LIVE recording of Whiskey & IR Theory at BISA 2023

Don’t miss the live recording of episodes 32 and 33 of Whiskey & IR Theory on June 21, 2023, starting at 3pm. We’ll be taping at the BISA annual conference. Rumors suggest that there may be whisky for tasting and schwagg for… something.

Episode 32 will be in “classic format.” We’ll discuss Robert Cox’s classic 1981 article, “Social Forces, States and World Orders: Beyond International Relations Theory.”

Episode 33 will be a “whiskey optional” on status and international-relations theory.

BISA attendees should register in advance for one or both of the special sessions.

The Best Propaganda is True

David Pierson at The New York Times:

While many in the world see the Chinese spy balloon as a sign of Beijing’s growing aggressiveness, China has sought to cast the controversy as a symptom of the United States’ irrevocable decline.

Why else would a great power be spooked by a flimsy inflatable craft, China has argued, if not for a raft of internal problems like an intensely divided society and intractable partisan strife driving President Biden to act tough on Beijing?

This gets at why “the balloon incident” genuinely scares me; it suggests that the United States is doomed to the ratchet effects of domestic outbidding over who can be “tougher” on China.

That’s a recipe for threat inflation, poor policy decisions, and (even more) toxic domestic politics.