Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Pinkertons now and then

1 hour writing, 4.5 hours reading/researching, 0.5 hours emailing/administrivia

Interesting article in the Times today about the U.S. Army's negotiations with Iraqi militias to support pacification efforts in Iraq, and the connection of these to the new Iraqi army. The issue of how militias, and other irregular armed forces, connect to the state security forces, while not absolutely central to my dissertation, are nonetheless an important part of the story. Today I'm wondering whether the connections aren't deeper than I'm thinking. Perhaps the connection between security forces and regime stability happens via irregular forces; that is, Type of Security Force --> Type of Irregular Armed Forces --> Type of Armed Challenge to Regime. Worth pursuing further.

The ironic thing about the Times article, which is about the connection between public and private security forces, is that the U.S. colonel featured is named Pinkerton, which is the name of a private police force that emerged in the U.S. at the end of the 19th century. The Pinkertons were involved in hunting down Jesse James, breaking strikes, and survive to this day, though under the aegis of a Swedish global private-security firm. The Pinkerton logo featured an eye above the slogan, "We Never Sleep," and that image is where the term "private eye" comes from. Now you know.

Finished going through the Bailey/Dammert collection on police reform in the Americas. Lots of good ideas and sources, but I remain convinced the story of the emergence and evolution of these forces has yet to be told, particularly at the state and regional level.

In terms of writing, I focused on the chapter on police systems. I'm presenting that chapter as a paper at the Latin American Studies Association conference right after Labor Day, and the paper is due on August 1st, so I'll be working toward that deadline. Also made an appointment to meet with one of my advisors in a month when I'm out in the Bay Area for Matt and Laura's wedding. Deadlines are good!

It's Restaurant Week in NYC, with a bunch of fancy places offering reasonable lunch prix-fixes. I made a couple of reservations, much to Cathy's chagrin/envy, as she's too far uptown to meet me. Well, I'm scouting for the future; yeah, that's the ticket....

P.S. Happy birthday, Mom! And happy belated birthday, Allison!

1 comment:

rm said...

Congrats on another good day of work Chris, and you're making me jealous as well with your talk of fancy and cheap(er) lunches. Good to have that work/pleasure balance going.
I'd be curious to see you explore that tie between the state and irregular armed forces even more. Especially with what I've been reading about recent accusations against Pastrana's government that they have links to the paramilitaries. Or maybe that isn't as relevant for the time period you are dealing with in the dissertation?
See you tomorrow...