World Issues

Political Issues - Test Review

• state, nation, nation-state, multi-national state

• borders - artificial, natural

                       - boundary disputes (Israel, Syria, Jordan, India, Pakistan.....)

• nationalism
• sovereignty
• ethnocentrism
• conflicts vs wars
• threats to geopolitical stability
• terrorism
  • domestic vs international
  • coercive vs disruptive
  • portrait of a terrorist
  • terrorist or freedom fighter?
• wars
  • World War I, World War II
  • Balkan Conflicts; War in Yugoslavia
  • War Against Terroriwm
  • U.S. invasion of Iraq
• Cold War & spread of Communism
• Fall of Communism
• Nuclear War & the build up of nuclear weapons

Test Outline

Part A: Multiple Choice [10 marks]
Part B: Short Answer [10 marks]
Part C: Paragraph Response [10 marks]
Part D: Application (Essay) [ 25 marks]
Bonus: [3 marks]
Total: [55 marks]

The application[essay] response will be answering one of the following questions:

1.    The Twentieth Century has been dominated by the political influences of Western countries. Discuss how the involvement of countries like the United Kingdom and the United States in the early years of the 20th century led to the political instability and wars in the Balkans (Yugoslavia).


2.    The United Nations was created to be an international political power – to discuss in a global forum the needs of the countries of the planet. The U.N. arose out of the ashes of W.W.II to maintain peace.  The United States has recently ignored the will of the U.N. and attacked Iraq.
a)    Is this a JUST war?               OR
b)    Should a U.N. member country have the right to ignore the will of the U.N.?

Choose  a) OR  b).