Böcker av James Hughes

This volume explores the common trends and differences in the responses of the new post-Soviet states to the problems of state-building in ethnically and regionally divided societies.

This 1991 book makes an important contribution to the evaluation of the origins of Stalinism. Dr Hughes presents an in depth examination of the crisis of the New Economic Policy from the regional perspective of Siberia and analyses the events and pressures 'from below', at the grassroots level of Soviet society.

Here is a light, pithy book on the familiar theme: "The humanities are in deep trouble." Walter Kaufmann, Professor of Philosophy at Princeton and advocate of humanism in his writings on philosophy, literature, religion, as well as through his own poetry and translations, is vexed that so many of his fellow academicians are indifferent to the nature, purpose, and fate of the humanities. He calls these professors "scholastics" because they pursue arcane knowledge and treat learning as "a kind of 'sport,' if not a game, or a racket." He accuses them, along with the "journalists," who purvey superficial and erroneous information, of undermining the stature of the humanities, but he believes that stature can be restored by making the goals and methods of the humanities explicit and demanding. The principal goal is "to teach vision," which is a sense of values and the meaning of experience, and this can be achieved only by scrutinizing language and ideas, developing critical thought, and constructing intellectual syntheses. Kaufmann does not offer these convictions as mere generalizations but embodies them in concrete pedagogical and scholarly proposals (with examples from his own teaching). He has also "leaned over backwards not to be gentle" to his enemies, so he is more specific, direct, and argumentative than educational writers usually are. Readers will not sleep through Kaufmann's pages, and even if they reject his ideas, they will lay the book aside wondering, as Kaufmann wants them to do: "What kind of future would we like to build?" (Kirkus Reviews)

The conflict in Chechnya involves many of the most contentious issues in contemporary international politics. By providing us with a persuasive and challenging study, Hughes sets out the indispensable lessons for other conflicts involving the volatile combination of insurgency and counterinsurgency, most notably the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Argues that technologies pushing the boundaries of humanness can radically improve our quality of life - IF they are controlled democratically and made equally available in a liberal society