Information society development in Hungary regarding social capital
The Hungarian information society – regardless to its modest development – is increasingly divided. In addition to the known reasons, it should be considered that the majority of the outcasts have neither direct contact with PCs and internet (the feature devices of information society), nor with persons using these devices on a daily basis. In order to break the cultural and knowledge barriers, that mostly responsible for the digital division, we have to launch such IT programs that regenerate incomplete social contacts in order to speed up the spread of innovation, new values and attitudes.
Open source software and the potential for democratisation
The article uses practical approach with everyday examples of the application of IT and communication devices and software showing that the use of simple looking technology how deeply affects everyday life and also democracy.
The structural crisis in politics
In recent times, not only the US but also other western democracies can be described as "two-rightwing-party-systems" or in practice as one-party-systems – monopolising political decision making by an institutional structure based on self-legitimising consensus. What are the social grounds and structural reasons that develop the negative tendencies in politics and justice – putting away political liberties, because they cause only trouble? The spoor leads to the structural crisis of the capitalist way of social reproduction.
Globalisation in retreat
It seems that globalisation heralded in the early 90s has lost its power by now. The article analyses the underlying reasons – the fight of capital groups, the reinforcement of national economy frameworks and the resistance against globalisation. According to the author, "from today's vantage point, globalization appears to have been not a new, higher phase in the development of capitalism but a response to the underlying structural crisis of this [capitalist] system of production."
Geoffrey M. Hodgson and institutional economics – Interview by Carlos Mallorquín
UK economist Geoffry Hodgson tells his way from marxism to institutional economics and the change in academic economics from pluralism to conformism. In the 70s, representatives of a wide range of schools were present at faculties of the best universities and in addition mainstream economists also tried to address actual questions. Now, on the contrary, the wide spectrum has vanished, and parallel with the growing enthusiasm for mathematical methods economists are less interested in the validity of their models.