Tag Archives: Politics and Activism

First, power is shifting and changing hands more rapidly than ever. What does it mean for global politics, religion, and economies? [ dur: 22 mins. ]

Moisés Naím is a distinguished fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He is the author of The End of Power.

Then, while many argue that we are in a post-truth era, some scholars argue that deception has always been ubiquitous. In this hour, we get some truth about lying. [ dur: 36 mins. ]

For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ

Timothy R. Levine is Distinguished Professor and Chair of Communication Studies at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He is the editor of Encyclopedia of Deception, Vol. 1 & 2 and many scholarly articles on deception.
David Livingstone-Smith is Professor of Philosophy in the University of New England. He is the author of Why We Lie: The Evolutionary Roots of Deception and the Unconscious Mind, Less Than Human: Why We Demean, Enslave and Exterminate Others and The Most Dangerous Animal: Human Nature and the Origins of War.
Briony Swire-Thompson is a Ph. D. student in the School of Psychological Science at the University of Western Australia. She is a co-author of the studies Processing Political Misinformation: Comprehending the Trump Phenomena, and Correcting false information in memory: Manipulating the strength of misinformation encoding and its retraction.

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Scholars’ Circle – Secret Heroes -/- Ownership Revolution -/- Green Gone Wrong – July 2, 2017

July 1, 2017 host 1 Comment

First, secret heroes. We know the role of presidents and other leaders in shaping history, however we hear little about the unsung heroes; many who have risked their lives to liberate and rescue others. Who might some of those secret heroes be? We are joined by Paul Martin author of Secret Heroes: Everyday Americans Who Shaped Our World. [ dur: 14 mins. ]

Paul Martin is journalist, author and editor. He is the author of Secret Heroes: Everyday Americans Who Shaped Our World.

New sustainable ownership models are emerging with groups, unions, and entire communities coming together to co-own their workplaces, homes, and sources of credit. We speak with Marjory Kelly, author of Owning Our Future: The Emerging Ownership Revolutions. [ dur: 30 mins. ]

Marjorie Kelly is the Senior Fellow and Executive Vice President of The Democracy Collaborative. She is also an Associate Fellow at the Tellus Institute. She is the author of The Divine Right of Capital: Dethroning the Corporate Aristocracy and Owning Our Future: The Emerging Ownership Revolution by Marjorie Kelly (2012-06-04).

Finally, are some green solutions unhelpful for the environment or worse, do they actually harm it? Heather Rogers is the author of Green Gone Wrong: How Our Economy Is Undermining the Environmental Revolution. [ dur: 14 mins. ]

Heather Rogers is journalist and author. She is the author of Gone Tomorrow: The Hidden Life of Garbage and Green Gone Wrong: How Our Economy Is Undermining the Environmental Revolution.

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Scholars’ Circle – Promoting GMO to Mexico by US State Department Diplomats -/- Effects of UK and France Elections – June 18, 2017

June 17, 2017 host

Is the US State Department using its diplomatic efforts to push genetically modified foods into other countries? Our guest says yes. She traced US multi-pronged effort to persuade Mexico to allow genetically modified foods.[ dur: 23 mins. ]

Yadira Ixchel Martínez Pantoja, PhD candidate in Politics and International Relations at the University of Auckland. Her recent paper is titled, United States promotion of GM foods: the use of public diplomacy strategies and instruments to target government agencies in Mexico.

Then, what will the elections in UK and France mean for the geopolitics with the US and the world? We’ll explore what may be in the global political forecast. [ dur: 35 mins. ]

Jeroen Dewulf is Associate Professor in the Department of German, Director of the Institute of European Studies, and Director of the Dutch Studies Program at University of California at Berkeley. He is the author of The Pinkster King and the King of Kongo: The Forgotten History of America’s Dutch-Owned Slaves and Spirit of Resistance: Dutch Clandestine Literature during the Nazi Occupation.
Patrick Chamorel is Senior Resident Scholar at the Stanford University Center in Washington DC. He is the author of article Now it’s France’s Turn, Aspirations and Reality: French foreign policy and the 2012 elections, and the book chapter Anti-Europeanism and Euroskeptisicm in the United States
Mark Amsler is Director of the Europe Institute at the University of Auckland and Professor of Languages. He is the author of Affective Literacies: Writing and Multilingualism in the Later Middle Ages.

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Scholars’ Circle – Political Corruptions it’s history, causes, effects and remedies – June 11, 2017

June 10, 2017 host

We spend the hour discussing corruption, particularly political corruption, its history, causes, costs to society and possible remedies.[ dur: 58mins. ]

Paul Heywood is Sir Francis Hill Professor of European Politics at the University of Nottingham in UK. He is the author of the Routledge Handbook of Political Corruption, and the co-editor of Debates of Corruption and Integrity: Perspectives from Europe and the US.
Susan Rose-Ackerman is Professor of Law and Political Science at Yale University. Her publications include, Corruption and Government: Causes, Consequences, and Reform, Corruption: A Study in Political Economy and Anti-Corruption Policy: Can International Actors Play a Constructive Role?
Bruce Buchan is Professor of Political Science at Griffith University in Australia. His publications include An Intellectual History of Political Corruption: From Antiquity to 1800 and The Empire of Political Thought: Indigenous Australians and the Language of Colonial Government.

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Scholars’ Circle – Future of Europe – June 4, 2017

June 3, 2017 host

Today’s Scholars’ Circle was recorded before a live audience and explored the future of Europe, and whether the election of Macron gave signals about how the European Union would manage both internal and external issues.

Simon Green is Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Executive Dean of the School of Languages and Social Sciences at Aston University, UK. He is the author of The Politics of Exclusion: Institutions and Immigration Policy in Contemporary Germany. He is co-author of The Politics of the New Germany, and co-editor of Understanding the Transformation of Germany’s CDU.
John Morgan is Professor in the School of Education and Pedagogy at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. He is the author of research papers: Schooling the Crisis?, Education in the Aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis, and What do we mean by thinking geographically?
Mark Amsler is Director of the Europe Institute at the University of Auckland and Professor of Languages. He is the author of Affective Literacies: Writing and Multilingualism in the Later Middle Ages

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Scholars’ Circle – Insight into Russian Politics in Patronal System (2 of 2 ) -/- Discussion on “Just War Theory” – May 21, 2017

May 20, 2017 host 1 Comment

First, while many in the West decry the politics of the former Soviet Union countries as corrupt and anti-democratic, our guest argues that there are much better ways of understanding the processes and politics of patronal systems. This is part 2 of 2 part interview with Professor Henry E. Hale. You can find part one here. [ dur: 24 mins. ]

Henry E. Hale is Associate Professor of Political Science and International Affairs at The George Washington University. His books include Patronal Politics: Eurasian Regime Dynamics in Comparative Perspective, The Foundations of Ethnic Politics: Separatism of States and Nations in Eurasia and the World and Why Not Parties in Russia? Democracy, Federalism, and the State.

Then, on the Scholars’ Circle panel, What exactly is “Just(ified) war theory”? And can it be applied to modern warfare? [ dur: 35 mins. ]

Jeff McMahan is a Professor of Philosophy at Rutgers University. He is the author of Killing in War, The Ethics of Killing: Problems at the Margins of Life and editor of Ethics and Humanity: Themes from the Philosophy of Jonathan Glover
Heather Roff is a Professor of International Studies at the University of Denver. She is the author of Global Justice, Kant and the Responsibility to Protect: A Provisional Duty (Global Politics and the Responsibility to Protect) .
Thomas Gregory is a lecturer of Political Studies at the University of Auckland. He is the author of “Drones – mapping the legal debate”.

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Scholars’ Circle – Insight into Russian Politics in Patronal System (1 of 2 ) -/- Past History of US Corporation’s Public Purpose – May 14, 2017

May 13, 2017 host 2 Comments

First, while many in the West decry the politics of the former Soviet Union countries as corrupt and anti-democratic, our guest argues that there are much better ways of understanding the processes and politics of patronal systems. This is part one of a two part discussion with Professor Henry Hale. You can find Part 2 here. [ dur: 22 mins. ]

Henry E. Hale is Associate Professor of Political Science and International Affairs at The George Washington University. His books include Patronal Politics: Eurasian Regime Dynamics in Comparative Perspective, The Foundations of Ethnic Politics: Separatism of States and Nations in Eurasia and the World and Why Not Parties in Russia? Democracy, Federalism, and the State.

Finally, on the Scholars’ Circle panel, once upon a time, corporations were required to have a public purpose and once they fulfilled it, they were dissolved. How did we get to where we are today & what does it mean for democracy? [ dur: 36 mins. ]

Richard Abrams, is Professor of History, UC Berkeley. He is the author of America Transformed: Sixty Years of Revolutionary Change, 1941-2001
Paul Pierson, is Professor of Political Science, UC Berkeley. He is the co-author of Winner-Take-All Politics: How Washington Made the Rich Richer–and Turned Its Back on the Middle Class
Scott Bowman, is Professor and Chair of Political Science Department at California State University, Los Angeles (CSU-LA). He is the author of The Modern Corporation and American Political Thought: Law, Power, and Ideology

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Scholars’ Circle – Media for Ultraconservative movement -/- Since LA unrest, what has changed? – May 7, 2017

May 6, 2017 host 6 Comments

First, the roots of the ultraconservative media movement. Nicole Hemmer is the author of Messengers of the Right: Conservative Media and the Transformation of American Politics.

Nicole Hemmer is Professor of Presidential Studies at University of Virginia. She is the author of Messengers of the Right: Conservative Media and the Transformation of American Politics

Then, 25 years after the LA civil unrest, what has changed?

Manuel Pastor is Professor of Sociology and American studies and Ethnicity at University of Southern California ( USC ). He is co-author of following books, Equity, Growth, and Community: What the Nation Can Learn from America’s Metro Areas, This Could Be the Start of Something Big: How Social Movements for Regional Equity Are Reshaping Metropolitan America, Uncommon Common Ground: Race and America’s Future and Just Growth: Inclusion and Prosperity in America’s Metropolitan Regions

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Scholars’ Circle – Brexit implications -/- North Korea Insight – April 30, 2017

April 30, 2017 host

The political implications of Brexit. [ dur: 29mins. ]

Paul P. Craig is currently Professor of English Law at the University of Oxford and a Fellow of St John’s College. Professor Craig is a specialist in Administrative and EU Law. He is the author of Britain Alone. The Implications and Consequences of United Kingdom Exit from the EU [Brexit].

Then, on the Scholars’ Circle, making sense of the politics of North Korea. This discussion was recorded and originally aired on April 2013. [ dur: 28mins. ]

For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ

Stephan Haggard is the Lawrence and Sallye Krause Professor of Korea-Pacific Studies, director of the Korea-Pacific Program, and distinguished professor of political science at the School. He is the author of the book Witness to Transformation: Refugee Insights into North Korea
Jacques E.C. Hymans is associate professor of international relations at the University of Southern California. He is author of Achieving Nuclear Ambitions: Scientists, Politicians, and Proliferation and The Psychology of Nuclear Proliferation: Identity, Emotions and Foreign Policy.
Charles K. Armstrong, Professor of Korean Studies at Colombia University. He is the author of The North Korean Revolution, 1945-1950

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Scholars’ Circle – Insight into Solutions to Climate Change -/- Ways Biology affects Free Will – April 16, 2017

April 15, 2017 host

With unprecedented global warming, wealth disparities and peak everything, we need to act now to meet the power, heating and transportation needs of growing populations, and to do so sustainably, equitably and democratically. What are the obstacles? What are possible solutions? How do we build resilient communities? [ dur: 44mins. ]

Steve Matthewman is a professor of sociology at the University of Auckland. She is the author of Disasters, Risks and Revelation: Making Sense of Our Times and Being Sociological.
Julie MacArthur is a senior lecturer in politics and international relations at the University of Auckland. She is the author of Empowering Electricity: Co-operatives, Sustainability, and Power Sector Reform in Canada (Sustainability and the Environment).
Prue Taylor is a senior lecturer in environmental and planning law at the University of Auckland, Deputy Director of the New Zealand Centre for Environmental Law. She is the author of An Ecological Approach to International Law: Responding to the Challenges of Climate Change
Manuel Vallee is a lecturer in environmental sociology at the University of Auckland. He is a co-author of Resilience, Environmental Justice and the City

We end with the question, is our behavior free will or is it partly due to parasites? New science shows how parasites change behaviors throughout the animal kingdom. What does that mean for human behavior? [ dur: 14 mins. ]

Dr. Dickson Despommier is a Professor in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at Columbia University. He is the author of The Vertical Farm: Feeding the World in the 21st Century and People, Parasites, and Plowshares: Learning From Our Body’s Most Terrifying Invaders.
Patrick House is Neuroscientist at Stanford University. He is the co-author of Predator Cat Odors Acdivate Sexual Arousal Pathways in Brains of Toxoplasma Gondii infected Rats.

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The Scholars' Circle Interviews

Tag Archives: Politics and Activism

Scholars’ Circle – Power Shifts -/- Truth about Lies we speak and hear – July 9, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Secret Heroes -/- Ownership Revolution -/- Green Gone Wrong – July 2, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Promoting GMO to Mexico by US State Department Diplomats -/- Effects of UK and France Elections – June 18, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Political Corruptions it’s history, causes, effects and remedies – June 11, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Future of Europe – June 4, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Insight into Russian Politics in Patronal System (2 of 2 ) -/- Discussion on “Just War Theory” – May 21, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Insight into Russian Politics in Patronal System (1 of 2 ) -/- Past History of US Corporation’s Public Purpose – May 14, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Media for Ultraconservative movement -/- Since LA unrest, what has changed? – May 7, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Brexit implications -/- North Korea Insight – April 30, 2017

Scholars’ Circle – Insight into Solutions to Climate Change -/- Ways Biology affects Free Will – April 16, 2017

By Maria Armoudian