Recent works on Italian capitalism: A review essay

Abstract

Italy's capitalism has traditionally differed from that of its major trading partners: state‐owned enterprises have played a larger role, securities markets have been relatively less developed, while corporate power in the private sector has been concentrated to an unusual extent in the hands of a few family‐controlled business groups. Since the 1970s, Italian big business has seemed unable to steer a new course in an increasingly global economy. When belatedly and under tight budget constraints Italy finally started privatizations in 1992, many hoped that this would bring about a long‐delayed modernization of financial markets, an increase in competitive market pressues, and some ‘democratization’ of corporate power. This article reviews a book edited by Fabrizio Barca which puts these recent experiences into a much‐needed longer historical perspective, and other books offering non‐scholarly views on the present state of Italian capitalism.

Fabrizio Barca (ed.) (1997) Storia del capitalismo italiano (Rome: Donzelli), pp. 1‐634, 60,000 lire, ISBN 88‐7989‐252‐5 hardback.

Filippo Cavazzuti (1996) Privatizzazioni, imprenditori e mercati (Bologna: Il Mulino), pp. 1‐83, 10,000 lire, ISBN 88‐15‐05562‐2 paperback.

Alfredo Macchiati (1996) Privatizzazioni tra economia e politica (Rome: Donzelli), pp. 1‐160, 18,000 lire, ISBN 88‐7989‐254‐1 paperback.

Giuseppe Turani (1996) Isogni del grande nord (Bologna: II Mulino), pp. 1‐138, 15,000 lire, ISBN 88‐15‐05721‐8 paperback.     

Imag(in)ing ‘good’ Swedish meat: gender,sexuality, race and nation in the sale of higher welfare chicken

Abstract

This article attends to the ways that meat from higher welfare chicken is sold in supermarkets in Sweden. Recognising that the ‘welfare-friendly chicken body is an achievement between the market, the animal and publics’, this article continues these discussions to show how gender, sexuality, race and nation operate within these markets and publics by looking at how welfare is marketed in chicken meat sales, particularly higher welfare chicken, compared to other meat. By attending to the images used to sell chicken, we examine how ideas about ‘the farm’ and ‘the family’ are mobilised in the supermarket. Using images of specific families, they position chicken both in the Swedish rural landscape and in intersecting social categories. These two narratives intertwine and operate as a device in the sale of high welfare chicken meat. This, we argue, hides the dependency on global supply chains and workforce, but also (re)produces ideas about what high welfare is, who cares, and how we should care. Throughout the article, we demonstrate how the narratives of farm, family, and nation operate in relation to species and welfare, as the ‘Swedish family farm’ is imag(in)ed to sell high welfare chicken in ways that contrast with meat from other animals.     

Public opinion and policy responsiveness: the case of same-sex marriage in Australia

This article examines congruence between public opinion and politicians’ positions on same-sex marriage in the Australian House of Representatives from 2012 to 2016. In contrast median voter theorem and other office-motivated frameworks, Australian federal politicians have largely ignored majority opinion, which has been supportive of same-sex marriage for a decade. Using a unique dataset (n?=?601,550) of voter preferences collected during the 2013 federal election, and collated Hansard and media data, we compare public opinion on same-sex marriage with politicians’ public positions. We find a status quo bias, suggesting the influence of special interest groups in this policy area. Yet, we also find parliamentarians are responsive to public opinion once it reaches a critical level, and that very low opposition to same-sex marriage in an electorate predicts policy support from its MP, which varies by party and over time.