Results by title

336 books match the query 'Political Economy' and 4 start with l

cover of Land Filled with Flies: A Political Economy of the Kalahari

Land Filled with Flies

A Political Economy of the Kalahari

Edwin N. Wilmsen

University of Chicago Press, 1989

"The image of a pristine isolation has been almost as common in research on foragers as in the popular media. Land filled with Flies is a sustanined argument against such views. Wilmsen marshals an enormous quantity of historical, archival, archeological, ethnographic, and survey data on the Kalahari Zhu to show how far from the reality these images are, how they have their own historical provenance, how they have been analytically distorting, and how they have proven politically pernicious for living groups like the Zhu."—Pauline Peters, Science

"[A] major work. . . . Anthropologists will, and should, use Wilmsen's meticulously detailed study to revise their early lectures in the introductory course, and no future study of African 'foragers' should ignore it."—Parker Shipton, American Anthropologist

"An impressive book. . . . The reader need only read the first few pages to judge both the quality and ambitiousness of the work. . . . Essential reading."—David R. Penna, Africa Today
[more]
cover of Latin American Neostructuralism: The Contradictions of Post-Neoliberal Development

Latin American Neostructuralism

The Contradictions of Post-Neoliberal Development

Fernando Ignacio Leiva

University of Minnesota Press, 2008

Interrogates this ascending political and economic paradigm

This landmark work is the first sustained critique of Latin American neostructuralism, the prevailing narrative that has sought to replace “market fundamentalism” and humanize the “savage capitalism” imposed by neoliberal dogmatism. Fernando Leiva analyzes neostructuralism and questions its credibility as the answer to the region’s economic, political, and social woes.

Recent electoral victories by progressive governments in Latin America promising economic growth, social equity, and political democracy raise a number of urgent questions, including: What are the key strengths and weaknesses of the emerging paradigm? What kinds of transformations can this movement enact? Leiva addresses these issues and argues that the power relations embedded in local institutions, culture, and populations must be recognized when building alternatives to the present order. Considering the governments in countries such as Chile, Argentina, and Brazil, Leiva examines neostructuralism’s impact on global politics and challenges whether this paradigm constitutes a genuine alternative to neoliberalism or is, rather, a more sophisticated form of consolidating existing systems.
[more]
cover of Learning to Love Form 1040: Two Cheers for the Return-Based Mass Income Tax

Learning to Love Form 1040

Two Cheers for the Return-Based Mass Income Tax

Lawrence Zelenak

University of Chicago Press, 2013

No one likes paying taxes, much less the process of filing tax returns. For years, would-be reformers have advocated replacing the return-based mass income tax with a flat tax, federal sales tax, or some combination thereof. Congress itself has commissioned studies on the feasibility of a system of exact withholding. But might the much-maligned return-based taxation method serve an important yet overlooked civic purpose?

In Learning to Love Form 1040, Lawrence Zelenak argues that filing taxes can strengthen fiscal citizenship by prompting taxpayers to reflect on the contract they have with their government and the value—or perceived lack of value—they receive in exchange for their money. Zelenak traces the mass income tax to its origins as a means for raising revenue during World War II. Even then, debates raged over the merits of consumption-based versus income taxation, as well as whether taxes should be withheld from payroll or paid at the time of filing. The result is the income tax system we have today—a system whose maddening complexity, intended to accommodate citizens in widely different circumstances, threatens to outweigh any civic benefits.

If sitcoms and political cartoons are any indication, public understanding of the income tax is badly in need of a corrective. Zelenak clears up some of the most common misconceptions and closes with suggestions for how the current system could be substantially simplified to better serve its civic purpose.

[more]
cover of Living the High Life in Minsk: Russian Energy Rents, Domestic Populism and Belarus' Impending Crisis

Living the High Life in Minsk

Russian Energy Rents, Domestic Populism and Belarus' Impending Crisis

Margarita M. Balmaceda

Central European University Press, 2014

Living the High Life in Minsk looks at the sources of stability and instability in post-Soviet authoritarian states through the case study of President Lukashenka’s firm hold on power in Belarus. In particular, it seeks to understand the role of energy relations, policies, and discourses in the maintenance of this power. The central empirical question Balmaceda seeks to answer is what has been the role of energy policies in the maintenance of Lukashenka’s power in Belarus? In particular, it analyzes the role of energy policies in the management of Lukashenka’s relationship with three constituencies crucial to his hold on power: Russian actors, the Belarusian nomenklatura, and the Belarusian electorate.

In terms of foreign relations, the book focuses on the factors explaining Lukashenka’s ability to project Belarus’ power in its relationship with Russia in such a way as to compensate for its objective high level of dependency, assuring high levels of energy subsidies and rents continuing well beyond the initial worsening of the relationship in c. 2004. In terms of domestic relations, Balmaceda examines Lukashenka’s specific use of those energy rents in such a way as to assure the continuing support of both the Belarusian nomenklatura and the Belarusian electorate. 

[more]