Political Animal Magazine

SPOTLIGHT

The African Union and its Reactions to Three Types of Coups in Guinea, Mali, and Chad
Three different types of coups have occurred in Guinea, Mali, and Chad, and they are worth identifying. These are opportunistic, oligarchic, and sultanistic coups. Opportunistic in the case of Guinea, oligarchic in the case of Mali, and sultanistic in the case of Chad. All of the coups were staged as military takeovers of civilian government, but in different contexts.
Bard vs. Bullet
Good news for a change—but bad news, as usual. According to the Associated Press (July 31), there’s a shortage of ammunition all over the United States, as major manufacturers are unable to keep up with high demand. Only the military is unaffected, since the Army supplies its own ammo, for all branches of the armed forces.
The Critical Importance of Wildlife Conservation
Many scientists believe that we are in the midst of a 6th mass extinction, one that is almost entirely caused by human involvement. While this is a grim reality, it also means that we have the power to do something to stop the future loss of species. From purchasing a shark bracelet that helps fund marine conservation to eco-friendly shoes, there are endless ways to make conscious purchases that make a big difference.
The Abortion Wars
The Texas law is an abomination, not just because it violates women's rights, but because the egregious manner in which it does so also betrays any who might be troubled by abortion on truly moral grounds. It is a law rooted in culture war politics, not moral concerns, and its effect will be the promotion of a more sinister and corrupt society, not a more morally sensitive one. And yet it is just such moral sensitivity that we require if we are going to caringly address abortion and other morally relevant issues.
African American Existentialism: DuBois, Locke, Thurman, and King
Race today is often presented as a social construct. But social constructions, as Black people know all too well, can create real existential crises. Philosophers of the Black Experience writing during the Modern Era of the African American Freedom Struggle (1896-1975) engaged questions of freedom, existence, and the struggles associated with the experiences of being Black in America.
Surviving the City of Arts
How do we teach humanities to STEM students in a time of increasing suspicion about the goodness of technology?

THEORY

The Argument and the Action

By Political Animal|2019-03-31T04:44:14+00:00March 2nd, 2016|0 Comments

We have divided our study of the political theory of G.R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire into a

Medieval Heart, Postmodern Mind – Umberto Eco (1932-2016)

By Political Animal|2019-03-30T20:37:33+00:00February 23rd, 2016|1 Comment

There is a riddle at the center of Eco's existence: In his theoretical work, he usually had the look of a post-modern man. And yet, in his art, he could look almost medieval.

Intuition Unintuited

By Political Animal|2019-03-30T06:09:33+00:00February 18th, 2016|0 Comments

Howl of the Day: Feb 17, 2016 Moral intuition is a strange thing. When faced with a moral dilemma we

PRACTICE

The Israel-Palestine Conundrum

By Alex Wall|2019-03-21T03:09:25+00:00July 16th, 2015|1 Comment

The following are class notes for a seminar on the Israel-Palestine problem. The goal of the class is to create an informed discussion among participants who may have no previous experience with the subject. We attempt to set up a discussion by providing various points of view on an issue, with just enough provocative material to encourage a lively exchange of views. We try not to let our own biases affect the presentation too much.