I went to see a showing of Ceský sen (Czech Dream). There's so much to say, both good and bad, about this film. But i'll make this brief.

First, it's clear to me that state-funded filmmakers in the Czech Republic have way less rigorous ethics standards than any North American social science department. In order to make their statement, the two gonzos behind this film tricked thousands of (mostly poor) consumers, all seeking the consumer paradise that's supposed to be found at the end of the EU rainbow, to show up to the opening of their nonexistent big-box supermarket called "Czech Dream" (a would-be competitor to the UK supermarket Tesco that is rapidly coming to dominate European retailing).

The filmmakers' condescending attitude towards the consumer hordes seemed to get transferred to the liberal Madison audience with whom i was sitting. Just as 20 years ago tourists in Prague would snap photos of Czechs lining up to buy bananas (a vignette that is retold by one of Ceský sen's disappointed would-be customers), here were 1000 film-goers getting entertainment value from watching people of a different nationality ache longingly for cheap mineral water and other things we take for granted.

Review of: Jason Konefal, Michael Mascarenhas, and Maki Hatanaka (2005) "Governance in the global agro-food system: Backlighting the role of transnational supermarket chains" Agriculture and Human Values 22: 291–302.

Reviewer: kjmcw

Some of the liveliness of contemporary democracy is to be found away from the polling booths, where one often looks for it in vain, in the less examined machinery of science and technology policy-that is, in technical advisory committees, court proceedings, regulatory assessments, scientific controversies, and even the ephemeral web pages of environ-mental groups and multinational corporations. (Jasanoff 2005: 9)

The authors of "Governance in the global agro-food system: Backlighting the role of transnational supermarket chains" to a certain degree echo Jasanoff#039s argument above that science and technology policy is an increasingly important nexus of conflict and debate about all aspects of public life. However, while Jasanoff apparently sees hope, "liveliness", and opportunities for greater democratic participation, Konefal et al. are less optimistic, and perceive an opaque realm of "backstage" deal making by technocrats from the highest echelons of supermarket firms.