Blätter
Eurozine
Blätter
2008-05-14
Summary for Blätter 5/2008
Harald Welzer
Climate Wars
Global warming -- the result of the insatiable hunger for fossile energy
in the industrialized countries of the West -- hits the poorest regions
of the world hardest. Obviously, cause and effect are drifting apart,
separating those who cause the effects from those who have to cope withthem. Harald Welzer, professor of social psychology, analyses the
possible violent conflicts stemming from this global threat.
Kerstin Petretto
The Renaissance of Piracy
The kidnapping of the Spanish fishing boat Playa de Bakio and the attack
on the French three-master Le Ponant -- both occuring off the coast of Somalia -- have once again demonstrated that piracy continues to exist. Kerstin Petretto analyses today's modern piracy in a global perspective, looking in particular at its connection to "failed states".
Eric Janszen
The Bubble Economy
A financial bubble is a speculative hallucination leading to a crash and
then to an economic depression. Former venture capitalist Eric Janszen
analyses the causes, dynamics, and consequences of speculative bubbles in historical perspective. After the crash of the New Economcy and the
so-called subprime crisis, he asks, what will be the next bubble?
Scott Copeland
Sleeping with One Eye Open: 60 Years Israel
On the occasion of Israel's 60th anniversary, Scott Copeland, director
of "Makom" in Jerusalem, describes the emotions and thoughts of a nation under siege, as well as Israeli society and politics. What
direction is the country heading in?
Stephan Leibfried
Return of the State?
For about 20 years, there has been -- on the Left as well as on the Right
a discussion about the "end of the state". Stefan Leibfried, Professor
of Sociology in Bremen, analyses how the state has changed. His thesis:
a new "topography of the political" has emerged -- which has important
consequences for politics and policies.
Joachim Perels
The End of the Freedom of Association. The Dismantling of the German Unions on May 2, 1933
75 years after the Nazis came to power in 1933, there are many
commemorative events. However, one date is remembered rarely: May 2,
1933. Joachim Perels, Professor of Political Science in Hannover, shows
how the German unions were annihilated on this day. He also analyses the
rebirth of the freedom of association in the Federal Republic -- as well
as its limitations.
Susanna Böhme-Kuby
Martyrdom of a Righteous Man. The 70th anniversary of Carl von Ossietzky's death
On 4 May 1938, Carl von Ossietzky died as a result of Nazi torture at the age of 48. Susanna Böhme-Kuby outlines his life and death. In doing so, she links Ossietzky's statements, in particular his strong anti-war stance,
to the current political situation in Germany.