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Reflections on the Nuclear Taboo in Selected Foreign Affairs Articles Published between 2009-2020 in the US
Konrád, Ondřej ; Pondělíček, Jiří (advisor) ; Smetana, Michal (referee)
This bachelor thesis examines the reflection of the nuclear taboo in selected Foreign Affairs articles from 2009 to 2020 in the US. The aim is to determine whether there has been a weakening of the taboo during this period or a change in the atmosphere in which the taboo exists. The articles were analyzed using a content analysis method, particularly to determine whether elements of the nuclear taboo were challenged. At the same time, the change in atmosphere in these texts was examined to see whether there was fear or pessimism about the future. Identifying these phenomena is essential, as both may signal a change in attitude towards the nuclear taboo. The main finding of the analysis is that the nuclear taboo is not weakening in the period under review, or rather, the thesis concludes that the nuclear taboo is under pressure and facing significant challenges but is not weakening overall. On the contrary, the change in the atmosphere has been confirmed, as there has been an apparent increase in the fear of nuclear weapons during the period under review, whether due to new proliferation, the arms race, or the threat of nuclear war. The conclusion of this thesis confirms that the nuclear taboo remains an essential factor in international relations, and its maintenance is crucial for the preservation...
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Shifts in Voters' Preferences in 2016 in West Virginia
Obleserová, Natálie ; Szobi, Pavel (advisor) ; Pondělíček, Jiří (referee)
The theme of the thesis is the change of voters preferences and the impact of the shift of electoral support from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party in the state of West Virginia in the United States of America. The aim of the thesis is to find out what factors led West Virginia voters to change their voting behaviour in the 2016 election and why and based on what factors Donald Trump won. The thesis analyses what social and economic changes in the region had an impact on the victory. The thesis will first describe the political landscape of West Virginia, the cultural and socio-economic context of the electorate, and then it will focus on the populist rhetoric of Donald Trump, applied to West Virginia. The thesis is a case study and is divided into four parts. In the first part, the theory of electoral behavior and the theory of populism is briefly outlined, in the second part, the historical-cultural context of West Virginia, which is important for understanding the electoral mentality of voters, is presented. The third part will describe the historical-political context that serves to better understand party identification of voters and the election results in West Virginia. The last part applies the findings from the previous chapters to the election victory of Donald Trump in 2016.
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Intelligence evaluation of the war activities of Czechoslovak paratroopers
Špitálník, Zdeněk ; Pondělíček, Jiří (advisor) ; Smetana, Vít (referee)
Part of the archival material of the Intelligence Service, stored in the Military Historical Archive in Prague, are dozens of protocols with Czechoslovak parachutists, taken in the summer of 1945, immediately after the end of their combat activities. This is quite unique material suitable for a comparative study. From the protocols it is possible, for example, to evaluate matters of a technical nature, such as the equipment of individual groups, their rations, the quality of false documents, the amount of funds, as well as the length and type of training. At the core of the accounts, then, were extensive descriptions of combat activity. An interesting and innovative perspective is the comparison of the differences between parachutists from the West and those who were dropped from the USSR, moreover confronted with the Gestapo's point of view. The aim of the thesis is, based on the same questions of a selected sample of parachutists, to compare selected aspects of special operations, tracing here some phenomena and specificities.
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Evolution of Open Source Intelligence
Pozan, Brian ; Raška, Francis (advisor) ; Pondělíček, Jiří (referee)
This thesis explores the evolution of Open Source Intelligence (OSINT), a method of intelligence gathering that is becoming increasingly relevant in the digital age. The thesis explores the historical evolution of OSINT, from its humble beginnings as a tool used to monitor foreign propaganda and for military purposes, to its current role as a key tool in many fields such as cybersecurity, marketing, business, social sciences, law, and sports. The thesis will explain that it is not only new technologies such as radio, television and the Internet that have contributed to the development of OSINT, but also security challenges such as World War II and the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York in 2001. The paper will also show what challenges OSINT has faced since its inception and how these challenges have changed. Furthermore, the thesis will show, through several case studies, how OSINT has worked in different periods. In the conclusion of the thesis, I will evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of OSINT and explain in which direction OSINT will continue to develop in the light of the ever-increasing volume of publicly available data.
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Impartiality in the U.S. Supreme Court: Navigating Judicial Values in a Political Arena
Doskočil, Jan ; Pondělíček, Jiří (advisor) ; Kozák, Kryštof Přemysl (referee)
Impartiality is an important theoretical concept that determines the ability of judges to provide both parties of litigation with a fair trial. Despite this, judicial impartiality is relatively unexplored in academic writings. This thesis aims to correct this discrepancy by delving into varying interpretations of impartiality and the occurrence of impartiality debates in the context of the Supreme Court confirmation hearings. The thesis seeks to answer the question of whether impartiality plays an important role in the appointment of new justices and whether impartiality concerns are overshadowed by political concerns. Furthermore, the thesis explores possible avenues for changes that would ameliorate impartiality discussions, both with respect to theoretical interpretations of impartiality and practical reforms of the confirmation process. Through an analysis of recent confirmation hearings, the thesis concludes that while impartiality is important in considerations of judicial candidates, the problem lies in its competing interpretations, which are mostly divided along the lines of partisan affiliation. Moreover, impartiality is at the core of all kinds of judicial philosophy, which complicates its theoretical separation from various schools of legal thought. This interpretational ambiguity,...
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Democratic Party's Foreign Policy Voting: A Network Analysis
Mulica, David Robert ; Pondělíček, Jiří (advisor) ; Raška, Francis (referee)
This paper analyzes the voting behavior of Democratic Party members in the 117th Congress. Specifically, it examines roll call votes related to U.S. foreign policy. Namely, it examines votes on funding allocations for the two major policy departments of the executive branch - the Department of State and the Department of Defense, votes on resolutions, and other legislative actions in which Congress has jurisdiction over U.S. foreign policy. More particularly, this study is interested in the voting behavior of members of the so-called "Congressional Progressive Caucus" (CPC), one of the ideological caucuses in the U.S. Congress that has been gaining political strength, especially in recent years. The aim of the study is to show whether the "Progressive Caucus" has developed to be a political force that is already showing tendencies to vote differently from the rest of the Democratic Party, or which specific members of Congress are potentially in positions to mediate between the "CPC" and the rest of the party on foreign policy issues. The study uses the social network analysis methodology to process and project data on the voting patterns of individual members of Congress.
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