 Different
shapes lead to different forms
of government
 Unitary states….have power held
centrally by one government entity. This
is generally employed by compact states.
 Federal states….power is shared by the
central government and regional
governments. This is often employed by
fragmented, elongated, and particularly
large states.
 Some
populations prefer a weak central
government.
 This allows regional governments to
maintain greater autonomy.
 Historic example:
The US under the Articles of Confederation
…it didn’t work out too well for us!
 Present Day Example:
Switzerland…the land of neutrality
…of course it works for them!
 Many
federal governments
today are transferring
power from the central
government to regional
governments…
not quite creating
confederations….but close!
 This is often a result of
centrifugal forces and can
often lead to the
Balkanization of a country!
 Centrifugal
Forces – divisive forces
 F for FRACTURE / FLING apart (separatism, conflicts, divisions)
 Soviet Union
 Yugoslavia
 Centripetal




Forces – unifying forces
P for PULL together (unifying symbols, strong identify)
Nation-states
The United States of America
Indonesia
 Friedrich
Ratzel argued
that states are organic,
living organisms that
must grow … consuming
land for nourishment.
 They need lebensraum!
 Just one theory that Hitler
used to justify his
ambitions!
1904, Sir Halford MacKinder,
a British political
geographer
The Heartland Theory
suggests that whoever
owns Eastern Europe
and Western Asia has
the political power and
capital to rule the world.
 Eastern
Europe contains one of the richest
AGRICULTURAL regions in the world. The
Ukraine region could produce enough wheat
and other agricultural products to sustain a
large population – and feed its armies.
 Abundant RAW
MATRIALS such
as coal, essential to
develop a military &
industrial base, are
available in this
region.
 Yet
another theory that Adolf
Hitler believed in to justify why
he invaded Eastern Europe.
Although he underestimated
the Soviet citizens’ resolve and
the severity of the Russian
winter!
 The
Soviet Union exerted
control over Eastern Europe,
greatly concerning Western
Europe, the United States, and
other noncommunist countries.




Nicholas Spykman (Dutch
political geographer at Yale)
The Rimland Theory suggests
that forming alliances is
necessary to keep the Heartland
in check.
Because the Heartland is so
powerful, no individual country
can contain it by itself.
Hence, you had the establishment
of NATO, SEATO, and CENTO in
response to the spread of the
communism around the world.
Spykman believed that the Heartland may control the
LAND but the Rimland will control the SEA.
The Heartland is trapped in a sense by its own
geography.
• To the north is an ocean that is icebound much of the year.
• To the east are the Ural Mountains and vast tracts of land with
sparse populations.
• To the south is the Middle East with its immense deserts.
• To the west is Democratic Western Europe
The Rimland would use the oceans to contain the
Heartland, engaging in a battle between land and sea.
 The
Domino Theory was adopted by the United
States during the Cold War.
 Also
referred to as Containment Policy.
 The
Central Intelligence
Agency (CIA) developed this
theory, which suggests that
when one country experiences
rebellion or political disunity,
other countries around it will
also experience turmoil as a
result, leading to a domino
effect of political instability in
the region.

It was used to justify US
military involvement in SE
Asia and Central America.