Analysis of Articles about Political Geography Issues Essay

Analysis of Articles about Political Geography Issues - Essay Example Vaclav Klaus was an economist, so he felt that the very best thing that could be done for the new country was economic reforms that would ease the transition from a Communist economy that was centrally planned to a free market economy. He felt that getting this transition underway quickly and with as little pain as possible would be the best way to create a stable, democratic nation. Vaclav Havel believed that creating a civil society was the most important task. He believed that just opening p the economy as a free market would not be a wise thing to do because he argued that free markets require people to act in a moral manner or corruption will drag the economy down. Vaclav Havel believed that democratic institutions should first be developed through decentralization of political power. He said that the best place to learn about democracy was at the local level. This went against Klaus because giving power to local governments could disrupt his economic reforms. The article goes o n to expand on Havel’s ideas about civil society and how they will eventually result in a global culture that embraces differences without conflict. Many of his ideas have helped make the Czech Republic a successful post-Communist state. Anderson, Jon Lee. "The Implosion." New Yorker 88.2 (2012): 58-67. Military & Government Collection. Web. 19 Mar. 2012. This article is about the reign of Bashar al-Assad and his ruling party that is made up of supporters in the minority Christian and Alawite Muslims. The current situation in Syria can be traced to events that have occurred over the past 50 years in Syria. The current destruction evidenced in Homs is nothing new for the political dictatorship headed by the al-Assad family for generations. Bashar al-Assad was not the son that was to take over the rule of Syria from his father, Hafez. This was to have been done by an older brother that was killed in a car accident. The younger Assad was studious and quiet. He studied abroad and attended medical school, training as an ophthalmologist.