Questions tagged [terminology]
Questions about political terminology, including established definitions and appropriate usage, and subjects directly related to it.
274
questions
-3
votes
2
answers
151
views
Who are all of the "Democrats in Menendez’s chamber" and for that matter, what exactly is a "chamber" in this context?
CNN's September 23, 2023 Rep. Andy Kim announces he’ll run against NJ Sen. Bob Menendez in wake of his indictment includes the following passage:
Many New Jersey Democrats swiftly called for the ...
- 16.2k
5
votes
2
answers
1k
views
What would be the terminology for a state that has democracy but is also totalitarian?
Suppose, a country has democracy, i.e., people can properly vote and elect their leader.
However, because of some reason, like populism or inherent hate toward a minority group, the country ...
11
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Is there any political terminology for the leaders who behave like the agents of a bigger power?
I am not talking about viceroys such as in Canada and New Zealand. I am also not talking about Paul Bremer.
I am talking about people like Viktor Yanukovich or Sheikh Hasina who stay in power with ...
7
votes
3
answers
664
views
What exactly does one do and not do as an independent US senator who "caucuses with the Democrats"?
Politico's June 15, 2023 ‘Blood on your hands’: Duckworth blasts Sinema for pilot training proposal contains the following sentence:
Sinema, who caucuses with the Democrats, did not immediately have ...
- 16.2k
-4
votes
1
answer
169
views
Political origin/etymology of the political term "constitutional carry" - by extension can we have "constitutional marijuana"? (rhetorical)
How did I get to this question? Reading Politico's May 19, 2023 DeSantis’ weakness as Trump slayer has GOP rivals smelling blood I saw the quote:
And that might not be the end of it. New Hampshire ...
- 16.2k
4
votes
5
answers
3k
views
Does using the word "state" imply questioning the status of the region as a country?
Inspired by the question asking for the difference between these two words.
I used to write "the Baltic States", simply using the words I have previously seen somewhere and was usually ...
- 15.9k
-4
votes
2
answers
212
views
Academic/technical term to describe China's "The Party" [closed]
I've read a few poli-sci books that had large sections about China, and slowly it began to strike me as very odd how unwieldy it is to describe the institutional setup in China using formal terms. It ...
- 293
2
votes
1
answer
463
views
What does the Honorable Chairman mean?
I simply want to know what does the Honorable Chairman Nominated mean?
Javed Akthar is a nominated Rajya Sabha member hence nominated, but what is that Honorable Chairman, how is that title earned.
...
- 1,278
24
votes
4
answers
3k
views
What does the term "Equity" mean, in "Diversity, Equity and Inclusion"?
The use of the term Equity has been on the rise for years, especially with the emergence of the new political term of "Diversity, Equity and Inclusion", or DEI, being bandied about in the US....
- 44.1k
0
votes
2
answers
279
views
In what sense did Trump put a notch on his belt? [closed]
The following extract is from UStoday site:
Trump's lawyer, Joe Tacopina, told NBC's "Today" show on Friday that Trump was initially "shocked" when notified of the grand jury's ...
- 1,219
2
votes
1
answer
279
views
Definition of Leftist
These days, I am listening too much of the word "Leftist" in the sites like Twitter and Reddit. What is meant by the term "Leftist"? Is this a philosophically improved political ...
1
vote
4
answers
6k
views
Was the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia an "invasion" or not? [closed]
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, "invasion" means:
an instance of invading a country or region with an armed force.
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, "armed force&...
- 317
3
votes
2
answers
740
views
Has the term "coup" been used for changes in the legal system made by the parliament?
The ruling coalition in Israel's parliament is planning to change some laws related to its judicial system (see 2023 Israeli judicial reform for details). In major Israeli media outlets, this change ...
- 2,741
4
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Clear and concrete definition of "Third World" [duplicate]
Commonly, when I discuss with a pro-western American, or perhaps sometimes Europeans about an African Country I always hear this, "But it's third world" on investopedia.com "Third World&...
- 229
-10
votes
1
answer
163
views
What does one actually study when getting a Ph.D. in Liberal Studies from Georgetown University? Does one perhaps study liberals or study liberally? [closed]
After 06:33 in CNN's January 22, 2023 Brown presses GOP House Intelligence chair on Trump documents CNN's Pamela Brown says to US Representative Mike Turner (R-OH):
Okay, thank you so much ...
- 16.2k
40
votes
7
answers
14k
views
What does “woke indoctrination” mean?
In the following CNBC article the author uses the term “woke” which Merriam Webster defines as a US slang adjective meaning “to be socially and politically aware”.
U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy ...
- 422
0
votes
1
answer
139
views
Why would US Senator Adam Schiff be addressed as "Chairmanship" rather than "Chairman"? [closed]
At the very end of the December 11, 2022 Face The Nation video Schiff says Jan. 6 committee's probe "far out ahead" of Justice Department the show's "moderator and CBS News senior ...
- 16.2k
23
votes
11
answers
10k
views
Why do many officials in Russia and Ukraine often prefer to speak of "the Russian Federation" rather than more simply "Russia"?
I've noticed that many officials in both Russia and Ukraine prefer to speak of "the Russian Federation" rather than more simply "Russia". (I believe most outside the former USSR ...
user44908
3
votes
1
answer
181
views
When should one use "Indo-Pacific" vs "Asia-Pacific"?
I have seen the two terms being used variously by different people.
I would assume that:
The "Asia Pacific" relates to that part of Asia which lies in the
Pacific Ocean. It includes regions ...
- 4,682
6
votes
1
answer
196
views
Which voting system criterion requires that changing your preference order of some candidates won't affect whether other candidates are elected?
Consider an election in which one voter's preference order was Alice > Bob > Carol. If she were to change her preference order to Carol > Alice > Bob, there are 9 possibilities as to what ...
50
votes
9
answers
6k
views
Name for phenomenon in which attempting to solve a problem locally can seemingly fail because they absorb the problem from elsewhere?
Examples:
City has a homelessness problem. They increase services for the homeless, but because all the surrounding cities also have homelessness problems, homeless people from those cities move in ...
- 491
1
vote
3
answers
652
views
What is the scientific definition of the current social/economic order of Russian Federation?
It may be some specific kind of capitalism, because the private property still exists. But I am puzzled by the absence of the democracy, free press, multiple parties, democratic elections - something ...
- 15.9k
9
votes
1
answer
1k
views
If both houses together are called Congress, why does Congressperson refer to members of the House of Representatives?
The US Senate is referred to as the upper house of Congress. And the 'House of Representatives' which is also part of Congress, is referred as the lower house.
A member of the US Senate is called a ...
- 311
8
votes
5
answers
5k
views
What is "crypto-mobilization"?
For the past few days, the Institute for the Study of War has been mentioning "crypto-mobilization" in the context of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. For example:
Russian officials ...
- 1,054
2
votes
5
answers
500
views
What are different ways to define the concept of "The West"?
The concept of "The West" is mentioned frequently on this forum, but often runs into the problem of ambiguous definition.
While most people have a rough idea of what is considered "...
- 10.4k
1
vote
2
answers
511
views
Gender-neutral term for a Senator or Representative
Is there a gender-neutral term for a Senator or Representative?
Senator: gender-neutral, but only includes Senators
Representative: gender-neutral, but only includes Representatives
Congressman: male-...
- 1,297
22
votes
10
answers
6k
views
Is there a technical term for "knee jerk law"?
A rough definition of a "knee jerk law" would be:
Something bad happens
An outrage is raised by the media
A law is passed banning/changing/attacking the bad thing while the outrage is ...
- 51.4k
3
votes
4
answers
219
views
Political terminology or example for a leader making their crime a norm by highlighting an opponent's small mistakes?
Let's say that politician A is a corrupt person. His opponent is a moral guy with an honest reputation. The reputation of politician A is badly affected when a news story breaks about his corruption. ...
5
votes
3
answers
920
views
Which countries (if any) does China characterize as its allies?
When discussing foreign policy, at least in English, many political leaders will mention the importance of working with their country's allies.
A case in point would be the US and recent statements ...
- 16.2k
2
votes
1
answer
83
views
What is the academic term for political activities on the small social group level?
We have the phrases "office politics", "family politics", etc, describing relations of power, that is, political relations within small social groups.
Political relations on this ...
- 231
3
votes
1
answer
116
views
What is the generally accepted definition for "micropolitics"?
According to Encyclopedia Britannica, micropolitics is about "small-scale interventions that are used for governing the behaviour of large populations of people."
According to the ...
- 231
0
votes
1
answer
143
views
Do EU regulations define the term "recession"?
At least one Eurostat publication uses the following def of recession:
A recession is normally defined in terms of zero or
negative growth of GDP in at least two successive
quarters.
And they cite a ...
- 133k
8
votes
2
answers
3k
views
Why is the US Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economics called a "sherpa"?
CNBC's June 28, 2022 U.S.’s Russia sanctions architect Singh departs as Ukraine war drags on refers to the position as a sherpa in two places as quoted below.
The Sherpa people:
...are one of the ...
- 16.2k
1
vote
2
answers
339
views
Could the British policy of sending asylum seekers to Rwanda be described as "extraordinary rendition"? [closed]
The term "extraordinary rendition" entered the language a few years ago to describe the practice of enforcing, without legal process, the removal of people from one jurisdiction to another, ...
- 10.7k
4
votes
5
answers
936
views
What is the analogous term of people of colour for white persons?
I already know the term "people of colour" in a sociological context. What is the counterpart term to people of colour actually (i.e. white people?) in the same context if there is one?
- 343
8
votes
3
answers
321
views
Is there a name in political science for an apparent paradox between societal ideals and practice?
This phenomenon is not specific to any country as I have noticed it stretches across multiple regions and countries.
For example, marijuana is illegal in the United States at the federal level despite ...
- 1,060
9
votes
2
answers
664
views
Asking for examples to clarify the meaning of geopolitics
I don't understand what "geopolitics" means and I am asking help about that.
From googling, I found some definitions below:
Blackwill (2009) documents that
"Geopolitics in this context ...
- 525
-4
votes
3
answers
165
views
What is the meaning of the term "Genocide" as opposed to "Crimes against Humanity"? [closed]
Genocide as a term came into being relatively after World War 2. There used to be a term earlier called Crimes against Humanity which used to be used to describe similar events. This use of this term ...
- 1,240
-1
votes
1
answer
280
views
Where does the term "tankie" come from?
So, I was a total bystander in a very heated discussion recently. It seemed like one of the participants was a total war-hawk regarding this Ukraine situation. The guy on the other side seemed to be a ...
- 819
2
votes
4
answers
568
views
Opposite of the welfare state?
We use the term "Welfare state" to describe states that feel responsible to provide its citizens with minimal means allowing to live with dignity, like the education for children, healthcare,...
6
votes
4
answers
392
views
What does it mean to have a "functioning democratic political system based on a market economy"?
The NATO fact sheet linked in this answer states that one prerequisite for joining NATO is a
functioning democratic political system based on a market economy
What does that mean? A democracy "...
- 224
6
votes
2
answers
2k
views
What is the difference between non-alignment and neutrality?
Very few documents online work on the difference.
Non-Alignment (and the related history of Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) during the Cold War) seems to refer to countries that will not join alliances or ...
- 924
7
votes
1
answer
498
views
Did the Biden administration have a working definition of democracy when it chose which countries to invite to its "democracy summit"?
The New York Times' Biden Rallies Global Democracies as U.S. Hits a ‘Rough Patch’
The president kicked off his summit as critics questioned the guest list and whether the United States could be an ...
- 16.2k
28
votes
4
answers
5k
views
What exactly is China's "whole-process people's democracy"? In what ways does it function "democratically" based on traditional definitions?
CNN's China claims its authoritarian one-party system is a democracy -- and one that works better than the US says:
In his keynote speech, Huang Kunming, the ruling Communist Party's propaganda tsar, ...
- 16.2k
3
votes
1
answer
150
views
Significance of the organized/unorganized attribution of US territories
Reading articles re US territories, two terms are given significant (e.g are in the heading chapter AND sidebar header of relevant Wikipedia article) reference: Incorporated/Unincorporated and ...
- 143
26
votes
2
answers
7k
views
Why do US politicians use the title "czar?"
I've always found it odd that there are high-profile positions in the US using the title of "czar," which has obvious connotations to Russia. An example is John Kerry, who is often ...
- 461
0
votes
4
answers
875
views
What exactly is the difference between an NGO and a political party?
What exactly is the difference between an NGO and a political party? They’re both volunteer-based groups formed to promote certain political viewpoints in public government. Both are primarily funded ...
- 27
7
votes
0
answers
148
views
Is this variant of STV used anywhere else?
In the rules of a political party in my (U.S.) state, a procedure for intra-party elections in which multiple positions are to be filled is described which is clearly a variant of the single ...
51
votes
1
answer
9k
views
Why has the UK Government moved away from "Ministry of..." names?
Traditionally, UK Government departments were named "Ministry of [blar]". For example,
Ministry of Transport
Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
Ministry of Education
In recent ...
- 591
6
votes
1
answer
625
views
When and from where was the PAC first legally defined
The FEC explains the different types of political action committees (PACs) but did Congress legally define what a PAC is? I'm assuming that the FEC didn't legally define what a PAC is since it is a ...
- 411