Thomas M Hanna | University of Maryland, College Park (original) (raw)

Books by Thomas M Hanna

Manchester University Press, 2018

Chapters by Thomas M Hanna

Chapter 9 in The Future is Public: Towards democratic ownership of public services, 2020

In the United States, one of the fastest growing areas of municipalisation and local public owner... more In the United States, one of the fastest growing areas of municipalisation and local public ownership is high-speed broadband Internet networks. This is due, in part, to the failure of the highly concentrated, corporate-dominated telecommunications sector to provide fast and affordable service in many parts of the country-especially rural areas, smaller towns and cities, and communities with low levels of income and economic development. In the modern, information-driven economy, this has profound implications for economic development, social and economic equality, and ecological sustainability. Just as they did with the critical backbone economic infrastructure of the twentieth century-electric systems, roads and bridges, water and sewer systems, airports, ports, mass transit, and so on-communities across the country are starting to use public ownership to build and operate the digital infrastructure needed in the twenty-first century. Data from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) shows that in the past several years, more than 800 communities (including cities, towns and counties) have established community owned broadband networks. 1 Of these, 500 are publicly owned. 2 Moreover, more than 150 of these communities (in 29 states) have super-fast networks of at least 1 Gbps and 20 communities (in four states) offer 10 Gbps networks, which is hundreds of times faster than the average US Internet connection.

Public Finance for the Future We Want, 2019

New Socialist, 2018

Chapter Two in "Labour's New Economics" (New Socialist, 2018). To consolidate the ambitious proje... more Chapter Two in "Labour's New Economics" (New Socialist, 2018). To consolidate the ambitious project they have initiated, Labour Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn and Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell must follow through on the construction of a radical new left political economy.

Reports & Papers by Thomas M Hanna

Seoul Institute, 2021

After a year of chaos and turmoil related to the Covid-19 pandemic and its social, economic, and ... more After a year of chaos and turmoil related to the Covid-19 pandemic and its social, economic, and political effects, we find ourselves faced with the question of what comes next. Down one path lies the notion of returning to business as usual, which in truth is a dangerous and impossible fantasy. Further shocks are inevitably coming, and an economic system bent on profit maximization, "free markets," and endless economic growth cannot cope with them. Indeed, such a system is unlikely to survive them. There is another path, one that leads to a political economic system that might enable us all to live well and to do so within planetary boundaries. In embryo, this alternative already exists. It is being tested and proven in the many innovative models of the "social economy," the "solidarity economy," or what we term the "democratic and reparative economy.

The Democracy Collaborative & Common Wealth, 2020

with Miriam Brett & Dana Brown

The Democracy Collaborative & Common Wealth, 2020

With Mathew Lawrence, Adrienne Buller, and Miriam Brett

The Democracy Collaborative & Common Wealth, 2020

Launch essay for a new project exploring the frontiers of democratic public ownership in the 21st... more Launch essay for a new project exploring the frontiers of democratic public ownership in the 21st century.

Next System Project, 2019

The United States actually has a long and rich tradition of nationalizing private enterprise, esp... more The United States actually has a long and rich tradition of nationalizing private enterprise, especially during times of economic and social crisis. Importantly, this approach has often been deployed when private companies are hindering national efforts to address a crisis (either through obstruction, incompetence, or incapacity). This history of nationalization, along with other robust government economic interventions, suggests that far from being a non-starter, a public takeover of the fossil fuel industry should be considered an eminently plausible and viable policy option for dealing with the forthcoming climate crisis.

The Democracy Collaborative, 2019

The Next System Project, 2018

Compass: Direction for the Democratic Left, Feb 14, 2014

Royal Mail has been privatised in the face of widespread public opposition and overwhelming hosti... more Royal Mail has been privatised in the face of widespread public opposition and overwhelming hostility from the workforce. It should be re-nationalised, but Labour's frontbench has refused to give such a commitment. What if the postal workers were to pool their shares, worth 10 per cent of the company, in a union-administered workers' trust? They could eventually acquire a controlling interest as the trust increased its holdings over time. The resulting 'public-public partnership' might even prove better than outright re-nationalisation.

Articles by Thomas M Hanna

Utilities Policy, vol. 72, 2021

The United States has experienced swings of public and private operation of its water services fo... more The United States has experienced swings of public and private operation of its water services for more than 150 years. This paper examines the most recent swing, that of remunicipalization. We argue that much of this remunicipalization is taking place for 'pragmatic' reasons related to cost savings and service quality, but there are also signs of more 'politicized' forms of water remunicipalization taking place, similar to efforts elsewhere in the world where the process has often involved heated ideological debates and mass mobilizations. Combined with a growing politicization of other social, economic, and environmental issues in the US, water remunicipalization could become more politicized in the future, but a fragmented 'pro-public' movement, combined with ongoing efforts to outsource water services and growing resistance to remunicipalization from private water companies, may constrain this potential.

Next City, 2020

With Marjorie Kelly

openDemocracy, 2020

With Carla Santos Skandier

In These Times, 2020

with Johanna Bozuwa

openDemocracy, 2020

With Mathew Lawrence

Chapter 9 in The Future is Public: Towards democratic ownership of public services, 2020

In the United States, one of the fastest growing areas of municipalisation and local public owner... more In the United States, one of the fastest growing areas of municipalisation and local public ownership is high-speed broadband Internet networks. This is due, in part, to the failure of the highly concentrated, corporate-dominated telecommunications sector to provide fast and affordable service in many parts of the country-especially rural areas, smaller towns and cities, and communities with low levels of income and economic development. In the modern, information-driven economy, this has profound implications for economic development, social and economic equality, and ecological sustainability. Just as they did with the critical backbone economic infrastructure of the twentieth century-electric systems, roads and bridges, water and sewer systems, airports, ports, mass transit, and so on-communities across the country are starting to use public ownership to build and operate the digital infrastructure needed in the twenty-first century. Data from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) shows that in the past several years, more than 800 communities (including cities, towns and counties) have established community owned broadband networks. 1 Of these, 500 are publicly owned. 2 Moreover, more than 150 of these communities (in 29 states) have super-fast networks of at least 1 Gbps and 20 communities (in four states) offer 10 Gbps networks, which is hundreds of times faster than the average US Internet connection.

Public Finance for the Future We Want, 2019

New Socialist, 2018

Chapter Two in "Labour's New Economics" (New Socialist, 2018). To consolidate the ambitious proje... more Chapter Two in "Labour's New Economics" (New Socialist, 2018). To consolidate the ambitious project they have initiated, Labour Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn and Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell must follow through on the construction of a radical new left political economy.

Seoul Institute, 2021

After a year of chaos and turmoil related to the Covid-19 pandemic and its social, economic, and ... more After a year of chaos and turmoil related to the Covid-19 pandemic and its social, economic, and political effects, we find ourselves faced with the question of what comes next. Down one path lies the notion of returning to business as usual, which in truth is a dangerous and impossible fantasy. Further shocks are inevitably coming, and an economic system bent on profit maximization, "free markets," and endless economic growth cannot cope with them. Indeed, such a system is unlikely to survive them. There is another path, one that leads to a political economic system that might enable us all to live well and to do so within planetary boundaries. In embryo, this alternative already exists. It is being tested and proven in the many innovative models of the "social economy," the "solidarity economy," or what we term the "democratic and reparative economy.

The Democracy Collaborative & Common Wealth, 2020

with Miriam Brett & Dana Brown

The Democracy Collaborative & Common Wealth, 2020

With Mathew Lawrence, Adrienne Buller, and Miriam Brett

The Democracy Collaborative & Common Wealth, 2020

Launch essay for a new project exploring the frontiers of democratic public ownership in the 21st... more Launch essay for a new project exploring the frontiers of democratic public ownership in the 21st century.

Next System Project, 2019

The United States actually has a long and rich tradition of nationalizing private enterprise, esp... more The United States actually has a long and rich tradition of nationalizing private enterprise, especially during times of economic and social crisis. Importantly, this approach has often been deployed when private companies are hindering national efforts to address a crisis (either through obstruction, incompetence, or incapacity). This history of nationalization, along with other robust government economic interventions, suggests that far from being a non-starter, a public takeover of the fossil fuel industry should be considered an eminently plausible and viable policy option for dealing with the forthcoming climate crisis.

The Democracy Collaborative, 2019

The Next System Project, 2018

Compass: Direction for the Democratic Left, Feb 14, 2014

Royal Mail has been privatised in the face of widespread public opposition and overwhelming hosti... more Royal Mail has been privatised in the face of widespread public opposition and overwhelming hostility from the workforce. It should be re-nationalised, but Labour's frontbench has refused to give such a commitment. What if the postal workers were to pool their shares, worth 10 per cent of the company, in a union-administered workers' trust? They could eventually acquire a controlling interest as the trust increased its holdings over time. The resulting 'public-public partnership' might even prove better than outright re-nationalisation.

Utilities Policy, vol. 72, 2021

The United States has experienced swings of public and private operation of its water services fo... more The United States has experienced swings of public and private operation of its water services for more than 150 years. This paper examines the most recent swing, that of remunicipalization. We argue that much of this remunicipalization is taking place for 'pragmatic' reasons related to cost savings and service quality, but there are also signs of more 'politicized' forms of water remunicipalization taking place, similar to efforts elsewhere in the world where the process has often involved heated ideological debates and mass mobilizations. Combined with a growing politicization of other social, economic, and environmental issues in the US, water remunicipalization could become more politicized in the future, but a fragmented 'pro-public' movement, combined with ongoing efforts to outsource water services and growing resistance to remunicipalization from private water companies, may constrain this potential.

Next City, 2020

With Marjorie Kelly

openDemocracy, 2020

With Carla Santos Skandier

In These Times, 2020

with Johanna Bozuwa

openDemocracy, 2020

With Mathew Lawrence

Community Development Innovation Review, 2019

Vol, 14, no. 1 With Johanna Bozuwa

Tribune, 2019

With Peter Gowan

In These Times, 2019

One hundred years ago July 28, a bank in Bismarck, N.D., opened its doors for the very first time... more One hundred years ago July 28, a bank in Bismarck, N.D., opened its doors for the very first time. This would have been an unremarkable event, likely lost to history, except for the fact that it was a public bank, owned by all the residents of the state.

International Journal of Public Policy, vol. 15, no. 1/2, 2019

A quiet ownership revolution is underway in the USA, one that holds tremendous promise for a new ... more A quiet ownership revolution is underway in the USA, one that holds tremendous promise for a new age of economic, social, and environmental justice. The old trio of conventional public, private, and non-profit ownership forms is no longer adequate to encompass the evolution and hybridisation of institutional forms currently underway. This paper offers a taxonomy of democratic ownership models, an exploration of new innovations emerging, and observations on how these models might be scaled up to create an economy of enduring, broadly enjoyed prosperity.

Jacobin, 2019

With Johanna Bozuwa

JOURNAL OF WORLD-SYSTEMS RESEARCH SYMPOSIUM: CORPORATE POWER AND LOCAL DEMOCRACY: CHALLENGES, OPPORTUNITIES AND STRATEGIES , 2019

The corporation of today has invaded every department of business and its powerful but invisible ... more The corporation of today has invaded every department of business and its powerful but invisible hand is felt in almost all the activities of life…the effect of this change upon the American people is radical and rapid. (Robert La Follette, 1897) When the progressive leader Robert La Follette issued his warning about the growing power of corporations more than a century ago, the United States was in the midst of what historians now like to refer to as the "Gilded Age." It was a time when corporate power, organized in the form of Abstract In response to increasing inequality, the rising power of large corporations, climate change, and other challenges, public ownership is back on the agenda in the United States and around the world. In this "new gilded age" there is much to learn from past experiments as we construct a new vision of public ownership for the Twenty-First Century.

IPPR Progressive Review, 2017

International Journal of Public Policy, 2019

A quiet ownership revolution is underway in the USA, one that holds tremendous promise for a new ... more A quiet ownership revolution is underway in the USA, one that holds tremendous promise for a new age of economic, social, and environmental justice. The old trio of conventional public, private, and non-profit ownership forms is no longer adequate to encompass the evolution and hybridisation of institutional forms currently underway. This paper offers a taxonomy of democratic ownership models, an exploration of new innovations emerging, and observations on how these models might be scaled up to create an economy of enduring, broadly enjoyed prosperity.