Globalisation
Consolidators versus Stimulators
All intellectual systems rely on assumptions that do not need to be spelled out because all members of that particular intellectual community accept them. These “deep” axioms are implicit in economics as well, but, if left unscrutinized, they can steer policymakers into a blind alley. That is what is happening in today’s effort, in country [...]
Double-Dip Days
The global economy, artificially boosted since the recession of 2008-2009 by massive monetary and fiscal stimulus and financial bailouts, is headed towards a sharp slowdown this year as the effect of these measures wanes. Worse yet, the fundamental excesses that fueled the crisis – too much debt and leverage in the private sector (households, banks [...]
The State Is Alive But Not Yet Kicking
A new code of conduct is needed to balance spending excesses in deficit countries and export excesses in surplus countries. Governments, supervisory bodies and international institutions have a vital role to play to allow society at large to reap the potential benefits of a system of decentralised decision-makers. Only consistent and forceful interventions in financial [...]
Reforming Global Economic Governance — Towards Bretton Woods III
World economic governance needs to move towards a Bretton Woods III involving effective supervision of all structural imbalances by the IMF, greater resources for the IMF along with fundamental reforms of that institution, and a shift from the dollar as dominant international reserve currency. This requires cooperation between the G3 – the US, China and [...]
After the Financial Market Crisis – A Trade Union Agenda
Now that financial institutions are being subsidised by taxpayers and speculative trading is back to pre-crisis levels, breaking the economic boom-and-bust cycles should become a high priority for the European trade union movement. This needs to be underpinned by broad coalition-building, campaigns and targeted lobby work in member states. Rahm Emanuel, White House chief-of-staff, after [...]
Monopoly Imperialism: How Empires Can Be Bought and Leased
Given that empire remains a wide-ranging and hugely influential phenomenon it is surprising how little academic attention has been directed towards it. Those few texts that do examine the processes by which empires gain power tend to focus upon the most obvious method, conquest. Yet there remain a surprising number of alternative strategies for expanding, [...]
New World Order? The Aftermath of the Financial Crisis
The financial crash of 2008 rocked the foundations of the global economy. Banks went bust, many countries almost followed suit. But just how big was the crisis? And what will its long-term effects be? Andrew Gamble takes a look at the worldwide implications of the credit crunch. The crash of 2008 is already recognised as [...]
The Challenge of New Chauvinism in Europe
The extreme right is on the move again. Forward, not in retreat. And European social democrats are hiding their heads in the sand, but the danger is not going away. In France the Front National and in Italy the xenophobic Lega Nord got over 12 % at the recent regional elections. The upcoming elections in [...]
The EU must act on a Tobin Tax
Have Gordon Brown, Nicholas Sarkozy, Angela Merkel and other EU leaders dropped their support for a Tobin tax, or will they press home the idea in the near future? This question is crucial, particularly now that there are widespread plans for ‘budget cuts’ amongst EU member states, including possible rises in VAT in the UK. [...]
Can The State Still Be Saved?
After eleven years in government, the German Social Democratic Party are now having to cope with their greatest electoral defeat in the post-war period. On the day of the election there was a feeling almost of unbelief about what was happening, not just among party members but also among many supporters. How was it possible [...]
After the European Elections: Why we need a more European Social Democracy
Measured against the hopes of a positive shift in power in favour of social democracy in the wake of the financial and economic crisis, European social democracy, even if the real balance of power has barely changed, is the loser in the European elections in 2009. Leaving aside the general tendency at European elections for [...]
The changing Face of Global Governance: between past Strategic Failure and Future Economic Constraints
Until recently, the West has, by and large, determined the rules of the game on the global stage. During the last century, western countries presided over a shift in world power – from control via territory to control via the creation of governance structures created in the post-1945 era. From the United Nations Charter and [...]
