Search

This article is a consideration of the nexus of photography, masculinity, and American nationalism in the traumatic post-9/11 context of the war in Iraq. It begins by outlining a theoretical framework for the interpretation of contemporary images of men at war. This background informs the rest of the argument, which is structured around an analysis of a particular collection of images from a commemorative photo history of the ongoing conflict. The photos are freighted with particular narratives about the shape and meaning of militarized and imaged masculinity in the global war on terrorism, particularly as it intersects with race, ethnicity, and sexuality. Ultimately, the article contends that the relationships between visuality, nationalism, and masculinity are intimate, and that attention to this imbrication is essential to an understanding of the discourses and politics of the war. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors estimate a model of the job approval ratings of President George W, Bush that includes five sets of variables: a "honeymoon" effect, an autoregressive function that tracks a decline in approval, measures of economic performance, measures of important "rally events," and a measure of the costs of war--in this case, the U.S. death toll in the Iraq War. Several significant effects are found, including the rally that followed the attacks of September 11, 2001; the commencement of the war in Iraq; and the capture of Baghdad in April 2003. Since the beginning of the war in Iraq, however, the casualties of war have had a significant negative impact on Bush's approval ratings. Although the effects of additional battle deaths in Iraq will decrease approval only marginally, results suggest that there is also little prospect for sustained improvement so long as casualties continue to accumulate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The United States armed-forces-and-society intersection is explored comparing attitudes toward the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan among West Point, Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC), and civilian undergraduates. A survey was administered in January and February 2003 to determine if military affiliation is associated with attitudes toward sending troops into Afghanistan after the war started and Iraq before sending troops. Majorities of all students supported both war efforts, though United States Military Academy at West Point and ROTC cadets are somewhat more supportive of both wars compared to civilian students. However, most differences are explained by students' gender and political affiliation, suggesting that differences between groups result from selection effects rather than cultural differences. The authors contend a fourth wave in civil-military affairs potentially has emerged in the immediate aftermath of 9/11 through a civil-military attitude fusion complicated by a gender-politics gap. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Events since 11 September 2001 have brought to light debates about the revival of public diplomacy and the role of propaganda in domestic and global communications. This article analyzes American strategies to manipulate information and to `manage the media against the backdrop of the ongoing war on terrorism and of the conflict in Iraq. It explores the problematic tension between democratic ideals and principles toward openness alongside government and military needs of operational security and to secure public support in a `war' that has been declared on global terrorism. This ongoing tension requires a genuine movement toward more open media and advocacy on the part of global citizens, including the strengthening of independent and non- corporate media, in order to challenge prevailing media that are subject to government and military influence. In a democracy, when things go wrong at home, it becomes much more difficult to project a positive image abroad. The impact of these trends in undermining the messages of public diplomacy overseas helps to explain both the success of US propaganda at home and its failure abroad. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analyzes the moral issues surrounding the U.S. wars. Background on the slaughter of My Lai villagers in Vietnam in 1968 as a result of the U.S.-Vietnam War; Assault by the U.S. on Iraq in 2003 ; Terrorist attack on the U.S. on September 11, 2001.

Examines the state of the relationship between Canada and the U.S. Impact of the refusal of Canada to join the war against Iraq in 2003 on the U.S. government; Number of Canadian peacekeepers dispatched to Afghanistan after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks; Information on the book "Ignorant Armies: Sliding Into War in Iraq," by Gwynne Dyer.