Süddeutsche.de
12.05.2014
Mögliche Risiken von Fracking. Bohren um jeden Preis
Von Silvia Liebrich
Wo soll das Gas herkommen, wenn Russland wegen des Ukraine-Konfliktes ausfällt? Die Bundesregierung will das umstrittene Fracking erlauben – obwohl eine neue Studie dessen Risiken bestätigt.
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Andreas Bieler Blogspot
07.05.2014
The perpetuum mobile of privatisation
Von Andreas Bieler
Privatisation is a truly fantastic thing. Privatising public services would result in four benign consequences, we are told: (1) the production of services becomes more efficient and, therefore, cheaper; (2) the quality of the services is improved; (3) the cost of services for the consumer is reduced; and (4) companies providing these services can still make a profit. And this all as a result of private services being subject to the competitive pressures of the free market. Like a perpetuum mobile, a hypothetical machine which continues to function once activated, privatization would have an inevitable and continuing positive impact once implemented. In this post, I will critically evaluate these claims against the background of my research on the Italian water movement against privatisation (see Road to Victory and La lotta continua) and discuss why it is that this discourse continues to enjoy such widespread acceptance, although it is empirically so obviously wrong.
Andreas Bieler Blogspot
04.05.2014
Fighting against water privatisation in Italy: La lotta continua!
Von Andreas Bieler
Victory in the 2011 referendum against water privatisation had been emphatic. More than 57 per cent of the Italian electorate cast their vote and both questions related to water had been approved by a majority of more than 95 per cent (see Road to Victory). And yet, those who expected that these decisions, legally binding according to the Italian Constitution, would now be implemented, were disappointed. Based on my interviews with leading activists of the Italian water movement, in this post I will assess the situation since the referendum in 2011.
Andreas Bieler Blogspot
01.05.2014
Von Andreas Bieler
Against the background of the global and Eurozone financial crises as well as austerity sweeping across Europe, the pressure on privatising public services is immense. The story of the Italian water movement, a broad alliance of social movements and trade unions, which successfully mobilized for a referendum against the privatization of water in June 2011, is a story of hope for alliances involved in resisting privatization elsewhere. From 25 March to 8 April, I conducted a series of interviews with members of this movement. In this post, I will report on the emergence and ultimate success of this movement in the referendum.
Fachzeitschrift für alternative Kommunalpolitik
06/2013
Ein Ungeheuer namens TiSA
Von Ska Keller
Die Gefahr der Wasserprivatisierung noch nicht gebannt, mehr noch: Branchenübergreifend droht ein EU-Abkommen zur Liberalisierung von Dienstleistungen die kommunale Selbstverwaltung einzuschränken
