Why Nations Fail
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Mesc November 2006
The Newsletter of Middle East Studies Center, American University in Cairo November/December 2006 THIS MONTH’S FEATURE: HUMAN RIGHTS IN EGY P T WWW.AUCEGYPT.EDU/ACADEMIC/MESC/ Page 2 INSIDE THIS ISSUE: FROM THE DIRECTOR 3 JOEL BEININ THE CARAVAN DEBATE: AN OVERVIEW 4 GARTH HALL DESKILLING EGYPTIAN POLICE, PRIVATIZING TORTURE 6 HOSSAM EL-HAMALAWY HUMAN RIGHTS IN EGYPT: A SEARCH FOR A PUBLIC ATTITUDE 7 MONA HEIKAL HUMAN RIGHTS IN EGYPT: A 2006 CALENDAR 8 GARTH HALL LECTURE OF AMR HAMZAWY 13 LENKA BENOVA MAKING IRAQ’S OIL WORK FOR IRAQIS 15 RORY A. MCNAMARA BOOK REVIEW, HAMAS: POLITICS, CHARITY, AND TERRORISM 18 WILLIAM JON HUMMEL ALUMNI UPDATES 19 LENKA BENOVA Editor Garth Hall The views expressed here are those of their authors and not necessarily Editor J. Marshall Brown those of MESC, the editor, or the Associate Editor Rory A. McNamara Middle East studies program. Associate Editor Lenka Benova Associate Editor Danny Corbin OCTOBER 2006 Page 3 FROM THE DIRECTOR JOEL BEININ ‘Ashura and the City of Kar- being organized by Dr. Saad hope that everyone bala,” which was on display Eddin Ibrahim. It will take I had a restful ‘eid break at the Falaki Gallery from place shortly after Coptic and that we are all refreshed November 12-28. Christmas (January 6). For and ready to enter the sec- information, contact Dr. The Interdisciplinary Advisory ond half of the fall semester Saad’s student assistant, Committee has approved a with renewed energy and Maria Dayton at mariaday- proposal for a comprehensive commitment. [email protected]. -
Why Nations Fail: an Alternate Reading
Why Nations Fail: An Alternate Reading Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson’s book Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty, is nothing if not audacious. The result of 15 years of study, the authors cover a vast spread of historical and contemporary examples of countries that have evolved toward astonishing prosperity and others that are regressing into poverty that defies solutions. They present a simple theory to explain why some nations fail and why some prosper. Through long and highly contingent processes spanning centuries, prosperous nations have developed inclusive political institutions that permit participatory political decision-making across broad interests and groups; economically, they have developed institutions that make a place for creative destruction, or the development of new technologies by new entrants that make existing processes and technologies obsolete. Countries that are not prosperous have developed extractive political and economic institutions that do not permit creative destruction, for the purpose of preserving the power and privileges of a narrow, elite ruling class that exploits the rest of the populace. These are not binary categories, of course, with nations varying in degree between inclusive and extractive institutions, but that is the essence of their theory. They assert political centralization as a key factor in establishing a framework in which growth can occur. Without centralization, groups tend remain mired it internecine conflict, each group impeding other groups from becoming too powerful; the old metaphor comes to mind of crabs being unable to crawl out of a bucket because as soon as one starts to gain some height, others will pull them back down. -
Why Nations Fail FBBVA Lecture
Why Nations Fail FBBVA Lecture Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson MIT May 21, 2012. Acemoglu & Robinson (MIT) Why Nations Fail May 21, 2012. 1 / 47 Introduction The Lay of the Land Western Offshoots 10 9 8 log gdp per capita per gdp log 7 Western E urope Latin America Asia Africa 6 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000 year Figure: The evolution of average GDP per capita in Western Offshoots, Western Europe, Latin America, Asia and Africa, 1000-2000. Acemoglu & Robinson (MIT) Why Nations Fail May 21, 2012. 2 / 47 Main Concepts Inclusive and Extractive Institutions Institutional Origins Framework based on Acemoglu and Robinson Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty. Economic growth brought forth by: Inclusive economic institutions: Secure property rights, law and order, markets and state support (public services and regulation) for markets; open to relatively free entry of new businesses; uphold contracts; access to education and opportunity for the great majority of citizens, i.e., create incentives for investment and innovation and a level playing field. But most societies throughout history and today ruled by Extractive economic institutions: Designed by the politically powerful elites to extract resources from the rest of society. Acemoglu & Robinson (MIT) Why Nations Fail May 21, 2012. 3 / 47 Main Concepts Inclusive and Extractive Institutions Synergies Inclusive and extractive economic institutions do not exist in a vacuum, but are supported by certain political institutions. Extractive political institutions– in the limit “absolutism”: Political institutions concentrating power in the hands of a few, without constraints, checks and balances or “rule of law”. -
Acemoglu, Daron & James R. Robinson. Why Nations Fail
Journal of International and Global Studies Volume 6 Number 2 Article 17 4-1-2015 Acemoglu, Daron & James R. Robinson. Why Nations Fail: the origins of power, prosperity and poverty. New York: Crown Publishing, 2012. Maximiliano E. Korstanje Ph.D. University of Palermo, Argentina, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lindenwood.edu/jigs Part of the Anthropology Commons, Critical and Cultural Studies Commons, Environmental Studies Commons, and the Sociology Commons Recommended Citation Korstanje, Maximiliano E. Ph.D. (2015) "Acemoglu, Daron & James R. Robinson. Why Nations Fail: the origins of power, prosperity and poverty. New York: Crown Publishing, 2012.," Journal of International and Global Studies: Vol. 6 : No. 2 , Article 17. Available at: https://digitalcommons.lindenwood.edu/jigs/vol6/iss2/17 This Book Review is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at Digital Commons@Lindenwood University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal of International and Global Studies by an authorized editor of Digital Commons@Lindenwood University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Acemoglu, Daron & James R. Robinson. Why Nations Fail: the origins of power, prosperity and poverty. New York: Crown Publishing, 2012. This fascinating best-seller combines numerous studies with a conceptual discussion around the idea that some nations may reach development and its benefits while others fail in that goal. Tracing a convincing argument, the contributing authors explain that two countries formed by the same ethnicity, demography, and topography may reach different levels of development, wealth, education, and heath. Understanding why this happens is the primary attempt of the project. -
Reform Failure and Underdevelopment in Egypt: an Institutional Explanation Marissa Block Trinity College, [email protected]
Trinity College Trinity College Digital Repository Senior Theses and Projects Student Works Spring 2014 Reform Failure and Underdevelopment in Egypt: An Institutional Explanation Marissa Block Trinity College, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/theses Recommended Citation Block, Marissa, "Reform Failure and Underdevelopment in Egypt: An Institutional Explanation". Senior Theses, Trinity College, Hartford, CT 2014. Trinity College Digital Repository, http://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/theses/417 Reform Failure and Underdevelopment in Egypt: An Institutional Explanation By Marissa Block Submitted to the International Studies Program, Trinity College Supervised by Professor Rasha Ahmed © April 30, 2014 Abstract The January 25 Revolution in Egypt and the larger wave of demonstrations throughout the Arab World shattered the façade of stability and have brought the region to a critical juncture. The underlying causes of the Arab Spring point to the preponderance of socioeconomic issues, namely unemployment, poverty, and lack of social mobility. Yet, in the late 1990s in Egypt, Mubarak initiated a series of economic reforms designed to sustain economic growth. In light of the 2011 Egyptian uprisings, I seek to understand the failures of economic reform and persistence of underdevelopment in Egypt through the framework of new institutional economics. Ultimately, economic outcomes are determined by economic and political institutions, which are predicated upon the distribution of political power. I model the behavior of development-enhancing institutions as a stable equilibrium, whereas development-stunting institutions are unstable, leading to extreme outcomes. Through the use of historical evidence, my analysis has shown Egyptian society is largely built upon development-stunting institutions. -
Curriculum Vitae
CURRICULUM VITAE James A. Robinson University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy 1307 E 60th St, Chicago, IL 60637 Telephone: (773) 702 6364 E-Mail: [email protected] Website: http://scholar.harris.uchicago.edu/jamesrobinson Nationality: British, USA Education: Ph.D. Yale University, 1993 M.A. University of Warwick, 1985-1986 BSc. (Econ) London School of Economics and Political Science, 1979-1982 Main Fields: Political Economy and Comparative Politics. Economic and Political Development. Current Positions: Reverend Dr. Richard L. Pearson Professor of Global Conflict Studies, since July 1, 2016. University Professor, University of Chicago, since July 1, 2015. Previous Positions: Wilbur A. Cowett Professor of Government, Harvard University, July 1, 2014- June 30, 2015. David Florence Professor of Government, Harvard University, July 1, 2009-June 30, 2014. Professor of Government, Harvard University, July 1, 2004-June 30, 2009. Associate Professor of Political Science and Economics, University of California at Berkeley, July 1, 2001-June 30, 2004. Assistant Professor of Political Science, University of California at Berkeley, July 1, 1999-July 1 2001. Assistant Professor of Economics, University of Southern California, September 1, 1995- June 30, 1999. Lecturer in Economics, University of Melbourne, September 1, 1992-August 30, 1995. Other Activities: Director of the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts since July 1, 2016. Academic Adviser to the World Bank’s World Development Report 2017. Member of the board of the Global Development Network, January 1, 2009 – December 31, 2011. Member of the Swedish Development Policy Council, a committee advising the Swedish Foreign Minister on Sweden’s International Development Policy, 2007-2010. -
Narration and Identity
LUND UNIVERSITY STV 004 Department of Political Science Spring 2006 Supervisor: Anders Uhlin Narration and Identity Dealing with social and ideological heterogeneity in the Kefaya Movement Anna Sundell Abstract In authoritarian regimes all over the world, social movements have attracted atten- tion as loud advocators of political change. Where traditional channels for political opposition are closed, loosely organized networks have paved the way for new strategic coalitions. This phenomenon raises questions about the connection between networks, identity and social action. By using a narrative approach this essay tries to shed light on the shaping of a collective identity, and indirectly collective action, in groups composed of actors from disparate communities with strong identity constructions of their own. The result builds on a field study of the Egyptian reform movement Kefaya. By combining a narrative framework with theories of network conversations the study directs attention to the complex interplay of unity and diversity within the Kefaya movement. It refines the picture of how factions and individuals within an organization use narrative techniques to emphasize personal or subgroup identities. Finally the study underlines the importance of identity also in movements not primarily engaged with ‘identity politics’. Identities are connected to narratives about the world and thereby they are also one of the primary motives of action or non-action. The author requests a greater sensibility to these linkages in future social-movement research. Keywords: Narrative, Social Movement, Network, Identity, Egypt Table of Contents 1. INTRODUCTION...................................................................................................................... 2 1.1. RESEARCH QUESTION................................................................................................................. 2 1.2. AN OVERVIEW OF THEORY AND METHOD.................................................................................. 3 1.3. -
Why Nations Fail - the Origins of Power, Prosperity and Poverty by Daron Acemoglu and James A
World Economic Review Book Review Why Nations fail - the origins of power, prosperity and poverty by Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson, Crown Business, New York, 2012, 529 pages, ISBN 978-0-307-71921-8 Deniz Kellecioglu1 International economist, Istanbul Bilgi University, Turkey Why nations fail is a compelling contribution to the classic question of why some countries are poor and some rich, but it is also marred from several shortcomings and under-representations, which cast doubts on the positive messages of creating better institutions and reducing poverty. The main thesis of the authors is that ‘nations fail because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate’. These institutions are run by elite groups who are exploiting the resources of the country for their own use, leaving little to the population at large. Furthermore, extractive political institutions support the economic institutions by cementing the elite power base. The authors argue that ‘extractive economic and political institutions, though their details vary under different circumstances, are always at the root of the failure’ (emphasis added). Moreover, ‘another reason why nations fail is that their states fail. This, in turn, is a consequence of decades of rule under extractive institutions’ (emphasis added). According to the authors, inclusive institutions, on the other hand, provide equal opportunity to all citizens of the country allowing for a broad and sustained prosperity. Furthermore, inclusive institutions are associated with virtuous cycles of development, while vicious cycles of development are typical of extractive institutions. Why nations fail is a well-written book based on an intriguing and persuasive narrative over the past half millennium. -
The Wealth of Nations Financial Times Magazine
The wealth of nations Financial Times Magazine Review by Martin Wolf Do political institutions hold the key to a country’s economic success? ©Bridgeman Edward Matthew Ward’s ‘King James II Receiving the News of the Landing of William of Orange in 1688’ (c1851) Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity and Poverty, by James A Robinson and Daron Acemoglu, Profile RRP£25, 464 pages Why are some societies democratic, prosperous and stable and others autocratic, poor and unstable? These are perhaps the most important questions in social science. The authors of this thought-provoking book are certain the answer lies in politics. Thus, Daron Acemoglu of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and James Robinson of Harvard argue that “countries differ in their economic success because of their different institutions, the rules influencing how the economy works, and the incentives that motivate people”. These are all ultimately the product of politics. The distinction Why Nations Fail draws is between “extractive” and “inclusive” economic institutions. The purpose of the former is to ensure the prosperity of the few at the expense of the many. The aim of the latter is to allow everybody to engage in the economy, on an equal footing. Slavery and feudalism are extractive economic institutions. Law-governed market economies are inclusive economic institutions. What determines these economic institutions? To answer this question, the book offers a parallel distinction between “extractive” and “inclusive” political institutions. The defining characteristics of inclusive institutions are the combination of centralisation with pluralism: the state must be strong enough to keep private power in check and yet be controlled by widely shared political authority. -
Tesi Di Laurea APOSTASIA 2.0: Tante Voci Nessuna Identità
Corso di Laurea Magistrale in Lingue, Economie e Istituzioni dell’Asia e Dell’Africa Mediterranea ordinamento ex D.M. 270/2004 Tesi di Laurea APOSTASIA 2.0: tante voci nessuna identità Relatore Ch. Prof. Marco Salati Correlatore Ch. Prof.ssa Ida Zilio Grandi Laureanda Sara Pasqualato Matricola 841286 Anno Accademico 2017 / 2018 Ai miei nonni, Giuseppe e Antonietta 1 INDICE p. 4 ﻻَ إِ ْك َراهَ فِى ال ِد ي ِن :Introduzione Muqaddima p. 10 Prefazione: - Stima degli apostati nel mondo islamico p. 13 - La posizione di al-Azhar e del Marocco riguardo l’apostasia p. 17 -Problematiche dell’ateismo nel mondo islamico contemporaneo p. 22 -La globalizzazione p. 26 p. 29 ”إن شاء هللا Laicitè“- -“Arabs without God” p. 35 -“Non ho bisogno di una religione per avere valori morali” p. 42 CAPITOLI 1. Cos’è l’apostasia? p. 46 2. L’apostasia nelle tre religioni monoteiste p. 49 2.1 -Apostasia secondo la Sharī’a, la Sunna e le scuole giuridiche p. 52 islamiche 2.2 -L’interpretazione degli studiosi: -Ijtihād, -Ișlāh p. 60 3. Principali cause di apostasia p. 63 3.1-Il ruolo del fondamentalismo p. 66 3.2- Il controllo delle autorità, religione e politica p. 71 3.3- La mancanza di risposte ai giovani p. 75 4. Celebri apostati nell’Islām 4.1 -il fulcro egiziano p. 79 4.2 Abu Zayd p. 85 4.3 Farag Foda p. 86 4.4 Nawal al-Sa’dawi p. 91 5. Il Panorama egiziano p. 93 5.1-Apostasia: tabù, reato, atto terroristico p. 99 5.1.1-Costituzione egiziana p. -
Magisterarbeit
MAGISTERARBEIT Titel der Magisterarbeit Aktiviert, organisiert und vernetzt euch! Politische Protestkommunikation im Netz am Beispiel der Ägyptischen Revolution Verfasserin Katharina Prinz, Bakk.phil. angestrebter akademischer Grad Magistra der Philosophie (Mag. phil.) Wien, 2013 Studienkennzahl lt. Studienblatt: A 066 841 Studienrichtung lt. Studienblatt: Magisterstudium Publizistik- u. Kommunikationswissenschaft Betreuer: Univ.- Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Duchkowitsch Ehrenwörtliche Erklärung Ich erkläre ehrenwörtlich, dass ich die vorliegende Arbeit selbständig und ohne fremde Hilfe verfasst, andere als die angegebenen Quellen nicht benutzt und die den Quellen wörtlich oder inhaltlich entnommenen Stellen als solche kenntlich gemacht habe. Die Arbeit wurde bisher in gleicher oder ähnlicher Form an keiner anderen Universität eingereicht und auch noch nicht veröffentlicht. Die vorliegende Fassung entspricht der eingereichten elektronischen Version. Datum: Unterschrift: Danksagung Viele – mir wertvollen Menschen – haben eine wichtige Rolle bei der Entstehung dieser vorliegenden Arbeit eingenommen, dafür möchte ich gerne an dieser Stelle DANKE sagen. Mein größter Dank gilt meiner Familie und meinem Freund, sie haben mich seit jeher in jeder Hinsicht unterstützt, besonders in dieser intensiven Phase aufmunternde Worte gefunden und Geduld für so manche Höhen und Tiefen aufgebracht. Weiters ist es mir wichtig, ein Dankeschön meinen FreundInnen und StudienkollegInnen in Wien, sowie auch im Waldviertel auszusprechen. Durch so manche hilfreiche Tipps, -
Egyptian Bloggers Before and After the 2011 Uprising El Sayed, N
WestminsterResearch http://www.westminster.ac.uk/westminsterresearch From Underground to Elite: Egyptian Bloggers before and after the 2011 Uprising El Sayed, N. This is an electronic version of a PhD thesis awarded by the University of Westminster. © Mrs Nadine El Sayed, 2015. The WestminsterResearch online digital archive at the University of Westminster aims to make the research output of the University available to a wider audience. Copyright and Moral Rights remain with the authors and/or copyright owners. Whilst further distribution of specific materials from within this archive is forbidden, you may freely distribute the URL of WestminsterResearch: ((http://westminsterresearch.wmin.ac.uk/). In case of abuse or copyright appearing without permission e-mail [email protected] From Underground to Elite: Egyptian Bloggers before and after the 2011 Uprising Nadine El Sayed A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements by the University of Westminster for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy, June 2015 DECLARATION I certify that this thesis I have presented for examination for the PhD degree at the University of Westminster is my own work. El Sayed, 2 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS For putting up with my endless emails, re-writes and edits – sometimes all within two hours of each other – and her constant guidance and support, I would like to thank my supervisor, Dr. Naomi Sakr. For putting up with my complaining, mood swings, self-doubts, bouts of “what did I get myself into” and a whole lot of starry eyes, non-responsive, thesis- contemplating states, I have to thank my family. To my mother, I am endlessly thankful for your constant support, for all those pages you read and re-read and miraculously found interesting even though you had no previous interest in bloggers or media theories and for spending hours discussing - and pretending to be fascinated by - my thesis.