The free rider problem: Experimental evidence

This paper addresses the need to learn more about the relative desirability of the current FASB and its alternatives. It responds to this need by demonstrating how a given standards-setting alternative might be preliminarily analyzed in terms of its feasibility and the degree to which its theoretical objectives are operationally attainable. The analysis emphasizes that it is not the existence of possible operational shortcomings that is important, but how its operational properties compare with those of other available alternatives. The analysis itself reveals that, in spite of operational shortcomings, standards-setting by means of a demand-revealing process may be an alternative worthy of further consideration both in its own right, and as a basis of comparison for assessing the relative strengths and limitations of the current FASB.     

Der andere „amerikanische“ Max Weber: Hans H. Gerths und C. Wright Mills’ <Emphasis Type="Italic">From Max Weber</Emphasis>, dessen deutsche Rezeption und das Konzept der „public sociology“

The reader From Max Weber, published by Hans H. Gerth and C. Wright Mills in 1946, has a strong international impact. Its ideas influenced Mills?s later work The sociological imagination in which he makes it clear that the “sociological imagination” can best be found in the works of classical social analysts like Max Weber. Michael Burawoy, who uses the term “public sociology”, based on Mills, therefore also calls Weber an early “public sociologist”. In addition to that he describes the volume by Gerth and Mills as the outstanding collection of Weber?s writings in which the authors offer an interpretation different from that of Talcott Parsons. In Germany Gerth?s and Mills?s book on Weber is almost completely unknown, although it is still mentioned in works by German sociologists published shortly after the Second World War. This is one reason why in Germany Burawoy?s concept of “public sociology” is seen in contrast to the views of Weber. First, the article shows the differences in the interpretation of Weber by Gerth and Mills and by Parsons. Than it describes the early German reception of From Max Weber and looks into the reasons why it was not of greater influence. It will be stressed that the importance of this book lies in the fact, that it can be used to legitimize “public sociology”.     

The Great Disconnect: Global Governance and Localised Conflict in the Cases of India and the EU

Academic scholarship displays a curious disconnect between two trends, connecting peace and governance issues. At the same time when conflicts tended to shift inwards (from inter-state to civil wars), global governance approaches seemed to decentre the management of peace and conflict outwards (from the nation state to international forums). This paper investigates this disjuncture by examining the European Union and India's governance strategies in different conflict contexts. It studies whether their strategies operate close to the global governance model and/or whether they are able to connect with and effectively support local peace initiatives in conflict-ridden areas.     

Interpreting UKIP's ‘Earthquake’ in British Politics: UK Television News Coverage of the 2009 and 2014 EU Election Campaigns

UK broadcasters came under fire for the amount of airtime UKIP and its leader Nigel Farage received after the party won the most votes in the 2014 EU election. Our content analysis of television news during the 2009 and 2014 campaigns found little bias in terms of soundbites, but in the more recent election Farage visually appeared in coverage to a greater degree than other party leaders. Moreover, two core UKIP policies—being in or out of Europe and immigration—dominated coverage in 2014. We suggest the ‘UKIP factor’ and the media's fascination with Nigel Farage help explain why the 2014 campaign was more visible on television news than was the case in 2009 and was largely reported through a Westminster prism. Although television news bulletins attempt to impartially report elections, the 2014 campaign agenda was largely contested on UKIP's ideological terrain and the party's electoral fortunes.     

Land Acquisition,Investment, and Development in the Lao Coffee Sector: Successes and Failures

ABSTRACT

Despite the increasing acknowledgment of scholars and practitioners that many large-scale agricultural land acquisitions in developing countries fail or never materialize, empirical evidence about how and why they fail to date is still scarce. Too often, land deals are portrayed as straightforward investments and their success is taken for granted. Looking at the coffee sector in Laos, the authors of this article explore dimensions of the land grab debate that have not yet been sufficiently examined. Coffee concessionaires in southern Laos often fail to use all of the land granted them and fail to produce high yields on the land they do use. Thus, the authors challenge the often-assumed superiority and effectiveness of large-scale versus small-scale production, specifically the argument that they modernize agricultural production and optimize land use. They argue that examining failed investments is as important as studying successful ones for understanding the implications of the land grabbing phenomenon for social, economic, and environmental outcomes. Knowledge about the scale of “failed land deals” provides important motivation for national governments to close the gap between intentions and actual outcomes. This article engages with the current debate on quality of investment and challenges the approach of employing land concessions as a vehicle for economic development in the Lao coffee sector and in other sectors and countries.     

Market Social Democracy: The Transformation of the SPD up to 2007

The article analyses the changes within German social democracy up to the passing of the SPD's new party programme in 2007. It argues that social democracy has transformed itself from Keynesian into ‘market social democracy’. The comparison takes place by means of a policy analysis in the fields of labour and social, as well as financial, policies. Furthermore, the policy comparison facilitates an analysis of the rationality of the political economy on which these policies are based. It demonstrates that market social democracy represents a reconfiguration of the relationship between the market, the state and the individual, one that renews the social realm with elements of economic liberalism. This process is also reflected in the new party programme, which now includes basic assumptions of German ordoliberalism.     

Eisenhower,arms control and disarmament: United States diplomatic documents, 1958–60

Foreign Relations of the United States, 1958–60: Volume III, Microfiche Supplement, National Security Policy; Arms Control and Disarmament, Washington, DC: Department of State, 1998.