Alessandro Bonanno

The Tuna-Dolphin Controversy

This study uses the case of the tuna-dolphin controversy to inform discussions in the sociology of agriculture regarding global post-Fordism in general and the new mode of regulation in particular. Global post-Fordism is defined as the global economic restructuring in progress and the associated emergence of transnational corporations (TNCs) and transnational-States. Mode of regulation is the historically specific set of social norms that are institutionalized within civil society—primarily by the State—whose regularity underpins continued accumulation.

The agro-food sector and the transnational state: The case of the EC

Abstract Employing the case of the European Community, the paper discusses the relationship between the state and the economy in the evolving global organization of the agricultural and food sector. It is maintained that a gap between the sphere of action of the economy and the sphere of action of the state has been created. This situation is the consequence of the process of globalization which has characterized the evolution of socio-economic arrangements. Furthermore, it is maintained that this gap has been partially addressed by the emergence of transnational state forms. This solution, however, is ultimately partial as it entails a spatial dimension which does not encompass the global range of activity of transnational economic actors.

The Status of Rural Elderly in Southern Italy: a Political Economic View

Discussions of the position of the elderly have typically been cast in terms of demographic considerations and/or level of industrialisation. In contradistinction to this approach we employ a political economic perspective which reveals the contradictions present in the situation of aged small farmers in southern Italy. Using a dialectic approach, it is argued that the function performed by the small farm sector, that of keeper of the surplus labour force, is extended to deal with the elderly population. Within this context, rurality assumes a permanent posture as the aged farmers are maintained at the margin of the labour market and are eventually expelled from it. At the same time, this farming segment substitutes for other social agencies as a caretaker for a portion of the older population. This function, however, creates social tensions for it mandates continuous State support for the survival of these farms, demands which are resisted by the bourgeoisie and certain segments of the working class. Even if it were deemed appropriate, the State cannot extend its support to small farms without simultaneously calling forth a fiscal and legitimation crisis stemming from its policy coverage.

Agricultural policies and the capitalist State

The paper examines the social contradictions generated by patterns of reproduction of accumulation of capital, social legitimation and by present agricultural policies fostered by the State. Through a scrutiny of the role of the State in capitalism it is argued that agricultural overproduction, the widening of the gap between small and large farms, the fiscal crisis of the State associated with agricultural programs and waste of resources are the outcomes of an attempt on the part of the State to promote simultaneously accumulation and legitimation. The possibility of enhancing accumulation and maintaining legitimation clashes with the diverse socio-economic demands associated with the present agricultural production system and the general viability of the social structure as a whole.

Analyzing development, dependency and underdevelopment: Suggestions for an alternative approach

This paper reexamines sociological modernization theories of development and current theories of dependency and underdevelopment. It is argued that both sets of literature present one‐sided portrayals of social change in contemporary Third World countries. In place of these we propose an alternative dialectical approach. We suggest the way in which this approach integrates international political and economic emphases of the neo‐Marxist approaches with domestic socio‐cultural foci of modernization theory through examples from classic and contemporary studies.