E. Match the underlined words and expressions in the sentences with their meaning in the box below.

A violate	C trigger	E exert much effort
B depend	D originate	F explain

 

1. The roots of the Iraq War stem from the fact that a brutal and unstable dictator Saddam Hussein insisted on having an illicit and aggressive nuclear weapons program, which led to U.N. sanctions and ultimatums that ultimately prompted the coalition invasion.

2. International diplomacy strives for preventive actions which undoubtedly strengthen the new role of multilateral institutions as a safety net for crisis and conflict.

3. She added that politicians should explain to the electorates their goals and aspirations because the fate of the constituency rests on the delegates who are going to make a choice for the rest of the people.

4. The Affordable Care Act case itself demonstrates how trite the familiar law versus politics debate can be, failing to account for what the justices must actually do when presented with a politically charged legal controversy in which the decision could go either way.

5. The decree was applauded by supporters who believed the court’s decision to disband parliament was political, but it set off a fire storm of criticism from opponents who accused the President of overstepping his authority.

6. The theory of the concurrent majority states that great decisions are not merely a matter of numerical majorities but require agreement or acceptance by the major interest in society, each of which had the power to block federal laws that it feared would seriously infringe on their rights.

 

F. Explain the highlighted words and phrases in the text in your own words.

 

 

Discussion

A. Discuss in groups.

· Should regional governments be regarded as a threat to local autonomy and national sovereignty? How does the delegation of policies and political authority impact back on the domestic structures of the states involved?

· Do you believe that it is possible for regional governance to control local affairs effectively or are such issues best addressed by smaller local governments?

· Can the process of regionalization be called more sustainable, viable and easy to implement than the process of globalization?

· Is regionalism a stumbling block or a stepping stone in the process of globalisation?

 

B. Comment on the statements.

· Regional governance is criticized for being a useless tool for combating metropolitan poverty. It is said to be currently unworkable because the focus is on “things” regionalism, when “people” regionalism is what is actually needed. Things regionalism is based on systems maintenance, while people regionalism is based on lifestyle.

· There can be distinguished benign and malevolent strains of regionalism. On the one hand, regionalism can promote international economic stability, multilateral liberalization, and peace. On the other hand, it can have a mercantilist tenor, degrading economic welfare and fostering interstate conflict.

 

Use of English

In most of the lines of this text there is an unnecessary word. For questions 1-18, find the unnecessary words and write them on the lines provided. If you think a line contains no unnecessary words, put a tick next to it. There are two examples (0), (00).

According to the contemporary theories of regionalism, it is the		the
region that is supposed to represent the most complete unit of		V
economic, social and ecological structure. This fact points out to
the logic of establishing of regional governance. The primary
challenge for regionalism which is the establishment of legal and
political structures to represent their constituting areas. Certain
special purpose bodies exist by now but are unlikely to be able to
integrate different public concerns, and also cannot keep it up with
the too rapid changes that take place on a regional level. As a first
step, regionalists call for new regional processes, structures, or
institutions that they can identify regional problems, formulate
regional solutions, implement those solutions, and coordinate
regional actions. However, resistance to regionalism is more
widespread. This resistance is believed to be due to only the fact
that people tend to see regionalism as well a step toward
centralization and a shift of power from local governments.
Therefore, resistance to regionalism usually stems out from
the self-interests of local officials, firms, and other interest groups
who benefit from a strong local autonomy and regional
fragmentation. On the other hand, advocates of localism argue that
decentralization of power must enhances efficiency and self-
determination. Localism is said to promote democracy by making
citizen participation more than accessible and increasing the sense
of either community and ownership.

 

 

Speaking Activity

Get ready to discuss the problem of the influence of globalization and regionalization on cultural identity at a round-table talk. Before it we should study its scenario. Read the following scenario and the list of participants. Chose the part you are going to play.

Do the processes of globalization and regionalization erode indigenous cultures?

The scenario.

Stage 1 Chairperson’s introductory speech

Stage 2 Debating

Statement of position on the 1^st problem

S1

S2

S3

S4

S5

Clarifying the position Discussing

Conclusions on the 1^st problem

Statement of position on the 2^nd /3^d /etc. problem

S1

S2

S3

S4

S5

Clarifying the position Discussing

Conclusions on the 2^nd /3^d /etc. problem

Stage 3 Chairperson’s concluding remarks

List of participants