Suchergebnisse

This item is part of the Political & Rights Issues & Social Movements (PRISM) digital collection, a collaborative initiative between Florida Atlantic University and University of Central Florida in the Publication of Archival, Library & Museum Materials (PALMM).

Intro -- Jürgen Habermas -- Copyright -- Contents -- Preface to the English Edition -- I The Lure of Technocracy -- 1 The Lure of Technocracy -- 2 European Citizens and European Peoples -- 3 Keywords on a Discourse Theory of Law and of the Democratic Constitutional State -- II European Conditions. Continued Interventions -- 4 The Next Step - An Interview -- 5 The Dilemma Facing the Political Parties -- 6 Three Reasons for 'More Europe' -- 7 Democracy or Capitalism? -- III German Jews, Germans and Jews -- 8 Jewish Philosophers and Sociologists as Returnees in the Early Federal Republic of Germany -- 9 Martin Buber - A Philosophy of Dialogue in Its Historical Context -- 10 Our Contemporary Heine -- Notes and References.

The social ferment of the mid-1960's arose in part from the failure of liberalism, & the transformation of this doctrine from a vaguely populist movement's outlook into the official technocratic ideology of total social integration. Advanced capitalism's success depends upon its ability to organize individuals as a smooth operating machine guided by "scientific expertise," using the techniques of persuasion rather than violent repression to mold a collectively predictable mass of conformists. The individual's loyalty to the system is purchased by the goods & services it delivers, but the aggression & alienation generated in the process must be channeled at an internal or external enemy. 2 types of films that became popular in the US during this period reflect the problems & contradictions of a society built on perpetual individualism. The "social critical" films, warmly received by the domestic opposition, reject modern society with a vengeance & depict the death of traditional humanistic culture with nostalgic tenderness. The "spy" films celebrate the pleasures of technological society & depict its triumph over criminal conspiracies & malicious underdeveloped cultures. Yet in both types of popular movies, the hero establishes his humanity by taking action against the machine or technocracy & through the conquest of love. Although the "social critical" film exacerbates the conflict between the technological society & human values, while the "spy" film attempts to resolve this tension, the essential theme of these movies is similar. The viewers identify themselves as heroes in a guerilla war against technocracy & its system that is simultaneously rejected & loved, feared & accepted. The dominant social tendencies in the near future seem to be continued & intensified polarization leading to either rebellion or fascism. A. Karmen.

Discusses the present & potential dangers of democratic politics governed by technocracy: "the illegitimate extension of scientific ways of thinking to questions that do not admit of scientific answers, & the elevation of scientists & technicians to a position of responsibility for which their knowledge & skills alone do not qualify them." Although science & technology constitute an increasingly large portion of political & social life, their applications in the political & social realms have not achieved the utopian goals of justice & dissolution of bureaucracy. Despite the technocratic assertion that politics can be separated from ideology, it is suggested that politics requires ideology, & technocracy itself is a form of ideology. Understood as a medium for the socialized expression of conflicting beliefs, politics is thus both formed by & dependent on ideology. Further, it is argued that attempts to eliminate ideology from politics place technocratic rulers in a position of unearned & potentially dangerous authority. It is concluded that ideological disagreement & dissent are fundamental components of democracy, & cannot be eliminated through scientific analysis & methodology. T. Sevier