Neo-feudalism
Neo-feudalism or new feudalism refers to a theorized contemporary rebirth of policies of governance, economy, and public life reminiscent of those present in many feudal societies, such as unequal rights and legal protections for common people and for nobility.[1]
The concept of "neofeudalism" may focus on economics. Among the issues claimed to be associated with the idea of neofeudalism in contemporary society are class stratification, globalization, mass immigration/illegal immigration, open borders policies, multinational corporations, and "neo-corporatism".[2]
Use and etymology
The term originated as a criticism of the left; an early example being the essay Galbraith's Neo-Feudalism[3] published in 1961. The term is still used by some on the right in that sense in the twenty-first century:
Although he would later become a naturalized American citizen, Soros remains in social outlook very much a European and believer in the paternalistic neo-feudalism euphemistically called "democratic socialism" or "social democracy."[4]
In 1992 Immanuel Wallerstein has made his view on global development of the world, which has neo-feudalism among three other variants, which meant autarky regions with local hierarchy and hi-tech goods available only for elite.[5]
Privatized governance
According to Les Johnston, Clifford Shearing's theoretical approach of neofeudalism has been influential.[6] Shearing "use[s] this term in a limited sense to draw attention to the emergence of domains of mass private property that are ‘gated’ in a variety of ways".[7][8]Cite error: The <ref> tag has too many names (see the help page).
Neofeudalism entails an order defined by commercial interests and administered in large areas, according to Bruce Baker, who argues that this does not fully describe the extent of cooperation between state and non-state policing.[9] The significance of the comparison to feudalism, for Randy Lippert and Daniel O'Connor, is that corporations have power similar to states' governance powers.[10]
The widening of the wealth gap, as poor and marginalized people are excluded from the state's provision of security, can result in neofeudalism, argues Marina Caparini, who says this has already happened in South Africa.[11] Neofeudalism is made possible by the commodification of policing, and signifies the end of shared citizenship, says Ian Loader.[12] A primary characteristic of neofeudalism is that individuals' public lives are increasingly governed by business corporations, as Martha K. Huggins finds.[1] Seattle-based technology billionaire Nick Hanauer has stated that "our country is rapidly becoming less a capitalist society and more a feudal society".[13]
John Braithwaite notes that neofeudalism brings a different approach to governance, since business corporations in particular have this specialized need for loss reduction.[14]
In popular culture
- Frank Herbert's Dune series of novels is set in the distant future with a neofeudalistic galactic empire known as the Imperium after the Butlerian Jihad which prohibits all kinds of thinking machine technology, even its simpler forms.[15]
See also
References
- ^ a b Huggins, Martha K. (2000). "Urban Violence and Police Privatization in Brazil: Blended Invisibility". Social Justice. 27 (2). ISSN 1043-1578.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Thom Hartmann, "Time to Remove the Bananas...and Return Our Republic to Democracy", CommonDreams.org, 6 November 2002
- ^ George Reisman Human Events, February 1961 [1]
- ^ Lowell Ponte "George Soros: Billionaire for the Left" Front Page Magazine, November 13, 2003
- ^ Wallerstein I. Capitalist civilization. -Binghampton (N.Y.), 1992.
Malinovsky P. V. (2001). "Globalisation as a Civilization Shaping Process". Russia and the modern world (Россия и современный мир) (2). ИНИОН РАН: 7 (5–30). ISSN 1726-5223. - ^ Johnston, Les (1999). "Private Policing in Context". European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research. 7 (2): 175–196. doi:10.1023/A:1008753326991.
- ^ Shearing, Clifford (2001). "Punishment and the Changing Face of the Governance". Punishment & Society. 3 (2): 203–220. doi:10.1177/1462474501003002001.
- ^ Shearing, Clifford D. (1983). "Private Security: Implications for Social Control". Social Problems. 30 (5): 493–506. doi:10.1525/sp.1983.30.5.03a00020. ISSN 0037-7791.
- ^ Baker, Bruce (2004). "Protection from crime: what is on offer for Africans?" (PDF). Journal of Contemporary African Studies. 22 (2): 165–188. doi:10.1080/cjca0258900042000230005. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-03-17.
{{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Lippert, Randy; O'Connor, Daniel (2006). "Security Intelligence Networks and the Transformation of Contract Private Security". Policing & Society. 16 (1): 50–66. doi:10.1080/10439460500399445.
- ^ Caparini, Marina (2006). "Applying a Security Governance Perspective to the Privatisation of Security" (PDF). In Bryden, Alan; Caparini, Marina (eds.). Private Actors and Security Governance. LIT Verlag. pp. 263–282. ISBN 3-8258-9840-7. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-03-19.
{{cite encyclopedia}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Loader, Ian (1999). "Consumer Culture and the Commodification of Policing and Security". Sociology. 33 (2): 373–392. doi:10.1177/S003803859900022X.
- ^ Nick Hanauer (July 2014). "The Pitchforks Are Coming… For Us Plutocrats". Politico Magazine.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ Braithwaite, John (2000). "The New Regulatory State and the Transformation of Criminology" (PDF). The British Journal of Criminology. 40 (2): 222–238. doi:10.1093/bjc/40.2.222.
- ^ Erman, Eva; Möller, Niklas (August 2013), "What's Wrong with Politics in the Duniverse?", in Nicholas, Jeffery (ed.), Dune and Philosophy: Weirding Way of the Mentat, Popular Culture and Philosophy Series, vol. 56, Open Court, p. 66, ISBN 0812697278
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External links
