Suchergebnisse

Abstract: In the last few decades, product liability has established itself as a subject in its own right in many parts of the world. This is well-known for the United States and Western Europe but it is also true in Central and Eastern Europe, on the Pacific Rim (including Australia), parts of Latin America, and elsewhere. Surprisingly, the numerous countries which have recently adopted special product liability rules have sought guidance not from American law but from the European model, especially from the EC Directive of 1985. This Directive has become something like an internationally leading blueprint so that globally speaking, the American approach has become almost an outsider. Yet, while the European model has had great worldwide influence on the law on the books, it has had very little impact on the law in action. In most countries, the European influence has neither significantly affected the nature nor the frequency of suits for damages caused by defective goods. This discrepancy between the Directive's influence in theory and its impotence in practice illustrates how deceptive and ineffective mere blackletter law harmonization can be.

"Welchen Rolle kann Westeuropa in der seit 1989 radikal veränderten Weltordnung spielen? Was überhaupt ist gemeint, wenn von 'Europa' die Rede ist? In den folgenden Überlegungen beschäftige ich mich mit der soziologischen Seite der europäischen Integration. Untersucht wird, (1) wie Europa als Sozialraum eigener Art abgegrenzt werden kann, (2) ob Europa einen erkennbar eigenständigen und darüber hinaus in den Grundzügen ähnlichen Kern sozialer Institutionen aufweist, (3) weiche Zukunftsaussichten das durch diese Institutionen gekennzeichnete 'europäische Modell' vornehmlich in ökonomischer Hinsicht besitzt. Sind die sozialen, wirtschaftlichen und politischen Muster, wie sie sich im kontinentalen Kerneuropa herausgebildet haben, im internationalen Wettbewerb weiterhin anpassungs- und leistungsfähig genug, um bestehen zu können?" (Autorenreferat)

At its inception in Hungary in the 1970s, the gatherings of young urban musicians at which they performed rural dance music for urban audiences had clearly political connotations. These gatherings, named Dance House or "Táncház" in Hungarian, were meant to be an alternative to the Soviet-style choreographed stage presentations of "folklore". As the model spread to other European countries, the political overtones became either different or irrelevant as the gatherings became largely recognized as both learning and entertaining events for urbanites. This presentation first contextualizes the appearance of the Dance House in the words of some of its creators and practitioners. This is followed by an analytical overview of Dance House gatherings in various parts of Europe. The central part of the presentation provides a detailed examination of the application of the Hungarian model in Slovenia. Based on multifarious experiences with Dance House in Slovenia and other European countries, the paper ends up with suggestions on possible applications of this model and its variants in worldwide contexts.

Abstract
In a comparative reading of Central European authors emigrating to the United States, I analyze the shifting role of the writer in the changing models of migrancy. World War II emigrations were often permanent, and the need to sustain contact with the old country as a repository of traditions turned the old country into a sacrosanct space. Writers were expected to support and reinforce the old country ethos. In post–World War II emigrations, including exiles repressed by communist regimes, a similar need is visible. Émigré writers were expected to assume the role of national bards, politically engaged in the cause of freedom for their compatriots. Reading authors who emigrated to the United States—Henryk Grynberg, Janusz Głowacki, and Dubravka Ugresić—I trace the development of what I propose to call the "cosmopolitical" agenda (a neologism linking cosmopolitanism with politics) in global migrant writing. The distinguishing feature of such cosmopolitical migrant writing from Central Europe is a particularly acerbic and language-driven sense of humor based on a self-deprecating, anarchistic attitude toward reality. They also offer subversive representations of the United States, where this space of freedom for an exile from a communist regime was also a space of oppression, repression, and silencing.

Employee participation, well established in pluralist democracies, is a crucial factor in the process of democratisation in developing economies. This paper contributes to this issue in Nigeria by focusing on the contribution industrial relations makes and contrasting it with the European experience. Specifically, the study investigates the employee participation forms which have developed in Nigeria. The research methodology is an adapted case study approach of 7 companies with international affiliations in Nigeria, and recent qualitative data from a focused group interview, involving key stake holders in the industrial relations framework, expanding the research to the broader socio-economic context in Nigeria. Despite the constraints of the research methodology the conclusion points at a rich variety of employee participation structures, which in some instances compare with European employee models. Significantly, the research reveals a clear pattern of democratic employee participation structures at company level thus highlighting relevance and promoting organisational efficacy.

Generally the settlement and intermediate level municipalities play an important role in providing health care. Therefore the local communities are responsible for organizing of the majority of the public health services in decentralized model, where the settlement level self-governments organize the basic (primary) health services and the intermediate level local governments the outpatient and inpatient cares. Decentralized model is typical but not general in Europe: the central governments are widely responsible for the provision of the health services in several countries. In the centralized model the local governments are not – or just in small scale (health planning and basic services) – responsible for the health services.

Generally, the settlement and intermediate level municipalities play an important role in providing health care. Therefore, the local communities are responsible for organizing of the majority of the public health services in decentralized model, where the settlement level self-governments organize the basic (primary) health services and the intermediate level local governments the outpatient and inpatient cares. Decentralized model is typical but not general in Europe: the central governments are widely responsible for the provision of the health services in several countries. In the centralized model, the local governments are not -- or just in small scale (health planning and basic services) -- responsible for the health services. Adapted from the source document.