Virtual Migration: The Programming of Globalization

209 Pages·2006·1.471 MB·English

by  A. Aneesh

Virtual
Migration

Virtual
Migration
The Programming of Globalization
a. aneesh
duke university press durham and london 2006
©2006DukeUniversityPress
Allrightsreserved
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Formummyandbabuji

Acknowledgments ix
chapter 1
Contents
OfCodeandCapital 1
chapter 2
ProgrammingGlobalization:
VisionsandRevisions 14
chapter 3
BodyShopping 37
chapter 4
VirtualMigration 67
chapter 5
ActionScripts:RuleoftheCode 100
chapter 6
CodeasMoney 133
chapter 7
Migrations:Nations,Capital,andtheState 153
appendix a
ANoteonMethod 165
appendix b
Tables 171
Notes 175
Bibliography 179
Index 191

Acknowledgments
A
sIlookback,anumberofconversations,writings,faces,andsmilescome
intoview.Perhaps‘‘gratitude,’’notacknowledgment,istheword.Adeep
sense of gratitude overwhelms my memory of the period when this book
wasconceived,researched,andwritten.Individualizingframesofauthorship
aside,thebookisanextraordinarykindofdebtfreefromademandforany
return.Borrowedideas,freelyavailableframesofanalysis,activementoring,
and support from many people and institutions made possible the work,
which fits in more with the notion of ‘‘putting together’’ than with the
romanticnotionofauthorship.Whiletheauthorunavoidablydisappearsbe-
hindhiswriting,whichfreesitselffromtheauthorthroughthereader’sas-
signedmeanings,Idotakeresponsibilityforanyfailureincreatingafresh
opening into the subject of globalization. My first expression of gratitude
goestoJózsef Böröcz,whohasbeentomeacombinationofdiversecate-
gories:advisor,colleague,andfriend.Withouthisencouragementthiswork
wouldnothavebeencompleted.SpecialthanksareduetoLeeClarkeand
EviatarZerubavel,whoadvisedandsupportedmethroughtheentirepro-
cess of conception, research, and writing. I must also thank Saskia Sassen
notonlyforherintellectualpresenceinmyworkbutalsoforhersupport
andmentoringduringalltheseyears.Theyallhelpedinshapinganacademic
careerandgivingitdirection.
Iamdeeplyindebtedtothesoftwarecompaniesthatallowedmetovisit
theirpremisesaswellasalltheexecutivesandprogrammerswhoagreedto
haveconversationswithme.
Afewinstitutionscontributedgreatlytowardthecompletionofthiswork.
First,IthanktheSociologyDepartmentandalltheassociatedpeopleatRut-
gersUniversity,whichremainedagroundforlearningandprofessionalso-
cializationformanyyears.ThePopulationCouncilandtheInternationalMi-
grationProgramoftheSocialScienceResearchCouncil,withtheirgenerous