“The Death of Liberal Internationalism?: Donald Trump, Walmart, and the Two Koreas”

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 169-197
Author(s):  
Mitchell B. Lerner

The election of Donald J. Trump unsettled many areas of U.S. foreign policy, but few more than the nation’s relationship with Korea. This article argues that the Trump administration’s vision for the world represents a stark break from the tradition of liberal internationalism and instead seeks to take the United States down a path that reflects the modern business practices of giant American corporations. A suitable label for this vision, as the following pages will show, is “Walmart unilateralism.” This framework abandons the traditional American policies of nation building and alliances based on shared ideological values. Instead, it embraces a more short-term approach rooted in financial bottom lines, flexible alliances and rivalries, and the ruthless exploitation of power hierarchies. This new approach, this article concludes, may dramatically transform the American relationship with Korea. Walmart unilateralism in Korea almost certainly will have some short-time positive ramifications for the United States, but its larger failure to consider the history and values of the people living on the Korean Peninsula may generate serious long-term problems for the future experience of the United States in the region.

2018 ◽  
pp. 85-104 ◽  
Author(s):  
O. E. Kuzina ◽  
N. A. Krupenskiy

The main objective of the study is to assess the level of indebtedness and over-indebtedness of Russians. Despite the fact that according to official statistics, the level of household indebtedness in Russia is one of the lowest in the world, the percentage share of non-performing loans is higher than in the countries with a higher level of household indebtedness. During 2015—2017, every fourth of those who had an outstanding loan in Russia spent more than 30% of his or her income on paying back a loan. The reason is that in Russia, within retail lending consumer loans prevail over mortgages. Consumer loans are taken for a short time and at a high interest rate. As a result, debt service of relatively small loans creates a greater burden on the family budget for Russians than in Europe and the United States. In this context, the increase of retail lending can only be sustainable if banks change their business model and transit from short-term consumer credits to long-term loans secured by real estate or other assets.


1994 ◽  
Vol 33 (4I) ◽  
pp. 327-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard G. Lipsey

I am honoured to be invited to give this lecture before so distinguished an audience of development economists. For the last 21/2 years I have been director of a project financed by the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research and composed of a group of scholars from Canada, the United States, and Israel.I Our brief is to study the determinants of long term economic growth. Although our primary focus is on advanced industrial countries such as my own, some of us have come to the conclusion that there is more common ground between developed and developing countries than we might have first thought. I am, however, no expert on development economics so I must let you decide how much of what I say is applicable to economies such as your own. Today, I will discuss some of the grand themes that have arisen in my studies with our group. In the short time available, I can only allude to how these themes are rooted in our more detailed studies. In doing this, I must hasten to add that I speak for myself alone; our group has no corporate view other than the sum of our individual, and very individualistic, views.


2003 ◽  
Vol 20 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 46-82
Author(s):  
Fathi Malkawi

This paper addresses some of the Muslim community’s concerns regarding its children’s education and reflects upon how education has shaped the position of other communities in American history. It argues that the future of Muslim education will be influenced directly by the present realities and future trends within American education in general, and, more importantly, by the well-calculated and informed short-term and long-term decisions and future plans taken by the Muslim community. The paper identifies some areas in which a wellestablished knowledge base is critical to making decisions, and calls for serious research to be undertaken to furnish this base.


Author(s):  
Takis S. Pappas

Based on an original definition of modern populism as “democratic illiberalism” and many years of meticulous research, Takis Pappas marshals extraordinary empirical evidence from Argentina, Greece, Peru, Italy, Venezuela, Ecuador, Hungary, the United States, Spain, and Brazil to develop a comprehensive theory about populism. He addresses all key issues in the debate about populism and answers significant questions of great relevance for today’s liberal democracy, including: • What is modern populism and how can it be differentiated from comparable phenomena like nativism and autocracy? • Where in Latin America has populism become most successful? Where in Europe did it emerge first? Why did its rise to power in the United States come so late? • Is Trump a populist and, if so, could he be compared best with Venezuela’s Chávez, France’s Le Pens, or Turkey’s Erdoğan? • Why has populism thrived in post-authoritarian Greece but not in Spain? And why in Argentina and not in Brazil? • Can populism ever succeed without a charismatic leader? If not, what does leadership tell us about how to challenge populism? • Who are “the people” who vote for populist parties, how are these “made” into a group, and what is in their minds? • Is there a “populist blueprint” that all populists use when in power? And what are the long-term consequences of populist rule? • What does the expansion, and possibly solidification, of populism mean for the very nature and future of contemporary democracy? Populism and Liberal Democracy will change the ways the reader understands populism and imagines the prospects of liberal democracy.


Author(s):  
Franz Neumann

This chapter considers a variety of methods of treating Germany. The main objective of the United Nations in the treatment of Germany is to prevent it from ever again becoming a threat to the security of the world. The problem of securing this objective could be approached through destruction of Germany's industrial potential, destruction of Germany as a political entity, and removal from German society of the causes of aggression. The chapter shows that the first two solutions should be deferred until it is clear that the third alternative proves unworkable. In order to eliminate the causes of aggressiveness in German society, temporary and long-term disabilities should be imposed upon Germany. The chapter also examines the causes of German aggression, the United States' policy toward Germany, short-term measures during the period of military government, conditional measures during the probationary period, and permanent impositions upon Germany.


1984 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 229-231
Author(s):  
N. Bhana

Acquiring companies prefer growth through acquisitions and mergers rather than growth by direct investment in manufacturing resources. A justification for the large number of take-overs is the belief that abnormal gains are to be obtained so. There is substantial empirical evidence showing this untrue. Take-overs contribute immediate short-term gains, and are preferred to internal expansion where the benefits accrue over the long-term. Managers are usually evaluated on short-term performance criteria and therefore they have a bias for take-overs. Several investigators have studied the decline of the United States economy and the corresponding rise of Japan as industrial leader. The unrestrained take-over activity has been the chief reason for the decline of many industries in the United States. Acquiring companies have contributed to their own downfall by not investing sufficiently in up-to-date manufacturing resources. Take-overs lead to economic decline caused by lower productivity of acquired resources. South African companies are showing a strong preference for growth through take-overs. With the take-over process many local industries have come under the control of a few large conglomerates. South African acquiring companies could benefit by following the Japanese example of direct investments in technologically up-to-date manufacturing resources. More direct investment in manufacturing resources will lead to a more vigorous free-enterprise system and will raise the productivity of local industries. A more stringent Competition Act is necessary if South Africa is to avoid the harm to the economy caused by unrestrained take-over activity.


Subject Profile of Ko Wen-je. Significance There are strong indications that Ko Wen-je, the independent mayor of Taipei, will run for election as Taiwan’s president in January 2020. Presidential hopefuls often launch their election campaigns with US trips to shore up relations with Washington, Taiwan’s key security backer; Ko will make a nine-day visit to the United States later this month. He also stated last month that he was considering forming a new political party; the single reason he would need a party of his own would be to make a run for the presidency. Impacts Ko would be a controversial and probably one-term president. Ko could have a game-changing impact in the short term but is unlikely to alter Taiwan's political landscape fundamentally in the long term. Ko would likely take a more moderate stance on China than Tsai does. Ko's outspokenness is what makes him popular, but it also makes him prone to gaffes that could ultimately undermine him.


1963 ◽  
Vol 3 (33) ◽  
pp. 643-644

The International Committee took a sincere part in the tragic event which was mourned on November 22, 1963 by the people of the United States and by the American Red Cross. Mr. John F. Kennedy was not only President of the United States, he was also Honorary President of the National Society to which a short time ago, on the occasion of the Centenary of the Red Cross, he addressed a message which was published in the International Review. One will also recall the stirring message full of confidence which he sent this September to the Centenary Congress of the International Red Cross in Geneva.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 411-448
Author(s):  
Julian Kozlowski

Trading frictions in financial markets affect more long-term than short-term bonds, generating an upward-sloping yield curve. Long-term financing is more expensive in economies with higher trading frictions so firms choose to borrow and invest in shorter horizons and lower productivity projects. The theory guides a new identification of the slope of liquidity spread in the data. We measure and calibrate the model for the United States, and counterfactual exercises suggest that variations in trading frictions can have significant effects on maturity choices and investment. A policy intervention improves liquidity, reduces long-term financial costs, and promotes investment in longer-term projects. (JEL E43, E44, E52, G12, G21, G32, O16)


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