Böcker utgivna av Rowman & Littlefield International

Representative democracy has long been problematic and subject to erosion through the introduction of components of direct democracy (referenda, voter initiatives and systems of recall). Following the increase of direct action across the world, through the Occupy movement and the rise of new populist parties championing greater citizen inclusion in decision making, many are considering whether the hierarchical system of political control might have had its day. But what might be the alternative, next democracy? This book considers the viability of a populist conception of democratic organization, which puts power into the hands of ordinary citizens. Examining contemporary and classic theory to contextualize the critique of existing systems, the book goes on to explore alternative arrangements tested out by activists, eco-protestors and anti-capitalists from the recent Occupy agenda to Gandhi's experiments in alternative living. Milligan confronts the practical challenges posed by these systems of direct democracy and discusses the considerable difficulties of scaling up and sustaining them in state-level contexts. Whilst the book concedes that such concerns are genuine, it argues that a theory of generalized direct democracy can shake off its utopian aspirations and become a legitimate alternative for the future.

The volume reflects on citizenship practices and policies across post-socialist states. Seven original research chapters look at the effects of institution-building on the relationship between citizens residing beyond the borders of "their" state and the political processes taking place both in their countries of residence and in their kin states.

Since the publication of Homo Sacer in 1995, Giorgio Agamben has become one of the world's most revered and controversial thinkers. His ideas on our current political situation have found supporters and enemies in almost equal measure. His wider thoughts on topics such as language, potentiality, life, law, messianism and aesthetics have had significant impact on such diverse fields as philosophy, law, theology, history, sociology, cultural studies and literary studies.Yet although Agamben is much read, his work has also often been misunderstood. This book is the first to fully take into account Agamben's important recent publications, which clarify his method, complete his ideas on power, and finally reveal the role of language in his overall system. William Watkin presents a critical overview of Agamben's work that, through the lens of indifference, aims to give a portrait of exactly why this thinker of indifferent and suspensive legal, political, ontological and living states can rightfully be considered one of the most important philosophers in the world today.

Is Democracy a Lost Cause? explores the current debate on democracy.

Sixty years of democratic representation in Germany allow us to study the working of a specific type of electoral system, namely a mixed system combining proportional and majoritarian rules, in great detail. Mixed systems have figured as a reference point in many reform debates of the recent past. This is because they appear to combine advantageous traits of proportional and majoritarian rules, such as fairness, proximity between constituencies and representatives, and stable government majorities. Mixed systems have also attracted much scholarly attention of late, because they allow us to study the effects of electoral rules while holding many intervening variables constant. But they also attract interest because the proportional and majoritarian electoral tiers affect each other in ways that differ from what would have resulted under pure PR or plurality. All this makes mixed systems a fascinating object of study, and the German system is its oldest and prototypical exemplar. 'Professor Manow's book establishes a new standard for work on German elections and on mixed-member proportional electoral systems more generally. Given the influence of the German system on electoral system designers around the world in the past quarter century, this book should rightly find a broad audience.'John M Carey, Dartmouth College 'Professor Manow provides a terrific summary of the modern literature on Germany's mixed electoral system and extends it in several directions. Highly recommended for scholars of mixed electoral systems.'Jens Hainmueller, Stanford University

Insiders and outsiders agree; there is something particular about negotiating in Brussels. This book analyses ten years of continuous negotiations about EU enlargement to the Western Balkans, answering questions such as When and how are decisions typically reached in the European Union? What is this 'culture of consensus' that pervades negotiations in the Council of Ministers? And why are some member states more successful than others in making their voices heard? Using the metaphor of the Caucus race from Alice in Wonderland, Smeets' book offers a fresh perspective on the decision-making realities in Brussels' European Quarter. By providing unique empirical insight into behind-closed-doors debates, it explains the faltering accession process of the countries of former Yugoslavia. But most of all, it reveals the mechanism by which national interests are accommodated, so that deals can be reached between the member states. Much work has been done in individual disciplines on the phenomenon of tax competition that lies at the heart of this crisis. Yet, the combination of issues of democratic legitimacy, social justice, economic efficiency, and national sovereignty that tax competition raises clearly requires an interdisciplinary analysis. This book offers a rare example of this kind of work, bringing together experts from political science, philosophy, law, and economics whose contributions combine empirical analysis with normative and institutional proposals. It makes an important contribution to reforming international taxation.

This book offers a rare example of this kind of work, bringing together experts from political science, philosophy, law, and economics whose contributions combine empirical analysis with normative and institutional proposals.

An in-depth analysis of the memories and experiences of the British second generation of refugees from Nazism before the Holocaust. This oral history project investigates the impact of their parents' trauma, dislocation and pattern of silence on ordinary members of this second generation in this unique geographical context.

Killingsworth's book presents three broad arguments, all of which reject the way civil society has been applied in the analysis of opposition and dissent in totalitarian Czechoslovakia, the GDR and Poland.

Seek new approaches to empirical studies on the relationship between citizens and their chosen representatives, this book focuses on the way in which representatives and citizens interact during mandate periods between elections.

What sort of ethos does democratic politics demand? While many political thinkers argue that democratic ethics should shape political judgments, the concept of ethos remains underdeveloped.Appearances of Ethos responds to this gap in three ways. It begins by identifying the contours of the concept as it has appeared in political thought. Then drawing on ancient philosophers such as Heraclitus and Protagoras, and contemporary thinkers such as Heidegger, it makes the case for a world-affirming ethos that can animate individual and collective political action. The book then develops an original interpretation of the ancient concept of metis the skill and craft of practical political reasoning showing how this is a vital part of contemporary democratic political action. Such resourcefulness, the book argues, is essential for anyone who faced by contemporary political, social, and environmental challenges seeks to create possibilities for action in the name of a more just and equitable life.

What is the work of art? How does art work as art? Andrew Benjamin contends that the only way to address these questions is by developing a radically new materialist philosophy of art, and by rethinking the history of art from within that perspective. A materialist philosophy of art starts with the contention that meaning is only ever the after effect of the way in which materials work. Starting with the relation between history, materials and work (art's work), this book opens up a highly original reconfiguration of the philosophy of art. Benjamin undertakes a major project that seeks to develop a set of complex interarticulations between art history and an approach to art's work that emphasizes art's material presence. A philosophy of art emerges from the limitations of aesthetics.

Explores the experiences of intervention in Mozambique to examine the efficacy of colonial approaches to post-crisis statebuilding.

The first comprehensive account of the booming phenomenon of deliberative mini-publics, this book offers a systematic review of their variety, discusses their weaknesses, and recommends ways to make them a viable component of democracy.

This volume sets out an impressive historical, theoretical and institutional framework for a comprehensive, comparative and empirical analysis of the forms, patterns, trends and determinants of citizen participation in two of Europe's largest democracies.

A compilation of Adrian Favell's innovative and agenda-setting essays which, since the late 1990s, have charted the emergence of new migration patterns and politics in Europe.

Its re-publication makes this classic piece of spatial (political) science available to contemporary audiences, for whom it is as relevant as when the book first appeared in 1979.

This book is the story of what happens to parties, governments and voters when the fundamental features that conditioned party formation and voter alignments undergo rapid change. It is this that makes the Finnish case interesting and, as far as possible, this book examines Finland in a comparative perspective. Karvonen's study is based on a wealth of new primary evidence. It demonstrates that Finland is indeed a special case in certain respects, especially when it comes to the attenuation of ideological rivalry and the recurrent waves of populist protest.

Contributors to this edited collection address head-on the puzzle of conservative women who engage in gendered political representation but do so within a conservative setting.

By bringing Hannah Arendt's politics into dialogue with Emmanuel Levinas' ethics, this book develops an approach to the political that is relational, inclusive, and empowering.

Since the end of the Cold War, there has been a wealth of discussion and controversy about the idea of a ';postnational' or ';cosmopolitan' politics. But while there are many normative theories of cosmopolitanism, as well as some cosmopolitan theories of globalization, there has been little attempt to grapple systematically with fundamental questions of structure and action from a ';cosmopolitan point of view.' Drawing on Kant';s cosmopolitan writings and Habermas';s critical theory of society, Brian Milstein argues that, before we are members of nations or states, we are participants in a ';commercium' of global interaction who are able to negotiate for ourselves the terms on which we share the earth in common with one another. He marshals a broad range of literature from philosophy, sociology, and political science to show how the modern system of sovereign nation-states destructively constrains and distorts these relations of global interaction, leading to pathologies and crises in present-day world society.

This collection brings together some of the most significant and influential work by leading comparativist Peter Mair (1951-2011).

This book covers a range of contemporary topics: party systems, policy stances of political parties, opposition/co-operation over European integration, cleavage theory of party response to European integration, domestic depoliticisation and EU representation.

This book explores how these new forms of interactive governance are working in practice and analyses their role and impact on public policy making in different policy areas and in different countries.

This book gathers together fifteen classic essays by leading scholar Richard Bellamy, tracing the history of Italian political thought from Beccaria to Bobbio.

The Nordic Voter is the first book-length comparative analysis of voting behaviour in the five Nordic countries: Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, and Iceland.

This book presents up-to-date empirical research on crucial questions of political socialisation.

Drawing on policy documents and more than fifty in-depth interviews, Widen the Market, Narrow the Competition argues that financial industry interests have been key to this power shift.

Context is crucial to understanding the causes of political violence and the form it takes. This book examines how time, space and supportive milieux decisively shape the pattern and pace of such violence.

Engaging with these big questions of European politics, Nevena Nancheva tells a small story from the periphery of Europe.