Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons™
Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Keyword
-
- Habermas (3)
- Rawls (3)
- Buchanan (1)
- Capitalism (1)
- Coercion (1)
-
- Communitarianism (1)
- Contractarianism (1)
- Democracy (1)
- Digital Communication (1)
- Digital divide (1)
- Discourse ethics (1)
- Discourse theory (1)
- Globalization (1)
- Human rights (1)
- Immigration (1)
- Mass Media (1)
- Meyers (1)
- Nozick (1)
- Nussbaum (1)
- O'Connor (1)
- Pogge (1)
- Poverty (1)
- Public Sphere (1)
- Public policy (1)
- Social contract theory (1)
- Social epistemology (1)
- Social science (1)
- Subsistence (1)
- Sweatshops (1)
- Utilitarianism (1)
Articles 1 - 4 of 4
Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Poverty Knowledge, Coercion, And Social Rights: A Discourse Ethical Contribution To Social Epistemology, David Ingram
Poverty Knowledge, Coercion, And Social Rights: A Discourse Ethical Contribution To Social Epistemology, David Ingram
Philosophy: Faculty Publications and Other Works
In today’s America the persistence of crushing poverty in the midst of staggering affluence no longer incites the righteous jeremiads it once did. Resigned acceptance of this paradox is fueled by a sense that poverty lies beyond the moral and technical scope of government remediation. The failure of experts to reach agreement on the causes of poverty merely exacerbates our despair. Are the causes internal to the poor – reflecting their more or less voluntary choices? Or do they emanate from structures beyond their control (but perhaps amenable to government remediation)? If both of these explanations are true (as I …
The Public Sphere As Site Of Emancipation And Enlightenment: A Discourse Theoretic Critique Of Digital Communication, David Ingram, Asaf Bar-Tura
The Public Sphere As Site Of Emancipation And Enlightenment: A Discourse Theoretic Critique Of Digital Communication, David Ingram, Asaf Bar-Tura
Philosophy: Faculty Publications and Other Works
Habermas claims that an inclusive public sphere is the only deliberative forum for generating public opinion that satisfies the epistemic and normative conditions underlying legitimate decision-making. He adds that digital technologies and other mass media need not undermine – but can extend – rational deliberation when properly instituted. This paper draws from social epistemology and technology studies to demonstrate the epistemic and normative limitations of this extension. We argue that current online communication structures fall short of satisfying the required epistemic and normative conditions. Furthermore, the extent to which Internet-based communications contribute to legitimate democratic opinion and will formation depends …
The Structural Injustice Of Forced Migration And The Failings Of Normative Theory, David Ingram
The Structural Injustice Of Forced Migration And The Failings Of Normative Theory, David Ingram
Philosophy: Faculty Publications and Other Works
I propose to criticize two strands of argument - contractarian and utilitarian – that liberals have put forth in defense of economic coercion, based on the notion of justifiable paternalism. To illustrate my argument, I appeal to the example of forced labor migration, driven by the exigencies of market forces. In particular, I argue that the forced migration of a special subset of unemployed workers lacking other means of subsistence (economic refugees) cannot be redeemed paternalistically as freedom or welfare enhancing in the long run. I further argue that contractarian and utilitarian approaches are normatively incapable of appreciating this fact …
Of Sweatshops And Human Subsistence: Habermas On Human Rights, David Ingram
Of Sweatshops And Human Subsistence: Habermas On Human Rights, David Ingram
Philosophy: Faculty Publications and Other Works
In this paper I argue that the discourse theoretic account of human rights defended by Jürgen Habermas contains a fruitful tension that is obscured by its dominant tendency to identify rights with legal claims. This weakness in Habermas’s account becomes manifest when we examine how sweatshops diminish the secure enjoyment of subsistence, which Habermas himself (in recognition of the UDHR) recognizes as a human right. Discourse theories of human rights are unique in tying the legitimacy of human rights to democratic deliberation and consensus. So construed, their specific meaning and force is the outcome of historical political struggle. However, unlike …