[Polyarchy]  [Polyarchy : documents]

Sources : new additions (2003)

 
[1894]  Lev Nikolaevic Tolstoy,  On Patriotism
  -  Comment: A superb essay on the alienation and the debasement produced by what the state regards as the noble sentiment of patriotism.
   http://www.panarchy.org/tolstoy/1894.eng.html
 

[1907]  Joseph Conrad, The Secret Agent, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1998
  -  Comment: This can be seen as a reflection on the tragedy of anarchism, torn between agents provocateurs (Verloc) and fake anarchists (Ossipon).
 

[1910]  Emma Goldman,  Anarchism. What it really stands for.
  -  Comment: This is a passionate lucid essay on anarchism. Points worth of attention are the position of Emma Goldman concerning politics and politicians, and the passages on human nature under the captivity of the state.
    http://www.panarchy.org/goldman/anarchism.1910.html
 

[1919]  Randolph Bourne,  War is the health of the state (from "The State")
 -  Comment: A very powerful analysis of the genetic link between state and war, and about the exploitation of war by the state in order to bring to the fore the herd instinct of the people. This is fully functional to its role, being the state "the organization of the entire herd."
    http://www.panarchy.org/bourne/state.1919.html
 

[1935]  Albert Jay Nock,  Our Enemy, the State, Hallberg Publishing Corporation, Tampa, Florida, 2001
 - Contents: Introduction: Life, Liberty and ... . I. Social Power vs. State Power. Three Indexes of State Power. State Power Does not Diminish. The Noiseless Revolution. The Modern State Citizens. II. The Origin of State and Class. Conquest and Confiscation. Converting Social Power Into State Power. Economic Means vs. Political Means. III. The State in Colonial America. Natural Rights and Popular Sovereignty. The Company Systems. IV. Land Monopoly and American Independence. The Edict of 1763 and Land Speculation. The Right of the People. V. Politics and Other Fetiches. The Scramble for Access to the Political Means. The Industrial Coup d'Etat of 1789. The Party System. VI. The State and the Remnant. The Unbroken Record of State Power. The Remnant, Certain Alien Spirits. Epilogue: The Classicist's Opportunity.
 - Comment: Nock dismantles the myth of an American society free from the intrusion of an omnipotent state.
 -  For quotations see: Expropriation/Exploitation - Parties - Protectionism - State-Church - Statism: ideology.
 

[1961]  Bruno Leoni,  Freedom and the Law, Liberty Fund, Indianapolis, 1991
 -  Contents : Freedom and the Law. 1. Which Freedom? 2. "Freedom" and "Constraint". 3. Freedom and the Rule of Law. 4. Freedom and the Certainty of the Law. 5. Freedom and Legislation. 6. Freedom and Representation. 7. Freedom and the Common Will. 8. Some Difficulties Analysed. Conclusion. The Law and Politics. 1. The Law as Individual Claim. 2. Law and Economy in the Making. 3. The Economic Approach to the Political. 4. Voting Versus the Market.
 -  Comment:: One of the best analyses of the proper role of the law and of the juridical system.
 -  For quotations see: Democracy - Exchange - Law.
 

[2001]  Harold James,  The End of Globalization. Lessons from the Great Depression, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass., 2002
 -  Contents: 1. Introduction: The End of Globalization and the Problem of the Depression. 2. Monetary Policy and Banking Instability. 3. Tariffs, Trade Policy and the Collapse of International Trade. 4. The Reaction against International Migration. 5. The Age of Nationalism versus the Age of Capital. 6. Conclusion: Can It Happen Again?
 - Comment: An interesting analysis of why and how the previous trend towards globalism was crushed by the economic policies of the nation states, preparing the way for the Second World War.
 

[2001]  Mauricio Rojas,  Beyond the Welfare State. Sweden and the quest for a post-industrial welfare model. Timbro, Stockholm
 -  Contents: Introduction. 1. Industrial Society and the Old Swedish Model : A maximalist welfare state. The tradition of state centralism. The structure and Utopias of industrialism. The ideology and practice of the maximalist welfare state.  2. The Age of the Web : An agenda for discussion. The mechanical factory system and its consequences. The information revolution. The crisis of the hierarchies and the emergence of the networking enterprise. The revolution of freedom and the departure from the national. Post-national world geography and the black holes of globalization. The death of society and the age of the web.  3. Welfare after the Welfare State : The conditions of social change: introductory thoughts on methodology. Sweden is doing well - but not all the Swedes are. The black holes of Swedish development. The quest for a new Swedish welfare model. References.
 - Comment: Interesting ideas and analyses mixed up with some old ways of thinking, apparent in the use of statist terms like identity and labour market.
 

[2001]   Tomas Larsson,  The Race to the Top. The real story of globalization, Cato Institute, Washington
  -  Contents: Introduction. 1. Thailand - a global brothel. 2. Brazilianization. 3. The real 20/80 society. 4. Legacies of the Ipanema left. 5. The isolation trap. 6. Unfair trade. 7. The WTO trap. 8. Good times, bad policy. 9. Trading up. 10. Errors of the free traders. 11. The cult of secrecy. 12. The mental wall. 13. Third ways. 14. The future is open. 15. French fries vs. the goodness of the sea. 16. The freedom gap. 17. Watch the grass grow. 18. Changing crony capitalism. 19. A course in corruption. 20. Making it happen. 21. "We are all globalizers now." 22. Trial by fire. Notes. References
  -  Comment: One of the first texts exposing lies and myths about globalization.
 

[2002]  John Pilger,  The New Rulers of the World, Verso, London, 2003
 -  Contents: Introduction. The model pupil. Paying the price. The great game. The chosen ones. Notes
 -  Comment: A series of shocking reports on recent crimes and misdeeds of the western states.
 

[2002]   Brink Lindsey,  Against the Dead Hand. The uncertain struggle for global capitalism, Wiley & Sons, USA
  -  Contents: 1. The weight of the Past. 2. The Industrial Counterrevolution. 3. Centralization versus Uncertainty. 4. From World Economy to World War. 5. Twilight of the Idols. 6. The Dead Hand. 7. Hollow Capitalism. 8. The Rule of Lawlessness. 9. Unpeaceful Coexistence. 10. Recasting the Safety Net. 11. Liberalization by Fits and Starts. Epilogue. Notes. References
  -  Comment: A good text full of data and ideas about statism.
 

[2002]  Hichem Aboud, La Mafia des Généraux, JC Lattès, Paris
  -  Contents: Introduction. 1. Un enfant du peuple. 2. Un fleuve détourné. 3. Le péché riginel. 4. Les hommes de l'ombre. 5. L'avènement de l'imposture. 6. Octobre 1988: la grande manipulation. 7. Cosa Nostra. 8. Meurtre sur command. 9. Le règne du mensonge. 10. Le syndicat du crime. 11. Pendant des massacres, les affaires continuent. 12. Le temps des marionnettes.13. Justice pour l'Algèrie.
  -  Comment: La présentation agaçante d'un des états (l'Algérie) plus mafieux et violent au monde.
 


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