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Eine wacklige Konstruktion bis zur NATO: die bilateralen Sicherheitsabkommen der Ukraine
Get PDFDieser Artikel untersucht die bilateralen Sicherheitsabkommen, die die Ukraine mit ihren Partnern geschlossen hat, um der russischen Aggression zu begegnen und die NATO-Mitgliedschaft der Ukraine voranzubringen. Die bilateralen Vereinbarungen, die getroffen wurden, sind zwar rechtlich nicht bindend, schaffen aber einen Rahmen für bilaterale und multilaterale Sicherheitskooperationen. Die Abkommen zielen in erster Linie darauf ab, den militärischen Ausrüstungsbedarf der Ukraine sicherzustellen. Auch wenn die Sicherheit der Ukraine kurzfristig so kaum hergestellt werden kann, sind die Abkommen ein wichtiger Schritt, um eine glaubwürdige Abschreckung aufzubauen und die Ukraine vollumfänglich in ein kollektives Sicherheitskonzept zu integrieren
Für die Verfassung, gegen das Gesetz: Rezension zu "Recht brechen: Eine Theorie des zivilen Ungehorsams" von Samira Akbarian
Get PDFSamira Akbarian: Recht brechen: Eine Theorie des zivilen Ungehorsams. München: C.H. Beck 2024. 978-3-406-82336-
The ontological dimension of energy security in Guatemala: Towards energy systems from below and with the Earth
Get PDFTaking Guatemala as a case study, this case study helps understand energy governance where multiethnicity and pluriculturality should inform decisions on energy systems' design. To do so, drawing on a mixed methodological approach that involves content and narrative analysis, coupled with a proposed theory framework articulated from the constructivist approaches of Foucault, discourse analysis, critical discourse analysis, and discursive psychology, this research mainly analyses two documents: the Energy Policy 2019–2050 elaborated by the Mines and Energy Ministry (MEM) of Guatemala and, the Study on the Guatemalan energy model and its socio-environmental repercussions by the Asociación Comisión Paz y Ecología (COPAE). The COPAE document represents the only alternative energy model proposed so far. Such a proposal is based on the perspective of Maya's People Board. This research seeks to answer the following questions: How do energy security discourses produce and reproduce worlds and subjectivities? What are the implications of energy security discourses over the right of existence, decolonial justice, and territorial sovereignty? Are current energy justice frameworks enough to capture what is at stake? Given Guatemala's pluricultural and multiethnic nature and its implications for energy policy and vice versa, this case study can inform energy governance in other contexts, especially where sociocultural conflicts linked to energy transition emerge. The ontological awareness this research raises unveils that "the world that we design [through energy security discourses], designs us back.
Experiencing the Call of Duty: Exploring Emotions in Commercial War Games
Get PDFThis article explores how players interpret and reflect on themes in mainstream war videogames, specifically the Call of Duty franchise. Scholars have long focused on the ideological content of war games, which is marked by increased collusion of military institutions with the gaming industry and assumptions about the influential capabilities of war games, in which player agency is often downplayed. This study builds on Lenoir and Caldwell's (2018) observations that the interpretation of mainstream franchises should focus more on their attempts to create an "affective framework" that emphasises certain emotions in players. Through a thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with 25 participants, this study found that participants outlined their discomfort in certain missions, to the point where they even altered their playstyle, suggesting that players often reflect critically on the aspects of war these games explore. This article concludes that mainstream franchises, like Call of Duty, should be considered complex cultural artefacts consisting of various layers of meaning. Rather than directly transmitting militaristic ideologies, these games craft an emotional aesthetic capable of exploring more controversial aspects of war. The key to understanding these franchises lies directly with the players themselves, which is why audiences should be treated as conscious agents who play an active role in drawing meaning from such an aesthetic
Life-course generational placements and health and wellbeing in later life
Get PDFPrevious research has demonstrated that family transitions, specifically births and deaths of preceding and following generations within families, are associated with individuals' later-life wellbeing and health. However, lifecourse, family systems and role theories suggest that this relationship might be complex because, as individuals age, they can experience multiple such events and their effects might be interconnected. Therefore, this study asks whether and how transitions into and out of multiple intergenerational family roles are associated with later-life wellbeing and health. We account for the occurrence, timing and ordering of the parents' death and the birth of the first child and grandchild. To this end, we use the concept of ‘generational placement trajectories’. They capture the vertical position of individuals in their intergenerational family over age and reflect the changing family roles and kinship reservoir of individuals across their lifecourse. Applying sequence, cluster and regression analyses to data from the German Ageing Survey from 2008 and 2014 (N = 3,617), we investigate associations between generational placement trajectories from birth to age 60 and four dimensions of later-life wellbeing and health, namely life satisfaction, depressiveness, functional limitations and physical health problems. Results support, first, the notion of salutary effects of a larger kinship reservoir and multiple social roles in the family and, second, indicate that ‘off-time’ transitions are associated negatively with various later-life wellbeing and health outcomes. Importantly, the effect of temporal deviations from the ‘normative’ family lifecourse might be affected by individual socio-economic differences. We enhance previous research by demonstrating that the occurrence, timing and ordering of transitions into and out of multiple kin relations and family roles across the lifecourse relate to individuals' later-life wellbeing and health
Making Russia Great Again? Vladimir Putin's Changing Sources of Legitimacy 2000-2024
Get PDFThis article analyses the changing sources of President Vladimir Putin's legitimacy during his quarter century at the apex of power in Russia. To reveal the shifting underpinnings of Putin's legitimacy, I examine the central themes of his five presidential election campaigns, from March 2000 to March 2024. Public opinion data is used to assess the relationship between these campaign themes and the priorities of Russian voters, as legitimacy rests on shared values between ruler and ruled. I argue that the main sources of Putin's legitimacy have shifted during his long tenure, especially since his 2012 return to the presidency, after four years as prime minister. Putin first won the Russian presidency by positioning himself as a soft nationalist reformer, intent on integrating with the West, and wrestling wealth from Russia's oligarchs. Twelve years later, Putin turned his ire on international enemies, claiming the role of Russia's champion against a hostile West and fifth column within - themes pursued with greater vigour following Russia's incursions in Ukraine since 2014. In addition, Putin has doubled down on conservative appeals, including support for the Orthodox Church and anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric. Appropriation of Russia's role in WW2 has also been a source of legitimacy throughout Putin's leadership, but one put to different uses over time. Putin's legitimacy has been further bolstered by his stewardship of Russia's economy, which has remained relatively stable, even in the face of sanctions, since 2014. I conclude that Putin's longevity in office rests not only on increasing state repression, but also on his success in reorientating Russian social values to suit his changing political needs
Unveiling Disability Empowerment: Evaluating ICT Skill Enhancement Initiatives in Indonesia
Get PDFThis study examines the role of information and communication technology (ICT) skill development programs, such as the Digital Talent Scholarship and ICT Jamboree, in empowering people with disability across Indonesia. Grounded in empowerment theory, it investigates how these programs contribute to personal autonomy, economic engagement, and social inclusion. The research focuses on participants' perceptions of the impact of ICT training on their independence and social integration. It also identifies challenges in applying ICT skills in daily life, including barriers to employment and limited access to assistive technologies like Braille displays and hearing aids. Through a qualitative approach - using semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions with 99 participants from diverse people with disability groups - the findings reveal significant improvements in self-confidence, digital literacy, and participants' ability to overcome employment and online communication challenges. While ICT shows potential to reduce social isolation and foster digital inclusion, disparities in proficiency and access to adaptive tools remain. The study emphasizes the need for more tailored interventions and advocates for increased funding, better accessibility, and stronger public-private partnerships to advance disability inclusion through ICT, extending beyond Indonesia to Asia and the Middle East
Policy‐Maker of Last Resort? Drivers of Discretion at the European Central Bank
Get PDFUnder what conditions does the ECB become the policy-maker of last resort? This article surveys five incidences in which the ECB created its own rules or exercised discretion beyond the effective control of political principals. ECB rule-making took place where the Bank had an initial legal mandate to be present in the policy space, where it could exploit unique institutional interfaces with the banking community and Economic and Monetary Union system, where it had advantages in expertise and information, and where the Council either fully supported the ECB to design new powers, or was divided on whether to retrench ECB freedom. The article examines discretion in macroeconomic policy instruments, capital requirements for banks, including choices that have industrial policy (targeted sectoral) effects, the design of the digital euro, and ECB efforts to force the migration of UK-based financial services to the EU
Legitimacy First: Marine Le Pen's Visual De‐Demonisation Strategies on Instagram
Get PDFRecent research on populist visual communication has found a predominance of positivity in the way the populist radical right (PRR) communicates on Instagram. This counters the understanding of PRR actors as "dark" communicators, relying on appeals to negative emotions and attacks against perceived enemies and wider outgroups. This article tests the novel conceptual framework of "visual de-demonisation" that has been proposed to capture the interplay between populist strategic communication, radical right mainstreaming, and positive content on visual social media. This article uses Marine Le Pen's Instagram account (2015–2021) as a case in point, to illustrate the dynamics of visual de-demonisation and unpack how the three angles of the strategy (legitimacy, good character, and policy) are performed visually. The study offers two contributions to the literature on populism and leadership. First, it expands theory-building around visual de-demonisation by operationalising the framework, testing its empirical application, and producing further theoretical considerations to support concept development. Second, it contributes to debates on the mainstreaming of the radical right, by empirically unpacking its visual performance and evidencing the role of legitimacy-signalling as a prominent concern of populist leaders interested in de-demonising