Democracy from Scratch

Democracy from Scratch PDF Author: M. Steven Fish
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400821541
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 313

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Book Description
This book presents a fresh view of Russian political change in the Gorbachev and early post-Soviet periods not by examining perestroika and glasnost in and of themselves, but by investigating the autonomous political organizations that responded to liberalization. Extensive study of these political groups, in Moscow and several provincial cities, has led M. Steven Fish to conclude that they were shaped to a far greater degree by the nature of the Soviet state than by socioeconomic modernization, political culture, native psychology, or Russian historical tradition. Fish's statist theory of societal change in Russia yields a powerful explanation of why Russia's new political society differs radically not only from the "totalized," sub-jugated country of the pre-1985 period but also from the "civil societies" found in the West and in many developing countries. In addition, the author shows how the legacy of the Soviet experience continues to influence the development--arguably the underdevelopment--of representative political institutions in post-Soviet Russia, making the establishment of stable democracy unlikely in the near term. This book proposes a novel and theoretically sophisticated way to study Russian politics. It offers a rigorous approach to understanding social movements, political party formation, regime change, and democratization in general. While focusing primarily on a single country, it is vigorously comparative at the same time.

Democracy from Scratch

Democracy from Scratch PDF Author: M. Steven Fish
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400821541
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 313

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Book Description
This book presents a fresh view of Russian political change in the Gorbachev and early post-Soviet periods not by examining perestroika and glasnost in and of themselves, but by investigating the autonomous political organizations that responded to liberalization. Extensive study of these political groups, in Moscow and several provincial cities, has led M. Steven Fish to conclude that they were shaped to a far greater degree by the nature of the Soviet state than by socioeconomic modernization, political culture, native psychology, or Russian historical tradition. Fish's statist theory of societal change in Russia yields a powerful explanation of why Russia's new political society differs radically not only from the "totalized," sub-jugated country of the pre-1985 period but also from the "civil societies" found in the West and in many developing countries. In addition, the author shows how the legacy of the Soviet experience continues to influence the development--arguably the underdevelopment--of representative political institutions in post-Soviet Russia, making the establishment of stable democracy unlikely in the near term. This book proposes a novel and theoretically sophisticated way to study Russian politics. It offers a rigorous approach to understanding social movements, political party formation, regime change, and democratization in general. While focusing primarily on a single country, it is vigorously comparative at the same time.

Democracy from Scratch

Democracy from Scratch PDF Author: Michael Steven Fish
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780691037035
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 300

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Book Description
This book presents a fresh view of Russian political change in the Gorbachev and early post-Soviet periods not by examining perestroika and glasnost in and of themselves, but by investigating the autonomous political organizations that responded to liberalization. Extensive study of these political groups, in Moscow and several provincial cities, has led M. Steven Fish to conclude that they were shaped to a far greater degree by the nature of the Soviet state than by socioeconomic modernization, political culture, native psychology, or Russian historical tradition. Fish's statist theory of societal change in Russia yields a powerful explanation of why Russia's new political society differs radically not only from the "totalized," sub-jugated country of the pre-1985 period but also from the "civil societies" found in the West and in many developing countries. In addition, the author shows how the legacy of the Soviet experience continues to influence the development--arguably the underdevelopment--of representative political institutions in post-Soviet Russia, making the establishment of stable democracy unlikely in the near term. This book proposes a novel and theoretically sophisticated way to study Russian politics. It offers a rigorous approach to understanding social movements, political party formation, regime change, and democratization in general. While focusing primarily on a single country, it is vigorously comparative at the same time.

Democracy from Scratch

Democracy from Scratch PDF Author: M Steven Fish
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781400815883
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
This book presents a fresh view of Russian political change in the Gorbachev and early post-Soviet periods not by examining perestroika and glasnost in and of themselves, but by investigating the autonomous political organizations that responded to liberalization. Extensive study of these political groups, in Moscow and several provincial cities, has led Steven Fish to conclude that they were shaped to a far greater degree by the nature of the Soviet state than by socioeconomic modernization, political culture, native psychology, or Russian historical tradition. He proposes a novel and theoretically sophisticated approach to understanding social movements, political party formation, regime change and democratization in general."An intelligent, subtle, first-hand account of the years after Gorbachev opened the door with perestroika."--Foreign Affairs"An original and provocative study.... Drawing on his scrupulous analysis of group-formation in a number of Russian cities, ... Fish re- evaluates received views about the Soviet system."--Robert Shannan Peckham, New Statesman & Society"A smart book that speaks to the concerns not only of area specialists but to students of democratic transition around the world."--Philip G. Roeder, Political Science Quarterly

Between Dictatorship and Democracy

Between Dictatorship and Democracy PDF Author: Michael McFaul
Publisher: Carnegie Endowment
ISBN: 0870032909
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 378

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Book Description
For hundreds of years, dictators have ruled Russia. Do they still? In the late 1980s, Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev launched a series of political reforms that eventually allowed for competitive elections, the emergence of an independent press, the formation of political parties, and the sprouting of civil society. After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, these proto-democratic institutions endured in an independent Russia. But did the processes unleashed by Gorbachev and continued under Russian President Boris Yeltsin lead eventually to liberal democracy in Russia? If not, what kind of political regime did take hold in post-Soviet Russia? And how has Vladimir Putin's rise to power influenced the course of democratic consolidation or the lack thereof? Between Dictatorship and Democracy seeks to give a comprehensive answer to these fundamental questions about the nature of Russian politics.

little scratch

little scratch PDF Author: Rebecca Watson
Publisher: Anchor
ISBN: 0385545770
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 224

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Book Description
"Extraordinary"--THE NEW YORKER In the formally innovative tradition of Grief Is the Thing with Feathers and Ducks, Newburyport comes a dazzlingly original, shot-in-the-arm of a debut that reveals a young woman's every thought over the course of one deceptively ordinary day. She wakes up, goes to work. Watches the clock and checks her phone. But underneath this monotony there's something else going on: something under her skin. Relayed in interweaving columns that chart the feedback loop of memory, the senses, and modern distractions with wit and precision, our narrator becomes increasingly anxious as the day moves on: Is she overusing the heart emoji? Isn't drinking eight glasses of water a day supposed to fix everything? Why is the etiquette of the women's bathroom so fraught? How does she define rape? And why can't she stop scratching? Fiercely moving and slyly profound, little scratch is a defiantly playful look at how our minds function in--and survive--the darkest moments.

Democracy from Scratch

Democracy from Scratch PDF Author: M. Steven Fish
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Democracy
Languages : en
Pages : 1006

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Book Description


Building Democracy in Japan

Building Democracy in Japan PDF Author: Mary Alice Haddad
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107014077
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 271

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Book Description
This book offers a grassroots perspective and holistic understanding of Japan's democratization process and what it means for the nation today.

Political Culture of the Russian 'Democrats'

Political Culture of the Russian 'Democrats' PDF Author: Alexander Lukin
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191544663
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 354

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Book Description
The Political Culture of Russian Democrats examines the origins and development of the world view of those who call themselves 'democrats' in Russian in the last years of the USSR. The book develops a distinct approach to the study of political culture and applies it to a specific social group–members of the democratic movement in Soviet Russia. The author examines the emergence of the ideas of Russian 'democrats' during the Gorbachev era in Soviet politics, and traces the development of those beliefs in the post-Soviet era. The book argues that the liberal and democratic terminology of western politics were assimilated by Russian political culture, with the terms acquiring a different meaning.

Democracy and Its Alternatives

Democracy and Its Alternatives PDF Author: Richard Rose
Publisher: JHU Press
ISBN: 9780801860386
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 294

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Book Description
The collapse of Communism has created the opportunity for democracy to spread from Prague to the Baltic and Black Seas. But the alternatives—dictatorship or totalitarian rule—are more in keeping with the traditions of Central Europe. And for many post-Communist societies, democracy has come to be associated with inflation, unemployment, crime, and corruption. Is it still true, then, as Winston Churchill suggested a half-century ago, that people will accept democracy with all its faults—because it is better than anything else? To find out, political scientists Richard Rose, William Mishler, and Christian Haerpfer examine evidence from post-Communist societies in eastern Europe. Drawing on data from public opinion and exit polls, election results, and interviews, the authors present testable hypotheses regarding regime change, consolidation, and prospects for stabilization. The authors point out that the abrupt transition to democracy in post-Communist countries is normal; gradual evolution in the Anglo-American way is the exception to the rule. While most recent books on democratization focus on Latin America and, to some extent, Asia, the present volume offers a unique look at the process currently under way in nine eastern European countries: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, Poland, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Romania, Belarus, and Ukraine. Despite the many problems these post-Communist societies are experiencing in making the transition to a more open and democratic polity, the authors conclude that a little democracy is better than no democracy at all.

Democratizing Innovation

Democratizing Innovation PDF Author: Eric Von Hippel
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262250179
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 224

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Book Description
The process of user-centered innovation: how it can benefit both users and manufacturers and how its emergence will bring changes in business models and in public policy. Innovation is rapidly becoming democratized. Users, aided by improvements in computer and communications technology, increasingly can develop their own new products and services. These innovating users—both individuals and firms—often freely share their innovations with others, creating user-innovation communities and a rich intellectual commons. In Democratizing Innovation, Eric von Hippel looks closely at this emerging system of user-centered innovation. He explains why and when users find it profitable to develop new products and services for themselves, and why it often pays users to reveal their innovations freely for the use of all.The trend toward democratized innovation can be seen in software and information products—most notably in the free and open-source software movement—but also in physical products. Von Hippel's many examples of user innovation in action range from surgical equipment to surfboards to software security features. He shows that product and service development is concentrated among "lead users," who are ahead on marketplace trends and whose innovations are often commercially attractive. Von Hippel argues that manufacturers should redesign their innovation processes and that they should systematically seek out innovations developed by users. He points to businesses—the custom semiconductor industry is one example—that have learned to assist user-innovators by providing them with toolkits for developing new products. User innovation has a positive impact on social welfare, and von Hippel proposes that government policies, including R&D subsidies and tax credits, should be realigned to eliminate biases against it. The goal of a democratized user-centered innovation system, says von Hippel, is well worth striving for. An electronic version of this book is available under a Creative Commons license.