Last July, in the midst of a brutal heat wave, we visited the World Exposition in Shanghai. This was the first world’s fair ever hosted by the People’s Republic of China, and its government reportedly spent over $50 billion on the event, nearly twice the amount it spent on the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Given the sheer spectacle and diplomatic value of the games, and how little attention the 2010 Expo garnered in the U.S., this sum is staggering.
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Not Enough Coverage
Ashley DawsonI should add that there is, of course, lots and lots of media coverage here. Not enough international though. But Democracy Now!, beating mainstream coverage by a mile as usual, is covering the events. Check out their coverage here. It’s … Continue reading “Not Enough Coverage”
Cochabamba and Beyond
Ashley Dawson
Before everything else, the Cochabamba conference was remarkable for bringing together a large group of radical activists from all around the world. The social connections and sense of possibility that resulted from the exchanges that unfolded in this setting … Continue reading “Cochabamba and Beyond”
The Trouble with Tiaras: Facing Marriage Equality Head-on
Kathleen CumiskeyOn Sunday June 26, 2011, my wife and I, along with our daughter and son-in-law, were on the M15 bus traveling downtown to Chinatown for dinner. We had just left the celebration of a lifetime at the annual LGBT Pride … Continue reading “The Trouble with Tiaras: Facing Marriage Equality Head-on”
War and Peace in Germany
Michael HoenischHas peace broken out in Germany? German soldiers did not join the military conflict that started earlier this year in Libya. In March, Germany did not support resolution 1973 in the Security Council, which authorized military action against the Libyan … Continue reading “War and Peace in Germany”
Odious Debt, Human Rights, Democratic Transparency, and An Audit Commission for Greece
Allen FeldmanThe IMF/EU imposed Greek austerity program has and will generate human rights violations in the areas of health, nutrition, education of children and youth, life expectancy, welfare of the elderly and disabled, right to shelter, right to public transport and related social safety nets. Many countries forced to follow IMF discipline experience 5-10 year decreases in adult life expectancy after the imposition of equivalent measures.
Age of Austerity
Ashley DawsonThe news today carried tidings of another huge setback for working people in the US. The legislature in New Jersey, one of the most heavily Democratic and pro-union states in the country, has passed a bill rolling back benefits such … Continue reading “Age of Austerity”
Which Way Wisconsin? The Meaning of the Madison Movement
Anne McClintockOn arriving in Madison some years ago, I went to the huge farmers’ market that winds round the Capitol. Startled by the slow-moving procession of orderly, white shoppers all pacing in the same direction, I dubbed the market throngs “The … Continue reading “Which Way Wisconsin? The Meaning of the Madison Movement”
Greeks on the Move: Capitalism's Wreckage and the Demand for Real Democracy
Costas PanayotakisThe entire world is watching as the future of Greece, and with it that of the global economy, is hanging in the balance. As journalists and commentators worry over the prospect of a Greek sovereign default triggering a chain reaction … Continue reading “Greeks on the Move: Capitalism's Wreckage and the Demand for Real Democracy”
New Periscope Dossier on Violence
Social Text CollectiveBeginning Monday May 24th, and running serially for a week, a new dossier entitled ‘Thinking Through Violence‘ will be appearing on the Social Text website. Check back for essays by Arvind Rajagopal, Banu Bargu, Allen Feldman, Drucilla Cornell, and Mary Louise Pratt.
Introduction
Social Text CollectiveHannah Arendt noted in 1969 that Georges Sorel’s remark in 1906 — that “the problems of violence still remain very obscure” remained true. An additional half-century has elapsed since Sorel made his observation, but his remark remains true. The … Continue reading “Introduction”
Forging Life into a Weapon
banu barguMy remarks are structured around a consideration of four images.These images will, I hope, enable us to confront the question of violence, of a specific kind of violence, by bringing it to us in its (almost) immediate actuality, in … Continue reading “Forging Life into a Weapon”
Politics of Grieving
drucilla cornellIn my work, I have defended a nonviolent ethic through Derrida and Levinas, which begins with the commandment, “thou shall not kill.” But this ethic certainly does not end there. My book The Philosophy of the Limit gives us … Continue reading “Politics of Grieving”
The Becoming Non-State of the State
Allen FeldmanMy ethnographic work in Northern Ireland and South Africa and on the current war on terror has been an engagement with forms of life, communities, subjects, and silenced sovereignties, navigating, drowning, surviving, and dying, within ecotonesof informalized state violence. … Continue reading “The Becoming Non-State of the State”
Violence and Language
mary louise prattIf you work on Latin America then you know that there is a field of study there called “violentology,” and there are specialists whom you call violentólogos, particularly in Colombia, where the question of violence has become a kind … Continue reading “Violence and Language”