POLI 360 Lecture 3: Lecture 3.docx

• School: McGill University
• Department: Political Science
• Course: POLI 360
• Professor: Jason Scott Ferrell

Document Summary

There is a distinction between contention and rivalry. If the mix of these things is brief then we have contention. If it (competitive) takes place over a long period of time then we have rivalry: more conducive to the likelihood of war. If competition escalates and becomes locked in, you have conflict. There is a threshold for the idea of competition as it is pertinent to the development of war: threshold determined by magnitude and time density. If there is a discrepancy between diplomatic ties and capability. Increases in capability/military prowess coupled with decreases in diplomacy increase the likelihood of war. Singer: wars that do not have to deal with dyadic relationships example civil war, resources how do they provide an advantage, problems/critiques. War is an activity between states if so, we should be able to objectively explain it. States may declare war on another state but it"s the people who end up fighting war can be subjective.