The disciplinary politics of antagonistic nationalism in militarized South and North Korea

After the Korean War (1950–53), the two militarized Koreas governed each and every member of society in similar ways through their disciplinary politics of antagonistic nationalism. The existing studies of state formation in the two Koreas have neglected an aspect of state power that was neither necessarily top‐down nor violent from above but also reproduced from below. In both South and North Korea, especially from the 1960s to the 1970s, state power had internal dynamics that penetrated the day‐to‐day activities of most citizens and led them to actively accept and participate in nationalist rule. This article explores an understudied aspect of the two Koreas' state power that was disciplinarily diffused in people's everyday practices through reproduction of aggressive nationalism from below and the organic construction of the individual body and nation.     

Financial crises and the balance of power in international finance, 1890–2010

Has the centre of gravity of international finance irreversibly started to shift from the Atlantic to the Pacific since the financial debacle of 2007-2008? This article discusses this highly topical question in a historical perspective, by considering previous changes in the balance of power in international finance and the role played by global financial in these changes. Particular attention is paid to the Baring Crisis of 1890, the American Panic of 1907, the financial crisis of July -August 1914, the banking crises of the Great Depression of the 1930s, the financial instability of the early 1970s and the ensuing banking failures, the International Debt Crisis of 1982, and the Japanese Banking Crisis of 1997-8. The article concludes that financial crisis, perhaps surprisingly, did not lead to clear changes in the balance of power in international finance; and that the financial debacle of 2007-8 is unlikely, in the medium-term, to fundamentally alter the current order.     

地域、权力与关系:对清代江苏督抚的考察

两江总督统辖江苏、安徽和江西三省地区,辖地辽阔,但驻地在江苏江宁府,而江苏巡抚驻地在苏州府,两地相距才二百多公里。江苏督抚同省而驻,既有历史的渊源,更有现实的考量。两者权力相仿,地位相同,又各有专责,共担治理江苏地方的重任,因此,地方治理的好坏,往往取决于双方是否各本虚公,坦诚合作。总体说来,有清一代,江苏督抚关系在共事中大体能够和衷共济,还呈现出几对堪称模范的督抚;当然,其间也夹杂着双方的权力争斗,甚至出现了督抚互参的重案。     

Dwelling in the Sites of Finitude: Resisting the Violence of the Metaphysical Globe

Abstract: In this paper Martin Heidegger's notions about dwelling in the sites of finitude and “power‐free” (Macht‐los) “letting‐be” (Gelassenheit) are explored as fundamental possibilities for resisting the ontological violence posed by global capitalism, the planetary outcome of the metaphysical condition Heidegger calls the “machination” (Machenschaft). Beginning from the planetary machination—the emergence of the flexible and circularly functioning power of calculative intelligibility—resistance is understood ontologically and hence as a radical critique of power as a consummation of the history of the metaphysical constitution of being. The paper culminates in a discussion of Heidegger's view on the awakening of the “other beginning” of the abyssal “Event” of being, a groundless “time‐space‐play” capable of constituting an alternative modality of relations no longer based upon the calculative functions of power but upon groundless thought and non‐violent dwelling in the earth‐sites of finite being.     

二战后日美之间的冲绳行政权归还交涉

二战后日本政府一直致力于收复冲绳主权。经过日本历届政府多年的努力,到佐藤政权时期日本终于成功地收回了冲绳施政权,并实现了＂撤出核武器和本土一样＂的归还目标。但日本收回的是对冲绳的行政管理权,美军在冲绳不仅依然保有其军事基地,而且还拥有相当的军事行动自由。为此,日美还专门签订一份保障美军行动自由的秘密协定。冲绳问题的解决对于日美两国来说是一次外交上的双赢。它不仅成功解决了二战后日美之间的领土问题,而且成功实现了日美关系的转换。从此日美关系从日本对美依附走向了日美相互依存。     

“满洲”电业株式会社始末

本文介绍了满洲电业株式会社的发展历程、代表性发输配电设施、伪满洲国覆灭时的状况。纵观“满电”的发展史可以发现,这既是高度垄断的电力生产、管理机构,也是伪满洲国傀儡政权的重要经济支柱和日本帝国主义侵略、掠夺中国东北的重要工具。     

A Swiss anomaly? A relational account of national boundary‐making

ABSTRACT. This article reviews how major theorists of nationalism – from Ernest Renan to Benedict Anderson – have tried to come to grips with the puzzle that Swiss nationalism and the Swiss state present in view of the monoethnic states that surround it. I will argue that this puzzle disappears when assuming a political sociology perspective that highlights the networks of political alliances underlying nationalist movements and the power structure of recently formed nation‐states. Studying an ‘outlier’ case such as Switzerland helps us to gain insight into the general processes and mechanisms at work in the rise of nationalism and the nation‐state.     

Aiming for a Just Society

Abstract

I think it is time that theologians, as well as the Church at large, speak up and speak to the social injustice we are faced with because of the economical collapse in Iceland in autumn 2008. If we think theology (i.e. the discourse about God) does not happen in a vacuum, if we think it is affected by, and is also affecting its context, then theology must have a part to play in the political discourse. If we think everything related to our human condition is affecting our understanding and our talk about God, then all theology has to be political in the most inclusive sense of the word. In this article the intention is to test major theological terms against the situation we are faced with in our society, which is recovering from an economic collapse. Thus the question: to what extent are key theological terms useful when we need to address the outgrowth of social injustice and self-inflicted economical catastrophe?     

Perspectives on the Caspian Sea Dilemma: Russian Policies Since the Soviet Demise

An American political scientist specializing in Soviet and post-Soviet foreign affairs outlines the highlights of Russian policy in the Caspian region from 1991 to late 2003. The paper discusses and analyzes the interaction among the five littoral states (Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan) in light of contentious disputes over the sea's demarcation, the routing of pipelines, and efforts to maximize oil and gas exports to the West. Noting instances of "gunboat diplomacy" used by Russia and Iran, as well as the American presence in the region after 9/11 and during the current war in Iraq, the author reflects on the Russian role as a stabilizing force in the region. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: O18, Q30, Q40. 1 figure, 74 references.     

DAUGHTER DISCRIMINATION AND FUTURE SEX RATIO AT BIRTH IN INDIA

This paper examines recent trends in sex ratio at birth in all the major states of India, based on three rounds of the National Family Health Survey. It finds evidence of an increase in the ratio, particularly at the second-order birth among women having a first daughter in many states in the northwestern region of the country. Also, there are signs of daughter aversion emerging in Odisha, an eastern state. Based on parity progression ratios and the trend in sex selection, an attempt is made to estimate the peak of sex ratio at birth in India. With moderate intensification in sex selection in the northwestern region, sex ratio at birth is expected to reach a peak of 117–119 males per 100 females around the period 2021–2026. If, in addition, sex selection spreads further in the southeastern region, the sex ratio at birth in India could even increase to a level of 124.