On 17 Jul 2004 17:59:09 GMT, (ArtKramr) wrote:


Political Science is a contradiction in terms. If it is political it ain't
science. If it is science it ain't political.


Arthur Kramer

While that is cute, it isn't very new and it also isn't correct.
Political Science is the study of politics, not the practice. In other
words, it is the observation of phenomena in the hope of understanding
it. It involves both traditional schools and behavioral.

The traditionalists tend to research history and attempt to understand
the political processess that led to successes or failures. For
example there has been a lot of study of the Bay of Pigs, the Cuban
Missile Crisis, the failures of the Vietnam War, the US success in the
Cold War, etc.

The behavioralists tend toward statistical analysis. Here you get
polling, measurement, focus groups, attempts at prediction,
measurement of public opinion, etc.

Now, your turn for another inanity.



Ed Rasimus
Fighter Pilot (USAF-Ret)
"When Thunder Rolled"
Smithsonian Institution Press
ISBN #1-58834-103-8