Suchergebnisse

El estudio del proceso constructivo de la fortificación moderna de Badajoz en el siglo XVII nos proporciona una serie de referencias sobre aspectos de la dirección de obras, elaboración de proyectos y ejecución de los mismos, que son un reflejo del funcionamiento de la ingeniería militar en la Península Ibérica en el momento, agudizado en la situación en la que se vio sumida la frontera hispano-lusa en la guerra de Restauración de Portugal (1640-1668). ; The study of the construction process of the modern fortification in Badajoz in the XVIIth century provides us with several references on aspects of the direction of works, project preparation and execution, which are a reflection of the working on military engineering in the Iberian Peninsula at that time, exacerbated by the situation in which the Spanish-Portuguese border was sunk during the Portuguese Restoration War (1640-1668). ; Junta de Extremadura, Dirección General de Enseñanzas Universitarias e Investigación: Proyecto de investigación "Arquitectura militar en la Extremadura medieval y moderna. Un análisis interdisciplinar" (Ref. PRI97D056) ; peerReviewed

The author emphasizes the significance of the legacy of the past, which in all periods of radical change greatly restricts the elbow room of political protagonists, but at the same time enables them to work out their programs in relation to that legacy. One of the most important elements of the legacy of political development of the last 200 years is the state as we know it. The state is a non-abolishable institution that (particularly in the 20th century) has achieved contrary results: on the one hand, it has been the breeding pit of conflicts, destruction, & large-scale repression; while on the other, it has contributed immensely to the development of society. Leftist parties cannot negate the state but can develop some new mechanisms of controlling it. The author is of the opinion that the new developments will be threefold: deconcentration of the state apparatus; the professionalization & reduction of armies & the ensuing changes; & the integration of the state in supranational organizations. 4 References. Adapted from the source document.

Interprets the later work of Louis Althusser as an attempt to theorize a revolutionary practice in what he foresaw as a period of radical discontinuity between abstract Marxist theory & concrete historical practice. This gap is described as one in which the possibility of struggling face-to-face with the state system has been eroded because the state itself has become an empty point. Althusser's response to this condition was a form of aleatory materialism, a form of theorizing whose roots are Machiavellian Aleatory materialism is posed as a completely historicized struggle against what Althusser viewed as a hermetically sealed, tightly organized ideological capitalist system. According to Althusser, the fight against this system must take place outside its parameters, in the dimension of the negative, at the extremity of the empty totality of the system. However, it is argued that although Althusser saw this system as compact & organized, he also viewed it as empty & ultimately fragile, vulnerable to attack from an ontology of resistance developed outside its frame. 19 References. D. M. Smith

TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO, GRAHAM T. ALLISON BROUGHT TO THE POLITICAL SCIENTISTS COMMUNITY A NEW TOOL TO HELP US TO UNDERSTAND QUESTIONS IN THE DOMAIN OF FOREIGN POLICY: THE BUREAUCRATIC POLITICS MODEL. SINCE THEN, HIS "ESSENCE OF DECISION" HAS BEEN ONE OF THE MOST READ BOOKS IN UNIVERSITIES AND ONE OF THE TEXTS MOST REFERRED TO IN SCHOLAR WORKS. HOWEVER, IT IS OF INTEREST TO ANALYZE IF, BEYOND THE FRAMEWORK'S REPUTATION AND DESPITE THE NUMEROUS CRITICISMS ADDRESSED TO IT, THE BUREAUCRATIC POLITICS IS STILL USEFUL FOR SOMEONE WHO WISHES TO DO ANALYSIS BASED ON ITS ELEMENTS. HOW BUREAUCRATIC POLITICS CAN STILL HELP ONE TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESSES? ARE THERE AVENUES, QUESTIONS OR PROBLEMS THAT STILL CAN BE BETTER EXPLAINED BY REFERRING TO THIS SCHEME? THE ANSWER OFFERED TO THESE QUESTIONS REFERS TO THE MODEL'S COMPONENTS, TO AN UPDATE OF THE EVALUATION SEVERAL SCHOLARS MADE OF IT, AND, FINALLY, TO A DYNAMIC ORIENTATION THAT PUTS FORWARD THE PARADIGMATIC DIMENSION OF THE THEORY AND AN APPLICATION TO A SPECIFIC QUESTION.

Due to the substantial rise in the importance of international & national NGOs, an open working group of the UN is discussing "General Review of Arrangements for Consultations with Nongovernmental Organizations" that includes not only the member states, but also accredited international NGOs (INGOs). Current interaction between the UN & NGOs is limited to consultation agreements with almost exclusively INGOs, & are conducted through the ECOSOC rather than other main UN organizations, although the existing consultations relationships in fact go far beyond the scope of the ECOSOC regulations. Restructuring of the formal relationship, however, generates political pressure on UN member states at the international & national levels, as various groups have different expectations with disputes between NGOs & national governments, between northern & southern NGOs, & between NGOs & INGOs. A compromise is necessary that requires organizationally technical issues to be addressed on the part of the UN, while the NGOs must work toward better democratization, independence, & coordination of their interests. 9 References. L. Kehl

The contradictory & ultimately debilitating aspects of capitalist progress are discussed in a response to Michael Barratt Brown's critique (1996 [see abstract 9709903]) of the author's "Global Capitalism and Labor at the End of History" (1995 [see abstract 9608458]). Brown suggests that capitalism will destroy itself by (1) promoting economic & political crises in the Third World, (2) initiating nationalist conflicts as states weaken, & (3) reducing working conditions to such a level that worker revolution is inevitable. Although these assertions seem contradictory to Marxist political economy assumptions, it is argued that these processes are, in fact, predicted by such a perspective. Rather than advocating a steady transition from capitalism to proletarianization to socialism, Marxism predicts a series of crises produced through imbalances in overproduction/underconsumption & the fluctuations of business cycles. Therefore, the racial, political, & economic conflict highlighted by Brown is not inconsistent with the Marxist approach to capitalism. Further, recent history suggests that these conflicts are not necessarily avoided or reduced in socialist regimes. T. Sevier

Tests Albert Hirschman's (1970) theory of organizational loyalty, drawing on various data that measure the internal dynamics of the Italian Communist Party after Achille Occhetto's proposal to transform it into a postcommunist leftist party. According to Hirschman, members have two means of expressing their displeasure with an organization: openly via voice or abandonment (exit). Occhetto's proposal led to the departure of a dissident faction & the formation of a separate party. However, analysis of the voting preferences of ordinary party members during debates on this issue indicate that voice & exit were associated. Regions that voiced the most opposition to Occhetto's proposal also tended to be those in which party membership declined the most. Further, while loyalty to the organization was found to inhibit exit, this was not the case with respect to ideologically driven loyalty. It is concluded that Hirschman's theory needs to be reconceptualized to capture the intense feelings at work when political parties undergo radical change. 28 References. D. M. Smith

Draws on the work of Walter Benjamin & Jacques Derrida to interpret the uses & status of Soviet-period monuments of Moscow, Russia, 1991-1996. Particular attention is paid to an aborted 1991 effort by an internatinal team of artists sponsored by the New York-based Sots-art-Komar & Melamid to temporarily transform Moscow into a garden of totalitarian sculpture. The point of this exercise was to perform a kind of history lesson through performing on & through the sculptures. It is suggested that this effort failed because traces of the communist period still remain in post-Soviet Russian society. In this context, the terror of the communist period is still too near to innocently play with its historical signifiers as the artists proposed. It is argued that the present moment in Russia is best understood as an ambiguous mix of presence-absence in that real deconstruction of the past is being postponed until some vague afterperiod becomes imbued with potentiality. 6 Photographs, 7 References. Adapted from the source document.

Interpretations of the growth in terms of the economy & ecology are completely different. Economists are analyzing trends in savings & investment growth, based on data from the world of industry & finance, national governments, & international development agencies. They never mention limits to sustainable resources as an element economic activity, which is the basic notion of ecology. These two opposite viewpoints create global schizophrenia -- the loss of contact with reality. The critical role in the deliverance from schizophrenic behavior on a national & an international level belongs to the state. Goals of sustainable development should play a part in the work of governmental & parliamentary committees that are dealing with national & international politics & planning. Presuppositions that Croatia has to fulfill, if it wants to establish sustainable development institutions, are establishing a democratic society & a market economy & raising the awareness of all members of society about the importance of environmental protection. Institutionalization of sustainable development does not end at the level of government bodies, but should be continued by nongovernmental organizations. Adapted from the source document.