POLI 142K Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: U-Boat, Opportunity Cost, Unification Of Germany
Document Summary
Path dependence: initial choices constrain (limit) future options. The causal origins of wwii and the cold war. C. world historical war: changes the character of all future warfare because of: Globalization: the global battlefield and the interlocking of systemic conflict (europe, asia, middle east) Totalization: mass warfare, mass mobilization, and the destruction of states (unlimited war) a) civilian targeting: the blockade of germany and u-boat warfare b) opportunity cost: reduced gdp, standards of living. A case is least likely if it is most unlikely to be predicted by the core of a specific. B. wwi is least likely for both structural (realist) and institutional (liberal) theories. Structural theory: a stable balance of power maintains peace (low probability of war) by making the war choice not a rational strategy. Institutional theory: institutions that can and do maintain peace over time should maintain peace at any given time.
