Explanations for the Outbreak of Cattle Plague in Cheshire in 1865–1866: 'Fear the Wrath of the Lord'

Abstract

'Explanations for the Outbreak of Cattle Plague in Cheshire in 1865–66: "Fear the Wrath of the Lord"'. This article examines the explanations advanced for the outbreak of rinderpest in 1865–66, which bore disproportionately upon Cheshire. Although there was some criticism of unsatisfactory farming practices and their role in spreading disease, most people were prepared to accept that the epidemic was God's punishment for sin — either sin by the population or by the government on their behalf. This explanation was made all the more acceptable by the failure of veterinary surgeons and other parties to produce an effective cure. The views expressed were those of an age where atonement for sin was a dominant element in religious thought.     

Pride,Sensuality and Han: Revisiting Sin from the Underside

Abstract

This paper critically reconsiders the earliest feminist critiques of Reinhold Niebuhr's doctrine of sin and sketches out succeeding developments in feminist understandings of human sin and alienation. Borrowing the concept of "han" from Korean minjung theologians to name the experience of broken-heartedness/being sinned against that the feminist literature highlights, it argues that han can be a precondition (along with anxiety) for human sin. Finally, it asks whether there is room in Niebuhr's system for an understanding of han as a precondition for sin, and concludes that there is.     

Social movements in an era of post-democracy: how the Israeli J14 tent protests of 2011 challenged neoliberal hegemony through the production of place

Abstract

Inspired by the Arab Spring, massive social movements have erupted since 2011 in many places around the world. Despite their differences, these movements have had at least two remarkable common features: all of them struggled for ‘real democracy’ and occupied prominent urban public spaces to erect temporary tent encampments. By focusing on the case study of the 2011 Israeli tent protests, this paper argues that the production of such places of resistance works as a crucial, albeit ambivalent, strategy to confront hegemonic power relations. On the basis of the literature on the spatialities of contentious politics, the article demonstrates that the establishment of more than 70 tent camps in public spaces all across Israel was of vital importance not only to challenging the post-democratic political system but also to overcoming an internal crisis of representation within the Israeli protest movement. However, the case of the Israeli J14 tent protests also underlines that while the production of place can be a powerful starting point for social movements, it is not a durable alternative to multi-scalar, networked forms of organisation, which are also able to confront state authorities in the long term.     

Transforming Unjust Structures: A Philosophical and Theological Perspective

Abstract

This essay explores the difficult task of transforming unjust social structures (USS). It does so by an understanding of the moral features of interactions, drawing from Hannah Arendt's political philosophy and Paul Ricoeur's conception of institutions. Then a definition of what can be considered as USS is given and some of the characteristic features of these social phenomena specified. As a further step, this essay delves into a theological understanding of USS as structures of sin, for no rationale can be given for the most perverse USS (concentration camps/Gulag). Theology, through the notions of evil and sin, possesses some instruments to understand the absurd violence, the indifference and hopelessness of USS. The essay close with some remarks on how to deal with USS.     

Authors and Authoritarianism in Central Asia: Failed Agency and Nationalising Authoritarianism in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan

Abstract

This paper aims to reconstruct widely accepted concepts of the top-down authoritarian nature of Central Asian politics in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan through a comparative study of the pro-democratic movements that emerged in the late 1980s. By analysing data from interviews with the cultural elites of the late Soviet perestroika period and data on the indigenous nationalist movements such as Erk, Zheltoksan, Birlik and others, we question why such nationalist movements did not “survive” or emerge as a significant political platform as promised in post-independence Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, and why they failed to change the political outlook of one party rule or the dominance of one nationalising regime. Furthermore, we analyse how such nationalist movements had an opportunity to turn into semi-democratic movements but failed to transform after their agenda (arguably, independence) was achieved, leaving “communists-turned-nationalists” to continue their policies in newly formed countries. Thus, the paper also looks at how these cultural elites eventually contributed to the local “authoritarianism” and lack of plurality in views and identifications.     

George W. Bush's War on Terrorism and Sin

Abstract

In George W. Bush's inaugural address, informed by ‘compassionate conservatism’, there was a tension between two familiar goals in US political discourse: conserving the status quo and changing the world for the better by cleansing it of sin. In Bush's discursive construction of the war on terrorism, ‘compassionate conservatism’ and the construction of sin were folded into a unified discourse, with the emphasis on preventing dangerous change rather than creating positive change. A static state of safety, constantly protected by ‘compassionate conservatism’ and war, is now offered by American conservatives as the most viable and most patriotic way to stave off the forces of sin.     

Strandloping as a Resource-Gathering Strategy in the Cape,South African Holocene Later Stone Age: The Verloren Vlei Record

ABSTRACT

Elands Bay and adjacent coastline near the mouth of the Verloren vlei on the South African Atlantic coast offered Later Stone Age foragers a variety of marine, estuarine, and terrestrial food resources. We suggest that strandloping (beachwalking or beachcombing) by latest Holocene foragers as a regular practice constituted an important component in their repertoire of subsistence activities. Washed-up mussels, seals, birds, whales, and other recently dead animals would have been available to such strandlopers. We distinguish strandloping as a subsistence practice from the procurement of living prey, including shellfish, mammals, birds, and other animals. The Holocene archaeological record of the Elands Bay area suggests changes through time in resource use, and these changes appear to be recognizable in patterns of shellfish gathering. During the latest part of the Holocene, between about 1,500 and 300 years ago, subsistence practices display a distinctive character that perhaps conforms more strongly than previously to what we conceive of as strandloping.     

Science and Theology Diverse Resolutions of an Interdisciplinary Gap by the New Priesthood of Science

Abstract

In an age where the trend towards secularization has been slowed down, new religions and ideological movements are competing with the more traditional positions to be found in society. Those who are anxious to justify their own particular position share only one criterion for comparison with those holding other positions: a belief in the epistemological efficacy of science. A new priesthood of scientist has emerged to offer justification in the name of science for a variety of ideological positions and to explain to a bewildered public what the real relationship is between the various disciplines of science and those of theology or moral and political philosophy. This paper describes the variety of positions taken up by the new priesthood, typifying these as Fundamentalism, Orthodoxy; Liberalism, Modernism, Agnosticism and Atheism.     

Co-operatives and Political Development in PNG: Colonial Failure or Unrecognized Success?

ABSTRACT

Co-operative societies were an important part of Australia’s post-war development plans for the Territory of Papua New Guinea, providing an opportunity to align perceived notions of traditional village social systems with new socio-economic ideas. This article examines the introduction of co-operatives on New Hanover and Buka islands and their subsequent failure. In the aftermath of these disappointments, new local organizations arose and adopted many of the positive practices learnt during the co-operative period. These new groups provided both material and cultural independence, and, further, proved to be micro-nationalist movements with a power base capable of challenging the Australian administration. This article argues that co-operatives have been undervalued and overlooked as a platform for Indigenous notions of socio-economic development and micro-nationalist movements. Co-operatives broke down clan affiliations and inspired Indigenous Papua New Guineans to operate beyond their normal alliances, to act with coordination, agency and a clear agenda.     

Esoteric Tangles

Abstract

I attempt here a very general reply to the preceding sixteen essays by addressing the broad, structural constraints of my book, from which many of the particular problems raised in the essays flow. Philosophy Between the Lines is an effort to give a very sweeping account—theoretically and historically—of a phenomenon that is, in many respects, highly particularized and situation specific. The characteristic sin of the book is overgeneralization or simplification. In the present essay I attempt a brief and partial clarification, primarily by selecting one main theme of the book—defensive esotericism—and redescribing it from a more localized and fine-grained perspective.     

Land-holding,participation in agriculture and short-term migration in rural India

ABSTRACT

We analyse a nationally representative data set from India for the year 2013 in order to provide evidence on how short-term migration is affected by household ownership of land and participation in agricultural activities. We estimate a recursive-bivariate-probit model recognising the simultaneity between short-term migration and the decision to operate the land. The results of the likelihood ratio test imply that it would be incorrect to ignore this simultaneity. Households with less than 1?ha of land and those leasing out land are more likely to have a short-term migrant. Households leaving their land fallow, a common occurrence in South Asia, are also more likely to have a short-term migrant. Moreover, the choice of crops and livestock farming has a significant role to play in the migration decision. Current initiatives to increase coverage of irrigation and facilitate access to formal finance could improve the livelihoods of small and marginal farmers, thereby reducing the probability of distress-related short-term migration.     

Anarchism,Modernism, and Nationalism: Futurism’s French Connections, 1876–1915

This article examines two of the most significant Italian political movements at the turn of the twentieth century—anarchism and Futurism. Although these movements shared a common vocabulary and rhetoric, they contrasted sharply in their aims and objectives. I address three interrelated questions: How were these movements and their ideologies related to, and perceived by, the ruling elites? What were their mutual influences and inspirational centre? Did both movements share a broader core ideology? To answer these questions, I explore the links, parallels and dissimilarities between anarchism and Futurism in the context of the nationalist mass mobilizations preceding World War I. In line with Emilio Gentile’s landmark analysis, I identify the core ideology of Futurism as a potent blend of nationalism and modernism. Futurism’s double matrix is thus contrasted with the theory and practice of anarchism, the two displaying sharply differing relationships with political power. I also consider the links between Italian Futurism and French ultra-nationalism as championed by prominent intellectuals, beyond Paris’ artistic epicentre, where art and politics intermixed. I conclude that the fusion of modernism and nationalism was central to twentieth-century ideological radicalization to which Futurism fully belonged, but from which anarchism eventually dissociated itself.     

Theory and the history of cartography

Abstract

Cartographic history has been dominated by an empiricism that treats the nature of maps as self‐evident and which denies the presence of any theory. In contrast, this paper argues that theories lie at the root of all empirical study whether or not they are acknowledged. The linear, progressive model of cartographic development, for example, is not a law deduced from historical evidence; if it were it would be easily and quickly dismissed. It derives instead from our cultural beliefs concerning the nature of maps, which is to say from our unexamined theories. Historians of cartography need to be critical of their assumptions and preconceptions. Theoretical discussions in the history of cartography must address not whether we should use theory at all but to which theories we should adhere. It is inadequate simply to knock theories down. We must establish a debate in which old understandings of maps, of their creation, and of their use are replaced by better (that is, more consistent and coherent) theories.     

The revival of rituals among the Sakha‐Yakut and the Hokkaido Ainu

The revival of rituals has been one of the serious concerns of indigenous peoples. This paper deals with cultural revitalization movements among the Sakha‐Yakut in eastern Siberia and the Ainu in Hokkaido. First, it examines the revival of rituals among the Sakha. The relationship between recent cultural revitalization movements and shamanism in a broad sense, as well as the revival of rituals, focussing especially on the ysyakh festival, are examined, and the motivation for this revival is discussed. Second, the cultural revitalization movements among the Ainu after the Second World War and the recent revival of their rituals are described and the motivation for it discussed. Finally, the paper compares the revival of rituals among these two different ethnic groups and discusses its significance.     

Career paths and mobility in the Swedish hospitality sector

ABSTRACT

How career paths are interpreted and conceptualised by hospitality workers and industry representatives remains underexplored in current literature. In this paper, we highlight and discuss sector-specific and contextual factors that influence the possibility of establishing a career within the Swedish hospitality sector. The paper uses interviews with hotel managers, who describe and discuss motivations and choices made throughout their own careers and interviews with young (former) seasonal hospitality workers who describe and reflect on their future plans and work-life experience. Additional data are derived through observations at national seminars and meetings for representatives from the Swedish tourism and hospitality industry, where issues of competence and careers were discussed. The findings indicate that the shaping of career paths within the hospitality sector is influenced by two normative and discursively produced ‘truths’ about career paths in the hospitality sector: the importance of internal knowledge transfer and the importance of high mobility. These narratives impose expectations on individuals to be mobile, to change jobs frequently and to work their way from the bottom-up within the industry, and are based on a presumption of a diversified and dense local hospitality labour market. However, since the conditions are different due to contextual, geographical features of labour market size and structure, attractiveness of places, etc., these expectations are difficult to fulfil in places other than in larger urban areas. These normative assumptions of what a successful hospitality career is also have consequences for the development of the hospitality sector as external influences of competence from other sectors and higher education are not seen as valuable, which makes the sector self-contained and not open to external, potentially innovative knowledge.     

September 11: A Christian Fundamentalist Interpretation

Abstract

This article analyses sermons preached by Free Presbyterian ministers in the United States following the World Trade Centre tragedy and the attack on the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. It explores how these religious fundamentalists made sense of the event theologically. While terrorists carried out the attack, ultimately God was believed to have been responsible. It was considered God's way of punishing the American nation for its sin. Ministers' use of the Old Testament and God's covenantal relationship with ancient Israel is both the theological and historical backdrop to their explanation of September 11. Concentration on the Old Testament and fundamentalists' exegetical approach means that politics and religion are tightly intertwined. Emphasis on the militaristic portions of the Old Testament also helps justify the war in Iraq. Although Free Presbyterian doctrine is based on institutional separatism and believers' withdrawal from "the world" the sermons connect parishioners to their wider society through a shared sense of patriotic loyalty and national loss.     

Lucretius on Religion

Abstract

A number of Enlightenment thinkers of questionable piety drew inspiration from Lucretius's philosophic poem On the Nature of Things. Contemporary atheists, in their renewed vigor, have continued the Enlightenment attack on faith. Our atheists have sought to create a tradition for themselves by claiming Lucretius as an ancient exemplar of their own impious forthrightness. This study argues that Lucretius was more fully appreciative of the necessary and salutary relationship between religion and politics and would not appreciate being co-opted by either group. A return to Lucretius may be useful in understanding the foundation of the early modern project and revealing the imprudence of modern atheism.     

Reinhold Niebuhr and the US War on Terror: A Response to Dr Gilkey

Abstract

Building upon Langdon Gilkey's reflection on Reinhold Niebuhr's Moral Man and Immoral Society, this article examines Niebuhr's enduring contribution in relation to two pressing international concerns: religious terrorism and the US War on Terror. As these two issues are characterized by their suppression of reason, I argue that Niebuhr's critical understanding of reason, a human rational capacity to consider interests other than one's own, offers an important resource in rectifying the disorder created by the two issues. Despite his stringent critique of a liberal idealistic view of reason, Niebuhr refused to completely deny the value of reason; although reason is always tainted by sin, it is not entirely ineffectual. This critical notion of reason is a necessary antidote to the unilateralism of the Bush administration and religious fundamentalism which altogether reject a dialogical, reflective value of reason. In an increasingly interdependent global society, a critical use of reason is indispensable for the achievement of global peace and justice.     

Modelling Folksong Melodies

Abstract

In the second half of the twentieth century, ethnomusicologists assembled a collection of more than 7000 field recordings of Dutch ballads. Collectively known as Onder de groene linde, these recordings are preserved at the Meertens Institute in Amsterdam. Because of its size, composition and quality of metadata, Onder de groene linde is a unique resource for studying the musical properties of folksongs. For such study, it would be essential to search and order the songs automatically, not just using the metadata, but especially their musical content. It is the aim of the WITCHCRAFT project to design and implement methods for processing the musical content of the songs. Such a project involves two disciplines, musicology and computer science, that have different goals and methodologies. Such differences can lead to unproductive tensions, but can also be exploited in order to attain new insights that could not have been attained by the separate disciplines.