The Eurozone crisis has re-introduced the notions of core/periphery into the debate. However, this is a theoretically contested area between those who place special emphasis on international relations and those who emphasize class relations. In view of the complexity of the subject, analyzing a particular case study can shed light on its multiple dimensions, so that conclusions of a more general applicability may be drawn. More
Joachim Becker: Enlarging the EU Sphere of Influence Eastwards – Or: The Dialectics of Integration and Disintegration
In the face of the austerity-induced depression of the domestic markets in the EU, the EU and its main powers bank on the expansion of economic relations beyond the EU and free trade agreements. The coalition agreement of social democrats and Christian democrats in Germany, the dominant EU power, is characteristic of this thinking. It is extremely brief and unimaginative in its paragraphs on the EU, but dedicates detailed and highlighted paragraphs on the Germany’s economic relationship with so-called emerging economies and on EU free trade agreements More
Workshop Organizers: Why is the Left so Weak?
Let us quote from our starting working paper: “The central challenge is and will be to work on strategies against competition, for organizing solidarity. Here we have to recognize that we were and are not successful regardless all Social Forum Processes, many conferences, workshops and so many activities. It means, we have to ask about the reasons of our failures.“ The point was critisised. More
Judith Dellheim, Frieder Otto Wolf: On Industrial Policy
Crisis and Inequalities in the European Union
In regard to the posts from the end of May and from July 16th we publish an official report of the European Commission on the „Euro crisis countries“. Please find it here
Workshop Organizers: A Few More Remarks
We now propose the following workshop parts:
- I. Global Context, Experience and Theoretical Basics
- II. Financialisation and Transnationalisation; Social and Production Structures
- III. Case Studies in Regard to Countries
- IV. More specifically on Alternatives
Judith Dellheim: “Peripherisation”?
Rosa Luxemburg clearly demonstrates how political economy can readily be turned into a tool to strengthen people’s struggles for emancipation and how solidarity can reveal opportunities for action. Luxemburg saw herself as a global, socialist citizen in the sense that she expressed solidarity with people who were exploited and oppressed by those in power, regardless of their nationality or citizenship. Her goal was to understand and explain how exploitation takes place, how it is constantly renewed, and the consequences exploitation has at the individual, family and community level. Weiterlesen
Kees van der Pijl: The Financial Crisis and the War for Global Governance
This paper argues that in the transition from corporate liberalism to neoliberalism, the projection of global governance by the West replaces the previous recognition of bloc formation of non-Western states. The military build-up and counterrevolutionary interventions under Reagan, and the revolt of the capital markets against Keynesianism coupled with unregulated finance, were the relays in this projection. In the same period the Israeli Far Right and their supporters in the United States re-baptised national liberation as terrorism. This made it possible to continue with record defence outlays and arms exports to Middle East and Asian clients. In the early nineties the US military-industrial complex More
Kees van der Pijl: 1984 All Over Again. The Snowden NSA Revelations in Perspective
In the discussion concerning the Snowden NSA revelations many have referred to Orwell’s 1984. This paper highlights that Orwell identified two components–total surveillance and permanent war. The paper then looks at the actual year 1984 and argues that in that year was significant after all because both elements of today’s War on Terror (surveillance and war) were being prepared. One was the Washington conference on the War on Terror, the third in a series initiated from Israel; the other, the preparation of a Continuity of Government (COG) programme by the Reagan administration, more
Some More Statistics on Inequality
In addition to our statistics from 31.5. we would like to recommend two some more: 1) Eurofound’s fifth annual yearbook, Living and working in Europe, based on the Agency’s research from 2013, and 2) a special coverage on the financial crisis.