WHY THIS PUBLISHING COMPANY AT ALL?

This author had already published more than a hundred scientific titles, but he can not find a publisher for his EIGHT book. What does it mean?

To begin with, HE RAISES QUESTIONS:

What would he have concluded, if his EIGHTH book would have been his FIRST and the 100 foremost publishers of the country would have rejected the manuscript? Would this not have started making himself believe that he had dealt with a WRONG topic? Would he be searching thereafter for the RIGHT topic, find it and thereby implicitly say good bye to ORIGINAL and REAL science? And what would have happened, if he had never found the RIGHT topic? Wouldn't he be compelled to look out for some other profession?

What is supposed to be wrong with this EIGHTH book? It is a documentary narration. A history of our time. A history of thirty-five years (1967-2001). It tells the tale of what has actually happened to an established "SOCIAL SCIENTIST " who under very special circumstances discovered a topic for investigations which came out to be TOTALLY UNWANTED and has REMAINED UNWANTED so far. The topic discovered was the "UNIVERSITY IN INDIA". The actors were public personalities in India and in Germany: Scientists, publicists, journalists, politicians, diplomats, lawyers, judges, publishers. How are unwanted research topics dealt with in societies based on liberal democratic basic structures?

"THE UNIVERSITY" AS AN OBJECT OF INVESTIGATIONS

The topic discovered was: The Indian University. The place of discovery: JAIPUR, the capital of the Indian state RAJASTHAN. Based on documents it is narrated in detail what "Indo-Europeans" and others in India and in Germany undertook to strangle the topic even before the investigation had started, to undermine empirical investigations, to devalue the research materials, to prevent the evaluation, to ruin the researchers economically. In short, the adversaries had managed preventing the publication of the unwanted investigation report The Indian University. The crisis was managed. The book: THE INDIAN UNIVERSITY was not published. Till 2001.

The author lost his case at the Bundesverwaltungsgericht (highest court in administrative matters), paid his price for learning, started a second scientific career, did not learn enough, however. He failed to reflect over the circumstances thoroughly, plunged into the new assignments and exercises and filed the whole affair just as a defeat. But he didn’t dispose of the documents. And this has had consequences.

THE MALICE OF HISTORY

Instead of THE INDIAN UNIVERSITY in 2001 PREIS DES AUFRECHTEN GANGS (Thorns on a righteous Path) has come out as a book. The findings of the investigation The Indian University are today more current than ever. These are included in the book PREIS DES AUFRECHTEN GANGS (Thorns on a righteous Path) together with all circumstances which went along with the investigation and its stangulation. The history with the leading publishers repeated itself.

The manuscript was rejected. The reasons given is another special chapter. And the smaller publishers were keen to make quick money.

ILLUSIONS

Something seems to be wrong with this EIGHT book. PREIS DES AUGRECHTEN GANGS (Thorns on a righteous Path) is not a COMMODITY. Quite late and gradually the author had begun to realise that his previous publications happened to be COMMODITIES only. His satisfaction over the fact that his publications did always lead to controversial discussions was rather deceptive. Also the fact that all his publications had brought him financial returns. He recalls more and more "DISCUSSIONS" regarding editing and necessary shortening of the manuscript, which were in fact omitting SPECIFIC ASPECTS, just real cuts. Now he knows that the omitted aspects were nothing else than TRANSCENDING THE EXISTING LIMITS of sanctioned thoughts.

LIKE A JUERGEN HABERMAS OR A MORITZ HUNTZINGER IN GERMANY

The author realises also that he had obediently followed the rules of the game called "FREEDOM OF SCIENCE" with few exceptions only. He had accepted the boundaries of the play ground. He romped around on the LEFT SIDE of the play ground. His readers and editors were recognised "PROGRESSIVES" who were welcome in the mainstream as an EARLY WARNING SYSTEM. Whatever goes beyond the boundaries of the play ground calls for troubles. WHY BUY TROUBLES? Leftist protagonists like a JUERGEN HABERMAS in Germany did not do it, nor rightist protagonists like a MORITZ HUNTZINGER.

Both of them play on the same play ground and they are complementary. Those who keep to the rules do enjoy the "FREEDOM OF SCIENCE".

LEARNING BY DOING IT

The process of almost voluntary surrender comes about quite subtly. An example. In his second university career this author concentrated on projects of learning by doing research, i.e. to start with OPEN QUESTIONS WITHOUT PREFIXING A PLAN to run the project and not DEPENDING ON ANY PREFABRICATED THEORY. In such a project it was aimed to know all about the emerging PRDESTRIAN SHOPPING AREAS in cities. Not depending upon available published literature. But from the REAL FILES of planners of such areas in one exemplary city, the city of Oldenburg in the north west Germany. The CHIEF ADMINISTRATOR and we as representatives of the UNIVERSITY had made an agreement. We were to have access to all official documents and in return we agreed to publish upon mutual consensus only.

The documents were kept quite disorderly. While we were engaged to sort the documents in a logical order, one of the high officials of the city administration raised objections to the project. The long negotiated agreement just became wastepaper.

HOW DEMOCRATIC IS MUNICIPAL POLICIES?

Thus the objective of the project was redefined and aimed to find out the REAL PROCESS OF DECISION MAKING in the municipalities. The findings have been published as a paperback book under the title: WIE DEMOKRATISCH IST KOMMUNALPOLITIK? (How democratic is local politics?) rororo aktuell, Reinbeck 1977. The main finding was: In the municipalities, HAILED as "schools for learning democracy", there is no scope for the PEOPLE to GOVERN, but the people are governed by the CHIEF BUREAUCRAT based on a powerful administration. And the role of the ELECTED COUNCILLORS? They play their role. All findings were derived from documents. The ADMINISTRATION OF THE UNIVERSITIY doesn’t deal with us differently than the CHIEF BUREAUCRAT fares with the people's representatives. It is just as corrupt and hypocritical as the municipal administration.

THE POWER OF ADMINISTRATION

FREIMUT DUWE, a celebrated progressive, was the editor of rororo aktuell. He personally came over to Oldenburg from Hamburg and pleaded for the OMISSION of the chapter on the university administration. On diverse grounds. Diplomatically. He never said that the book with that chapter would not be acceptable. However, we all had this ticklish feeling. fREEDOM OF SCIENCE? Well. We were however consoled by the following controversies on the book, also with the public prosecutions, and were ready to forget that bad feeling to have sacrificed the freedom of science on the altar of market and might.

THE "FREIMUT DUWES" ALL OVER

Even these "FREIMUT DUWES" have become victims in the process of wonderful METAMORPHOSIS of the publishers to media conglomerates. Or have they in fact help the publisher to this metamorphosis as being OPPORTUNISTIC as progressive editors? We are however told that this metamorphosis was forced by technological developments and by the compulsion of market forces to introduce rationalisations. Anyway, the new media producing companies have necessarily created NICHES for small publishers. However, these are no less patronising. The technology corporations, however, have spoiled the reign of the media Moguls to some extent. New technologies today give rise to AUTHORS' MOVIES, AUTHORS' PUBLISHING, AUTHORS'BOOKS, as "A SIDE EFFECT", so to speak. Publishing without censorship. Malice of the object, isn’t it?

Any author who has had enough of the MARKET DOMINATED science and who longs after ORIGINAL science can make books at manageable costs thanks to the digital printing technology. The ACHARYYA PUBLISHERS is looking out for ways to get the books to the shelves of PUBLIC LIBRARIES. Any aid, every co-operationis is welcome. The market dominated science will not be eternal. The public libraries will hold longer than the market dominated science. Thanks to the malice of history.