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Books:

Roskin, Michael G. Countries and Concepts: Politics, Geography, Culture. Current edition.

Sre, Christian, ed. Annual Editions: Comparative Politics. Current edition.

An additional book on politics in one country; used for the book analysis assignment.

Grade Breakdown:

Test 1	15% + 5%  OR
Test 2	15% + 5%
Test 3 (Final Exam)	20%
Book Analysis	15%
Research Paper	25%
Participation	5%
TOTAL	100%

HOW WE COMPARE COUNTRIES

Fundamental Concepts in Comparative Politics
        -Important terms, themes and theories
        -Dissecting political systems

TRADITIONAL SUBJECTS OF COMPARISON

The West: The Democratic, Capitalistic Tradition
        -Ideal v. real politics
        -The growing power of economics in politics

Great Britain: Institutional Design
        -Parliamentary democracy in London
        -Class and royalty: window-dressing?

Great Britain: Political Behavior and Pressing Issues
        -Terrorism jitters and unease over Iraq
        -What comes after Blair?

France: Institutional Design
        -Straddling the divide between parliamentary and presidential government
        -What is a decentralized unitary system?

France: Political Behavior and Pressing Issues
        -Diversity versus identity: the French crisis
        -France, the European Union and the U.S.

Germany: Institutional Design
        -Up from the ashes of the 3rd Reich
        -Political order in a Bundesrepublik

Germany: Political Behavior and Pressing Issues
        -Merkel and the grand coalition
        -Germany's economy finally on the rebound?

The European Union: One Currency, Many Voices
        -The EU constitution: getting everyone on the same page
        -Economic integration, political suspicion
        -Will the EU expand further east?

Russia: Institutional Design
        -It's not the Soviet Union anymore, or is it?
        -Putin's non-democratic tendencies

Russia: Political Behavior and Pressing Issues
        -Economic crisis, organized crime, and other terrors
        -Putin's plan for Russia's rebirth: targets and sacrifices

Japan: Institutional Design
        -Democracy in a system dominated by bureaucracy
        -Living peacefully with political corruption

Japan: Political Behavior and Pressing Issues
        -Embracing Western culture?
        -Can economic recovery be sustained?

NEW SUBJECTS OF COMPARISON

The Non-Western World: Challenges to the West?
        -Economic miracles and disasters in Asia
        -How nationality, religion, and other cleavages threaten
          political and economic systems in Africa and elsewhere

China: Institutional Design
        -The CCP's stranglehold
        -Look local to find evidence of enlightened policy making

China: Political Behavior and Pressing Issues
        -Economic surplus brings trade surplus and energy hunger
        -Taiwan, North Korea and the U.S.

Iran: Institutions, Behavior, and Issues
        -Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: voice of provocation
        -Can theocracy last?

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Nigeria: Institutions, Behavior, and Issues
        -Ethnic and religious tensions--and oil
        -What comes after Obasanjo?

OR

Mexico: Institutions, Behavior, and Issues
        -The contested election of 2006
        -Where's the NAFTA windfall?
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