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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20071005T080000
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DTSTAMP:20260422T094138
CREATED:20141026T143526Z
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SUMMARY:Gary Wasserman on the 2008 US Presidential Elections
DESCRIPTION:On October 5th 2007\, CIRS hosted a luncheon at the Four Seasons Hotel in Doha in which Dr. Gary Wasserman discussed the 2008 presidential elections in the United States. Wasserman\, who is professor of Government at the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar\, spoke before a small audience of Doha-based diplomats and business leaders. The event was moderated by CIRS-Director Mehran Kamrava. \n \n \nTo start\, Dr. Wasserman asserted that the next presidential election will depend on the moderate and swing votes and not so much on the traditional core Republican or Democratic bases. He explained that in the last election\, the Bush campaign was able to secure core Republican votes through issues like terrorism and social conservatism\, and by ignoring those issues appealing to moderate voters. \n \n \nThe next election is likely to focus on what may be called “moments.” According to Wasserman\, these are brief\, key phrases and sound-bites that are fed to the public by the media\, the opposition or the candidates themselves\, to create for the voters an idea of the candidate’s political agenda or personality. In other words\, “moments” dispense of the need for a member of the public to understand an entire political doctrine from start to finish. Wasserman reminded his audience that the general public has daily concerns other than those pertaining to politics. Therefore\, it is in need of these “briefs” in order to be able to keep abreast of the political situation and to understand each candidate’s general narrative\, without having to follow too closely every move in the long electoral process. \n \n \nWasserman also noted that because today’s media-driven climate is “politically correct\,” the public does not tolerate outright criticism of women and racial and ethnic minorities. There are\, instead\, particular “code-words” that are used by campaigners in order to compress an entire history of stereotypes into a single word or phrase without being directly confrontational and offensive. For example\, Republicans discuss Hillary Clinton as a woman in order to reinforce traditional stereotypes of weakness and ineffective policy. Another example was the constant use of the word “crime” during Giuliani’s “zero tolerance” policy to stand in for the word “black\,” so that the governing discourse would avoid being blatantly racist but would still have the desired effect. The group also discussed the attempt by Republican candidate Mitt Romney to frighten voters away from Barack Obama\, when Romney confused Obama’s name with “Osama” on a live television broadcast. \n \n \nAlso important to consider\, according to Wasserman\, is the changing nature of demographics\, especially in terms of minority voters\, and the dramatic effects this has on traditional political stances. These minority voters are being paid attention to and are now being canvassed in a way unseen before in political history. Wasserman discussed the significant rise of the under-30 youth vote and how this meant that traditional politics will have to find new and inventive ways to accommodate this growing constituency. Not only are “minorities” now seen as important voters\, but they are also regarded as an amalgam of differences and not as the block categories they were in the past. New media technologies such as the internet and micro-targeting capabilities now have increased the ability to distinguish populations into a variety of fragmented constituencies based on a great deal of defining factors\, be they age-related\, educational\, economic\, racial\, or occupational. \n \n \nWasserman said he would like to see a shift in politics towards a discussion of the larger\, more important questions about the role of the United States in the world in broader\, more encompassing terms\, instead of the current trend towards targeting specific populations and the use of advertising techniques. One such crucial issue is the question of climate change and the stance regarding energy consumption and expenditure. Wasserman was optimistic about future policies regarding the environment and was confident that the public is positioning itself ahead of its politicians. He pointed out the positive changes that certain state and local governments in the United States have made with regards to legislation in favor of energy-efficiency\, of which building codes and environmentally-friendly mass transportation systems are prime examples. \n \n \nAs for predictions on the election’s outcome\, Wasserman warned against reading too much into Senator Clinton’s front-runner status among the Democrats\, especially if she fails to rein in high expectations of her campaign’s successes in the primary season. Nevertheless\, barring major surprises and slippages by the Clinton campaign\, according to Wasserman\, all indications point to the Senator’s emergence as the Democratic candidate and\, most probably\, the next occupant of the White House.  \n \n \nSummary prepared by Suzi Mirgani\, CIRS staff member.
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/gary-wasserman-2008-us-presidential-elections/
CATEGORIES:American Studies,Dialogue Series,Regional Studies
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20071023T080000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20071023T180000
DTSTAMP:20260422T094138
CREATED:20141027T074538Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240314T115659Z
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SUMMARY:America's Role in the World
DESCRIPTION:On October 23\, 2007\, the Center for International and Regional Studies and the Institute for the Study of Democracy hosted a private seminar of the working group members and prominent scholars and observers of US foreign policy from across the Middle East\, Africa\, Europe\, and East Asia. \n \n \nBeginning in the Fall of 2006\, Georgetown University’s Institute for the Study of Diplomacy (ISD) undertook a major scholarly initiative to examine the role and nature of American foreign policy in the coming years – The America’s Role in the World Working Group. More specifically\, the ISD has sought to identify the geopolitical challenges that a new administration—Democrat or Republican—could face beginning in 2009\, and also to define the central foreign policy choices and responses that are likely to be available. The goal is not to offer specific policy prescriptions but to provide the candidates with a comprehensive agenda of issues that could require attention and on which they should be forming views and taking positions. A working group comprised of approximately fifty-five experts on American foreign policy has been assembled to discuss and deliberate the topic. \n \n \nThe following day\, on October 24\, 2007\, in addition to a group of invited scholars\, the working group participants delivered their findings in a public conference on the topic of America and the Middle East after the Bush Presidency: the View from the Outside. \n \n \nThe following are the participants that took part in the working group: \n \n \n\nFarid Abboud\, Ambassador of Lebanon to Tunisia \nGilles Andreani\, Conseiller Maitre\, Cour de Comptes \nHabib Ben Yahia\, Secretary General\, Arab Maghreb Union \nChan Heng Chee\, Ambassador of Singapore to the United States \nRadhika Coomaraswamy\, UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict \nChester A. Crocker\, Institute for the Study of Diplomacy – Georgetown University\nÁlvaro de Soto\, Former UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process \nJeremy Greenstock\, Director of the Ditchley Foundation \nHan Sung-Joo\, President of Korea University \nMehran Kamrava\, Director\, Center for International and Regional Studies \nZyad Limam\, CEO\, AM International\, France \nOsman Faruk Logoglu\, President\, Center for Eurasian Strategic Studies \nSheikha Abdulla Al-Misnad\, President\, Qatar University \nThomas R. Pickering\, Chairman of the Board\, Institute for the Study of Diplomacy \nAhmed Rashid\, Journalist\, Pakistan \nJames Reardon-Anderson\, Dean\, School of Foreign Service in Qatar \nJames Seevers\, Professor\, Institute for the Study of Diplomacy – Georgetown University\nAmira Sonbol\, Professor\, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar \nCasimir A. Yost\, Institute for the Study of Diplomacy – Georgetown University \nVahan Zanoyan\, PFC Energy International 
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/americas-role-world/
CATEGORIES:American Studies,Dialogue Series,Regional Studies
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20071024T080000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20071024T180000
DTSTAMP:20260422T094138
CREATED:20150617T183402Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240314T115654Z
UID:10001275-1193212800-1193248800@cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu
SUMMARY:America and the Middle East after the Bush Presidency: the View from the Outside
DESCRIPTION:On October 24\, 2007\, in conjunction with Georgetown University’s Institute for the Study of Democracy\, CIRS hosted a conference involving key members of the America’s Role in the World Working Group — including Co-Chairs Thomas Pickering (former US Ambassador to the UN) and Chester Crocker (former US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs). \n\nA day earlier\, on October\, 23\, 2007\, CIRS and ISD hosted a private seminar of the working group members and prominent scholars and observers of US foreign policy from across the Middle East\, Africa\, Europe\, and East Asia. \n\nBeginning in the Fall of 2006\, Georgetown University’s Institute for the Study of Diplomacy (ISD) undertook a major scholarly initiative to examine the role and nature of American foreign policy in the coming years – The America’s Role in the World Working Group. More specifically\, the ISD has sought to identify the geopolitical challenges that a new administration—Democrat or Republican—could face beginning in 2009\, and also to define the central foreign policy choices and responses that are likely to be available. The goal is not to offer specific policy prescriptions but to provide the candidates with a comprehensive agenda of issues that could require attention and on which they should be forming views and taking positions. A working group comprised of approximately fifty-five experts on American foreign policy has been assembled to discuss and deliberate the topic.  \n\nThe following are the participants and their presentations for the October 24th conference: \n\nKeynote Speech: Thomas Pickering\, Chairman of the Board\, Institute for the Study of Diplomacy (ISD)\, Georgetown University.  \n\nPanel I: The United States and the Middle East after the Bush Presidency  \n\nChair: Jim Seevers\, Georgetown University  \n\nCasimir Yost\, Georgetown University 	America and the World after the Bush Presidency Chan Heng Chee\, Singapore Ambassador to the United States 	America and Its Allies after the Bush Presidency Jeremy Greenstock\, Director of the Ditchley Foundation 	America and the Middle East in the Post-Iraq Invasion Era Chester Crocker\, Georgetown University 	American Foreign Policy-Making During & After the Bush Presidency 	 \n\nPanel II: America’s Role in the Middle East  \n\nChair: Mehran Kamrava\, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar  \n\nJaafar Abbas\, Al Jazeera English 	Al Jazeera and US Foreign Policy: An Insider’s View Mehran Kamrava\, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar Eldad Pardo\, Hebrew University 	US-Israeli Relations: The View from Jerusalem Steven Wright\, Qatar University	The United States and the Gulf: The View from the Gulf Thomas Pickering\, Chairman of the Board\, ISD\, Georgetown University 	Keynote Speech
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/america-and-middle-east-after-bush-presidency-view-outside/
CATEGORIES:American Studies,Dialogue Series,Panels,Regional Studies
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20071030T080000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20071030T180000
DTSTAMP:20260422T094138
CREATED:20141026T095827Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240314T092021Z
UID:10000970-1193731200-1193767200@cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu
SUMMARY:Amira Sonbol on Cairo Women of the Darb
DESCRIPTION:On October 30\, 2007\, CIRS hosted its inaugural Monthly Dialogue Series event with a presentation by Professor Amira Sonbol. Professor Sonbol discussed her research on Cairo women’s lives with an audience of over fifty guests\, who ranged from Education City students and faculty to ambassadors and other diplomats posted in Doha. \n \n \nIn her portrayal of Cairo women of the darb —small alley or quarter in Arabic—Sonbol stressed that we must stop viewing women as an object of oppression in the Islamic world. On the contrary\, women have been a vibrant part of life in Cairo for centuries—only recently did modern state formation begin to exclude women from professions such as medicine\, manual labor\, and factories. “Women worked every job you can imagine\,” Sonbol said. “They had to work\, at least in the darb.” \n \n \nTo prove this thesis\, Sonbol has spent years analyzing records in Egypt\, Jordan\, Palestine\, Turkey\, and the Gulf. \n \n \n“Text is the product of a living society\, not a dead society\,” Sonbol claimed. \n \n \nUsing fatawa (judgments made by Islamic scholars) and court records\, Sonbol demonstrated women’s active participation in society and\, for instance\, the ease with which they could obtain a divorce in Egyptian courts. She has also seen considerable proof of the maneuverability of women within the social hierarchy of the time\, evidenced by the wealth of prenuptial agreements where women made very specific demands of their husbands. If these agreements were violated\, the woman could easily secure a divorce in court. \n \n \nSonbol then traced the changes in laws since the British takeover and the arrival of the “modern age.” The many public setbacks that women faced during this period disprove the commonly-held belief in progress—that as time advances\, human society necessarily improves. The centralization of the state in the modern era actually relegated women to the private sphere. \n \n \n“Women are now blocked from jobs they could do before\,” Sonbol noted. Additionally\, at the beginning of the 19th century women held 40 percent of the property in Egypt\, whereas by the end they held only ten percent\, she claimed. \n \n \nIn 1827\, Muhammad Ali Pasha opened a hospital in Cairo and many women were specialized doctors. It was not until the 1893 British takeover of Egyptian schools that women were excluded from this profession. Only now are women regaining some of the ground they lost in the beginning of the modern age. \n \n \nOne of the results of British rule was the 1920s’ passage of “personal status law”\, which illegalized women seeking divorce and women holding property. While many outsiders claim that women’s disadvantages stem from Islam\, a deconstruction of the personal status law demontrates that these laws were the real culprit. Only in the modern age did women come to be viewed as dependents of their husbands\, and not as individuals\, in the legal system. \n \n \nSonbol relayed how she first became interested in women’s history as she researched the clergy of Al-Azhar. As she worked in the Egyptian archives\, she discovered many documents demonstrating women’s active role in history. She began to realize that the image she held of women in the past was the wrong one. \n \n \nCurrently\, Sonbol is working with students to collect a history of women in the Gulf. While it initially appeared that this would imply the construction of a history from scratch\, Sonbol has found that the scholarly study of the question of “women” needed to be reframed. Looking for women’s history was a narrow\, modern approach. Instead\, the group is using a wider variety of sources and has found rich material\, especially in Oman. \n \n \nSummary prepared by Kathryn King. Kathryn is a CIRS staff member.
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/amira-sonbol-cairo-women-darb/
CATEGORIES:CIRS Faculty Lectures,Dialogue Series,Race & Society,Regional Studies
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