The politics of opposition and European integration in Scandinavia: Is Euro‐scepticism a government‐opposition dynamic?

Scandinavian party competition has incorporated divisions over European integration to a greater degree than most West European party systems, but with considerable variation in Norway, Sweden and Denmark. From a comparative politics perspective this raises questions about the relatively high salience of Euro‐scepticism in Scandinavian politics, the differences between the three cases and changes over time. The central argument in this article is that Europeanisation of party politics ‐ the translation of issues related to European integration into domestic party politics ‐ is driven by the dynamics of long‐ and short‐term government‐opposition competition, and the key driver of change is party strategy. Whether at the centre or extremes of the party system, Euro‐scepticism is a product of party competition — and is, both in its origins and development, ‘the politics of opposition ‘.     

Maastricht Treaty in the Shaping and Development of the Common Foreign and Security Policy （CFSP）

For the European Union （EU）, it discusses how to deliver （great project） European unification. Motivated by the idea that the association of European countries is a far better alternative to the previous mutually confronted Europe, a project in the following decades led to the emergence of a new and unprecedented work on European soil--EU. Its present form is the product of more than 50 years of evolution of European integration, which today despite initial six Western European countries including the former main rivals Germany and France include 27 member countries of the union, as well as many other countries with candidate status for membership in the EU. Seen in the development context, the union is not a preconceived model of the association of European countries, but is the product of a complex multiple decade-long process of integration in which different actors are involved. Within this process, depending on the achieved level of integration, the union received a different shape. In its present form and name as the EU, it occurs even in the early 90s of the last century, long before it passed through small-scale forms of integration.     

Governed interdependence: Rethinking the government‐business relationship in East Asia

Analyses of East Asia's high‐performance economies have highlighted the advantages of a coordinated approach to market failures. With states dominating the process, both public and private agencies are increasingly involved. The recent literature sees public‐private cooperation as a limit to state capacity and thus a challenge to statism. Within an institutionalist framework, this paper proposes a fresh view of the government‐business relationship which avoids the statist premise of domination, but without relying on ‘weak state’ arguments. Through an examination of key organizational features of state and industry in Korea, Taiwan, and Japan, the paper proposes a theory of ‘governed interdependence’ in which both state and capital are taken seriously; where both strong state and strong industry go hand‐in‐hand; and where the capacities of both are mutually enhanced. The article identifies four principal types of government‐industry cooperation in the East Asian experience — some apparently ‘state‐led’, others apparently ‘business‐led’ — all of which can be accommodated by the theory.     

The left‐wing opposition in Denmark,Norway and Sweden: Cases of Euro‐phobia?

This article maps the three major Left‐Socialist parties in Denmark, Norway and Sweden and their attitude towards European integration. It focuses on why the three parties, despite a common vision of Europe, differ when it comes to the question of membership in the European Union. The analysis stresses that both differences in party history and political context have to be accounted for when explaining the parties’ policy stands.     

Success in opposition – failure in government: explaining the performance of right-wing populist parties in public office

Drawing on a conceptual distinction between traditional right-wing extremist and right-wing populist parties, this article examines the performance of the latter in public office. The central argument is that the specific populist aspects of such parties allow them to succeed in opposition and to do well at the game of elections. Once in government, their unique strengths turn into disadvantages. Significant structural weaknesses inherent in populist parties pose nearly insurmountable problems that make their long-term success in government questionable. The analysis also shows that the rise of right-wing populism has substantially increased the opportunity structures of conservative parties. Following the theoretical discussion, the article examines the case of the Austrian Freedom Party and draws parallels with the Italian and Dutch cases.     

Bundesbank‐government relations in Germany in the 1990s: From GEMU to EMU

The Bundesbank's widely‐discussed independence ascribes it only discretionary power in the realm of monetary policy, but its influence can extend into other areas of economic policy. Since the government retains the initiative in these policy realms, the Bundesbank's influence consists of being able to mould the form rather than the direction of government policy. To exercise this influence, however, the Bundesbank must have public opinion on its side. An examination of the government‐Bundesbank relationship as it touched upon the cases of Economic and Monetary Union in Germany (1990) and Europe (1990–98) reveals the extent and limitations of the Bundesbank's influence over economic policy.     

Constructions of the opposition to ‘structural adjustment reforms’ in the German mass-media

This article analyses Germany’s Der Spiegel weekly journal, and its discursive constructions of the oppositional voices against the so-called structural reforms imposed on Greece in the context of the Eurozone crisis. The analysis is focused on relevant articles published by Der Spiegel between late 2009 and early 2015, during important, crisis-related socio-political events. Drawing on discourse theory and critical discourse analysis, the article concludes that Der Spiegel (along with other mainstream media in Germany and elsewhere) publicly legitimizes the elites’ hegemonic crisis-narratives and -policies, while discrediting oppositional voices. The study further foregrounds the ways Der Spiegel and other German mainstream-media reproduce a nationalistic ‘victimization’ of Germany, which advances Germany’s own national branding-strategy of positive self-representation in the EU and in the world.     

The Analysis of the Difference between the Discourse of Male and Female

1The difference of language formsMen and women's language forms are different.There were sev-eral systematic differences between men and women's versions of theindicative and i mperative verbal paradigms.For example,when awomantalked with a man,the woman …     

The Practical Way of Communist Party of China to Bring up and Assemble Young Talents in the Early Years of Reform and Opening up （1978-1989）

In 1978, China entered the era of reform and opening up. Faced the great depression, cultivating and assembling young talent became an important power to support rapid development of the country. The leadership of Communist Party led by Deng Xiaoping had a global sight, and began to reform higher education system, gradually cultivated and assembled the generation of young talents. This paper reviews the theoretical ideas and practical measures of Communist Party of China （CPC） to train and assemble young talents at the beginning of reform and opening up, analyzes and displays the particular and scientific method of young talents and the great achievements of young talents in this period. The paper consists of three parts, the practice of bringing up young talents, young cadres, young professional and technical personnel, and the modernization construction from young talents. These methods cultivate so many young talents as the pillars of state development, and the quality of youth increased rapidly. So many practical ways also have been used and influenced in China today, and these are not only the wealth for China, but also the important experience for the whole world.     

The ‘party‐state’ in Greece and the fall of Papandreou

Revelations of corruption and of maladministration have forced a re‐examination of some of the basic characteristics of the Greek party‐state and party system. The purpose of this article is to examine how the controversies ‐ ‘scandals’ ‐ arose, and to assess their consequences for political development in Greece in the light of the June 1989 national elections. The elections may prove critical for the evolution of the State and the party system.     

The rise of the far right in Greece and opposition to ‘othering’, hate speech,and crime by civil and civic organizations

This article focuses on forms of opposition to ‘othering’ and far-right politics in present-day Greece. This opposition takes a variety of forms, comes from a range of actors, and is motivated by a number of concerns with differing assessments of what should be done. More specifically, the article focuses on the far right in Greece and discrimination, hate speech, and hate crime against the ‘other’ from the perspectives of those who are active in mobilizing against racism and counteracting the country’s populist and neo-nationalist turn. Concentrating on the forces opposing discrimination, the analysis describes present-day social movements and actions from grassroots to governmental level, their strategies and politics, their diversity of thought and action, and their contribution in providing the resources for social change, and the production of new meaning in the context of anti-racism in Greece. Trying to provide answers as to how social movements and activists produce meaning, we argue that activists develop less intentional, inadvertent meanings which emerge in the course of the not-always conscious schemas of their struggle. This calls for a more dynamic explanation of the relationship between practice and meaning-making in social movement contexts.     

British intelligence and counter‐insurgency in the era of decolonisation: The example of Malaya

This article uses two approaches to show the Malayan Emergency (1948–1960) and intelligence were reaching a turning point before the 1952 appointment of a single commander; and to show the reason for this success was a counter‐insurgency technique which placed population control at its core. First, the article outlines the development of intelligence, in order to identify when and why it became effective. Second, it re‐examines intelligence on the Malayan Communist Party's (MCP) so‐called ‘October’ 1951 Directives. It argues these confirm the MCP was virtually forced to change its tactics by late 1951. Together, these approaches challenge existing historiography, which makes Sir Gerald Templer's era of 1952–54, when he was both High Commissioner and Director of Operations, the turning point.     

From neo‐fascists to post‐fascists? The transformation of the MSI into the AN

This article analyses the recent transformation of the Italian neo‐Fascist party (Movimento Sociale Italiano‐ Italian Social Movement). The new party established by the former MSI, Alleanza nazionale (National Alliance), has been defined by its founders and many observers as a ‘post‐Fascist’ party. This article tries to highlight the continuities and the changes that are manifested in the new party. This goal is achieved by framing the recent events in the long history of the MSI and by analysing the party manifestos, documents and survey data on the party cadres’ attitudes, collected in the last two national congresses.     

China and the world: The challenge of ‘opening up’

Rebellions and Revolutions: China from the 1800s to the 1980s, by Jack Gray. Oxford University Press, Oxford, New York, Toronto, 1990. Ixix + 456 pp. £35.00 hardback, £11.95 paperback. ISBN0–19–913076–0 and 0–19–821576–2.

The Pride that was China, by Michael Loewe. Sidgwick & Jackson, London; St. Martin's Press, New York, 1990. xxiii + 312 pp., illus., maps. £20.00. ISBN 0–283–99648‐X.

Agents and Victims in South China: Accomplices in Rural Revolution, by Helen F. Siu. Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 1989. £30.00; $45.00. xxvi+378 pp. ISBN0–300–04465–8.

Asian Frontier Nationalism: Owen Lattimore and the American Policy Debate, by James Cotton. Manchester University Press, Manchester, 1989. vi+181 pp. £35.00. ISBN0–7190–2585–0.

China's Crisis: Dilemmas of Reform and Prospects for Democracy, by Andrew J. Nathan. Columbia University Press, New York, 1990. xi+242 pp. ISBN 0–231–07284–8.

The Spirit of Chinese Foreign Policy: A Psychocultural View, by Chih‐yu Shih. Macmillan, Basingstoke and London, 1990. xi+231 pp. £40.00. ISBN 0–333–51155–7.

Worlds Apart: Recent Chinese Writing and Its Audiences, edited by Howard Goldblatt. M. E. Sharpe, Armonk, NY, and London, 1990. x+253 pp. $39.95. ISBN 0–87332–502–8.

Changing Identities of the Southeast Asian Chinese since World War II, edited by Jennifer Cushman and Wang Gungwu. Hong Kong University Press, Hong Kong, 1988. xi+344pp. ISBN 962–209–207–1.

Land Without Ghosts: Chinese Impressions of America from the Mid‐Nineteenth Century to the Present, edited by R. David Arkush and Leo O. Lee. University of California Press, Berkeley, Los Angeles, and London, 1989. xvii+309 pp., illus. $25.00. ISBN 0–520–06256–6.     

Policy framing: Interest groups and the lead up to 1996 inter‐governmental conference

This article (completed before the Amsterdam Summit in June 1997) examines the ongoing attempts by key non‐governmental actors to influence the agenda of the 1996 Inter‐governmental Confederence (IGC). This IGC constitutes a good example of the ‘garbage‐can’ model of organisational choice, characterised by solutions chasing problems and problems chasing solutions. In the absence of a fixed agenda, key groups such as businesses, trades unions and environmentalists compete to ‘frame’ the IGC debates in a manner consistent with their own interests. Building on the policy fashion of the 1980s and 1990s, business has been particularly successful in establishing ‘competititveness’ as a central theme. Other groups, such as environmentalists and trade union may secure ‘side payments’ in return for continued support for European integration. As the IGC progresses, groups are likely to reformulate their preferences and engage in continuous ad hoc coalition‐building in order to achieve their objectives.     

The Franco‐German relationship and economic and monetary union: Using Europe to ‘Bind Leviathan’

This article explores the interaction between the institutional, strategic and cognitive dimensions of the Franco‐German relationship on Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). It begins by spelling out its institutional setting and its context of structural power. These sections highlight the main informal rules that have shaped the relationship and help explain the choice of negotiating strategies to reconcile their objectives and secure influence on the design and content of EMU. The next section focuses on the cognitive dimension of the relationship, identifying the nature of Franco‐German objectives, their basis in differences of inherited beliefs and problems in reconciling them. In the final section the nature of the political theory underpinning EMU is clarified and explained and the kind of challenge that it poses for French policy makers as it tests the limits of the republican state tradition. More broadly, EMU is an attempt to redefine the relationship between state and Europe and state and society, bringing with it new political meanings.     

Empowering local government or just passing the austerity buck? The changing balance of central and local government in welfare provision in England 2008–2015

This paper asks two questions: first, how did the balance of decision-making between central and local government in welfare policy in England change between 2010 and 2015? Second, to what extent has that led to divergence in the extent and manner of such provision? It finds significant areas of policy where local flexibility has been increased (such as council tax benefit, crisis loans, and funding for specialist housing), either through a change in the tier of government responsible, or ‘unringfencing’ of grants allowing local authorities greater discretion in whether to deliver particular services, although in other important areas decisions on welfare remain firmly centralized. It also concludes that in areas where responsibility has been localized, divergence has been immediate and substantial. Localization may well reduce entitlements where local authorities enjoy a financial reward for so doing and political costs are low.