Chapter 9: Mexico

Mexico has molded several of its institutions based on the U.S. models because it prefers presidential to parliamentary systems. Like the U.S., Mexico combines the head of state and chief of government and maintains a bicameral congress. Although it has a bicameral congress, it is not as important or valued the same as the Mexican presidency. Mexico has not yet become a true democracy because the democratic institutions within the country have been weakened by the PRI which has dominated much of Mexico’s politics, which has dominated all three branches of Mexico’s national government. When Zedillo left office, his political exit resulted in the ending of the PRI’s 71 year continuous rule but the party still maintains much control over numerous state and local governments and continued to be a major force in both chambers of the national legislature

Attached is an article that focuses on the  notorious Mexican party. 

http://www.iop.harvard.edu/mexico’s-pri-repeating-history-or-looking-forward

Chapter 8: India

“India is a collection of old cultures but a new nation”

India’s economy continues to flourish and the elite continue to be the expected demographic to receive a proper education.The British takeover resulted in the colonialism exploiting India. Similar to Britain, India is a parliamentary system with its cabinet formed from members of parliament. India is a socialist country but under Gandhi, the Congress movement insisted on maintaining the Indian government secular even though there are some Hindu nationalists that disapprove. India has no monarch but similar to Germany, the president has a weak position.Similar to Britain, the prime minister maintains a lot of power and even has the power to ask the president top invoke the presidents rule which maintains the power to take over in the state government in case of an emergency. For example, in case of riots the prime minster could run the country directly. India’s large cabinet is selected by the prime minister and India’s parliament is bicameral with the upper chamber maintaining more power. 

Below is an article about the prime ministers most recent political activity. Below he is being described as missing in action as the 2014 general elections near and its claimed he is upset with the Congress spokesperson PC Chacko’s most recent public statement which addressed the nation and poorly portrayed Singh's leadership. 

http://www.hindustantimes.com/elections2014/the-big-story/manmohan-takes-back-seat-but-active-behind-the-scenes/article1-1199017.aspx

Chapter 7: China

The global financial crush left several western economies very defenseless and vulnerable. In contrast to several Western countries, China’s economy slow downed but inevitably the Chinese market grew and expanded. Many Chinese nationalists believe that other countries should follow the “New China model” with several people arguing which aspects of the model make it successful within their country. In China there are little to no democratic debates, the country invests a lot of money within state infrastructure and there is strong support for the export division in China. China’s ideology has a strong emphasis on private enterprise and free markets. Two components of the “New China model” is that it allows economic freedom but enforces political repression, as a strong believer in political freedom and democracy, I am curious to see just how long these two components can coexist. In the article below, China fears its economic stability due to Ukrainian conflicts and many are waiting for the end result of U.S.-Russian talks on the Ukraine. 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/asian-stocks-follow-wall-street-lower/2014/03/13/c45c6a5a-ab2a-11e3-b8ca-197ef3568958_story.html

Chapter 6: Russia

        Russia's executive power is divided between the President and the Prime Minister. The President is the most influential and the Federal Assembly of Russia is represented by the legislature which is divided into two chambers, the State Duma and the Federation Council. The The State Duma is the lower house and the Federation Council is the upper house, combined they form a bicameral parliament. The State Duma has 450 members who due to recent legislature in 2008, are elected for terms of five years. All proposed bills even those proposed by the Federation Council must first be evaluated and considered by the State Duma. In relation to presidential power, the president has authority over both houses of parliament. Both houses have to pass any law he wants which includes passing laws that have potential to give him more influence and power. 

Below is an article where Putin is compared to Hitler due to violating the sovereignty of the Ukraine. It goes to show just how influential and powerful the Russian president can be. 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/charles-lane-is-vladimir-putin-truly-a-modern-day-hitler/2014/03/05/1666bd12-a47a-11e3-8466-d34c451760b9_story.html

Chapter 5: Japan

          Japans government resembles that of several British governments but does not necessarily function like one. Japan also has a monarchy but it is only seen as divine with little to no political influence. Someone with little power is the prime minister himself.The prime minister is appointed by the Emperor of Japan once he has been selected by the Diet and can only remain in office as long as  members of the House of Representatives are satisfied with the prim ministers political standing.For example, the prime minister can make promises with other countries but does not have the power to follow through with anything he may promise. They also lack influence because of their four year term and the fragmentation of the two big Japanese parties. Below is an article that talks about the approval rating of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Cabinet. 

http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0001040781

Chapter 4: Germany

          Germanys political culture has undergone a huge shift since World War II. Germanys contemporary political culture mirrors that of several liberal Western democracies and is an incredibly stable state. After World War II, Germany made an effort to manage its sense of nationalism and anti-extremism in politics. The democratization of the country resulted in the original authoritarian state being replaced by an open civil society. In contrast to the majority voting two-party systems present in countries like the United States and Britain, Germanys government consists of two or more parties and does an outstanding job in self administrating the country. In economical terms, Germany takes a leading role due to its free-market. During the 2008 recession, Germany was not in as much debt as the United States due to 20 percent of Germanys economy relying on manufacturing and another good portion dedicated to major exporting. The New York Times article below goes into further detail in regards to Germanys moderate economic growth over the past couple of years. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/16/business/international/german-economy-grows-at-modest-pace.html?_r=0 

Chapter 3: France

Frances economy is a very unstable one in comparison to the one in the United States. Poverty rates are increasing and unemployment is double that of the United States. In other words, France is progressively in an economic decline. The reading offered some perspective, informing me that postwar period, a large portion of French business and industry was state-owned but due to privatization programs, an even larger portion of the French labor force is still in the public sector. The big problem facing France is that of unemployment. According the Roskin, many believe the unemployed may be put off or unenthused from finding employment due to the liberal unemployment and welfare many receive. In the French work force, the firing process is a pain for firms because it is an expensive process because the working class protects wages and jobs through their votes even if said votes create mass unemployment and economic inability. My link concerns French business delegation in Iran. Several executives and prospective investors from a number of France’s sustainable companies attended an Iranian-French business conference in hopes of regaining economic networks alive, due to Iran’s recovering economy. 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/french-business-delegation-in-landmark-iran-visit/2014/02/03/340f4860-8ccf-11e3-9ed8-259977a48789_story.html