POL208Y1 Lecture Notes - Nuclear Weapon, Cuban Missile Crisis, North Korea
Document Summary
Every model by definition omits certain dimensions of reality. Every models therefore includes implicit fundamental assumptions on what matters most. There is always more than one way to cut a cake . Should differentiate causal reasons on a domestic scale or international. Russet, starr, kinsella; individual, decision makers, government structure, society, Thought experiments (counterfactuals) what is the best way to prevent what has happened (article what if ) If fdr was still alive, maybe the atomic bomb would not be used. To understand the outcome, need to understand the decision making level, (who said what, who supported what, who was influential ) Atomic bomb dropped by the usa (diff structure of gov- need to understand it) Also look at structure of japan, diff pol structure. To understand truman, need t0o understand that it is ww, so analyze it at an international level, systemic. Move to the world system level of analysis.