Failed States are not really the hot spots for terrorism, money laundering, weapons of mass destruction or diseases
Their primary threat is to their own citizens and the conflicts that happen in failed states rarely threaten the rest of the world.
However, failed states still do need our help. Mass atrocities committed towards their people led to mass suffering which may bring global effects, for example mass exodus of refugees
Failed State Cycle
Failed State Cycle
Failed State Cycle
Failed State Cycle
Hermit States – Are they More Likely to Fail?
Hermit States – Are they More Likely to Fail?
Hermit States – states that completely close themselves from others.
Example - North Korea
North Korea is a failed state:
North Korea is a failed state:
The assumption is that Pyongyang (capital of North Korea) desperately needs economic assistance from the outside world and the only way to get it is for the North to give up its nuclear weapons. Wrong again. North Korea did come close to being a failed state during the 1990s because of mass starvation. But Pyongyang weathered that storm. The regime is firmly in the saddle and its new leader has enacted measures to vitalize party control. The economy has stabilized and even improved. Despite sanctions, trade has expanded significantly, not just with China but also with South and Southeast Asia, Africa, and Europe to the point where the North may have even enjoyed a current account surplus in 2011. Still, life in the North remains grim. But conditions in Pyongyang are better and improving, certainly compared to stagnation in the countryside, where periodic and chronic food shortages persist. There is no comparison between the North and developed countries like South Korea. But it fits in if compared to developing countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
North Korea is a failed state:
North Korea is a failed state:
During its first term, the Obama administration pursued an approach called "strategic patience," based on the flawed assumption that isolating a weak North would convince it to stop behaving badly. Although experts with decades of experience dealing with Pyongyang warned that this policy would not work, the administration went ahead anyway. Sure enough, strategic patience had the opposite effect; Pyongyang's behavior is worse than ever before and its Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) programs continue to make progress.
GOTHAM (as in Batman) - A FAILED STATE?
GOTHAM (as in Batman) - A FAILED STATE?
In Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy, Gotham is a failed city-state according the Fragile States Index published by Fund for Peace. The failures of Gotham’s “legitimate” government have fractured the city into several warring factions — the primary combatants being the Falcone crime syndicate, the League of Shadows, and the Batman. As in the real world, the ordinary citizens, elected officials, and law enforcement of Gotham align themselves with every faction, but often have little real power in any of them. Though many of the FSI’s “Indicators” apply to Gotham, a few are especially relevant:
Economic Decline: Early on, Bruce’s father Thomas tells us “the city has been suffering. People less fortunate than us have been enduring very hard times” (Batman Begins). Roughly two minutes later in the film, both he and Bruce’s mother Martha are dead at the hands of Joe Chill, an impoverished, desperate gunman. Six minutes (read: fourteen years) later, assistant district attorney Rachel Dawes lectures Bruce on how little has changed since his parents’ death:
GOTHAM (as in Batman) - A FAILED STATE?
GOTHAM (as in Batman) - A FAILED STATE?
State Legitimacy asks, “Are federal and/or local officials considered to be corrupt?” and “Does the government have the confidence of the people?” (FFP). In Gotham, corruption is the status quo. Judges accept bribes from convicted felons, even to the point of becoming an accessory to murder; police detectives steal from street merchants and moonlight as low-level enforcers for the mob; prominent psychiatrists perjure themselves for money and torment their patients to ensure the secrecy of drug trafficking operations. As for public confidence, Police Detective James Gordon quips, “In a town this bent, who’s there to rat to anyway?” (His partner is the mob enforcer mentioned above.) Near the film’s climax, when Dr. Crane’s fear toxin has poisoned the streets and Arkham Asylum’s inmates run free among the general populace, even a little boy (representative here of Gotham’s poorer classes) recognizes it is the Batman, and not the GCPD, who will set things right: “Batman will save us. He’ll come” (Batman Begins).
GOTHAM (as in Batman) - A FAILED STATE?
GOTHAM (as in Batman) - A FAILED STATE?
External Intervention. As applied to nations, this typically refers to aid received from other countries or organizations in the form of economic assistance or military support. In Gotham, though, it is the Batman who intervenes: he is “an external actor… responsible for many government functions and not at the behest of the government” (FFP). The Batman stops crimes in progress, he secures evidence against the perpetrators, and presses the police department and the district attorney’s office to prosecute; in short, he enables Gotham’s judicial systems to function as they are intended. He is also the only one capable of combating Ra’s al Ghul and the League of Shadows, who have “infiltrated every level of [Gotham’s] infrastructure” — especially, it seems, the city’s SWAT teams and riot police (Batman Begins). The legal authorities of Gotham are helpless against these invaders, while the Batman is not; in fact, he is the only one protecting whatever tenuous sovereignty Gotham’s legitimate government still holds. These factors seem to indicate that the “state” of Gotham City has effectively defaulted its monopoly on the use of force to the Batman, a state of affairs confirmed by the film’s final scene, in which Jim Gordon signals for the Batman from the roof of GCPD Headquarters.
GREECE - Causes of State Failure
GREECE - Causes of State Failure
The 2001 introduction of the euro as a common currency reduced trade costs among the Eurozone countries, increasing overall trade volume. However, labour costs increased more in peripheral countries such as Greece relative to core countries such as Germany, making Greek exports less competitive. As a result, Greece saw its current account (trade) deficit rise significantly.[12]
A trade deficit means that a country is consuming more than it produces, which requires borrowing from other countries.[12] Both the Greek trade deficit and budget deficit rose from below 5% of GDP in 1999 to peak around 15% of GDP in the 2008–2009 periods.[13] Another potential driver of the inflow of investment into Greece was its membership in the EU, which helped lower the yields on its government bonds over the 1998–2007 periods. In other words, Greece was perceived as a higher credit risk alone than it was as a member of the EU, which implies investors felt the EU would bring discipline to its finances and support Greece in the event of problems.[14]
GREECE - Causes of State Failure
GREECE - Causes of State Failure
As the Great Recession that began in the U.S. in 2007–2009 spread to Europe, the flow of funds lent from the European core countries (e.g., Germany, France, and Italy) to the peripheral countries such as Greece began to dry up. Reports in 2009 of Greek fiscal mismanagement and deception increased borrowing costs; the combination meant Greece could no longer borrow to finance its trade and budget deficits.[12]
A country facing a “sudden stop” in private investment and a high debt load typically allows its currency to depreciate (i.e., inflation) to encourage investment and to pay back the debt in cheaper currency, but this is not an option while Greece remains on the Euro.[12] Instead, to become more competitive, Greek wages fell nearly 20% from mid-2010 to 2014, a form of deflation. This resulted in a significant reduction in income and GDP, resulting in a severe recession and a significant rise in the debt-to-GDP ratio. Unemployment has risen to nearly 25%, from below 10% in 2003. However, significant government spending cuts also helped the Greek government return to a primary budget surplus by 2014, meaning it collected more revenue than it paid out, excluding interes
Belgium – A Failed State?
Belgium – A Failed State?
Belgium practices patronage politics
Deindustrialisation left many urban areas in Belgium poor
Poor law enforcement
It gives away a lot of its powers to the various regions throughout the country
Divisions between French and Flemish speaking community.
Can Disease Cause a State to Fail? Cholera in Zimbabwe
Once regarded as a model of development in southern Africa, Zimbabwe continues to plunge into political chaos and despair. The Mugabe regime’s litany of human rights abuses grows unabated, aggravated by economic collapse, food scarcity, a raging HIV/AIDS epidemic, and now the scourge of cholera. Since the first major manifestations of cholera in August of 2008, Zimbabwe has seen over 20,580 infected and 1,500 deaths from the illness. Originally centered in the Budiriro suburb of Harare, the epidemic has now swept the country, with concentrations in Mashonaland, Masvingo, Midlands, Manicaland, and Matebeleland in the south.
Can Disease Cause a State to Fail? Cholera in Zimbabwe
Can Disease Cause a State to Fail? Cholera in Zimbabwe
Over the past decade the Mugabe regime has engaged in blatant mismanagement of the Zimbabwean economy. Official figures put inflation at 231 million percent in July 2008, and it has arguably increased since that point. Hyperinflation, massive unemployment, and severe declines in agricultural productivity have increased malnutrition in the general population. Malnourished and HIV-infected populations are increasingly susceptible to infectious diseases such as cholera. Moreover, economic deterioration has eroded the capacity of Harare to provide essential public goods and services including electricity, garbage disposal, sanitation, and–in particular–clean water and medical treatment. Hyperinflation has accelerated the disintegration of the nation’s public health infrastructure, as medical personnel and sanitation workers have left their jobs because their wages cannot feed their families or pay for transportation to work. Many hospitals have simply shut down as doctors and nurses now refuse to work.
Can Disease Cause a State to Fail? Cholera in Zimbabwe
Can Disease Cause a State to Fail? Cholera in Zimbabwe
A principal cause of the epidemic is the Mugabe regime’s recent nationalization and politicized mismanagement of the civic water and sanitation structures of Harare. The government’s corruption and incompetence is evident in its refusal to chlorinate the water supply or replace broken pipes in areas that have seen significant support for the political opposition. Such politicization of public health, in an effort to punish supporters of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), has directly induced the proliferation of the cholera bacteria. Moreover, this decline in the capacity and willingness of the state to provide even basic public goods–exhibited in declining national life expectancy (now a mere 34 years) and increasing infant mortality–is an excellent indicator of a failing state. Declining health is correlated with, and functions as an effective empirical predictor of, state failure.
Can Disease Cause a State to Fail? Cholera in Zimbabwe
Can Disease Cause a State to Fail? Cholera in Zimbabwe
Failing and failed states often generate serious externalities that radiate beyond their borders, and health externalities such as the proliferation of cholera are but one manifestation of this dynamic. According to the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the cholera epidemic has now spread to Zambia, Botswana, Mozambique, and to Limpopo province in South Africa, where it has generated circa 750 cases and 11 deaths. Clearly, the Mugabe regime’s inability to govern effectively is now compromising the ability of Zimbabwe’s immediate neighbors to keep a pernicious epidemic from affecting their own populations. Thus, while health may be seen as a public good (being non-rivalrous and non-exclusive), epidemic disease is a public bad – imposing costs upon society as a whole and radiating beyond affected polities to jeopardize the health, prosperity and stability of other polities throughout southern Africa.
Ubudehe in Rwanda
Ubudehe in Rwanda
Ubudehe is a social programme where people from various neighbourhoods work together to weed crop fields and construct houses among other things.
The first category has the very poor who do not have a house or cannot to pay rent; have a poor diet; cannot get basic household tools and clothes.
The second category includes those who have their own houses; can afford to rent a house; mostly get food and earn a wage from working with others.
The third category includes those who have at least one person in the family working in the government or the private sector.
The fourth category includes people who earn high incomes; people who own houses; people who can afford a luxurious lifestyle.
Are Elections Important in Restoring Failed States? - Haiti
Are Elections Important in Restoring Failed States? - Haiti
More than a year after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake devastated the country, Haiti is still a mess. The chaos affects its politics, too. The first round of the presidential election, held in November, was marred by charges of fraud. An outside review found that the government's chosen candidate, who had been proclaimed the runner-up, had actually finished third. He was removed from the run-off and replaced with Michel Martelly, a singer best known for a trouser-dropping routine, who recently admitted defaulting on over $1m of loans on property in Florida.
On March 20th voters will choose between Mr Martelly and Mirlande Manigat, a grandmotherly former first lady and legal scholar. Both are right-wingers. Ms Manigat's ties to the political establishment may hurt her, given Haitians' dissatisfaction with the slow pace of rebuilding. Recent polls give Mr Martelly an edge. “Only a bad boy can fix this country,” said one recent caller to a local radio show.
The Concept of “ FAIL FAST”
The Concept of “ FAIL FAST”
It is better to make many mistakes as quickly as you can, and learn from them, than to do things right the first time and learn little to improve on your work.
Studies found that people who did not do well in their tasks will eventually identify key mistakes and with practice, correct them.
Those who strive for quality in the first attempt will eventually stagnate
Can this concept be applied towards STATES?
The movie begins in Bricksburg, where all media, business, and government are controlled by the Octan Energy Corporation. The Bricksburgers are all rule-followers who love “President Business,” the embodiment of crony capitalism who runs the whole show. Under his iron-fist rule, everyone follows the instructions at home and work, enforced by cheery “I’ve got my eye on you!” advertisements and surveillance cameras.
The movie begins in Bricksburg, where all media, business, and government are controlled by the Octan Energy Corporation. The Bricksburgers are all rule-followers who love “President Business,” the embodiment of crony capitalism who runs the whole show. Under his iron-fist rule, everyone follows the instructions at home and work, enforced by cheery “I’ve got my eye on you!” advertisements and surveillance cameras.
The world’s free thinkers — known as master builders — are President Business’ greatest threat. These are the mini-figurines who reject the cultural and legal norms enforced by President Business. They are caught via a massive surveillance and military system and locked up against their will. One of the rule-following citizens is a perfectly boring chap named “Emmet,” a construction worker on a team that destroys interesting and unique buildings and replaces them with brutal and uniform office structures.
President Business himself tells us that he’s so upset with people who mess up his plans that he wants to lock them down exactly as they should be. “Stop building that stuff!” he cries. Later he says, “All I’m asking for is total perfection!” bringing in “micromanagers” to help out. It was that scene’s call to immanentize the eschaton, by the way, that convinced me the FOX panelists hadn’t seen the film before critiquing it. President Business actually gives a character a choice between fealty to him or “a tea party with your mom and dad.” A tea party! And the character given that choice is both “Good Cop” and “Bad Cop,” thanks to LEGO head swiveling that has happy faces on the back side of angry faces.
President Business himself tells us that he’s so upset with people who mess up his plans that he wants to lock them down exactly as they should be. “Stop building that stuff!” he cries. Later he says, “All I’m asking for is total perfection!” bringing in “micromanagers” to help out. It was that scene’s call to immanentize the eschaton, by the way, that convinced me the FOX panelists hadn’t seen the film before critiquing it. President Business actually gives a character a choice between fealty to him or “a tea party with your mom and dad.” A tea party! And the character given that choice is both “Good Cop” and “Bad Cop,” thanks to LEGO head swiveling that has happy faces on the back side of angry faces.
Even though the film is a 100-minute commercial for a business, it’s also an ad for personal responsibility, individual choice, meaningful work, natural constraints, the dignity of the individual and the fight against a government that desires control of the lives of citizens. Its message about heroism being based in creativity, hard work, and resourcefulness — not superpowers — is deeply unifying.
Even though the film is a 100-minute commercial for a business, it’s also an ad for personal responsibility, individual choice, meaningful work, natural constraints, the dignity of the individual and the fight against a government that desires control of the lives of citizens. Its message about heroism being based in creativity, hard work, and resourcefulness — not superpowers — is deeply unifying.
The profound message of “The Lego Movie” is that we all have a bit of President Business in us, no matter our particular vocation.
Ultimately, though, the movie’s meaning is in taking abstractions about freedom and control and making them deeply personal. See, it’s not just government officials and corporate executives who micromanage and dictate — out of fear or a desire for control. Parents do it, too. As do spouses, girlfriends and boyfriends, friends, neighbors, teachers and everyone else. The profound message of “The Lego Movie” is that we all have a bit of President Business in us, no matter our particular vocation. What makes “The Lego Movie” so poignant is that it helps each of us internalize the importance of celebrating freedom — sure, within constraints — in each of our stations in life.
