Cuba and Lessons from Other Communist Transitions


Book Description

Help identify the commonalties and differences in communist transitions in Europe and Asia, draw lessons from them, and apply them in a comparative fashion to Cuba.




Cuba and Lessons from Other Communist Transitions. A Workshop Report


Book Description

Based on comparative lessons from other transitions from communism, the process of reform in Leninist societies may be divided into two main stages: the onset of reform; the sustaining and deepening of the reform process. The first stage may be marked initially by "tinkering type measures that do not alter significantly the power of the party and the state, but which may be followed by deeper structural reforms that begin to change the political and economic character of the system. Once the initial stage is passed without triggering a popular revolution, then the reforms need to be sustained and deepened. As they become more structural in nature, they may lead toward a complete transition away from command economy and monopoly on political power--the twin pillars of Leninist communist regimes, upheld by actual or threatened repression. However, what is important is the movement and direction of the reform process; the end point may not necessarily be some kind of a replica of a Western democratic system.







Transition from Communism


Book Description




Global Trends 2040


Book Description

"The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic marks the most significant, singular global disruption since World War II, with health, economic, political, and security implications that will ripple for years to come." -Global Trends 2040 (2021) Global Trends 2040-A More Contested World (2021), released by the US National Intelligence Council, is the latest report in its series of reports starting in 1997 about megatrends and the world's future. This report, strongly influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, paints a bleak picture of the future and describes a contested, fragmented and turbulent world. It specifically discusses the four main trends that will shape tomorrow's world: - Demographics-by 2040, 1.4 billion people will be added mostly in Africa and South Asia. - Economics-increased government debt and concentrated economic power will escalate problems for the poor and middleclass. - Climate-a hotter world will increase water, food, and health insecurity. - Technology-the emergence of new technologies could both solve and cause problems for human life. Students of trends, policymakers, entrepreneurs, academics, journalists and anyone eager for a glimpse into the next decades, will find this report, with colored graphs, essential reading.




Killing Hope


Book Description

In Killing Hope, William Blum, author of the bestselling Rogue State: A Guide to the World's Only Superpower, provides a devastating and comprehensive account of America's covert and overt military actions in the world, all the way from China in the 1940s to the invasion of Iraq in 2003 and - in this updated edition - beyond. Is the United States, as it likes to claim, a global force for democracy? Killing Hope shows the answer to this question to be a resounding 'no'.




International Relations Theory and the End of the Cold War


Book Description

This controversial set of essays evaluates and extends international relations theory in light of the revolutionary events of past years. The contributors demonstrate how theoretical constructs did not anticipate Soviet foreign policies that led to the end of the Cold War.