logo
What We Are Reading Today: The Real Economy:  History and Theory

What We Are Reading Today: The Real Economy:  History and Theory

Arab News28-02-2025
What is the economy, really? Is it a 'market sector,' a 'general equilibrium,' or the 'gross domestic product'? Economics today has become so preoccupied with methods that economists risk losing sight of the economy itself.
Meanwhile, other disciplines, although often intent on criticizing the methods of economics, have failed to articulate an alternative vision of the economy. Before the ascent of postwar neoclassical economics, fierce debates raged, as many different visions of the economy circulated and competed with one another. In The Real Economy, Jonathan Levy returns to the spirit of this earlier era, which, in all its contentiousness, gave birth to the discipline of economics.
Writing for anyone interested in the study of the economy, Levy provides an invaluable provocation for a broader debate in the social sciences and humanities concerning what 'the economy' is.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Israeli settler accused of killing Palestinian involved in Oscar-winning West Bank film
Israeli settler accused of killing Palestinian involved in Oscar-winning West Bank film

Saudi Gazette

time4 days ago

  • Saudi Gazette

Israeli settler accused of killing Palestinian involved in Oscar-winning West Bank film

JERUSALEM — An Israeli settler shot dead a Palestinian teacher who helped film Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land, according to the Palestinian education ministry and an Israeli-American activist who was at the scene of the shooting. No Other Land co-director Yuval Abraham said on X that a settler shot Odeh Hathaleen in the lungs in Umm Al-Khair village in the occupied West Bank. Residents allege the shooter was Yinon Levy, who is sanctioned by the UK. Attorney Avichai Hajbi said he was representing a resident "who felt his life was in danger, was forced to fire his weapon into the air" after residents were "attacked by an Arab mob, along with foreign activists, with stones and violence". Mattan Berner-Kadish, an Israeli-American activist at the scene, told the BBC that at about 17:20 local time (15:20 BST) on Monday, a bulldozer from a nearby Israeli settlement was driven through private Palestinian land, crushing a sewage pipe, multiple olive trees and two fences. Berner-Kadish and other activists, including Hathaleen's cousin Ahmad, ran to block the bulldozer. The activist said the driver hit Ahmad in the neck and shoulder with a drill that extended from the bulldozer, with his footage capturing Ahmad falling to the ground. Berner-Kadish did not believe Levy was attending to Ahmad's injuries, Berner-Kadish heard a pop. Running back to the village to get water, he saw Hathaleen lying bleeding from a gunshot wound and Levy, the only settler he saw, holding a a video believed to be filmed by a relative of Hathaleen and posted on social media, a man identified as Levy is seen holding a pistol with a bulldozer behind him, as men yell at him. Levy pushes at one man, who pushes back. Levy then raises his pistol and shoots ahead of him, then again into the clip cuts off when the person filming turns around to run away as women are heard footage does not show what or who the shots hit, if anything, and whether anyone else was shooting. There are no other settlers police said it was investigating the incident in the area of Carmel, an Israeli settlement near Umm Al-Khair."As a result of the incident, a Palestinian man was pronounced deceased. His exact involvement is under investigation," police told the said on Tuesday morning they had detained an Israeli citizen for questioning. Israeli media later reported Levy was released on house Israel Defense Forces (IDF) also detained five Palestinians on suspicion of involvement in the incident, along with two foreign tourists who were present. Berner-Kadish said on Tuesday evening they were still activist, who began visiting the village in 2021, said Hathaleen was "one of my best friends in the world" and the two were days away from constructing a football field in the village. He added that Hathaleen was a "warm and loving" father of three young Palestinian education ministry said Hathaleen was a teacher at a local secondary congresswoman Lateefah Simon, a Democrat from California, said she was "heartbroken" over the killing of Hathaleen. He and his cousin, "both holding valid visas", were detained and deported from San Francisco airport last month while travelling for a multicultural faith dialogue, she said Hathaleen had helped film No Other Land, the 2025 Oscar winner for best documentary feature that follows the legal fight between the Israeli government and Palestinians over Masafer Yatta, a West Bank community of about 20 Supreme Court ruled to allow the demolition of homes and expulsion of more than 1,000 villagers in Azulai, the chairman of the local Israeli Mount Hebron Regional Council, said in response to Monday's incident that they had warned "and demanded the creation of security zones around the communities, and today we witnessed first-hand the danger posed by illegal construction in the area".Levy, a leader of an outpost farm, was sanctioned by the UK in 2024, along with others, because he "used physical aggression, threatened families at gunpoint, and destroyed property as part of a targeted and calculated effort to displace Palestinian communities".He denied the allegations to the BBC last was also sanctioned by the US under the Biden administration, along with others, last year, but President Donald Trump lifted those Kariv, a member of Israel's Knesset from the Democrats party, said on X in response to the video that "in the territories, armed Jewish militias operate unchecked".Israel has built about 160 settlements housing some 700,000 Jews since it occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem - land Palestinians want, along with Gaza, for a hoped-for future state - during the 1967 Middle East war. An estimated 3.3 million Palestinians live alongside settlements are considered illegal under international law - a position supported by an advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) last year - although Israel disputes expansion has risen sharply since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu returned to power in late 2022 at the head of a right-wing, pro-settler violence, which has also been on the rise for years, has surged since the outbreak of the war in UN documented at least 27 attacks by settlers against Palestinians that resulted in property damage, casualties or both, between 15 and 21 July, in the West UN says at least 948 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in the West Bank, 15 by Israeli settlers, and another 10 by either Israeli forces or settlers since the start of the least 52 Israelis have also been killed in Palestinian attacks in Israel and the West Bank over the same period. — BBC

Former IDF hostage in Gaza says one of her biggest fears was Israeli strikes
Former IDF hostage in Gaza says one of her biggest fears was Israeli strikes

Saudi Gazette

time26-05-2025

  • Saudi Gazette

Former IDF hostage in Gaza says one of her biggest fears was Israeli strikes

TEL AVIV — An Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldier released during a ceasefire-hostage deal has said one of her biggest fears during captivity were strikes carried out by Israel. Na'ama Levy, one of five IDF female soldiers released in January, made the comments during a weekly rally at Tel Aviv's Hostage Square on Sunday demanding the return of hostages. 'They (strikes) come unexpectedly. At first you hear the whistles, you pray that it won't fall on us, and then – the explosions, a noise so loud that it paralyzes the body, and the ground shakes,' Levy told a crowd of thousands. 'Every time, I was sure that this was the end of me. It was one of the scariest things I experienced there and that's also what endangered me more than anything,' she continued, describing an incident where a strike caused the house she was in to partially collapse. 'That was my reality. It's their reality now,' she said, referring to those still in captivity. 'Even now, at this very moment, there are hostages who hear those whistles and explosions, they're there trembling with fear. They have nowhere to run, only to pray and cling to the walls with a terrible feeling of helplessness.' The comments from Levy come as the families of Israeli captives held in Gaza intensify their criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and as Israel comes under growing pressure to end the war in Gaza. Earlier this month, Netanyahu said that defeating Israel's enemies is the 'supreme objective' and more important than securing the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza – drawing backlash from representatives of hostage families. Levy urged for the return of all Israeli hostages, saying there will be 'no victory' otherwise. 'There's no way in (Israel) they really understand what we're going through and are still leaving us in Gaza.' In the early months of the war, another Israeli hostage expressed similar fears of being killed by Israeli strikes, Israeli media outlet Ynet reported, based on audio it said was leaked from a meeting between released hostages, their families, and Netanyahu. The fear was that 'it would not be Hamas, but Israel, that would kill us, and then they would say Hamas killed you,' said the hostage, who was released in one of the first deals. Levy's comments on Sunday also came after Netanyahu appointed a new chief for the country's Shin Bet security agency on Friday, Maj. Gen David Zini, who has reportedly voiced opposition to hostage deals. The families of hostages have blasted the choice. According to Israel's Channel 12 News, Zini said in meetings of IDF general staff: 'I oppose hostage deals. This is a forever war.' The report does not provide a specific date for Zini's comments. Channel 12 says it was a position he repeated often over the past year. 'If the report is accurate, these are shocking statements, worthy of unequivocal condemnation, especially coming from someone who is expected to hold the fate of the hostages in his hands,' the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said in a statement at the time. In his previous position as the head of the Training Command and General Staff Corps in the IDF, Zini had little influence on hostage negotiations. But as head of the Shin Bet, he could have a significant role considering the agency's participation in previous rounds of indirect negotiations with Hamas. 'Appointing a Shin Bet chief who prioritizes (Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu's war over the return of the hostages is a sin upon a crime and an injustice to the entire people of Israel - a blow to the value of solidarity and the sacred duty to leave no one behind,' the forum said. In recent weeks, Israel has come under growing pressure to end the war in Gaza as the enclave faces widespread starvation amid a severe shortage of humanitarian aid. The United Kingdom has paused trade talks and sanctioned extremist settlers in the West Bank. Canada and France have threatened sanctions. And the European Union – Israel's biggest trade partner – is reviewing its landmark Association Agreement with the country. In the words of one Israeli minister, their patience has worn thin over Israel's decision to expand the war. The kidnapping of Levy emerged as one of the first to make headlines as the Hamas-led October 7 attack unfolded. Video released by Hamas showed Levy, who was aged 19 at the time, being dragged by her hair at gunpoint with her hands bound. — CNN

Former Israeli Negotiator Daniel Levy Acknowledges Palestinian Right of Return
Former Israeli Negotiator Daniel Levy Acknowledges Palestinian Right of Return

Leaders

time16-04-2025

  • Leaders

Former Israeli Negotiator Daniel Levy Acknowledges Palestinian Right of Return

The British-Israeli political analyst and former negotiator, Daniel Levy, has acknowledged the right of return for Palestinians who were forced out of their homeland during the Nakba in 1948. Levy is a political commentator and author. He was an adviser in Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak's office and a negotiator as part of the Taba summit and Oslo 2 peace process. Currently, Levy serves as the President of the US/Middle East Project (USMEP), a non-profit policy institute focusing on the situation in Palestine-Israel, as well as broader dynamics and conflicts in MENA/West Asia. He was also the head of the Middle East and North Africa program at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) and worked as an analyst with the International Crisis Group. In an interview with Al Jazeera English, Daniel Levy shared his perspective on the right of return for Palestinians who were forcibly displaced in 1948. 'I do not think that as someone who never came from that part of the world. My family escaped. One on my mother's side escaped the Holocaust. My father's side from Eastern Europe. How can I possibly have the right to go and live there, if someone indigenous to that land whose family was driven from there does not have that right?' Levy said. Short link : Post Views: 1 Related Stories

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store