The electoral success of the Svoboda Party - the consequences for Ukrainian politics. OSW Commentary No. 97, 2012-11-26

The All-Ukrainian Association ‘Svoboda’ scored an unexpected success in the parliamentary elections, winning support from over 10% of the voters and entering the select group of Ukrainian parliamentary parties which operate at a national level. Svoboda’s manifesto is nationalist and anti-liberal, in both economic and political aspects. It is in fact the anti-liberal component of this party’s manifesto which it can thank for achieving such a big electoral success. The faction formed by Svoboda’s 37 representatives in the Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian parliament) will have a small impact on legislative work, but their activity may add further to the brutalisation of parliamentary life. Furthermore, Svoboda will attempt to make other opposition groupings adopt a more radical approach, which may trigger the disintegration of the United Opposition Baktivshchyna. A new wave of public protests is likely to emerge in Ukraine in the coming months. Therefore, it can be expected that Svoboda will make efforts to join in or even incite them, in order to promote its social and nationalist messages. This may contribute to increasing the popularity of nationalist ideas and to a further radicalisation of sentiments in Ukraine.

The Evolving Integration in East Asia - Too many reservations? CEPS Essay No. 5, 29 April 2013

East Asian economic integration is less well known in Europe than is desirable in the EU’s own enlightened self-interest. It is also badly understood, not least because a range of ‘soft’ cultural, historical and political aspects are insufficiently appreciated in Europe. This CEPS Essay offers a deeper personal reflection on the emergence and development of East Asian economic cooperation and market-driven integration. It attempts to address some of the lingering reservations on both sides and to render the reservations in East Asia more intelligible to Europeans.

The Dangers and Inanity of (Euro-) Nationalism: From Communitarianism to Cosmopolitanism. Egmont Paper No. 77, April 2015

INTRODUCTION In the current times of multifaceted crisis, nationalism looks, more than ever, like a positive and necessary feeling. It seems both natural and indispensable if we are to have viable political and social institutions that meet the needs and preferences of all citizens. The following paper contests this vision. Its criticism of nationalism is directed not only at its national forms, but also at any defence of collective identity based on the same model, such as the various forms of European nationalism. Furthermore, the same overriding criticism can be made of different kinds of nationalism, regardless of their more or less open and progressive political content. In order to ground our argument theoretically and practically, we will try to show that nationalism is always potentially harmful to individual rights, and unnecessary for the maintenance of a just social and political system. We will thus oppose any acritical defence of the intrinsic value of a specific community and the belief in its artificial homogeneity. The historical construction of a supposedly homogeneous community, and the insistence on its values, which are perceived as superior and binding, facilitate the absorption of the individual into the collective. As we will explain further in more details, this holistic approach is typical of communitarian approaches. In that respect, it does not really matter whether they appeal to passion or to reason, to some irrational binding features of the community or to more rational political aspects of a common identity. The main problem in nationalism is not the emotion it can trigger, it is not even its reliance on particular values. What makes nationalism problematic is, firstly, that it tends to overlook the intrinsically divisive and contradictory nature of individual and collective interests in unjust societies; secondly, that it attributes an intrinsic superiority to a particular community over others; and thirdly, that it sees politics as a means to promote the interests, values or identity of that community. As an alternative, we will very briefly advocate a cosmopolitan approach that grounds political legitimacy in a demanding approach to individual freedom, rather than in a shared collective identity. However, even if only briefly, we will also carefully distinguish our own vision of cosmopolitanism from those commonly put forward. Frequently, cosmopolitan perspectives entangle their identity frameworks with concrete political projects, without clearly explaining how the latter derive from the former. Our approach to cosmopolitanism, on the other hand, is, first and foremost, a critical vision of all communitarian postulates according to which politics should be based on some form of collective identity. Thus, we insist on the conceptual distinction between a general stance on identity issues and the more practical political ideology one stands for. In a subsequent step, we link this cosmopolitan framework with a progressive approach to individual rights. Because of our demanding approach to individual freedom, our cosmopolitanism goes hand in hand with a revival of identity-free sovereignty. It is therefore distinct from the severe condemnation of sovereignty often found in most mainstream cosmopolitan positions. Finally, instead of the frequent confusion found in public discourses and in the literature between ideals and reality, our position acknowledges the deep gulf separating these two dimensions. It therefore sketches out very general strategic principles to bring normative ideals closer to political reality.

The Society of States under siege? An English School perspective on the emergence of global civil society

In this article I critically examine the theoretical and empirical relationship between world society, whereby global civil society is taken to be its physical or empirical counterpart, and the society of states. This relationship is typically portrayed as contradictory or confrontational, and I contend that this mainstream perspective is reliant on a superficial analysis of the relationship. If one examines the deeper dynamics, viewed in their contemporary international normative context, then one can identify the more constructive and permissive aspects of the relationship. Rather than being wholly incompatible I argue that world society and international society are mutually constitutive and mutually dependent regimes, whose relationship is more often marked by cooperation than by conflict. English School theory provides the conceptual framework for this analysis. The relationship between international and world society presents a core ontological tension within this theory, and again they tend to occupy polarised positions. A synthesis of four international theories - pluralist international society theory, solidarist international society theory, critical international theory, and the discourse of global civil society - informs the hypothesis that the relationship can be normatively and empirically reconciled. In order to empirically support this explanation I analyse two phenomena in world politics - transnational advocacy networks and humanitarian intervention - where there is an apparent tension between international and world society.

The Populist Message of Australian Country Music

Australian country music is influenced by American country music and Australian bush ballads. This music idealises genuine true blue inhabitants of an idealised rural heartland and fuses nationalism with agrarian mythology. The lyrics of a number of country songs contain a populist political message, which is frequently nationalistic but is a form of nationalism.

Technical change and work organisation

This thesis is an exploration of the social and political processes involved in the introduction of new technology to the shopfloor. Through a series of case studies of applications of microelectronics to batch manufacture, it attempts to uncover the ways in which the values and interests of managers, engineers, workers and others profoundly influence the choice and use of technology, and thus the work organisation which emerges. Previous analyses have tended to treat new technology as if it had "impacts" on work organisation - especially skills - which are inevitable in particular technical and economic circumstances. It is in opposition to this view that technical change is here treated as a matter for social choice and political negotiation, the various interested parties to the change being shown to attempt to incorporate their own interests into the technical and social organisation of work. Section one provides the relevant background to the case studies by summarising and criticising previous theoretical and empirical work in the area. The inadequacies of this work for our concerns are drawn out, and the need for detailed studies of the political aspects of technical change is justified. The case studies are presented in section two as a set of "episodes" of innovation, and section three analyses the empirical findings. The innovations are compared and contrasted in order to illustrate the social and political dynamics involved in the various stages of the innovation process. Finally some comments are made on policy issues for which the research has important implications.

The Relevance of Marxist Academics

This commentary examines the relationship between a Marxist scholar and the institutional and societal environment of the university. The focus is on how a Marxist academic navigates the social, economic and political aspects of the university while attempting to maintain a commitment to class analysis and Marxism as political practice.

(Santa) Rita de Cássia na boca do povo de Santa Cruz/RN: identidades culturais em construção

The purpose of this study is to investigate the cultural identities of Santa Rita de Cassia constructed from the representations contained in the speech of Santa Cruz urban area residents, which is located in a harsh part of the State of Rio Grande do Norte. These residents make the story of the Saint full of meaning for themselves, in their daily lives, as well as to the society. This is observed in the narration of Rita de Cassia’s story which has been told in the city over the past one hundred and eighty years, the number of women's names and commercial establishments named “Santa Rita”. In 2010, with the inauguration of the Alto de Santa Rita – a space for worshiping the saint –, the amount of visitors increased in the city, due to the construction and inauguration of a colossal monument representing the image of Rita de Cassia. Then, new social, cultural, religious and political aspects became part of the local reality of the city of Santa Cruz, what made residents have something in common to talk about. According to the interdisciplinary approach of Applied Linguistics, our theoretical background is based on the socio-historical language concept, which understands language as discursive practice. Still theoretically speaking, this study establishes an interface with cultural studies, taking into account the concept of cultural identity in post-modernity society. Discourse analysis proved plural, with a multiplicity of cultural identities ranging from very obedient daughter to wife who suffered because of the husband, from very religious woman to the widow who entered the convent, on to the Saint of the miracles and healings interceding in the lives of the ones who seek for help. It was also observed in the above mentioned investigative path that these identities can be constructed and reconstructed if immersed in a different set of social practices historically determined

Epidemiologia e saúde bucal coletiva: um caminhar compartilhado.

The public health dentistry is a way to bring oral health to Brazilian National Health System (SUS) and vice-versa. Thus, the epidemiology, in this context, it is one of the most important allies. In this article we intend to discuss the "shared walkway" between epidemiology and public health dentistry, through two views: first, we analyzed the efforts to establish methodological models for oral health sectional studies and the possibilities to construct a national data base. Second, we discussed how this knowledge has been transformed in a qualified scientific production presented in meetings and papers, which reflects, at the same time, about the contribution of this process in the consolidation of public health dentistry field. We concluded that this "shared walkway" was (and still is), influenced by political aspects, which, in different moments, leads to an improvement of public health dentistry. The oral health epidemiology has been established as a knowledge area, with regard to the scientific production in Brazil. At the same time, provide a tool that contributes to make oral health care models more appropriate to National Health System principles and, in other hand, make better the discussions about the social determinants of oral diseases.

Epidemiologia e saúde bucal coletiva: um caminhar compartilhado.

The public health dentistry is a way to bring oral health to Brazilian National Health System (SUS) and vice-versa. Thus, the epidemiology, in this context, it is one of the most important allies. In this article we intend to discuss the "shared walkway" between epidemiology and public health dentistry, through two views: first, we analyzed the efforts to establish methodological models for oral health sectional studies and the possibilities to construct a national data base. Second, we discussed how this knowledge has been transformed in a qualified scientific production presented in meetings and papers, which reflects, at the same time, about the contribution of this process in the consolidation of public health dentistry field. We concluded that this "shared walkway" was (and still is), influenced by political aspects, which, in different moments, leads to an improvement of public health dentistry. The oral health epidemiology has been established as a knowledge area, with regard to the scientific production in Brazil. At the same time, provide a tool that contributes to make oral health care models more appropriate to National Health System principles and, in other hand, make better the discussions about the social determinants of oral diseases.

Programa de licenciatura internacional na Universidade Federal de Uberlândia : limites e possibilidades

This research is the result of research at the level of Master of the Graduate Program in Education of the Federal University of Uberlândia – PPGED/UFU, inserted in the line of research "State Policy and Management in Education." Its object of study International Degree Programme – PLI established officially in 2010, the Higher Education Personnel Improvement Coordination – Capes, in particular the PLI at UFU. The overall objective is to describe and analyze the implications, while limits and possibilities of its implementation in UFU in the 2010-2012 period, from the context of the internationalization of higher education and educational policies in this area. They were used as data collection instruments, bibliographical, documentary research and semi-structured interview applied to the former rector of the UFU, managers, engineers, teachers and students participating in the PLI/UFU 2010-2012. For the data analysis, the theoretical and political aspects influencing policies for teacher training, as well as the legal PLI documents were considered. As a result, on the one hand, it was found that the PLI, in the context of UFU, gives opportunity to the participants the possibility of holding courses abroad, contributes to their personal and cultural background. On the other hand, the PLI would not be, in fact, academically contributing to improve vocational training as its main objective, but rather, for what happened in Portugal over the three issues considered, it would have contributed to reaffirm, among the students, political will to not act as teachers in the context of basic education.

Information ethics in the age of digital labour and the surveillance-industrial complex

Thee rise of computing and the internet have brought about an ethical eld of studies that some term information ethics, computer ethics, digital media ethics, or internet ethics e aim of this contribution is to discuss information ethics’ foundations in the context of the internet’s political economy e chapter rst looks to ground the analysis in a comparison of two information ethics approaches, namely those outlined by Rafael Capurro and Luciano Floridi It then develops, based on these foundations, analyses of the information ethical dimensions of two important areas of social media: one concerns the framing of social media by a surveillance-industrial complex in the context of Edward Snowden’s revelations and the other deals with issues of digital labour processes and issues of class that arises in this context e contribution asks ethical questions about these two phenomena that bring up issues of power, exploitation, and control in the information age It asks if, and if so, how, the approaches of Capurro and Floridi can help us to understand ethico-political aspects of the surveillance-industrial complex and digital labour