POLITSC 1300 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Orderliness
17 Apr 2023
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Document Summary
Some differences in what should be counted. Weapons, offense and defense, gdp, land mass, education, military spending, and ndp, are all counted towards the evaluation of what is a great power depending on who you ask (realist, liberalist, conservatism, etc) Different polarities have different stabilities and capabilities according to realists (multipolarity is sometimes viewed as less stable) Keersmaeker says polarity is useless these days because power always changes. Look at power, not at what people are saying and deeming to be the great power or powers. Walt says the u. s. should retain fluidity through multiple alliances as the world becomes multipolar because allies are important. Realist solutions to the problem of order. States balance power and this maintains international order. States balance internally through budgeting with military spending. States balance externally through their foreign policy and alliances. Great power wars are declining but realist theory seems to suggest that war would be all the time.
