Suchergebnisse

Court activism occurs when courts not only dabble in pronouncing sentences but also want to take part in the creation of social policies & thus come into contact with many more people than when solving cases on an individual basis. Activism of a court is measured by the degree of its "authority" over the citizens, the legislature, & the administration. The author defines the concept & the elements of court activism through the examples of several developed constitutional democracies. He concludes that court activism in the form known in contemporary constitutional democracies is lacking in Croatia. Adapted from the source document.

The Christian (Catholic) tradition has taken deep roots in Croatia. The new political structure has enabled the revival of the Catholic tradition not only at the level of human rights & freedoms but at the level of political activism as well (Christian-democratic parties). Christian values, important for the economic, political, cultural, & moral life, which have been advocated by the Catholic Church in its social teachings, are no longer marginalized in Croatia. On the other hand, liberal values of democratic capitalism of the West have also significantly increased its sway over Croatian economy & politics. Although the recent history of the relation between liberalism & Christianity does not give evidence of their mutual respect regarding freedom & democracy (but of a critical distance, rather), the reality of democratic capitalism (US, for example) points to the necessity of establishing new relations. Croatia is a suitable space in which the relationship between the liberal & the Catholic values may change from the critical to the constructive distance. 18 References. Adapted from the source document.

The Christian (Catholic) tradition has taken deep roots in Croatia. The new political structure has enabled the revival of the Catholic tradition not only at the level of human rights & freedoms but at the level of political activism as well (Christian-democratic parties). Christian values, important for the economic, political, cultural, & moral life, which have been advocated by the Catholic Church in its social teachings, are no longer marginalized in Croatia. On the other hand, liberal values of democratic capitalism of the West have also significantly increased its sway over Croatian economy & politics. Although the recent history of the relation between liberalism & Christianity does not give evidence of their mutual respect regarding freedom & democracy (but of a critical distance, rather), the reality of democratic capitalism (US, for example) points to the necessity of establishing new relations. Croatia is a suitable space in which the relationship between the liberal & the Catholic values may change from the critical to the constructive distance. 18 References. Adapted from the source document.

The successive stages of development of constitutional democracy in the USA, in particular the experience of "judicial supervision paradox," show us that the U.S. Supreme Court performed at least two different functions: (1) norm enforcement, & (2) policy-making through re-examination & interpretation of the Constitution & the laws in cases brought before the Court. Dissent among American legal experts related to this & other matters prove that debates on judicial activism are not a thing of the past. Still, both advocates & critics of judicial activism share the view that judges have been an important part of the American constitutional process since its inception. The Marbury v. Madison case (1803) affirmed the institution of judicial supervision & denoted a gradual shift of judicial power into the field of public law. Thus further expansion & transformation of judicial power was made possible. In this article, the author establishes a connection between judicial activism & judicial supervision, & adheres to the standpoint that the "judicializing aspect of modern liberalism" deserves as much attention as any other aspect of democratization. Adapted from the source document.

The author looks into the origin & the evolution of the notion of civil society & outlines the contemporary debates on its meaning & democratic potential, as well as its democratic deficits. The concept of civil society (originally devised by Aristotle & used for centuries in political philosophy), was revived in the 1980s, first in the East-European movements against the Stalinist state socialism, & later in the new social movements in the West & in social sciences in general. Today's understanding of this term is the result of the branching out of the classical term: while originally it denoted an association of citizens as a political community, Montesquieu & Hegel came up with the difference between the civil society & the state as a political community. Later, a series of modern authors, in line with Gramsci, additionally differentiated between the civil & the market societies. The case in point is Jurgen Habermas who defines civil society as a system of spontaneously generated non-state & nonprofit associations connected via the venues of public communication & whose goal is not to win the firsthand political power. Another understanding of civil society has resulted from a long cooperation of the UN & its specialized institutions with the nongovernmental organizations that came to the fore at the major thematic UN-sponsored conferences in the l990s. The author criticizes the idealized picture of civil society as a form of the organization & the democracy-promoting communication of citizens. A developed civil society is undoubtedly important for democracy, but this also requires the appropriate checking mechanisms. The potential deficits of the civil society are reform blockade, the risk of the loss of civilness in populist movements & the social asymmetry of civil activism. Finally, the author looks into a variety of proposals that see in the European civil society the means of the democratization of the European Union. 12 References. Adapted from the source document.

The author reminds us that only after the Second Vatican Council did Catholicism change its reserved stance regarding contemporary politics & economy by starting to advocate a more positive political involvement of Catholic laity. However, it can be said that the political activism of Catholics confined to Christian-Democratic parties came to grief. This has been not solely the consequence of the ethical decadence of Christian Democratic politicians but also of increased secularization, which calls for a variety of forms of political activism on the part of Christians. Regarding the structuring of economy, the author goes along with the widespread belief in the superiority of capitalism over a totalitarian communist economy. At the same time, however, Christianity cannot accept "rampant capitalism" nor accept profit as the sole measure of good economic management, but must voice its views for social & humanistic correctives. Adapted from the source document.

The emancipation of the Commonwealth countries had a particular impact on the traditional British principle of inviolable sovereignty of the Parliament. Ever since 1931, when the Imperial Parliament, through the Westminster Act, renounced the unilateral exercise of legislative power in the Dominions, the theory of parliamentary sovereignty as unlimited legislative power has been subject to alterations under the pressure of political reality. The process was most pronounced in the 1982-1998 period, when the United Kingdom & several member-countries of the Commonwealth, as "the last democratic strongholds of traditional legislative supremacy," adopted various documents in which human rights are guaranteed. The author elucidates the characteristics of the new, Commonwealth model of constitutionalism, wherein the constitutionalization of fundamental rights has made possible not only specific forms of judicial supervision, but also an increase of judicial activism. Adapted from the source document.

The article analyses the main characteristics of a new German political party -- Piratenpartei, its genesis and the impact it has already had on German politics. The success of this party, which now has representatives in the Parliament of Berlin and four more regional parliaments in Germany city council, is an indication of the importance of the Internet, as well as of the need to address new issues on the political agenda. Some of these issues involve free access to information, as well as the need for abandoning periodical elections as the main method of citizens' involvement in politics. Instead, the Piratenpartei, as well as other similar parties in northern Europe, advocates a more permanent and direct involvement of people in the decision-making process. This is defined as the concept of "liquid democracy". The Piratenpartei has influenced the German political scene by forcing other political parties to adopt their programmes if they wish to preserve their influence in German politics. This is particularly important for the younger generation of voters, who are now increasingly using the Internet as an instrument of political activism. Adapted from the source document.

The article distinguishes two ways in which Heidegger can be a subject of research. In one type of research, he is a historical figure of political events, & as such a subject of history as a science. Such research has to satisfy the scientific criteria of historiographical method regardless of how critically it treats its subject. In the second type, the subject are Heidegger's work & the philosophical motives of his political involvement at the start of the Nazi regime in 1933/34. An analysis has in both cases come up with some sloppy scientific procedures & shown that frequently the a priori assumptions get the upper hand, & tend to lean in favour of proving his guilt. A brief introductory overview of the debate is followed by a concise historical outline of the stages in this controversy, & then by an excursus about the essence of the scientific method, & finally by a critical review of the works of some historians which serves the author to demonstrate how it is possible for research to get off the right track when not respecting the criteria & the standards of the scientific method. The second part focuses on the question of the interpretation of the relationship between philosophy & political activism. The thesis (with critical references to some recent ideas by Fried, Kisiel, Thoma) is that the philosophical motives of Heidegger's "leap" into politics should primarily be sought in the methodological dimensions of his work, primarily in those linked to the problems of grounding, & not so much in certain notional concordances of his categories with the Nazi terminology & concepts. 54 References. Adapted from the source document.

A poll on political tolerance was conducted using a 772-subject sample. Because of the long-lasting totalitarian system & the short period of democracy, a rather low level of political tolerance was expected. However, the results of the poll showed a high level of political tolerance instead. Similar findings have been obtained by an American survey conducted in several European countries, including Croatia. This means that political tolerance in Croatia has not been shaped by the totalitarian system but by the pluralist traits of the Croatian culture, ensuing from numerous contacts with a plethora of different cultures. If the pluralist democracy in Croatia is to function democratically, appropriate legal prerequisites & institutions do not suffice; the people who are in line with the principles of pluralist democracy are central to this as well. Pluralist democracy legalizes various political options & enables citizens to organize themselves & act in accordance with the embraced option. All this, however, is a moot point if people are not willing to accept the existence & activism of different political options. That is why the concept of political tolerance always goes hand in hand with the concept of pluralist democracy. The essence of political is not tolerance & patience but non-restriction of political freedoms & political pluralism. Those who accept political pluralism must acknowledge the existence of various political options, even those of which they do not approve. They more readily accept the existence of various political options & nurture a less intensive feeling of intolerance & bigotry. So, tolerance means accepting, not just tolerating, different political options. 12 Tables, 2 Graphs, 19 References. Adapted from the source document.

The essay describes the evolution of the concept of political culture, from the concepts such as Comte's 'consensus,' Durkheim's 'collective awareness,' Weber's 'significance of individual actions,' to Parson's 'action frame of reference,' & Mead's 'national character.' The development began with Comte's search for differentia specifica of social sciences in relation to other positive sciences & finished in 1963 with the introduction of the concept of political culture into political science by G. Almond & S. Verba. Our analysis has shown that many definitions of political culture point out that its essence lies in people's beliefs since political culture is a set of beliefs regarding politics. As much as it may seem a paradox, it cannot be reduced to mere individual beliefs, but represents a system of inter-subjective opinions on various political objects. This explains the possible discrepancies between the political events & the political beliefs of the people, between their behavior & political culture, & so on. Contrary to the belief of some authors, it has been shown how political culture may & should be taken as a common denominator for a variety of opinions on politics. Political attitudes, values, norms, public opinion, & political ideologies are nothing but different manifestations of political culture. Thus, the concept of political culture includes diverse facets of the subjective attitude of people towards politics. This is the asset & not the downside of this concept, as some authors would have it. It is pointed out that the manifold manifestations of political culture do not carry the same 'weight' in explaining the political activism of people & the functioning of political systems. The relationship between these manifestations is extremely complex & a challenge for research. It is this very relationship that could explain the stable & less stable (ie, stable & vacillating) reactions of people in their political activity. Adapted from the source document.

Describes the study of the evolution of the awareness (understanding) & the practice (activities, participation) of citizenship among Croatian high school students (the first new generation of full-age citizens). The research was conducted in line with similar models in relevant international studies, which enabled a comparative analysis. The analysis of the concept (basic theory) of citizenship was followed by a comparative analysis of the development & the distribution of the citizenship awareness & the yardsticks of the practice of citizenship among Croatian high school students. A number of indicators of the awareness of citizenship (civic identity, the model & the type of citizenship, the concept of the "good citizen," & the concept of the rights & duties of citizens in democracy), & several measures of the practice of citizenship (political interest, discussing politics, following news in the media, the expected conventional & protest political activism, political tolerance) have been used. The comparative analysis has shown that the Croatian students are in some aspects of citizenship at the level of students in many of the comparison nations, but that in others there are significant differences; eg, their level of political interest is significantly lower. The analysis has shown that there is a high awareness of the rights, but relatively a low awareness of the duties, which may be the main problem in the development of political culture of Croatian students & citizens. The expected conventional & protest participation among the Croatian students is significantly lower than among students from other countries. The research also shows that among Croatian students (that phenomenon has also been noticed in other countries) there is a significant discrepancy between, for example, the awareness of the rights & duties of citizens in democracy & the level of political tolerance: the high level of awareness of one's rights (freedom of speech, association, etc) coexists with a relatively low level of tolerance. Thus, it can be said that various inconsistencies tag & "burden" the evolution of citizenship among Croatian high school students. 13 Tables, 40 References. Adapted from the source document.