السفينة الخاوية: قصة الاقتصاد العالمي في بارجة واحدة

What do barracks for British troops in the Falklands War, a floating prison off the Bronx, and temporary housing for Volkswagen factory workers in Germany have in common? _It is the battleship "Balder Scapa":_ One battleship that performed all three roles. Although its name would later change to _Finbudda 12._ And then to _Sword of Aspria._ And after that, to _Baby Resolution._ And then... In short, a ship with so many names and destinies, that Ian Kumikawa, in order to remain the focus of our attention - as the hero of this captivating economic tale - had no choice but to call it simply “The Ship.” Despite its sturdy steel hull, which weighs 9,500 tons, the “ship” remains a mysterious and abstract symbol, like the tax haven market it embodies: a world of island tax havens, exploited labor forces, free banking zones, Thatcher-Reagan economic policies, and mass prisons, where even prisoners are held abroad. Thanks to standardized shipping containers, which are the product of standardized global trade, the ship can become what the market demands. Whether it is caught up in an international dispute involving Hong Kong, Nigeria, Indonesia and the Virgin Islands – to be settled in an English court – or flying another foreign flag “for convenience” to hide its ownership, a battleship will always remain a vessel for forces far greater even than its sheer size. The Empty Vessel is a fascinating mini-history that reveals a lot about the global economy as a whole. By following the “Vessel” – and its sister vessel, built alongside it in Stockholm – from one arduous task to the next, Kumikawa threads the threads of a neoliberal world order in the making, where laws and regulations are a waste of time, and “Made in the USA” seems like a thing of the past.