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Es ist doch Politik! : Liberalisierung und Integration der Finanzmärkte als politischer Prozess
(2005)
This article examines the liberalization and cross-border integration of European financial markets from a political-economic perspective. Three features particularly come to the fore: First, national liberalization and European integration have been two sides of one integrated political process that owes its specific dynamics to the conflicts of interest between different groups of actors. Second, not only effective liberalization, but also market integration relies on an extension and formalization of public financial market regulation – and thus seemingly on ‘more state’. Third, the established distinction between ‘state’ and ‘market’ and their respective roles is insufficient for a proper understanding for the politics of financial market regulation.
The author discusses the issue whether the internet and other electronic sources should be used for elections. Online-elections can make the electoral process not only less complex but also cheaper, thus the analysis faster and more reliable. The lower costs could, in turn, lead to a new impulse on direct-democracy-instruments. Comparing the USA, Great Britain, Germany and Switzerland the article provides information about national strategies, discourses and problems, and shows the different political and cultural settings.
Editorial
(2005)
Editorial
(2005)
Editorial
(2005)
Editorial
(2005)
The United States, despite impressive efforts, have not reduced Colombian drug supplies over the recent years. Policy ineffectiveness results from problems in Colombia, including poverty, strong non-state actors, as well as a weak state and society. On the US side, ineffectiveness results from a geographically selective approach, a reliance on coercion, and bilateralism. The US has exacerbated human rights violations, environmental destruction, the displacement of the drug industry within Colombia, and the spread of Colombian problems to neighbouring countries.
Academics have been arguing about the political and social changes initiated by communication technologies for more than hundred years. Internet-politics does not have the potential to form a new digital culture of deliberation. The existing background of communication culture is a very important variable which has not been incorporated before. The author suggests five different concepts of politics based on the internet. The model of digital democracy provides a basis for exploring the interconnection between internetbased politics and change in political and communication culture. Digital democracy has the potential to make a difference in public deliberation; however, it needs concerned elites and prudent governance.
Die vernachlässigte Reform : zum Primat der Politik über das Militär im südlichenLateinamerika
(2005)
Despite many economic and state reforms in South America, no comparable changes have taken place with regard to civil-military relations: Neither do the armed forces have a clearly defined mission of their own nor are they adequately democratically controlled. The article looks at the present civil-military relations from various angles and explicitly deals with examples from Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and Peru. It presents the reasons for the lack of civilian control over the military and discusses the resulting consequences for domestic and foreign politics.
The role of the military in the Peruvian revolution of 1968 is the key point of this article. The author, founder of the ELN guerrilla organization, worked together with the military and describes its situation and intentions in a very personal way. Different internal and external factors that led to the failure of the revolution are analysed in detail. The conflicts between the left-wing military and the civilian left are especially emphasized.
Der Putsch nach dem Putsch
(2005)
The ideological change within the Chilean military before and after the coup in 1973 is the central issue of this article. Before the developments in the early 1970s, the cardinal mindset of the military leaders was one of a state-run evolution of society. After the coup, this thinking changed rapidly into a neoliberal kind. How could this happen? Which explanations have been and which should be discussed? These questions are answered and it is shown that the military itself played a bigger role than previously thought.
In the Spring 2004 issue of WeltTrends, Gunther Hellmann sparked a debate on Germany’s foreign policy. The debate was resumed through the Summer, Fall, Winter and Spring editions (no. 43 to 46) of WeltTrends, which featured articles of German International Relations scholars as well as foreign policy-makers and experts from abroad. In his concluding article, Hellmann seizes the opportunity to outline and comment on some characteristics of the debate as revealed in the contributions of his critics.
The military in Mexico started out as a revolutionary army that secured the regime of the governmental party PRI. The article discusses the change of this army into a national and hemispheric police force under the influence of the USA. Today, the functions of the Mexican army are a mix of fighting against drugs, organized delinquency, terrorism and counterinsurgency and cooperating with US as well as other Latin American forces.
The second election of President Bush is the climax of twelve years of successful activity by the Republicans. Rarely before could an American president rely on a majority in both houses of the Congress. Consequently, Bush has ever since his re-election conveyed the impression that he is committed to follow the paths he had taken during his first term at home and in international affairs without any concessions. Therefore, also his new initiatives towards Europe seem to be aimed only to improve the transatlantic atmosphere but not to develop a more cooperative American foreign policy.
The authors argue that the public opinion and the discourse of political elites differ significantly within the Franco-German debate on the Constitutional Treaty of the EU. Moreover, the article shows that the discussion reflects different conceptions of European politics. These differences lead to the claim that the co-operation and the leading role of Germany and France in the EU have to be re-defined. This has to occur in the context of a politicisation of European politics, which is crucial for the future of the enlarged European Union.
This article deals with the explanation of failed democratisation as caused by political culture. Against the background of the Belarus’ autocracy, the author questions that political culture can be considered a reason for failed democratisation. The Belarus’ paternalistic political culture does not essentially differ from that of successfully democratising neighbouring states. A weak national conscience is the only specific characteristic of the Belarus autocracy, but it lacks a convincing theoretical link with democratisation. Nevertheless, in paternalistic political cultures, successful democratisation seems to need more incentives for people, due to higher adaptation costs.
Following an interpretive sociological approach, the article analyses the rise and transformation of the UÇK in terms of social order and the resulting implications for a solution of the Kosovo status question. Combining Elias’ concept of society with Bourdieu’s categories of capital, the development of the UÇK can be “understood” from an interpretive point of view. In the social space of war, the UÇK rose as a result of increasing capital. As the war ended, the UÇK fell apart because it was unable to accomplish the indispensable functions of any social order.
This article investigates how institutional, organisational and individual factors influence labour politics in the internet economy. The authors discuss several theoretical approaches towards labour politics and industrial relations. Using the example of the IT industry, they then illustrate how in the IT industry the organisation of work changes, what requirements result for employees, how regulation is structured, and what political challenges this brings for trade unions and employer’s associations. Considering current developments in the IT economy, the authors finally evaluate the theoretical approaches according to their explanatory strength.
The author argues that growth determines employment and not the other way around. He opposes the widespread view among German economists that more employment generated by wage cuts or increased labour market flexibility will stimulate growth. For him, this view relies on theoretical prejudices that have to be rejected in light of some recent, simple evidence. The fact that all cyclical rebounds during the 1990s have been cut short by restrictive monetary policy explains the inability of the German labour market to regain full employment.