Suchergebnisse

Part I: Our literature and interwar Europe -- Heroes or villains? images of citizens and civil society in the literature on democracy -- Ordinary people and the breakdown of democracy in interwar Europe -- -- Part II: South America and our literature revised -- The reluctant coup in Brazil -- The slow-motion coup in Uruguay -- The tragedy of democracy in Chile -- The violent death of democracy in Argentina -- Polarization and the ignorance of elites.

The movement for European integration has yielded a European Union of fifteen states with a unified monetary system that will eventually embrace over 370 million people. If current trends continue, an average of one in ten of these people will be unemployed. Not surprisingly, the European public ranks joblessness among its primary political concerns. This 2001 book focuses on both unemployment and economic unification. It examines the consequences of each and their interconnections. With chapters on the policy implications of European union, on current workings of domestic bargaining institutions and on how unemployment affects political behavior, this book yields a message with important policy implications: the organized managed economies of Europe should be reformed but not replaced, and a united Europe should be wary of modeling itself on the United States

"The essays in this book investigate the way in which unemployment affects political behaviour and key political institutions in southern Europe. New empirical evidence and original theoretical insights are offered about individual countries, highlighting differences and similarities. The collection offers serious insights and lessons on the profound human consequences of unemployment."--Jacket

"The financial crisis that erupted on Wall Street in 2008 quickly cascaded throughout much of the advanced industrial world. Facing the specter of another Great Depression, policymakers across the globe responded in sharply different ways to avert an economic collapse. Why did the response to the crisis-and its impact on individual countries-vary so greatly among interdependent economies? How did political factors like public opinion and domestic interest groups shape policymaking in this moment of economic distress? Coping with Crisis offers a rigorous analysis of the choices societies made as a devastating global economic crisis unfolded. With an ambitiously broad range of inquiry, Coping with Crisis examines the interaction between international and domestic politics to shed new light on the inner workings of democratic politics. The volume opens with an engaging overview of the global crisis and the role played by international bodies like the G-20 and the WTO. In his survey of international initiatives in response to the recession, Eric Helleiner emphasizes the limits of multilateral crisis management, finding that domestic pressures were more important in reorienting fiscal policy. He also argues that unilateral decisions by national governments to hold large dollar reserves played the key role in preventing a dollar crisis, which would have considerably worsened the downturn. David R. Cameron discusses the fiscal responses of the European Union and its member states. He suggests that a profound coordination problem involving fiscal and economic policy impeded the E.U.'s ability to respond in a timely and effective manner. The volume also features several case studies and country comparisons. Nolan McCarty assesses the performance of the American political system during the crisis. He argues that the downturn did little to dampen elite polarization in the U.S.; divisions within the Democratic Party-as well as the influence of the financial sector-narrowed the range of policy options available to fight the crisis. Ben W. Ansell examines how fluctuations in housing prices in 30 developed countries affected the policy preferences of both citizens and political parties. His evidence shows that as housing prices increased, homeowners expressed preferences for both lower taxes and a smaller safety net. As more citizens supplement their day-to-day income with assets like stocks and housing, Ansell's research reveals a potentially significant trend in the formation of public opinion. Five years on, the prospects for a prolonged slump in economic activity remain high, and the policy choices going forward are contentious. But the policy changes made between 2007 and 2010 will likely constrain any new initiatives in the future. Coping with Crisis offers unmatched analysis of the decisions made in the developed world during this critical period. It is an essential read for scholars of comparative politics and anyone interested in a comprehensive account of the new international politics of austerity"--

Parties, movements and the making of democracy / Nancy Bermeo and Deborah J. Yashar -- The content of democracy : nationalist parties and inclusive ideologies in India and Indonesia / Maya Tudor and Dan Slater -- Social cleavages, political parties, and the building of performance legitimacy in Southeast Asia / Erik Martinez Kuhonta -- Democratic divergence and party Systems in Latin America's third wave / Kenneth M. Roberts -- Strong parties, weak parties : divergent pathways to democracy in sub-Saharan Africa / Rachel Beatty Riedl -- Parties in transitional democracies : authoritarian legacies and post-authoritarian challenges in the Middle East and North Africa / Ellen Lust and David Waldner -- Mechanisms matter / Nancy Bermeo and Deborah J. Yashar