Bikes, Not Walls?: Demilitarizing the Border - Miller
  • (February 10) Lecture Three - States, Citizens, and Regimes

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the February 10, 2025 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] States, Citizens, and Regimes
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: The U.S. Did Not Defeat Fascism in WWII, It Discretely Internationalized It - Rockhill
  • 5. Video Presentation: What is Democracy?
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • [PowerPoint Presentation] States, Citizens, and Regimes
  • The Weaknesses in Liberal Democracy That May Be Pulling It Apart - Fisher
  • Nobody's Century: Deglobalization and its Discontents - Freeman
  • Millions Protest India's Anti-Muslim Citizenship Laws As Gov't Crackdown Intensifies - MacLeod
  • The Fight Conservatives Are Having Over Theocracy and Classical Liberalism Obscures How Beaten Their Movement Is - Gillespie
  • (February 24) Lecture Four - States and Identity

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the February 24, 2025 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] States and Identity
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: An American Identity Crisis - Purple
  • 5. Video Presentation: Zero Tolerance
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • [PowerPoint Presentation] States and Identity
  • Who Gets to Wear a Headscarf? The Complicated History Behind France's Latest Hijab Controversy - Lang
  • Iowa Bills Would Ban Teachers From Talking About Trans Issues - Walker
  • Defend Feminists in China - Solidarity Against Repression in China and Hong Kong
  • Why Identity-Politics Pushers Are Winning the Culture Wars - Dougherty
  • (March 3) Lecture Five - Other World Regions: Latin America

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the March 3, 2025 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Other World Regions: Latin America
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: Trump and the Latin America Left - Lopez
  • 5. Video Presentation: Harvest of Empire: The Untold Story of Latinos in America
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • [PowerPoint Presentation] Other World Regions: Latin America
  • Is the 'Pink Tide' Returning to Latin America? - Sader and Baird
  • Under Left-Wing and Right-Wing Leaders, the Amazon Has Burned. Can Latin America Reject Oil, Ranching, and Mining? - Zaitchik
  • Chile Shifts Left to Rewrite Pinochet-Era Constitution, as Goldman Sachs Eyes its Copper Reserves - Norton
  • Narco Politics: the Political Economy of the Drug War - Terrall
  • Part Two Lecture Outlines: Political Systems and How They Work

    (March 10) Lecture Six - Governing Institutions in Democracies

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the March 10, 2025 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Governing Institution in Democracies
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: The Decay of American Political Institutions - Fukuyama
  • 5. Video Presentation: Requiem for the American Dream
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • [PowerPoint Presentation] Governing Institutions in Democracies
  • Israel's Knesset Is Debating Democracy Itself - Lynfield
  • The Fate of Rojava, the Autonomous, Majority Kurdish Region of Syria - Against the Grain
  • How the US Became the Center of Global Kleptocracy - Michel
  • The NED's Useful Idiots - Nelson
  • (March 17) Lecture Seven - Institutions of Participation and Representation in Democracies

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the March 17, 2025 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Institutions of Participation and Representation in Democracies
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: The Enormous Limitations of U.S. Liberal Democracy and Its Consequences: The Growth Of Fascism - Navarro
  • 5. Video Presentation: Pay to Play: Democracies High Stakes
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • [PowerPoint Presentation] Institutions of Participation and Representation in Democracies
  • How Proportional Representation Elections Work - Fair Vote
  • Why Our Green Parties Haven't Taken Off - Dixon
  • The Far-Right: A Global Phenomenon - Lowy
  • Corporatism Is An American, Bipartisan Scourge - Enjeti
  • (March 31) Lecture Eight - Contentious Politics: Social Movements, Political Violence, and Revolution

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the March 31, 2025 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Contentious Politics: Social Movements, Political Violence, and Revolution
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: No, the Capitol Riot Was Not a Dress Rehearsal for a Coup d'Etat - Brown
  • 5. Video Presentation: American Insurrection - PBS Frontline
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • [PowerPoint Presentation] Contentious Politics: Social Movements, Political Violence, and Revolution
  • The Capitol Rioters Aren't Like Other Extremists - Pape & Ruby
  • Riots and Resistance 10 Years After the Tunisian Revolution - Brown
  • Chris Hedges: Discussion with Roger Hallam of Extinction Rebellion - Scheerpost
  • The Roots of Social Rebellion? Social Movements - Chaulia
  • (April 7) Lecture Nine - Authoritarian Institutions

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the April 7, 2025 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Authoritarian Institutions
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: The Difference Between Totalitarian Regimes And Free Democracies- Johnstone
  • 5. Video Presentation: Putin's Way - PBS Frontline
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • [PowerPoint Presentation] Authoritarian Institutions
  • As US Continues New Cold War, Russia and China Forge New Ties - Mate
  • There Are No Issues on Which China Can Be Considered an Ally - Schorr
  • The Real Global Threat to 21st Century Freedom Is Authoritarian Capitalism Not Democratic Socialism - Bloom
  • After Trump 'Treason' Talk, Sanders Says 'Grassroots Activism' Key to Defeating 'Authoritarianism' - Johnson
  • (April 14) Lecture Ten - Regime Change

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the April 14, 2025 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Regime Change
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: Trump Administration Escalates Regime Change Operation Against Venezuela With Forced 'Humanitarian Aid Delivery'
  • 5. Video Presentation: The Revolution Will Not Be Televised - Documentary
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • [PowerPoint Presentation] Regime Change
  • The Myanmar Coup Is the First Test for Biden's Democracy Agenda - Green
  • How to Do "Regime Change" Correctly: a Blueprint for the Biden Administration - Fayazmanesh
  • The Future of Maximum Pressure - Hajjar
  • Washington Brings Syria's Al Qaeda in From the Cold - Van Auken
  • (April 21) Lecture Eleven - Other World Regions: Asia and Eurasia

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the April 21, 2025 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Other World Regions: Asia and Eurasia
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: A Theory of China's 'Miracle': Eight Principles of Contemporary Chinese Political Economy - Enfu & Xiaoqin
  • 5. Video Presentation: China: Power and Prosperity - PBS Newshour
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • [PowerPoint Presentation] Other World Regions: Asia and Eurasia
  • North Korea's Kim Vows to Be Ready for Confrontation with US - Kim
  • Empire Files: Buying a Slave - The Hidden World of US/Philippines Trafficking
  • Just How Stable Is North Korea? - Kelly
  • How Saudi Arabia's Religious Project Transformed Indonesia - Varagur
  • Part Three Lecture Outlines: Political Economy and Policy

    (April 28) Lecture Twelve - Political Economy of Wealth

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the April 28, 2025 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Political Economy of Wealth
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: The Higher the Inequality, the More Likely We Are to Move Away from Democracy - Milanovic
  • 5. Video Presentation: Free To Choose: The Power of the Market
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • [PowerPoint Presentation] Political Economy of Wealth
  • Inequality, Ideology, and American Reordering - Garfinkle
  • The Problem With Inequality, According to Adam Smith - Rasmussen
  • College-Educated Professionals Are Capitalism's Useful Idiots - Anderson
  • Bailouts for the Rich, the Virus for the Rest of Us - Urie
  • (May 5) Lecture Thirteen - Political Economy of Development

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the May 5, 2025 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Political Economy of Development
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: The Imperialist Attack on the Alliance of Sahel States - Elkorghli, Diallo, and Capasso
  • 5. Video Presentation: System Error
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • [PowerPoint Presentation] Political Economy of Development
  • Property Rights: The Key to Economic Development - O'Driscoll Jr. & Hoskins
  • Aid, Debt and Development: An Overview - Share the World's Resources
  • Women & Development Aid - Sharma
  • The Congolese Fight for Their Own Wealth - TriContinental
  • A Guide to US Empire in Africa: Neocolonial Order & AFRICOM - The Empire Files
  • (May 12) Lecture Fourteen - Public Policies When Markets Fail: Welfare, Health, and the Environment

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the May 12, 2025 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Public Policies When Markets Fail: Welfare, Health, and the Environment
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: Africa's Exploding Plastic Nightmare - Lerner
  • 5. Video Presentation: Four Horsemen
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • [PowerPoint Presentation] Public Policies When Markets Fail: Welfare, Health, and the Environment
  • America Will Keep Losing Its Middle Class as Long as 'Free Markets' Dominate the Economic Debate - Auerback
  • Junk: Mark Bittman's History of Why We Eat Bad Food - McKibben
  • Black and Latinx Americans Have Seen "Catastrophic" Declines in Life Expectancy - Szabo
  • Economic Update: The Pandemic's Lesson About Capitalism - Democracy at Work with Richard Wolff
  • (May 19) Lecture Fifteen - Other World Regions: The Middle East and North Africa

    Readings
  • 1. Instructions for the May 19, 2025 Class
  • 2. Text Reading
  • 3. [Lecture Presentation] Other World Regions: The Middle East and North Africa
  • 4. Journal Article Reading: Geopolitics, Profit, and Poppies: How the CIA Turned Afghanistan into a Failed Narco-State - MacLeod
  • 5. Video Presentation: Reel Bad Arabs
  • 6. Discussion Board Question for Video Presentation
  • [PowerPoint Presentation] Other World Regions: The Middle East and North Africa
  • AFRICOM Military's Exercise: The Art of Creating New Pretexts for Propagating US Interests - Kulkarni
  • America's War for the Greater Middle East: A Military History - Bacevich
  • Israel's New Government Is a Rebuke of Left-Wing Nonsense - Mor
  • Israel's Deep Apartheid Is Here to Stay - Haaretz Podcast with Gideon Levy
  • Canvas Journal Responses - Due: Subject to Change. Check Canvas Assignments Page for Final Due Date

  • For the following lectures, please respond to the highlighted question from each lecture from the "Study and Discussion Question" section. Responses should be at least one page in length (approximately 350 words, double-spaced). Most importantly, these journal responses should not just SUMMARIZE the question, but ANALYZE and EVALUATE them!
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Introduction to Comparative Politics), Question 7 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (The Modern State), Question 2 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (States, Citizens, and Regimes), Question 2 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (States and Identity), Question 4 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Other World Regions: Latin America), Question 3 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Governing Institutions in Democracies), Question 4 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Institutions of Participation and Representation In Democracies), Question 1 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Contentious Politics: Social Movements, Political Violence, and Revolution), Question 7 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Authoritarian Institutions), Question 2 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Regime Change), Question 6 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Other World Regions: Asia and Eurasia), Question 5 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Political Economy of Wealth), Question 4 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Political Economy of Development), Question 5 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Public Policies When Markets Fail: Welfare, Health, and the Environment), Question 7 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Lecture / Discussion Page (Other World Regions: The Middle East and North Africa), Question 7 - Due: Posted on Canvas
  • Spring 2025 Research Project: Due - Monday, April 28, 2025

    America's Future: Three Schools of Thought - POLSC 220 Spring 2025 Research Project

    Books / Articles / Reports / Documents / Websites from the Declinist School
  • Beyond Hegemony - Sachs
  • Farewell, the American Century - Bacevich
  • Are We Living Through The End Of An Empire? - Second Thought
  • The Impending Collapse of the American Empire - Hedges
  • Interview with Dr. Ron Paul: U.S. Dollar Crash & the End of Empire - Iran War, Dollar's Loss of Reserve Status, Government War Propaganda - Lena Petrova
  • United States: The End of An Illusion of Omnipotence - Graziano
  • Col. Lawrence Wilkerson: American Empire Collapsing - Judge Napolitano: Judging Freedom
  • US Empire on Decline - Zeese and Flowers
  • Economic Update: As The Empire Crumbles - Economic Update with Richard Wolff
  • The Collapse of the American Empire - Hedges
  • Empire of Chaos: With President Trump, is the American Experiment Over? - Engelhardt
  • The World According to Trump: Or How to Build a Wall and Lose an Empire - McCoy
  • How We Got Here: American History After "the End of History" - Bacevich
  • The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers - Kennedy
  • Paul Kennedy's Imperial Overstretch Revisited - PeoplesGeography
  • Why All Empires Come to Dust - Gray
  • The Perils of Empire - Atkinson
  • The Eagle Has Crash Landed - Wallerstein
  • Capitalism's Demise? - Interview with Jae-Jung Suh
  • Books / Articles / Reports / Documents / Websites from the American Exceptionalist School
  • Why American Exceptionalism Is Different From Other Countries' "Nationalisms" - Holmes
  • Is America in Decline? - Nye
  • 'American Exceptionalism': A Short History - Friedman
  • America's Undying Empire: Why the Decline of US Power Has Been Greatly Exaggerated - Stevenson
  • American Exceptionalism: A Double Edged Sword - Lipset
  • America, the Exceptional? - Lagerfeld
  • Is America an Empire? - Hendrickson
  • Why America Needs a Grand Strategy - Wilkie
  • Why the United States Remains an Indispensable Nation - Wickett
  • Is America Exceptional? - Podhoretz
  • Why I Believe America is Exceptional - Ingram
  • Restore the Teaching of American Exceptionalism in the Classroom - Gonzalez and Butcher
  • 'Indispensable Nation' - Hillary Clinton Pitches American Exceptionalism (VIDEO) - RT
  • Bound to Lead: The Changing Nature of American Power - Nye
  • Three Centuries of American Declinism - Dowd
  • The Pessimist Persuasion - Herman
  • Falling Upwards: Declinism, the Box Set - Lieber
  • The End of History - Fukuyama
  • Books / Articles / Reports / Documents / Websites from the Neo-Imperialist School
  • State of Insecurity: The Cost of Militarization Since 9/11 - National Priorities Project / Institute for Policy Studies
  • China's A.I. Breakthroughs Show How It Is Outcompeting Western Monopoly Capitalism - Romeiro Hermeto
  • United States in 2025: Social Problems Denied via Rhetorics of Refusal - Wolff
  • Declining American Power and Changes in the International Strategic Environment - Schadlow
  • Five Reasons American Decline Appears Irreversible - Adams
  • American Exceptionalism is Dead No Matter Who Wins the Election - Kluth
  • Imperial Recovery and "Disappearing Workers": Imperialism Expands, Living Standards Decline - Petras
  • Is Society Collapsing? Signs of the West's Potential Downfall - Doll
  • A Declining Empire & Its Delusional Allies - Project Censored
  • The West Is Experiencing a Contraction of Its Power, Not Necessarily Its Decline - De Sousa Santos
  • The Empire Does Not Forgive - Hedges
  • US Empire: Global Imperialism and Internal Colonialism - Petras
  • Is Our Failed Empire Heading for the Exit? - Engelhardt
  • Capitalism Is the Problem - Wolff
  • The Y Article: The Pentagon's Secret Plan to Slash Its Own Budget - Norris
  • Triumphing Toward International Disaster - Gowan
  • Global Depression and Regional Wars - Lendman
  • Decline of America's Empire - Lendman
  • Who Rules America? - Petras
  • Economic Empire Building: The Centrality of Corruption - Petras
  • Blowback Effect: The World in 2020 - Klare
  • The Military-Industrial Complex is Ruining the Economy - Washington's Blog
  • World Depression: The Decline of US Empire - Petras
  • Research Projects and Examinations:

    Click Here To See A Perfect Research Paper

    Click Here To See A Perfect Research Paper

    Click Here To See A Perfect Research Paper

    Click Here To See A Perfect Research Paper

    Click Here To See A Perfect Research Paper

    Click Here To See A Perfect Journal Response

    Readings, Documentaries, and Websites of Interest for Political Science 220 Students!

    World's First Trillionaire Just 10 Years Away as Richest Men Double Their Wealth - Johnson

    A Message From the Future II: "Years of Repair"

    The World in Economic Depression: A Marxist Analysis of Crisis - Tricontinental

    Testing Theories of American Politics: Elites, Interest Groups, and Average Citizens - Gilens and Page

    The Crisis of Democracy - The Trilateral Commission (1973)

    The Powell Memo (also known as the Powell Manifesto) - Reclaim Democracy!

    A Century of War - RT Documentary

    The Collapse of the American Empire? - The Agenda with Steve Paikin

    Corruption is Legal in America - Represent.Us

    Unbreaking America: A NEW Short Film about Solving the Corruption Crisis - Represent.Us

    The Lie We Live [Smart Kid - A Nice Wake-Up Call] - Spencer Cathcart

    Understanding Marxism and Socialism with Richard Wolff

    War Is A Racket - Major General Smedley Butler

    Four Horsemen - Documentary (Great Stuff! Check This Out!)

    Empire Files: Peter Joseph & Abby Martin on Abolishing Capitalism

    Destroying the Myths of Market Fundamentalism - The Real News Network

    Tipping Point: The End of Oil - Documentary

    The Propaganda Multiplier:How Global News Agencies and Western Media Report on Geopolitics - Swiss Propaganda Research

    Capitalism Never Solves Its Crises; It Moves Them Around Geographically - RSAnimate

    Two American Families - Frontline Documentary

    Global Wealth Inequality: What You Never Knew You Never Knew - therules.org

    Wealth Inequality in America - therules.org

    Billionaire Bonanza: The Forbes 400 and the Rest of Us - Institute for Policy Studies

    Park Ave: Wealth, Poverty, and the American Dream - Documentary

    Shadows of Liberty - Documentary (Mass Media)

    Plutocracy in America - Brenner

    The Progressive Movement is a PR Front for Rich Democrats - Stauber

    Consent Without Consent: Reflections on the Theory and Practice of Democracy - Chomsky

    Obamacare: A Deception - Roberts

    The Purchase of Our Republic - Falkson

    The Crisis of Civilization - Documentary

    Let Your Life Be A Friction That Stops The Machine - Class War Films

    Political Fraud - Class War Films

    Financial Crime - Class War Films

    Military Cancer - Class War Films

    Imperial Decay - Class War Films

    Overdose: The Next Financial Crisis - Documentary

    What Democracy? The Case for Abolishing the United States Senate - Rosenfeld

    Making Every Vote Count: The Case for Proportional Representation - Amy

    Ignoble Liars: Leo Strauss, George Bush, and the Philosophy of Mass Deception - Shorris

    Barack Hoover Obama: The Best and the Brightest Blow It Again - Baker

    The Great American Bubble Machine - Taibbi

    Why Isn't Wall Street in Jail? - Taibbi

    Empire Under Obama: Counterinsurgency, Death Squads, and the Population as the Target - Marshall

    Smash the Control Machine - Otep Rocks!

    Rise Rebel Resist - Otep Rocks!

    The World is Coming to an End - Prince Ea

    The Final Word from My Two Favorite Comedians of All Time on "The Big Question"