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[[Image:Truman pass-the-buck.jpg|thumb|right|At the recreation of the Truman [[Oval Office]] at the Truman Library in 1959, the former [[Harry S. Truman|President Truman]] poses by his old desk which has the famous "[[The Buck Stops Here]]" sign.]]
[[Image:Truman pass-the-buck.jpg|thumb|right|At the recreation of the Truman [[Oval Office]] at the Truman Library in 1959, the former [[Harry S. Truman|President Truman]] poses by his old desk which has the famous "[[The Buck Stops Here]]" sign.]]
'''Buck passing''' or '''passing the buck''' is the act of attributing another person or group with responsibility for one's own actions. It is often used to refer to a strategy in [[power politics]], when the action, or inaction, of a country is blamed on another, providing an opportunity for war.
'''Buck passing''' or '''passing the buck''' is the act of attributing another person or group with responsibility for one's own actions. It is often used to refer to a strategy in [[power politics]] whereby a state tries to get another state to deter, or possibly fight, an aggressor state while it remains on the sidelines.<ref>{{cite book|last=John|first=Mearsheimer|title=The Tragedy of Great Power Politics|year=2001|publisher=W.W. Norton & Company|location=New York|isbn=9780393076240|page=157-158|url=http://books.google.com/books/about/The_Tragedy_of_Great_Power_Politics.html?id=lDzCD_C_ipoC}}</ref>


==Etymology==
==Etymology==
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==Historical examples==
==Historical examples==
Passing the buck in international relations theory involves the tendency of nation-states to refuse to confront a growing threat in the hopes that another state will. The most notable example of this was the refusal of the [[United Kingdom]], USA, [[France]], or the [[Soviet Union]] to effectively confront [[Nazi Germany]] during the 1930s. With the [[Munich Agreement]], France and the United Kingdom successfully avoided armed confrontation with Germany, passing the buck to the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union later responded with the [[Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact]], passing the buck back to the western powers.<ref>{{cite journal|last = Christensen|first = Thomas|coauthors = Jack Snyder|title = Chain Gangs and Passed Bucks: Predicting Alliance Patterns in Multipolarity|journal = International Organization|volume = 44|issue = 2|pages = 137–168|year = 1990|url = http://www.people.fas.harvard.edu/~olau/ir/archive/chr1.pdf|format=PDF|accessdate = June 2007|doi = 10.1017/S0020818300035232}}</ref>
Passing the buck in international relations theory involves the tendency of nation-states to refuse to confront a growing threat in the hopes that another state will. The most notable example of this was the refusal of the [[United Kingdom]], USA, [[France]], or the [[Soviet Union]] to effectively confront [[Nazi Germany]] during the 1930s. With the [[Munich Agreement]], France and the United Kingdom successfully avoided armed confrontation with Germany, passing the buck to the Soviet Union. This action, [[John Mearsheimer]] argues, shows how a buck passing state can shift the balance of power in its favor: "There is no question that the United States benefited greatly from delaying the Normandy invasion until late in the war, when both the German and the Soviet armies were battered and worn down. Not surprisingly, Josef Stalin believed that the United Kingdom and the United States were purposely allowing Germany and the Soviet Union to bleed each other white, so that [the United States and the United Kingdom] could dominate postwar Europe."<ref>{{cite book|last=John|first=Mearsheimer|title=The Tragedy of Great Power Politics|year=2001|publisher=W.W. Norton & Company|location=New York|isbn=9780393076240|page=160|url=http://books.google.com/books/about/The_Tragedy_of_Great_Power_Politics.html?id=lDzCD_C_ipoC}}</ref> Prior to the war's outbreak, the Soviet Union attempted to pass the buck to western powers by signing the [[Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact]].<ref>{{cite journal|last = Christensen|first = Thomas|coauthors = Jack Snyder|title = Chain Gangs and Passed Bucks: Predicting Alliance Patterns in Multipolarity|journal = International Organization|volume = 44|issue = 2|pages = 137–168|year = 1990|url = http://www.people.fas.harvard.edu/~olau/ir/archive/chr1.pdf|format=PDF|accessdate = June 2007|doi = 10.1017/S0020818300035232}}</ref>


'''"The buck stops here"''' is a phrase that was popularized by [[U.S. President]] [[Harry S. Truman]], who kept a sign with that phrase on his desk in the [[Oval Office]].<ref>[http://www.trumanlibrary.org/buckstop.htm "The Buck Stops Here" Desk Sign] on trumanlibrary.org.</ref> (Footage from [[Jimmy Carter]]'s "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tPePpMxJaA Address to the Nation on Energy]" shows the sign still on the desk during Carter's administration.) The phrase refers to the fact that the President has to make the decisions and accept the ultimate responsibility for those decisions. Truman received the sign as a gift from a prison warden who was also an avid poker player. It is also the motto of the [[List of aircraft carriers of the United States Navy|U.S. Naval Aircraft Carrier]] [[USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75)|USS ''Harry S. Truman'' (CVN-75)]].<ref>Jan R. Van Meter, ''[[Tippecanoe and Tyler Too]]: Famous Slogans and Catchphrases in American History''.</ref>
'''"The buck stops here"''' is a phrase that was popularized by [[U.S. President]] [[Harry S. Truman]], who kept a sign with that phrase on his desk in the [[Oval Office]].<ref>[http://www.trumanlibrary.org/buckstop.htm "The Buck Stops Here" Desk Sign] on trumanlibrary.org.</ref> (Footage from [[Jimmy Carter]]'s "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tPePpMxJaA Address to the Nation on Energy]" shows the sign still on the desk during Carter's administration.) The phrase refers to the fact that the President has to make the decisions and accept the ultimate responsibility for those decisions. Truman received the sign as a gift from a prison warden who was also an avid poker player. It is also the motto of the [[List of aircraft carriers of the United States Navy|U.S. Naval Aircraft Carrier]] [[USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75)|USS ''Harry S. Truman'' (CVN-75)]].<ref>Jan R. Van Meter, ''[[Tippecanoe and Tyler Too]]: Famous Slogans and Catchphrases in American History''.</ref>

Revision as of 21:26, 22 April 2013

At the recreation of the Truman Oval Office at the Truman Library in 1959, the former President Truman poses by his old desk which has the famous "The Buck Stops Here" sign.

Buck passing or passing the buck is the act of attributing another person or group with responsibility for one's own actions. It is often used to refer to a strategy in power politics whereby a state tries to get another state to deter, or possibly fight, an aggressor state while it remains on the sidelines.[1]

Etymology

The expression is said to have originated from poker, in which a marker or counter (e.g., a knife with a buckhorn handle during the American Frontier era) was used to indicate the person whose turn it was to deal. If the player did not wish to deal he could pass the responsibility by passing the "buck", as the counter came to be called, to the next player.[2]

Historical examples

Passing the buck in international relations theory involves the tendency of nation-states to refuse to confront a growing threat in the hopes that another state will. The most notable example of this was the refusal of the United Kingdom, USA, France, or the Soviet Union to effectively confront Nazi Germany during the 1930s. With the Munich Agreement, France and the United Kingdom successfully avoided armed confrontation with Germany, passing the buck to the Soviet Union. This action, John Mearsheimer argues, shows how a buck passing state can shift the balance of power in its favor: "There is no question that the United States benefited greatly from delaying the Normandy invasion until late in the war, when both the German and the Soviet armies were battered and worn down. Not surprisingly, Josef Stalin believed that the United Kingdom and the United States were purposely allowing Germany and the Soviet Union to bleed each other white, so that [the United States and the United Kingdom] could dominate postwar Europe."[3] Prior to the war's outbreak, the Soviet Union attempted to pass the buck to western powers by signing the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact.[4]

"The buck stops here" is a phrase that was popularized by U.S. President Harry S. Truman, who kept a sign with that phrase on his desk in the Oval Office.[5] (Footage from Jimmy Carter's "Address to the Nation on Energy" shows the sign still on the desk during Carter's administration.) The phrase refers to the fact that the President has to make the decisions and accept the ultimate responsibility for those decisions. Truman received the sign as a gift from a prison warden who was also an avid poker player. It is also the motto of the U.S. Naval Aircraft Carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75).[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ John, Mearsheimer (2001). The Tragedy of Great Power Politics. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. p. 157-158. ISBN 9780393076240.
  2. ^ Mitford M. Mathews, ed., A Dictionary of Americanisms on Historical Principles (Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 1951), I, pages 198-99.
  3. ^ John, Mearsheimer (2001). The Tragedy of Great Power Politics. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. p. 160. ISBN 9780393076240.
  4. ^ Christensen, Thomas (1990). "Chain Gangs and Passed Bucks: Predicting Alliance Patterns in Multipolarity" (PDF). International Organization. 44 (2): 137–168. doi:10.1017/S0020818300035232. Retrieved June 2007. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  5. ^ "The Buck Stops Here" Desk Sign on trumanlibrary.org.
  6. ^ Jan R. Van Meter, Tippecanoe and Tyler Too: Famous Slogans and Catchphrases in American History.