国有企业的私有化与反补贴税——"欧共体钢铁案"专家组和上诉机构报告通过后之美国商务部的动态

与国有企业的私有化牵扯在一起的反补贴税问题(privatization-related coun-tervailing duty issues),是美国商务部(以下简称商务部)在反补贴税实践中遇到的难题,也是补贴与反补贴税研究领域里的前沿性课题。在最近几年的国际国内判例中,商务部在其应对国有企业私有化的行政作法连续几次被否决之后,放弃原有作法并出台了“新行政作法”。本文的目的在于分析商务部“新行政作法”的具体内容和主要论点,并评析其给《SCM协定》规定的补贴与反补贴纪律带来的新问题。     

对"转型经济国家"的反补贴调查与补贴的认定——以美国对中国出口铜版纸反补贴调查为例

一、问题的提出2006年11月21日,美国商务部(以下简称商务部)对中国出口铜版纸发起反补贴调查,拉开了中美贸易史上美国对华反补贴调查的序幕。[1]针对中国铜版纸生产企业是否得到政府补     

俄罗斯土地私有化与农业政策调整

土地私有化是俄罗斯农业改革的切入点 ,也是俄罗斯变革土地所有制关系 ,在农村全面实行私有制的重要举措。无论是前总统叶利钦还是现任总统普京 ,都倾注全力推进土地私有化进程。土地私有化不仅引起土地所有制关系的重大变革 ,而且客观上也要求俄罗斯对农业政策做出重大调整。本文依据相关资料 ,首先对叶利钦时期和普京时期土地私有化的基本情况、特点和问题进行了全面分析 ;在此基础上 ,考察了俄农业改革和土地私有化所带来的正负效应 ;继而阐述了俄罗斯基于农业改革和土地私有化的现实问题而对农业政策所做的调整 ;最后得出了若干结论。     

智利的养老保险私有化改革

智利的养老保险私有化改革是对传统社会养老保险制度的一种创新,它突出强调了个人在社会保障中的责任,其私有化的养老金管理带来了较高的投资回报,促进了国内储蓄率的提高和资本市场的发育,对我国当前养老保险改革有关重要的借鉴意义 随着全球人口老龄化、经济危机、失业率增加等原因,原有的社会保障制度和社会福利体系面临日益严峻的支付危机,以英国和瑞典为代表的“从摇篮到坟墓”的高福利政策给财政赤字增加了重重压力,巨额的社会保障支出带来了高额的公共开支和不平衡预算,反过来又导致高利率和低投资,高福利又引致了高税     

从公共管理的视角分析社会保障私有化趋势

私有化已成为社会保障制度改革的趋势.目前,我国正处于社会保障制度的建立和完善时期,特别是养老保险基金管理的问题一直引起世人关注.因此,研究当前国际范围内的社会保障私有化改革有助于我们认清当前各家提出的观点和意见,建立适合我国实际情况的社会保障制度.本文从公共管理的角度分析了社会保障私有化改革的原因和理论基础,认为私有化改革是社会保障制度天然具有的公共性与制度运行所要求的效率性矛盾得以妥协的结果.     

应对气候变化措施同WTO原则的冲突——理论与实证分析

与贸易有关的环境措施在GATT/WTO法律层面持续引起学者们对贸易与环境问题的激烈争论。而气候变化博弈中,WTO成员方采取应对气候变化的单边措施,可能违反了WTO的非歧视原则和其他若干规则。对从未做出碳减排承诺的国家进口的产品征收反补贴税可能违反SCM协定,TRIPs协定很难成功适用于气候友好型技术的转让与应用之中,这都是气候变化下WTO争端问题凸显的主因。本文通过探讨碳关税等应对气候变化措施与WTO的一致性,对GATT/WTO关于贸易与环境的争端解决案例进行解读,探寻气候变化下WTO争端解决的未来走向,对我国频发的贸易摩擦提出应对策略。     

东欧的私有化方案:西方经验不适用

私有化改善经济效益的功能“私有化”意味着国家对公司活动影响的减少。除此之外,再没有普遍为人们接受的关于“私有化”的定义。这一术语通常是指原来由国家开办的企业转到私人部门。实现这种转变的方式是把国家的经济实体转为股份公司,再把股票卖给机构或个人。这样做的同时可以配合采取(也可能不采取)某些能够提高竞争性的措施,而国营公司往往是法定的垄断者。这一术语也被用来概括国家机构在很大程度上对市场的利用,如与私人签订合同,由其     

物权法应界定"公共利益"吗?

中华人民共和国物权法草案(以下简称“物权法草案”)再次向社会公布征求意见,其中第49条关于征收、征用的规定受到了广泛的质疑,质疑者强烈要求物权法对作为征收、征用理由的“公共利益”进行界定。但是“公共利益”真的应该由作为民法一部分的物权法来界定吗?     

关于国有企业讨论的最新进展及背景原因分析

在国际垄断资本寻求投资场所和利润来源、国内对于中国下一步改革方向和目标存在不同认识等背景下,国有企业成为社会各界关注的热点.当前关于国企地位和作用、国企改革内容和方向的讨论中,双方观点对比鲜明,围绕“国企低效论”、“国企垄断论”、“国企腐败论”、“国企与民争利论”、“国企产权不清晰论”、“国企股权多元化”等论点展开激烈讨论.国企话题的热议不仅有国企自身经营过程中的原因,也与媒体报道的倾向性等外在因素有关.针对不同的社会思潮,应采取以下措施:防止经济学“西化”,警惕改头换面的新自由主义;在坚持社会主义基本经济制度的前提下,深化国有企业改革;加强对国企作用的研究和宣传,做好舆论引导.     

发展公有制经济坚定搞好国有企业的信心

搞好国有企业是社会主义的本质规定和需要。我国经济能够在激烈的国际竞争中持续稳步发展,都与国有企业发挥的巨大作用密不可分。进一步搞好国有企业才能进一步体现和发挥社会主义制度在发展社会生产力方面的优越性。发展壮大国有经济,搞好国有企业是科学发展观的应有之义。资本主义国家在市场前提下也在大力发展国有经济。俄罗斯大规模推行私有化后,经济严重倒退。从俄罗斯私有化的结果看,私有化并不能摒除国企的弊病。     

Considering Improvisation: Play,Transitional Space,and Discovery

This article explores the concept of improvisation in the therapeutic setting as a complex construction when elaborated in the idiom of jazz music. A composite clinical case is offered that illustrates an impasse and how improvisational thinking offers a way forward. Improvisation has recently been conceptualized through the metaphor of theater improvisation, dance, and rhythm. The therapeutic hour is considered an improvisational dialogue with the main theme (melody) and counter melodies, and harmonic possibilities that underlie the rhythmic pulse of the hour. Improvisation requires a reflective/interpretive process that draws on patterns, structures, and experiences reformulated in the relational field of the participants. The client initiates the call and response pattern, from which improvisation emerges as a mutual process of discovery. A more relaxed, receptive, and reflective posture extends Winnicott’s 1971 notion of play to integrate classic understanding and relational interaction.     

Objective Tests versus Subjective tests

objective test has only one correct answer, while subjective test has a range of possible answers. Because of this feature, reliability will not be difficult to achieve in the marking of the objective item, while the marking of the subjective items is reliable. On the whole, a good test must contain both subjective and objective test items.     

Comments on the National College English Test

College English Test is an important national test for Chinese college students, this paper introduces the distribution of scores, time of examination, and analyses the four parts in CET ,such as listening comprehension, reading comprehension, integrated testing, and writing based on testing theories.     

Abstracts of theses: Smith College School for Social Work,July 1954

Abstract

Many clients relate in ways that elicit emotional responses in practitioners and may also feel pressure to intervene when appropriate action is not yet clear. Practitioners must develop sufficient self-awareness so their own reactions do not interfere with the work they do with clients. Educators exhort their students to be self-aware, but locating methods that foster the capacity can be difficult. Infant observation is an elegant training model that helps to develop self-awareness. The method described here makes use of regular observation, supportive small groups, and repeated detailed examination of what is seen in training both generalist and specialized practitioners. It has become a prototype for the observational study of several kinds of specific populations. Because it attends to people in their own environments and demonstrates a flexible, reflective, multi-modal manner of information-gathering, infant observation is particularly useful in the education of social work practitioners.     

India's Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Act: Assessing the quality of access and adequacy of benefits in MGNREGS public works

The extension of social protection to all has become a central policy objective, both nationally and internationally. A considerable number of middle‐ and low‐income countries have undertaken substantial efforts to extend social protection, while the international community reaffirmed its commitment to the extension of social protection through the adoption of the ILO Recommendation concerning National Floors of Social Protection, No. 202 (2012). This article reviews the legal provisions and the implementation of the Indian Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), legislated in 2005, and does so in the light of the more recent provisions of ILO Recommendation No. 202. Since its introduction ten years ago, MGNREGA has provided a source of income to rural workers, increased wage rates, achieved high female participation rates and created durable assets. India's local governance bodies, Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRI), have been empowered and involved in the processes of planning and monitoring. However, despite successes, there have been considerable shortcomings in implementation. This article highlights two central themes: first, the innovative policy framework of the Act, which brings together rights‐based entitlements, demand‐driven employment, and citizen‐centred monitoring. Second, it assesses the accessibility and adequacy of benefits in the implementation of MGNREGA. We conclude that MGNREGA offers potential for South‐South learning, both in terms of policy‐design and implementation.     

The gender gap in pensions in Latin America

Lower female lifetime labour market participation rates, greater interruptions during their working lives, and wage gaps contribute to create gender gaps in pensions at the time of retirement. The design of social security systems may reinforce or attenuate these gaps. This article provides new evidence on gender gaps in access to pensions and in pension income in four Southern Cone countries in Latin America and analyses their evolution between 2000 and 2013, showing significant improvements in both gaps, with differential patterns by countries. The decrease in the gender gap in pension income has been particularly significant in Argentina and Brazil. In both cases, the largest increases in pension values during the period correspond to the lowest income percentiles, where women are overrepresented. The application of redistributive policies in these countries, aimed at reducing poverty and inequality but not necessarily focused on gender equity, has had positive and probably unintended consequences in terms of reduction in gender gaps in pensions.     

From “Either‐Or” to “When and How”: A Context‐Dependent Model of Culture in Action

In this article, I outline a framework for the sociological study of culture that connects three intertwined elements of human culture (cultural motivations, resources, and meanings) and demonstrates the concrete contexts under which each most critically influences actions and their subsequent outcomes. In contrast to models that cast motivations, resources, and meanings as competing explanations of how culture affects action, I argue that these are fundamental constituent elements of culture that are inseparable, interdependent, and simultaneously operative. Which element provides the strongest link to action, and how this link operates, must be understood as a function of the actor's position within wider social contexts. I argue that on average motivations have the most discernable link to action within a social strata, cultural resources provide the strongest link across strata, and meanings have the greatest direct influence when codified and sanctioned. I then offer a reframing and synthesis that reintegrates previously “competing” theories of culture into a more holistic context‐dependent model of culture in action. Finally, I use evidence from prior empirical research, as well as new data from an ongoing ethnographic study of health behaviors among the aged, to show how various elements of culture are concretely linked to action in eight different social contexts. In doing so, I provide a roadmap for the transition out of the “either‐or” logic underlying much of cultural theory and reemphasize the importance of the classical sociological concern for “when” and “how” various aspects of culture influence action and outcomes in concrete social contexts.     

Is subsidiarity a conditio sine qua non for sustainability?

This paper argues that subsidiarity is a condicio sine qua non for sustainability. Through the complexity paradigm, the paper provides a historical reconstruction of both concepts to the end of elucidating their interdependence. The main thesis is that subsidiarity to sustainability is what self-organisation is to emergence. The paper ends with a sketch of future global governance structures based on a subsidiarity where cities take the lead on sustainability.     

Global employment and decent jobs, 2010–2030: The forces of demography and automation

Globally, an estimated 734 million jobs will be required between 2010 and 2030 to accommodate recent and ongoing demographic shifts, account for plausible changes in labour force participation rates, and achieve target unemployment rates of at or below 4 per cent for adults and at or below 8 per cent for youth. The facts that most new jobs will be required in countries where “decent” jobs are less prevalent and workers in many occupations are increasingly subject to risks of automation further compound the challenge of job creation, which is already quite sizable in historical perspective. Failure to create the jobs that are needed through 2030 would put currently operative social security systems under pressure and undermine efforts to guarantee the national social protection floors enshrined in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).