Quoted in Lonely Planet

I just found out through the magic of Google Books that page 138 of the Lonely Planet guide to Ukraine (2005) by Sara Johnstone quotes my second book. Go look it up yourself to see what it says. I must say that being quoted in a Lonely Planet guide is supremely cool.

I made it to the Ocean

On Saturday I finally made it to the Gulf of Guinea. I took a tro-tro to Nkrumah Circle with Carl and we walked through Makola Market to Jamestown. We met some Ghanaians who took us around the beach where they were building fishing boats and the pier where they were fixing fishing nets. They then took us to the palace of the king of Jamestown. I probably learned more about Ghana in that one morning than I have in the rest of the three months I have been here.

Everything is calm in Ghana

Despite the recent events in neighboring Ivory Coast everything is calm in Ghana. Neither the media nor people at the university seem much interested in what is happening in the country next door.

Emancipation in the Gold Coast

Yesterday a PhD student from Germany gave a talk on the discussion regarding the abolition of slavery in the Gold Coast by native elite in contemorary newspapers. The British formally emancipated all slaves in the colony in 1874 without compensation to the owners. This action was strongly contested by some of the Gold Coast elite who thought that failure to compensate native slave owners was unjust. In the discussion that followed one of the items that came up was the definition of a slave. The British evidently defined a number of types of subordinate status as slavery even though they often fell far short of chattel slavery. Like many other colonized territories the Gold Coast had a rather complex and differentiated  native society. Unfortunately, I am not familiar enough with Ghanaian history to grasp the local distinctions made between the various groups all lumped together as slaves by the British for purposes of emancipation. Nevertheless, the talk was interesting and the responses by other faculty who are experts on the subject did increase my limited knowledge of African history a little bit.

Who exactly reads this blog?

Recently this blog has gotten a lot of hits according to my stat counter, but nobody has left any comments. A very large number of hits seem to be coming from France for some reason. I would be interested in knowing who is reading this blog and why they are reading it. So once again I am asking my readers to please comment and let me know who they are what they like or dislike about this blog. It can not improve without feedback.

Hidden Bazaar

Yesterday, I came across a secluded bazaar behind the theatre department. It had a number of places to eat, get your hair cut and buy beverages. I had fried rice and chicken from one of the vendors for 2 cedis.

Weekend

My weekend was rather uneventful. A work crew was supposed to install security doors on the house on Friday. But, when I called the foreman on Friday morning he said they could not make it  until Saturday morning. They arrived Saturday morning and did not leave until late afternoon. They finished installing all, but one of the security doors. They still have one more to do. So my plan to march to the ocean on Saturday was shot.

Across the way from the house there was a bunch of stalls set up on the field during the weekend. They sold a variety of goods including food and beverages. They also played loud music all weekend. So on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night I wandered over there to eat. On Friday I got a pizza and the next two evenings I got ice cream followed by popcorn.

Vandal City

Today I ate lunch in the dining hall of Commonwealth Hall also known as Vandal City. The name stems from the activities of some of the hall's residents during the 1960s. It is the only all male residence hall at the University of Ghana. It is also the largest hall and has a spectacular view as it is built on a hill and has a series of staircases both in front of it and within it.

Yesterday

Yesterday I got quite a bit accomplished. I e-mailed off an article to a journal based in the UK. Then I attended a presentation by a history Ph.D. student here. Finally, I spent some time at the library reading up on German colonialism in Togoland. Unfortunately, I could not find much published after 1967.

Source Question

Does anybody know any good works on German colonialism in West Africa?

Makola Market

Saturday I took a tro-tro to Nkrumah Circle and then walked down Nkrumah Avenue, but failed to get as far as Nkrumah Memorial Park. I did, however, get to Makola Market and walked down its winding, often unpaved roads observing women hawking various wares. Among the items for sale that I did not buy were live crabs and giant snails. Next Saturday I intend to walk all the way down to the ocean.

Race as Culture in the USSR and South Africa

I have recently been reading about the ideological justification of apartheid in South Africa post-1948. It is almost identical to the ideological justification of Soviet nationality policies under Stalin. Never is there reference to genetics or biology rather instead both the South Africans and Soviets both always referred to ethnicity or nationality and culture. But, both viewed the concepts in ways that were completely essentialist. Primordial ethnicity and social-cultural categories rather than genetics or biology formed the basis of both systems. Somebody of German heritage in the USSR could never become Russian and after 1941 could never get the same civil rights as an ethnic Russian. He belonged to a racialized category just as much as Blacks did in South Africa. The lack of reference and even rejection of genetics and biological justifications for this policy were not unique to the Soviet Union. The apartheid regime in South Africa also rejected such language in favor of references to Volk (narod or natsional'nost), national groups and cultural identity. If somebody came from Mars and read  the Soviet and South African ideological justifications for their respective nationality policies side by side he would conclude they were almost identical projects. We only call one racial and one not because the USSR still has many defenders in Western academia. If one looks at the treatment of certain nationalities by Stalin during World War II in the light of these similarities it is apparent that the Soviet policies of deporting the Russian-Germans and others were in fact racist policies.

Mid-term grades and grading philosophy

The students did quite well on the mid-term exam. Out of 74 that took the test half got an A or an A-.Which brings me to grading philosophy. My basic feeling is that if a student meets all the requirements I lay out for an assignment they should get an A. Ideally since I make the requirements for all the assignments clear beforehand all my students should be getting As. The fact that only a quarter of my students got an A on the mid-term shows that there is a gap between my ideal and reality. But, I have never understood grading philosophies that are done on a curve or that limits the number of As given out. Yes, I know people complain about grade inflation, but I think the concern is misplaced. First, students are better at gaming assignments today than they were several decades ago. That is they are better at taking tests even if they are not smarter or more knowledgeable. So on the basis of merit alone the grades should be higher. Second, I do not feel any obligation to provide a differentiated scale for judging students to future employers. If the fact that a quarter of my students having As makes it difficult for them to choose the one or two best candidates for a job that is their problem not mine.

Today's Accomplishments

Today I finished marking mid-term exams, filled out forms for the university listing my publications for the last three years, and again failed to eat all of my second kenkey at Legon Hall.

Grading Mid-Terms

In the last two days I have graded 59 mid-term exams. I now only have 16 left to finish before Friday. Fortunately, I only have one class to teach this semester. Next semester's grading burden will be considerably greater. So far most of the students have done fairly well.

Ivory Coast

As I mentioned in the comments to the post below I have not seen any coverage of the recent violence next door on Ghanaian television. I have also not heard it brought up much as a topic of conversation here at the university. This is kind of surprising because the violence in Mexico is a topic of discussion in the US and is covered extensively in the news. If there were violence similar to that in Ivory Coast in Canada I think it would also be a concern for the US. But, I have seen very little evidence of much interest or concern in Ghana over the recent events in the Ivory Coast. I think maybe it is because I am on a university campus and people here are preoccupied with things other than international events.

Ghanaian Independence Day

This Sunday is 6 March or Ghana's Independence Day. Modern Ghana has existed as an independent state now for 54 years. This is longer than any other former colony in Africa south of the Sahara

A small list of Russian-German victims of Stalin from 1938

A lot of people have contacted me over the years trying to track down individual victims of Stalin's murderous repression. I do not have a lot of lists of names, but I have come across some. Below is a list of 15 Russian-Germans from Stalindorf raion in Dnepropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine sentenced to death on political charges. The information comes from the summary (protocol) of a meeting of troikas for the UNKVD (Administration of the Peoples Commissariat of Internal Affairs) for Dnepropetrovsk Oblast on 25 March 1938. I have transliterated the names directly from Cyrillic so Heinrich is Genrikh, Wilhelm is Vilgelm and so forth.

1) Genrikh Ivanovich Penner

2) Genrikh Genrikhovich Penner

3) Ivan Petrovich Tissen

4) Egor Yakovlevich Funk

5) Anna Davidova Leven

6) Petr Yakovlevich Tissen

7) Kornei Borisovich Penner

8) Ivan Isaakovich Bergen

9) Ivan Borisovich Bergen

10) Vilgelm Aronovich Funk

11) Ivan Aronovich Funk

12) Genrikh Genrikhovich Pankrats

13) Ivan Davidovich Penner

14) Ekaterina Ivanova Penner

15) Anna Genrikhova Shapansky

Source: A.A. German, T.S. Ilariovonova, I.R. Pleve, Istoriia nemtsev Rossii: Khrestomatiia (Moscow: "MSNK-Press", 2005), doc. 7.5.8, pp. 227-228 reproducing V.V. Chentsov, Tragicheskie sud'by (Moscow, 1998), pp. 172-173.

Academic Question

Has anything been published on internal colonialism as conceived of by Robert Blauner as opposed to the Michael Hechter version since 1986? Because I can not find anything. It seems the concept just vanished from the scholarly literature somewhere around 1987. I have no idea why. Any answers would be much appreciated.

Country Music in Ghana

Ghana is a country where music is playing everywhere. Popular styles include High Life, Hip Life, R & B, Reggae, Gospel, and surprisingly Country. When my department chair picked me up at the airport the radio in the van was tuned to a Country station. I asked him if this style of music was popular in Ghana and he said that it was. I have noticed many times eating at Taco Bell that the music playing was American Country. I expected the other styles of music listed above, but Country was not a musical genre I would have ever associated with Africa.

It is humid in Ghana today

Walking the short distance to work this morning my shirt became soaked with sweat. I hear that it will get even more humid in the upcoming months. I would prefer more moderate weather, but if the choice is between freezing cold or hot and humid then I can take the humidity.

Advice on Journal Submissions?

I have two journal articles that were rejected last year by one journal. I am wondering now that I have some extra time whether I should extensively revise them in accordance with the peer review reports or only do minor editing before sending them out to other journals for consideration. My feeling is that in each case the first peer review report was merely a hostile or dismissive attempt to prevent publication. However, the second peer report in each case does appear to actually contain some constructive criticism. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Our House

Yesterday Carl and I got the keys to our bungalow. Carl is another foreign faculty member here at the university. The house has four bedrooms, three toilets,a shower, a kitchen, a dining area, a huge living room, and a giant courtyard. Today we are going to be moving furniture into its proper place.

Citation Bibliography Update

I spent a little bit of time today updating my citation bibliography. This is a list of academic works that cite my publications. It is up to 138 different academic sources right now. This list is divided between 75 books and 63 journal articles and book chapters. The number of journal articles and book chapters that cite me is actually much higher, but I can not properly cite many of them given the limited information provided by Google Books. I am happy to note that works published as recently as this year still cite my first book which was published in 1997.

Ghanaian Birds

I am not a bird watcher like my good friend Chris and many other people I knew in Arivaca. However, the birds here on campus are absolutely stunning. Their feathers have really brilliant colors. I know Arivaca had a lot of beautiful birds, but I think the ones in Ghana are even more beautiful.

A Note of Caution on Democratic Revolutions

CNN has gone from covering Egypt to Bahrain to Libya now. I honestly do not know whether the outcome of these revolutions will result in long term improvements for the people of North Africa and the Middle East. Often democratic revolutions go astray and bring about worse regimes or brutal mob violence against segments of the population. So far it looks like Egypt's new government will be better than its previous one, but it is still too soon to tell. What will happen in Libya is even more difficult to predict. Currently, it looks like there will be a significant amount of bloodshed in Libya in the near future, however.

One thing that needs to be born in mind is that democracy and majority rule are not synonomous with tolerance and human rights. Indeed in many places the majority of the population has had no problems using the instrument of democratically elected governments to deny all human rights to ethnic, national, racial, or religious minorities. I have not seen this manifested by the current movements in North Africa and the Middle East. But, the democratically elected government of Iraq has not exactly had a perfect track record regarding the civil rights of the country's Sunni minority. So such sentiments are not absent from the democrats of the Arab world. 

In other places in the Middle East the situation is far worse. After all Israel is often tauted as the only democracy in the Middle East. This is not true in that the Turkish Republic has just as good a claim to being a democracy as Israel. However, Israel does demonstrate that democratic regimes often repress minorities not in spite of being democratic, but because they are democratic.  The systematic violation of the civil and human rights of the Palestinians living under Israeli rule is supported by the majority of the Israeli population. Technically I believe this is still a slight majority of the total number of people governed by the State of Israel. Of course democracies in which 51% of the population use democratically elected governments to confiscate all the property and deny fundamental rights to the other 49% are generally far worse than most dictatorships. But, the US and EU do not seem to realize this and believe that the mouthing of democratic slogans and holding of elections justifies the most brutal repression of people who are not part of the 51% or more majority.

Accra Mall

Saturday I went to Accra Mall. It is very modern, very clean, very well stocked, and very expensive. There were lots of white people milling about and buying things at over inflated prices. So I do not think I will be doing much shopping there.

Madina

Today I was driven all over Madina, the town next to Legon. It has a big bazaar and lots of little shops.  But, they did not have the item I needed. I did notice that there seemed to be quite a few Mosques in Madina interspersed among an even larger number of Pentecostal churches. I am wondering if Madina is named after Medina in Arabia.

Some Random Observations about Ghana

Highway Vendors

Yesterday I had to go to Accra and got to see some of the city. Like most large cities traffic is congested. But, Accra has something I have not seen before. While you are stuck in traffic a myriad of vendors selling a wide variety of items including mobile phone cards, drinks, snacks, maps, books, cds, clothes and stuff I did not recognize will come up to your vehicle. I suppose if you are stuck in traffic and you run out of phone credit this would allow you to call your destination and tell them you are going to be late. It would also allow you to get some water and avoid dehydration.

Tropical Fruits

Ghana has the best pineapples and mangoes I have ever eaten. They are very sweet and juicy. Unfortunately, the oranges are not so good. They seem a little green. I wonder if they are still not ripe yet.

The US Embassy

We drove by the US Embassy. It is huge and fortress like with lots of guards and razor wire. It is much larger and looks more like a military installation than the US Embassy in Bishkek.

Question - Sources on Theories of National Resistance?

Does anybody know of any good sources regarding theories of political resistance, particularly nationally based resistance? My keyword searches do not seem to be unearthing anything interesting in the Balme Library, but there must be a wealth of literature on the subject. I must just be looking under the wrong terms. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Ties Between Ghana and Denmark

The history conference was quite interesting and well worth attending. It turns out that both Ghanaian and Danish historians believe that the general public of their respective countries are woefully ignorant of history. They also lamented the low levels of interest shown by students in studying history. These problems,  however, seem to be universal rather than specific to Denmark and Ghana. The encouraging note is that there is a segment of people with real influence in both countries that do think history education is very important.

I was not fully aware of just how strong the ties between Ghana and Denmark were before I arrived in Legon. I knew that Denmark was involved in the slave trade in the Gold Coast and that they had built Christensborg (Osu) Castle along the coast. But, the present day level of cooperation and friendly relationships between Danes and Ghanaians on a variety of levels is not something I really anticipated. For instance there is a Denmark House on campus and Danes are constantly coming here to work on various joint projects. The initial seed money to physically construct the Kwame Nkrumah Complex which houses the Institute of African Studies came from the Danish embassy. These are just two examples on the campus of the University of Ghana. Denmark has been a major contributor of development assistance in almost all spheres since Ghana got its independence in 1957. I had expected there to be much stronger ties to Great Britain, the former colonial ruler of Ghana in the years before independence.

History Conference

I have not gotten most of what I intended to do today  done because when I showed up at the office at 9:20 this morning I was told there was a history conference at the Institute of African Studies that I should attend. The conference is on the theme "Our Shared History and Heritage: Teaching, Researching and Advocacy in Contemporary Ghana and Denmark." The conference was organized by the Historical Society of Ghana and the Danish History Teachers Association and Culture, Education and Technology Network. It is sponsored by the Royal Danish Embassy. Among the speakers this morning were the Danish ambassador and the former Ghanaian ambassador to Sierra Leone and the Ivory Coast. Unlike in many countries it appears that important people do value history in Ghana and Denmark. Two countries is at least a start. I have to get back to the conference now.

Taco Bell

There is a restaurant on the campus of the University of Ghana called Taco Bell. But, it does not serve any Mexican food. Instead it serves quite good Ghanaian food. Today I had their red red with chicken. The beans are spicier at Taco Bell than the other places I have eaten red red. Taco Bell is quite spacious and was playing Showtime on the television hanging above the door. They were showing some British crime drama. Without a doubt it was better than any Taco Bell I have been to in the US

Tropical Rain Storm

Right now I am trapped in my office due to a huge tropical rainstorm. This is the first rain I have seen in Ghana. It has been pouring down rain for a while and I am not sure when it is going to stop. I hope it stops soon because I am hungry and would like to go to lunch.

Progress

This semester I am only teaching one class, Aspects of World History since 1945. The syllabus has already been posted on this blog. The rest of my time I have been filling so far with the task of getting established at the University of Ghana including the necessary paperwork. I feel like I am making a little bit of progress each day which is good.

The Balme Library

Today I got my letter of introduction to the library and explored the halls of Balme for the first time. The library is quite large and has a lot of open space. The collection is geared towards African subjects, but there is a wing of books on Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and the Americas.

Syllabus for Aspects of World History since 1945

Aspects of World History since 1945

HIST 418

Spring 2011

Department of History

University of Ghana

J. Otto Pohl, Ph.D.

Office Number: 9

Meeting Time: Friday 3:30-5:25 Jones Quartey Building 09

Course Description:

 This course is a survey course of world history since the end of World War II in 1945. It examines the history of the world from 1945 to 1991 in the context of the Cold War between the US and the USSR. The course will focus on the foreign policies of the US and USSR and their effect on other regions of the world. Among other events the course will cover the reconstruction of Europe after World War II, the Arab-Israeli wars, the Vietnam War, and the emergence of newly independent states in Africa. Within the Soviet – US conflict the course will pay special attention to the socialist emphasis on the collectivization of agriculture versus traditional forms of agriculture. The course will look at the extension of collectivized agriculture influenced by the Soviet model to the Baltic States and Western Ukraine, North Korea, and parts of Africa. The course will also deal extensively with the displacement of large numbers of people due to war and ethnic cleansing and the long term ramifications of such forced migration. In particular the course will look at forced migration in Europe and the Middle East. Other themes we will touch on are economic development, the emergence of international organizations, and the collapse of European colonialism in Asia and Africa.

Requirements:

 The goal of this class is to give students a general frame work of the history of the conflict between the US and USSR and other major international events from 1945 to 1991. Students need to attend class regularly and do the assigned readings. Material from both the readings and the lectures will appear on the final exam. No mobile phones are to be visible during class. They are to be out of sight and turned off. Finally, I have a significant hearing loss and may have to ask people to repeat their questions or statements from time to time. You can minimize this by speaking loudly and clearly. This syllabus is tentative and subject to change.

Readings:

 The readings are taken mainly from two books. These books are Geoffry Hosking, The First Socialist Society: A History of the Soviet Union from Within, Second Enlarged Edition (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1993) and Martin Walker, The Cold War: A History (NY: Henry Holt and company, 1993). There are also a number of shorter readings, mostly journal articles. The instructor has copies of all the assigned readings and will make them available to the students. The shorter readings are listed below.

Chong Sik-Lee, “Land Reform, Collectivization and the Peasants in North Korea,” The China Quarterly, No. 14 (April-June 1963), pp. 65-81.

Esber, Rosemarie, “Rewriting the History of 1948: The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Question Revisited,” Holy Land Studies, vol. 4, no. 1 (2005), pp. 55-72).

Hayden, Robert M., “Schindler’s Fate: Genocide, Ethnic Cleansing, and Population Transfers,” Slavic Review, vol. 55, No. 4 (Winter 1996), pp. 727-748.

Khalidi, Rashid, “Observations on the Right of Return,” Journal of Palestine Studies, Vol. 21, No. 2 (Winter 1992), pp. 29-40.

Scott, James C., Seeing Like a State: How Certain Schemes to Improve the Human Condition Have Failed (New Haven, CT and London: Yale University Press, 1998).

Statiev, Alexander, “Motivations and Goals of Soviet Deportations in the Western Borderlands,” The Journal of Strategic Studies, Vol. 28, No. 6 (December 2005), pp. 977-1003.

Ther, Philip, “The Integration of Expellees in Germany and Poland after World War II: A Historical Reassessment,” Slavic Review, Vol. 55, No. 4 (Winter 1996), pp. 779-805.

Grading: The grade for the class will be based upon a mid-term exam and a comprehensive final essay exam at the end of the semester. The mid-term will be worth 30% of the final grade and the final exam will constitute the remaining 70% of the grade.

Class Schedule:


Week one: Introduction and Review of Syllabus


Week two: The US and USSR after World War II and the Start of the Cold War

Read: Hosking, pp. 296-325; Statiev, pp. 977-1003; Walker, pp. 1-28

If possible this week I would like to show the movie Red Terror on the Amber Coast: Soviet Occupation – Lithuanian Resistance 1939-1993 since it covers much of the material in the Hosking and especially the Statiev.

Week three: Europe in the wake of World War II

Read: Hayden, pp. 727-748; Ther 779-805; Walker, pp. 28-58

Week four: Asia and the Middle East in the wake of World War II

Read: Chong Sik-Lee, pp. 65-81; Esber, pp. 55-72; Khalidi, pp. 29-40; Walker, pp. 59-82

Week five: The 1950s: Khrushchev vs. Eisenhower

Read: Hosking, pp. 326-362; Walker, pp. 83-135

Week six: Mid-term examination. The exam is worth 30% of the total grade.

Week seven: The 1960s: Cuba, Vietnam and other Conflict Zones

Read: Walker, pp. 136-206.

Week eight: The USSR during the Era of Stagnation

Read: Hosking, pp. 364-445.

Week nine: The Twilight of the Cold War

Read: Walker, pp. 207-277.

Week ten: “Socialism” and Development in Africa

Read: Scott, pp. 223-261.

Week eleven: The End of the Cold War

Read: Walker, pp. 278-357.

Week twelve: The End of the USSR

Read: Hosking, pp. 446-501.

We are living in the future now I guess

Today I got a University of Ghana e-mail account. This involved a trip to a building that looked normal from the outside, but appeared to be something out of a science fiction movie inside. I was not expecting steam punk, but I was not expecting the 22nd century either. Sometimes I forget that I am now living in what was the distant future when I was a child.

I am back in the classroom again

After a hiatus of ten months I am back in front of a university classroom. I am not sure which song would be better for my victory march, Aerosmith's Back in the Saddle Again or should I be like Megamind and go for AC/DC's Back in Black. The dozen or so readers of this blog can vote for which song they think would be better in the comments below. At any rate my first day teaching at the University of Ghana went well. The students were much more disciplined than most of those I have taught in the past. I did not have any students disturb class by using mobile phones, talking, or engaging in other disruptive behavior. I am told my class has 90 students registered for it, but only about twenty showed up today. My two TAs are absolutely fantastic and have been a great help to me both in assisting my class preparation and adjusting to life in Ghana.

Getting a new sim card

Yesterday I went with one of my TAs outside of campus to get my mobile phone set up for Ghana. I had to get another sim card and register my phone, both of which were free and took only a few minutes. Then I had to buy some time and a new charger. I left my old charger in Kyrgyzstan since it had a Soviet plug and Ghana uses a British plug. I can now call outside Ghana. The market area was about what I expected. Lots of small vendors selling a wide variety of electronics, foods, and other goods. I am going to wander through the market sometime this weekend just to get a feel for it.

A Tale of Two Africas

Watching the news on CNN it is difficult to believe that Egypt and Ghana are on the same planet yet alone the same continent. Of course Africa is a very large, populous and diverse continent so I should not be surprised at radical regional differences. Needless to say I am very happy to be working in Ghana and not Egypt, Tunisia, or Sudan. I have had enough political upheaval for one life time.

Animals in Ghana

I have not been outside of Legon so I have not seen too much wildlife. But, I have observed some large geckos outside my room. Last night I also saw two toads hopping down the path on my way to dinner. Finally, on Friday I noticed that one of the faculty members had a monkey tied up to a tree in front of his house. I am told this is unusual even for eccentric professors.

Egypt and CNN

CNN International has been devoted almost exclusively to the protests in Egypt all week. Despite 24 hour coverage the pundits on CNN have managed to completely avoid any type of real in depth examination of the situation. Missing almost entirely from the news is any serious consideration of the history of modern Egypt. As an historian I would like to think this means there are unexploited job opportunities for the profession. But, I fear all it means is that nobody working at CNN knows or cares about what happened in the past.

Foods of Ghana

I have found the local cuisine in Ghana to be quite tasty. Among the staples are fufu and goat in ground nut soup, okra stew with banku, fried fish with kenkey, and red red. Fufu is made from cassava and plantains and banku  and kenkey are made from fermented maize and cassava. Kenkey is served with a wickedly spicy green sauce. Red red is a dish of beans cooked in palm oil and fried plantains. It is usually served with either fried fish or chicken.

The University of Ghana

The University of Ghana is huge. It takes up the entire city of Legon. I have walked miles and miles past endless white colonial era style buildings without reaching the perimeter of the campus. Fortunately, my current and future lodgings are both near the history department and the library. The history department has a small two story building located next to the English department,  not too far away from the much larger sociology department. My office is on the first floor.

Now in Ghana

I am now in Ghana. I arrived two days ago after a 15 hour flight to Dubai followed by a 12 hour layover and then another 9 hour flight to Accra. It is  hot and humid here, but other than that things are great. I really like the food which is hot and spicy.

Down to the Wire

I finished typing up my two syllabi. I have also got most of my packing done. In a few days I will be in Ghana. Given the continuing litany of horror stories about the academic job market in North America I am very glad to have a job at the University of Ghana. When I get the chance I will record my observations about living and working in Legon on this blog.

Syllabi

Today I am going to try and get my syllabi for Ghana finished. After that I should be ready to start teaching once I get to Legon. Again any suggestions regarding the teaching of world history, teaching big classes or living in Ghana would be greatly appreciated.

Packing

I am now packing for my trip to Ghana in a couple of days. I have never been to Africa before so if anybody has any advice about living in the region please let me know. Also if anybody knows of any blogs dealing with Ghana let me know. In the very near future this blog is going to have a lot more on West Africa and Ghana in particular than it has in the past.

Any Advice on Teaching Large Classes?

Most of the classes I have taught in the past were fairly small. Usually they averaged between 15 and 30 students. The largest class I taught was under 50 students. Next semester I have two classes to teach. One of them will be significantly larger than what I have taught in the past. Does anybody have any advice on teaching large classes? Are there any specific techniques that are better geared towards large classes? Any advice anybody could give me on effectively teaching a large class would be greatly appreciated.

It is warm and sunny

Southern California has been unseasonably warm and sunny the last couple of days. It is hard to believe it is January when it is 80 F outside. I hear it is quite cold right now in Kyrgyzstan.

A Return to Malaise?

Maybe I am just getting old, but it seems like there were a lot more more political leaders in the world with vision in the 1980s than there are today. Back then there was Reagan, Gorbachev, Thatcher, Mitterrand, Kohl, and Pope John Paul II. Today it seems like most world leaders are rather mediocre and lack any type of larger vision. There do not even seem to be any type of visionary opposition figures today. Back in the 1980s there was Walesa, Havel, and Mandela. Who is there today? Sometimes I think we are returning to the malaise of the 1970s. I hope I can regain my optimism about humanity once I get to Africa. Does anybody else feel there is a general lack of political leadership in the world or is it just me?

Last Week in the US

This is my last week in the US before going to Ghana. I have finished most of my preparations for the trip. Yesterday I got my anti-malaria drugs from the pharmacy. I still have to go buy mosquito repellent.

I got a little bit more written on my book manuscript last night. It is now up to 140 pages double spaced. I am thinking of a provisional title of Russian-Germans in Kazakhstan and Central Asia: A Century of Prosperity, Persecution and Perseverance. But, I am open to suggestions that would point to its emphasis on the life of the nationality in Kyrgyzstan.

I have two syllabi on world history to write up this week. I have been working on them since I arrived in California. But, I still have to type them up.

The food in California is definitely different than in Bishkek. Despite an absence of two years, the best fast food burger both in quality and value for the money is still In and Out Burger. I have yet to find anything comparable in any foreign country.

Getting Ready to Go to Ghana

I now have all my immunizations, my visa, and my airplane ticket for Ghana. I also have classes to teach. I am very excited about starting this new job.

Teaching History

If everything goes as planned I will start teaching history as opposed to politics at the end of January. One of the many advantages history has over disciplines like IR and various "studies" is that its basic methodology lends itself to clarity rather than obfuscation. Instead of focusing on abstract theories history anchors itself in a coherent narrative of what we think happened in the past on the basis of the best available evidence. This also makes history generally less pretentious than a lot of other academic subjects. We do not pretend to be a science like political science, sociology or economics. History is instead a craft like fine cooking or boat building.

Invitation to my Readers

I do not get very many comments so I am not exactly sure who reads this blog. It would be interesting to know something about my small audience. So now is an opportunity to introduce yourself in the comments in order to improve my blogging in 2011. Please introduce or reintroduce yourself and tell me what you would like to see more of in this blog.

Happy New Year

I am hoping that 2011 is less stressful for me than 2010. I am also hoping that my academic career can now flourish at my new place of employment, the University of Ghana. Getting the job in Ghana is the second best thing that happened to me in an otherwise very bad 2010. The best thing to happen to me in 2010 of course was the birth of my daughter Mary Lynn. It is actually the best thing to ever happen to me. Unfortunately, I will be physically separated from her and her mother for the time being. I hope to be able to rectify this sooner rather than later.

Imagination and Emancipation

Among other things I am currently reading John Lewis Gaddis The Cold War: A Short History (NY: Penguin, 2005). He notes that both Pope John Paul II and Ronald Reagan had been actors and that their ability to imagine and dramatize an alternative to the status quo helped lead to the end of the Cold War (pp. 192-197). This is close to an idea I have been mulling over for a while. But, one which is certainly not new with me. I have become convinced that the most important step in the successful construction of civil society is for citizens to view themselves as free men responsible for their own future. Unfortunately, I do not think that this emancipation from mental slavery has yet occurred in much of the former Soviet Union. In fact I believe it is actually historically too late for a number of former republics of the USSR to ever develop this mind set. The struggle for liberation has to come before actual independence not decades later.

Laguna Hills Mall

Today I walked down to Laguna Hills Mall for the third time since I have been here. The mall has suffered from the US economic downtown since I was last in Southern California two years ago. The book store has closed along with most of the outlets in the food court. The two Japanese restaurants that used to be in the mall are also closed or gone. Laguna Hills Mall did not get looted like the Vefa Center, but it is not looking a whole lot better.

Conspiracy Theory

It has been a couple of years since I have seen any American television programs. So I have been doing some catch up recently. A lot of US television programs remain rather insipid, but some are quite good. My current favorite television show is Jesse "The Body" Ventura's Conspiracy Theory. Today I watched him cover global warming, water theft, Wall Street, and of course the assassination of JFK.

Merry Christmas

This Christmas I am back in the US for the first time in two years. Southern Orange County now seems very different from Kyrgyzstan, much more so than it did during the winter of 2008-2009. It is sometimes hard to believe that Bishkek is on the same planet as Southern California.

Now for some very good news

This is not exactly fresh news, but I have held off on blogging about it until now. I have been appointed as a Visiting Scholar in the History Department of the University of Ghana in Legon. I start teaching classes on 31 January 2011. I am very excited about this opportunity. It will be my first time in Africa.

Weather in Southern California

The weather in Southern California has been rainy and windy since I got here. I hope it gets sunny soon. Day after day of cloudy, cold and wet weather is not what I expected here.

In the US for the Holidays

Yesterday I flew Turkish Airlines from Bishkek to Istanbul and then to Chicago. I then flew to Los Angeles by American Airlines. The trip is extremely long and security in Istanbul is very tight. I had six passport checks during transit in Istanbul. But, some people only have to do five. If anybody in Southern California wants to see me between now and late January let me know.

Another Visit to the Volksrat

Yesterday I went with a research assistant to the Volksrat der Deutschen der Kyrgysischen Republik to return some books and let them know how our interviews in Kant and Ivanovka went. They were happy to see us and told me they wanted a copy of the book I was writing when it was finished. As always they were very friendly and their assistance is greatly appreciated.

Interviews of Russian-Germans in Ivanovka

On Sunday I went with two research assistants to the village of Ivanovka (formerly Johannesdorf) to interview elderly Russian-Germans. We talked to two women and one man. Despite being founded as a German settlement by Mennonites from the Talas Valley, Ivanovka has almost no Germans or German influence left. We had to actively seek out the few remaining elderly Russian-Germans there. The town is now mostly Kyrgyz and Dungan.

Winter has arrived

The other day we had a massive snow storm here and the temperature dropped significantly. It has now stopped snowing, but it is still quite cold. The city is now covered in snow.

Weather and Book Manuscript

It has been unseasonably warm in Bishkek recently. Most days it is sunny and not too cold now. We have had a little bit of rain, but no snow recently.

I am up to almost 120 pages on my book manuscript now. I still have to add most of the information from the interviews in Kant. I also hope to finish typing up most of the background material in the next couple of weeks.

Interviews with Russian-Germans in Kant

Yesterday I went with three research assistants to interview elderly Russian-Germans in the nearby town of Kant. We interviewed four women and one man. I thought the interview with the man was the most interesting. He was born in Crimea, then deported to the North Caucasus in August 1941, and then exiled to Kazakhstan in October 1941. The Stalin regime then mobilized him into the labor army in 1942. He worked in Bakalstroi and noted that he only survived because he was small and did not need much food. All the large men perished. After his release from the labor army in 1948 he returned to Kazakhstan, then went to Uzbekistan, and finally ended up in Kyrgyzstan. For a guy in his 80s he was remarkably energetic and sharp.

Book Project

I have gotten up to 106 pages double spaced on my book manuscript dealing with Russian-Germans in Central Asia. The project is coming along faster than I expected. I hope to get a rough draft completed in a couple more months.

Kyrgyz Fast Food

On days when I have to work all day and do not have time to go home for lunch I have taken to eating at Shumkar, a chain of cafeterias here in Bishkek. It has the advantage of being fast and cheap. I usually get their manti, a smoked duck salad, and compot. I have taken to calling the place McManti since their manti is the equivalent of a Big Mac in the US, tasty and filling, but very high in fat. On days when I tire of manti I get their plov. It is not quite the Golden Arches, but it is close enough on most days.

A relatively unexplored aspect of Soviet deportations

One overlooked commonality between the various whole nationalities deported by the Stalin regime is the difficulty the Soviet government had in asserting economic control over them. In different ways the Russian-Germans, Chechens, and others managed in part to do an end run around central control over their economic affairs during the 1920s and 1930s. I have not done a whole lot of empirical research on this yet, but I think it is another motivating factor in the mass deportations.

Cold Front

It has gotten very cold  in Bishkek. This week we had a snowstorm. The snow has all melted, but it is still quite chilly for October.

Progress

So far I have gotten over 21,000 words or 72 pages double spaced written on the new book manuscript. I hope to be able to finish a complete draft before the year is over. Currently I am averaging about two pages a day.

Russian-Germans in Kyrgyzstan

Thursday I visited the Volksrat der Deutschen der Kyrgysischen Republik as part of my research for my book on the history of the Russian-Germans in Central Asia. The people there were very friendly and helpful. They let me use their library and agreed to assist me in finding people to interview about life during Soviet times. According to their figures there are still around 11,000 Russian-Germans left in Kyrgyzstan. But, they have become very dispersed. The isolated and compact settlements that previously existed in places like Nikolaipohl (now Leninpohl) in Talas Oblast have largely dissipated due to emigration. Despite these losses, the community is very well organized and has a number of regional centers throughout Kyrgyzstan.

Working on a new book

I have been working on a new book recently. It is a history of the Russian-Germans in Central Asia. I have 54 pages double spaced written so far. I still do not have a cool title for the work yet. If anybody has any suggestions please let me know.

I found another mystery novel

Yesterday I found a novel by Alex Cava for 80 som. Again I read the whole book in a day. Now that the number of foreigners in Bishkek is rapidly dwindling it is possible to find small parts of their former libraries for sale. I do not know how many Americans are left in the city, but it is not many.

Thank You

I would like to thank all of those people in the US, Canada and elsewhere who have stood by me and helped me in my recent time of need. Your support is greatly appreciated. Things are much better for me and my family now than they were in June in large part because of this assistance. I am truly grateful.

A New Start

Now that I am over 40 I am hoping to be able to get a new start on life. Granted it is not a very promising start at the moment. But, I am a lot better off than I was a couple of months ago. So I am hoping that the rate of improvement will continue and I can find a job at a university somewhere in the next year. If not then I need to reconsider my career. Maybe I can go back to making coffee. It certainly paid a lot better than teaching.

Political Islam in Central Asia

I noticed that Islamic militants staged an attack in Tajikistan recently. It is very unlikely anything like that will happen here soon. But, I do think there is a potential for an Islamic political movement to develop here. I have noticed that people have become increasingly religious recently. Most Kyrgyz still drink vodka during the day during Ramadan, but a growing minority have started actually practicing the tenets of Islam.

It has gotten cold here

The weather here in Bishkek went from boiling hot to freezing cold in a single day last week. It would have been nice to have had a short interval of moderate weather. But, overall things are much better now than they were in the summer.

A Small Treasure

It has been a long time since I read a mystery novel. But, yesterday while walking Askarbek to school I found a Lawrence Sander's novel for sale on the street for 50 som (a little over a dollar). I can not say it was the best piece of fiction I have ever read, but I did devour it in one day. The amount of English language literature available in this country is quite limited. Popular novels in particular are hard to come by.

Update on my status

Now that I have solved the problem of impending starvation for a few months, I am trying to deal with more long term problems. I am applying to jobs in the US and elsewhere even though getting work in a US university seems like a long shot. I have also started writing a little bit again after work. But, most of all I have been trying to keep a positive attitude. Not having to worry about my family going hungry helps a lot.

Aftermath

I fixed my visa and registration problems in July. It now looks like I can cobble together enough paying work to sustain us at least until December. Longer term I hope I can find something steady that pays decently before next August. I am willing to travel anywhere in the world so if anybody has any suggestions please let me know.

One Month Old

Mary Lynn is now over a month old. The last time she went to the doctor she had gained a kilogram in weight since her birth. I am not sure what the future holds for her, but for now she seems happy.

Askarbek was on TV

Friday Askarbek was on TV here. One of the local channels filmed a piece at his kindergarten and there is a segment with him and a teacher doing an art project. It was filmed over a week ago, but we knew before hand so Oksana could dress Askarbek up.

Improvement

I think things are going a little bit better now. I am pretty sure that my family is not going to go hungry now. For a while I was not sure.

Happy Birthday Askarbek

Today is Askarbek's birthday. He has been fascinated like the rest of us with the new baby. She spends most of her time sleeping quietly. But, she does eat a lot.

A new addition to the family

Early this morning Oksana gave birth to our new daughter, Mary Lynn. She weighed in at 3.3 kg (about seven and a quarter pounds). 

Things are more stable now

It looks like I have taken care of my most immediate concerns now. For a while things looked very bad. Now things look considerably better. Thank you to those people here in Bishkek that helped me negotiate this very difficult time.

I am still alive

For those wondering, yes I am still alive. But, recently my life has been very hectic. I will post more when things settle down somewhat.

Second half of Interview up at Moon Brothers

The second half of the interview with me is now up at the Moon Brothers' blog.

Update on Kyrgyzstan

Bishkek is still safe. But, there have been reports of ethnic clashes in Talas and Tokmok as well as Osh and Jalabad. The official toll of dead in Osh given by the government is over 2000. The UN estimates that some 400,000 people have been displaced from their homes by the recent events. This is definitely the worst violence Kyrgyzstan has seen in many decades.

Heat Wave

It has been really hot in Bishkek the last week. It has also been very humid. I do not mind the heat itself, but the humidity is very uncomfortable.

Moon Brothers Interview of me

A couple of months ago the Moon Brothers conducted an interview with me by e-mail about the history of the Russian-Germans. The interview is meant to provide historical background to their forthcoming movie Under Jakob's Ladder. The interview can be found here.

http://amoonbrothersfilm.blogspot.com/

Trouble in Osh

Other than what I see on the news and read on the Internet I do not have much information on the recent events in Osh. But, it looks very bad. This is certainly the worst ethnic violence in Kyrgyzstan since 1990 and may end up being worse. Already the news is reporting that more people have been killed in Osh in the last few day than were killed in Bishkek on April 7th. So far Bishkek has not been too badly effected. Prices are going up noticeably, but other than that things still seem fairly normal. That could all change if we start getting waves of internally displaced peoples fleeing the violence in Osh.

What little information I do have that I have gotten from sources other than the news or Internet is that the attacks on Uzbeks were motivated by the rumor that a gang of Uzbeks raped and mutilated some Kyrgyz girls. I am sceptical of the veracity of this claim since it sounds like the justification for a lot of lynchings and pogroms. But, even if it does contain a kernel of truth the racist ascription of these criminal acts to Uzbeks in general by some Kyrgyz and the subsequent violence is truly disturbing.

Thank You to all my Supporters

I would like to thank everybody who has written or is planning to write to incoming AUCA president, Andrew B. Wachtel on my behalf. I believe your letters have had a positive effect. At least Dr. Wachtel now knows that there are people out there that do respect my scholarship and teaching. For those of you familiar with my scholarship and teaching that have not yet written Dr. Wachtel I am again reproducing his e-mail below. Type in the information between the brackets. If I do not include the brackets it will be a live link and subject to spiders and robots sent by spammers. I only want real people writing to Dr. Wachtel.

[a-wachtel@northwestern.edu]

If you have written on my behalf already and have not received a personal thank you from me, please send me an e-mail so I can express my gratitude. Some of you have shared the letters you have sent to Dr. Wachtel with me and I have been very touched. Your words mean a lot to me.

It has been over three years since I left Arivaca

I have now lived in Kyrgyzstan for a year longer than I lived in Arivaca. Yet it seems that I lived in Arivaca for much longer. There are a lot of things I miss about Arivaca. But, being treated with respect by everybody there is close to the top. The AUCA administration's complete lack of respect for me as a human being, scholar and teacher has really been galling. I wish they would at least stop lying to me and take responsibility for their actions.

Vefa Center is Open Again

Vefa center is open again, but it is not the same. Only some of the stores have reopened and they have a lot less inventory than they used to carry. The old Vefa center could have fit nicely in the ritzy areas of Orange County. Now it looks like it belongs in a run down section of Fresno.

New Publication Coming Soon

It has taken a while to get into print, but the book chapter based upon the paper I gave at Tartu Univeristy in 2005 for the Border Changes in 20th Century Europe: International Conference in Honor of the 85th Anniversary of the Tartu Peace Treaty is going to be published soon. It will be the following chapter in the book below. That makes eight scholarly publications since I started working at AUCA. Nobody else in the department even has a Ph.D. yet alone that many publications.

J. Otto Pohl, “Ethnic Erasure: The Role of Border Changes in Soviet Ethnic Cleansing and Return Migration” in Eero Medijainen and Olaf Mertelsmann, eds., Border Changes in 20th Century Europe, vol. 1 Tartu Studies in Contemporary History (Hamburg, Germany: Lit-Verlag, 2010), pp. 217-236.