Escaping the merchant/missionary dilemma: an imperial policy for the Asia-Pacific

The Asia policy of the Bush administration follows from two principles: its preference for ‘hub-and-spoke relationships’ led from Washington, and the restored priority of security issues over the mixture of trade interests and human rights that was the hallmark of the Clinton presidency. The initial focus of the administration on the restoration of political and strategic ties with old allies such as Japan, and on strategic competition, has been mitigated by another realistic approach: the need to seek new allies and partnerships. This policy was already evident towards India before September 11, 2001, but has been magnified with the onset of a coalition against terrorism, and almost as importantly, against the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The resumption of strategic and military ties with China, the priority of anti-terrorist cooperation over human rights issues with Southeast Asia, the increased support for India that is of more strategic value than America's tactical involvement with Pakistan, are developments that overshadow the US relationship with traditional allies such as Japan or the European Union. The major weakness of the Bush Asia policy, however, is its relative neglect of major economic and social issues in the region. Although support for some weakened ASEAN economies has increased, there is neither a more intense coordination of economic policies with Japan, in spite of initially declared intentions, nor a major economic and social strategy for Southeast and South Asia that would support the fight against terrorism.     

Book reviews

Deane Curtin, Chinnagounders’ Challenge: The Question of Ecological Citizenship. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1999.

Jim Yong Kim, et ah, ed., Dying For Growth: Global Inequality and the Health of the Poor. Monroe, ME: Common Courage Press, 2000.

Lester R. Brown, Christopher Flavin, Hilary French, et al., eds., State of the World 1998. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 1998.

Margit Mayer and John Ely, eds., The German Greens. Paradox Between Movement and Party. Translated by Michael Schatzschneider. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1998.     

The Low‐Income Housing Tax Credit An Analysis of the First Ten Years

Abstract

The Low‐Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) has been the de facto federal rental housing production program since its creation in the Tax Reform Act of 1986. In this article, using a detailed database on 2,554 LIHTC projects, we analyze the costs of building these projects, where they are built, their financial viability, whom they serve, who finances them, and the size of the subsidies provided to them.

The LIHTC is a flexible program that has built different types of housing in various markets. While LIHTC projects serve low‐ and moderate‐income households, their rents are beyond the reach of many poor households without additional subsidy. Revenues just cover costs for many LIHTC projects. Over time, considerably more of each tax‐credit dollar has ended up in the projects, and returns to equity investors have dropped significantly, perhaps reflecting an increased understanding of project risks. We estimate that LIHTC projects developed by nonprofits are 20.3 percent more expensive than those developed by for‐profits.     

‘Empty,Swept and Garnished’: the Public Finance Initiative case of Throckley Middle School

As spaces of complex layering of multiple relations, each with their own space–time dynamics and reach, policies of urban governance and their tangible outcomes can be materially experienced as conjunctions of multiple meshworks of assemblages with different scopes and different systems of values. This paper investigates a case example of a Private Finance Initiative for the construction of Throckley Middle School in Newcastle upon Tyne. Completed in 2003, Throckley school closed in 2005. A Deleuzean-inspired tracing of several Throckley assemblages is presented and the paper concludes by discussing the challenges of adopting a Deleuzean perspective for analysis of urban governance and infrastructure development.     

Book reviews

Par le Peuple, Pour le Peuple: le populisme et les démocraties. By Yves Mény and Yves Surel. Paris: Editions Fayard 2000. Pp.312 + biblio. FF140 (paper) ISBN 2–213–60077–5.

I Confini dell'Odio: il nacionalismo etnico e la nuova destra europea. By Bruno Luvera’. Roma: Editori Riuniti, 1999. Pp.xiii + 151, index, biblio. 10 euros (paper) ISBN 88–359–4760‐X.

Il Dottor H.: Haider e la nuova destra europea. By Bruno Luvera’. Roma: Einaudi 2000. Pp.194 + biblio. 10 euros (paper), ISBN 88–06–15597–0.

A Virtuous Circle. Political Communications in Postindustrial Societies. By Pippa Norris. New York: Cambridge University Press 2000. Pp.xvii + 398, 54 tables, 38 figures, biblio, index. £40 (cloth) ISBN 0–521–79015–8; £14.95 (paper) ISBN 0–521–79364–5.

Democracy and the Media: A Comparative Perspective. Edited by R. Gunther and A. Mughan. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 2000. Pp.496. £55 (cloth) ISBN 0–521–77180–3; £19.95 (paper) ISBN 0–521–77743–7.

Coalition Governments in Western Europe. Edited by Wolfgang C. Müller and Kaare Str?m. Oxford: Oxford University Press 2000. Pp.xvi + 602, biblio, index. £55 (cloth) ISBN 0–19–829760–2.

The Political Mobilization of the European Left, 1860–1980: The Class Cleavage. By Stefano Bartolini. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 2000. Pp.xxiv + 637, 100 tables, 41 figures, biblio, index. £45 (cloth) ISBN 0–521–65021–6.

Social Democracy and the Challenge of European Union. By Robert Ladrech. London: Lynne Rienner 2000. Pp.xiv + 165, biblio, index. £37.50 (cloth) ISBN 1–55587–902–0.

Europe in Change ‐ Committee Governance in the European Union. Edited by Thomas Christiansen and Emil Kirchner. Manchester: Manchester University Press 2000. Pp.199. £40 (cloth) ISBN 0–7190–5552–0.

Rethinking European Order: West European Responses, 1989–97. Edited by Robin Niblett and William Wallace. Basingstoke: Palgrave 2001. Pp.xiv + 298, 2 maps, index. £50 (cloth) ISBN 0–333–91571–2.

Franco‐German Relations. By Alistair Cole. Edinburgh: Pearson 2001. Pp.178, biblio, index. £14.99 (paper) ISBN 0–582–31997–8.

Environmental Transitions: Transformation and Ecological Defence in Central and Eastern Europe. Edited by P. Pavlínek and J. Pickles. London: Routledge 2000. Pp.xxii + 362, 22 plates, 39 figures, 19 maps, 56 tables, biblio, index. £70.26 (cloth) ISBN 0–415–16268–8; £22.99 (paper) ISBN 0–415–16269–6.

Ethnicity and Globalization. By Stephen Castles. London: Sage 2000. Pp.xii + 228, biblio, index. £47.50 (cloth) ISBN 0–7619–5611–5; £16.99 (paper) ISBN 0–7619–5612–3.

A Not‐So‐Dismal Science: A Broader View of Economies and Societies. Edited by M. Olson and S. Kakhonen. Oxford: Oxford University Press 2000. Pp.x + 274, biblio, index. £14.99 (paper) ISBN 0–19–829490–5.