Suchergebnisse

The article briefly discusses the history of Portugal's conquering and maintenance of its empire. This article examines enabling factors for the establishment of the Portuguese Empire in light of the relative lack of resources present at the time of the imperial conquest. The impact of ideology and religion in the Portuguese empire is examined. The article introduces the idea that charitable organizations known as Misericordias were pillars of the Portuguese Empire. The functions and political organization of Misericrdias are described. The author briefly discusses the fall of the Portuguese empire. This article is one in a series of articles on the topic of empires. References. E. Sundby

Popular uprising against authoritarian regimes is not enough to allow transition towards democracy to begin. The military has the final word on whether such an uprising will be successful or the uprising will be repressed in order to preserve the incumbent dictatorship. The military supported the uprising in Tunisia while it sided with the regime and repressed the uprising in Syria. In Egypt did the military refrain from supporting the regime and took over power themselves. Why did the military act so differently in the three cases? The article propose a theoretical explanation which combines variables influencing whether the military has the potential to support a popular uprising or not; and if there is a political situation, which allows for this potential to be exploited. The model of explanation is then tested against the cases of Tunisia, Egypt and Syria during The Arab Spring. Adapted from the source document.

The article deals with the latest presidential election in Belarus in March 2006. More specifically, the aim of the text is to focus on its legitimization function in the context of Lukashenka's non-democratic regime & its stability. This goal is based on an assumption that the election's role lies not only in its formal, but also in its factual confirmation of the regime legitimacy. An assessment of this presumption is made by means of an analysis of the formal setting of the election & its administration, by definition of the role of participating actors (governmental, formal & factual ones) & the Belarusian electorate, & by the final categorization of confirmed legitimacy. Adapted from the source document.

This article applies classical typologies of totalitarian & authoritarian regimes by Zbigniew Brzezinski, Carl Friedrich & Juan Linz to the case of the first Slovak Republic (Slovak State). Its political regime between 1935/1939 & summer 1940 can be classified as organic statism. Organic structures (corporativist structures) & the antiliberal & anticapitalist rhetoric of the Catholic Church in encyclicals like the Rerum Novarum were typical of this type of authoritarian regime. Nevertheless, the Nazi pressure led to the transition of the regime to the "defective" (or "arrested") totalitarian regime, which is, according to Linz's typology, in the "grey" zone between totalitarian & authoritarian regimes. The defeats of the German army & changes inside Slovak's camp resulted in the erosion of the regime base at the end of 1942 & brought about yet another regime change. The end of the stage of "unclear" authoritarian regime was marked by the armed insurrection in August 1944. The totalitarian episode, in which the main role was played by the German occupation forces, characterized the last months of war. 39 References. Adapted from the source document.

This article deals with the complicated & multifaceted topic of Polish politics between the two world wars. This time period was characterized not only by a "classical" political instability but, much more importantly, also by the instability of the whole political system. The democratic regime created in 1919 was weak & was abolished by force in 1926. The subsequent political system was authoritarian (but not totalitarian) & survived until the end of the Polish state in October 1939, when Poland was attacked & occupied by the German & Soviet armies. The questions posed by the article are manifold. Why did Poland introduce democracy in the hardship years of 1918-1919, but did so for only a few years? Why was not democracy successful? Why did Poland accept authoritarianism & what were the political & constitutional consequences of that step? 31 References. Adapted from the source document.

This article inquires into the connection between individualisation and environmental issues. Following an introduction to the topic in the opening of the article in chapters II and III the author provides a definition of some basic concepts and asks whether and how the relationship between individualisation and environmental issues is reflected in sociological literature. In chapter IV the author formulates a general framework that in chapter V gives insight into the inconsistent conception of individualisation in environmental ideologies. The article closes with chapter VI, in which, with the aid of a theoretical sociological framework, the author formulates some themes for studying the environmental aspects of the individualised lifestyle.

As with other communist successor parties, Germany's Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS) enjoyed a political comeback in the mid-1990s. The PDS's success can be explained by many eastern German voters' disenchantment with the social, cultural, and economic effects of reunification as well as by the distinctive regional and fragmented character of the German Political Party System that allows the PDS, as the self-proclaimed defender of "eastern interests," disproportionate political influence. The PDS is faced with a dilemma, however. In the long-term it will have to become a true all-German party of the left if it wishes to survive electorally. Yet in becoming an all-German party the PDS risks losing the distinctive eastern identity that has been so essential to its success hitherto. ; As with other communist successor parties, Germany's Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS) enjoyed a political comeback in the mid-1990s. The PDS's success can be explained by many eastern German voters' disenchantment with the social, cultural, and economic effects of reunification as well as by the distinctive regional and fragmented character of the German Political Party System that allows the PDS, as the self-proclaimed defender of "eastern interests," disproportionate political influence. The PDS is faced with a dilemma, however. In the long-term it will have to become a true all-German party of the left if it wishes to survive electorally. Yet in becoming an all-German party the PDS risks losing the distinctive eastern identity that has been so essential to its success hitherto.