DISQUS

Robert Schwartz · 3 years ago

That would be Jane Jacobs, the author of The Death and Life of Great American Cities (1961), not Joanne the author of Our School (2005) and a blog:
http://www.joannejacobs.com/

While I am snarking, the term "nation-state" does not have much meaning when you use the word nation in the sense of "A relatively large group of people organized under a single, usually independent government; a country." Am Heritage Dictionary 1.a. rather than th older meaning of "A people who share common customs, origins, history, and frequently language; a nationality".

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=nation

The term nation-state refers to a state that encompasses a single nation e.g. Finland as opposed to a multi-ethnic state, e.g. Great Britain.

Robert Schwartz · 3 years ago

Now the substantive comment:

A recent study by the World Bank:

Where is the Wealth of Nations?:Measuring Capital for the 21st Century
The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/The World Bank
http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTEEI/21457...

found that:

... most of a country’s wealth is captured by what we term intangible capital. ... the intangible capital variable captures all those assets that are unaccounted for in the estimates of produced and natural capital. Intangible assets include the skills and know-how embodied in the labor force. The category also includes social capital, that is, the trust among people in a society and their ability to work together for a common purpose. The residual also accounts for all those governance elements that boost the productivity of labor. For example, if an economy has a very efficient judicial system, clear property rights, and an effective government, the effects will result in a higher total wealth and thus a higher intangible capital residual. The regression analysis in this chapter shows that human capital and rule of law account for the majority of the variation in the residual. Investments in education, the functioning of the justice system, and policies aimed at attracting remittances are the most important means of increasing the intangible components of total wealth."

Given the key role of laws and legal institutions, perhaps the nation is a good unit of analysis.

Will Wilkinson · 3 years ago

Robert, I agree about the importance of institutions, and that institutions are often a state level phenomena. But it doesn't make sense to stop there. Because good institutions at the state level are precisely those that facilitate integration into international markets, taking advantage of the broadest system of specialization and exchange. And so, as I was saying, the better you do at the state level, the better positioned you are to take advantage of institutions that transcend the state.

conchis · 3 years ago

Of course, Jacobs was arguing in the other direction, no? For cities, rather than (super-)nations as the primary (if not the only) unit of analysis.

Will Wilkinson · 3 years ago

You're right, no doubt. So what we need to know how to think about are polycentric systems of overlapping jurisdictions.

bjt@BJT.COM · 3 years ago

I don't get it. Aren't you talking about economics? A "polycentric system overlapping jurisdictions" would be the auto industry.

Will Wilkinson · 3 years ago

Really? Parts made in Korea, assembled in Mexico, sold in the US, governed by WTO and NAFTA rules?

bjt@BJT.COM · 3 years ago

So why were you being so coy? Are you proposing WTO and NAFTA as the unit of analysis? I can think of no topic more sleep inducing than European integration. I'm sure you would agree.

Will Wilkinson · 3 years ago

Not THE unit of analysis, but A unit.

Pithlord · 3 years ago

Are you looking for a theory of federalism?