In February 1979, China launched a full scale attack on Vietnam bringing to the surface the deep tension between the two socialist neighbours. The importance of the resultant war is often overlooked. Millions of people throughout the region were affected, and the frictions that remain in the wake of the war threaten the prospects for peace not only in Southeast Asia, but also the whole Asia-Pacific region as well. This is a full scale examination of the 1979 Sino-Vietnamese War - the events that led to it, the Cold War aftermath, and the implications for the region and beyond.
"Ho Ying Chan provides an expert analysis of Malaysia–Indonesia relations. He demystifies the concept of a 'special relationship', rescuing it from woolly, sentimental rhetoric that often emanates from political figures and popular commentators. His well-informed study shows how a state’s will to survive in the amoral world of international relations drives its conduct even in circumstances of common identities and common strategic interests with other states. He evaluates comparative evidence to shed light on how a special relationship leads to the emergence of a pluralistic security community. This is a conclusion of insight and value, not only to the field of Southeast Asian Studies, but also to the wider community of International Relations scholars." — Professor Clinton Fernandes, University of New South Wales, Australia "Empirically rich and theoretically interesting, this book offers an illuminating account of how material and ideational dynamics shape the evolution of Malaysia–Indonesia relations. Focusing on what is arguably the most vital bilateral relationship in Southeast Asia, it addresses the circumstances, conditions and constraints that determine the double-edged effects of the culturally bound 'special relationship'. Ho Ying Chan argues that while their shared serumpun identities and strategic interests do give rise to a considerable closeness between Malaysia and Indonesia, the politics of power (im)balance have prevented the transformation of the special relationship into a 'pluralistic security community', as their egoistic understanding averts the formation of collective self. The book generates useful insights on the interplay of cross-border cultural affinity and political necessity, inviting readers to ponder the politics of identity and survivability at the international level. It is a welcome addition to the growing literature of Southeast Asian international relations." — Dr Kuik Cheng-Chwee, National University of Malaysia (UKM) "Ho Ying Chan’s important study brings home the international and theoretical significance of the interaction between Malaysia and Indonesia, the two major states of Muslim Southeast Asia — products of the territorial division between the British and Dutch colonial empires. This welcome and revealing review of the Malaysia–Indonesia story deepens our understanding of the concept of a 'special relationship' — explaining both the cooperative and competitive dynamics that can be present, and the way such relationships are influenced by state identities and power imbalances." — Anthony Milner, University of Malaya; University of Melbourne
Eon is now Eona, the Mirror Dragoneye - one of just two surviving Dragoneyes, the human links to the twelve energy dragons and their power. On the run after the massacre in the Imperial Palace, she must find a way to restore Kygo, the dead Pearl Emperor's true heir, to the throne. But High Lord Sethon has claimed the throne for himself, and he is determined to create the String of Pearls, a terrible weapon that combines the power of all twelve dragons. Eona's only hope is to find the stolen Black Folio before he does. But first she must learn to resist the power of ten mourning dragons, and only Lord Ido, the man responsible for their grief, can help her. As the race for the Black Folio intensifies, she finds herself forced to choose between Ido and Kygo. Both men want Eona, but do they truly love her, or just the power she can give them? Eona must face assassins, savage battles, jealousy and betrayal to discover the heartbreaking truth about herself, the Mirror Dragon and the String of Pearls.
Folk literature, Korean by The National Folk Museum of Korea (South Korea)
This volume is intended to serve as a review of the “next generation” of political economy scholars in what can be called the “Wagnerian” tradition, which traces its roots to Buchanan and De Viti De Marco in the 1930s, who argued that any decision that results from a political entity must be the product of individual decision makers operating within some framework of formal and informal rules. To treat these decisions as if they were the product of one single mind, or even simply the additive result of several decisions, is to fundamentally misunderstand and mischaracterize the dynamics of collective action. Today, Richard Wagner is among the most prominent theorists in analyzing the institutional foundations of the economy and the organization of political decision-making. In this collection of original essays, former students schooled in this tradition offer emerging insights on public choice theory, public finance, and political economy, across a range of topics from voting behavior to entrepreneurship.
The warrior woman known as Infidel is legendary for her superhuman strength and skin tough as chain mail. She’s made few friends during her career as a sword-for-hire, and many powerful enemies. Following the death of her closest companion, Infidel finds herself weary of life as a mercenary and sets her eyes on one final prize that will allow her to live out the rest of her days in luxury, the priceless treasure trove of Greatshadow. Greatshadow is the primal dragon of fire. His malign intelligence spies upon mankind through every flickering candle, patiently waiting to devour victims careless with even the smallest flame. The Church of the Book has assembled a team of twelve battle-hardened adventurers to slay the dragon once and for all. But tensions run high between the leaders of the quest who view the mission as a holy duty and the super-powered mercenaries who add power to their ranks, who dream only of Greatshadow’s vast wealth. If the warriors fail to slay the beast, will they doom mankind to death by fire? Greatshadow is the first book in an exciting new adventure series, blending superheroes and epic fantasy into a unique take on both genres.
The Lüshi Chunqiu, also known in English as Lü's Spring and Autumn Annals, is an encyclopedic Chinese classic text compiled around 239 BC under the patronage of the Qin Dynasty Chancellor Lü Buwei. The Shiji (chap. 85, p. 2510) biography of Lü Buwei has the earliest information about the Lüshi Chunqiu. Lü was a successful merchant from Handan who befriended King Zhuangxiang of Qin. The king's son Zheng (政, who the Shiji suggests was actually Lü's son) eventually became the first emperor Qin Shi Huang in 221 BC. When Zhuangxiang died in 247 BC, Lü Buwei was made regent for the 13-year-old Zheng. In order to establish Qin as the intellectual center of China, Lü "recruited scholars, treating them generously so that his retainers came to number three thousand" (tr. Knoblock and Riegel 2000:13). In 239 BC, he, in the words of the Shiji ...ordered that his retainers write down all that they had learned and assemble their theses into a work consisting of eight "Examinations," six "Discourses," and twelve "Almanacs," totaling more than 200,000 words. (Knoblock and Riegel 2000:14) According to Shiji, Lü exhibited the completed encyclopedic text at the city gate of Xianyang, capital of Qin, and above it was a notice offering a thousand measures of gold to any traveling scholar who could add or subtract even a single word. The Lüshi Chunqiu text comprises 26 juan (巻 "scrolls; books") in 160 pian (篇 "sections"), and is divided into three major parts; the Ji (紀, "The Almanacs"): Books 1-12 correspond to the months of the year, and list appropriate seasonal activities to ensure that the state runs smoothly. This part, which was copied as the Liji chapter Yueling, takes many passages from other texts, often without attribution. The Lan (覧, "The Examinations"): Books 13–20 each have 8 sections corresponding to the 64 Hexagrams in the Yijing. This is the longest and most eclectic part, giving quotations from many early texts, some no longer extant. The Lun (論, "The Discourses"): Books 21–26 mostly deal with rulership, excepting the final four sections about agriculture. This part resembles the Lan in composition. The book is the second volume of Lüshi Chunqiu covering the 览 or "The Examinations".
The Dragon Temple denies the role of dragonmaster to women, but Zarq is convinced that the doctrine allowing it has been deliberately lost to the obscurity of history. She begins a desperate search through the Temple's archives, while enduring the rigorous athletic training required of her apprenticeship. Her fellow apprentices are fiercely competitive, and her overlord, Waikar Re Kratt, has taken an unnerving interest in her. Yet all this pales in comparison to her craving for hallucinogenic dragon venom and her desire to understand the dragons themselves—both of which make her a vessel to receive the ancestral memories of the great beasts. Now, eager for the knowledge only Zarq can uncover, the Temple has her imprisoned and subjected to starvation and torture—all to make her reveal the dragons' deepest secrets....