Suchergebnisse

Enthält Rezensionen u.a. von: Lee Ching Hua: Deng Xiaoping: The marxist road to the forbidden city. - Princeton/N.J.: Kingston Press, 1985

Der Autor befaßt sich mit den Einflußfaktoren und Verlauf des Decision-Making-Prozesses innerhalb der kommunistischen Führungsspitze der VR China im Kontext der Beijinger Tiananmen-Demonstration vom Frühjahr 1989. Er verweist zunächst auf die bereits im Vorfeld der Proteste zu konstatierende Spaltung innerhalb der KP-Führung in zwei Fraktionen (reformorientierte Kräfte vs. Befürworter einer Rezentralisierung und Rücknahme der Wirtschaftsreformmaßnahmen). Er untersucht sodann, welche katalysatorischen Faktoren die Entscheidung der Führungsspitze zur blutigen Niederschlagung der Protestbewegung beeinflußt haben. Sodann skizziert er die politischen Folgen des Massakers vom 4. Juni, i.e. primär die Säuberung der Führungsspitze von liberalen Reformpolitikern. Abschließend berwertet er die negativen Implikationen des Massakers für die Perspektiven der Reformpolitik der VR China (Öffnungspolitik, Wirtschaftsreformpolitik, Strukturreform des politischen Systems). (BIOst-Klk)

Die Autorin untersucht zunächst die Reaktion der Volksbefreiungsarmee (VBA) auf Verhängung des Kriegsrechts in Beijing (ab dem 20. Mai 1989). Insbesondere befaßt sie sich dabei mit der Rolle der VBA im Konflikt bzw. Machtkampf zwischen den liberalen und den konservativen Kräften in der zivilen politischen Führung der VR China. Die Verfasserin behandelt sodann die Konsequenzen des Tiananmen-Massakers vom 4. Juni 1989 für das Ansehen der VBA in der Öffentlichkeit. Vor diesem Hintergrund analysiert sie abschließend die Implikationen des Tiananmen-Massakers für die weitere Entwicklung der Zivil-Militär-Beziehungen, d.h. für die politische Rolle des Militärs sowie für das Machtgleichgewicht zwischen militärischer und ziviler politischer Führung. (BIOst-Klk)

Purpose
In 2014, the Health Service Executive (HSE) in Ireland published its Safeguarding National Policy and Procedures (HSE, 2014). Under this policy, all agencies providing services through the social care directorate must ensure a robust culture of safeguarding is in place. Concurrent to this has been a move in social policy, practice and research to include the voice of the service user, both in terms of planning and reviewing services. (e.g. HIQA, 2012; Flanagan, 2020) This article examines whether service users with intellectual disabilities want to be involved in safeguarding plans and, if so, how that can be supported. Using focus groups service users demonstrated their knowledge of safeguarding as a concept, how they felt about the issues raised, and, crucially what they felt they would like to see happen next in addressing a safeguarding incident or concern. The focus groups took place in a large organisation providing residential services, day services, independent living supports and clinical supports. Engaging service users in planning and responding to safeguarding concerns is a fundamental principle of human rights legislation, both nationally and internationally. This study aims to highlight that it is both possible and desirable to engage fully with service users using a range of simple communication tools. For this to be implemented as routine practice in services providing support for people with intellectual disabilities, authentic leadership is required. Services will need to devote time, human resources and will need champions to get on board with the necessary culture shift.


Design/methodology/approach
Qualitative research examined peoples' "lived experiences" and knowledge of safeguarding. Focus groups were used with thematic analysis highlighting common themes throughout, as guided by Braun and Clarke (2006). There were two objectives: Objective 1: measuring participant's understanding of the safeguarding process. Objective 2: compare the potential differences between safeguarding plans devised by the participants in the focus groups, versus plans devised by trained designated officers responsible for safeguarding within the service.


Findings
Four principal themes emerged – 1. participants understanding of safeguarding; 2. restorative justice; 3. consent; and 4. high levels of emotional intelligence and compassion. Participants demonstrated that they could and did want to be involved in safeguarding planning and showed little variation in the plans compared to those completed by trained staff.


Research limitations/implications
The study was completed with a small sample size in a single service in one area. It may not represent the lived experiences and knowledge of safeguarding in other services and indeed other countries. The video may have led to some priming; for instance, the Gardai in the footage being called may have resulted in the participants stating that contacting Gardai should be part of the plan. After the video was shown, there was a heightened awareness of safeguarding. This may indicate that participants are aware of safeguarding but unsure of the terminology or how to discuss it out of context.


Practical implications
For this to be implemented as routine practice in services providing support for people with intellectual disabilities, authentic leadership is required. Services will need to devote time and human resources and will need champions in the safeguarding arena to get on board with the shift in culture required.


Social implications
While there did not appear to be many barriers to listening to participants, to progress this as a standard practice a very real shift in culture will be needed. It is important for practitioners to ask: Is the vulnerable person aware that this concern has been raised? What is known of the vulnerable person's wishes in relation to the concern? To truly engage with service users in safeguarding plans these questions need to be more than a "tick box" exercise. This process needs to be fully embedded into a culture that promotes a person-centred, rights-based, inclusive approach as a standard rather than a one-off project. Some structural changes will be needed regarding the time given to designated officers, and what resources they can access (such as speech and language therapy). However, the real difference will be made by services operating authentic leadership that champions engagement on this scale, to fully answer the question posed by the researchers at the beginning of this report, "Whose safeguarding is it anyway?"


Originality/value
There appears to be little evidence of service user engagement in terms of planning and processing safeguarding responses, either in research or anecdotally.

Abstract
This research note unveils new archival evidence from Amnesty International's first twenty-five years (1961–1986) to shed light on the realization of international human rights as Amnesty balanced "nonpolitical politics" through multifaceted government relations. The research draws from minutes and reports of eighty meetings of Amnesty's executive leadership and interviews from the 1983 to 1985 Amnesty Oral History project, all collected from the International Institute of Social History. The records show that during this time Amnesty relied on government and foundation funding to exit a severe financial crisis. Amnesty also cultivated a private diplomatic network with governments for access and advocacy and conducted side bargains with closed countries for access and reforms. In one sense, the new evidence complicates the conventional wisdom that Amnesty was only financed from small, individual donors and stayed away from private government dealings. In another sense, the new data extend existing insights about INGO strategic action by revealing Amnesty's pragmatic trade-offs when maintaining arms–length relations with governments to better appreciate the organization's early challenges and accomplishments. The note ultimately contributes to scholarship on the strategic choices of INGOs and provides new data for future research on the agency of nonstate actors in global governance navigating complex government relations.
Esta nota de investigación presenta nueva evidencia documental de los primeros 25 años de Amnistía Internacional (Amnesty International), de 1961 a 1986, para arrojar luz sobre el cumplimiento de las normas internacionales de derechos humanos mientras Amnistía balanceaba la "política no política" mediante relaciones gubernamentales polifacéticas. La investigación incorpora actas e informes de 80 reuniones del liderazgo ejecutivo de Amnistía y entrevistas de 1983 a 1985 del proyecto Historia Oral de Amnistía (Amnesty Oral History), recopiladas del Instituto Internacional de Historia Social. Los documentos muestran que, en ese momento, Amnistía necesitó financiación gubernamental y de fundaciones para salir de una crisis financiera grave. Amnistía también cultivó una red diplomática privada con gobiernos a cambio de acceso y defensa, y tuvo negocios paralelos con países cerrados a cambio de acceso y reformas. En un sentido, la nueva evidencia complica la sabiduría convencional de que Amnistía solo tuvo financiamiento de donantes pequeños e individuos y se mantuvo lejos de los negocios privados con gobiernos. En contraste, los nuevos datos amplían las percepciones existentes sobre la acción estratégica de organizaciones no gubernamentales internacionales (ONGI), revelando las concesiones pragmáticas de Amnistía al mantener relaciones independientes con gobiernos, y permiten apreciar mejor los desafíos y logros iniciales de la organización. La nota, fundamentalmente, contribuye a la investigación sobre las decisiones estratégicas de las ONGI y brinda nuevos datos para futuras investigaciones sobre la autonomía de los actores no estatales que navegan relaciones gubernamentales complejas en la gobernanza global.
Cet exposé de recherche dévoile de nouvelles preuves issues des 25 premières années d'archives d'Amnesty International (1961–1986) pour apporter un éclairage sur l'application des droits de l'Homme tandis qu'Amnesty équilibrait la « politique apolitique » par le biais de relations gouvernementales à plusieurs facettes. Cette recherche s'appuie sur des minutes et rapports de 80 réunions de la haute direction d'Amnesty, ainsi que sur des entretiens qui ont eu lieu entre 1983 et 1985 dans le cadre du projet Oral History (Histoire orale) d'Amnesty. Ces données ont toutes été recueillies auprès de l'Institut International d'Histoire Sociale. Les archives montrent que durant cette période, Amnesty a dû compter sur le financement de gouvernements et de fondations pour sortir d'une grave crise financière. Amnesty a également cultivé un réseau diplomatique privé avec des gouvernements pour faciliter son accès et son plaidoyer dans le pays concerné tout en menant des négociations parallèles avec les pays fermés pour y favoriser son accès et les réformes. En un sens, les nouvelles preuves compliquent les idées reçues selon lesquelles Amnesty ne serait financée que par de petits donateurs individuels et resterait à l'écart des affaires gouvernementales privées. Mais en un autre sens, ces nouvelles données enrichissent les renseignements existants sur l'action stratégique des organisations non gouvernementales internationales en révélant qu'Amnesty s'était livrée à des compromis pragmatiques en entretenant des relations avec les gouvernements tout en restant à distance. Ces renseignements nous permettent donc de mieux apprécier les premiers défis et accomplissements de l'organisation. En définitive, cet exposé contribue aux études sur les choix stratégiques des organisations non gouvernementales internationales et fournit de nouvelles données pour les recherches futures sur l'intervention des acteurs non étatiques dans la gouvernance mondiale tandis qu'ils naviguent dans des relations gouvernementales complexes.

The Trump administration has made the construction of an "impregnable" 2,000-mile wall across the length of the US-Mexico border a centerpiece of its executive orders on immigration and its broader immigration enforcement strategy. This initiative has been broadly criticized based on: • Escalating cost projections: an internal Department of Homeland Security (DHS) study recently set the cost at $21.6 billion over three and a half years; • Its necessity given the many other enforcement tools — video surveillance, drones, ground sensors, and radar technologies — and Border Patrol personnel, that cover the US-Mexico border: former DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff and other experts have argued that a wall does not add enforcement value except in heavy crossing areas near towns, highways, or other "vanishing points" (Kerwin 2016); • Its cost-effectiveness given diminished Border Patrol apprehensions (to roughly one-fourth the level of historic highs) and reduced illegal entries (to roughly one-tenth the 2005 level according to an internal DHS study) (Martinez 2016); • Its efficacy as an enforcement tool: between FY 2010 and FY 2015, the current 654-mile pedestrian wall was breached 9,287 times (GAO 2017, 22); • Its inability to meet the administration's goal of securing "operational control" of the border, defined as "the prevention of all unlawful entries to the United States" (White House 2017); • Its deleterious impact on bi-national border communities, the environment, and property rights (Heyman 2013); and • Opportunity costs in the form of foregone investments in addressing the conditions that drive large-scale migration, as well as in more effective national security and immigration enforcement strategies. The Center for Migration Studies (CMS) has reported on the dramatic decline in the US undocumented population between 2008 and 2014 (Warren 2016). In addition, a growing percentage of border crossers in recent years have originated in the Northern Triangle states of Central America (CBP 2016). These migrants are fleeing pervasive violence, persecution, and poverty, and a large number do not seek to evade arrest, but present themselves to border officials and request political asylum. Many are de facto refugees, not illegal border crossers. This report speaks to another reason to question the necessity and value of a 2,000-mile wall: It does not reflect the reality of how the large majority of persons now become undocumented. It finds that two-thirds of those who arrived in 2014 did not illegally cross a border, but were admitted (after screening) on non-immigrant (temporary) visas, and then overstayed their period of admission or otherwise violated the terms of their visas. Moreover, this trend in increasing percentages of visa overstays will likely continue into the foreseeable future. The report presents information about the mode of arrival of the undocumented population that resided in the United States in 2014. To simplify the presentation, it divides the 2014 population into two groups: overstays and entries without inspection (EWIs). The term overstay, as used in this paper, refers to undocumented residents who entered the United States with valid temporary visas and subsequently established residence without authorization. The term EWI refers to undocumented residents who entered without proper immigration documents across the southern border. The estimates are based primarily on detailed estimates of the undocumented population in 2014 compiled by CMS and estimates of overstays for 2015 derived by DHS. Major findings include the following: • In 2014, about 4.5 million US residents, or 42 percent of the total undocumented population, were overstays. • Overstays accounted for about two-thirds (66 percent) of those who arrived (i.e., joined the undocumented population) in 2014. • Overstays have exceeded EWIs every year since 2007, and 600,000 more overstays than EWIs have arrived since 2007. • Mexico is the leading country for both overstays and EWIs; about one-third of undocumented arrivals from Mexico in 2014 were overstays. • California has the largest number of overstays (890,000), followed by New York (520,000), Texas (475,000), and Florida (435,000). • Two states had 47 percent of the 6.4 million EWIs in 2014: California (1.7 million) and Texas (1.3 million). • The percentage of overstays varies widely by state: more than two-thirds of the undocumented who live in Hawaii, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania are overstays. By contrast, the undocumented population in Kansas, Arkansas, and New Mexico consists of fewer than 25 percent overstays.

Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to examine an integrated model of factors affecting attitudes toward online shopping in Jordan. The paper introduces an integrated model of the roles of perceived website reputation, relative advantage, perceived website image, and trust that affect attitudes toward online shopping.


Design/methodology/approach
– A structured and self-administered online survey was employed targeting online shoppers of a reputable online retailer in Jordan; MarkaVIP. A sample of 273 of online shoppers was involved in the online survey. A series of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used to assess the research constructs, unidimensionality, validity, and composite reliability (CR). Structural path model analysis was also used to test the proposed research model and hypotheses.


Findings
– The empirical findings of this study indicate that perceived website reputation, relative advantage, perceived website image, and trust have directly and indirectly affected consumers' attitudes toward online shopping. Online consumers' shopping attitudes are mainly affected by perceived relative advantage and trust. Trust is a product of relative advantage and that the later is a function of perceived website reputation. Relative advantage and perceived website reputation are key predictors of perceived website image. Perceived website image was found to be a direct predictor of trust. Also, the authors found that 26 percent of variation in online shopping attitudes was directly caused by relative advantage, trust, and perceived website image.


Research limitations/implications
– The research examined online consumers' attitudes toward one website only therefore the generalizability of the research finding is limited to the local Jordanian website; MarkaVIP. Future research is encouraged to conduct comparative studies between local websites and international ones, e.g., Amazon and e-bay in order to shed lights on consumers' attitudes toward both websites. The findings are limited to online shoppers in Jordan. A fruitful area of research is to conduct a comparative analysis between online and offline attitudes toward online shopping behavior. Also, replications of the current study's model in different countries would most likely strengthen and validate its findings. The design of the study is quantitative using an online survey to measure online consumers' attitudes through a cross-sectional design. Future research is encouraged to use qualitative research design and methodology to provide a deeper understanding of consumers' attitudes and behaviors toward online and offline shopping in Jordan and elsewhere.


Practical implications
– The paper supports the importance of perceived website reputation, relative advantage, trust, and perceived web image as keys drivers of attitudes toward online shopping. It further underlines the importance of relative advantage and trust as major contributors to building positive attitudes toward online shopping. In developing countries (e.g. Jordan) where individuals are generally described as risk averse, the level of trust is critical in determining the attitude of individuals toward online shopping. Moreover and given the modest economic situation in Jordan, relative advantage is another significant factor affecting consumers' attitudes toward online shopping. Indeed, if online shopping would not add a significant value and benefits to consumers, they would have negative attitude toward this technology. This is at the heart of marketing theory and relationship marketing practice. Further, relative advantage is a key predictor of both perceived website image and trust and the later is a major driver of attitudes toward online shopping. Online retailers' executives and managers can benefit from such findings for future e-marketing strategies and retaining customers to achieve long-term performance objectives.


Originality/value
– This paper is one of the early empirical endeavors that examined factors affecting attitudes toward online shopping in Jordan. This study provides evidence on the factors that determine online shoppers' attitudes as an antecedent to consumers purchase decisions. From a theoretical perspective, this study contributes to the existing body of knowledge by revealing the sort of cause and effect relationships among relative advantage, perceived website reputation, perceived website image, in addition to trust, and their effect on consumers' attitudes toward online shopping. Moreover, this paper is one of handful research that has distinguished between perceived website image and perceived website reputation along with their relationships and more specifically in the context of online shopping. From an international e-marketing perspective, online retailers planning to expand their operations to include Jordan or the MENA Region have now valuable empirical evidence concerning the predictors of online shopping attitudes and online shoppers' behavior upon which e-marketing strategies are formulated and implemented.

The situation of conflict of interest may appear in activity of every professional irre­spective of affiliation to public, private or nongovernmental sector. The consequences of conflict of interests is biased, subjective and nontransparent decision, improper fulfillment of prescribed duties, falling standards and decreased public trust not just in politicians or civil servants but in public institutions and government. The notion of conflict of interests varies but in this paper the following definition is used. Conflict of interest is a situation in which a person (in this paper politician or public official) has a private or other interest which is such as to influence, or appear to influence, the impartial and objective performance of his / her official duties. Research of this problem can be described as moving from legalistic towards more general understanding. The topic is interdisciplinary and can be analyzed from the political science, public administration, ethics or management perspective. Analy­ses of the practice allowed researchers to distinguish the third type of such conflict of interest – the apparent conflict-to the existing or potential conflict of interests. De­velopment of society and changed surrounding of government activity increased the potential risk areas (gift giving, hospitality, bribery, contracts, trading information, etc.) for such situation to appear. In the past few decades increasing perceptions of falling ethical standards in legislatures, executive or ordinary public officials activity (scandals, misbehavior) have led in many advanced democracies to the introduction of ethics frameworks for elected or appointed officials. In order to give priority to public interest and properly perform public duties some regulation can be applied. 1) Prohibitions on the perform­ance of certain functions, and/or the holding of certain positions or certain interests by public officials. 2) The establishment of duties of public officials to declare inter­ests they have, either generally or in specific cases. 3) Exclusion or self-exclusion of public officials from participation in decision-making processes or matters where they are subject to a conflict of interest. These regulations are generally established and implemented through three main instruments: civil service legislation, conflict of interest legislation and codes of ethics / codes of conduct. The historical development of Lithuanian society in XIX and XX century was not in favor to develop clear sense of drawing the line between public and private interest but during the interwar Lithuanian Republic period few attempts to prohibit such conflict of interest were taken. The legislation prohibited holding a few offices and to employ relatives. Some current Lithuanian legislation directly some indirectly (Public Service Act, Seimas' Statute, etc.) try to control similar situation which may turn into corrupt acti-vity or misuse of public office for private or other interests. The first special legisla­tion prohibiting conflict of interests was issued in 1997. The Law on the Compatibil­ity of Public and Private Interests in the Public Service underwent three main correc­tions. The analysis of this legislation allows concluding that the main weakness was not corrected. The usage of the term "adjust" instead of "separation" might be under­stood as a compromise instead of taking the stricter position dealing with the issue. The Law seeks "to adjust private and public interests, to ensure that priority is given to public interests, to strengthen impartiality of decisions and to prevent corruption in public service" and applies to both public servants and politicians. Meanwhile in other countries legislative has more ambitious goal to ensue public interest priority. The analyses of seventeen codes of ethics and codes of conduct existing in vari­ous Lithuanian public institutions showed that their authors paid some attention to this issue. Some codes refer to existing legislation; some describe general principles for conduct or try to explain how to behave in such uneasy situations. There are fundamental differences between elected officials and civil servants which have major implications for conflict of interest regulation first of all due to their different roles, term of service. Some Lithuanian legislation regulating conflict of interests apply to politicians and civil servants, some differ. As in other democra­cies activity of civil servants are more regulated (Public service act, law on Pub­lic administration, Ethical rules of conduct, etc.). But existing legislation does not change the situation and can not increase public trust if is not understood and properly implemented.

By the official estimate of the US Census Bureau, America's population crossed the 300 million mark on 17 October 2006. That day, although obviously bracketed by a generous error‐term, was, unsurprisingly, occasion in the media for an outpouring of descriptions of the country's demographic path from the last similar benchmark 39 years earlier, when the US population reached 200 million. Projections for continued rapid population growth in the future were also matter‐of‐factly presented—an expected 400 million by 2043 with no stop in sight beyond that.In the press, influential editorial opinion about the meaning and significance of the event was generally upbeat and self‐congratulatory. The New York Times, for example, reminded its readers that "In America, growth and vitality are the same thing…. Our teeming immensity keeps us from growing stale." Readers who might question that sentiment were reassured that "population issues have mysterious ways of working themselves out."The Wall Street Journal's editorial page observed that the US population could comfortably be housed in the State of Texas (two acres for every US family of four), leaving the rest of the country deserted. On 17 October, the White House issued a presidential statement to "celebrate a significant milestone." The closing sentences of its two short paragraphs convey the substance of its message: "Our continued growth is a testament to our country's dynamism and a reminder that America's greatest asset is our people.""We welcome this milestone as further proof that the American Dream remains as bright and hopeful as ever."This celebratory welcome to the arrival of the 300 millionth American is in remarkable contrast to the somber national soul‐searching that followed the crossing of the 200 million benchmark in 1967. In the context of the unprecedented pace of global population growth and reflecting the shock of the unanticipated US baby boom, the desirability of indefinitely sustained US population growth was then commonly viewed as far from obvious: certainly it was seen as an issue calling for careful examination and analysis. The demand for assessing the national interest in this matter was articulated and given a major impetus by a Message to Congress issued by then President Richard M. Nixon on 18 July 1969. The full text of this document is reprinted below. Drafted by the late Daniel Patrick Moynihan, then Counselor to the President (later US Senator from New York State), the message was primarily devoted to consideration of US population issues. It raised questions about the effects of the next 100 million Americans, expected "by the year 2000 or shortly thereafter," on the economy and society. Those questions, it stressed, must be answered with a new sense of urgency. "Perhaps the most dangerous element in the present situation is the fact that so few people are examining these questions from the viewpoint of the whole society." The message suggested that the Federal Government has "a special responsibility for defining these problems and for stimulating thoughtful responses."To assemble those responses, the President proposed the "creation by Congress of a Commission on Population Growth and the American Future." In the following years the resulting Commission, chaired by John D. Rockefeller 3rd and with Charles F. Westoff of Princeton University serving as Executive Director of the Commission's staff, carried out a thorough examination of the issues surrounding US population growth. The seven hefty volumes in which its findings and supporting documents were published are quintessentially summarized in Rockefeller's letter of transmittal of the Commission's Final Report to the President and Congress of the United States on 27 March 1972: "After two years of concentrated effort, we have concluded that, in the long run, no substantial benefits will result from further growth of the Nation's population, rather that the gradual stabilization of our population through voluntary means would contribute significantly to the Nation's ability to solve its problems. We have looked for, and have not found, any convincing economic argument for continued population growth. The health of our country does not depend on it, nor does the vitality of business nor the welfare of the average person." Notwithstanding the urgency accorded the matter in his message, Nixon ignored the recommendations of the Commission.

Welcome to the inaugural issue of PORTAL

On behalf of the Executive Editorial Committee of PORTAL Journal of Multidisciplinary International Studies, it is a great pleasure to announce the virtual birth of this fully peer-reviewed journal under the auspices of UTSePress, the exciting new electronic publishing enterprise housed at the central library at the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS), Australia. PORTAL itself is edited by staff from the Institute for International Studies, a dynamic research and teaching centre at UTS.

The launch of PORTAL's inaugural issue will take place simultaneously in Sydney, Australia, and Guadalajara, México, on January 28 (Sydney) / 27 (Guadalajara) 2004. The trans-Pacific axial enabling this twin launch is emblematic of the many axes of dialogue that, it is to be hoped, will characterize the content and reception of this and future issues of Portal. We are grateful to the many people at the Center for Social Sciences and Humanities at la Universidad de Guadalajara, México, for their provision of the technologies and tequila that will facilitate Portal's digital launch in a different space and timezone to its 'homebirth' in Sydney, Australia.

As PORTAL's 'Focus and Scope' statement indicates, the journal is dedicated to publishing scholarship by practitioners of-and dissenters from-international, regional, area, migration, and ethnic studies. PORTAL is also committed to providing a space for cultural producers interested in the internationalization of cultures. With these aims in mind we have conceived PORTAL as a "multidisciplinary venture," to use Michel Chaouli's words. That is, PORTAL signifies "a place where researchers [and cultural producers] are exposed to different ways of posing questions and proffering answers, without creating out of their differing disciplinary languages a common theoretical or methodological pidgin" (2003, p. 57). Our hope is that scholars working in the humanities, social sciences, and potentially other disciplinary areas, will encounter in PORTAL a range of critical and creative scenarios about contemporary societies and cultures and their material and imaginative relation to processes of transnationalization, polyculturation, transmigration, globalization, and anti-globalization. Our use of scenario here is drawn from Néstor García Canclini, for whom the term designates "a place where a story is staged" (1995, p. 273). García Canclini's interest lies in comprehending the staging of stories at "the intercrossings on the borders between countries, in the fluid networks that interconnect towns, ethnic groups, and classes, … the popular and the cultured, the national and the foreign" (1995, p. 273). Such stories indicate some of the many possible international scenarios that PORTAL will stage in the future.

A key to our ambitions for PORTAL is an editorial commitment to facilitating dialogue between international studies practitioners working anywhere in the world, and not simply or exclusively in the "North," "the West," or the "First World." This fundamental policy is reflected in our Editorial Board, with members drawn from respected academic and research institutions in many countries and continents.

We would like to extend our warmest thanks to the many people across the globe who, site unseen, graciously agreed to support this publishing and intellectual endeavour by joining the Editorial Board and wholeheartedly endorsing the journal's editorial brief. PORTAL's commitment to fashioning a genuinely "international" studies rubric is also reflected in our willingness to accept critical and creative work in English as well as in a number of other languages: Bahasa Indonesia, Chinese, Croatian, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Spanish, and Serbian. We anticipate that this list will grow. Portal is also committed to the timely and constructive provision of feedback to submitted work. There will be two issues per year: one in January, the other in July. These editorial protocols make PORTAL a uniquely "international" publishing venture.

Immense gratitude is due to the team at UTSePress for their dedication to, and faith in, this project. In particular, we would like to thank Alex Byrne, Fides Lawton, Richard Buggy, and Shannon Elbourne, for their hard work, support, and understanding. Thanks go to all the members of the PORTAL Editorial Committee for their contributions. Finally, special thanks to our Editorial Assistant Wayne Peake, Research Assistant John McPhillips and Editorial Committee member Kate Barclay who did so much to ensure the appearance of this inaugural issue.

Paul Allatson, Chair, PORTAL Editorial Committee

Books reviewed: Great Britain and Ireland Old age in English history: past experiences, present times, Virginia Berridge Women in medieval English society, P.J.P Goldberg Trade, urban hinterlands and market integration, Phillipp Schofield Historical accounting records: a guide for archivists and researchers, Marianne Pitts The development of agrarian capitalism: land and labour in Norfolk, 1440‐1580, Christorpher Dyer Figures in the landscape: rural society in England, 1500‐1700, Adam Fox Migration and society in Britain, 1550‐1830, Peter Clark British clubs and societies, 1580‐1800: the origins of an associational world, Craig Muldrew Nature contested: environmental history in Scotland and northern England since 1600, Ian Whyte The development of London as a financial centre, Forrest Capie The country housewife's family companion (1750), Joan Thirsk Nature's governement: science imperial Britain, and the 'improvement' of the world, John Gascoigne Gales: a study in brewing, business and family history, Terry Gourvish Fighting words: working‐class formation, collective action, and discourse in early nineteenth‐century England, Owen Jackson Striking a bargain: work and industrial relations in England, 1815‐1865, Julian Davies Patterns of philanthropy, charity and society in nineteenth‐century Bristol, Alan Kidd Merchants to multinationals: British trading companies in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Peter Cain The global cigarette, origins and evolution of British American Tabacco, 1880‐1945, B.W.E. Alford Poor women's lives: gender, work, and poverty in late‐Victorian London, Sheila Blackburn More than munitions: women, work and the engineering industries, 1900‐1950:, Gail Braybon Austerity in Britain: rationing, controls, and consumption, 1939‐1955, Peter Howlett March of the matrons: military influence on the British civilian nursing profession, 1939‐1969, Peter Mohr The British economy since 1945: engaging with the debate, Scott Newton Crises revolutions: and self‐sustained growth: essays in European fiscal history, 1130‐1830, Henry Roseveare The rise of cites in north‐west Europe, Gervase Rosser Privilege and the politics of taxation in eighteenth‐century France; liberté, fiscalité, Morag Martin Histoire agraire de la France au XVIIIe siècle: inerties et changments dans les capagnes françaises entre 1715 et 1815, Hugh Clout French anti‐slavery: the movement for the abolition of slavery in France, 1802‐1848, Pamela Pilbeam The modernist enterprise: French elites and the threat of modernity, 1900‐1940, Jackie Clarke Industrial culture and bourgeois sociey: business, labour, and bureaucracy in modern Germay, Joseph Melling The chameleon state: hlobal culture and policy shifts in Britain and Germany, 1914‐1933, Theo Balderston An economic history of Sweden, Ollie Krantz Silver, trade and war: Spain and America in the making of early modern Europe, Henry Kamen Imagining consumers: design and innovation from Wedgewood to Corning, Cheryl Buckley Reinventing free labor: padrones and immigrant workers in the Norh American West, 1880‐1930,Karen Jones Boodless victories: the rise and fall of the open shop in the Philadelphia metal trades, 1890‐1940, Neil A. Wynn Essays on the great depression, Peter Fearon Airline excutives and federal regulation: case studies in American enterprise from the airmail era to the dawn of the jet age, Michael French Modern forests: statemaking and environmental change in colonial eastern India, John M. Mackenzie The Japanese economy, John F. Wilson Australia in the global economy: coninunity and change, Bernard Attard The great divergence: Europe, China and the making of modern world economy, Philip Richardson Terms of labor: slavery, serdom, and free labor,Kenneth Morgan The legacy of Frederich von Hayek, vols I: Politics; II: Philosophy; III, Economics, Roger Middleton The challenge of global captalism: the world economy int 21st century, Clive H. Lee General Mark Ormrod, Margaret Bonney, & Richard Bonney, eds. Crises, revolutions and self‐sustained growthAdriaan Verhulst. The rise of cities in north‐west EuropeMichael Kwass. Privilege and the politics of taxation in eighteenth‐century FranceGérard Béaur. Histoire agraire de la France au XVIIIe siècleLawrence C. Jennings. French anti‐slaveryMarjorie A. Beale. The modernist enterpriseJürgen Kocka. Industrial culture and bourgeois societyTien‐lung Liu. The chameleon stateLars Magnusson. An economic history of SwedenStanley J. Stein & Barbara H. Stein. Silver, trade and warRegina Lee Blaszczyk. Imagining consumersGunther Peck. Reinventing free laborHowell John Harris. Bloodless victoriesBen S. Bernanke. Essays on the great depressionW. David Lewis, ed. Airline executives and federal regulationK. Sivaramakrishnan. Modern forestsDavid Flath. The Japanese economyDavid Meredith & Barrie Dyster. Australia in the global economyKenneth Pomeranz. The great divergenceStanley L. Engerman, ed. Terms of laborPeter J. Boettke, ed. The legacy of Frederich von HayekRobert Gilpin with Jean Millis Gilpin. The challenge of global capitalism