Ironies of globalization
Tomorrow morning, I'm going to be up early preparing to lead a workshop for teachers of comparative government and politics, so I might not have a chance to offer a new entry here. So, I'm adding these gems from Denver, Colorado tonight.What I found are two examples of globalization's influence on government and politics. The pairing seems highly ironic to me. How would your students react?
ONE:
This one has to do with legal systems and libel laws. A Saudi banker, an American journalist, and an English court. It might be a good opportunity for students to discuss the links created by globalization.
From The Guardian (UK):
US author mounts 'libel tourism' challenge
"A ferocious attack on the 'chilling effect' of the English law of libel and its use by wealthy 'foreign tourists' will be mounted in a top US court today, with backing from organisations that represent a majority of the world's media.
"The case is being brought in the New York state court of appeals by an American academic, Rachel Ehrenfeld, against one of the richest men in the world, the Saudi investment banker Khalid bin Mahfouz. Her lawyers describe it as the most important first amendment - free speech - case in the past 50 years.
"A ferocious attack on the 'chilling effect' of the English law of libel and its use by wealthy 'foreign tourists' will be mounted in a top US court today, with backing from organisations that represent a majority of the world's media.
"The case is being brought in the New York state court of appeals by an American academic, Rachel Ehrenfeld, against one of the richest men in the world, the Saudi investment banker Khalid bin Mahfouz. Her lawyers describe it as the most important first amendment - free speech - case in the past 50 years.
"Ehrenfeld's 2003 book, Funding Evil: How Terrorism Is Financed - and How to Stop it, alleged that Mahfouz and his two sons financed al-Qaida through the family's ownership of the National Commercial Bank of Saudi Arabia and through connections with Islamic charities. In 2004, Mahfouz won a default defamation judgment against her in the high court by the leading libel judge, Mr Justice Eady. He awarded damages and costs against her estimated at £110,000..."
TWO:
Xenophobia destroys EU's ultra-rightwing MEP group
"Europe's first international grouping of neo-fascists, extreme nationalists and ultra-rightwingers collapsed in disarray yesterday, with its members incapable of overcoming the nationalist hostilities pitting them against one another.
"The Identity, Tradition and Sovereignty grouping of MEPs from Italy, France, Austria, Bulgaria, Romania and Britain in the European parliament fell apart in acrimony because of the disputes between Italy and Romania over immigration and crime.
"This week Alessandra Mussolini, the Italian neo-fascist, MEP and granddaughter of the Italian dictator, declared that all Romanians were criminals, triggering outrage among MEPs from Romania's extreme Greater Romania party. Five quit the ITS caucus in protest, meaning that the transnational club failed to muster the 20 MEPs needed to qualify as a caucus in the European parliament and to benefit from funding and perks...
"Ashley Mote, previously of the UK Independence party and currently serving a prison sentence for benefit fraud, was the sole British member of the caucus.
"The caucus linked France's National Front with Italy's neo-fascists, a former disciple of Jörg Haider, the Austrian nationalist, and xenophobes from Romania and Bulgaria. But the grouping struggled to hold together, not least because of mutually antagonistic nationalisms..."
posted by Ken Wedding @ 9:38 PM
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