Friday, October 19, 2007

Focus

6 hours researching, 0.5 hours emailing, page count = 138

After yesterday's very long entry, something a bit shorter today. I came up with a good plan for what data I need to gather, and began organizing myself around it. I needed to muck around in the data for a while to get a good sense of it, but now I'm clear that I want and can get two sets of data. One is a correlation between security-force presence and public-order disturbances for five distinct periods, each of which corresponds to a slightly different configuration of political and institutional variables. This will allow me to gauge the impact of the institutional design on the scope and intensity of the conflict. The other dataset will be about the spatial distribution of security-force presence and electoral dynamics. Was there a correlation between the presence of state forces and electoral dynamics; in other words, did Conservative-leaning towns get more support from a Conservative administration? Was the military government neutral with respect to the party affiliations of towns as far as allocating security within the state?

The archive is open tomorrow, so I'll be working on the weekend. I just wish it would stop raining!

Thanks to this week's monitor, Hugo Cardona. Up next is Piotr Kapiszewski, aka Kapi, in Oakland. Have a great weekend!
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3 comments:

I Cappi said...

GOLPE DE ESTADO (COUP D'ETAT)

Dear Son:

After deeply consideration and analysis of the present circumstances, given that I have enjoyed so much the assignment, and given that you are in Colombia, where this kind of event is “normal”, I have decided to give “UN GOLPE DE MONITOR” (Coup de monitor) and name my self, MONITOR VITALICIO POR VIDA.

Don’t worry Son, I am just kidding, you are not stuck with me, as your Mother is making me write. You can tell that I have been already deposed before I started my life assignment. In any case, thank you for the great opportunity of being so involved in your great work and progress this week. I have these comments:

1. My memories tell me that when I was growing up in Colombia, “los Departamentos” (States) were not as many as today and they were labeled by their political affiliation. For example, Antioquia was Conservadora and Caldas, where I was born, was liberal. The voting tradition of each state determined that labeling.
2. Therefore, I suggest that a Conservador administration would favor Antioquia and vice versa.
3. The army, not the police, was more neutral to the different towns since the soldiers and officers were a mix from all over the country; not the police that was locally recruited, in those days.
4. This week you worked a total of 29.5 hours and wrote two pages. Of course, you didn’t account for the time when you are traveling or just being involved with the work, outside the libraries, buildings, etc.

I am looking forward to continue appreciate your progress, from my deposed state, with love and pride.

And Mother, who has been my faithful companion as we travel with you in your dissertation trip, and, especially this week , since she want make sure I don’t embarrass you with my comments, is “beaming right now” and send her love.

Love you very much, Daddy

October 21, 2007 at 5:55 PM
Rjewell40 said...

Send some of that rain to Southern California and the US South East.. a bunch of yuck is going on in those areas.

I hope you're doing well and the work is continuing well.

October 22, 2007 at 4:15 PM
Chris said...

Thanks, guys! Lideres vitalicios have a way of living an extra long time (cf. Pinochet as senador vitalicio after leaving office), so I approve of this move!

October 22, 2007 at 5:27 PM

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