拜登政府执政后的重大国际问题笔谈

由于美国国内政治极化严重,恢复经济、控制疫情、弥合国内社会撕裂等成为拜登政府的当务之急。而且由于特朗普政府时期的一些对外政策具有一定的社会基础,美国两党在一些领域也有共识,所以在一些重大国际问题上,拜登政府的立场和政策将以延续为主、调整为辅。同时,鉴于拜登阵营的建制派背景,其在国际问题上将更注重以多边主义和国际合作的方式推进相关政策。具体而言,在亚太安全领域,拜登政府对特朗普政府政策的延续将大于变化;美欧关系将有所拉近;中美俄和美欧俄战略三角关系的调整将对美俄关系未来产生影响。拜登政府以重振美国国际领导权为重要目标,对多边主义国际秩序将产生较大影响。在全球卫生治理领域,拜登政府将努力消除特朗普政府时期外交政策的负面影响。在重返亚太区域经济一体化问题上,美国短期内不会有实质性行动。在科技产业领域,特朗普政府时期的政策基调将得到延续,中国需努力遏制双方关系恶化的势头,为自身发展营造稳定的外部环境。     

RESTRUCTURING WEBERIAN BUREAUCRACY: COMPARING MANAGERIAL REFORMS IN EUROPE AND THE UNITED STATES

In much of the international public administration literature, New Public Management (NPM) already appears to be bogged down in a quagmire of critical revisions and assessments. Although some criticisms are well founded, there can be no doubt that NPM represents a trend which has considerably affected public‐sector decision‐making worldwide. This article takes the examples of the Southern European bureaucracies, where NPM‐inspired reforms were introduced later than in the English‐speaking world, but have nevertheless played a decisive role in the political agenda of both socialist and conservative governments. The paper presents the results of a comparative study of administrative reforms in five European countries as well as the USA during the 1980s and 1990s. The comparison is based on three specific dimensions (central bureaucracies’ formal structure; civil service organization; administrative processes), enabling us to systematically measure and compare the progress of the various countries subsequent to the cycle of managerial reforms.     

Response to Chemin and to Pitt

We reply to the discussion and criticisms of Matthieu Chemin (MC) and Mark Pitt (MP) to our paper ((Duvendack and Palmer-Jones (DPJ)) (all this issue). MC clarifies many issues which now make replication pure probable (but not yet achieved), and MP identifies a number of problems with DPJ (some of which are shared with Chemin, 2008). Chemin (2008) made at least one crucial undocumented and unrealistic assumption, and did not document many of his variable constructions. MP correctly identifies inappropriate members of control groups, and other problems, but his claim that his propensity score matching (PSM) results provide support for Pitt and Khandker's (1998 – PnK) most important claim is misleading as it is not robust. We see no reason to change our conclusion that PnK is limited as an evaluation of microfinance by a weak research design which cannot be convincingly mitigated by the sophisticated methods used in PnK, or by PSM.     

Introduction

In this Introduction, Larkin Dudley and Gary Wamsley reveal a dual intent in this project: to reprint the famous Papers on the Science of Administration and to celebrate critically Luther Gulick's contributions to public administration in order that the critique will help us understand ourselves and our conditions. Gulick's contributions as a man of action are praised, but his misplacement of an organizational conception upon a polity with a distinct constitutional design is questioned. In Dudley and Wamsley's view, American public administration is the study and practice of a key component of our governance process, misfounded on a concept of management in monocentric, hierarchical settings and on a focus of power of an elected executive. From the work of the other writers of this symposium, the authors tease out further some of the contradictions in hierarchy and democracy. Finally, they note that Gulick himself at the age of 93 published a repudiation of his early notions of organization based on hierarchy and, instead, called for a more democratic and participatory system in all agencies.     

An education in homecoming: peace education as the pursuit of ‘appropriate knowledge’

In this paper, we argue that two key trends – an unfolding ecological crisis and a reduction in the amount of (cheap) energy available to society – bring into question both the relevance and the resilience of existing educational systems, requiring us to rethink both the content and the form of education in general, and peace education in particular. Against this background, we consider the role education might play in enabling citizens and societies to adapt peacefully to conditions of energy descent and a less benign ecological system, taking seriously the possibility that there will be fewer resources available for education. Drawing on Wes Jackson’s and Wendell Berry’s concept of an education in ‘homecoming’, and on E.F. Schumacher’s concept of ‘appropriate technology’, we suggest a possible vision of peace education. We propose that such education might be focused around ‘appropriate knowledge’, commitment to place, and an understanding of the needs and characteristics of each local context. We then consider an example of what this might mean in practice, particularly under conditions of increasing resource scarcity: Permaculture education in El Salvador, we suggest, illustrates the characteristics and relevance of an education that aims to foster ‘appropriate knowledge’ within a particular and very challenging context. The paper concludes by considering the wider implications of our argument.     

The Entitlement Approach – A Case for Framework Development Rather than Demolition: A Reply to Rubin

Abstract

This is my response to Olivier Rubin's critique of my paper ‘Entitlement failure and deprivation: a critique of Sen's famine philosophy’. I have examined his criticisms in the light of Hume's philosophy of human knowledge and consider them weak in logical content.     

A TURNING POINT FOR GUOHUA?: XU BEIHONG AND TRANSFORMATIVE ENCOUNTERS WITH THE SOCIALIST SPIRIT, 1933–1953

Abstract

This article investigates a transformative encounter between the Chinese artist Xu Beihong (徐悲鴻 1895–1953) and audiences in the Soviet Union during his 1933–1934 exhibitions of Chinese art in Europe. While Xu was exchanging perspectives and addressing questions about Chinese painting, a misreading of one of his paintings sparked in him a reconsideration of content and form that eventually led to the creation of some of the earliest Socialist realist ink-and-color paintings in China. This addition to his repertoire is arguably more significant to his legacy than his most popular works because of the way it heralded the coming Socialist realist evolution in guohua (國畫 national painting) and the manner in which Xu’s choices would meet the ideological needs of the Communist Party well before it secured authority over the direction of China’s arts. Special attention is paid to situating Xu’s personal work vis-à-vis Republican and revolutionary art and explaining how the concurrent political milieu paved the way for both the prestige of his art in popular and cultural memory and the unprecedented stature of his art education methodologies in China’s revolutionary times.     

APPRAISING PUBLIC VALUE: PAST,PRESENT AND FUTURES

Despite the increasing popularity of the concept of ‘public value’ within both academic and practice settings, there has to date been no formal review of the literature on its provenance, empirical basis, and application. This paper seeks to fill this gap. It provides a critical introduction to public value and its conceptual development before presenting the main elements of the published literature. Following this, a series of key areas of disagreement are discussed and implications for future research and practice put forward. The authors argue that if the espoused aspirations for the public value framework are to be realized, a concerted process of research, debate and application is required. Although some criticisms of public value are argued to be unwarranted, the authors acknowledge ongoing concerns over the apparent silence of public value on questions of power and heterogeneity, and the difficulties in empirically testing the framework's propositions.     

Turning Back the Clock? Violence against Women and the Trump Administration

ABSTRACT

The Trump Administration has engaged in a systematic rolling back of protections, regulations, and a host of other social safety net programs for vulnerable people, leaving over half of the population in dismay while others celebrate archaic triumphs. In this context, our focus is limited to the Trump Administration’s efforts—through law and words—to turn back the clock for women. We examine the reinforcement of overt forms of inequality rooted in patriarchy through domestic law as well as Trump’s misogynistic attitude and language toward women. Given that his words hold a greater significance now that he is President of the United States, he has a “gold-plated” pulpit to share and spread his misogynistic hostile rhetoric and propaganda: anti-women objectification, devaluing, and demonization through hegemonic “wordfare” while feeding and fueling sexism across the country. We conclude by suggesting that Trump’s rhetoric and that of other leading political figures are contributing to a darker time for those not in the white elite heteronormative order with short and long term implications and harm. We caution that the current dangers posed by these attacks are entering us into an endemic misogynist normal: retroactively moving the Country back in time at a dangerous speed.     

The Precarity of Feminisation

Despite women’s increasing participation in the labour market and attempts to transform the traditional gendered division of work, domestic and care work is still perceived as women’s terrain. This work continues to be invisible in terms of the organisation of production or productive value and domestic and care work continues to be unpaid or low paid. Taking domestic and care work as an expression of the feminisation of labour, this article will attempt to complicate this analysis by first exploring a queer critique of feminisation, and second, by situating feminisation within the context of the coloniality of power. Drawing on research conducted in Austria, Germany, Spain and the UK on the organisation of domestic work in private households, the article will conclude with some observations on the interconnectedness of feminisation, heteronormativity and the coloniality of power in the analysis of the expansion of precarity in the EU zone.     

Diaspora connections and discontinuities: the photography of Chester Higgins

Abstract

Renowned photographer, Chester Higgins, has captured in the sensitivities of people, interesting places, and fleeting moments in his art; and his creative canvas spans the world; it challenges and provokes but also offers solace in time of need. His work, when viewed by different people and different societal groupings, delivers new and often unexpected meanings. Although his photographs are difficult to categorize because absolute distinctions are constantly undermined by the viewer's horizons of expectations and values that are brought to the viewing situation, Higgins has slotted some of his photographic images into sections described as ‘politics’, ‘writers’, ‘religion’, and ‘social life’. In this short essay an attempt is made to view some selected pieces and come up with innovative meanings. Since the unifying theme in the photography is that of Africans in the diaspora, a few pieces are sampled from each section.     

Walking and talking chester I. Barnard

The influence of Chester Barnard in contemporary management and organization theorising is substantial but often barely acknowledged. Contemporary authors sometimes ‘borrow’ a fragment to support their case but his was a fundamentally holistic work which sought to interweave and integrate rather than dissect and disintegrate. The research data reported in this paper were not generated to test Barnard's work but in the process of analysis, it emerged that Barnard spoke in a voice which echoed closely the comments of senior executives. Indeed, he is the only theorist to do so in such a comprehensive way. On further reflection, it was found that his work embraces a breadth and depth of conceptual thought which remains unequalled in our vast literature. His intellectual foundations were quite radical for his time, again in a way which does not find contemporary parallel. In what remains a rare gestalt analysis of organization, he manages to blend the contradictions and conflicts of individual and organization and inherent fickleness and ambiguity of social life together with a dexterity and integrity which resembles the practitioners of executive arts rather more than contemporary theorists. This paper seeks to highlight some of the areas in which his work still exposes our current lack of conceptual imagination and ability.     

Human Resources Wasted in Government? - Who's counting?

U.S. taxpayers spend over $80 billion a year to meet theFederalcivilian payroll. Yet there are signs that a significant part of this investment is being wasted. For example, about $2 billion of the total is spent to pay employess who are on sick leave and, in a recent year, over 18 percent of the workforce left government service. While controls are placed on many government assests to guard against waste, similar concern is not directed at the waste of human resources. There are many questions we can’t answer, such as what it costs when workers file grievances and EEO complaints, what it costs for excessive use of leave, and whether supposed cost saving steps (e.g. cutting training funds) really save money in the long run.Pressure to improve government’s productivity, cut the deifcit, and improve quality ofservice to taxpayers makes better control of our human resources Terry Newell is chief of the Special programs Branch, Horace Mann learning Center, U.S. Department of Education. This article was written by him in his private capacity. No official support or endorsement by the U.S. Department of Education is intended or should be inferred investment essential. There are at least two broad strategies we can use. First, we can analyze human resource costs across and within agencies to see where there are opportunities for savings. For example, analysis of sick leave using available data suggests that some agencies use considerably less sick leave than others and that there may be a pattern to such use. Attempts to reduce sick leave use seem possible and offer the prospect of substantial savings. Second, we can analyze human resource policy options to determine the full cost implications of decisions before they are made. When done, we may find that some policy options promise short run savings but will be more costly than alternatives over the long haul.Use of human resource cost analysis, while rudimentary at present, will increase in the future because it is necessary to contain costs and because the technology is available to allow government-wide data analysis.     

Isaiah Berlin: Russo-Jewish Roots,Liberal Commitments,and the Ethos of Pluralism

Isaiah Berlin contributed significantly to the study of the history of nationalist ideas in modern Europe, to the revival among political theorists (and others) of interest in nationalism as a theory, and to the articulation of theories of “liberal nationalism” in the 1990s. Berlin was also a life-long Zionist, whose reflections on the impulses behind nationalism owed much to his reflection on the condition of Jews in the diaspora. While Berlin’s views on nationalism have long claimed attention, and while there has more recently been excellent work done on his Jewish identity and commitment to Zionism, the connection between both his liberalism and his views on nationalism, and his personal background and experiences, remains to be more fully explored. Deploying biographical reconstruction and textual analysis, I here undertake to draw such connections, emphasizing how Berlin’s personal condition and the response to nationalism that it influenced in turn shaped his liberalism. I conclude that Berlin’s experiences coming from a specifically Russian-Jewish background, as well as his position in British society, his wartime service in the British government, and his intellectual formation, significantly shaped his views on nationalism. I also suggest that both his response to nationalism and his advocacy of a distinctive liberalism reflect Berlin’s commitment (never made fully explicit) to a pluralistic ethos, which itself may be seen as a response to the condition of Jews (and other minorities and migrants) in the modern world.     

Can Museums Help Build a European Memory? The Example of the Musée de l’Europe in Brussels in the Light of “New World” Museums’ Experience

The important role museums played in the construction of nation-states in the late 18th century and in the 19th century generated an abundant literature. In today’s word, these institutions of knowledge are unanimously recognized as lieux de mémoire, capable of generating publics and, more or less successfully, self-identifying (mostly national) collectives. The present chapter intends to analyze how two history museums are projecting a questioning a sense of belonging and its problematic relation to a common present through the celebration of a common past. In particular, we are interested in how supra-national identities are negotiated through these traditionally national agencies of culture in the exhibition C’est notre histoire!, held in 2007–2008 at the Musée de l’Europe in Bruxelles and at the National Museum of Australia, opened in Canberra in 2001. The National Museum of Australia will be regarded as an example of recent negotiations and dissents on an alternate post-national identity construction. It can allow us to revisit the idea of Europe’s museums made of new uses, practices and discourses on multiple identities and groups who were traditionally forgotten in or excluded from a clear-cut national identity. It will also allow us to examine the scenographic representations of a European identity which can not be summarized as the juxtaposition of fixed national narratives and artefacts.     

A response to charles t. goodsell

Goodsell's definition of rituals and administration logically and experientially rings true. Formalizing the relationship between them was both unique and obvious, since we all have an intuitive sense that some of our administrative habits are ritualistic; we regularly complete paperwork, stop for coffee, make phone calls, etc. However, Goodsell has afforded us the opportunity to refer to some of these habits, such as red tape (immigration procedures) or administrivia (staff meetings) as rituals which help promote the social continuity. Similarly, we can rationalize that our comfortable administrative habits need not be changed because they unify.

Yes, the concept of rituals can be applied to many aspects of administration, but to what end? Ritualists suggest some rituals “work” while others do not, so we know little about when or how rituals are effective. To simply state that the concepts and philosophies of rituals offer a means to better understand administration leaves one cold. Goodsell provides little help in discerning how and why rituals are important to understanding administration. Since he links administration to rituals without an explicit purpose for doing so, he contributes to the perception that bureaucracies consist of meaningless tasks and tangles that prevent efficient government operations.     

The Iran nuclear deal: winning a little,losing a lot

Iran’s nuclear programme had for more than a decade become a controversial issue between Iran and the West; it had even threatened to develop into a military confrontation between Teheran and its arch adversary, Washington. The issue was finally resolved in an agreement, after more than a year of negotiations, between the two sides in Geneva in July 2015. This was hailed as a ‘breakthrough’ and a ‘win-win’ for both parties. It is argued here that the nuclear deal has made Iran’s nuclear programme almost inoperable, and pointed out that many members of Congress are vehemently against the deal; the next administration may not honour it or may revise it. The high costs of sanctions against Iran to the sanctioning countries are also examined, with a comparison made between the meagre concessions that Iran will get and the huge concessions that the West will receive under the deal. Furthermore, Iran has acceded to very intrusive inspection of some of its military sites. It is contended that, if the Iranians hope the agreement will soon bring about the resolution of other thorny regional and international issues that exist between Teheran and Washington, they are very likely to be disappointed.     

Democratising,internationalising, and globalising: A collage of blurred images

This article emphasises the relevance and importance of Gayatri Spivak's work for those of us involved in the field of development (as academics, researchers or development workers). Spivak underlines how our representations, especially of marginalised Third World groups, are intimately linked to our positioning (socioeconomic, gendered, cultural, geographic, historical, institutional). She therefore demands a heightened self‐reflexivity that mainstream development analysts (eg Robert Chambers), and even ‘critical’ ones (eg Escobar, Shiva), have failed to live up to. The article examines Spivak's writings to illustrate the reasons, advantages and limits of this hyper‐self‐reflexivity.