World Cities Beyond the West: Globalization, Development and Inequality

2006 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 954-955
Author(s):  
Michael Timberlake

World Cities Beyond the West: Globalization, Development and Inequality, Josef Gugler, ed., Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2004, pp. xv, 396.This book seeks to redress what its editor regards as an imbalance in the social science discourse on globalization and cities by providing a collection of research on cities in the global South, in the lower income countries of the world. In his introduction to the book, much of which could stand on its own as a valuable contribution, Gugler demonstrates that many cities “beyond the core” are involved in articulations that span broad regions of the world, if not always the whole world. Gugler also warns of the tendency to over-generalize across these “second tier” cities, insisting that scholarship needs to attend to the unique history, context and culture (especially political culture) of each city.

2015 ◽  
Vol 74 (4) ◽  
pp. 437-440 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin J Wiseman

The burden of cancer worldwide is predicted to almost double by 2030 to nearly 23 million cases annually. The great majority of this increase is expected to occur in less economically developed countries, where access to expensive medical, surgical and radiotherapeutic interventions is likely to be limited to a small proportion of the population. This emphasises the need for preventive measures, as outlined in the declaration from the United Nations 2011 High Level Meeting on Non-communicable Diseases. The rise in incidence is proposed to follow from increasing numbers of people reaching middle and older ages, together with increasing urbanisation of the population with a nutritional transition from traditional diets to a more globalised ‘Western’ pattern, with a decrease in physical activity. This is also expected to effect a change in the pattern of cancers from a predominantly smoking and infection dominated one, to a smoking and obesity dominated one. The World Cancer Research Fund estimates that about a quarter to a third of the commonest cancers are attributable to excess body weight, physical inactivity and poor diet, making this the most common cause of cancers after smoking. These cancers are potentially preventable, but knowledge of the causes of cancer has not led to effective policies to prevent the export of a ‘Western’ pattern of cancers in lower income countries such as many in Africa.


Author(s):  
Lucianna Benincasa

In this qualitative study of school discourse on national day commemorations, focus is on the "social creativity strategies" through which group members can improve their social identity. Discourse analysis was carried out on thirty-nine teachers' speeches delivered in Greek schools between 1998 and 2004. The speakers scorn rationality and logic, stereotypically attributed to "the West" (a "West" which is perceived not to include Greece), as cold and not human. The Greeks' successful national struggles are presented instead as the result of irrationality. They claim irrationality to be the most human and thus the most valuable quality, which places Greece first in the world hierarchy. The results are further discussed in terms of their implications for learning and teaching in the classroom, as well as for policy and research.


Author(s):  
Diana Bogueva ◽  
Kurt Schmidinger

In the West, meat is acceptable, tasty, delicious, palatable, and enjoyable. It has a well-established position in the consumers' food habits shaping the taste of the affluent eating culture and accepted as normal, natural, necessary, and nutritious. Although recent scientific evidence recognizes that meat has a high negative environmental impact, there is still lack of attention on the fact that we live on a planet with limited resources which need to be preserved. Part of this is a transition to more sustainable consumption habits and diets. This chapter examines the social readiness and acceptability of new meat alternatives as normal, natural, necessary, and nutritious amongst Gen Y and Gen Z consumers. It concludes that a reduction in meat consumption should be an essential part of creating a more sustainable diet in light of the projected increase of the world population, expected human health benefits, and improved environmental wellbeing of the planet.


Author(s):  
Christian Welzel ◽  
Ronald Inglehart

This chapter examines the role that the concept of political culture plays in comparative politics. In particular, it considers how the political culture field increases our understanding of the social roots of democracy and how these roots are transforming through cultural change. In analysing the inspirational forces of democracy, key propositions of the political culture approach are compared with those of the political economy approach. The chapter first provides and overview of cultural differences around the world before tracing the historical roots of the political culture concept. It then tackles the question of citizens' democratic maturity and describes the allegiance model of the democratic citizen. It also explores party–voter dealignment, the assertive model of the democratic citizen, and political culture in non-democracies. It concludes with an assessment of how trust, confidence, and social capital increase a society's capacity for collective action.


1966 ◽  
Vol 25 ◽  
pp. 176-212 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. A. HSIA

On February 23, 1965, colleagues and students in Berkeley mourned the death of Tsi-an (T.A.) Hsia in his forty-eighth year. A profound sense of loss has since been shared and expressed in many other parts of the world by those who knew him and his work. Critic and literary editor for over a cataclysmic decade in China, as distinguished in creative writing as in historical research, he was first published in the West in the Partisan Review in 1955. “The Jesuit's Tale” (PR, XXII, 4)is an agonising story of a religious devotee who finally succumbs not only to the mental torture perfected by his Peking inquisitors, but ultimately to the torments of a modern dedicated individual caught in the clash of two cultures. Tsi-an's talent was to probe deeply into the human psyche, individual and collective, and to reveal dimensions of symbolism in the social, political and cultural confrontations in today's contradictory world. His fine sensibility for words and his ability to analyse propaganda jargon, folk-lore and traditional myths in cogent critiques of the Chinese socialist dream as wèll as reality, were evidenced in his Metaphor, Myth, Ritual and the People's Commune, and other brilliant monographs which he produced with us in Berkeley in our Project called Current Chinese Language: Studies in Communist Terminology.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-61
Author(s):  
Muhammad Himmatur Riza

The Covid-19 pandemic has plagued all over the world. Many aspects of the social order have changed including da'wah activities. The development and existence of technology and restrictions on various religious activities during the Covid-19 pandemic are challenges and opportunities in da'wah activities. Research conducted is literature research that is by collecting data from various sources of references that already exist. The result of this research indicates that the speaker is required to have mastery in the field of technology and continuously to upgrade soft skills to preach in this era. The method that must be modern and practical dawah material becomes a bargaining value that is in demand by the community. This provides an opportunity for dai to document all forms of activities that are da'wah and can also publish muslims and the dynamics of their developing lives. Dai's role must be able to adapt and compete with the globalization of information technology that is already rapidly evolving and liberally controlled by the west, so as to build a new civilization of the face of Islam in the Islamic preaching activities.Keywords: Digitization of Da'wah, Covid-19 Pandemic, Islamic Civilization.Abstrak Pandemi Covid-19 telah mewabah dunia. Banyak aspek tatanan kehidupan sosial mengalami perubahan termasuk dalam kegiatan dakwah. Adanya perkembangan dan keberadaan teknologi serta pembatasan berbagai kegiatan keagamaan di masa pandemi Covid-19 menjadi tantangan dan peluang dalam kegiatan dakwah. Penelitian ini dilakukan dengan berbasis data kepustakaan yaitu dengan mengumpulkan data dari berbagai sumber referensi yang sudah ada. Hasil dari penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa dai atau penceramah dituntut untuk memiliki penguasaan dibidang teknologi dan terus menerus untuk mengupgrade soft skill guna mampu berdakwah di era sekarang ini. Metode yang harus dimodernisasi dan materi dakwah yang praktis menjadi nilai tawar yang diminati oleh masyarakat. Hal ini memberikan peluang bagi para dai untuk mendokumentasikan segala bentuk kegiatan yang bersifat dakwah dan juga dapat mempublikasikan umat islam beserta dinamika kehidupannya yang sedang berkembang. Peran dai harus mampu beradaptasi dan bersaing dengan globalisasi teknologi informasi yang dikuasai yang sudah secara pesat berkembang dan dikuasai secara liberal oleh barat, sehingga mampu membangun peradaban baru wajah Islam dalam berdakwah.Kata kunci: Digitalisasi Dakwah, Pandemi Covid-19, Peradaban Islam.


2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 78
Author(s):  
Ian Morris,

Ian Morris a társadalmi fejlődés (social development) fogalmával az emberi közösségek képességét fejezi ki „dolgok elintézésére” a világban. Az így értelmezett társadalmi fejlettség mérhető és összehasonlító állapotokat jelent, térben és időben. Morris 4 tényező (az energiafelhasználás, a társadalmi szerveződés, az információtechnológia és a hadviselő kapacitás) kvantifikálásával megszerkesztett indexét kifejtő könyvéből az információtechnológiára vonatkozó, a többihez hasonlóan a Kelet és a Nyugat összehasonlítására épülő fejezetet fordítottuk le. Úttörő okfejtései és becslései remek kiindulópontok, hogy újraértékeljük és alaposan végiggondoljuk az információtechnológia helyét és „küldetését” a beavatkozásképesség, a cselekvési hatékonyság szempontjából. A tanulmányt Z. Karvalics László bevezetésével közöljük. --- The civilization path of information technology: measurement and classification Ian Morris defines social development as “social groups’ abilities to master their physical and intellectual environments and get things done in the world”. From this approach, “social development is - in principle - something we can measure and compare through time and space”. The Social Development Index of Morris is based on the quantifiable attributes of four pillars: energy capture, social organization, information technology, war-making capacity, comparing the numbers of the West and the East. We have translated and published the information technology chapter of his book with Laszlo Z. Karvalics’ introduction to support the re-evaluation of the role and mission of information technology throughout the ages from a special point of view: to facilitate the ability to act effectively.


Author(s):  
Sergey N. Smolnikov ◽  

The article considers the place of social justice in modern law. Various aspects are noted: its relationship with the social state, legal state, civilizational particularities, historical features. The question of the significance of choice between the legality and legitimacy of power as a factor in the establishment of social justice is considered. The article raises the issue of the subject-object essence of social justice. It provides a comparison of two approaches to social justice in modern Russia — liberal and conservative, and notes the contradictory nature of both. Attention is drawn to the role of elites, the intelligentsia and the people in the embodiment of the liberal project. The author reveals the historical and civilizational prerequisites for the conservative project domination, its being in demand on the part of both the authorities and significant segments of the population, and its correspondence to the historical moment. The similarity of the conservative response to the challenges facing the society in the United States, Japan, Britain and Russia is substantiated. A sociological comparison of positions on the issues of law as social justice in the West and in Russia is given. There is an increasing divergence in understanding social justice both in the countries of the West (destruction of the social contract, welfare state) and between the West and the rest of the world. The theme of justice is increasingly playing a role in causing mutual claims rather than in stabilizing and maintaining international and civil peace. The paper considers attempts to create domestic models of a just society. Social justice is regarded as a projective concept and presupposes the existence of models of the expected and ideal future of society. The world trend towards change in the ideas of the subject of law and of the paradigm shift from liberalism to transhumanism is noted. It is argued that it is impossible to identify law with social justice.


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