In This Issue

Robert T. Lazarus Professor in Population Studies

October 3, 2014

Senior Research Scientist

October 9, 2014

Assistant Professor of Sociology

September 28, 2014

Ford Motor Company Chair in Global Business Management

October 17, 2014

Mershon Memo is a weekly e-mail newsletter distributed by the Mershon Center for International Security Studies, a unit of the Office of International Affairs at The Ohio State University.

   

Pakistan's decision to develop and deploy "tactical nuclear weapons" is a new and dangerous development in South Asia. These weapons are in addition to the over 100 nuclear weapons in the Pakistani arsenal aimed at its historical enemy - India. This could be a "game changer" in terms of the potential impact on crisis escalation and the possibility that a terrorist organization could acquire a small nuclear device. Jeff McCausland is a retired colonel from the U.S. Army and currently holds a dual appointment as a distinguished visiting professor of research and Minerva Research Chair at the U.S. Army War College. He has published and lectured broadly on military affairs, European security issues, arms control, the Gulf War, and leadership. Read more and register at go.osu.edu/mccauslandj

Cristina Beltr�n is associate professor of social and cultural analysis at New York University. She is the author of The Trouble with Unity: Latino Politics and the Creation of Identity (Oxford University Press), which received the American Political Science Association's Ralph Bunche Award and Cuba's Casa de la Am�ricas prize for the best book on Latinos in the United States. In this talk, Beltr�n will explore the paradoxical nature of Latino conservatism and right-wing Latinidad. Arguing that conservative thought within Latino communities is shaped not only by ideology but through a potent combination of emotion and expression, this talk will show how conservative Latino elites seek to engage Latino voters' aesthetic and affective sensibilities. Read more and register at go.osu.edu/beltranc

Stephen Haber is the A.A. and Jeanne Welch Milligan Professor in the School of Humanities and Sciences and the Peter and Helen Bing Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution. He is among Stanford's most distinguished teachers, having been awarded every teaching prize Stanford has to offer. Haber has spent his academic life investigating why some societies are characterized by innovation, high standards of living, and democratic governance, while other societies are characterized by poverty and autocracy. He is the author or coauthor of five books, and the editor of five more. His most recent book, (coauthored with Charles Calomiris), Fragile by Design: The Political Origins of Banking Crises and Scarce Credit, was published by Princeton University Press in 2014. Read more and register at go.osu.edu/habers

An understanding of the historical relations between Iran, Georgia, Armenia and Russia is crucial for appreciating and navigating current political and cultural challenges in the region. The Russo-Persian Workshop will be devoted to looking closely at the relationship between imperial powers at their peak (1820s-1830s), some details of which still remain to be unearthed in archives across the region. Exploring the Russo-Persian relationship through cultural and artistic artifacts will shed light on diplomatic and cultural relations between two vital participants in the so-called "Great Game," Russia and Iran, and will contribute to an understanding of the region today. Organized by Angela Brintlinger, Slavic and East European Languages and Cultures; Firuza Melville, Cambridge University; and Jennifer Siegel, History. Read more and register at go.osu.edu/russopersian

 

Boaz Atzili, associate professor in the School of International Service at American University, visited the Mershon Center on October 6 to to address Ohio State faculty and students and accept the Edgar S. Furniss Book Award. Atzili won for his first book, Good Fences, Bad Neighbors: Border Fixity and International Conflict (University of Chicago Press, 2012). In this book, Atzili argues that the post-World War II consensus prohibiting territorial aggression and conquest has resulted in an unintended consequence: a proliferation of failed states where government is dysfunctional, social ties are lacking, and civil war is common. See his talk at go.osu.edu/atzilib.

 

The International Affairs Faculty Council invites members of the Ohio State scholarly community, who conduct research in international settings, to submit a proposal to participate in the First Annual Symposium on International Scholarship, "The Global Landscape: Challenges and Resilience."

 

This symposium is designed to bring together the Ohio State community and other key partners who engage, or share interest, in international research. While the symposium invites faculty and students to submit their research, all members of the campus community are welcome to attend.

 

The symposium will feature several interactive panels on multi-disciplinary international themes. Panelists will be selected from the submitted proposals.

 

The structure of the panels will focus on the following broadly conceived themes:

• One Health: Synergizing Research, Training and Outreach in the Globalized World
• Water: Global Vulnerability and Sustainability of Water Quality and Security under Changing Environments
• Disability: Law, Advocacy, and Cultural Challenges around the World
• Social Justice: Social Movements, Art, and Culture as Agents of Change

In addition, we invite faculty and graduate students to share their international projects in the form of a poster, which will be displayed at the symposium.

 

All proposals should include a 200 word abstract and a 75 word biography of each proposed participant. Please submit your proposal by Monday, October 27, 2014, at 5 p.m. for consideration in the panel discussion or poster display. You can submit your proposal online.

 

Symposium Date - Friday, February 27, 2015, 9 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. Location - Campus venue to be determined.

 

Decisions regarding proposals submitted will be made by November 21 and communicated by email. If you have any questions, please contact oia-outreach@osu.edu.

 

Origins has published its new article: "An Enemy Until You Need A Friend: The Role of "Big Government" in American History," by Steven Conn.

 

Americans love to hate their government. And they are just as reluctant to acknowledge the extent to which the actions of the federal government have created the prosperous society we live in today. As Secretary of Defense William Cohen once quipped: "Government is the enemy until you need a friend." This month historian Steven Conn explores how Americans have benefited from that friendship. The whole article can be found at http://origins.osu.edu.

 

About Origins: Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective is a monthly ad-free magazine that features top scholars on today's most pressing topics. Published by The Ohio State History Department, its authors include National Book Award winners and world-renowned scholars. You can also explore reviews of popular history books on the Origins website as well as the new monthly feature Milestones.