The Political Economy of Israeli Neoliberalism

Author(s):  
Ronen Mandelkern ◽  
Michael Shalev

Israel’s political economy has been transformed since the 1980s from a developmental to a neoliberal model. This chapter describes and explains this transformation, emphasizing the unevenness and incompleteness of liberalization and its impact on socioeconomic inequality. Adopting a historical-institutionalist perspective to explain both the rise of Israeli neoliberalism and its unevenness, the chapter argues that liberalization was led by economic technocrats in state agencies, who were guided by liberal economic ideas and simultaneously pursuing their interest in greater authority and autonomy. The technocrats were empowered by re-engineering economic policy institutions and cooperating with other political actors. However, their ability to fulfill the goal of technocratic management of a competition-driven economy was limited by the continuing power of some sectors of both business and labor and the continuing vibrancy of the state’s national and military projects. The conclusion discusses recent challenges to neoliberalism in Israel as a result of public discontent and conflict between state actors.

2013 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 108-130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hal Hill

Economists broadly agree on many key economic policy issues, but economics as a discipline has provided much less guidance on why and how economic policy reform occurs and how to develop institutional mechanisms that enable governments to adopt “good” economic policy. Political scientists are adept at identifying coalitions, constituencies, institutions, and interest groups, but they less commonly examine the implications for economic policy. Thus, work at the intersection between economics and politics—of why and how policy reform takes place—remains relatively unexplored territory. This is especially so in developing countries where political processes are more personalistic, institutions often less well established, outcomes more fluid, and the detailed case study literature on economic policy making still in its infancy. This paper provides an analytical survey of economic policy reform in Southeast Asia. It ranges across the major policy U-turns and the incremental reforms, with special reference to macroeconomic management and trade policy. On the basis of several case studies and set against the broader international literature, we advance nine conclusions on the political economy of reform.


2007 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 158-189 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicola Phillips

AbstractThe concept of ‘securitization’ has become particularly influential in the post-9/11 world. This paper aims to scrutinize and, ultimately, reject an emerging set of claims about political economy which draw upon this framework. The contention that US foreign economic policy is increasingly subject to a process of securitization misrepresents the substance of contemporary US foreign policy, the political environment in which it is articulated and the process by which it is made. Pursuing this argument, the paper sets out a framework within which to understand the evolution of contemporary US policy, paying attention to distinctive forms of the economic–security nexus; the form of ‘ad hoc reactivism’ that has consistently characterized US foreign economic policy; the set of commercial and wider economic goals to which policy responds; and the dynamics of competition for leadership in key regions.


Author(s):  
Mercy Widjaja

<p>This study analyzes the political motives behind China’s economic policy, known as One Belt One Road (OBOR) Initiative. OBOR offers help to developing country, including Indonesia, to develop their infrastructure and domestic industries. This initiative can enlarge China's political power on the global scene, and pose a greater threat to the United States. To collect data and arguments about China's political and economic position, this study uses an explanative-qualitative method. Neorealism, hegemony stability, regionalism, and political economy are theories that are used to shape the thinking frameworks and to solve the existing problems. China also aims for greater power in the region, to secure the country’s interest. According to neorealism theory, a country's behavior is a manifestation of the country's interests and the only way to secure the country is by becoming a strong state. The stronger the state, the less chance that the country can be attacked. That means, China’s OBOR could also create conflict of interests with other countries.</p>


2021 ◽  
pp. 154-172
Author(s):  
Kieron O’Hara

The hacking ethic and organizations such as Pirate Parties and Anonymous support the use of technical skill to bypass security and censorship. The Russian government has weaponized this ethic to use the Internet to spread disinformation and conspiracy theories, and to undermine trust in epistemological authority globally. This leads us to call this the Moscow Spoiler model, although many other countries, political actors, and non-state actors also use the tactic. Quasi-state agencies in Russia such as the Internet Research Agency and gangs such as the Night Wolves automate misinformation, while activists like WikiLeaks have been used in kompromat operations to reveal true but confidential information alongside misinformation. The Moscow Spoiler is not a vision for the Internet, but parasitical on a functioning Internet. The chapter also reviews progress and problems in the development and application of fact checkers.


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