Class conflict in Chinese socialism,by Richard Curt Kraus. New York: Columbia University Press, 1981, $22.50

Abstract

One notion of a bureaucratic class in a socialist society has been put forward by Milovan Djilas. According to Djilas, although under socialism there is no longer private ownership of the means of production, a small group of people in the government bureaucracy exercise effective economic control and can use this control to extract a surplus. The bureaucracy which gains control of society's economic surplus maintains the alienated condition of the working class and becomes a ruling class in Marxian terms. In Class Conflict in Chinese Socialism, Richard Kraus’ thesis is that Mao Zedong was aware of, and actively opposed, the beginnings of such a class in modem China. Kraus traces the evolution of Mao's theory of class to show the richness of Mao's theory and to document the influence which that theory had on post-1949 China. Kraus does not adhere strictly to Djilas’ definition of a bureaucratic class, however, nor does he explicitly develop one of his own. Rather, he lacks rigor in his use of such terms as “class” and “class struggle,” making his analysis unclear and the evidence for his thesis weak.     

In Matters of war and socialism,Anthony Barnett would shame and honor Kampuchea too much

Abstract

In an article on “Inter-Communist Conflicts and Vietnam” published in the current issue of Marxism Today, Anthony Barnett attempts to put the wars in Southeast Asia into historical and socialist perspective. He begins by stressing the already existing pattern of conflict in the socialist world. He notes in particular, the history of differences between neighboring communist states, the division of Marxist-Leninist movements resulting from the Sino-Soviet split and the sustained efforts of imperialist powers to exploit and to deepen these conflicts. The same conflicts, he argues, now find expression in Southeast Asia. In fact, the recent successful completion of the Vietnamese revolutionary war and the rise of other communist governments in China's hinterland might be promoting a trilateral conflict situation of a type already observed elsewhere. After the second World War, the indigenous, self-sustaining communist revolution in Yugoslavia successfully resisted efforts made by the older, larger communist power, the USSR, to force it to join its Eastern European bloc. Part of the Soviet pressure took the form of aggravating difficult bilateral relations between Yugoslavia and its neighbor Albania. The pattern of aspirations and hostilities in today's Southeast Asia is not, Anthony asserts, appreciably different:     

The rise and fall of Germany's party of democratic socialism

This article offers a short diachronic analysis of the development and success of Germany's Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS), followed by an examination of the explanations cited by academics, political commentators and the party itself for its poor performance in the 2002 general election. A distinction is drawn between factors that are short-term in nature and those that are more fundamental to the party's current predicament, with the analytical emphasis being placed firmly on internal variables – that is, on the party's own capacity (or lack thereof) to act. The conclusion is reached that sympathisers and supporters of the PDS currently have very little reason to be optimistic about the party's future prospects.     

Afghanistan: demographic consequences of war, 1978-1987

"In this paper, I attempt to analyse the effects of war on the size and age-sex structure of the Afghan population, and to estimate the size of the Afghan population in Afghanistan by age and sex for the years 1978-1987. In doing so, I try to estimate the number of persons killed during the war and examine the validity of the available estimates." The analysis is based on data from the 1979 census, a 1987 survey, and other sources.     

自由:一个尚未结束的美国故事--读埃里克·方纳的《美国自由的故事》

自从独立时期帕特里克·亨利呼出不自由,毋宁死的口号,自由就成了美国的灵魂.纵观美国历史上的国会辩论、总统演说、法院判例、外交文件、各种社会运动和改革的主张、乃至当今反政府的白人民兵组织的网页,自由一词无处不在.即便在日常生活中,自由也与美国人形影不离:中小学生每日必宣誓效忠自由,体育比赛前观众必高唱国歌赞颂自由之疆,大小美元硬币上均刻有自由(liberty),以自由为名的地名遍布全国.①至少从表面上来看,美国人对自由的钟爱已经达到了一种近似于偏执的程度.然而,当自由一词无所不能、无所不为、无人不用的时候,它也就失去了公认的定义,变成了一个令人困惑的概念.在众多的自由语言中,到底什么是真正的美国自由,也因而成为一个极负挑战意味的问题.正因为如此,埃里克·方纳(Eric Foner)的近作《美国自由的故事》(以下简称《自由故事》)便具有了格外重要的意义.     

日本官方有关东亚共同体的认识、行为及其评述

建立东亚共同体是近年来东亚各国热衷的话题,但对东亚共同体的性质、建设的途径等并没有形成一致的认识.日本官方对东亚共同体的性质及建设途径等有着相对确定的认识,并根据这一认识采取了相应的行为.本文主要对这两方面进行了扼要的介绍,并作了简短的评述.     

国际制度的有效性:研究现状、路径方法与理论批评

国际制度有效性的研究是国际制度理论研究的基石。过去近四十年来,在制度有效性研究方面,相关的理论建构及研究方法取得了显著的进步。不过,制度有效性的因果关系、制度内生性、路径方法、遵约研究以及个案局限性方面的问题,限制了研究的进一步深入。国际制度有效性揭示了理论命题的时代意义,这项研究任重而道远。     

毁灭文明的教育--评《为了毁灭的教育》

19世纪70年代,美国一位名叫理查德·亨利·普拉特的军人创办了一所印第安人寄宿学校,这所名为卡莱尔的印第安学校曾一度风靡全美,其教育思想、教育模式被奉为印第安教育的楷模.1995年由美国堪萨斯大学出版社出版的名为《为了毁灭的教育:美国印第安人与寄宿学校经历,1875-1928》一书以生动的语言、翔实的史料、精辟的分析,剖析了卡莱尔寄宿学校教育的理论与实践,揭示了以此为楷模的美国印第安教育的本质特征及对印第安文明造成的危害.该书分开化、教育、反应、结果4个部分共10章,重点论述了卡莱尔印第安教育的理念、实践和后果,本文就这三方面作一简要介绍和评析.     

城市政策与大都市区政府的复兴--评戴维·腊斯克的《没有郊区的城市》

戴维·腊斯克 (DavidRusk)是当前美国城市问题研究与城市政策领域里的重要人物 ,《巴尔的摩太阳报》在 1995年曾称其为“美国最热门的城市问题专家” ,在政界和学术界拥有广泛的影响。腊斯克早年毕业于加州大学伯克利分校 ,2 0世纪 6 0年代中期前后在华盛顿城市联盟从事争取民权和反贫困工作 ,之后进入美国劳工部任职。 70年代初期迁往新墨西哥州的阿尔伯克基市 ,1975年至 1977年为新墨西哥州众议员 ,1977年至 1981年担任阿尔伯克基市长 ,80年代担任新墨西哥州公共服务公司的经理。 1992年在威尔逊国际中心从事城市事务研究工作 ,现为独立…     

The PRC,Taiwan, and the overseas Chinese

The rapid growth of China’s economy and its opening to the outside world have attracted a large volume of trade and investment from Hong Kong and Taiwan, creating an economic grouping with a total foreign trade in 1992 almost equal to that of Japan. The economic linkage of this “Greater China” with Southeast Asia’s overseas Chinese communities is steadily growing and will continue to do so for the rest of the decade, barring a sharp drop in the PRC’s growth rate, which seems unlikely.     

Japan’s role in Asia-Pacific cooperation: Dimensions,prospects, and problems

Japan and the United States together have been the dominant economic partners for most other Asia-Pacific countries. However, changes may now swing the balance toward Japan, as it continues to increase bilateral foreign aid to the region, expand its imports from the region, and set up direct investment. Greater Japanese involvement in the region is welcome, but could lead toward a regional bloc centered rather exclusively on Japan. Any such development would not be in the U.S. national interest, and both nations need to follow policies that diminish such possibilities and strengthen the multilateral organizations serving the region.