James Kurth
Encyclopedia
James Kurth is the Claude Smith Professor of Political Science at Swarthmore College
, where he teaches defense policy, foreign policy, and international politics. In 2004 Kurth also became the editor of Orbis
, a professional journal on international relations and U.S. foreign policy published by the Foreign Policy Research Institute
(FPRI) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
.
Kurth received his B.A. in history from Stanford University
and his M.A. and Ph.D. in political science from Harvard University
, where he was mentored by Samuel P. Huntington
. Kurth taught at Harvard from 1967 to 1973 and has taught at Swarthmore since 1973. He has been a visiting member of the Institute for Advanced Study
in Princeton, New Jersey
; visiting professor of political science at the University of California at San Diego; and visiting professor of strategy at the U.S. Naval War College
. At the war college, Kurth was chairman of the Strategy and Campaign Department, an advisor to the Chief of Naval Operations Strategic Studies Group
, and the recipient of the Department of the Navy Medal for Meritorious Civilian Service. Kurth is a decorated veteran, having served in the Navy in the 1960s on the U.S.S. Saint Paul, the flagship of the Seventh Fleet where he was a deck and gunnery officer.
He is the author of nearly a hundred articles and the editor of two books. Kurth frequently publishes in The National Interest
, The American Interest
, National Review
, The American Conservative
, Orbis
, Foreign Policy
and Current History
. He has given testimony before committees of the United States Congress
on four occasions. His best-known article is “The Real Clash,” published in 1994 in The National Interest, which asserts that the primary threat to the U.S. is not a clash with other civilizations, but an ideological and cultural clash within American society "between the multiculturalists and the defenders of Western civilization and the American Creed."
Kurth has served in numerous think tanks, including the Council of Foreign Relations, Coalition for a Realistic Foreign Policy
, and The Center of Study of America and the West at FPRI.
Kurth is an evangelical Protestant as well as a traditional social and political conservative; he is an elder at Proclamation Presbyterian Church in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania
. He objected to Operation Iraqi Freedom and the broader U.S. push to promote liberal democracy
in the Middle East; instead, in "Splitting Islam," Kurth recommends that the U.S. utilize the division between Sunni and Shi'ites to distract radical Islamists from attacking America and the West.
Kurth is a Swarthmore enthusiast. One of few conservative faculty members at Swarthmore, he is known for his provocative courses and formerly, he was also known for the popular opening day lecture of his international politics course.
Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College is a private, independent, liberal arts college in the United States with an enrollment of about 1,500 students. The college is located in the borough of Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, 11 miles southwest of Philadelphia....
, where he teaches defense policy, foreign policy, and international politics. In 2004 Kurth also became the editor of Orbis
Orbis (foreign policy)
Orbis is a quarterly American journal on international relations and U.S. foreign policy. It is the flagship publication of the Philadelphia-based Foreign Policy Research Institute , an international affairs think tank established in 1955....
, a professional journal on international relations and U.S. foreign policy published by the Foreign Policy Research Institute
Foreign Policy Research Institute
The Foreign Policy Research Institute is an American neoconservative think tank based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is "devoted to bringing the insights of scholarship to bear on the development of policies that advance U.S...
(FPRI) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
.
Kurth received his B.A. in history from Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
and his M.A. and Ph.D. in political science from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, where he was mentored by Samuel P. Huntington
Samuel P. Huntington
Samuel Phillips Huntington was an influential American political scientist who wrote highly-regarded books in a half-dozen sub-fields of political science, starting in 1957...
. Kurth taught at Harvard from 1967 to 1973 and has taught at Swarthmore since 1973. He has been a visiting member of the Institute for Advanced Study
Institute for Advanced Study
The Institute for Advanced Study, located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States, is an independent postgraduate center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. It was founded in 1930 by Abraham Flexner...
in Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton is a community located in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It is best known as the location of Princeton University, which has been sited in the community since 1756...
; visiting professor of political science at the University of California at San Diego; and visiting professor of strategy at the U.S. Naval War College
Naval War College
The Naval War College is an education and research institution of the United States Navy that specializes in developing ideas for naval warfare and passing them along to officers of the Navy. The college is located on the grounds of Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island...
. At the war college, Kurth was chairman of the Strategy and Campaign Department, an advisor to the Chief of Naval Operations Strategic Studies Group
Chief of Naval Operations Strategic Studies Group
The Chief of Naval 0perations Strategic Studies Group was established by Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Thomas B. Hayward in 1981. The Group is co-located at the United States Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island, but receives its direction and makes its reports only to the Chief of...
, and the recipient of the Department of the Navy Medal for Meritorious Civilian Service. Kurth is a decorated veteran, having served in the Navy in the 1960s on the U.S.S. Saint Paul, the flagship of the Seventh Fleet where he was a deck and gunnery officer.
He is the author of nearly a hundred articles and the editor of two books. Kurth frequently publishes in The National Interest
The National Interest
The National Interest is a prominent conservative American bi-monthly international affairs magazine published by the Center for the National Interest. It was founded in 1985 by Irving Kristol and until 2001 was edited by Anglo-Australian Owen Harries...
, The American Interest
The American Interest
The American Interest is a non-partisan bimonthly magazine focusing primarily on foreign policy, international affairs, global economics, and matters related to the military...
, National Review
National Review
National Review is a biweekly magazine founded by the late author William F. Buckley, Jr., in 1955 and based in New York City. It describes itself as "America's most widely read and influential magazine and web site for conservative news, commentary, and opinion."Although the print version of the...
, The American Conservative
The American Conservative
The American Conservative is a monthly U.S. opinion magazine published by Ron Unz. Its first editor was Scott McConnell, his successors being Kara Hopkins and the present incumbent, Daniel McCarthy....
, Orbis
Orbis (foreign policy)
Orbis is a quarterly American journal on international relations and U.S. foreign policy. It is the flagship publication of the Philadelphia-based Foreign Policy Research Institute , an international affairs think tank established in 1955....
, Foreign Policy
Foreign Policy
Foreign Policy is a bimonthly American magazine founded in 1970 by Samuel P. Huntington and Warren Demian Manshel.Originally, the magazine was a quarterly...
and Current History
Current History
Current History is the oldest United States-based publication devoted exclusively to contemporary world affairs. The magazine was founded in 1914 by George Washington Ochs Oakes, brother of New York Times publisher Adolph Ochs, in order to provide detailed coverage of World War I. Current History...
. He has given testimony before committees of the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
on four occasions. His best-known article is “The Real Clash,” published in 1994 in The National Interest, which asserts that the primary threat to the U.S. is not a clash with other civilizations, but an ideological and cultural clash within American society "between the multiculturalists and the defenders of Western civilization and the American Creed."
Kurth has served in numerous think tanks, including the Council of Foreign Relations, Coalition for a Realistic Foreign Policy
Coalition for a Realistic Foreign Policy
The Coalition for a Realistic Foreign Policy is a group of U.S. scholars, policy makers and citizens who oppose the current U.S. foreign policy, which they view as pursuing an American empire. The coalition questions both the morality and the efficacy of using military force and diplomatic pressure...
, and The Center of Study of America and the West at FPRI.
Kurth is an evangelical Protestant as well as a traditional social and political conservative; he is an elder at Proclamation Presbyterian Church in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania
Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania
Bryn Mawr from Welsh for "big hill") is a census-designated place in Lower Merion Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, just west of Philadelphia along Lancaster Avenue and the border with Delaware County...
. He objected to Operation Iraqi Freedom and the broader U.S. push to promote liberal democracy
Liberal democracy
Liberal democracy, also known as constitutional democracy, is a common form of representative democracy. According to the principles of liberal democracy, elections should be free and fair, and the political process should be competitive...
in the Middle East; instead, in "Splitting Islam," Kurth recommends that the U.S. utilize the division between Sunni and Shi'ites to distract radical Islamists from attacking America and the West.
Kurth is a Swarthmore enthusiast. One of few conservative faculty members at Swarthmore, he is known for his provocative courses and formerly, he was also known for the popular opening day lecture of his international politics course.
Essays
- Pillars of the Next American Century, published in November-December issue of The American InterestThe American InterestThe American Interest is a non-partisan bimonthly magazine focusing primarily on foreign policy, international affairs, global economics, and matters related to the military...
.
See also
- Who Shall Live and Who Shall Die? DVD, producer, 1982 DVD, producer, 1982Who Shall Live and Who Shall DieWho Shall Live and Who Shall Die is a 1982 documentary that asks whether the United States could have stopped the Holocaust. The film combines previously classified information, rare newsreel footage, and interviews with the politicians who were in office at the time, to tell a behind-the-scenes...
External links
- "The Real Clash," National Interest, Fall 1994
- Interview in Swarthmore Bulletin
- Various articles By James Kurth
- Intercollegiate Studies Institute, "Conflicts in Liberalism and Security Issues"
- FPRI articles
- "Splitting Islam," The American Conservative, September 2005
- FPRI Appoints Kurth Editor of Orbis
- Video: What are We Fightin’ For? Western Civilization in the 21st Century 10/27/2008
- Video: The American Way of War: A History of Strategic Transformations 2/3/2005