Distinct Political Cultures Research Articles

Global prescriptions and local adaptations: the role of political culture in shaping governance strategies for university funding

ABSTRACT This article explores the influence of New Public Management (NPM) reforms on local higher education (HE) governance in the context of globalisation, focussing on the funding mechanisms of universities in Hong Kong and Taiwan. Through the development of an analytical framework for governance strategies, the study examines the principles underlying funding allocation and distribution decisions in these regions. The findings show that, although both regions adopt performance-based funding aligned with NPM principles, significant differences emerge due to their distinct political cultures and societal expectations. Taiwan’s strategy is characterised by regulatory oversight driven by societal shifts and electoral pressures, while Hong Kong’s approach is market-oriented, reflecting its British colonial heritage and alignment with industry demands. This study highlights the role of path dependency in shaping localised adaptations of global governance models, demonstrating the diversity and adaptability of HE governance strategies. The paper concludes by proposing directions for further research into the interplay between political culture and HE governance, advocating for the development of context-sensitive frameworks that address evolving governance strategies.

Political and Intercultural Communication in Determining Presidential Candidates in the Indonesian Elections 2024

This study explores the dynamics of political communication in Indonesia, focusing on the 2024 presidential elections. As the country prepares for the presidential election in February 2024, since the general election is a form of post-reformation democratic process implementation that began in 1998, the process of forming political coalitions has become a significant aspect of the political landscape. Utilizing a phenomenological approach, the research examines the interplay between three distinct political cultures—parochial, subject, and participant—and their influence on voter engagement and candidate selection. Through in-depth interviews and participatory observation, the study reveals how political parties can tailor their communication strategies to resonate with diverse voter segments, thereby enhancing electoral participation and fostering a more inclusive democratic process. The findings highlight significant implications for political actors and scholars alike. By recognizing the unique characteristics and needs of each political culture, parties can develop effective coalition-building strategies that bridge cultural divides and mobilize support across Indonesia's heterogeneous electorate. This research not only fills existing gaps in the literature regarding the role of intercultural communication in Indonesian politics but also provides practical recommendations for political parties aiming to improve their engagement with voters. Ultimately, the study underscores the critical importance of adaptive communication strategies in promoting a more informed, engaged, and representative democratic system in Indonesia. Keywords: Elections, intercultural communication, political communication, political parties, presidential candidate.

War as a game: the pleasurable and playful aspects of the Italian Arditi’s military experiences in the First World War

This article proposes that several First World War Italian shock troops known as Arditi were strongly influenced in their wartime combat activities by fun and play. Even before becoming stormtroopers, various soldiers were guided by a tendency to see the Great War as ludic or athletic event. Such proclivity stemmed from these servicemen’s distinctive political cultures and ideologies. As a result of their viewpoints, these servicemen had already fought intensely in the initial stages of their military service. Additionally, the Italian army vastly increased the combat effectiveness and violent tendencies of recruits to the Arditi corps by making recourse to fun and play while training these prospective stormtroopers. An intense sports-based drilling regimen improved soldiers’ physical agility, while also nurturing their instinctive hostile behaviour. This article shows how Italian soldiers’ cultural and ideological milieus and military drilling increased their fighting power, including their propensity to enact violence against enemies.

The War in Ukraine and Russia’s Quest to Reshape the World Order

Moscow is actively using the conflict in Ukraine to advance its vision of a different international order. This vision emphasises a world fragmented into spheres of influence centred on a handful of ‘civilisational states’ embodying distinct political cultures not necessarily compatible with liberalism and democracy. Russia uses its own sphere of influence in Eurasia as the incubator of an alternative set of norms and institutions that it seeks to socialise globally. This Russian vision appeals to other revisionist powers, notably China and Iran, which support Russia’s war in Ukraine largely out of a desire to diminish US influence and consolidate their own regional spheres. Elements of it also appeal across the Global South, now a key arena for competition over the future global order. The outcome of Russia’s war in Ukraine is perhaps the most important determinant of what the coming world order will look like.

SECURITISING HEALTH CRISES ON REGIONAL COOPERATION: HINDERING OR FACILITATING COOPERATION?

The securitisation theory (ST) often gives rise to the debate on the positive and negative dimensions of security. ST is frequently quoted in this debate to explore what happens when threats are labelled as a security issue. The positive and negative points in the debate on ST are closely related to migration, environment, and health. However, like other international relations (IR) theories, the ST debate often fails to reflect the voices and experiences of different regional contexts. This article contributed to the securitisation debates by adding the perspectives and experiences of the Southeast Asia region by applying critical literature review analysis, using primary and secondary sources data collection. Although public health challenges are global phenomena, the way they are addressed may vary across geographical regions. The article reviews the consequences of securitising on contagious diseases in Southeast Asia as the region is often associated with distinctive political cultures that shape the governing norms. Securitisation has clearly made a positive impact on the health security cooperation in the region. Instead of encouraging state-centric thinking, the securitisation of health crises has prompted ASEAN countries to be more region-centric, ultimately challenging the regional norms that have historically obstructed cooperation across the nations. Keywords: ASEAN, health security, regional cooperation, securitisation theory, Southeast Asia. Cite as: Mohd Azmi, N. (2024). Securitising health crises on regional cooperation: Hindering or facilitating cooperation. Journal of Nusantara Studies, 9(2), 557-576. http://dx.doi.org/10.24200/jonus.vol9iss2pp557-576

“Our Hearts and Brains Are Like Paper, We Never Forget”: Indigenous Petitioning and the World Wars

Indigenous veterans have been celebrated for their achievements in the two world wars, adding needed texture to Canada’s half-century at war. However, Indigenous peoples on the home front have remained periphery to the study of Indigenous peoples’ experiences of the world wars, leaving veterans and military eligible men as the main protagonists in the story. Those individuals left on reserve experienced the conditions of war, the mobilization of the Canadian state for war, and the enlistment of Indigenous men into the army differently than enlisted men. Analyzing Indigenous petitioners’ political advocacy during the First World War and the Second World War offers a more textured and complex representation of Indigenous peoples’ experiences during the world wars. By negotiating their place within the settler Canadian state, while also clearly defining their sovereignty and distinct political cultures, Indigenous peoples remained active participants in the political arena during the period from 1914 to 1945. Rather than “awakening” politically on the return of veterans in response to broken promises, Indigenous peoples on the home front deployed and evolved existing political tools and strategies to articulate their responses to wartime policy.

Lucy Hutchinson, John Owen’s Congregation, and the Literary Cultures of Nonconformity

Abstract This article advances the reconstruction of the ‘literary culture of nonconformity’ by examining activities of memorializing and collecting within the congregation with which Lucy Hutchinson was associated in the 1670s. This congregation, led by John Owen, retained a distinctive political culture. In spring 1673, its female adherents included the widow and daughter of former members of the Council of State, while the 15 men in membership included one former Lord Chancellor of Ireland, two members of the first Protectorate Parliament, three former Major-Generals, other former officers, several of whom after the Restoration had been imprisoned, as well as a younger man who would be elected to the three Exclusion Parliaments. Their literary work provides a critical context for Hutchinson’s projects in collecting, writing and translating in the 1670s. Throughout this period, and thereafter, congregants kept commonplace books with political, theological and biographical materials, gathered collections of transcriptions of Owen’s sermons, and took notes on his published works, largely independently of one another, while engaging with the broader literary and scientific cultures of the period. This activity paralleled that of Hutchinson, who nevertheless retained a critical distance from the fellowship with which she associated. But the evidence of these commonplace books speaks to the difficulties of the situation of dissent and suggests that some members found the congregation’s religious expectations increasingly difficult to sustain.

Civil War Treasures: The Ways of the Whigs: Campaign Materials from the Second Party System

[T]hese overtly partisan materials offer the clearest insights into the opinions and self-perceptions of party operatives during the most competitive season of the political calendar. Thus, the ways the Whigs fought their campaigns offer us some fascinating glimpses into the origins of America’s distinctive political culture

Between Rome and Byzantium: The Golden Age of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania’s Political Culture—Second Half of the Fifteenth Century to the First Half of the Seventeenth Century

Between Rome and Byzantium: The Golden Age of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania’s Political Culture—Second Half of the Fifteenth Century to the First Half of the Seventeenth Century

Locating Disparity in Political Culture in Bangladesh: A Comparative Study between Bangali and Rakhine Communities

This study attempts to explore the disparity in Bangali and ethnic political cultures in Bangladesh. Methodologically, Barishal Sadar and a village under this Upazila and a para of Rakhine community at Kalapara thana in Patuakhali district were taken as a case study to conduct an analysis of the disparity of political cultures between ethnic and Bangali communities in Bangladesh. It is observed from the analysis that there is a huge disparity between Rakhine and Bangali political cultures except in certain cases. In every case, Bangali people behave subjective and participative in communication with political issues, whereas Rakhine people behave parochially except on the question of objectives of the government, political parties and political rights in this regard. It is also observed that no specific political culture exists in Bangali communities, but the Rakhine community behaves parochially in every case. Therefore, in the case of Rakhine community, the concept of civic culture is not applicable but in the Bangali communities, there are no distinct political cultures, but rather a mixed one, which is termed as a civic culture. The causes of the parochial political culture of Rakhines are their dearth of education, backwardness, scarce of mobility as well as apathetic political communication.

North Carolina’s Revolutionary Founders ed. by Jeff Broadwater and Troy L. Kickler

Reviewed by: North Carolina’s Revolutionary Founders ed. by Jeff Broadwater and Troy L. Kickler Kimberly B. Sherman North Carolina’s Revolutionary Founders. Edited by Jeff Broadwater and Troy L. Kickler. (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2019. Pp. [viii], 312. Paper, $29.95, ISBN 978-1-4696-5120-0; cloth, $90.00, ISBN 978-1-4696-5119-4.) In North Carolina’s Revolutionary Founders, Jeff Broadwater and Troy L. Kickler have assembled an impressive collection of essays that reflect the variety of approaches taken and attitudes held by North Carolina’s Revolutionary generation. While much historiographical attention has centered on the well-known names of Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, James Madison, and others, this volume looks to their lesser-known contemporaries to unpack the lives and careers of North Carolina’s “‘ordinary founders’” (p. 1). Against the historical backdrop of federalism, the contributors have brought to life a diverse group, from the women of the 1774 Edenton Tea Party, the leaders of the Catawba and Cherokee Nations, and the free black preacher John Chavis to the more recognizable names of William Hooper, James Iredell, and Richard Dobbs Spaight Sr. While not a “comprehensive” history of Revolutionary North Carolina, the volume highlights the contributions of those who were active in the Revolution [End Page 456] or in the crafting of the Constitution (p. 17). The resulting essays reveal a wide range of opinions among the founding generation, who sought to balance the pragmatic needs and interests of nascent national and state governments with the principles of republicanism. But why North Carolina? Broadwater and Kickler point to the state’s “unique history and distinctive political culture,” which “bred in many North Carolinians an intense localism and a distrust of government in general” (p. 2). All these essays are written to better understand the types of political orders that North Carolina’s founding generation had in mind for the future of their state and nation. The first essays focus on North Carolina’s Revolutionaries. Maggie Hartley Mitchell looks at the influence of the fifty-one women who signed a petition at a gathering known as the Edenton Tea Party, situating the women’s actions against the economic backdrop of Edenton, North Carolina, and the transgression of traditional gender roles through intentional political activism. Broadwater’s essay on William Hooper, Joseph Hewes, and John Penn highlights the lack of consensus among the men who signed the Declaration of Independence and their diverse visions for the founding of a new nation. Contributions from James MacDonald and Michael Toomey look to the west. MacDonald’s work on the Catawbas and Cherokees shows how Revolutionaries attempted to woo Native Americans to support their cause against the British. The Catawbas and Cherokees weighed their options; the Catawbas chose to support the American cause in hopes of survival, while the Cherokees descended into war as a result of the generational and political split in their communities. As the Revolution came to a close, many white Americans looked westward. There, John Sevier envisioned a “‘common country’” where, according to Toomey, western landownership was the realization of the pursuit of happiness and American liberty despite the resulting loss of independence for Native Americans (p. 89). The next set of essays focus on North Carolina’s Federalist leadership at the Constitutional Convention and in the debates leading up to ratification. Jennifer Davis-Doyle investigates North Carolina’s own “Renaissance man,” Hugh Williamson, who promoted education and a strong central government (p. 114). Spaight is the subject of Karl Rodabaugh’s research, which concludes that, while Spaight’s ideas on the federal government were nothing remarkable or unique, Spaight played a key role in the founding generation. Lloyd Johnson examines Revolutionary military hero and two-time North Carolina governor Richard Caswell, whose influence led to important court reforms in the colony before the Revolution and the provision of deerskins to the Continental army during the war. Finally, Willis P. Whichard analyzes Iredell’s influential career in the era after the ratification of the Constitution and during his service on the United States Supreme Court. The strength of Anti-Federalism in North Carolina is explored in Jason Stroud’s essay on Samuel...

The Risks of Referendums: 'Referendum Culture' in Ireland as a Solution?

Referendums, in the aftermath of Brexit and with the rise of populist movements worldwide, are viewed with great skepticism, seen as a means for populist leaders and elites to manipulate or mislead voters rather than any positive exercise in democracy. Ireland tells a somewhat different story. In Ireland, referendums to change the constitution are, increasingly, regularly held and, surveys suggests, extremely popular. They also do not display many of the worst traits that critics fear. Experts are generally respected and their views are embraced. There have not been widespread problems of fake news and manipulation of the referendum process. Prominent roles have been given to civil society groups and, more recently, citizens’ assemblies in initiation of referendums and, in the former case, in campaigning. There is evidence of voters adopting very nuanced views of the issues they are voting on. There is evidence of people being wary of uncertain and unclear proposals, even if they favor the change in principle. These are remarkably positive features, by and large avoiding the major problems suggested by critics of referendums This is probably in spite of, not because of, Ireland’s formal referendum regulation, which is skeletal at best. It is, I suggest, primarily a function of a “referendum culture” which has developed over time and from experience, and exists and a set of unspoken cultural assumptions that guide people, politicians and campaigners and seemingly produce positive results. In this paper, I seek to illustrate certain aspects of this culture that are apparent from recent referendum campaigns, and also to point out its limitations and drawbacks. The Irish experience may suggest that some of the core critique of referendums are contingent, not fundamental: that you can have a functional referendum process with the development of a culture of referendums. But it also suggests that it might be difficult to achieve, probably requires long experience and development of culture, and is always a precarious achievement. The efficacy of this culture in Ireland may be threatened by the rise of social media, where there is, as yet, no formal rules and no effective culture around it. In this, Ireland affirms one of the core critiques of referendums: that they are poor mechanisms for occasional or ad hoc use, and should only be deployed where there is time and opportunity for distinctive political cultures around referendums to develop. Even then, there is no guaranteed recipe for success.

College Completion, the Texas Way: An Examination of the Development of College Completion Policy in a Distinctive Political Culture

BackgroundCollege-completion policies dominate state higher education policy agendas. Yet we know little about how policy actors make decisions—and what sources of evidence they use—within this policy domain.Focus of StudyThis study explores the use of evidence in college-completion policymaking in depth, focusing on Texas. In addition to exploring policymakers’ use of different types of information, this study examines the role played by intermediaries.Research DesignWe employed a qualitative case study design drawing on interviews with 32 policy actors engaged in college-completion policy in Texas. Our analysis consisted of both deductive coding (based on our a priori coding scheme) and inductive coding (based on emerging themes) to arrive at our four major findings.Findings/ResultsThe analysis revealed four primary findings. The first theme suggests an insular culture of college-completion policymaking: Policymakers at various levels preferred Texas-based data and rejected the notion that external groups contributed to setting the college completion agenda in Texas. Second, business groups and a business ethos permeated college-completion policymaking in Texas. Third, research evidence was seldom employed in this policy process, partly because policymakers prefer concise and timely information. Finally, the study uncovered a new tactic for supplying research employed by certain intermediaries: punchy messaging, which was effective at garnering attention but also yielded unintended consequences.Conclusions/RecommendationsOverwhelmingly, higher education policy actors tended to prefer Texas-based data. Respondents cited three major reasons for this preference: the high quality of the state higher education coordinating board's data, Texas's unique demographics, and the accessibility of statewide data. These findings reflect the mediating role that is played not only by state structural characteristics, but also by culture. Perceptions of Texas's distinctive inward-looking nature permeated our interviews and set the stage for the role that intermediaries played in the state and the preferences for information. Intermediaries wishing to inform college-completion policy activity at the state level should consider the uniqueness of the state context in supplying information. For states that are more insular, like Texas, working through internal (in-state) intermediaries may be an effective strategy. In light of our findings of preferred types of information, those intending to influence policymaking should consider making information—especially research evidence—concise and easily accessible and establish relationships with policymakers and their staff members.

Riot Grrrl Manifestos and Radical Vernacular Feminism

ABSTRACTThis essay argues that Riot Grrrl manifestos were instrumental in promulgating a form of radical feminism that demonstrates the enduring nature of feminist radicalism. While a great deal of important work has been written on the movement, little attention has been paid to how these manifestos developed a distinctive political language and culture. By foregrounding the volatility of feminine youth and the historical erasure of the girl subject as a radical political agent, Riot Grrrl manifestos redefined the gendered (and ageist) exclusionary practices of the radical public sphere, promoting unified forms of resistance, often symbolised as a personal, albeit contagious, awakening to the realities of harassment, repression, violence and ridicule. This kind of molecular, contingent politics worked to exploit the contradictions inherent in young women's lives rather than to overcome the differences that had splintered more congealed formations of feminist politics. In rejecting the traditional claims of the radical public sphere, Riot Grrl manifestos insist on a vernacular feminism that strategically emphasises micropolitical action over grand narratives of resistance and revolution. While these manifestos draw on aspects of second-wave radical feminism and older forms of avant-garde culture, they push the genre of the manifesto into new territory by stressing everyday forms of resistance, defining their imagined consistency as porous and reactive rather than exclusive or over-determined.

Information Access Rights in FOIA and FOISA – Fit for Purpose?

In this article, Dr Mc Cullagh examines whether the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) and Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA) are fit for purpose as they enter their second decade. A two-fold approach is used to make this determination. Firstly, an assessment of the degree of compliance of both Acts against a set of UN endorsed principles is undertaken. This reveals that neither Act is fully compliant with the normative principles. Secondly, the Acts are compared against each other. The comparative analysis demonstrates that the Acts are creatures of their respective parliaments and that their evolution has been shaped by the distinct political cultures in which they operate. It concludes that at present FOISA offers stronger information rights but that both Acts should be amended to ensure full compliance with the UN endorsed principles if both jurisdictions are to have information rights that are fit for purpose as they enter their second decade.

Multiculturalism and Muslim Accommodation

This article assesses the apparent effect of political multiculturalism on tolerance of Muslim accommodation among native-born majority members. Our principle goal is in understanding how public opinion on religious accommodation varies as a function of both federal multicultural policy, on one hand, and more deeply rooted notions of political culture, on the other. We do so by examining responses to a pair of survey experiments embedded in surveys conducted in Canada and the United States. The experiments allow us to convincingly demonstrate “Muslim exceptionalism.” Contextual comparisons across multicultural policy regimes (Canada and the United States) and within them but across distinct political cultures (Quebec vs. English Canada) lend credence to a fairly subdued role for policy and a much larger one for political culture. These effects are, we argue and show, strongly moderated by support for multiculturalism at the individual-level.

The politics of memory: Commemorating the centenary of the First World War

This symposium examines how the centenary of the First World War has been marked in five countries: Australia, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States. Given their distinctive national historical experiences and political cultures, the metanarratives of the war in these countries differ; as does the relationship between the state and sub-state actors in memory making. However, in each case the commemorations of the war have been shaped by a negotiation between the state and other agents of memory at the sub-state level. National memory has also been consciously projected into international relations, through carefully orchestrated anniversary ceremonies and performative memorial diplomacy. But, despite these transnational commemorative practices, the centenary of the war remains predominantly framed within local and national imaginings.这次研讨会议论了一战百年在奥地利、法国、德国、英国、美国这五个国家是如何庆祝的。考虑到各国不同的历史经验以及政治文化，这些国家关于一战的元叙事各不相同，国家与次国家主体关系的记忆也是如此。不过，每个国家的战争纪念，都是国家与其他次国家层面主体协商的结果。通过精心策划的纪念仪式日以及表演性纪念外交，国家记忆被有意识地投射到了国际关系之中。除了这些跨国纪念活动，一战的记忆主要是在地方以及国家的想象框架内形成的。

The political transformation of the Israeli ‘Russian’ street in the 2013 elections

The Great Aliya from the USSR and the post-Soviet states began a quarter of a century ago, bringing to Israel about 1.1 million Russian-speaking Jews and their family members. This population corresponds to approximately 19 Knesset seats, and is thus a crucial factor in Israeli electoral politics. From the late 1990s this community was almost equally divided in its sympathy between nationwide mainstream parties and Russian sectarian immigrant parties. However, if previously there were either purely sectarian or nationwide parties, in the past decade the majority of Russian Israelis prefer new types of political representation: either a ‘Russian party with an Israeli accent’ (mainly Israel Beiteinu) or an all-Israeli party with some Russian accent (i.e. Likud). Nevertheless, despite the similarities in the ideological orientations and socioeconomic views, the Russian-speaking supporters of both political parties represent two distinct political cultures among the Israeli community of former Soviet Union olim and their children. This may explain why the joint list of Likud–Israel Beiteinu during the 2013 Knesset elections experienced substantial losses of each party's traditional ‘Russian’ (as well as general) voters, many of whom opted this time for parties of the ‘contentious middle class’ – the right-wing Habayit Hayehudi and ‘centrist’ Yesh Atid. This article argues that in the coming years, the Russian community's politics in Israel will continue to search for an optimal model of combination of a party's ethnic base with a mainstream platform, and which constitute an exemplary model and inspiration of political participation for other ethnic or cultural identity oriented groups, such as English-, French- and Amharic-speaking immigrants, and for the ‘new haredim’.

Warsaw Jews and the 1905 Revolution

Scott Ury, Barricades and Banners: The Revolution of 1905 and the Transformation of Warsaw Jewry. 448 pp. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2012. ISBN-13 978-0804763837. $60.00. Russia's first revolution--the revolution of 1905--once occupied a central place in the historiography of imperial Russia. It was a favorite topic of Sovietera historians, whose accounts gave voice to the discontents of the empire's working classes and its national minorities. (1) The events of 1905 also fascinated the Western social historians who came of age in the 1960s and 1970s, whose work carefully reconstructed the microdynamics of revolution in workplaces, neighborhoods, and professional communities. (2) Since the fall of the Soviet Union and the turn away from social history, however, interest in 1905 has flagged considerably. Scott Ury's excellent Barricades and Banners shows that the revolution still has much to offer historians. Contributing to recent conversations about urban space, ethnic relations within the multinational empire, and civil society, his book should rekindle interest in 1905 as a major turning point in Russian, East European, and Jewish history. Ury's central question is why Warsaw Jewry, which was fractured and largely apolitical in the first years of the 20th century, rapidly evolved into a politically conscious and organized collective that went on to play an important role in destabilizing the tsarist regime and in empowering the Zionist movement. This type of problematic is very familiar to social historians, yet Ury does not rely on social analysis to piece together this puzzle. Instead, he emphasizes the role of culture, language, and space in shaping political consciousness. (3) He argues that it was the experience of urban modernity--the dangers associated with the rapidly growing city and the precarious and anonymous lives that recent migrants to it led--that drove many Polish Jews to political activism. He also considers how urban public space shaped ideological expression once radical politics began to take root. Focusing on structures and rather than the actions of parties or individuals (5), Ury documents the rise of a distinctive political culture among Warsaw Jews. That culture, he shows, transcended partisan, class, and occupational divisions, and it ultimately transformed the city at large. Although Ury's primary goal is to trace how Warsaw's Jews came to identify as a coherent collective around 1905, he notes that this transformation cannot be understood without examining their relations with their Polish and Russian neighbors. The rise of an aggressive and exclusive Polish nationalism promoted by the National Democratic Party and the efforts of tsarist officials to transform Warsaw into a model imperial city both shaped Jewish political styles and possibilities. Drawing on sources in Yiddish, Hebrew, Polish, and Russian, Ury joins a strong cohort of multilingual historians who have examined how cross-cultural interactions shaped politics, culture, and ideas in the Russian Empire. (4) Barricades and Banners provides a useful reminder that at the very moment when ordinary residents of the Russian Empire were becoming involved in mass politics, they were also learning how to navigate the diversity of their local communities. Barricades and Banners begins with an examination of the crisis of modernity that gripped 20th-century Warsaw, describing how urbanization, industrialization, and mass migration quickly transformed the face of the city. Mining memoirs and correspondence, Ury offers a vivid account of the sense of despair and isolation that plagued many migrants to the city. Warsaw's burgeoning daily press, which fixated on the dangers and travails of urban life, amplified concerns about grinding poverty, high crime, deficits of social trust, and moral and sexual disorder. Yet, as Ury demonstrates, the public discourse about the crisis of modernity also created opportunities for the formation of new kinds of community; urbanites' very engagement in discussions about the dark sides of urban life created a sense of solidarity and community among one-time strangers. …

If Different, then Why? Explaining the Divergent Political Development of Canadian and American Local Governance

Twenty-five years ago, Goldberg and Mercer argued that differences between Canadian and American cities stemmed from distinct political cultures. Taking an alternative approach, this article surveys the historical development, through a series of critical junctures, of distinct institutional foundations of local government and intergovernmental relations in Canada. These institutional forms—greater reliance on general-purpose local government and more consolidated government in metropolitan areas—were the product of the incremental development of provincial capacities to manage municipal affairs absent in American states and have resulted in the more equitable provision of services and a greater capacity to manage urban economic and environmental change.