♠ Posted by Emmanuel in Service Announcement
at 1/08/2009 07:13:00 AM
I was kind of amazed that using the search term "international political economy" in Google resulted in the IPE Zone being the second thing listed after the Wikipedia entry. Although results may vary depending on the region, I gather that the blog shouldn't be ranked outside the top 3. Outdo Wikipedia? Forget it; I have better things to do.Accordingly, I must thank regular blog readers for their continued patronage in making the IPE Zone a noteworthy Internet destination. At the beginning, I only had the humble intention of placing additional course content for my students at the University of Birmingham, or "Brum" as we affectionately call our beloved town. That we now attract readers from all parts of the world is a blessing. Unfortunately, they don't include those from China as the Great Firewall of China prevents Blogger sites from polluting the minds of the Chinese people with subversive bourgeois nonsense.
Despite my occasionally OTT perspectives and rants--an underopinionated blogger is an oxymoron IMHO--I hope that I have been a serviceable ambassador for the field of study known as international political economy. While it is still in its infancy, it is growing at a healthy clip. Like many other disciplines, IPE strives to escape the long shadow of economic imperialism, with all due respect to our economics blogging colleagues. Yet, novelty in approaching contemporary issues concerning the world economy should not degenerate into the pitfalls of Freakonomics-style novelty for novelty's sake. There are many current events with surprising roots, from a rocket scientist launching China's one child policy (and thus its demographic imbalances) to the testosterone-driven ruination of Iceland. Integrating these into the larger scheme of things requires more than just the economist's toolkit. Like the label says, IPE is multidisciplinary.
Blogging is a process of discovery, and while I cannot devote too many resources here, I hope the IPE Zone continues to be a resource for keeping tabs on the latest developments in global governance and related topics. Together, let us plot our escape from the clutches of subprime globalization.
