The Role of Government in East Asian Economic Development: Comparative Institutional Analysis

Haggard focuses on the political economy of the crisis, emphasizing the longer-run problems of moral hazard and corruption, the politics of crisis management and the political consequences of severe economic downturn. Looking forward, he focuses on two critical policy issues: changes in social safety nets in the crisis countries and efforts at corporate and financial restructuring.

Following the highly successful Economies in Transition: A Guide to China, Cuba, Mongolia, North Korea and Vietnam at the turn of the twenty-first century (published in the Routledge Studies in Development Economics series), Eastern Europe at the Turn of the Twenty-first Century: A guide to the economies in transition and The Former Yugoslavia at the Turn of the Twenty-first Century: A guide to the economies in transition, this book is the first of two which focuses on economic and political events in the countries of the former Soviet Union. The author presents a clear, detailed and accessible breakdown of the developments in the Caucasus (Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia) and the Central Asian republics of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. This book provides a unique level of coverage of economic and political events of global significance, including foreign trade, foreign direct investment, the impact of oil and natural gas finds, Islamic extremism,the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States and the reaction of the CIS countries and the war on international terrorism. It will provide an invaluable source of reference for all those interested in transitional and developing countries.

In the most comprehensive study of the media and foreign policy, twenty distinguished scholars and analysts explain the role played by the mass media and public opinion in the development of United States foreign policy in the Gulf War.

Tracing the flow of news, public opinion, and policy decisions from Sadam Hussein's rise to power in 1979, to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, through the outbreak and conclusion of the war, the contributors look at how the media have become key players in the foreign policy process. They examine the pre-war media debate, news coverage during and after the war, how the news-gathering process shaped the content of the coverage, and the media's effect on public opinion and decision makers. We see what goes on behind the scenes in the high tech world of political communication, and are confronted by troubling questions about the ways the government managed coverage of the war and captured journalists at their own news game.

Taken by Storm also examines more general patterns in post-Cold war journalism and foreign policy, particularly how contemporary journalistic practices determine whose voices and what views are heard in foreign policy coverage. At stake are the reactions of a vast media audience and the decision of government officials who see both the press and the public and key elements of the policy game.

The first book to fully integrate our understanding of the news business, public opinion, and government action, Taken by Storm transcends the limits of the Gulf War to illuminate the complex relationship between the media, the public, and U.S. foreign policy in the late twentieth century.

The 9/11 attacks, the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, and the oil boom of recent years have greatly increased the strategic importance of resource-rich Central Asia, making an understanding of its economic--and therefore political--prospects more important than ever. In The Central Asian Economies Since Independence, Richard Pomfret provides a concise and up-to-date analysis of the huge changes undergone by the economies of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. The book assesses the economic prospects of each country, and the likelihood that economic conditions will spur major political changes.

With independent chapters on each country, and chapters analyzing their comparative economic performance, the book highlights similarities and differences. Facing common problems caused by the breakdown of Soviet economic relations and the hyperinflation of the early 1990s, these countries have taken widely divergent paths in the transition from Soviet central planning to more market-based economies.

The book ends in 2005 with the bloodless Kyrgyz revolution and the violence in Uzbekistan, which signaled the end of the region's political continuity. Throughout the book, Pomfret emphasizes the economic forces that foster political instability--from Kazakhstan's resource boom and Turkmenistan's lack of reform to Tajikistan's abject poverty.

MacIntyre presents the problems associated with institutional extremes, common in developing countries, as the "power concentration paradox." Either extreme is likely to be associated with distinctive governance problems. MacIntyre illustrates his wider arguments by focusing on Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand. He shows how their diverse political architectures influenced their responses to the Asian economic crisis and played into pressures for political reform. The Power of Institutions makes clear why the configuration of political institutions is one of the most pressing challenges in many parts of the developing world today.

America and the Japanese Miracle: The Cold War Context of Japan's Postwar Economic Revival, 1950-1960 (Luther Hartwell Hodges Series on Business, Society, and the State)

Average customer rating:

Excellent Treatment
excellent source of information

America and the Japanese Miracle: The Cold War Context of Japan's Postwar Economic Revival, 1950-1960 (Luther Hartwell Hodges Series on Business, Society, and the State)
Aaron Forsberg
Manufacturer: The University of North Carolina Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Popular Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

International | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | International | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Japan | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

20th Century | World | History | Subjects | Books

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

The American Occupation of Japan: The Origins of the Cold War in Asia

ASIN: 080782528X
Release Date: 2000-04-19

Drawing on a wealth of recently released American, British, and Japanese archival records, Forsberg demonstrates that American Cold War strategy and the U.S. commitment to liberal trade played a central role in promoting Japanese economic welfare and in forging the economic relationship between Japan and the United States. The price of economic opportunity and interdependence, however, was a strong undercurrent of mutual frustration, as patterns of conflict and compromise over trade, investment, and relations with China continued to characterize the postwar U.S.-Japanese relationship.

Forsberg's emphasis on the dynamic interaction of Cold War strategy, the business environment, and Japanese development challenges "revisionist" interpretations of Japan's success. In exploring the complex origins of the U.S.-led international economy that has outlasted the Cold War, Forsberg refutes the claim that the U.S. government sacrificed American commercial interests in favor of its military partnership with Japan.

In my opinion, it fundamentally flawed in that the foundation of the entire work is the fervently-held premise that Mao was omnipotent during this relevant period. In attributing God-like qualities to this one mortal politician/demagogue, Dr. Teiwes and Dr. Sun create the universe of possible conclusions in advance of the critical analyses. Therefore, a tragedy of incredible magnitude (starvation of +35 million Chinese) is attributed not to a convergence of critical events (including environmental, political, and social) but instead to the actions or inactions of one man. Dr. Teiwes is known as a strong proponent of Mao-centrist philosophy so it is understandable that he holds Mao in this true sense of filial piety. Mao truly would be proud.

I think that this book has some value to the scholar of Chinese history and the legions of Mao proponents worldwide.