April 2009, Volume 20, Issue 2
NATO at Sixty
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization played a key role in safeguarding Western democracy during the Cold War. With that conflict over, NATO must continually adapt and evolve in a fast-changing world.
Articles
April 2009, Volume 20, Issue 2
The Consequences of Democratization
For the past few decades, scholars have been focusing on the causes of democratization. It is now time to devote systematic attention to analyzing the costs and benefits that democracy brings.
April 2009, Volume 20, Issue 2
Another Step Forward for Ghana
Ghana held its fourth successful elections in late 2008 and subsequently witnessed the peaceful handover of power from ruling party to opposition. The country’s leaders must now reform its institutions of governance.
April 2009, Volume 20, Issue 2
Kosovo: Independence and Tutelage
In February 2008, Kosovo broke away from Serbia and declared its independence. But to what extent is it making progress toward its goals of sovereignty and democracy?
April 2009, Volume 20, Issue 2
Tocqueville’s Frontiers
A review of Conversations with Tocqueville: The Global Democratic Revolution in the Twenty-First Century edited by Aurelian Craiutu and Sheldon Gellar and Tocqueville et les frontières de la démocratie by Nestor Capdevila.
January 2009, Volume 20, Issue 1
Democracy Assistance: Political vs. Developmental?
Democracy-aid providers are moving away from one-size-fits-all strategies and are adapting their programs to diverse political contexts. Two distinct overall approaches to assisting democracy have emerged in response.
January 2009, Volume 20, Issue 1
Can Cuba Change? Tensions in the Regime
Although the transfer of power from Fidel to Raúl has been relatively uneventful, potential divisions within the ruling elite, especially between the military and the Party, are likely to emerge before too long.
January 2009, Volume 20, Issue 1
Can Cuba Change? Ferment in Civil Society
The opposition within Cuba has become more diverse as well as more unified, and the regime, despite its enduring capacity for repression, is showing signs of underlying weakness.
January 2009, Volume 20, Issue 1
Violence and the Rise of Open-Access Orders
For most of history, a closed social order has seemed the most “natural” way to manage the problem of controlling the use of force. The rise of modern democracy can be understood only in the context of the transition to open-access orders.
January 2009, Volume 20, Issue 1
Debating the Color Revolutions: Getting Real About “Real Causes”
Structure, agency, and process all are critical in explaining the uneven pattern of electoral change in postcommunist Europe and Eurasia.
January 2009, Volume 20, Issue 1
Debating the Color Revolutions: An Interrelated Wave
Authoritarian weakness alone cannot explain why the mobilization process during the color revolutions assumed similar forms across varied contexts.
January 2009, Volume 20, Issue 1
Debating the Color Revolutions: Popular Autocrats
Levels of regime strength and links to the West help to explain authoritarian breakdown, but the ruler’s popularity also matters.
January 2009, Volume 20, Issue 1
Debating the Color Revolutions: Necessary Distinctions
Western pressure can be decisive, but it is not always easy to forecast when and how it will be applied.
January 2009, Volume 20, Issue 1
Debating the Color Revolutions: What Are We Trying to Explain?
Change may be caused more by the frailty of the regime than the strength of the opposition, but in such cases the outcome is often less democratic.
January 2009, Volume 20, Issue 1
Debating the Color Revolutions: A Reply to My Critics
The color revolutions illustrate both the prevalence of diffusion and the potential limits of its impact on political change.
January 2009, Volume 20, Issue 1
Hong Kong’s Democrats Hold Their Own
A decade after the handover of their city to China, Hong Kong’s “pandemocrats” remain able to stand their ground at the ballot box.
January 2009, Volume 20, Issue 1
Is Democracy Possible?
While the belief in democracy has spread around the world, it has begun to crumble in some of the West’s finest academic institutions.
January 2009, Volume 20, Issue 1
Illiberal Resilience in Serbia
Serbia has become a country where political contention is vigorous, but illiberal forces have shown an ability to adapt to the new conditions.
January 2009, Volume 20, Issue 1
Paraguay: The Unraveling of One-Party Rule
Fernando Lugo’s victory in the 2008 presidential election ended 61 years of one-party rule in Paraguay. How did the Colorado Party lose power?
January 2009, Volume 20, Issue 1
The Curious Case of Finland’s Clean Politics
The case of Finland challenges conventional thinking on clean politics. Can it serve as a model for its more corrupt counterparts?