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Purpose– Federal systems are often more sophisticated than assumed in the literature. In many cases, at least three tiers of government are involved in federal decision making. The purpose of this paper is to cast some light on this increasingly important issue in fiscal federalism.Design/methodology/approach– In a model with three tiers of government, the author analyzes corrective policies in the presence of fiscal externalities generated by federal redistribution.Findings– The author identifies an additional qualitative incentive effect, particularly for intermediate governments. They behave strategically to attract additional redistribution funds from outside, though still using corrective policies to provide investment incentives toward their own regions. The results also suggest that differently from the USA the federal system of the EU may lead to inefficiently low regional investment.Originality/value– The presented model is a first step toward analyzing strategic behavior and the effect of corrective policies in more complicated federal set ups with three tiers of government involved. This is relevant for federal structures such as Germany or the USA, as well as for government interactions at the international level.

The legacy of the tsarist Empire and the Soviet Union is one of the crucial factors for an understanding and an explanation of current affairs in the post-Soviet space. This is especially true for Ukraine and for Russian–Ukrainian relations. Russia regards Ukraine as a part of its own strategic orbit, while many Ukrainians want to liberate themselves from the Russian hegemony and advocate a closer cooperation with the European Union. This controversy culminated in late 2013, when Russian pressure led to a re-orientation of Ukrainian policy and a rapprochement with Russia. In this paper I present some reflections on the significance of the imperial heritage for the Russian–Ukrainian relationship. I analyse the different discourses and the Ukrainian and Russian historical narratives, politics of history and competing memories. The Russian–Ukrainian relationship was and is still characterized by an obvious asymmetry, a hegemony of Russia over Ukraine. Russia uses the Orthodox Church and the traditional dominance of the Russian language as instruments for its policy. Not only Russian historians, but also politicians and even the Russian President try to impose the imperial narrative on Ukraine. They are supported by a significant part of Ukrainians, who adhere to the ideal of a common Russia-led Orthodox East Slavic world. Other Ukrainian historians and politicians use the Ukrainian language and the Ukrainian historical narrative with its national myths of liberty and of Ukraine's closeness to Europe in their struggle against the Russian hegemony. The on-going "War of memories" is of special interest. Both sides use and abuse history as a political weapon, and the controversies about the heritage of Kievan Rus', the interpretation of Mazepa, the Holodomor and WW II are not only academic, but also political issues. They reflect the struggle over the geopolitical and cultural orientation of Ukraine which is of crucial importance for the future development of the post-Soviet space and of Eastern Europe.

Die Gewalt der Sprache dient der Zurückweisung des Anderen. In der Anstaltserziehung von Kindern und Jugendlichen gibt es eine Fülle von Bezeichnungen, die auf eine Degradierung des ungehorsamen Kindes oder Jugendlichen abzielten. Auch in anderen Feldern der Sozialen Arbeit waren und sind solche stigmatisierenden Bezeichnungen von Menschen, die auf Hilfe und Unterstützung angewiesen sind, oder die gegen ihren Willen in "Maßnahmen" gebracht werden, zu finden. Die Funktion dieser missachtenden Sprache ist unter anderem die Zuweisung von Rollen, in denen sich die so Bezeichneten nicht wiederfinden, es sei denn, es kommt im Laufe der Zeit zu einer negativen Identifikation mit den Bezeichnungen: 'Ich bin ein Versager', 'Ich kann nichts', 'Ich tauge nichts', 'Aus mir wird nie etwas werden'. Bei Kindern und Jugendlichen, die über lange Zeit in Maßnahmen der Öffentlichen Erziehung maßgenommen wurden, wird die durch die sprachliche Gewalt der sie Erziehenden/Betreuenden erfahrene Degradierung so verinnerlicht, dass ein dauerhaftes negatives Selbstbild mit all seinen schlimmen Folgen für das weitere Leben entsteht. (ICF2)