The essay argues that the world system actually began its development five thousand years ago and capital accumulation has been the driving force of this development since its beginning. The authors define the world system by reference to a systematic network of transfer of economic surplus among regions, which links their own systems of exploitation and accumulation into an over-arching system of super-accumulation. They contend that the center/periphery/hinterland complex is the basic hierarchical ordering pattern of the world system. It can be shown that there has been continuous and cumulative accumulation in world system history, the study of which identifies better bases for system-transforming socio-political praxis.

Democracy for the Third World is likely to become a flag for continued exploitation and oppression of the South by the North, for as long as lack of democracy remains for the world economy as a whole, political democracy in any part of the world can be of limited scope at best. A realistic prospect is the growing threat to countries, regions and peoples to be marginalized. A dual economy and society on a global scale seems now to be in the process of formation in the world system. The present day changes in Eastern Europe through which its people aspire to join the "First" World now also threaten instead to place them to the Third one. The problem cannot be solved by the finally sure fire snake oil remedies that are being ideologically sold and bought, i.e. privatisation and political democracy.

During the burial of the planned economy, the American author speaks out in favour of some of its advantages seeing in them a form of mixed economy of the future.

The founder of our journal's predecessor who lives in Britain analyses the nature of capitalism giving a detailed and many-sided picture of the importance of militarism in the system of capital stabilising the economy and the system.

In connection with the collapse of socialism, the author discusses the reality of the establishment of a self-government model which she thinks is no less realistic than the strongly criticised state socialism, or the recapitalisation experiment which holds out at least as grave dangers for Eastern Europe.