Suchergebnisse

In the years following her role as the lead author of the international bestseller, Limits to Growth--the first book to show the consequences of unchecked growth on a finite planet-- Donella Meadows remained a pioneer of environmental and social analysis until her untimely death in 2001. Thinking in Systems, is a concise and crucial book offering insight for problem solving on scales ranging from the personal to the global. Edited by the Sustainability Institute's Diana Wright, this essential primer brings systems thinking out of the realm of computers and equations and into the tangible world, showing readers how to develop the systems-thinking skills that thought leaders across the globe consider critical for 21st-century life. Some of the biggest problems facing the world--war, hunger, poverty, and environmental degradation--are essentially system failures. They cannot be solved by fixing one piece in isolation from the others, because even seemingly minor details have enormous power to undermine the best efforts of too-narrow thinking. While readers will learn the conceptual tools and methods of systems thinking, the heart of the book is grander than methodology. Donella Meadows was known as much for nurturing positive outcomes as she was for delving into the science behind global dilemmas. She reminds readers to pay attention to what is important, not just what is quantifiable, to stay humble, and to stay a learner. In a world growing ever more complicated, crowded, and interdependent, Thinking in Systems helps readers avoid confusion and helplessness, the first step toward finding proactive and effective solutions.

In this fascinating interdisciplinary book, Shawn W. Rosenberg challenges two basic assumptions that orient much contemporary social scientific thinking. Offering theory and empirical research, he rejects the classic liberal view that people share a basic "common sense" or rationality. At the same time, he questions the view of contemporary social theory that meaning is simply an intersubjective or cultural product.Through in-depth interviews, Rosenberg explores the underlying logic of cognition. Rather than discovering a common sense or rationality, he finds that people reason in fundamentally different ways, and these differences affect the kind of understandings they craft and the evaluations they make. As a result, people actively reconstruct culturally prevalent meanings and norms in their own subjective terms. Rosenberg provides a comprehensive description of three types of socio-political reasoning and the full text of three exemplary interviews.Rosenberg's findings help explain such puzzling social phenomena as why people do not learn even when it is to their advantage to do so, or why they fail to adapt to changed social conditions even when they have clear information and motivation. The author argues that this kind of failure is commonplace and discusses examples ranging from the crisis of modernity to the classroom performance of university students. Building on the ideas of Jean Piaget, George Herbert Mead, and Jurgen Habermas, Rosenberg offers a new orienting vision, structural pragmatics, to account for these social phenomena and his own research in cognition. In the concluding chapter, he discusses the implications of his work for the study of social cognition, political behavior, and democratic theory

Highly acclaimed, Prison On Trial is the classic critique of prisons and imprisonment: a book for everyone's library shelf and collection. For anyone seeking to understand the modern trend towards locking-up ever more people, it distils the arguments for and against incarceration in a readable, accessible and authoritative way - gaining in status each time prison populations increase across large parts of the world. In this new Third Edition - with its New Preface, Epilogue and other Revisions (plus all the material from earlier editions) - the author expands on the control aspects of prison, the gear change brought about by responses to international terrorism post-September 11 and the London bombings and explains how contemporary events are changing the boundaries of crime and punishment and increasing the risks to civil liberties and the Rule of Law. Thomas Mathiesen also argues for an 'Alternative Public Space' where discussion of serious and fundamental issues of this nature can take place free from the superficial world of knee-jerk reactions from politicians and the entertainment driven needs of the press and media. Prison On Trial distils the arguments for and against imprisonment in a readable, accessible and authoritative way - making Thomas Mathiesen's work a classic for students and other people concerned to understand the real issues. It is as relevant today as when it was first published - arguably more so as policy-making becomes increasingly politicized and true opportunities to influence developments diminish.Mindful of this, Mathiesen recommends an 'alternative public space' where people can engage in valid discussion on the basis of sound information, free from the survival priority of the media - to entertain.

A Brave New Series -- About this series -- About the author -- Title -- Copyright -- Contents -- Abbreviations and acronyms -- Acknowledgements and biographical note -- Preface -- 1 Introduction -- 2 The global women's movement: definitions and local origins -- Definitions -- Characteristics -- Symbols and images -- Origins -- Conclusion -- 3 Global contexts for an emerging movement: the UN Development Decades, 1960s-1970s -- International debates on socio-economic development (1960s-1970s) -- The decade of the 1980s -- The decade of the 1990s -- Background to the Decade for Women (1975-85) -- Conclusion -- 4 A Decade for Women: UN conferences, 1975-85 -- The context for International Women's Year (1975) -- International Women's Year (1975) -- The Decade for Women (1975-85) -- Mid-Decade (1980) -- The second half of the Decade -- Significance of the Decade for the global women's movement -- Conclusion -- Postscript to the Decade: the Fourth World Conference on Women (1995) -- 5 The Lost Decade - the 1980s -- The macro-economic policy framework of Structural Adjustment Programmes (SAPs) -- Consequences of the policy framework of adjustment -- SAPs and women's movements -- Conclusion -- 6 It's about justice: feminist leadership making a difference on the world stage -- Background to the global conferences of the 1990s -- Economic justice: the UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) -- Gender justice -- Political justice -- Assessment of the global conferences of the 1990s -- Conclusion -- 7 Political strategies and dynamics of women's organizing and feminist activism -- Activist strategies -- Institutional strategies -- Crosscutting strategies -- Approaches to social change -- Analysis of power -- Lessons learned -- Conclusion -- 8 The new context: challenges and dilemmas for the future -- The context: then and now

George Fusun Ling obtained his graduate degrees from Oxford University and Yale University. He and his family then moved to China, where they witnessed the Cultural Revolution. After China implemented the open-door policy in 1978, he ventured into the business world, whilst promoting cultural exchanges between the East and West. He was recently also a Visiting Research Fellow at Oxford University. This book deals with the intellectual foundation of the sociopolitical, economic and legal systems of developing countries, using a methodological approach. It calls for not only the need to search for a country's cultural identity, but also a need to analyze the prevalent concepts important to a contemporary modern society, such as the respect for an individual, human rights, freedom, equality, democracy and the universal respect for law. Based on the author's lifelong reflection on why some of these deeply treasured Western values and institutions have not been useful in developing democracy in Asia, it examines which values are applicable and which are not to Asian emerging societies. Using China's historical and contemporary attempts in modernization and development, the author suggests that all mighty rivers are confluences of multiple tributaries. Likewise, an emerging society has to recognize that the dynamism of its history would also be derived from a confluence of multiple cultural traditions. As a valuable resource for decision-makers of developing countries, this book will help to shed some light on the potential pitfalls and fallacies they may encounter in their search for a cultural identity and values to subscribe to, among the many that are circulating in our globalized world

Intro -- GLOBAL ECONOMICS: AN INTRODUCTORY COURSE -- GLOBAL ECONOMICS: AN INTRODUCTORY COURSE -- CONTENTS -- ABOUT THE AUTHOR -- PREFACE -- Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION -- 1. APPROACH -- 2. THE WEALTH OF THE WORLD -- 3. CRITIQUE OF THE CONCEPT OF GLOBAL GDP -- 4. GOALS - WHICH WAY IS FORWARD IN THE GLOBAL ECONOMY? -- 5. TRENDS IN GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT, 1960 - 2000 -- Chapter 2 NATIONAL ECONOMIES AND WORLD ECONOMY -- 1. NATIONAL AND GLOBAL GDP PER CAPITA, 1960- 99 -- 2. THE PROBLEM OF NATIONAL SOVEREIGNTY -- 3. THE SPECIAL STATUS OF THE UNITED STATES ECONOMY IN THE WORLD ECONOMY -- Chapter 3 THE THREE CIRCULAR FLOWS OF THE WORLD ECONOMY -- 1. FLOW DIAGRAM -- Circuit 1 - Physical Flows -- Circuit 2 - Real Markets -- Circuit 3 - Financial Markets -- 2. THE PROBLEM OF EQUITABLE GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT -- 3. THE PROBLEM OF SUSTAINABLE GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT -- Chapter 4 GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT -- 1. ENVIRONMENT AS A FACTOR OF PRODUCTION -- 2. DEFINITION OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT -- 3. PRIORITIES OF SUSTAINABLE GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT -- 4. THE COSTS OF ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND DESTRUCTION -- The Cost of Resource Degradation in India -- The Costs of Global Warming -- 5. "GREEN" NATIONAL AND GLOBAL ACCOUNTING -- 6. THE CULPRITS OF ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION -- Chapter 5 GLOBAL PRODUCTION -- 1. THE STRUCTURE OF GLOBAL PRODUCTION -- 2. THE FACTORS OF GLOBAL PRODUCTION -- Environment -- Labour -- Capital -- 3. FACTORS OF PRODUCTION AND GLOBAL ECONOMIC GROWTH -- Chapter 6 WAGES AND EMPLOYMENT IN THE WORLD ECONOMY -- 1. DATA ON WAGES -- 2. PRODUCTIVITY AND WAGES -- A. Concepts of Productivity -- B. Wages and Physical Productivity -- Example 1. Agricultural Workers -- Example 2. Shoe Manufacturing Workers -- Example 3. Textile Manufacturing Workers -- Example 4. Automotive Workers -- Example 5. Dentists -- Example 6. Educators -- Summary of Examples

Find Your Way to Freedom Today!If you were abused or neglected as a child, chances are that you have been your whole life, whether you are a man, a woman, or a teen. Child abuse so mangles the personality that the victim unconsciously attracts abusers throughout the life cycle. Lies about yourself were planted deep in your mind by the abuse, and you still believe them. They are crippling your life! Do you have any of these signs? You have symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). You feel like a second-class citizen. Nobody understands: they ask, 'Why can't you get over it?' You have escaped one abuser only to end up with another. Until you understand exactly what the abuse did to you, you cannot get free. You can stay in therapy your whole life and never get a clue. OR you can unravel the mysteries once and for all and bring everything to light by reading AM I BAD? Recovering from Abuse. A great resource for victims, therapists, and group work. Therapists acclaim for AM I BAD? 'AM I BAD? is a tour de force of the tortured landscape of child abuse and its pernicious long-term outcomes. This book is an important contribution towards the edification of victims and institutions alike.' --Sam Vaknin, PhD, author Malignant Self-Love 'This book should be compulsory reading for anyone dealing with abused children or abused adults, or adult survivors of childhood abuse.' --Robert Rich, PhD, M.A.P.S, A.A.S.H. The New Horizons in Therapy Series from Loving Healing Press (www.LovingHealing.com)

Social competence is essential to the mental and physical well-being of all humans, no matter their age. Yet as many as one in ten children has trouble keeping friends or even making friends. In Social Competence in Children, readers will discover a developmental view of social functioning in children at different stages, with an emphasis on clinical conditions that may confound this development. At the outset, the author provides detailed information on theories of social competence and the contexts in which core skills (e.g., appropriate comments, reading verbal cues) are learned. Later chapters address specific challenges to competence and feature case examples illustrating typical patterns of deficits and presenting the latest data on the topic, including: assessment practices, parenting and family issues, social competence problems specific to children and adolescents in this population, effective and promising interventions, treatment guidelines, and areas deserving future study. This volume offers much-needed information on: The growth of social competence in the context of normal development, Commonly used instruments for assessing social competence, Social impairments in children with ADHD, autism/PDDs, learning disabilities, and mental retardation, Social competence challenges specific to children with chronic diseases (e.g., diabetes, asthma, seizures), acquired disorders (including cancer and brain injuries), and genetic syndromes, The latest findings on social development in gifted children and the twice exceptional gifted and with learning disabilities, Social competence as it affects and is affected by conduct and mood disorders. The empirical findings and therapeutic insights found in Social Competence in Children make it essential reading for clinicians working with children and families as well as for school psychologists and other educational and mental health professionals.

This paper analyses institutional reforms and political participation, most notably indirect and direct elections of residential committees (RC), in China's urban neighbourhoods and communities (shequ). It shows that these elections at present are not meaningful to the majority of city dwellers as the RCs have little decision-making power and no revenues generated by a collective economy as in most of China's villages. RCs are primarily important to those weaker strata of society who depend on the state to be provided with social services and financial support - tasks that the RCs are forced to assume on behalf of higher government authorities. Nevertheless, the author finds that as limited the significance of - and knowledge about - RC elections in the daily lives of China's urban dwellers still are, they still have some influence on political awareness and participation. For instance, they make people voice more opinions in their shequ, which may be a good starting point for more direct interference in local political affairs soon to come. The paper emphasizes that RC elections have been introduced in order to enhance regime legitimacy but suggests that they may spur democratization by the rise of accountability as a conditioning factor of this legitimacy and by electoral 'habituation' as a transition to full democratic commitment. Whilst 'security first, participation second' seems to be the order of the day and the 'freedom of politics' is still more important than a concern for RC elections and shequ affairs, it remains to be seen if those elections may not soon trigger off a meaningful drive for political participation in China's cities.

Intro -- An Islamic Philosophy of Virtuous Religions -- Contents -- Acknowledgments -- Abbreviations -- 1. Introduction -- ALFARABI'S LIFE AND HIS INFLUENCE -- ALFARABI'S MANNER OF WRITING -- OVERVIEW -- 2. The Impossibility of the City in the Republic -- KALLIPOLIS AS IDEAL STATE OR TOTALITARIAN NIGHTMARE? -- THE THREE WAVES AND THE PROBLEM OF POSSIBILITY -- The First Wave -- The Second Wave -- The Digression on War -- The Third Wave -- 3. The A Fortiori Argument -- ALFARABI ON THE REPUBLIC IN THE ATTAINMENT OF HAPPINESS: EDUCATING PHILOSOPHER-KINGS TO RULE THE INHABITED WORLD, THE CHALLENGE -- TENSION IN THE "UNITY OF THE VIRTUES": HARD VS. SOFT -- THE UNEASY PEACE BETWEEN PRUDENCE ANDWISDOM -- 4. Alfarabi on Jihâd -- FROM ÎMÂN VS. KUFR TO ISLÂM VS. HÓ ARB -- ALFARABI'S APHORISMS ON JIHÂD -- Aphorisms 67 and 79 -- Aphorisms 11-16 -- Aphorisms 68-76 -- ALFARABI'S ATTAINMENT OF HAPPINESS ON JIHÂD -- CHALLENGES TO COMPELLING GOOD CHARACTER -- 5. The Multiplicity Argument -- THE INCREASING TENDENCY TOWARD CONQUEST AND DOMINATION -- THE TASK OF DELIBERATION:SHAPING A MULTIPLICITY OF CHARACTERS -- THE TASK OF THEORETICAL VIRTUE: SHAPING A MULTIPLICITY OF OPINIONS -- RELIGION AS AN IMITATION OF PHILOSOPHY -- 6. The Limits of Knowledge and the Problem of Realization -- KNOWLEDGE AND EXPLOITATION -- Attainment of Happiness -- The Philosophy of Aristotle: The Limits of Our Knowledge of Final Causes -- CERTAINTY AND THE KNOWLEDGE OF UNIVERSALS AND PARTICULARS -- THE LIMITS OF KNOWLEDGE AND THE INHERENT MULTIPLICITY OF RELIGION -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Author/Subject Index -- A -- B -- C -- D -- E -- F -- G -- H -- I -- J -- K -- L -- M -- N -- O -- P -- Q -- R -- S -- T -- U -- V -- W -- X -- Z -- Index of Passages from Alfawarabi's Attainment of Happiness.

This book is an account of how a disillusioned minister, Frederick D'Aeth came to Liverpool and ended up making a unique contribution to the social welfare of the city. It is both a personal and a political story of this previously uncelebrated man, whose interests and gifts contributed greatly to the transformation of social welfare in the early part of the 20th century. Margaret Simey charts how in 1905 D'Aeth came to this city, becoming the first paid lecturer in newly formed social science department in Liverpool University and later in 1909, became the Director of Reports for the newly formed Liverpool Council for Voluntary Aid. This was also one of the first of such coordinating councils, emerging from the Report on the Royal Commission on Poor Laws, with D'Aeth responding to this challenge with vigour and a wealth of ideas. Although it is part biography, the book is also an important journey into past and present debates over social welfare. D'Aeth represents a particularly interesting figure, as his work clearly bridged the period of transition between victorian philanthropism, and the growing influence of the welfare state. The author reveals the talent D'Aeth developed in the as yet undefined field of Social Administration and his particular verve for co-ordination. Such a focus was crucial with a tide of diverse and fairly uncoordinated charitable organisations. Margaret Simey concludes that D'Aeth largely succeeded in harnessing these diverse groups in Liverpool and from further afield and, in doing so, demonstrated the structural value of truly independent voluntary sector effort within society and the potential of the active 'citizenship', as a essential balance to government provision

Inspired to contribute to the symbiotic relationship between the academic and activist worlds, Day has decided to pick up the pen instead of the Molotov cocktail. The result is this brilliant book. Ann Hansen: Ann was sentenced to life imprisonment for blowing up a cruise-missile component factory, and is the author of Direct Action: The Memoirs of an Urban Guerilla. Gramsci and the concept of hegemony cast a long shadow over radical political theory. Yet how far has this theory got us? Is it still central to feminism, anti-capitalism, anti-racism, anarchism, and other radical social movements today? Unlike previous revolutionary movements, Day argues, most contemporary radical social movements do not strive to take control of the state. Instead, they attempt to develop new forms of self-organisation that can run in parallel with -- or as alternatives to -- existing forms of social, political, and economic organization. This is to say that they follow a logic of affinity rather than one of hegemony. This book draws together a variety of different strands in political theory to weave together aninnovative new approach to politics today. Rigorous and wide-ranging, Day introduces and interrogates key concepts. From Hegel's concept of recognition, through theories of hegemony and affinity to Hardt and Negri's reflections on Empire, Day maps academia's theoretical and philosophical concerns onto today's politics of the street. Ideal for all students of political theory, Day's fresh approach combines Marxist, Anarchist and 'Post-structuralist theory to shed new light on the politics and practice of contemporary social' movements

Intro -- NOMADIC SOCIETIES IN THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA: Entering the 21st Century -- Preface -- CONTENTS -- Author details -- Glossary -- Introduction: Nomads of the Middle East and North Africa Facing the 21st Century -- PART ONE: CONTESTED AUTHORITY AND POWER: GLOBAL AND LOCAL CHALLENGES -- The Nomads of Pre-Islamic Arabia -- Last Battles of the Bedouin and the Rise of Modern States in Northern Arabia: 1850-1950 -- The Political Economy of Middle Eastern and North African Pastoral Nomads -- Individuals, Factions and Tribes among Moorish Societies -- Are There Still Tribes in Morocco? -- From the Disappearance of 'Tribes' to Reawakening of the Tribal Feeling: Strategies of State among the Formerly Nomadic Biḍān (Arabophone) of Mauritania -- Counting Votes That Do Not Count: Negev Bedouin and the Knesset Elections of 17th May 1999, Rahat, Israel -- Readapting the gabīla. The Ahāmda Pastoralists of Central Sudan and the State 'Tribal Federalism' Politics in the mid-1990s -- Customary Law among the Bedouin of the Middle East and North Africa -- Legal Traditions and State-centered Law: Drawing from Tribal and Customary Law Cases of Yemen and Egypt -- The Settlement of Pastoral Nomads in the Arab Middle East: International Organizations and Trends in Development Policies, 1950-1990 -- PART TWO: CONTESTED SPACES AND SOCIAL TRANSFORMATIONS -- Integration into Modernity: Some Tribal Rural Societies in the Bilād ash-Shām -- New Homes, New Occupations, New Pastoralism: Al Murrah Bedouin, 1968-2003 -- Coping with Shrinking Spaces: The Ait Unzār Pastoralists of South-Eastern Morocco -- Forced Migration, Sedentarization and Social Change: Malian Kel Tamasheq -- Uncertain Livelihoods: Challenges Facing Herding in a Lebanese Village -- Multinational Oil Exploitation and Social Investment: Mobile Pastoralists in the Sultanate of Oman

Cover -- Half Title -- Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Table of Contents -- Introduction: Media Spectacle and Politics in the Contemporary Era -- Chapter 1: Grand Theft 2000: Media Spectacle and a Stolen Election -- Media Spectacle in Election 2000 -- Media Bias in the Representations of Bush and Gore -- A Stolen Election -- Notes -- Chapter 2: Spectacles of Terror and Perpetual War -- Weapons of Mass Hysteria -- The 9/11 Spectacle -- Anthrax, Afghanistan, and Terror Hysteria -- Bush Family War Spectacles -- Notes -- Chapter 3: Preemptive Strikes and the War on Iraq: A Critique of Bush Administration Unilateralism and Militarism -- The "Axis of Evil," Operation Infinite War, and Bush's Attacks on U.S. Democracy -- The Bush Doctrine and the Road to Iraq -- Weapons of Mass Deception: The Media and the War on Iraq -- Notes -- Chapter 4: Pandora's Box: The Iraq Horror Show -- Reversal of the Spectacle -- Iraqi "Sovereignty," the Chalabi Scandals, and the Battle for Najaf -- Animal House, Rumsfeld, and Iraqi Chaos -- "Freedom Is on the March" -- Notes -- Chapter 5: Image Wars: Media Spectacle and Election 2004 -- Spectacles of the Primary Season and the Democratic Convention -- Framing Kerry -- Bush's Media Events and the Swift Boat Battles -- The Republican Convention and Spectacle of Protest -- Big Lies, Bold Lies, and Brazen Lies: Welcome to Bushspeak -- Notes -- Chapter 6: Decision 2004: The War for the White House -- Bush's Lost Year -- The CBS Memo Wars -- The Debates -- Wired Bush? -- The Sprint to the End -- Endgame: Internet Euphoria and television Debacle -- Notes -- Conclusion: Salvaging Democracy after Election 2004 -- Divided Country -- A Dysfunctional Electoral System -- The Media and Democracy -- Cosmopolitan Globalization -- Bushgate/Cheneygate: The Coming Conflicts -- Notes -- Selected Bibliography -- Index -- About the Author.

Authored by a former spammer, this is a methodical, technically explicit expose of the inner workings of the SPAM economy. Readers will be shocked by the sophistication and sheer size of this underworld. From the Author: You may hate spam and think all spammers are evil, but listen to my story and see why I do this and more importantly, HOW. For most people, the term SPAM conjures up the image of hundreds of annoying, and at times offensive, e-mails flooding their inbox every week. But for a few, SPAM is a way of life that delivers an adrenaline rush fueled by cash, danger, retribution, porn and the avoidance of local, federal, and international law enforcement agencies. Inside the SPAM Cartel offer readers a never-before seen view inside this dark sub-economy. You'll meet the characters that control the flow of money as well as the hackers and programmers committed to keeping the enterprise up and running. You may disagree with their objectives, but you can't help but to marvel at their ingenuity and resourcefulness in defeating spam filters, avoiding being identified, and staying one step ahead of the law. * Spam makes up now 64% of all email sent and it is said to be the most annoying part of being online. * You'll meet the characters that control the flow of money as well as the hackers and programmers committed to keeping the enterprise up and running. * Authored by a former spammer, this is a methodical, technically explicit expose of the innerworkings of the SPAM economy.