PSIR - Strategy, resources & discussion
Hi peeps. Let’s do this!
1. Previous papers from 2009 (both papers are in the same PDF):here2. Topic-wise PYQs: here
3. Look for PDFs of books here: b-ok.cc, http://libgen.rs/, archive.org
4. Model answers from SR:here
5. OnlyIAS notes, if you need extra matter for a few topics:here
6. SR notes, typed:politicsforindia.com
Shivshankar Menon's new book, India and Asian Geopolitics, is also worth reading, especially if the subject is new to you.
I read somewhere regarding his book. He has written India is not ‘vishwa guru’ yet because world is much more realistic. A country's success is based on material power, hard power, economy, military strength, and ability to handle domestic affairs properly. Do you agree ?
By the way, Menons are in IFS for 3 generations now. Extraordinary !
About the Menons - the story goes that an astrologer when asked to predict about KPS Menon's ( Shiv Shankar Menon's grandfather) chances to become Foreign Secretary predicted that not only KPS but his child and grandchild will also rise to Foreign Secretary.
Incredibly that prediction turned out to be true
Shivshankar Menon's new book, India and Asian Geopolitics, is also worth reading, especially if the subject is new to you.
Have you read the whole thing? If so do you recommend reading it whole? I have read a couple of chapters from the "Past" section which, though interesting, didn't seem like it added much to my prep. I'm hoping that the "Present" section is better in that aspect.
he has also written that becoming vishwaguru is pointless if the people of the country goes hungry, sick, and poor. definitely it might satisfy the ego , but the goal should be welfare and transformation of lives of ordinary people. Further he argues that historically only those rising powers have grown into major powers who have managed to control their urge to flaunt power and built their power silently. He gives example of peloponesian war b/w sparta and athens, Wilhelm germany, japan in 1930's. By being assertive prematurely on global stage , a state attracts wrath of the status quoist powers. Even china followed a policy ofI read somewhere regarding his book. He has written India is not ‘vishwa guru’ yet because world is much more realistic. A country's success is based on material power, hard power, economy, military strength, and ability to handle domestic affairs properly. Do you agree ?
By the way, Menons are in IFS for 3 generations now. Extraordinary !
hide your ambitions and disguise your claws, and only after global financial crisis became assertive and ambitious on global stage. But on the other hand there also arguments against this hiding strength argument. China was assertive right from the day zero, it went on to have a border war with india, a conflict with soviet in 60s, tiannanmen square , involvement in vietnam, korea et al
This reminded me of the funniest article headline that I've read recently
https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/07/28/oh-god-not-the-peloponnesian-war-again/
whatonly,paywall !!he has also written that becoming vishwaguru is pointless if the people of the country goes hungry, sick, and poor. definitely it might satisfy the ego , but the goal should be welfare and transformation of lives of ordinary people. Further he argues that historically only those rising powers have grown into major powers who have managed to control their urge to flaunt power and built their power silently. He gives example of peloponesian war b/w sparta and athens, Wilhelm germany, japan in 1930's. By being assertive prematurely on global stage , a state attracts wrath of the status quoist powers. Even china followed a policy ofI read somewhere regarding his book. He has written India is not ‘vishwa guru’ yet because world is much more realistic. A country's success is based on material power, hard power, economy, military strength, and ability to handle domestic affairs properly. Do you agree ?
By the way, Menons are in IFS for 3 generations now. Extraordinary !
hide your ambitions and disguise your claws, and only after global financial crisis became assertive and ambitious on global stage. But on the other hand there also arguments against this hiding strength argument. China was assertive right from the day zero, it went on to have a border war with india, a conflict with soviet in 60s, tiannanmen square , involvement in vietnam, korea et al
This reminded me of the funniest article headline that I've read recently
https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/07/28/oh-god-not-the-peloponnesian-war-again/
paywall !!he has also written that becoming vishwaguru is pointless if the people of the country goes hungry, sick, and poor. definitely it might satisfy the ego , but the goal should be welfare and transformation of lives of ordinary people. Further he argues that historically only those rising powers have grown into major powers who have managed to control their urge to flaunt power and built their power silently. He gives example of peloponesian war b/w sparta and athens, Wilhelm germany, japan in 1930's. By being assertive prematurely on global stage , a state attracts wrath of the status quoist powers. Even china followed a policy ofI read somewhere regarding his book. He has written India is not ‘vishwa guru’ yet because world is much more realistic. A country's success is based on material power, hard power, economy, military strength, and ability to handle domestic affairs properly. Do you agree ?
By the way, Menons are in IFS for 3 generations now. Extraordinary !
hide your ambitions and disguise your claws, and only after global financial crisis became assertive and ambitious on global stage. But on the other hand there also arguments against this hiding strength argument. China was assertive right from the day zero, it went on to have a border war with india, a conflict with soviet in 60s, tiannanmen square , involvement in vietnam, korea et al
This reminded me of the funniest article headline that I've read recently
https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/07/28/oh-god-not-the-peloponnesian-war-again/
Clear your cache memory and try again.
Dionysus,Have you read the whole thing? If so do you recommend reading it whole? I have read a couple of chapters from the "Past" section which, though interesting, didn't seem like it added much to my prep. I'm hoping that the "Present" section is better in that aspect.
The “Present” section is better for having points directly useable in the exam I think. Especially since the author is so quotable. I especially liked the chapter on globalisation. However, the other chapters on China and the rest of Asia don’t cover much that we won’t already know from collecting info in the general course of prep, and whatever is new covers too small an area to be asked in the exam, so this section can be read selectively.
The “Past” covers the history of Asian geopolitics (who’d have thunk) so it’s good for understanding the present dynamics but there won’t be much opportunity to use it in the exam. But i was reading about many of these events for the first time ever, so maybe it isn’t necessary for someone who knows enough about them already.
From the exam pov, selected chapters from the second half should be good, but that too only if the other standard sources are already done. :)
OnlyIAS released some notes (for free) on the whole syllabus arranged topic wise. I found them too late for 2020, but if you’re making your notes now and need some extra material on certain topics, they’re a good source.
@whatonly @AzadHindFauz or anyone else did you make block diagrams or flowcharts or anyother such things in ur answers??
OnlyIAS released some notes (for free) on the whole syllabus arranged topic wise. I found them too late for 2020, but if you’re making your notes now and need some extra material on certain topics, they’re a good source.
Thank you for this looks really concise can be used for value addition !!
whatonly,
@whatonly @AzadHindFauz or anyone else did you make block diagrams or flowcharts or anyother such things in ur answers??
No, not in PSIR!
Hey everyone,
Has anyone enrolled for PSIR advance (Chaubey), if yes then how would you compare it to the crash course at Shubhra's? Also, how's the TS at GSScore?
Thanks. Hope you're all doing alright. Stay safe you lot. :)
https://forumias.com/post/detail/PSIR-Strategy-resources-discussion-1601965839?JS1DPFIuIyRgCmAK
Stay safe too! :)
@whatonly @AzadHindFauz or anyone else did you make block diagrams or flowcharts or anyother such things in ur answers??
Only paragraphs everywhere :)
Villanelle,HeNeArKr
Thanks@whatonly for keeping the resource list updated!
whatonly,Hey everyone,
Has anyone enrolled for PSIR advance (Chaubey), if yes then how would you compare it to the crash course at Shubhra's? Also, how's the TS at GSScore?
Thanks. Hope you're all doing alright. Stay safe you lot. :)
I don't know how to compare it to the SR crash course since I haven't seen the latter. I, personally, didn't like the video lectures. Others here didn't like the SR lectures. Maybe lectures just aren't really useful once you've crossed a certain threshold in your preparation.
I liked the TS (apart from the inconsistent evaluation), the solutions given were better than those given in the SR crash course.
sstarrr,whatonly@whatonly @AzadHindFauz or anyone else did you make block diagrams or flowcharts or anyother such things in ur answers??
It has always been just paragraphs for me, but Insights has recently come out with a TS with 3D strategy- Demand, Dimensions, Diagrams, so i don't know what to think...
@whatonly Thanks a lot. Also I was wondering whether y'all have a small PSIR group for peer evaluation/discussion etc? There has been an 'otherisation of men' in PSIR peer review groups on TG.
There were some last year after prelims, don't know if there's one now. Could be nice to start early!
Also what do you mean? :o
I found this in the OnlyIAS notes-
Mahatma Gandhi wrote,
“Socialism and communism of the West are based on certain conceptions which are fundamentally different from ours. One such conception is their belief in the essential selfishness of human nature.”Now, this is a bad understanding of socialism/marxism- they hold universal egoism to be a bourgeois concept. Gandhi famously read zero theory. He first picked up Das Kapital when he was 75. Which brings me to my question-
Would you write a quote by an illustrious person if you know that they have no clue what they're talking about?
whatonly,
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