Swiss Politics for Complete Beginners - 2nd edition

Swiss Politics for Complete Beginners - 2nd edition PDF Author: Pierre Cormon
Publisher: Éditions Slatkine
ISBN: 2832106870
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 105

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Book Description
If you need to learn quickly and efficiently about Switzerland, this essay is made for you Do you want to understand why the Swiss seem to spend their time voting on every imaginable issue? Why the housing shortage is so acute? Why Switzerland may be the only democratic country that has no majority and opposition? Why shops close so early? And you don’t want it explained in a scholarly way, as you are more interested in the spirit than in the letter? This is your book. A straight-to-the-point essay that will provide you with key elements to understand this small but complex country that is Switzerland !--StartFragment--EXTRAIT "“Who in the room knows the name of the Swiss president?” That’s the question I asked a group of three hundred expatriates living in Geneva area at the beginning of a “Swiss Politics for Dummies” seminar in June, 2009. Around 10 to 15% of them raised their hands. About what I’d expected. And certainly not a bad score: these were people curious about Swiss politics. Enough, at least, to sacrifice an entire evening to listen to a lecture about it. With another group, things could have been much worse. I don’t blame them. All the puzzled looks following my seemingly simple question reminded me of a ride on the Cairo underground a few years earlier. It was the final years of Hosni Mubarak era."!--EndFragment-- ABOUT THE AUTHOR Pierre Cormon is a journalist and writer from Geneva, as well as an active member of the expats network glocals.com. He has written three books of fiction, in French.

Swiss Politics for Complete Beginners - 2nd edition

Swiss Politics for Complete Beginners - 2nd edition PDF Author: Pierre Cormon
Publisher: Éditions Slatkine
ISBN: 2832106870
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 105

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Book Description
If you need to learn quickly and efficiently about Switzerland, this essay is made for you Do you want to understand why the Swiss seem to spend their time voting on every imaginable issue? Why the housing shortage is so acute? Why Switzerland may be the only democratic country that has no majority and opposition? Why shops close so early? And you don’t want it explained in a scholarly way, as you are more interested in the spirit than in the letter? This is your book. A straight-to-the-point essay that will provide you with key elements to understand this small but complex country that is Switzerland !--StartFragment--EXTRAIT "“Who in the room knows the name of the Swiss president?” That’s the question I asked a group of three hundred expatriates living in Geneva area at the beginning of a “Swiss Politics for Dummies” seminar in June, 2009. Around 10 to 15% of them raised their hands. About what I’d expected. And certainly not a bad score: these were people curious about Swiss politics. Enough, at least, to sacrifice an entire evening to listen to a lecture about it. With another group, things could have been much worse. I don’t blame them. All the puzzled looks following my seemingly simple question reminded me of a ride on the Cairo underground a few years earlier. It was the final years of Hosni Mubarak era."!--EndFragment-- ABOUT THE AUTHOR Pierre Cormon is a journalist and writer from Geneva, as well as an active member of the expats network glocals.com. He has written three books of fiction, in French.

Swiss Politics for Complete Beginners

Swiss Politics for Complete Beginners PDF Author: Pierre Cormon
Publisher: Editions Slatkine
ISBN: 9782832106075
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 95

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Book Description
Do you want to understand why the Swiss seem to spend their time voting on every imaginable issue ? Why the housing shortage is so acute ? Why Switzerland may be the only democratic country that has no majority and opposition ? Why shops close so early ? And you don't want it explained in a scholarly way, as you are more interested in the spirit than in the letter ? This is your book.

Direct Democracy in Switzerland

Direct Democracy in Switzerland PDF Author: Gregory A. Fossedal
Publisher: Transaction Publishers
ISBN: 9781412821742
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 310

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Book Description
Only one country in the world--Switzerland--is a direct democracy, in which, to an extent, the people pass their own laws, judge the constitutionality of statutes, and even have written, in effect, their own constitution. In this propitious volume, Gregory Fossedal reports on the politics and social fabric of what James Bryce has called "the nation that has taken the democratic idea to its furthest extent." The lessons Fossedal presents, at a time of dissatisfaction with the role of money and privileged elites in many Western democracies, are at once timely and urgent. In Direct Democracy in Switzerland, Fossedal has developed a shrewd, sensitive overview of Switzerland's high notion of statecraft. He details the reasons for studying Switzerland's distinctive institutions, and explores the origins and development of the ancient Swiss democracy, which reaches back a thousand years. He shows how Switzerland handles the political questions common to all modern societies, such as education, taxes, crime, welfare, the Holocaust. He concludes with the ongoing debate over two very different visions of democracy, direct versus representative. Paolo Dardenelli in Regional and Federal Studies described the book in its cloth edition as offering "many valuable insights into Swiss political life and written in a light, refreshing journalistic style." Amity Shlaes of the Financial Times commented that "Fossedal shines a brilliant spotlight on a form of governancewith lessons for the rest of us. His review of the referendum process there is required reading for lawmakers, political consultants and voters." Gregory A. Fossedal is chairman of the Alexis de Tocqueville Institution, a research foundation based near Washington, DC. He is also president and chief investment officer of the Democratic Century Fund and its management company, the Emerging Markets Group. He is author of The Democratic Imperative. Alfred R. Berkeley III is president of the Nasdaq stock market.

The Oxford Handbook of Swiss Politics

The Oxford Handbook of Swiss Politics PDF Author: Patrick Emmenegger
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0192699830
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 897

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Book Description
This volume provides a comprehensive analysis of the many different facets of the Swiss political system and of the major developments in modern Swiss politics. It brings together a diverse set of more than 50 leading experts in their respective areas, who explore Switzerland's distinctive and sometimes intriguing politics at all levels and across multiple themes. In placing the topics in an international and comparative context and in conversation with the broader scholarly literature, the contributors provide a much-needed counterpoint to the rather idealized and sometimes outdated perception of Swiss politics. The work is divided into thematic sections that represent the inherent diversity of the Swiss political sphere: following a detailed introduction from the editors, the parts of the volume explore foundations, institutions, cantons and municipalities, actors, elections and votes, decision-making processes, and public policies, with a three-chapter epilogue. Throughout, The Oxford Handbook of Swiss Politics presents new arguments, insights, and data, and offers analyses relevant not only to political science but also to international relations, European studies, history, sociology, law, and economics.

Swiss Democracy

Swiss Democracy PDF Author: Wolf Linder
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
ISBN: 9780312101909
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 208

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Book Description
"The features of Swiss democracy are frequently praised in theory but rarely assessed in practice. In this book Wolf Linder explains the way government and politics work in Switzerland. Combining the essence of many empirical studies with own observations, and giving illustrative examples, the author thoroughly analyses the institutions of federalism and consensus democracy through political power-sharing." "With the critical eye of a political scientist, Linder then analyses the scope and limits of citizens' participation in direct democracy - which distinguishes Switzerland most from parliamentary systems." "The value of the book goes beyond describing Switzerland and its political integration between different languages, religions and cultures. Analysing the nature of Swiss politics, Linder shows how federalism and political powersharing could help to resolve political conflict in other multicultural societies and to integrate different communities. Central and Eastern Europe, as well as countries with minority problems, could learn much of value from this study."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Swiss Democracy

Swiss Democracy PDF Author: W. Linder
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1349260452
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 230

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Book Description
An authoriative analysis of Swiss democracy, the institutions of federalism, and consensus democracy through political power sharing. Linder analyses the scope and limits of citizen's participation in direct democracy, which distinguishes Switzerland most from parliamentary systems. Central and Eastern Europe and all countries with minority problems could learn much of value from this study.

Swiss Democracy

Swiss Democracy PDF Author: Wolf Linder
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3030632660
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 310

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Book Description
This open access book provides an updated and fully revised 4th edition of this authoritative analysis of Swiss democracy. It particularly explains the institutions of federalism and consensus government through political power sharing. In this new edition, the authors also address several important changes and challenges that have affected Swiss democracy, including the country's relationship with the EU, fiscal equalisation, direct democracy and the legitimacy of national referendums, territorial conflict, as well as the polarisation of party politics.

Federal Government in Switzerland

Federal Government in Switzerland PDF Author: John Martin Vincent
Publisher: Legare Street Press
ISBN: 9781022220744
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Learn about the workings of the Swiss federal government with this insightful book. Vincent provides a thorough analysis of Switzerland's unique system of direct democracy, cantonal autonomy, and federal cooperation. This is essential reading for political scientists or anyone interested in Swiss politics. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Political Change in Switzerland

Political Change in Switzerland PDF Author: Clive H. Church
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317443667
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 209

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Book Description
Political Change in Switzerland explains the striking recent political developments in Switzerland, an important but surprisingly little known and often misunderstood country, aiming to dissipate prevailing myths about Switzerland in its European context. Firstly, the title provides an analysis of the way the practice and processes of Swiss politics have so dramatically changed over the last 25 years, setting out the differences between outside perceptions and changing Swiss realities. Secondly, it discusses how far the country has moved, from the stability of the post-war period to a new era of uncertainty, in which the so called Sonderfall, or special case, no longer seems to apply. In doing so it analyses the populist movement, centred on the Swiss People’s Party, examining its support and tactical operations, as well as the response of the establishment to the challenges the movement poses, both generally and where key questions of policy on foreigners and the EU are concerned. Finally, the title explains how much of this change is related to Europe, and discusses the prospects for Switzerland, Europe and the EU member states in the light of this new Swiss uncertainty. The way in which globalization has imposed new stresses on Switzerland, both in external policy and social terms, is the key theme of the title. These stresses have, in turn, encouraged the growth of a new populist movement, drawing on social classes previously supportive of other forces, and employing aggressive new tactics, creating a challenge that the establishment has found it hard to counter, so that stability has been compromised. As a result, Switzerland now faces two linked policy challenges, to find ways of accommodating unease about immigration and to devise a realistic and widely acceptable new relationship with the EU. The book’s underlying belief is that these changes have left the country divided and uncertain about its future. This title offers in-depth analysis of Switzerland's domestic and European politics and policies. It is also innovative in trying both to bring out the European roots of recent political changes in Switzerland and of the challenges these pose to the Swiss status quo and for the evolution of the EU and member states such as the United Kingdom. This is a book for those interested in Switzerland, academics, business people, diplomats, journalists and political commentators.

Political Decision-Making in Switzerland

Political Decision-Making in Switzerland PDF Author: P. Sciarini
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1137508604
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 301

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Book Description
This in-depth study of the decision-making processes of the early 2000s shows that the Swiss consensus democracy has changed considerably. Power relations have transformed, conflict has increased, coalitions have become more unstable and outputs less predictable. Yet these challenges to consensus politics provide opportunities for innovation.