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Caribbean too hot: the CIA and "the Cuba problem", 1959-1962
Mikulík, Jan ; Raška, Francis (advisor) ; Kozák, Kryštof (referee)
Caribbean too hot: the CIA and "Cuba problem"1959-62 This M.A. dissertation analyses CIA operations from the Cuban revolution until the Cuban missile crisis. In 1958 the Cuban dictator General Fulgencio Batista was overthrown. Cubans hoped in better democratic system. The key player of the Cuban revolution, the young charismatic lawyer Fidel Castro Ruiz, seized the power and directed country towards one-party government. He entered into a secret alliance with the Cuban Communists and he resigned on his promises to establish a democratic regime. Castro initiated an anti-American campaign, which resulted in the seizure of American properties in Cuba. Both American presidents, Eisenhower and Kennedy, regarded Castro as a threat to the whole region and authorized a secret mission headed by the CIA. The CIA prepared several plans to depose Castro. This work analyzes whole process of planning, executing and consequences of these unsuccessful attempts from the beginning of the 1959 until the Cuban missile crisis in October 1962.
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Abortion as the Driving Force Behind the Christian Right
Pštross, Samantha ; Kozák, Kryštof (advisor) ; Raška, Francis (referee)
The aim of this dissertation is to investigate into the causes and the long term durability of Atlanticism in the Czech Republic. During the Iraq War the Czech Republic was labeled as part of ' "ew' Europe, a title given to all those states who sided with America over the European powers led by France and Germany . Over the past 6 years the Czech Republic has been subject to the process of Europeanization while major changes in the external environment have occurred. The research methods employed to answer the effect of these changes of the orientation of Czech Foreign and Security policy consisted of a wide review of the relevant literature, case studies and open ended interviews with policymakers and academics involved in the process. The findings of the research are that Czech Atlanticism is rooted in the nation's geo-political history but is also a strategic calculation on the part of Czech elites. However with a decline in Atlanticism has already begun to take place within Czech society as a result of decreased American interest in the CEE region and Russian activities in its near abroad. In conclusion current trends point to a future decline of Atlanticism in the Czech Republic the extent to which will be determined by four key variables, What type of EU emerges, which political party/coalition is in...
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The Plow That Broke the Plains (1936) and the River (1937), A Case of Successful Government Produced Films
Přibylová, Květoslava ; Kozák, Kryštof (advisor) ; Calda, Miloš (referee)
The Plow that Broke the Plains (1936) and The River (1937): A case of successful government produced films, attempts to show on the example of the two New Deal documentaries, that there exist films sponsored by government which contain more than only cheap ideological propaganda. Pare Lorentz's documentaries, despite being produced by the U.S. government, belong among the splendors of worlds non-fiction. They have been an important contribution not only to the whole cinematography, but also to the American culture (in general). Also, due to the fact that these films attracted a wide audience and thus they had a widespread influence on the public. In my survey I am trying to answer the following questions: Why were these particular films so successful? What was the relevance of the government financing in this success? And: What saved these films from becoming meaningless and/or (or on the other side) manipulative exhibitions of state propaganda? I hope that this case study would contribute a little to the discussion about state funding for the cinematography, the problem which is nowadays actual in the Czech Republic.
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Financial Hedonism: American Consumerism and the Financial Crisis
Metzger, Andrew Michael ; Raška, Francis (advisor) ; Kozák, Kryštof (referee)
The American character is defined by a bigger, higher, faster mindset. Throughout its history, this has been the United States' great strength. In the 20th century, the bigger-higher-faster mentality produced a parade of American successes, attracting talented immigrants from across the globe and spurring a century of unparalleled invention and ingenuity. Two generations ago, bigger-higher faster stood for innovation: the jet airplane, the towering and beautiful skyscraper, or the efficiency of the assembly-line automobile. In today's America, defined by its consumeristic excess, biggerhigher- faster means bigger houses, higher debt, and faster gratification. The bigger-higher-faster mentality that has always defined America has cross-pollinated with another strain of Americana-consumerism-to calamitous results. The global financial crisis stands as example one of the disastrous results of Americans'consumeristic excess. While popular lore holds that the financial crisis is the product of greedy Wall Street bankers, avaricious speculators, and mendacious mortgage brokers, the primary perpetrator is the average American who lusted after a house far beyond his means, furnished it with fixings he could not afford, and paid for everything using easily available credit. For nearly a decade, banks gave platinum...
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American Cities in Post-Industrial Reality: Detroit and Pittsburgh
Černá, Iveta ; Kozák, Kryštof (advisor) ; Sehnálková, Jana (referee)
The thesis studies possibilities of restructuring of post-industrial cities by closely following and comparing the restructuring efforts of two cities located in the U.S. Midwest, Detroit and Pittsburgh. It studies the consequences of globalizing economy on the area of so- called Rust-Belt, as well as the impacts of the federal urban policies on the older industrial cities located in this area. Through deindustrialization of their economies, both Detroit and Pittsburgh suffered from similar problems, such as depopulation, unemployment, factory closure, and urban decline. Therefore to evaluate the level of success of the cities' transformation, the thesis compares their demographic and economic development. The last two chapter of the thesis provide assessment of Detroit's and Pittsburgh's transformation efforts by focusing on the urban planning and economic restructuralization strategies.
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Motivation of the Hispanic immigrants for their immigration as one of the possible determining factors of the heterogeneity of this minority in the USA
Holubová, Eliška ; Bečka, Jan (advisor) ; Kozák, Kryštof (referee)
Due to certain cultural similarities, the immigrants from Latin America and the Hispanic minority in the USA are often regarded as a compact and homogenous group, but in fact they are not. The differences within the Hispanic minority have been traced in many ways. This Bachelor's thesis Motivation of the Hispanic immigrants for their immigration as one of the possible determining factors of the heterogeneity of this minority in the USA surveys the initiatives and the main reasons of the Hispanic immigrants for their immigration to the United States as one of the criteria for assessing the diversity within the Hispanic minority. On the sample of numerically prominent ethnic subgroups (Mexican, Cuban and Salvadoran), which represent the Hispanic minority, there are analyzed the main push and pull factors motivating them for immigration to the USA. On the example of Mexican, Cuban and Salvadoran immigration the author in her thesis responds the question whether there really are different motives for Hispanic immigrants for immigration to the United States and if there are some in which way they differ. The author concludes that despite some analogies, groups are motivated by different combinations of push and pull factors. Similarly looking motives or reasons for their immigration are moreover...
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History in computer games: case study on "Valiant Hearts: The Great War"
Šindelář, Jakub ; Matějka, Ondřej (advisor) ; Kozák, Kryštof (referee)
This thesis is a case study analysis of the visualization of history in computer games. The analyzed game, Valiant Hearts: The Great War, was published by the French company Ubisoft in 2014. The game is set in The First World War and was developed in cooperation with The Centenary Parnership Proram. The main goals of the thesis are following: First, determine if the vision of history in the game reflects the current paradigms of French historiography of The First World War. Second, to identify and to interpret particularities and deformations in the way the game recreates history. The first, theoretical chapter presents the phenomenon of The First World War in the French context, the study of computer games and the methodology of the analysis. For the analysis I have created my own methodology which combines various approaches used elsewhere. Chapter 2 contains the analysis, which is further structured into the analysis of the story from the perspective of the main characters and locations (2.1), analysis of the object inventory and the in game miniencyclopedia (2.2), and the analysis of game's style and form -the graphic and audio style, along with the issue of player freedom (2.3). For greater clarity, the parts of the game are referred to through it's subchapters. The results of the analysis...
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