The United States and Asia in 2008: A Time of Challenge

Asian Survey ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert A. Scalapino

The Asian-Pacific scene at present is marked by turbulent economic conditions and varying degrees of political instability, yet foreign relations are relatively favorable. Two key issues in Northeast Asia——North Korean nuclearization and cross-Taiwan Straits relations——remain unresolved, but current trends are generally hopeful. In Southeast and South Asia, conditions have been marked by economic decline stemming from the domestic scene and prominent cases of political tension. Yet, the risk of a war between Asian-Pacific states is at a record low.

Author(s):  
Stephen G. Sireci ◽  
Fernanda Gándara

Educational tests are used for a wide variety of purposes, including placing students in appropriate educational programs, diagnosing students’ strengths and weaknesses, certifying competence in specific knowledge and skill areas, selecting students for admission, and testing for the knowledge and skills required in licensure and certification testing. This chapter describes the use of educational tests in both national and international settings, focusing on the use of tests in two countries: the United States and Chile. Highlighting the educational testing practices in these two countries illustrates many of the similarities involved in educational testing, but also illustrates political differences that affect the use and evaluation of tests. International testing activities are described, such as those that compare the educational achievement of students across countries. The chapter also discusses the key issues in educational testing, such as technical quality and validity, as well as current trends and future directions.


Author(s):  
Rizki Rahma Kusumadewi ◽  
Wahyu Widayat

Exchange rate is one tool to measure a country’s economic conditions. The growth of a stable currency value indicates that the country has a relatively good economic conditions or stable. This study has the purpose to analyze the factors that affect the exchange rate of the Indonesian Rupiah against the United States Dollar in the period of 2000-2013. The data used in this study is a secondary data which are time series data, made up of exports, imports, inflation, the BI rate, Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and the money supply (M1) in the quarter base, from first quarter on 2000 to fourth quarter on 2013. Regression model time series data used the ARCH-GARCH with ARCH model selection indicates that the variables that significantly influence the exchange rate are exports, inflation, the central bank rate and the money supply (M1). Whereas import and GDP did not give any influence.


Author(s):  
Takis S. Pappas

Based on an original definition of modern populism as “democratic illiberalism” and many years of meticulous research, Takis Pappas marshals extraordinary empirical evidence from Argentina, Greece, Peru, Italy, Venezuela, Ecuador, Hungary, the United States, Spain, and Brazil to develop a comprehensive theory about populism. He addresses all key issues in the debate about populism and answers significant questions of great relevance for today’s liberal democracy, including: • What is modern populism and how can it be differentiated from comparable phenomena like nativism and autocracy? • Where in Latin America has populism become most successful? Where in Europe did it emerge first? Why did its rise to power in the United States come so late? • Is Trump a populist and, if so, could he be compared best with Venezuela’s Chávez, France’s Le Pens, or Turkey’s Erdoğan? • Why has populism thrived in post-authoritarian Greece but not in Spain? And why in Argentina and not in Brazil? • Can populism ever succeed without a charismatic leader? If not, what does leadership tell us about how to challenge populism? • Who are “the people” who vote for populist parties, how are these “made” into a group, and what is in their minds? • Is there a “populist blueprint” that all populists use when in power? And what are the long-term consequences of populist rule? • What does the expansion, and possibly solidification, of populism mean for the very nature and future of contemporary democracy? Populism and Liberal Democracy will change the ways the reader understands populism and imagines the prospects of liberal democracy.


Author(s):  
Jean Galbraith

Over its constitutional history, the United States has developed multiple ways of joining, implementing, and terminating treaties and other international commitments. This chapter provides an overview of the law governing these pathways and considers the extent to which comparative law has influenced them or could do so in the future. Focusing in particular on the making of international commitments, the chapter describes how, over time, the United States came to develop alternatives to the process set out in the U.S. Constitution’s Treaty Clause, which requires the approval of two-thirds of the Senate. These alternatives arose partly from reasons of administrative efficiency and partly from presidential interest in making important international commitments in situations where two-thirds of the Senate would be unobtainable. These alternatives have had the effect of considerably increasing the president’s constitutional power to make international commitments. Nonetheless, considerable constraints remain on presidential power in this context, with some of these constraints stemming from constitutional law and others from statutory, administrative, and international law. With respect to comparative law, the chapter observes that U.S. practice historically has been largely but not entirely self-contained. Looking ahead, comparative practice is unlikely to affect U.S. constitutional law with respect to international agreements, but it might hold insights for legislative or administrative reforms.


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