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Papers by Jorg Kustermans

This essay discusses the democratic peace as a historical phenomenon. The fact of democratic peac... more This essay discusses the democratic peace as a historical phenomenon. The fact of democratic peace, as it is being described and accounted for by democratic peace theory, it first argues, is essentially a historical finding. It depends on the interpretation of past events and emerges from a systematic investigation of these events. But as transpires from the four books that the essay reviews, democratic peace is more than an historical finding. Democratic peace is an historical phenomenon too: a historically situated way of imagining peace that arose in a particular time, in particular historical circumstances, and that shaped up into tangible international practices in the way that it did because it arose in those circumstances. “The absence of war among democracies” describes the historical finding, but it does not suffice as a description of the democratic peace as a historical phenomenon.

In May 2013, Stockholm was shaken by six days of riots that started in one of its Northern suburb... more In May 2013, Stockholm was shaken by six days of riots that started in
one of its Northern suburbs, Husby, but soon spread to other parts of
the city and country. This essay reports on a field trip to Stockholm
and sets the riots within the Swedish urban context.

The doctrine of benevolent empire posits that unilateral security governance has become a necessa... more The doctrine of benevolent empire posits that unilateral security governance has become a necessary and legitimate form of global governance. After first assessing if imperial governance can even be considered an instance of global governance, its claim of legitimacy is scrutinised. It is argued, with reference to the political philosophy of Hobbes, that its strategy of legitimation is eventually doomed to fail because benevolent empire appears to downplay the importance of education in forging legitimacy and the context-specific nature of legitimacy.

A substantial body of literature centers on the concept of 'practice'. This article parses the pr... more A substantial body of literature centers on the concept of 'practice'. This article parses the practice turn in International Relations. It suggests that the meaning of 'practice' is a moving target. Sometimes it means process. Sometimes it refers to a particular type of knowledge and related action. And sometimes it is used as a quasi-synonym for institution. There are actually three concepts animating the practice turn: 'practice', 'practical knowledge', and 'practices'. These concepts hail from different intellectual pastures and lead to different ways of explaining and understanding international relations. The article introduces the three concepts, explains how each concept entails a particular interpretation of the nature and possibility of change, as well as affords a particular theory of peace(making).

Deviance in International Relations, 2014

Journal of International Studies, 2010

Review of …, 2010

The quest for perpetual peace is a modern phenomenon, associated with a progressive view of histo... more The quest for perpetual peace is a modern phenomenon, associated with a progressive view of history which emerged only in the Enlightenment. In addition, boredom -a feeling of ennui associated with a loss of the ability to act -is a fundamental mood of the modern age. Modern societies are thus, simultaneously, becoming more peaceful and their inhabitants are becoming more bored. As a means of overcoming our boredom, we are increasingly fascinated by violence, and war is glorified as a means of restoring our ability to act. Empirical illustrations of this thesis are drawn from World War I and from the Bush administration's 'global War on Terror'.

European Review, 2011

The central contribution of the discipline of International Relations to the debate on globalizat... more The central contribution of the discipline of International Relations to the debate on globalization is its engagement with the process of global governance. This article seeks to map the substance of this engagement through a systematic comparison of three main theoretical approaches to global governance: James Rosenau's account of the sui generis and complex nature of global governance, Political Realism's reductive reading of global governance as fragile international cooperation, and the so-called English School's 'middle-way' analysis of global governance as (a historically evolved form of) ordered international interaction.

Millennium-Journal of International Studies, 2009

Thesis Eleven, 2013

As a concept of international society, the category 'rogue' can best be understood in relation to... more As a concept of international society, the category 'rogue' can best be understood in relation to the more basic category of the person. Personhood signifies membership, and it is performed in collective, ritual, bodily practices. Modern personhood becomes individuated, and it values mind more than body. However, because it was soon realized that the modern person cannot ultimately sustain modern society, a new notion of personhood was introduced, which articulates a modern concept of virtue in terms of manners. Interestingly, this concept of personhood reintroduces the body in that it values bodily restraint as a sign of ethical worth. The good person is no virile warrior but a tactful diplomat. Diplomacy becomes modernity's being-in-the-world. Rogue states, it appears, do not sign up. This we take offense with.

Journal of International Relations and …, 2011

Dit artikel schetst het conceptuele getouwtrek dat 'global governance' omringt. Vertrekkende vanu... more Dit artikel schetst het conceptuele getouwtrek dat 'global governance' omringt. Vertrekkende vanuit de originele bijdrage van James Rosenau, wordt de conservatieve toe-eigening van het begrip door respectievelijk het realisme en de Engelse School beschreven. Beide stromingen herdefiniëren 'global governance' tot interstatelijke samenwerking en ondermijnen zo het emancipatorische potentieel van Rosenaus werk. Tot slot wordt de relevantie van deze literatuur voor het thema 'internationale veiligheid' gepolst.

Reports by Jorg Kustermans

1 INLEIDING: STADSRELLEN EN BELEIDSVOERING _________________________________ 2 2 WAT ZIJN STADSRE... more 1 INLEIDING: STADSRELLEN EN BELEIDSVOERING _________________________________ 2 2 WAT ZIJN STADSRELLEN? __________________________________________________ 4 3 STADSRELLEN IN BRUSSEL EN VLAANDEREN ___________________________________ 6 4 STADSRELLEN EN DE MOEILIJKE OPDRACHT VAN BELEIDSVERANTWOORDELIJKEN _____ 9 5 DRIE RECENTE RELLEN ___________________________________________________ 11 6 VIJF CRUCIALE DIMENSIES ________________________________________________ 16 7 MEER DAN REPRESSIE, MEER DAN PREVENTIE ________________________________ 28 BIJLAGE 1: STADSRELLEN IN DE VLAAMSE MEDIA ______________________________________ 35 EINDNOTEN ____________________________________________________________________ 36 OMGAAN MET STADSRELLEN P 2

Books by Jorg Kustermans

The volume examines the possibility of a world without nuclear weapons. It starts from the observ... more The volume examines the possibility of a world without nuclear weapons. It starts from the observation that, although nuclear deterrence has long been dominant in debates about war and peace, recent events show that ridicule and stigmatization of nuclear weapons and their possessors is on the rise. The idea of non-nuclear peace has been around since the beginning of the nuclear revolution, but it may be staging a return.

This essay discusses the democratic peace as a historical phenomenon. The fact of democratic peac... more This essay discusses the democratic peace as a historical phenomenon. The fact of democratic peace, as it is being described and accounted for by democratic peace theory, it first argues, is essentially a historical finding. It depends on the interpretation of past events and emerges from a systematic investigation of these events. But as transpires from the four books that the essay reviews, democratic peace is more than an historical finding. Democratic peace is an historical phenomenon too: a historically situated way of imagining peace that arose in a particular time, in particular historical circumstances, and that shaped up into tangible international practices in the way that it did because it arose in those circumstances. “The absence of war among democracies” describes the historical finding, but it does not suffice as a description of the democratic peace as a historical phenomenon.

In May 2013, Stockholm was shaken by six days of riots that started in one of its Northern suburb... more In May 2013, Stockholm was shaken by six days of riots that started in
one of its Northern suburbs, Husby, but soon spread to other parts of
the city and country. This essay reports on a field trip to Stockholm
and sets the riots within the Swedish urban context.

The doctrine of benevolent empire posits that unilateral security governance has become a necessa... more The doctrine of benevolent empire posits that unilateral security governance has become a necessary and legitimate form of global governance. After first assessing if imperial governance can even be considered an instance of global governance, its claim of legitimacy is scrutinised. It is argued, with reference to the political philosophy of Hobbes, that its strategy of legitimation is eventually doomed to fail because benevolent empire appears to downplay the importance of education in forging legitimacy and the context-specific nature of legitimacy.

A substantial body of literature centers on the concept of 'practice'. This article parses the pr... more A substantial body of literature centers on the concept of 'practice'. This article parses the practice turn in International Relations. It suggests that the meaning of 'practice' is a moving target. Sometimes it means process. Sometimes it refers to a particular type of knowledge and related action. And sometimes it is used as a quasi-synonym for institution. There are actually three concepts animating the practice turn: 'practice', 'practical knowledge', and 'practices'. These concepts hail from different intellectual pastures and lead to different ways of explaining and understanding international relations. The article introduces the three concepts, explains how each concept entails a particular interpretation of the nature and possibility of change, as well as affords a particular theory of peace(making).

Deviance in International Relations, 2014

Journal of International Studies, 2010

Review of …, 2010

The quest for perpetual peace is a modern phenomenon, associated with a progressive view of histo... more The quest for perpetual peace is a modern phenomenon, associated with a progressive view of history which emerged only in the Enlightenment. In addition, boredom -a feeling of ennui associated with a loss of the ability to act -is a fundamental mood of the modern age. Modern societies are thus, simultaneously, becoming more peaceful and their inhabitants are becoming more bored. As a means of overcoming our boredom, we are increasingly fascinated by violence, and war is glorified as a means of restoring our ability to act. Empirical illustrations of this thesis are drawn from World War I and from the Bush administration's 'global War on Terror'.

European Review, 2011

The central contribution of the discipline of International Relations to the debate on globalizat... more The central contribution of the discipline of International Relations to the debate on globalization is its engagement with the process of global governance. This article seeks to map the substance of this engagement through a systematic comparison of three main theoretical approaches to global governance: James Rosenau's account of the sui generis and complex nature of global governance, Political Realism's reductive reading of global governance as fragile international cooperation, and the so-called English School's 'middle-way' analysis of global governance as (a historically evolved form of) ordered international interaction.

Millennium-Journal of International Studies, 2009

Thesis Eleven, 2013

As a concept of international society, the category 'rogue' can best be understood in relation to... more As a concept of international society, the category 'rogue' can best be understood in relation to the more basic category of the person. Personhood signifies membership, and it is performed in collective, ritual, bodily practices. Modern personhood becomes individuated, and it values mind more than body. However, because it was soon realized that the modern person cannot ultimately sustain modern society, a new notion of personhood was introduced, which articulates a modern concept of virtue in terms of manners. Interestingly, this concept of personhood reintroduces the body in that it values bodily restraint as a sign of ethical worth. The good person is no virile warrior but a tactful diplomat. Diplomacy becomes modernity's being-in-the-world. Rogue states, it appears, do not sign up. This we take offense with.

Journal of International Relations and …, 2011

Dit artikel schetst het conceptuele getouwtrek dat 'global governance' omringt. Vertrekkende vanu... more Dit artikel schetst het conceptuele getouwtrek dat 'global governance' omringt. Vertrekkende vanuit de originele bijdrage van James Rosenau, wordt de conservatieve toe-eigening van het begrip door respectievelijk het realisme en de Engelse School beschreven. Beide stromingen herdefiniëren 'global governance' tot interstatelijke samenwerking en ondermijnen zo het emancipatorische potentieel van Rosenaus werk. Tot slot wordt de relevantie van deze literatuur voor het thema 'internationale veiligheid' gepolst.

1 INLEIDING: STADSRELLEN EN BELEIDSVOERING _________________________________ 2 2 WAT ZIJN STADSRE... more 1 INLEIDING: STADSRELLEN EN BELEIDSVOERING _________________________________ 2 2 WAT ZIJN STADSRELLEN? __________________________________________________ 4 3 STADSRELLEN IN BRUSSEL EN VLAANDEREN ___________________________________ 6 4 STADSRELLEN EN DE MOEILIJKE OPDRACHT VAN BELEIDSVERANTWOORDELIJKEN _____ 9 5 DRIE RECENTE RELLEN ___________________________________________________ 11 6 VIJF CRUCIALE DIMENSIES ________________________________________________ 16 7 MEER DAN REPRESSIE, MEER DAN PREVENTIE ________________________________ 28 BIJLAGE 1: STADSRELLEN IN DE VLAAMSE MEDIA ______________________________________ 35 EINDNOTEN ____________________________________________________________________ 36 OMGAAN MET STADSRELLEN P 2

The volume examines the possibility of a world without nuclear weapons. It starts from the observ... more The volume examines the possibility of a world without nuclear weapons. It starts from the observation that, although nuclear deterrence has long been dominant in debates about war and peace, recent events show that ridicule and stigmatization of nuclear weapons and their possessors is on the rise. The idea of non-nuclear peace has been around since the beginning of the nuclear revolution, but it may be staging a return.