Liberalism,neo-liberalism and governmentality: introduction

This paper concerns the emergence of a specifically 'economic' way of governing poverty at the start of this century, an event which is to be accounted for, though by no means exhaustively, by the discovery of 'unemployment'. The latter will make it possible to relate the nineteenth-century 'problem of the unemployed' to an object domain that is primarily economic, rather than cultural or moral. A new object of regulation will emerge from this economic problematization of the 'social question': the labour market. The paper pays particular attention to the national labour exchange system, the political technology that will visibilize the labour market in new ways. Together with unemployment insurance, it will suggest new ways of governing poverty and a new course for social policy.     

Lessons from El Barrio—the East Harlem real great society/urban planning studio: A Puerto Rican chapter in the fight for urban self‐determination∗

Abstract

During the 1960s, the Lower East Side and East Harlem were among the principal contested terrains in New York City, and the emerging Puerto Rican community was being challenged on many fronts. As contested terrains, they were the arenas where transforming forces in American society were being articulated. Responses to these forces varied from neighborhood to neighborhood. Among the responses were groups organized around community development, particularly to fight urban renewal projects. In this essay, I examine a year in the life of the East Harlem Real Great Society/Urban Planning Studio (RGS/UPS). RGS/UPS emerged in a transition period in the development of Puerto Rican institutions. It combined several characteristics of groups organized during those years. It was founded by grassroots community youth; it was also a professionally staffed organization; it was structured around an advocacy model; and it valued its ethnic‐specificity, its Puertoricanness. Its staff's eagerness to speak for the needs and aspirations of Puerto Ricans was a clear example of ethnicity‐based struggle.     

The Gautrain project in South Africa: a cautionary tale

This article analyses the recently completed Gautrain Rapid Rail Project in the province of Gauteng, South Africa. The Gautrain is the continent's first high-speed rail project, and constitutes an important case in transportation megaproject planning. The article discusses the potential merits and limitations of the project, and ultimately argues that several key problems with the Gautrain should provide readers with a cautionary tale regarding such endeavours. Benefits to the project, such as reduced traffic congestion and job creation, must be weighed against the social and political implications of the project. Thus, the article discusses the following potential problems with the project: it may deepen mobility-related exclusion in the province; it prioritizes wealthy, as opposed to poor, citizens in the allocation of public funds; costs for the project have escalated considerably from initial estimates; and other options for a more effective and integrated transportation plan were not sufficiently considered. This case study conforms to what scholars call the megaprojects paradox in significant ways, and suggests that more rigorous and transparent debate should precede the approval of such projects.     

Public–Private Partnershipping as a Tool of Government: Exploring its Determinants Across German States

Despite considerable public and scholarly interest in public–private partnerships (PPPs) as a tool of government in Germany, there is no quantitative empirical study exploring the motivations behind policymakers' decisions to (not) use this type of privatisation policy. This article contributes to filling this gap by investigating the extent and determinants of the PPP activities of the 16 German states' governments over the period 2002–09. For that purpose, a PPP Activity Index is constructed which not only includes official PPP project figures but also state governments' programmatic, institutional, and advisory activities regarding PPP. Using this index, we statistically analyse whether fiscal stress, government partisanship, and other factors can help to explain the considerable differences between Länder governments' PPP activities. Among other things, it turns out that partisanship only matters if Socialists are part of a coalition government, and that fiscal transfers have a negative impact on a state's PPP activity level.     

The politics of national‐populism: Ideology and policies of the German Republikaner party

In this article, the Republikaner party's ideology and policies are explored on the basis of programmes and other public statements. There will be an emphasis on economic policies and issues of national and ethnic identity. It will be argued that the Republikaner party is targeting a broader electoral coalition than its main competitors and predecessors on the extreme right. In its attempt to mobilise a broad and heterogeneous protest coalition and to attract voters beyond the narrow confines of traditional right‐wing extremism the party makes contradictory promises to various sectional groups without being able to integrate them into a consistent framework of economic policy. These contradictions are covered up by the party's radical nationalism, extreme xenophobia and populist propaganda.     

Seasonality,differential access and interlinking of labour and credit

This article explains the interlinking of rural labour and credit transactions in terms of differential access to credit markets and seasonality. A model is developed which incorporates not only seasonality and differential access but also several other explanations for interlinking suggested in the literature. Moreover, it allows one to test the sensitivity of the results to differing powers on the part of landowners relative to working households.