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10 - A Role for All of Us?

Smart Idealism, Global Public Opinion and International Support for Peace

from Part III - Give Peace a Chance!

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 August 2024

Dominic Rohner
Affiliation:
Université de Lausanne, Switzerland
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Summary

This chapter stresses the importance of smart idealism, and outlines how global public opinion – and all of us – can play a crucial role. We cannot simply rely on our politicians to “do the right thing,” as either of the two components of smart idealism may be missing. Ideological bias may result in policies falling short of being smart or failing to be idealist, namely when politicians’ incentives are distorted. Electoral terms typically of four years result in a bias towards short-run policies (at the detriment of the lengthy, but crucial task of building peace), and often there are personal benefits for politician when cutting shady deals with despots. To get the incentives right, public pressure must ensure that the reelection chances of our politicians crucially depend on fostering peace at home and abroad. If voters care about this, then politicians will as well – whether out of intrinsic motivation or just to get reelected. As shown in this chapter, recent evidence highlights that scrutiny and attention from the world press and the public at large is a powerful rampart against repression.

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Chapter
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The Peace Formula
Voice, Work and Warranties, Not Violence
, pp. 151 - 166
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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  • A Role for All of Us?
  • Dominic Rohner, Université de Lausanne, Switzerland
  • Book: The Peace Formula
  • Online publication: 31 August 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009438322.013
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  • A Role for All of Us?
  • Dominic Rohner, Université de Lausanne, Switzerland
  • Book: The Peace Formula
  • Online publication: 31 August 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009438322.013
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • A Role for All of Us?
  • Dominic Rohner, Université de Lausanne, Switzerland
  • Book: The Peace Formula
  • Online publication: 31 August 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009438322.013
Available formats
×