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Cultures of Democracy, a special issue of Public Culture, proposes that democratic strategies and practices pursued by different countries, and the relative successes of those strategies and practices, are deeply affected by the countries' cultures, histories, and reception of, or resistance to, modernity. The collection suggests that a commitment to normative models of democracy prevents recognition of democratic practices in societies not usually seen as democratic or proto-democratic from a Western vantage point.Offering accounts of practices of democracy in Egypt, Yemen, Argentina, and India, these cultural theorists--drawing on work in anthropology, political theory, and postcolonial studies--revise notions of what might be regarded as a democratic practice. The essays look at examples of democracy in a variety of spheres. One examines how the chewing of khat leaves in public gatherings in Yemen acts as a democratic practice by creating spontaneous forums for political discussion. Another considers the events of the 2003 municipal elections in Buenos Aires, when the center Right secured a record number of votes from an electorate jaded by political corruption by forming strategic alliances with local football clubs, ultimately leading to the election of the president of one popular club. And another essay explores the Indian government's reaction when the political methods used to achieve the nation's independence--defiance of the law, hunger strikes, demonstrations, and the destruction of public property--were used to challenge the government in the postcolonial period. Taken as a whole, the essays argue that democracy might be productively viewed as a cultural system inclusive of many cultures of democracy.

Contributors. Arjun Appadurai, Craig Calhoun, Dipesh Chakrabarty, Jean Comaroff, Carlos Forment, Dilip Parameshwar Gaonkar, Claudio Lomnitz, Manar Shorbagy, Charles Taylor, Lisa Wedeen ... Read more

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This analysis of the crises in church-state relations inArgentina over the last 100 years shows that theconstitutionally-established Catholic Church was progressivelydisenfranchised by various governments and responded by struggling tomaintain the institution's historic rights and privileges and to speakas the moral conscience of Argentina.

This study of Argentine Catholicism offers an important perspective tothe country's turbulent political history. Church-state relations showa number of crisis points whereby the constitutionally-establishedCatholic Church underwent progressive disenfranchisement by variousgovernments. In response, church elites struggled to maintain theinstitution's historic rights and privileges and to speak as the moralconscience of the nation.

Three critical periods in church-state relations are examined: theanticlerical period of the 1880s; the rise of Peronism in the 1940s;and the series of events beginning with the upsurge of therevolutionary left in the 1960s. These events shaped the ArgentineChurch, while at the same time Catholicism, often imbued with afervent nationalism, provided many groups competing for power themyths, symbols, and language necessary to articulate a vision for anew Argentina. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Academic but accessible
Written by what I believe to be a historian, this book offers a very clear and organised account of the Catholic Church in Argentina from the 1800's until present day. The content is very true to its title, as the perspective of the analysis is very much those of political realities and implications. It deals very much with how the organisation within the church, with internal controversies and crisis, the different identities of the church and the constant struggle for power and position by the clergy. This is seen in relation to the political realities of every epoch, and consequently how different ideologies of rule have made the church respond or proact in various ways - and not least, how the church has experienced separation within. Do not expect to obtain alot profound insight into the social dimension of the church, i.e, the position it has held and holds today among the people of the different classes that make up this nation, or how it plays a role in daily life of individuals. Incidentally, Burdick uses theory by the social anthropologist Victor Turner in conceptualising and organising the different phases of change in the relationship between church and state. This has made the analysis more accessible and basically more enjoyable. Not at all overly academic in style, but well structured and seemingly very well researched. PS, Burdicks suggestions regarding Peron's brake with the Catholic Church seem better outlined and more plausible than those of Donna Guy in Sex and Danger in Buenos Aires, even though they treat different subject matters. ... Read more

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Globalism, Nationalism, Tribalism establishes a new basis for understanding the changing nature of polity and community and offers unprecedented attention to these dominant trends. Paul James charts the contradictions and tensions we all encounter in an era of increasing globalization, from genocide and terrorism to television and finance capital. ... Read more

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This book explores theories of democracy within a framework of references to French politics and political theory. It is unusual in that it takes a close look at aspects of political history and contemporary political life, but strongly emphasizes the importance of a theoretical framework; it looks at some of the traditional areas of interest of "political science" but does so from a more radical point of view than is usually the case. Hewlett's starting point is a critical analysis of the concept of democracy and a belief in the need for deeper, more participative forms of democracy. He explores French traditions of democracy, especially the Enlightenment and 1789; republicanism and the Third Republic; and the labour movement and the influence of Marxism. He goes on to look at the implications for democracy of social and political conflict in France, to examine electoral trends and to discuss the political philosophy of "new liberals" such as Luc Ferry and Marcel Gauchet. He concludes with an assessment of the realistic prospects for deeper democracy, and the extent to which the considerations raised by the French case are common to all advanced capitalist countries. ... Read more

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Since 1990, Britain has seen a period of unprecedented public investment in, and political commitment to, sport. In this book, Iain Lindsey and Barrie Houlihan examine and analyze sport policy since the appointment of John Major as leader of the Conservative Party in 1990.

John Major’s period as Prime Minister was a watershed in British sport policy marking the beginning of a prolonged period of public and lottery investment and relatively high political salience. The text also locates Labour sport policy not only in relation to the previous government of John Major, but also in relation to the Labour government’s broader concerns and ambitions related to modernisation of British institutions, its ambition to tackle the ‘wicked issues’ epitomised by its focus on achieving greater social inclusion, and its interest in facilitating greater stakeholder involvement in the policy process.

Lindsey and Houlihan provide the first analysis that examines sport policy as a field of government and that discusses how the various sectors (e.g. youth/school sport, mass sport, etc.) have been affected by government policy and the competition for public resources.

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The title provides a theoretical and empirical contribution to the growing field of gender politics. Hilary Footitt argues that there is evidence that women are now, in practice, constituting democracy, citizenship and European identity in ways which are different from those of men. She illustrates her argument with lively discussion on the position of women in the formal political process in Europe, including interview material with women in the European parliament, which has an exceptionally high level of female participation. She goes on to look at what the langauge of women in the European political arena can contribute to the debates on engendering democracy, drawing on the work of writers including Iris Marion Young, Anne Phillips and Theda Skocpol; and citizenship, drawing on the work of Jean Bethke Elshtain and Joan Tronto. The author reveals language to be a vital domain of politics. She argues that if we become aware of some of the communities of language practice within politics, we open a wider ranger of possiblities with which to describe democracy, citizenship and Europe.Gender is only one of the multiple communities of language practice we need to consider, and the transnational space of the EU provides us with major opportunities to reframe the political process. ... Read more

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Beginning with the bloody communist purges of the Jiangxi era of the 1920s and moving forward to the wild excesses of the Cultural Revolution, Policing Chinese Politics explores the question of revolutionary violence and the political passion that propels it. "Who are our enemies, who are our friends, that is a question germane to the revolution," wrote Mao Zedong in 1926. Michael Dutton shows just how powerful this one line was to become. It would establish the binary division of life in revolutionary China and lead to both passionate commitment and revolutionary excess. The political history of revolutionary China, then, is largely framed by the attempts of Mao and the Party to harness these passions.

The economic reform period that followed Mao Zedong’s rule offers a hint as to how the magic spell of political faith and commitment can be broken, but it also shows that such disenchantment comes at a considerable cost. This detailed, empirical tale of Chinese socialist policing is, therefore, more than simply a police story. It is a parable that offers a cogent analysis of Chinese politics generally while radically redrafting our understanding of what politics is all about. Breaking with the traditional elite modes of political analyses that focus on personalities, factions, and betrayals, and from ‘rational’ accounts of politics and government, Dutton provides a highly original understanding of the far-reaching consequences of acts of faith and commitment in the realm of politics. ... Read more

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Stalinism for All Seasons is the first comprehensive history of the Romanian Communist Party (RCP). It traces the origins of the once-tiny, clandestine revolutionary organization in the 1920s through the years of national power from 1944 to 1989 to the post-1989 metamorphoses of its members. Vladimir Tismaneanu uses documents that he discovered while working in the RCP archives in Bucharest in the mid-1990s and interviews with many of the party members from the Ceau_escu and Gheorghiu-Dej eras to tell the absorbing story of how RCP members came to power as exponents of Moscow and succeeded in turning themselves into champions of autonomy. Tismaneanu analyzes both the main events in Romanian communism and the role of significant personalities in the party's history. Situating the rise and fall of Romanian communism within the world revolutionary movement, Stalinism for All Seasons shows that the history of communism in one country can illuminate the development of communism in the twentieth century.

Tismaneanu discusses significant moments in the final six decades of world communism, including the Spanish Civil War, World War II, the Comintern, Stalin and the Bolshevization of the Eastern European communist parties, and de-Stalinization. He examines important events in international affairs during Nicolae Ceau_escu's rule (1965-1989)--particularly Romania's role in the Sino-Soviet conflict, the Middle East, European communism, and European security. Finally, Tismaneanu identifies the RCP's descendants among Romania's current political parties and personalities. Embracing a long and complex period, this book will interest readers of twentieth-century history and anyone curious about communism and postcommunism. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

the seminal work on Romanian communism
For anyone interested in Romania's political history during the twentieth-century, Professor Tismaneanu's "Stalinism for All Seasons" is the seminal work on the subject.
Clearly written, solidly researched, informative and engaging, "Stalinism for all Seasons" can be included among the best works of political history, alongside
Pipes' works on Lenin, Conquest's books on Stalin and Bullock's studies of Hitler. If you're interested in finding out about the evolution and demise of Romanian
communism, there is no better source than "Stalinism for all Seasons". I highly recommend this book for all readers interested in Romanian political history and in the history of
totalitarianism.

A stunning tour de force on political pathology and dystopia
After "Stalinism for All Seasons" it must be truly depressing to consider writing books of political sociology on the topic of the communist grand narrative. This is not only because Tismaneanu's opus, the outcome of a lifelong fascination with the topic, is so well-stocked with quality historical data (his archival research,and access to unique resources can hardly be replicated), but also because the author is a genuine maestro of both analytical insight and of a captivating writing style.
It is astonishing how he managed to strike the right balance between a sociological-political excursus of great analytical accuracy with a novel-like narrative that stretches over almost a century and whose charm ruins your work agenda for several days.
Although the book's focus is the case of the pariah Romanian Communist Party, Tismaneanu immerses this case in the wider phenomenon of world communism. The reader is stunned to discover, en premiere,the constitution of informal transnational party networks and narratives that spanned from Vietnam to Greece, and Romania. Particularly fascinating are Tismaneanu's foray into mechanisms of Leninist and Stalinist manipulation of the (rather excessively)romanticized world communism" of the 20s and 30s, as well as his treatment of the role of memory, charisma, nationalism and aesthetics in the ascension, ossification and in the decay of the party.
We have access to the operationalization of general issues of interest for political scientists such as puzzling hybridizations of mechanisms for political power conquest and maintenance, the crucial role of personalities (that escapes facile research designs accomodation), how resources are distributed and conflits are settled in opaque political machines.
For those interested in how birth pathologies impact the subsequent development of radical political projects that end up reaching the lands of dystopia, this read is undoubtedly set to be on list of classics.

Briefly � this multi-layer book is a masterpiece ...
Briefly - this multi-layer book is a masterpiece of modern political science. This history of Romanian Communism is one particular case speaking crystal-clear about global Communism . Due to Vladimir Tismaneanu and his history ofRomanian Communism we have an accurate, a splendid x-rayofCommunism in the world.
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More than that this book is as a wonderful political novel - written by Vladimir Tismaneanu with genius and, believe me, plenty offine, ironicalhumor.

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Therefore, reading this work, you can easily re-make historically and politically the whole nightmare of the Communist era, in Romania, and in Europe, and world-wide as well. Yes - a tragic nightmare. A disaster.
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Vladimir Tismaneanu presents to us, with knowledge and skills of a master in laser-surgery,the anatomy and the functions of this Monster , Communism -alas ! somehow still alive .His lesson is a fundamental lesson about humankind's fatal errors and disasters ... which we do not have the right to repeat and re-live. At least, because you have to admit this terrible reality: nazism = communism = Islamic terrorism. At last but not at least, considering this irrefutable truth - I warmly recommend you the lesson of Vladimir Tismaneanu, his work as a unique book of our modern times. A healing book !
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And, for this lesson, we definitely have to be grateful,from the bottom of our hearts, to Vladimir Tismaneanu - who is practically the genuine creator of the modern school of Romanian political science.

seminal work on Romanian communism
Professor Tismaneanu, one of the sharpest analysts in the field of Eastern European politics, has written what is no doubt the definitive comprehensive study of the Romanian Communist Party. Brilliantly written and painstakingly researched over many years, the work will be appreciated by anybody interested in Eastern European politics or the stalinist system and its various deviations.

A solid political science work, the prose is lively and the entire work, complete with the cast of characters at the end, reminds me more of Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury than other blander political analyses.

A superb book. ... Read more

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Often, the well-intentioned efforts of activist lawyers working within low-income communities have not been effective. In this study of the practice of public interest law, the author argues that these failures can be traced to the inability of activist lawyers to shake off the tacit assumptions of their own legal culture. Weaving his argument around constructed dramatic accounts - scenarios based on years of observation and experience - Lopez builds a case that progressive lawyering demands a rethinking of the practice of law, the needs of the community and the relationship between the two. ... Read more

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From the perspective of the 1990s, it is possible to see the road to the Bonn Republic and West Germany's "social market economy" as the "correct" postwar German path. But unified Germany continues to confront enormous problems of social inequality and widespread resistance to the acceptance of a truly multi-cultural society. By exploring how West Germans confronted--or failed to confront--similar problems in the early history of the Federal Republic, this collection makes a crucial contribution to understanding the present.
Moving beyond accounts of high politics and international relations, the essays brought together here focus on the intersections between the politics of daily life and the politics of the nation-state. Building on the approaches of women's history, social history, and cultural studies, they emphasize that the process of defining West Germany in the 1950s took place not only in the geopolitical arena of the Cold War but also in dance halls and at the movies, in worker-training programs, and in patterns of consumption.
West Germany under Construction not only expands our understanding of the early formation of West German society, it also outlines ways to continue the excavation of that past. It will be mandatory reading for students and scholars alike.
Robert G. Moeller is Professor of History, University of California, Irvine.
... Read more

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This volume of interviews from the popular online journal Logos are organized around the critical and formative themes of the decline of politics and culture, the rise in American imperialism, the crisis in the Middle East and the need to forge new alternatives and modes of resistance. The insights and challenges offered in the interviews are crucial for active thinkers looking to respond thoughtfully, effectively and conscientiously to the crises that shape our times. ... Read more

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How can we achieve peace? Answering this pressing question entails an understanding of the causes, manifestations and consequences of collective violence among societies, cultures and states.

Unfailingly thorough, The Quest for Peace provides a lucid analysis of the nature of war and peace. It offers a sober account of the possibilities of transcending collective violence to achieve a peace based on liberty and justice.

The interdisciplinary and international collection of contributions provide a broad perspective, covering psychological, anthropological, political, economic and sociological aspects of warfare. They look at the dynamic structural, cultural and ecological causes of collective violence.

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Global society has been analyzed in any number of ways: books dealing with its economic and cultural implications flood the market. But Planetary Politics highlights something unique. It explores globalization with an eye on the transformation of politics into a planetary enterprise. Bringing together the work of major scholars with national and international reputations, this exciting new work offers perspectives for dealing with the complexity of power in the planetary life of the new millennium. ... Read more

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The Left in the 1960s and 1970s has a powerful, almost mythical, place in the history of the 20th century. It was during these decades that the radical Left managed to renew the language of socialism as an alternative to communism and liberalism alike, but also when radicalism often led to extremism and social movements turned into political sects. Focusing on the Left in Denmark and Sweden during those turbulent decades, this study pays close attention to the political language in the two countries and shows the constant challenge to the concepts of the Left in the face of rapid social, cultural and political changes. The precarious relationship between the Left and the nation serves as a starting point for the exploration of the development of the New Left after the break with communism, the subsequent student revolts and radicalization of the late 1960s until the movement s apparent collapse at the end of the 1970s. This book illustrates the challenges the Left was facing in its attempt to articulate a credible political language at a time of social, cultural and political transformation. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (4)

Structured by Observations and Misperceptions of Each Other
Arguing that the central defining experience of 20th century East Asia has been its entanglement first with British and Japanese imperialism, and then with the US, Cumings ends Parallax Visions with a discussion of how the situation could change over the next century as the economic and political global influence of the United States declines. In a work that fuses and simplifies critical developments in international relations at the end of the twentieth century, Cumings gives us nuanced explanations of how the US has come into view vis-à-vis modern history and culture in East Asia.

By offering a new perspective as well as corrections to previously widely held yet largely inaccurate opinions of the goings on in this region, Parallax Visions shows how relations between the United States, Japan, Vietnam, North and South Korea, China, and Taiwan have been structured by their observations and misperceptions of each other. Using information based on thirty years of research, Cumings offers a new perspective on a wide range of issues that originated with the cold war. Cummings seeks to deconstruct the presuppositions that Americans traditionally bring to the understanding of our relations with East Asia including but not limited to Pearl Harbor, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Korean War, and more recent difficulties regarding US relations with China and Japan. Cumings also refutes US media coverage of North Korea's nuclear diplomacy in the 1990s and examines how experiences of colonialism and postcolonialism have had different impacts on economic development in each of these spaces. Bringing to presence the sometimes self-deluded ideology of cold war America, Parallax Visions engages in questions of modernity and the role of the US in (re)shaping the destinies of modernizing societies in Asia.

This book is mainstream
This book written by Bruce Cumings displays the intellectual capabilities of a true professor, the deep descriptions and accounts of East Asian relations are conceptually flawless. I can proudly say that my older brother Ian has this work of impecable art for bedtime reading. Forget Green Eggs and Ham and the Cat in the Hat, my 17 year old brother demands perfection in the field of asian history. Thank to you, my son has entered the field of history as the youngest professor at South-East Oklahoma State University.
-Ezekiel Baragokus

A Change of Perspective can Change Policy?
The word "parallax" in this title is quickly explained: by changing your position the thing you are lloking at will also seem to change. In observing East Asia, there has been a tendency (at least prior to the april 2001 incident) you might think that American influence was declining as China and Japan are emerging as regional - global - powers.Cumings is not alarmed and believes that capitalist and democratic counties w111 continue to co-operate while and the move towards free trade and international will remain strong as more asian countries participate. As values are increasingly shared between Asia and America, it is misleading to stress the differences. America will remain the region's dominant power for a long time yet. The biggest threats to n Asia are misperceptions, exaggerated fears or imaginary "sunspots".One not so imaginary spot is Afghanistan and Central Asia.the near future will provide an ideal testing ground for Mr. Cumings theory.

Interesting new perspectives, but some problems
This book offers a lot of new ideas, and if half of them are true then it is worth reading. But some of the ideas put forth, like for instance trying to relate the cult of Kim Il Sung in post war Korea to the Japanese cult of the emperror when Korea was a colony are a bit of a stretch. Also, the author seems to know much more about Korea, he is okay with Japan, and biased about China, and undestimating its place in the world. It is definitely worth reading but read it critically. ... Read more