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A Quest for the Presence of Financialization in the Global South : The Case of India
No full textThe globalized world is witnessing increasing dominance of the financialization of the economy and society. A rapidly changing association among finance capitalists, individuals, the economy, geography, and society, with financialization at the center of these relationships, has been observed recently. However, existing research on this subject is primarily concentrated on advanced capitalist economies of the Global North. As global finance is penetrating the Global South as well, there is a necessity to understand the features, nuances, and theoretical debates surrounding financialization in the context of countries from the Global South. A comprehensive review of the literature reveals that studies on financialization exhibit unsettled and inconclusive debates in relation to the genesis, characteristics, causes, and consequences of the phenomenon. In the case of India, it is particularly difficult to establish strong evidence on the financialization of the Indian economy since the macro-evidence of financialization is not robust in comparison to evidence from the developed capitalist economies in the Global North. However, some recent microstudies have cited traces of financialization in microfinance, manufacturing firms, and digital banking in India. This micro-evidence, despite being a sector-specific phenomenon, is crucial to the larger debate on financialization. This article argues that in cases of blurred features of financialization, macro-findings may not be completely reliable or even relevant. A better approach is to collate both macro- and micro-data and contextualize the findings in specific contemporary socioeconomic structures
Precocious Natural Mummification in Hanging: An Exceptional Case from Northern Cyprus
No full textMummification is regarded as a particular form of decomposition. External factors such as sun, wind, humidity, and temperature are known to accelerate or slow down the mummification period. The process can take weeks or months to complete. Consequently, the diversity of external factors makes postmortem interval (PMI) estimations difficult. This case study reports on the first example of precocious natural mummification in Northern Cyprus and involves a 20-year-old male found hanging from the railing in the stairwellof an unfinished building. The individual had been missing only seven days. The body underwent complete computed tomography scanning, autopsy, and toxicology analysis. A fractured hyoid with associated ecchymosis is documented, indicating death by asphyxiation. The crime scene environmental factors and seven-day weather report during which the individual was missing were assessed to understand the factors that influenced this rapid mummification. Reporting on this case contributes to PMI studies in studies in Cyprus and other locations with similar environmental factors
Prakash, Gyan, and Jeremy Adelman, eds. Inventing the Third World: In Search of Freedom for the Postwar Global.
No full textDecentralization and Rural Areas in Mozambique, Colombia, and Bolivia
No full textPolitical decentralization (hereafter “decentralization”) is the devolution of power from a central government to subnational governments. Nationally, decentralization promotes a system of vertical checks and balances. Subnationally, decentralization may increase basic service provision in rural areas, a benefit of particular importance to countries in the Global South, but it also has known trade-offs. Many countries in the Global South passed decentralization reforms during the Third Wave of global democratic expansion in the 1980s and 1990s. However, Latin American countries more fully implemented these reforms than did African countries. The existing literature focuses disproportionately on decentralization in Latin America and does not adequately explain why a similarly situated region of the Global South would have such different policy outcomes. This article compares decentralization in Colombia, Bolivia, and Mozambique between 1986 and today. Colombia and Bolivia decentralized early and substantively, while Mozambique decentralized later and more shallowly. Today in Mozambique, a national debate about decentralization rages. This analysis is based on over 200 unstructured interviews selected through a snowballing methodology in each of the countries. I conducted interviews in four languages (Spanish, Quechua, Portuguese, and English) over a twenty-seven-year period. Recent Mozambique fieldwork allows the description of the current decentralization debate. Five factors seem to explain differences between the Latin American cases and the African cases: duration of historical experience with liberal democracy ideas, the general level of social indicators at the time of decentralization, political leadership, differential high costs for influential political forces, and unique characteristics of civil society in each country. This article further argues that current literature does not adequately include “ruralness” as a concept in the analysis of decentralization
Lu, Hanchao. Shanghai Tai Chi: The Art of Being Ruled in Mao’s China.
No full textReview of: Lu, Hanchao. Shanghai Tai Chi: The Art of Being Ruled in Mao’s China. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2023
Andrea, Alfred J., and Andrew Holt. Sanctified Violence: Holy War in World History.
No full textAndrea, Alfred J., and Andrew Holt. Sanctified Violence: Holy War in World History. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing, 2021
Ethical Attitudes Toward Taxes in the U.S.: Changes over 20 Years and Demographic Differences
No full textThis study examines ethical attitudes toward taxation in the United States (U.S.). The U.S. system, as in many other countries, relies onvoluntary compliance, where taxpayers calculate their own taxes due. Thus, ethicality of taxpayers is of critical importance. This study updates prior research on taxpayer ethical attitudes, such as comfort level with tax evasion, views on punishment for tax evasion and perspectives on civic duty to pay a fair share of taxes. A comparison is made with a benchmark study of 20 years ago. In addition, a demographic analysis is provided of current taxpayer ethical attitudes based on: age, gender, citizenship versus non-citizen, academic major, student status, employment status, and work experience. Findings will be of interest to policy makers, academic researchers, and taxpayers
ESG and the Demand for State Tax Incentives
No full textThis Article argues that a business which embeds environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations in its strategy should consider whether seeking or accepting targeted state and local economic development incentives (which we refer to as “state tax incentives”) is consistent with that strategy. The outcome of that consideration will vary by locality, incentive package, and strategy. But given the demonstrated negative impact of state tax incentives on government finances and the community, most ESG-minded companies should either forgo them or cooperate with the state in crafting incentives that benefit both the company and the community. A well-crafted ESG reporting standard on this topic can help guide companies towards such win-win incentives and help them credibly communicate their approach to investors and other stakeholders. This Article proposes that companies, investors and governments should lobby ESG standard setters to create an effective reporting standard, and we offer some recommendations for its characteristics. We believe this is the first article to examine state tax incentives in the context of ESG and the first to suggest that the demand for state tax incentives can be reduced as more companies (and their investors) realize that taking incentives is inconsistent with their ESG strategies. All prior attempts to curtail state tax incentives have targeted the supply of state tax incentives by seeking to encourage or force states to limit their use. These attempts are essential and must continue. But they have not achieved the hoped-for results, in part, because they relied on persuading political actors to stop taking actions that they believe are in their own self-interest. In contrast, a demand side, company-and investor-driven approach may be more successful because applying an ESG framework requires companies to act in their own interest, while better taking into account long-term costs and benefits. This Article explains the problems that have resulted from state and local tax incentives and the various efforts to curtail them; reviews the emerging concept of ESG; applies the literature on tax avoidance and corporate social responsibility to state tax incentives; provides a basic outline for a state tax incentive ESG reporting standard; highlights the strategic benefits that will accrue to a company that takes a more deliberateapproach to deciding whether to seek and accept state tax incentives; and identifies issues at the intersection of ESG and state tax incentives that are ripe for future research.