Majority Rule: A Dysfunctional Polity Consensus: An Inclusive Democracy,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Majority Rule: A Dysfunctional Polity Consensus: An Inclusive Democracy, Peter Emerson
International Dialogue
Numerous electoral systems have been devised over the years but, in decision-making, many forums still rely on the same procedure that was used in ancient Greece: majority voting. Hence, majority rule. In many plural multi-ethnic and/or multi-religious societies, the effects have often been negative. This article considers voting procedures in three inter-related contexts: decision-making, elections, and governance. With regard to conflicts in Northern Ireland, the Balkans, and Ukraine, it shows, both in decision-making and in elections, how simplistic win-or-lose ballots have exacerbated tensions. And it then suggests a more inclusive polity in which win-win voting systems might help to alleviate …
Sloterdijk: You Must Change Your Life. On Anthropotechnics; In The World Interior Of Capital. For A Philosophical Theory Of Globalization; Globes: Spheres Ii: Macrospherology,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Sloterdijk: You Must Change Your Life. On Anthropotechnics; In The World Interior Of Capital. For A Philosophical Theory Of Globalization; Globes: Spheres Ii: Macrospherology, Pieter Lemmens
International Dialogue
Although the German philosopher Peter Sloterdijk (1947) is certainly still not a well-known, let alone “settled” author within the Anglophone philosophical community that leans toward what is still frequently called “continental philosophy,” unlike similarly important figures such as Jean-Luc Nancy, Bruno Latour, Alain Badiou, Giorgio Agamben, Niklas Luhmann and Axel Honneth, his star is nevertheless slowly rising and many of his books have been translated in English in recent years. One of the reasons for this delayed reception in Anglophone academia might be Sloterdijk’s highly idiosyncratic approach to philosophy, his even more idiosyncratic, lavishly exuberant, intensely literary and (in my …
Wittgenstein: The Fate Of Wonder Wittgenstein’S Critique Of Metaphysics And Modernity,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Wittgenstein: The Fate Of Wonder Wittgenstein’S Critique Of Metaphysics And Modernity, David A. White
International Dialogue
That Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889–1951) was one of the most influential twentieth-century philosophers is hardly a controversial claim. However, Wittgenstein’s own works, principally the Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus (1922) and Philosophical Investigations (1953; second edition 1997), have engendered a considerable range of widely diverse—and divisive—commentary. In The Fate of Wonder Wittgenstein’s Critique of Metaphysics and Modernity, Kevin M. Cahill has produced a useful and at times provocative addition to this literature.
Rawls And Religion,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Rawls And Religion, Pietro Maffettone
International Dialogue
John Rawls was the most important political philosopher in the twentieth century. His work has been immensely influential within the Anglo-American philosophical tradition and beyond. As one of his staunchest critics and colleague famously said (as far back as 1973), one has to either work within the Rawlsian paradigm or explain why not. Political philosophers have, to the regret of some, clearly followed Nozick’s suggestion, and scholarship on Rawls’ work has basically become a sub-discipline in U.S. and UK universities. Any addition to this ample and well-developed literature will thus have to meet a relatively high threshold of quality to …
The Heart Of Human Rights,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
The Heart Of Human Rights, Brian Kin Ting Ho
International Dialogue
Allen Buchanan’s book is an impressive addition to the contemporary philosophical discussions about human rights. It covers a wide range of topics, including the nature of justifications in human rights (chapters 2 and 3), the problems existing accounts face (chapter 2), a justificatory account of human rights as a system of international law (chapters 3 and 4), the nature of legitimacy-judgments in political philosophy (chapter 5), the supposed “supremacy” of international legal human rights (chapter 6), and ethical relativism and pluralism (chapter 7).
The Mapuche In Modern Chile: A Cultural History,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
The Mapuche In Modern Chile: A Cultural History, Ramón J. Guerra
International Dialogue
In Joanna Crow’s cultural exposition of Chile’s largest indigenous population, The Mapuche in Modern Chile: A Cultural History, she makes a concerted effort to highlight the cultural components of the group’s identity and presence both in negotiation with and in resistance to the larger Chilean state throughout history. As a primary target of her research, the post-colonial approach illuminates the agency-driven Mapuche as being continuously reimagined in the nation’s history—not necessarily restructured but more to the point of being reconsidered. In order to elicit this type of reconsideration, Crow exposes the prominence of the “historic Mapuche” image as the dominant …
The Question Of Intervention: John Stuart Mill & The Responsibility To Protect,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
The Question Of Intervention: John Stuart Mill & The Responsibility To Protect, Timothy Mawe
International Dialogue
John Stuart Mill’s “A Few Words on Non-Intervention” (1859) considers both the “sacred duties” owed to the independence and nationality of states and the possible exceptions to the general rule of non-intervention. In The Question of Intervention, Michael Doyle proposes to “comment on Mill’s arguments, defend some, condemn some, and refine others” (10). What emerges is a clear and well-structured overview of the ethics and legitimacy of intervention.
Truth And Democracy,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Truth And Democracy, Yann Allard-Tremblay
International Dialogue
It is no secret that politicians lie. Yet, most of us feel queasy faced with the level of mendacity and deceptiveness, and with the lack of concern for facts associated with the Bush administration. This unease is certainly due in part to the disastrous consequences this administration had for the lives of thousands and thousands of people in Iraq and the U.S., among other places, and for the stability of the whole Middle-East. Yet, there is more to this unease. We expect dictators and despots to lie and deceive. In contrast, democratic politics should be more concerned with the truth. …
Deliberative Democracy: Issues And Cases,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Deliberative Democracy: Issues And Cases, Clodagh Harris
International Dialogue
Deliberative democracy, a theory of political legitimacy, argues citizens should be given a more central role in political processes, contending that collective decisions are legitimate to the extent that those subject to them have the right, opportunity and capacity to contribute to deliberations on them. It has been at the forefront of political theory in recent decades and has evolved theoretically, empirically and in praxis overtime.
Dictablanda: Politics, Work And Culture In Mexico, 1938–1968,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Dictablanda: Politics, Work And Culture In Mexico, 1938–1968, Maria S. Arbeláez
International Dialogue
Dictablanda is a volume of essays examining three main forms of power in post-revolutionary Mexico: political, cultural, and material power. That is, the scope of powers that rose-up and matured between 1938 and 1968. The study is located at mid-twentieth century when the revolutionary effervescence fizzled out and conservative-reactionary politics matured. These thirty years are considered the heyday of the authoritarian rule of the one party regime led by the Partido Revolucionario Institutional (PRI). In the following review, I only cover some of the chapters of the compilation. An all-inclusive assessment would have been too extensive and would have left …
The Crisis Of The European Union: A Response,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
The Crisis Of The European Union: A Response, Barry Stocker
International Dialogue
A Crisis of the European Union contains the essay “The Crisis of the European Union in Light of a Constitutionalisation of International Law—An Essay on the Constitution for Europe,” the second essay “The Concept of Human Dignity and the Realistic Utopia of Human Rights,” and an appendix “The Europe of the Federal Republic.” The first essay is itself divided into three sections: “Why Europe is Now More than Ever a Constitutional Project”; “The European Union Must Decide between Transnational Democracy and Post-Democratic Executive Federalism,” and “From the International to the Cosmopolitan Community.” The second of these sections is itself divided …
Making Human Rights A Reality,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Making Human Rights A Reality, Debra L. Delaet
International Dialogue
Emilie Hafner-Burton’s Making Human Rights a Reality offers an accessible and informed analysis of the significant gap between the normative universalism of international human rights law and its limited effects in practice. The book’s primary purpose is to offer a pragmatic, strategic alternative to global legalism for promoting the progressive realization of fundamental human rights. In Hafner-Burton’s view, the cause of human rights promotion would be better-served by relying on states with strong human rights records (both in terms of respecting rights at home and commitment to promoting them abroad) to use foreign policy as a tool for changing the …
Africa In World Politics: Engaging A Changing Global Order,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Africa In World Politics: Engaging A Changing Global Order, Manfred Wogugu
International Dialogue
The issue of central concern for the editors and contributing authors of this book is whether Africa’s emergence on the world political scene will usher in the enabling environment for sustainable broad-spectrum development in the political, socio-economic, cultural and environmental spheres. The authors also make an attempt to address the issue of economic growth for the region. The underlying assumption is that the spread of economic growth to all countries in the continent, if it prevails, will reduce poverty and inequality and ultimately improve the quality of life for Africans. Against the backdrop of the global economic and political order …
The Effects Of Globalization In Latin America, Africa, And Asia: A Global South Perspective,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
The Effects Of Globalization In Latin America, Africa, And Asia: A Global South Perspective, Clark Capshaw
International Dialogue
Kema Irogbe’s study of the effects of globalization on Latin America, Africa, and Asia, is an informative and interesting read, but, unfortunately, it also suffers from many flaws, most of which derive from information and arguments outside the scope of the subject of globalization and its effects.
Living In Denial: Climate Change, Emotions, And Everyday Life,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Living In Denial: Climate Change, Emotions, And Everyday Life, Eloise Harding
International Dialogue
The “denial” which is Norgaard’s focus is not the climate change denial (which may be more accurately described as scepticism) which we hear from right-wing politicians: in particular, her participants have no interest in deceiving others, but many motivations to deceive themselves. The residents of “Bygdaby,” a pseudonym for a real Norwegian community, are at the front line of climate change—many of their local industries depend on snow and ice, of which the supply has steadily declined—and they are aware of its impact. However, while registering the effect on activities such as skiing and ice fishing, these residents effect not …
Jewsandwords,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Jewsandwords, Leonard J. Greenspoon
International Dialogue
Can you tell much about a book from its cover? The design of the cover to this volume would lead any attentive reader to an affirmative response. Look at the title, JewsandWords. These letters, without any space separating them into words, recall ancient manuscripts, where the niceties of word division were often sacrificed to allow more writing per (expensive) page. Admittedly, ancient Hebrew manuscripts also dismissed with written vowels, but there’s only so much we modern readers can do without. And then there’s “Jews,” not “Judaism.” For the authors, Jews, flesh-and-blood people, preceded Judaism as a concept and remain the …
Figures In History,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Figures In History, Antonia Von Schöning
International Dialogue
The latest publication by the much discussed and broadly received French philosopher Jacques Rancière is actually not that new. Figures of History compiles two essays, “The Unforgettable” and “Senses and Figures of History,” which were written on the occasion of the exhibition Face à l’histoire at the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris in 1996. The first text discusses several documentary films that were shown in a program accompanying the exhibition. The second part is an account on history painting in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries written as a catalogue piece. In both essays, Rancière introduces the idea of an age …
Nationalism And The Rule Of Law: Lessons From The Balkans And Beyond,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Nationalism And The Rule Of Law: Lessons From The Balkans And Beyond, Joseph L. Derdzinski
International Dialogue
The “classic” debate in contemporary comparative politics is over what matters more in shaping political behavior: culture or institutions. The clear answer is that both are important, it’s just that their relative import depends to a large degree on contextual, temporal factors. Iavor Rangelov seeks to straddle—or bridge?—the two theoretical orientations, demonstrating the iterative lives between institutions and society. Rangelov addresses the eternal (or, at least, for the past couple of decades) question: do institutions really matter in emerging democracies? Or, do other intrinsic factors determine democracy’s course? Privileging the rule of law, Rangelov, through three cases from the Balkans, …
Islamism And Islam,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Islamism And Islam, Dale Stover
International Dialogue
This book offers a concerted effort to provide a comprehensive and unmistakable definition for Islamism, whereas the other term in the title, Islam, is simply what is traditional or classical or taken for granted since little attention is given to defining it. The author lays out six features he considers to be characteristic elements of those contemporary Muslim movements associated with extremist beliefs and behaviors. A separate chapter is devoted to each of these six features of Islamism. They are described by the author in the preface as “its deeply reactionary vision of the world political order, its embrace of …
Comradely Greetings: The Prison Letters Of Nadya And Slavoj,
2015
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Comradely Greetings: The Prison Letters Of Nadya And Slavoj, David S. Moon
International Dialogue
In October 2012, Nadezhda (Nadya) Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina, both members of the punk-protest group Pussy Riot, were sent to separate Russian penal colonies, charged in relation to an anti-Putin performance in Moscow’s Cathedral of Christ the Saviour the previous February. During her time in the Mordovian Penal Colony No. 14— and briefly afterwards—Tolokonnikova engaged in the exchange of letters with philosopher Slavoj Žižek collected in Comradely Greetings, alongside Tolokonnikova’s open letter that details her harrowing experience in the camp and announced her hunger strike, just under a year into her sentence. The richness of Žižek and Tolokonnikova’s correspondences—and the …
