The Amistad Case in Fact and Film

Historian Eric Foner, DeWitt Clinton Professor of History at Columbia University, examines the issues surrounding the historical film Amistad. In this short essay he explores the problems faced by the producers of Amistad and the shortcomings of both the film and its accompanying study guide in their attempt to portray history. More importantly, Foner raises questions not only about the accuracy of details and lack of historic context, but also about the messages behind Hollywood’s portrayal of history as entertainment.

Seth Waxman dropped the butt-bomb

The issue before the court is not whether the FCC can regulate obscenity. It can. The issue is whether the FCC can regulate “indecency,” as defined in a seminal 1978 case about a daytime radio broadcast of George Carlin’s “Filthy Words” monologue as “language that describes, in terms patently offensive as measured by contemporary community standards for the broadcast medium, sexual or excretory activities and organs” between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., when children might be watching.

Rethinking Russia : A Balanced Assessment of Russian Civil Society

Assessments of Russia’s civil society development have been almost universally negative, yet the assessments are usually based on very limited and unsystematic evidence. Missing from the discussion are new developments such as institutions and competitive funding for NGOs and other civic groups that suggest there is a foundation in Russia to support citizen participation in governance.

In this article we present current assumptions about Russian civil society, that public space between the home and government where citizens act collectively. We then report some unexplored developments in Russian civil society, including pockets of public activism, NGO activity, and newly institutionalized frameworks for citizen participation in governance. We submit that these developments merit attention in assessments of contemporary Russian politics.

What Is the Beijing Consensus?

DAVOS, Switzerland — A lot of people at the World Economic Forum are talking about the Beijing consensus. But there is no consensus about what the China’s economic growth model actually is.

Concern about that model somehow challenging Western democratic capitalism runs deep here at a time when China has become the No.2 economy, surpassing Japan and gaining on the United States. It faces none of the problems many rich countries are grappling with after the financial crisis: debt mountains, high unemployment and political gridlock.

But what actually characterizes the Chinese model? A Chinese economist here at Davos, who preferred to remain anonymous, tried to shed some light on the question, citing four key characteristics he said defined Beijing’s communist-capitalist-Confucian system.

Policy toolkit: The Chinese authorities have a much larger toolkit to interfere in the economy, he said. They can regulate and tax and hand out contracts like in the West. But they also can — and don’t hesitate to — meddle in financial markets if they feel a share price, for example, is not at the right level.

Corporate allegiance:
 Many companies are not only state-owned, but are accountable to the government as well. The government picks the management and managers report to the government. They are motivated less by pay than their Western counterparts, mainly because they are paid less: Even the boss of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the world’s biggest bank by some measures, reportedly earns less than $200,000 a year.

Resources: Beijing controls unusually large resources. They not only have nearly $3 trillion in currency reserves and get a steady stream of profit from state-owned business but they also control all the land. “Fiscal problems do not exist in China,” the economist said. “If they authorities need money they can just sell some land.”

Long-term planning: The authorities in Beijing set long-term strategic priorities and then systematically pursue them in five-year-plans.

For democracies committed to the rule of law and the free — although perhaps more regulated — market, there is not a whole lot that can be adopted from this list. But several Western economists here are urging that at least more long-term strategic thinking be tried, even if Western electoral politics makes that difficult.

In Crackdown, Iran Confiscates Barbie Dolls

Malibu Barbie is under attack again – this time by Iranian government officials trying to keep Western culture off their screens and store shelves.

The Associated Press reports that in a recurring crackdown, Iranian police have closed down dozens of toy shops in the country for selling Barbie and friends and have begun confiscating the iconic dolls. Islamic leaders contend that Barbie, who is famous for showing off her freakish hip-to-waist ratio in glittery swimsuits, contradicts the modest dress code and gender roles promoted in Iran.

Who is Xi Jinping? It's not an easy question to answer

The man the Communist Party is busy grooming to be China’s next leader can be read in so many ways.

He is a communist “princeling,” the equivalent of royalty in the Party, born into power and privilege but who then lived in a cave.
He is a man who has spent his life in the Communist Party but who knows what it is like to be outcast.

He has convinced businessmen he is their champion, while overseeing a system where the state controls huge chunks of the economy.

He has shown himself to be irritated with foreign criticism of China but has sent his daughter to study at Harvard under a false name to hide her identity.

His wife, Peng Liyuan, a singer, has, for most of his career, been far more famous than he has.