Suchergebnisse

The capacity of various actors to promote democracy on an international level is evaluated, & the comparative advantages & shortcomings of the United Nations as a democracy-promoting force are studied. Although the US remains the predominant force for international democratization, it is demonstrated that regional organizations (eg, the Organization of American States), nongovernmental organizations, & international organizations (eg, the United Nations) also firmly promote democratic political systems. Whereas the United Nations international recognition as a legitimate regime & network of governance programs are definite comparative advantages, it is stressed that its democracy-promotion budget is smaller than some national governments, thus impeding its capacity to offer electoral assistance. Several relevant challenges facing the United Nations are then articulated, eg, ascertaining whether international support engenders sustainable democratic processes & whether assistance alters a states cultural, political, or social foundations. J. W. Parker

"This introductory chapter critically examines the concept of Europeanization and uses it to explore the changing relationship between Germany and the EU. It argues in favour of understanding 'Europeanization' as a complex, interactive 'top-down' and 'bottom-up' process in which domestic polities, politics, and public policies are shaped by European integration and in which domestic actors use European integration to shape the domestic arena. Europeanization may produce either continuity or change and potentially variable and contingent outcomes. Previous work has stressed the capacity of Germany to shape European integration through the use of 'soft' power; the coincidence of enabling and restrictive effects arising from progressive integration; and harmonious co-existence and co-evolution between the German political system and the EU level. However, a focus on Europeanization provides grounds for re-examining the conventional wisdom about the domestic conditioning and effects of integration. It highlights how momentous changes in the European integration process are combining with domestic changes, summarized as the transition from the 'Bonn Republic' to the 'Berlin Republic', to situate Germany as part of a shrinking core and as marked by declining 'soft' power." (author's abstract)

Durkheim hat in seinem Werk versucht, die Spannung zwischen Zwang und Selbstbestimmung in einer modernen säkularisierten Moral zu überbrücken. Dazu entwickelte er erstens die Idee einer moralischen Teilautonomie, bei welcher die Individuen aufgrund der Komplexität der modernen arbeitsteiligen Gesellschaft die vorgegebenen moralischen Regeln selbst kreativ auslegen müssen. Durkheim entwickelte zweitens die bekannte Idee der sozialkulturellen Individualisierung, die mit dem Begriff vom "Kult des Individuums" zusammengefasst werden kann. Um den Gegensatz zwischen Zwang und autonomem Handeln zu überwinden, setzte Durkheim drittens die moralische Autonomie mit rationalem Einverständnis gleich und postulierte viertens die These, dass die modernen Menschen der Illusion einer moralischen Autonomie folgen müssen. Durkheim machte mit seiner Gleichsetzung von Selbstbestimmung und dem individuellen Einverständnis in die moralischen Regeln insgesamt einen zentralen Weg deutlich, auf welchem die Autonomie-Illusion entsteht. Betrachtet man gleichzeitig Durkheims Thesen zu den Gelingensbedingungen von Zwang, können ferner Erkenntnisse darüber gewonnen werden, warum diese Autonomie-Illusion in der modernen Gesellschaft genauso notwendig ist wie der Zwang, der hinter ihr steht. (ICI2)

Strategies used by US presidents facing congressional majorities of the opposition party to communicate their administrative agendas are examined. It is contended that historical context must be considered when investigating the constraints placed upon presidential communications since presidents experience four distinct political contexts while in office. In addition, it is asserted that presidents facing governing majorities of the opposition party historically have had their agendas restrained by the opposition majority. The strategies employed by Dwight D. Eisenhower & Bill Clinton to communicate their political objectives are then studied. Whereas the "frontal assault" approach adopted by Clinton largely failed to implement his political goals, it is noted that Eisenhower's indirect approach, characterized by a mediation of his conservative political agenda, was more successful in communicating his administrative agenda. Several recommendations for future research are identified, eg, determining whether the espousal of Eisenhower's indirect approach contains significant disadvantages. 2 Tables. J. W. Parker

Examines regional integration between the western Canadian provinces & states in the US west & northwest. The institutional & constitutional frameworks, bureaucratic structures, & party systems of the two countries illuminate complications & complementary components to the question of regional integration. Prospects for regional integration in western Canada & western North America are weighed & concluded to be unlikely. 13 References. L. Collins Leigh

A 17-month ethnography of a welfare office & two welfare rights groups during 1989/90 in MI explores the blocks to solidarity & alliance between welfare workers & welfare recipients despite common life experiences & similar class positions. For women, both roles are devalued. Bureaucratic control of welfare workers limits their ability to help welfare recipients, & they are forced to use neoliberal ideology in selecting the poor considered worthy of assistance. The poor women who are rejected view the workers as the source of the problem & label them as arbitrary & unfair. The disunity & hostility in worker-recipient relations echoes the current ethos of welfare in the US. L. A. Hoffman

Examines legislative & regulatory reforms in France, Germany, the Netherlands, & the US that led to new actors & levels in migration control. An analysis of differences & similarities in immigration control among these four countries emphasizes the role of ideas, interests, & institutions. A look at possible explanations for recent trends in immigration includes the partial delegation of migration policy to a range of actors outside the central nation-state bureaucracies. It is contended that it has become necessary to rethink traditional views of national sovereignty to recognize that the delegation of policy competence does not necessarily indicate a loss of sovereignty. The role of various national institutions, including the courts, in constraining migration is discussed. It is maintained that looking at coalitional distributions & institutional arrangements at the national, international, & local levels sheds light on which agencies/political actors dominate at each level & increases understandings of policy outcomes. The importance of security at all levels is emphasized. 1 Table, 86 References. J. Lindroth