Friday, March 21, 2014

Nigeria's Ministry of the Interior

Unit 4

I got this article through a link on nigeriaworld.com.

A link to the article can be found here.

The private company, Drexet Nigeria Limited, was recently picked by order of the Ministry of the Interior to handle a hiring session for the Nigeria Immigration Service. This company charged every applicant for a job with the NIS 1,000 naita(Nigerian currency). An astonishing 526,650 applicants paid the 1,000 naita price to have a shot at a job. Only a little less than 5,000 position were available which doesn't help out with the massive amount of applicants. There was a consultant that the Ministry of the Interior appointed to work out this hiring session. After the hectic result of 19 deaths and chaotic circumstances with the hire, the consultant was blamed. Currently, no evidence exists to give detailed reports about what the consultant specifically did, but he did choose a company without even considering the competition for a better price or service.

The Nigerians have lots of problems with the way things run in their country. This is yet another example of the chaos that occurs in Nigeria. I didn't realize the severity of the issues that occur in Nigeria until I read this article. I knew that they struggled with a lot of things, but I didn't realize that McMurray's statement about how Nigeria is a combination of all things gone wrong is a true one at that. This article helps viewers to see that Nigeria struggles across the spectrum; there isn't just violence, physical force, tribal conflicts, economical woes, and discrimination, but there are also major social issues like this one. Nigeria is a mess of all things at all angles. If they can't figure out how to fix some of their problems then I believe that we will soon see Nigeria fall to the ground as a failed state

Putin's Unpredictability

Unit 4

Here's a link.

Putin signed a law annexing Crimea into Russia. After revolts and violence that have gone on for the past 80 days, the “Russian” sector of Ukraine has now been added to the land mass of Russia. The EU and the US both very distinctly advised Putin to not go through with adding Crimea to Russia, but Putin decided otherwise.

I think this is absolutely crazy. The fact that something like what Germany did before World War II is happening today baffles me. Germany wanted to add some of their “technically German” neighbors to their country, but it ended up being way more than just their neighbors. Putin’s action should cause some serious alert because as its shown, history repeats itself. Crimea may be pleased that they don’t have to be a part of a country that doesn’t support a Putin-type government while Ukraine may be pleased that they don’t have to deal with Crimea any longer. Ukraine has lost a significant and valuable land mass while Russia has gained from their neighbor. The current result might be a satisfactory one, but ultimately the long term results matter most.

Saturday, March 15, 2014

The Cold War Conflict Lingers

Unit 4

A link to the article can be found here.

It's an interesting article from NY Times. Check it out.

This article brought up some interesting points about what some Russians, mostly the Stalinist ideologues, think about the current tension in Ukraine. The writer focused on an intriquing Stalinist writer named Aleksandr A. Prokhanov. In regards what output the current conflict in Ukraine might have, Mr. Prokhanov thinks that the Cold War conflicts return with the transition from Yelstin and Gorbachev reforms to that of traditional Russian conservatism. Prokhanov argues that President Putin began ideologically in 2011 when he felt threatened by liberals whose anger over falsified elections came about. He thinks that Putin felt a sense of fear, so he tried to find a way to maintain his power by loosening ties with the West and their ideologies. The writer believes that Putin has proved to think for himself, but the influence of these extremist individuals could possibly have an influence towards the way Putin runs "his Russia."

I think I agree with what this writer analyzed. I believe that Russian ideologues have a significant influence on the future outcome of Russia. I believe that Putin will do anything he can to maintain his power, but if the people threaten him like they did in 2011 then he will retaliate. To maintain power, Putin realizes Russia can't be influenced by the Western views of increasing freedom and true democracy. He knows what he's doing. I think that Russia will continue to try to stray from being involved with the West as much as possible. Of our allies they are the ones we have the most conflict with. Russian politics hates that the world strays from their traditional norms of authoritarian, non-democratic government. The longer Russians hold on to their conservative ideologies the longer conflict between the West and Russia. One group will prevail. The future can only tell.