Resource Update

September 25, 2007

CHILE & BRAZIL William H. Overholt, ed., The Future of Brazil (Westview Press, 1979). $19.50 cloth, 285 pgs. Seven articles on Brazil including discussions of foreign relations, the economy and economic development, the debt burden and foreign investment and a political overview. (Westview Press, 5500 Central Avenue, Boulder, CO 80301.) John Saunders, ed., Modern Brazil: New Patterns and Development (University Presses of Florida, 1971). $12.50 cloth, 350 pgs. A more dated collection of essays than the above volume, this offers shorter, more sociologically oriented themes: education, urban development and social class as well as political and economic approaches. (Univ. Presses of Florida, 15 N.W. 15th St., Gainesville, FL 32603.) Juan G. Espinosa and Andrew S. Zimbalist, Economic Democracy: Workers' Participation in Chilean industry, 1970-1973 (Academic Press, 1978). $16.75 cloth, 211 pgs. An examination of worker participation and industrial democracy based on data gleaned from 35 firms during the Popular Unity years. In one of their more powerful conclusions, the authors write: "The Chilean experience demonstrates once again that the establishment of a broad system of industrial democracy has been held back not by technical considerations of economic performance but by the threat it poses to the power of dominant socioeconomic groups." Extremely interesting analysis of workers' control and the transition to socialism. (Academic Press, 111 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10003.) LATIN AMERICA: OVERVIEWS Richard R. Fagen, ed., Capitalism and the State in U.S.-Latin American Relations (Stanford University Press, 1979). $22.50 cloth, $6.95 paper, 446 pgs. A broad collection of essays which seek to analyze the current state of U.S.-Latin American relations from an economic, political and ideological focus. The articles approach the topic both from a general socio-political perspective ("Constitutionality, Class and the Limits of Choice in U.S. Foreign Policy") and a case study, economic approach ("The International Competitiveness of the U.S. Economy: A Study of Steel and Electronics"). (Stanford University Press, Stanford, CA 94305.) NovlDec 1979 Latin America Bureau, Britain and Latin America: An Annual Review of British-Latin American Relations, 1979 (Latin America Bureau, 1979). 2.50 paper, 189 pgs. Excellent review articles on topics broader than suggested by the title. Among the best are "Latin America and the Arms Trade" and an article on the links between South Africa and Latin America. Also includes chronology of events on the topic for 1978 and useful appendices. (Latin America Bureau, PO Box 134, London NW1 4JY, England.) Stanley A. Arbingast, Robert K. Holz, et. al., Atlas of Central America (Bureau of Business Research, Univ. of Texas, 1979). $18 paper, 62 pgs. Each country is presented through a statistical overview and 5 maps: administration, population, economic activity, transportation, and surface geology. Very well done. (Bureau of Business Research, PO Box 7459, Univ. Station, Austin, TX 78712.) THE CHURCH Jose Comblin, The Church and the National Security State (Orbis Books, 1979). $8.95 paper, 236 pgs. Written by a Belgian theologian who was expelled from Brazil in 1972, this book offers a more coherent overview of the development of the "theology of liberation" than the above book. Its strength lies in its ability to situate liberation theology in the economic and political realities of Latin America. (Orbis Books, Maryknoll, NY 10545.) DEBTS, PENSIONS George C. Abbott, International Indebtedness and the Developing Countries (M.E. Sharpe, Inc. 1979). $25 cloth, 312 pgs. Good statistical account of the increasing indebtedness of Third World countries. The author argues for a debt moratorium and the cancellation of at least some forms of outstanding debt. (M.E. Sharpe, 901 N. Broadway, White Plains, NY 10603.) Corporate Data Exchange, Handbook: Pension Investments, A Social Audit (Corporate Data Exchange, 1979). $75 corporations, $25 non-profit institutions, paper, 125 pgs. The most comprehensive study of pension investments yet undertaken with a detailed analysis of the stockholdings of 142 of the largest public and private U.S. pension plans. Some findings: At the end of 1976, 118 public and private union-related pension plans held $12.6 billion of common stock in 50 predominantly non-union firms; $2.6 billion of common stock in 14 companies which violated OSHA standards. Extremely important study; have your library order a copy. (Corporate Data Exchange, 198 Broadway, Room 707, New York, NY 10038.)

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