No Ordinary Deal: Unmasking the Trans-Pacific Partnership Free Trade Agreement

No Ordinary Deal: Unmasking the Trans-Pacific Partnership Free Trade Agreement Review

While the global financial crisis has exposed deep flaws in the free market, the U.S., Australia, New Zealand, Brunei, Chile, Peru, and Vietnam are negotiating a free-trade agreement to surpass all others—here an international team of expert commentators expose the myths of yet another neo-liberal adventure

 

No ordinary free trade deal, The Trans-Pacific Partnership has been billed as an agreement fit for the 21st century—but no one is sure what that means. The U.S. sells this eight-country deal as the key to jobs and economic recovery, while protecting home markets; Australia hails it as a foundation stone for an APEC-wide free trade agreement; and New Zealand sees it as a magic bullet to open the U.S. dairy market—but none of these arguments stack up. Here Lori Wallach, Todd Tucker, John Quiggin, and other experts from Australia, New Zealand, the U.S., and Chile examine the geopolitics and security context of the negotiations and set out the costs for other countries of making concessions to the U.S. simply to achieve a deal. They argue its obligations will intrude into core areas of domestic government policy which have nothing to do with imports and exports, including foreign investment, financial regulation, access to affordable medicines, food standards, services, and government procurement—the issues that caused majority public opposition to the 2004 U.S.-Australia Free Trade Agreement. Above all, this book exposes the contradictions of countries locking even deeper into a neo-liberal model of global free markets, when even political leaders admit that this has failed.

Event History Analysis With Stata

Event History Analysis With Stata Review

Event History Analysis With Stata provides an introduction to event history modeling techniques using Stata (version 9), a widely used statistical program that provides tools for data analysis. The book emphasizes the usefulness of event history models for causal analysis in the social sciences and the application of continuous-time models.
 
The authors illustrate the entire research path required in the application of event-history analysis, from the initial problems of recording event-oriented data, to data organization, to applications using the software, to the interpretation of results. The book also demonstrates, through example, how to implement hypotheses tests and how to choose the right model. The strengths and limitations of various techniques are emphasized in each example, along with an introduction to the model, details on how to input data, and the related Stata commands. Each application is accompanied by a brief explanation of the underlying statistical concept.
 
Readers are offered the unique opportunity to easily run and modify all of the book’s application examples on a computer, by visiting the author’s Web site at http://www.uni-bamberg.de/sowi/soziologie-i/eha/. Examples include survival rates of patients in medical studies; unemployment periods in economic studies; and the time it takes a criminal to break the law after his release in a criminological study. This new book supplements Event History Analysis, by Blossfeld et al, and Techniques of Event History Modeling, by Blossfeld and Rohwer, extending on their coverage of practical applications and statistical theory.
 
Intended for researchers in a variety of fields such as statistics, economics, psychology, sociology, and political science, Event History Analysis With Stata also serves as a text, in combination with the authors’ other two books, for courses on event history analysis.

The Carter Presidency: Policy Choices in the Post-New Deal Era

The Carter Presidency: Policy Choices in the Post-New Deal Era Review

After the Nixon and Ford administrations, liberal Democrats hoped Jimmy Carter's election in 1976 would restore the New Deal agenda in the White House. Instead, during four tumultuous years in office, Carter endorsed many of the fiscal and economic policies later espoused by his Republican successor, Ronald Reagan. But Carter also backed most New Deal social programs and, however reluctantly, pursued a traditional containment foreign policy.

In this book more than a dozen eminent scholars provide a balanced overview of key elements of Carter's presidency, examining the significance of his administration within the context of evolving American policy choices after World War II. They seek not only to understand the troubled Carter presidency but also to identify the changes that precipitated and accompanied the demise of the New Deal order.

By the time Carter took office, many Americans had become disenchanted with big government and welfare spending, and his presidency is viewed in these pages as a transitional administration. As this volume demonstrates, Carter's dilemma emerged from his effort to steer a course between traditional expectations of federal government and new political and economic realities. While most of the contributors agree that his administration may be justly criticized for failing to find that course, they generally conclude that Carter was more successful than his critics acknowledge.

These thirteen original essays cover such topics as the economy, trade and industrial policies, welfare reform, energy, environment, civil rights, feminism, and foreign policy. They offer thoughtful assessments of Carter's performance, focusing on policy both as cause and effect of the postindustrial transformation of American society that shadowed his administration. A final essay shows how Carter's public-spirited postpresidential career has made him one of America's greatest ex-presidents.

Grounded on research conducted at the Carter Library, The Carter Presidency is an incisive reassessment of an isolated Democratic administration from the vantage point of twenty years. It is a milestone in the historical appraisal of that administration, inviting us to take a new look at Jimmy Carter and see what his presidency represented for a dramatically changing America.

Behind the Scenes at Special Events: Flowers, Props, and Design

Behind the Scenes at Special Events: Flowers, Props, and Design Review

"A much-needed, comprehensive, and essential reference for special events professionals throughout the world. My copy will always be at arm's reach as I use this to research, design, coordinate, and plan world class events such as those provided by Ms. Malouf's extraordinary book." --Dr. Joe Jeff Goldblatt, CSEP Founding Director, The Event Management Program The George Washington University

"From how you start planning the event, to how you create beautiful designs, to running an effective and profitable event office, to themed events --this book is an all-inclusive event designer's 'How To!'." --Tim Lundy, CSEP Distinctive Design Events, Atlanta, Georgia

"This book is a must on the bookshelf of every event practitioner who wants to be the consummate event designer." --Richard Aaron, CMP, CSEP President, Mallory Factor, Inc.

Lena Malouf, CSEP, is recognized as an international authority in the special events, party, and floral industries. She gives you an arsenal of proven techniques to administer, coordinate, and create a special event that will leave your clients and their guests with a truly memorable experience. Lavishly illustrated, this valuable guide is packed with inspirational and imaginative examples of Malouf's most successful corporate events, theme parties, flower arrangements, table designs, and much more. Packed with checklists, forms, and double-checking methods, this book helps you feel confident that even the tiniest detail will not be missed.

This practical how-to book covers:
* Inspirational concept and theme ideas
* What to include in contracts and agreements
* Setting a budget and sticking to it
* Creating a more efficient work schedule
* Using the power of color to its fullest potential
* The endless possibilities of design, decor, and sets
* Exquisite flower arrangements and beautiful linens


For the newcomer, student, or professional planner, this step-by-step book walks you through the entire event process.

The Raw Deal: How the Bush Republicans Plan to Destroy Social Security and the Legacy of the New Deal

The Raw Deal: How the Bush Republicans Plan to Destroy Social Security and the Legacy of the New Deal Review

Social Security is facing the most serious, well-financed, and determined threat to its existence since its inception in 1935. For Americans to make sense of the barrage of conflicting messages on the subject, it's necessary to understand who is behind the campaign to "reform" Social Security, what the campaign aims to achieve, and how it misrepresents its goals. Best-selling author Joe Conason exposes why and how this is happening. "The Raw Deal explores the Right's privatization goals, Bush's hard-fought privatization campaign (built on a stacked "study"), the corporate interests behind the plan, the media campaign to undermine confidence in Social Security, and how the swindle can be stopped. Conason's no-apologies, no-nonsense approach clears up the myriad misperceptions surrounding this important, confusing issue and gets to the truth about the big Social Security bluff.

Witness: From the Shah to the Secret Arms Deal : An Insider's Account of U.S. Involvement in Iran

Witness: From the Shah to the Secret Arms Deal : An Insider's Account of U.S. Involvement in Iran Review

Witness: From the Shah to the Secret Arms Deal : An Insider's Account of U.S. Involvement in Iran

Invisible Hands: The Businessmen's Crusade Against the New Deal

Invisible Hands: The Businessmen's Crusade Against the New Deal Review

“A compelling and readable story of resistance to the new economic order.”—Boston Globe

Invisible Hands tells the story of how a small group of American businessmen succeeded in building a political movement. Long before the “culture wars” of the 1960s sparked the Republican backlash against cultural liberalism, these high-powered individuals actively resisted New Deal economics and sought to educate and organize their peers. Kim Phillips-Fein recounts the little-known efforts of men such as W. C. Mullendore, Leonard Read, and Jasper Crane, drawing on meticulous research and narrative gifts to craft a compelling history of the role of big and small business in American politics—and a blueprint for anyone who wants insight into the way that money has been used to create political change. 16 black-and-white photos