James McMichael Blog Post 2
How can political geography be used to limit global terrorism?
Introduction
There have been numerous explanations given for global terrorism. None really explain global terrorism in general. World-systems analysis offers better insight into global terrorism, by identifying the geographic distribution of terrorism in terms of different countries' stages of economic development (and this their role in the world capitalist economic system), and asking why terrorism occurs in such countries far more than in other countries.
Purpose Statement
The purpose of this blog post is to show how world-systems analysis can help us better understand why terrorism occurs. Unless and until we can understand why terrorism occurs, we cannot devise means to limit terrorism, because we cannot know what needs to be changed, in order to limit terrorism. If you don't know the cause of an illness, you cannot devise a cure. An important advantage of world-systems analysis, in studying global terrorism, is that world-systems analysis has a global perspective.
Key Points
In world-systems analysis, the countries of the world are identified as core, periphery, or semi-periphery. The core countries are the wealthy countries, have high-cost labor, use the most recent technology and innovations, and export high-cost finished goods to the periphery. The countries of the periphery have low-cost labor, use old technology and innovations, and export cheap raw materials to the core.
The semi-periphery countries are in an economic situation which somewhere between that of the core countries and that of the periphery countries, although they are farther from the situation of the core countries and closer to the situation of the periphery countries. Semi-periphery countries use technology and innovations that were formerly used in core countries. As technologies and innovations in core countries are superseded by newer ones, the older ones are relocated, particularly by transnational corporations, to the semi-periphery. Lower-value finished good, once produced in core countries, are now produced i semi-periphery countries.
Semi-periphery countries sell lower-value finished goods to periphery countries and buy cheap raw materials from periphery countries. Semi-periphery countries sell lower-value finished goods to core countries and buy higher-value finished goods from core countries. The semi-periphery countries exploit periphery countries and are exploited by core countries.
As older technologies and innovations are transferred from core countries to semi-periphery countries, the semi-periphery countries undergo economic change which impacts their societies. Once-plentiful jobs might disappear, causing unemployment and poverty. Housing patterns might change, such as rapid urbanization, as loss of employment in agriculture leads people to seek work in new industries in cities, with loss of ties to extended families and other supportive cultural practices.
Perhaps most importantly, a small minority of the population ("elites") seize the economic opportunities arising from the technology and innovations arising from the core, leading to great and glaring inequalities in wealth and income. All of these changes, and inequality in particular, create real grievances. Given that countries of the semi-periphery, if democratic at all (many are not), have governments dominated by corruption and cronyism, grievances are unlikely to be addressed through peaceful political processes.
It is predictable that terrorism would arise in the economic, social, and political situations of semi-periphery countries. The empirical data shows that is exactly what happens. Core countries have modest levels of terrorism, periphery countries have very low levels of terrorism, and semi-periphery countries have high levels of terrorism.
Figure 3 from Colin Flint & Steven M. Radil, "Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism" Eurasian Geography and Economics (2009).
If we want to limit global terrorism, we need to start by focusing on where terrorism most often arises, which means studying the political geography of terrorism, as shown to us by world-systems analysis.
How can political geography be used to limit global terrorism?
Introduction
There have been numerous explanations given for global terrorism. None really explain global terrorism in general. World-systems analysis offers better insight into global terrorism, by identifying the geographic distribution of terrorism in terms of different countries' stages of economic development (and this their role in the world capitalist economic system), and asking why terrorism occurs in such countries far more than in other countries.
Purpose Statement
The purpose of this blog post is to show how world-systems analysis can help us better understand why terrorism occurs. Unless and until we can understand why terrorism occurs, we cannot devise means to limit terrorism, because we cannot know what needs to be changed, in order to limit terrorism. If you don't know the cause of an illness, you cannot devise a cure. An important advantage of world-systems analysis, in studying global terrorism, is that world-systems analysis has a global perspective.
Key Points
In world-systems analysis, the countries of the world are identified as core, periphery, or semi-periphery. The core countries are the wealthy countries, have high-cost labor, use the most recent technology and innovations, and export high-cost finished goods to the periphery. The countries of the periphery have low-cost labor, use old technology and innovations, and export cheap raw materials to the core.
The semi-periphery countries are in an economic situation which somewhere between that of the core countries and that of the periphery countries, although they are farther from the situation of the core countries and closer to the situation of the periphery countries. Semi-periphery countries use technology and innovations that were formerly used in core countries. As technologies and innovations in core countries are superseded by newer ones, the older ones are relocated, particularly by transnational corporations, to the semi-periphery. Lower-value finished good, once produced in core countries, are now produced i semi-periphery countries.
Semi-periphery countries sell lower-value finished goods to periphery countries and buy cheap raw materials from periphery countries. Semi-periphery countries sell lower-value finished goods to core countries and buy higher-value finished goods from core countries. The semi-periphery countries exploit periphery countries and are exploited by core countries.
As older technologies and innovations are transferred from core countries to semi-periphery countries, the semi-periphery countries undergo economic change which impacts their societies. Once-plentiful jobs might disappear, causing unemployment and poverty. Housing patterns might change, such as rapid urbanization, as loss of employment in agriculture leads people to seek work in new industries in cities, with loss of ties to extended families and other supportive cultural practices.
Perhaps most importantly, a small minority of the population ("elites") seize the economic opportunities arising from the technology and innovations arising from the core, leading to great and glaring inequalities in wealth and income. All of these changes, and inequality in particular, create real grievances. Given that countries of the semi-periphery, if democratic at all (many are not), have governments dominated by corruption and cronyism, grievances are unlikely to be addressed through peaceful political processes.It is predictable that terrorism would arise in the economic, social, and political situations of semi-periphery countries. The empirical data shows that is exactly what happens. Core countries have modest levels of terrorism, periphery countries have very low levels of terrorism, and semi-periphery countries have high levels of terrorism.
Figure 3 from Colin Flint & Steven M. Radil, "Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism" Eurasian Geography and Economics (2009).
If we want to limit global terrorism, we need to start by focusing on where terrorism most often arises, which means studying the political geography of terrorism, as shown to us by world-systems analysis.
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