Life of a European Mandarin

Life of a European Mandarin PDF Author: Derk Jan Eppink
Publisher: Lannoo Publishers (Acc)
ISBN: 9789020970227
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
For more than 7 years, Derk-Jan Eppink worked as a senior official behind the scenes in the European Commission. The Commission is not well known to the general public, but makes decisions which affect the daily lives of almost half a billion Europeans. Now that he has left the Comission to tkae up a new job in New York, Eppink looks back on his time in Europe. “ Eppink's book gives the reader a rare and ironic glimpse of life in Europe's corridors of power. In his inimitable style, he sketches a portrait of the "European Mandarins', the European Commission's senior administrators, of whom a German Euro-Commissioner recently said "they have too much power and are too little controlled".

Life of a European Mandarin

Life of a European Mandarin PDF Author: Derk Jan Eppink
Publisher: Lannoo Publishers (Acc)
ISBN: 9789020970227
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Get Book Here

Book Description
For more than 7 years, Derk-Jan Eppink worked as a senior official behind the scenes in the European Commission. The Commission is not well known to the general public, but makes decisions which affect the daily lives of almost half a billion Europeans. Now that he has left the Comission to tkae up a new job in New York, Eppink looks back on his time in Europe. “ Eppink's book gives the reader a rare and ironic glimpse of life in Europe's corridors of power. In his inimitable style, he sketches a portrait of the "European Mandarins', the European Commission's senior administrators, of whom a German Euro-Commissioner recently said "they have too much power and are too little controlled".

The Hypothetical Mandarin : Sympathy, Modernity, and Chinese Pain

The Hypothetical Mandarin : Sympathy, Modernity, and Chinese Pain PDF Author: Eric Hayot Associate Professor of Comparative Literature and Director of the Program in Asian Studies Pennsylvania State University
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 0199700117
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 294

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Book Description
Why has the West for so long and in so many different ways expressed the idea that the Chinese have a special relationship to cruelty and to physical pain? What can the history of that idea and its expressions teach us about the politics of the West's contemporary relation to China? And what does it tell us about the philosophy of modernity? The Hypothetical Mandarin is, in some sense, a history of the Western imagination. It is also a history of the interactions between Enlightenment philosophy, of globalization, of human rights, and of the idea of the modern. Beginning with Bianchon and Rastignac's discussion of whether the former would, if he could, obtain a European fortune by killing a Chinese mandarin in Balzac's Le Pere Goriot (1835), the book traces a series of literary and historical examples in which Chinese life and European sympathy seem to hang in one another's balance. Hayots wide-ranging discussion draws on accounts of torture, on medical case studies, travelers tales, photographs, plasticized corpses, polemical broadsides, watercolors, and on oil paintings. His analyses show that the historical connection between sympathy and humanity, and indeed between sympathy and reality, has tended to refract with a remarkable frequency through the lens called "China," and why the story of the West's Chinese pain goes to the heart of the relation between language and the body and the social experience of the modern human being. Written in an ebullient prose, The Hypothetical Mandarin demonstrates how the network that intertwines China, sympathy, and modernity continues to shape the economic and human experience.

Lobbymakt i EU

Lobbymakt i EU PDF Author: Olle Nygårds
Publisher: Triginta AB
ISBN: 9163737655
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 256

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Book Description
Lobbyisterna har tagit över Bryssel. Och lobbyaktiviteterna har de senaste åren eskalerat. Politikerna har förlorat makten till särintressen som formar politiken genom tankesmedjor, lobbyorganisationer och mäktiga intresseföreningar. Ungefär 80 procent av de lagar som påverkar Sverige kommer från EU. Men vilka är krafterna som i bakgrunden rycker i beslutsfattarnas trådar? Författarna lyfter på locket till Bryssels dolda makthavare: Lobbyisterna. Skildringar ges från olika miljöer där frön till EU-lagar diskret strös ut i välplanerade strategiska kampanjer. Vi får besöka ”oberoende” seminarier hos tankesmedjor och bevittna arbetsmöten i EU-parlamentet dit lobbyister får tillträde trots politikers missnöje. Samtidigt står det klart att svenska företag förlorar stora pengar på att de ännu inte förstått hur inflytelserikt Bryssel är. Nuvarande och tidigare EU-kommissionärerna Cecilia Malmström och Anita Gradin intervjuas. Det gör också EU-parlamentarikerna Carl Schlyter, Christofer Fjellner, Gunnar Hökmark och Marita Ulvskog. Författarna har även träffat den svenska makteliten i form av Erik Belfrage – svensk industriman och rådgivare till familjen Wallenberg och med aktiv roll i Bryssels tankesmedjor: ”… Det är ett bra sätt att få tillträde till kommissionen och kommissionärerna, och det gäller för övrigt också att det underlättar i kontakterna med EU-parlamentet och Europeiska rådet.” Tankesmedjan Ecipes vd och grundare Fredrik Erixon, utsedd till en av Bryssels 30 mest inflytelserika av Financial Times, hymlar inte med hur det ser ut: ”… Vi får ofta erbjudanden från både stater och företag om att göra studier mot betalning där de på förhand säger vad de vill ha ut av den.” Karl Isaksson, chef för lobbygiganten Kreab Gavin Andersons Brysselkontor: ”På samma sätt som alla har rätt till en advokat, på samma sätt tycker jag att alla har rätt till en lobbyist. ”Det finns exempel på regelutformningar där det ges ekonomiska incitament för att exempelvis bilar eller andra fordon inte ska vara äldre än ett visst antal år. En sådan lag, vilken vid första anblicken ser ut att handla om säkerhet eller miljö, kan mycket väl vara initierad från bilindustrin i syfte att sälja fler bilar.” Om författarna. Olle Nygårds är journalist specialiserad på näringslivsfrågor och med fil. kand i nationalekonomi. Han har tidigare arbetat som underrättelseanalytiker och även arbetat med korruptionsfrågor. Födelseår är 1969. Minal Parekh Nygårds är egenföretagare och javaprogrammerare. Födelseår är 1971. ”Vi är positiva till företagande men tveksamma till all sammanblandning av politik och näringsliv som sker utan insyn.” Boken är skriven under åren 2012 och 2013 och till stor del från Frankrike och Belgien.

The Narcissism of Minor Differences

The Narcissism of Minor Differences PDF Author: Peter Baldwin
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199739528
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 334

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Book Description
There is much heated rhetoric about the widening gulf between Europe and America. But are the US and Europe so different? Peter Baldwin, one of the world's leading historians of comparative social policy, thinks not, and in this bracingly argued but remarkably informed polemic, he lays out how similar the two continents really are. Drawing on the latest evidence from sources such as the United Nations, the World Bank, IMF, and other international organizations, Baldwin offers a fascinating comparison of the United States and Europe, looking at the latest statistics on the economy, crime, health care, education and culture, religion, the environment, and much more. It is a book filled with surprising revelations. For most categories of crime, for instance, America is safe and peaceful by European standards. But the biggest surprise is that, though there are many differences between America and Europe, in almost all cases, these differences are no greater than the differences among European nations. Europe and the US are, in fact, part of a common, big-tent grouping. America is not Sweden, for sure. But nor is Italy Sweden, nor France, nor even Germany. And who says that Sweden is Europe? Anymore than Vermont is America? "Meticulous, insistent, and elegant." --John Lloyd, Financial Times "A must-read...filled with intriguing facts that add nuance to what can often be a black-and-white debate." --Foreign Affairs "An exhaustive and enthralling catalogue of our commonalities that begs a reconsideration of just what it means to be European or American." --Publishers Weekly

The Passage to Europe

The Passage to Europe PDF Author: Luuk van Middelaar
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300195400
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 535

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Book Description
As financial turmoil in Europe preoccupies political leaders and global markets, it becomes more important than ever to understand the forces that underpin the European Union, hold it together and drive it forward. This timely book provides a gripping account of the realities of power politics among European states and between their leaders. Drawing on long experience working behind the scenes, Luuk van Middelaar captures the dynamics and tensions shaping the European Union from its origins until today. It is a story of unexpected events and twists of fate, bold vision and sheer necessity, told from the perspective of the keyplayers – from de Gaulle to Havel, Thatcher to Merkel. Van Middelaar cuts through the institutional complexity by exploring the unforeseen outcomes of decisive moments and focusing on the quest for public legitimacy. As a first-hand witness to the day-to-day actions and decisions of Europe’s leaders, the author provides a vivid narrative of the crises and compromises that united a continent. By revisiting the past, he sheds fresh light on the present state of European unification and offers insights into what the future may hold.

The Politics of the European Union

The Politics of the European Union PDF Author: Herman Lelieveldt
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1316395715
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 343

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Book Description
This introduction to the politics of the European Union uses the lens of comparative politics to explore the history, theories, institutions, key participants, policies and policy making of the EU. The comparative approach enables students to use their knowledge of domestic politics and broader debates in political science to better understand the EU. Numerous real-world examples guide students through the material, and chapter briefings, fact files and controversy boxes highlight important information and controversial issues in EU politics to widen and deepen student understanding. The second edition has been updated throughout to reflect the results of the 2014 European elections, and new material has been added on the Economic and Monetary Union and the Common Foreign and Security Policy. A companion website features free 'Navigating the EU' exercises to guide students in their analysis of EU policy making.

The Oxford Handbook of the European Union

The Oxford Handbook of the European Union PDF Author: Erik Jones
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191628352
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 924

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Book Description
This is an authoritative, one-volume, and independent treatment of the history, functioning and nature of the European integration. Written by a selection of leading scholars. It covers the major institutions, policies, and events in the history of integration, whilst also providing a guide to the major theoretical approaches that have been used to study it over time. By bringing together such a distinguished cast covering such a wide array of themes, the Handbook is intended as a one stop shop for all those interested in the European Union and its predecessors. Written in an accessible style, the volume is intended to shape the discipline of EU studies, and to establish itself as the essential point of reference for all those interested in European integration, both in universities and more broadly. It represents a timely guide to an institution that is much discussed but often only imperfectly understood.

Education and Employment in the European Union

Education and Employment in the European Union PDF Author: Dimitris N. Chorafas
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1317145933
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 327

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Book Description
Education, employment policy, and pensions are inextricably linked and critical to any sort of business or economic revival, let alone success, and all three are addressed in Education and Employment in the European Union. In the first part of this meticulously researched and highly informative book, Dimitris Chorafas argues that European educational standards, from primary schools through to universities, leave much to be desired. The author then turns to employment. Already affected by problems with education, employment is fettered by structural issues, ranging from inflexible labour laws to heavy social costs. Here, the author suggests what might be done to get employment moving again in difficult economic times. Employment and pensions work in synergy. In the final part, Chorafas examines the implications of and future for pension provision, taking a polyvalent approach which embraces state pensions, company pensions and the workings of pension funds - as well as healthcare issues and the longevity risk. The evidenced analysis of the three interlinked policy areas in this book identifies the issues and the relationships between them. The findings and suggestions will be important to business practitioners, business educators, government authorities, policy makers, consultancies and others either within or wishing to learn lessons from the European Union.

Handbook on European Union Public Administration

Handbook on European Union Public Administration PDF Author: Gijs J. Brandsma
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
ISBN: 1802209018
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 399

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Book Description
This Handbook introduces the institutions, organisations and policy processes that make up EU public administration, including those that typically operate beneath the surface, and critically reviews the state of the art in research. Paying close attention to the multi-level nature of EU governance, it is a vital resource for graduate and postgraduate students in the disciplines of European studies, political science and EU law. This title contains one or more Open Access chapters.

Rethinking the Future of Europe

Rethinking the Future of Europe PDF Author: Stefan Schepers
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1137024011
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 292

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Book Description
Rethinking the Future of Europe has brought together three contrasting collections of contributions: the incrementalist perspective concerning the step by step development of Europe, the more radical reform/restructuring approach to the future of Europe, and a view of Europe from the outside.