Introduction: multilingualism and education: the critical nexus
No abstract
Book Reviews : Multilingual Linguistic Minorities Settings. Implications for language policies. Studies in Bilingualism Paulston, Christina Bratt 1994 in 4. Amsterdam & Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company, 132 pages. Paperback
work&dquo;, suggesting &dquo;four types of social mobilization, which come close to forming a continuum rather than four distinct types&dquo; (p. 29; on p. 25 she argues that they do form four distinct types this is only one of the many contradictions and confusions that abound in the book). These types are 1. ethnicity, 2. ethnic movement, 3. ethnic nationalism, and 4. geographic nationalism. There is very little discussion of why some groups &dquo;choose&dquo; one or the other of these four. Language is not seen as a causal factor but either
Trade, exchange rate, and agricultural pricing policies in Thailand
Thailand is still largely an agricultural country. In 1984, agricultural work was still the main source of earnings for more than 70 percent of the population. For much of the 25 year period covered by this report, government intervention in the prices of rice, maize, and natural rubber was extensive. For these products, intervention took the form of explicit export taxes and restrictive quotas. Sugar, on the other hand, was imported until 1960. For many years prior to that, government policy was to encourage growers and thus achieve self-sufficiency. One conclusion of this study is that the Thai sugar industry would have shrunk dramatically if the government had refrained from intervention. Intervention in the prices of rice and natural rubber had the effect of penalizing farm producers by reducing their output prices. There was, as a consequence a shift of resources towards Thailand's small industrial sector. In 1981, the Thai government lifted its quota restrictions, and liberalized its trade by eliminating its intervention in the maize, rice, sugar and natural rubber markets. Unfortunately for export growers, however, the gradual elimination of intervention was overshadowed by sharp declines in the world prices of Thailand's major agricultural exports.