Poland Divided: Spatial Differences in the June 2003 EU Accession Referendum

Results of the June 2003 referendum on Poland's accession to the European Union are assessed by a noted American electoral geographer and a Polish historian, in terms of voter turnout, percentage "yes" vote, and percentage of eligible voters casting yes ballots. They then proceed to test the association between voting patterns and four basic variables that, according to pre-referendum surveys, would influence the patterns regionally: general east-west location within Poland (and proximity to the pre-existing EU border), rural-urban residence, occupation (in agriculture vs. industry/services), and unemployment/income levels. In concluding, the authors note possible implications for subsequent elections in Poland. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: H10, O18, R10. 2 figures, 5 tables, 35 references.     

The Devil Burns Gold There: The Heritage of Nazi Germany Crimes in Death Valley,Chojnice, Poland

International Journal of Historical Archaeology - This paper is about Death Valley – a site of mass killings orchestrated by Nazi Germany that took place on the outskirts of Chojnice during...     

EU Enlargement,the New Central European Member States,and Austria

A noted Austrian-based geographer examines impacts of the EU accession of Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Slovenia on these four countries as well as on the neighboring state of Austria. The paper examines broad macro-economic and regional development issues (including, more specifically, spatial disparities, cross-border relations, migration, and the political landscape) as well as attendant or projected changes in transportation infrastructure. An effort is made to discriminate between changes initiated or strengthened by accession per se versus measures introduced earlier, in anticipation of accession. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: F02, J61, O11, O18. 7 figures, 60 references.     

Fiscal Reform,Policy, and Constraints during Transition in Poland

Two specialists on the Polish economy examine the process whereby the fiscal system of Poland's centrally planned economy was replaced during the 1990s by a system designed for a market economy. Changes in the structure of both revenues and expenditures are described. The authors demonstrate that fiscal authorities in Poland heretofore have maintained budget control despite radical changes in fiscal systems and institutions. However, they identify and assess emerging concerns regarding the ability of fiscal authorities to manage the economy in the face of external shocks, potential mismanagement of extra-budget expenditures such as social security, and increased debt-financing requirements. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: E50, E60, H50, H60. 6 figures, 5 tables, 27 references.     

Psychoanalysis, history, and my own private Germany

Book reviewed in this article:
My Own Private Germany: Daniel Paul Schreber's Secret History of Modernity , by Eric L. Santner     

Unfinished and Paired Logboats from Bavaria, Germany

Though Bavaria is far inland, at least 20 logboats are known, but only recently have some been properly recorded. This paper deals with two vessels discovered in the early 1990s. The remains at Laufen-Pfaffing represent a semi-manufactured logboat, which was purposely sunk as was the custom in Austria until the mid-20th century. The vessel from Wessobrunn-Blaik is also unfinished and shows several tool-marks. It is too narrow to float on its own: therefore it is part of a paired logboat. There is plenty of archaeological evidence for this kind of craft, but no ethnographic evidence. Apart from use as ferries, other uses are discussed.
© 2005 The Nautical Archaeology Society     

Protestantism,nation and diaspora in Imperial Germany

This article examines the close connection between Protestantism and nationalism in Imperial Germany within a transnational context. In the years before 1914, the Prussian State Church in particular strengthened the legal and organisational framework for an increasing number of diaspora congregations to become attached. These acted as an important vehicle to embed the nationalist rhetoric produced within the Reich into emigrants' notions of belonging. Whilst previous scholarship has noted this connection in general, the article sheds more detailed light on the mechanics and structure, but also on the limits, of this process. Feedback processes from periphery to centre, in turn, had an impact on German national identity construction as that of a nation that was not confined to state borders. Applying a constructionist theoretical framework, the contested question of whether the heterogeneity of Germans abroad allows for the application of the diaspora concept is answered affirmatively.     

Germany in Transition: Immigration,Racism and the Extreme Right

Abstract. German society is on its way to changing from a relatively homogenous population as a result of the Second World War and prior events to a more culturally, ethnically and religiously diverse society, based on its huge post-war immigration. The emergence of racism, political extremism and violence in post-unification German society points to deficits of political legitimacy, political culture and social cohesion. The strains of unification and waves of immigration from East Germany, ethnic German resettlers (Aussiedler), and asylum seekers have exacerbated and made visible unsolved questions of national identity, diversity, immigration and integration of foreigners. These events have affected German political culture and polarised the traditional party system along a ‘New’ and ‘Old Politics’ axis. These new realities have led to a growth of far right parties, racist violence, and an increase of neo-nationalist, anti-immigrant and welfare-chauvinist rhetoric.