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Books > Social sciences > Politics & government > Political parties > General
Asian countries are not homogenous. They are in different stages of social and economic development, with cultural conditions and institutional and legal frameworks varying from one country to another. Therefore, how water can be successfully managed differs from one country to another. The book provides authoritative analyses of how water is being managed in different Asian countries, ranging from the world's most populous countries like China and India to a city state like Singapore and an island country like Fiji. It also analyses in depth several wide ranging issues like terrorism, human rights, water-energy nexus, and roles of media, along with comprehensive discussions of legal, institutional and regulatory frameworks in an Asian water management context. The overall focus is on how water can be managed efficiently, cost-effectively and equitably in various Asian countries. This book was based on a special issue of the International Journal of Water Resources Development.
Roughly sixty-five years ago, a group of political scientists operating as the "Committee on Political Parties" of the American Political Association thought long and hard about whether the American parties were adequately serving their democracy, and made specific recommendations for improvements. Comparing the parties of this country to those of Great Britain, the Committee found the American parties to be lacking in such fundamentals as clear policy differences, strong and effective organization, and unity of purpose among each party's representatives in public offices. Starting from that background, this book is intended to significantly enhance students' understanding of the American parties today by putting them in broader context. How do the twenty-first century Democrats and Republicans compare to the APSA Committee's "responsible parties model" of the mid-twentieth? And how do the American parties compare to parties of other democracies around the world, including especially the British parties? Harmel, Giebert, and Janda answer those questions and, in the process, demonstrate that the American parties have moved significantly in the direction of the responsible parties model, but while showing little inclination for implementing the greater discipline the Committee thought essential. Already having provided as much ideological choice as the British parties, the US parties have now edged closer on the other critical requirement of legislative cohesion. The authors show that the latter has resulted "naturally" from the greater homogenization of the meaning of "Democrat" and "Republican" across the country, both within the electorate and now within Congress as well. The dramatic increase in cohesion is not the product of greater party discipline, but rather of sectoral realignments.
There is a widespread notion that Russia is forever fated to be an authoritarian country where liberalism and democracy can never make real progress. However, at the beginning of the twentieth century there was an extremely influential "liberationist" movement which culminated in the formation of a modern, Western-style liberal party, the Constitutional Democrats or "Kadets". The book provides a comprehensive history of the rise of the Kadets, focusing, in particular, on the revolutionary years 1905-06. It outlines how they dominated the first Duma elected by the people and analyses their policies, social composition and political tactics. The book challenges the view (shared by many historians) that the Kadets were inherently extreme, doctrinaire or unwilling to compromise, and argues that their eventual failure was primarily due to the intransigence of the old regime. The Russian Liberals and the Revolution of 1905 illustrates, in detail, that the Kadets offered a moderate alternative to reaction on the one hand and revolution on the other.
Party movements can be described as political organizations that both participate in the electoral process and have social movement qualities. They appear frequently in both Canada and the United States. Many of these movements face huge organizational problems, and yet they display remarkable resilience, signaling both continuing political dissatisfactions as well as possibilities for changing political outcomes. This book demonstrates how organizational theory can be useful for understanding party movements, and also expands on the idea of continuity, contributing new ways of thinking about how organizations change and survive in the face of recurring dilemmas. This look inside party movements, at the organizational problems they face and the strategies employed to deal with them, represents a new way of accounting for their history that contrasts with perspectives focusing solely on external conditions.
A Choice Highly Recommended Title-January 2017 This book is an interpretive analysis of political campaigns in America: instead of focusing on how campaigns are designed and run, it investigates the role campaigns play in our American politics, and the close symbiosis between campaigns and those politics. The text examines how campaigns are an important manifestation of how we "do" politics in this country. Hallmarks of this text include: showing how campaigns can undermine our democracy and asking how democratic they-and by extension, our politics--really are; demonstrating that the ability of the media to accurately, fairly, and deeply report on campaigns has been severely compromised, both because of the growing "distance" between campaigns and media outlets and because of the structure of "Big Media" corporate ownership and its tight relationship to "Big Money." It asks important questions about the media including: How do the media, reporters in particular, cover campaigns? What pressures and forces shape what and how they present campaigns? What is the impact of the ever-increasing chasm separating campaigns and the media? How does the close tie between corporate mainstream media and Super PAC money affect campaign coverage? How does the ability of campaigns and media to segment voters into ever-smaller slices influence how campaigns are covered? tracking the continuing growth of unregulated, private, unaccountable "dark money" in campaigns as a threat to our democratic elections and politics. Democracy rests fundamentally on transparency and accountability - sunlight - and our campaign laws and norms now allow and encourage exactly the opposite, largely because of decisions by the United States Supreme Court.
A Choice Highly Recommended Title-January 2017 This book is an interpretive analysis of political campaigns in America: instead of focusing on how campaigns are designed and run, it investigates the role campaigns play in our American politics, and the close symbiosis between campaigns and those politics. The text examines how campaigns are an important manifestation of how we "do" politics in this country. Hallmarks of this text include: showing how campaigns can undermine our democracy and asking how democratic they-and by extension, our politics--really are; demonstrating that the ability of the media to accurately, fairly, and deeply report on campaigns has been severely compromised, both because of the growing "distance" between campaigns and media outlets and because of the structure of "Big Media" corporate ownership and its tight relationship to "Big Money." It asks important questions about the media including: How do the media, reporters in particular, cover campaigns? What pressures and forces shape what and how they present campaigns? What is the impact of the ever-increasing chasm separating campaigns and the media? How does the close tie between corporate mainstream media and Super PAC money affect campaign coverage? How does the ability of campaigns and media to segment voters into ever-smaller slices influence how campaigns are covered? tracking the continuing growth of unregulated, private, unaccountable "dark money" in campaigns as a threat to our democratic elections and politics. Democracy rests fundamentally on transparency and accountability - sunlight - and our campaign laws and norms now allow and encourage exactly the opposite, largely because of decisions by the United States Supreme Court.
During the last 15-20 years a new party family of radical right-wing populism (RRP) has emerged in Western Europe, consisting of parties such as the French Front National and the Austrian Freedom's Party, among many others. Contrary to the situation in the other Scandinavian countries, such parties have been largely unsuccessful in Sweden. Although Sweden saw the emergence of the populist party New Democracy - which partly can be classified as a RRP party - in the early 1990s, it collapsed in 1994, and no party has so far been successful enough to take its place. Most of the literature on populism and right-wing extremism deals with successful cases; this book takes the opposite direction and asks how one can explain the failure of Swedish radical right-wing populism.
Blair's community is an exciting and timely book which challenges the accepted wisdom about the role of communitarian thought in the development of New Labour under Tony Blair. From the mid-1990s there has been a widespread view that Labour policies have reflected, or even been influenced by, the work of communitarian writers like Amitai Etzioni and John Macmurray, and philosophers such as Alasdair MacIntyre and Michael Sandel. The book begins by establishing that such a view was widely, and frequently unquestioningly, held, in both popular and academic forums. It then identifies reasons for the persistence of this impression, the evidence on which it was based, and the understandings of communitarianism used by commentators. The book argues that existing accounts of 'New Labour's communitarianism' fail to present an accurate picture because they are - in some cases explicitly - working with a generic or composite conception of communitarianism which bears little relation to the work of the communitarian writers whose names have been associated with the party. -- .
Securitising Russia shows the impact of twenty-first-century security concerns on the way Russia is ruled. It demonstrates how President Putin has wrestled with terrorism, immigration, media freedom, religious pluralism, and economic globalism, and argues that fears of a return to old-style authoritarianism oversimplify the complex context of contemporary Russia. The book focuses on the internal security issues common to many states in the early twenty-first-century, and places them in the particular context of Russia. Detailed analysis of the place of security in Russia's political discourse and policy-making reveals nuances often missing from overarching assessments of Russia today. To characterise the Putin regime as the 'KGB-resurgent' is to miss vital continuities, contexts, and on-going political conflicts which make up the contemporary Russian scene. Securitising Russia draws together current debates about whether Russia is a 'normal' country developing its own democratic and market structures, or a nascent authoritarian regime returning to the past. -- .
As Jacob Zuma moves into the twilight years of his presidencies of both the African National Congress (ANC) and of South Africa, this book takes stock of the Zuma-led administration and its impact on the ANC. Dominance and Decline: The ANC in the Time of Zuma combines hard-hitting arguments with astute analysis. Susan Booysen shows how the ANC has become centred on the personage of Zuma, and that its defence of his extremely flawed leadership undermines the party’s capacity to govern competently, and to protect its long term future. Following on from her first book, The African National Congress and the Regeneration of Power (2011), Booysen delves deeper into the four faces of power that characterise the ANC. Her principal argument is that the state is failing as the president’s interests increasingly supersede those of party and state. Organisationally, the ANC has become a hegemon riven by factions, as the internal blocs battle for core positions of power and control. Meanwhile, the Zuma-controlled ANC has witnessed the implosion of the tripartite alliance and decimation of its youth, women’s and veterans’ leagues. Electorally, the leading party has been ceding ground to increasingly assertive opposition parties. And on the policy front, it is faltering through poor implementation and a regurgitation of old ideas. As Zuma’s replacements start competing and succession politics takes shape, Booysen considers whether the ANC will recover from the damage wrought under Zuma’s reign and attain its former glory. Ultimately, she believes that while the damage is irrevocable, the electorate may still reward the ANC for transcending the Zuma years. This is a must-have reference book on the development of the modern ANC. With rigour and incisiveness, Booysen offers scholars and researchers a coherent framework for considering future patterns in the ANC and its hold on political power.
This book traces the development of modern Syria focusing on the contribution of the Ba'th party and Ba'thist ideology. It examines the roots of the Ba'th in the intellectual ferment of the 1940s and charts its growing influence on Syrian politics. Special attention is devoted to the crucial Sixth Congress of the Ba'th Party in 1963 and the key ideological document, the Muntalaqat, produced by Michel Aflaq. After 1963 the military became increasingly dominant until Hafiz al-Asad came to power in 1970. Since then the Party has been less dominant internally but Syria itself has established a pivotal position in regional affairs. The book concludes by reviewing the prospects for Syria after Asad and the potential for a Ba'thist revival.
This ground-breaking collection of writings explores how progressive third parties in the U.S. can become more electorally successful and politically influential. It is the only recently published book that focuses exclusively on how such parties may advance. Their rise may be essential to countering the powerful, growing sway of wealth within the two major American parties, and to creating a more just, democratic United States. Contributors include key participants in and observers of the U.S. left third party movement. Nearly all have previously authored books or articles on progressive politics. Many have led effective left third party efforts, and some have held elected office on behalf of a progressive third party. Together the writers reflect on a wide range of relevant parties-including the Green Party, the Vermont Progressive Party, the Labor Party, the Working Families Party, Socialist Alternative, and potential new parties on the American left. The authors highlight a variety of strategies and conditions that may facilitate electoral breakthroughs by such parties and their candidates. Overall, the collection suggests that U.S. progressive third parties may make more headway if they thoughtfully combine their idealism and sense of urgency with a flexible, pragmatic approach to gaining power.
This book analyzes parties beyond the national borders and their increasing institutionalization abroad, in order to understand their development, their organizational specificities, their functions, and their impact on the party system and national politics at home. With 12 contrasted case studies, it comparatively addresses a wide range of perspectives on political parties abroad and lays the foundation for a framework of analysis of political parties abroad, contributing to a better understanding of transnationalism and long-distance democracy. The generalization of overseas voting and the development of representative institutions for emigrants has transformed the civic and political links between states and their diaspora. This has also created new opportunities for political parties, with the task to reach out to citizens living abroad, mobilize them for elections, and even organize their representation at home. This book represents the first in-depth study of an emerging phenomenon. This book will be of key interest to scholars and students of political parties/party politics, immigration, and more broadly to democracy studies and comparative politics.
The Republic of Cyprus' social and political culture is deeply partitocratic, with a close relationship between state apparatus and the parties that influence the government's decisions. However, little is known about the social and political implications of the above traits, and even less about how parties influence and are influenced by society at large. The concept of linkage, which refers to the linking of citizens with government and the political process, is vital in the study of the electoral or ideological considerations of parties. Parties' decisions regarding their organization and image correlates with the effort made to keep up with public opinion. Party-Society Relations in the Republic of Cyprus adds a new dimension to the study of linkage, considering the complexity of civil society as well as exploring the dynamics of political parties. Bringing together specialists from a range of disciplines, it examines the wider effects of partitocracy on democracy and uses it as a frame for exploring the construction, maintenance or deformation of links between social groups and parties. Through its analysis of both the partisan and societal aspects of party-social relations, it illuminates larger questions concerning the strategic complexity involved when politics and society interact. Approaching the Republic of Cyprus as a representative case study of partitocratic political culture, this book is a key resource for those interested in party and civil society politics, as well as Cypriot, Mediterranean and South-East European politics.
The withdrawal of young Americans from electoral politics has been as startling as it has been mystifying. Possible explanations for this phenomenon have focused on increased levels of cynicism and distrust among young voters, the behavior of candidates and campaign consultants, and the importance of institutional barriers to voting. Then came the 2004 election, when nearly 47 percent of eligible 18-to-24-year-olds turned out to vote_an 11 percent increase over 2000 levels. In the wake of this surprising development, Fountain of Youth looks at the tactics and strategies for youth mobilization_from improved civic education to recasting the theme of 'Rock the Vote' to reinvigorating political parties. Indeed, the book includes new and innovative research on the role of local political parties in registering and getting young voters to the polls. This volume will be of interest to scholars, teachers, practitioners, pundits-in short, anyone concerned about the future of our democracy.
This book examines political party system change from a party-centric perspective and assesses how, and to what extent, established political parties in western Europe can maintain their dominant positions. Parties are increasingly competing in a changeable environment and this book assesses the ways in which political parties have tried to adapt to these changes, by undertaking a study of the strategies employed by established parties since 1950. It features analysis of seventeen western European countries, with eight case-studies explored in greater depth, including; France, Germany, Portugal, Greece, Denmark, Ireland, Switzerland and Luxembourg. The book assesses two groups of 'strategies': institutional strategies, by which parties aim for success through control of rules, regulations and laws; and strategies oriented towards the electorate, through which parties seek success by proving themselves responsive to voters. Offering a detailed empirical assessment of the frequency with which these strategies have been employed, this book assesses the impact on established political parties, and argues that parties can shape their own fate by strategic choices. Party Strategies in Western Europe will be of interest to students and scholars of European politics, Government and party politics.
This book analyses the rise and growth of the Hindu nationalist party Bharatiya Jana Sangh in post independent India, tracking the electoral journey of the party from 1951 to 1971. Offering a comprehensive analysis of the party Bharatiya Jana Sangh - its origin, ideas and electoral performances in the first two decades of its journey - the book provides an overview of the state-wise electoral record of the party mobilizing Hindu support and managing factional disputes. It surveys the issues of conflicts between the intraparty factions dominated by the recruits from the Rastriya Swayamseyak Sangh and the others. The author also presents a critique of the Hindutva politics of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh on account of its somewhat imperfect appeal among the masses and its problems in raising real issues of socio-economic concern. With a special emphasis on the states situated outside the Hindi language belt of Northern India, the electoral outcome of the Jana Sangh during each national and state legislative elections are analysed. Based on the dialectics of ideology and exigency, this book makes a thorough investigation of the leadership-succession crises in the party, patterns of vote sharing at the regional level and trends of coalition with the non-Congress parties in the states. Providing a nuanced understanding of the processes leading to the strengthening of right-wing political parties in India, the book will be of interest to academics working in the fields of nationalism, party politics and South Asian Politics.
In Central and Eastern Europe, radical right actors significantly impact public debates and mainstream policy agenda. But despite this high discursive influence, the electoral fortune of radical right parties in the region is much less stable. It has been suggested that this may be due to the fact that mainstream competitors increasingly co-opt issues which are fundamental for the radical right. However, the extent to which such tactics play a role in radical right electoral success and failure is still a subject for debate. This book is the first to provide a systematic theoretical framework and in-depth empirical research on the interaction between discursive influence, party competition and the electoral fortune of radical right parties in Central and Eastern Europe. It argues that in order to fully explain the impact of mainstream party strategies in this regard, it is vital to widen the analysis beyond competition over issues themselves, and towards their various legitimizing narratives and frame ownership. Up-to-date debates over policies of collective identity (minority, morality and nationalizing politics) in Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia serve as best cases to observe these under-researched phenomena. The analytical model is evaluated comparatively using original, primary data combined with election studies and expert surveys. Advancing an innovative, fine-grained approach on the mechanisms and effects of party competition between radical right and mainstream parties, this book will be of interest to students and scholars researching the far right and European party politics, as well as political contestation and framing.
The National Front was one of the most controversial political parties in Britain. This exploration, first published in 1981, of the NF ideology and its meaning for members is based on a participation observation study which involved the development of relations with its headquarters, and with branch staff and members in several English cities. The fieldwork was carried out at marches, branch meetings and rallies, and candidates, activists, ordinary members and opponents of the NF were interviewed. Nigel Fielding examines in detail the ethnography of the National Front, describing its history, electoral performance and some demographic characteristics of its membership. He investigates the party ideology, concentrating on the key aspects of race, nationalism and conspiracy theory. The party's involvement in overt and covert political action is discussed, and tolerance of ambiguity in adherence to ideology, are explored. In a final chapter the author discusses the case for regarding active NF membership as evidence of a commitment to an alternative conception of social reality founded on fundamental disagreement with the political and social order of the status quo. This book examines the problem of the relationship between the beliefs and actions of the political deviant in the context of a group which is involved in political activism.
Using Nietzsche's categories of monumentalist, antiquarian and critical history, the author examines the historical and theoretical contexts of the collapse of the GDR in 1989 and looks at the positive and negative legacies of the GDR for the PDS (the successor party to the East German Communists). He contends that the Stalinization of the GDR itself was the product not just of the Cold War but of a longer inter-systemic struggle between the competing primacies of politics and economics and that the end of the GDR has to be seen as a consequence of the global collapse of the social imperative under the pressure of the re-emergence of the market-state since the mid-1970s. The PDS is therefore stuck in dilemma in which any attempt to "arrive in the Federal Republic" (Brie) is criticized as a readiness to accept the dominance of the market over society whereas any attempt to prioritize social imperatives over the market is attacked as a form of unreconstructed Stalinism. The book offers some suggestions as to how to escape from this dilemma by returning to the critical rather than monumentalist and antiquarian traditions of the workers' movement.
A team of expert authors explore various aspects of the twentieth century Indian state, ranging from the Central Union government level down to grassroots level in the provinces, cities and villages. It considers both political economic frameworks and the ideological and discursive processes that inform and influence them. The book contends that the functioning of the Indian state could not be comprehended simply by looking at the changes at the political center but are fundamentally influenced by developments in the wider civil society. Thus, it aims to bring together a number of insightful views on multiple aspects of the Indian state as a way to understand the interactive process that constitute it.The book will be of interest to undergraduates enrolled on contemporary Asian History and politics courses, as well as to those interested in more general theories of the state and civil society. The work will address questions arising from globalization, liberalization and decentralization that concern political scientists and sociologists as well as contemporary historians. As such, it will also be of interest to Indian historians and social scientists alike. The upsurge in communalism and nationalism in the Indian subcontinent, the ever present risk of conflict between rival nuclear states, and the consequent need the need to analyze and better understand the changing nature of political structures in India, together mean that the volume is likely have considerable relevance for some time to come. The book will therefore be popular with teachers and students in a wide variety of History, Sociology and Politics courses currently being taught in Britain, the United States, India andelsewhere.
A team of expert authors explore various aspects of the twentieth century Indian state, ranging from the Central Union government level down to grassroots level in the provinces, cities and villages. It considers both political economic frameworks and the ideological and discursive processes that inform and influence them. The book contends that the functioning of the Indian state could not be comprehended simply by looking at the changes at the political center but are fundamentally influenced by developments in the wider civil society. Thus, it aims to bring together a number of insightful views on multiple aspects of the Indian state as a way to understand the interactive process that constitute it.The book will be of interest to undergraduates enrolled on contemporary Asian History and politics courses, as well as to those interested in more general theories of the state and civil society. The work will address questions arising from globalization, liberalization and decentralization that concern political scientists and sociologists as well as contemporary historians. As such, it will also be of interest to Indian historians and social scientists alike. The upsurge in communalism and nationalism in the Indian subcontinent, the ever present risk of conflict between rival nuclear states, and the consequent need the need to analyze and better understand the changing nature of political structures in India, together mean that the volume is likely have considerable relevance for some time to come. The book will therefore be popular with teachers and students in a wide variety of History, Sociology and Politics courses currently being taught in Britain, the United States, India andelsewhere.
The lack of previous research into political interest groups and taking into account policy-specific and institutional context characteristics is largely due to research designs that have been primarily focused on a small number of policy debates, with the result that contextual characteristics were largely held constant. This book brings together articles from different modules that are part of a larger European Collaborative Research Project, INTEREURO, carried out by research teams in nine different countries under the auspices of the European Science Foundation. The main goal of the book is to analyse strategies, framing and influence processes for a set of 125 legislative proposals submitted by the European Commission, in an effort to better understand the involvement of interest organizations in the decision-making process of the EU. Contributors draw on sophisticated and innovative policy-driven samples of interest group mobilization, allowing them to account systematically for how policy-specific and institutional context factors shape mobilization, lobbying strategies and influence of interest groups on public policy debates in the EU. In this way, the book makes an important contribution to the study of interest groups in the EU and represents the breadth of positions taken in the current literature. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Journal of European Public Policy. |
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