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The author presents a thesis about the difference between cultural/historical & political identity by distinguishing the cultural/historical majorities & minorities from the political winners & losers. He points to the democratic paradox according to which states are not ruled by the losers' political majorities but by the winners' political minorities. According to the author, in multiethnic societies, it is necessary to equally develop the popular & the political culture -- that is both cultural & political tolerance. Adapted from the source document.

This paper explores Habermas's political philosophy of personal and collective identity and the role of constitution in building a post-national constellation in his political writings. Habermas's stances on European identity and the role that the European constitution-making process could have on the formation of aforementioned identity are reviewed, with responses to the no-demos thesis through his concept of constitutional patriotism. Author argues that constitutional patriotism and proceduralism in his political and legalistic observations seems to be the more realistic part of his discourse, while his search for European identity as pre-political viewpoint through the model of European political spheres still remains part of the idealistic vision. Adapted from the source document.

The article includes the bulk of the results of research conducted in 1998 on the social status of female artists in the Republic of Croatia (doctoral thesis). The typology based on ancient Greek mythology (the Muses, the Nymphs, Eurynome) in the manner of Weber's ideal types enables the manifestation of diverse forms of female identity. Female artists recognize & distinguish two dimensions of power: the will for power (Nietzsche, Hegel) & the power for women (N. Hartsock). This recognition is demonstrated by a contradictory & ambivalent understanding of this notion, in fact by its redefinition (the "struggle with ease," they are & are not fighters), by the salient distancing from the will for power & the assertion of the power for women. Some female artists recognize the importance of gender for success in the world of art but an equal number of them do not. However, the majority think that awards, juries' decisions, & the opinion of the public & the critics do not depend on an artist's gender. Those among them who are aware of the importance of gender for success & recognition think that women are in an inferior position. 1 Table, 12 References. Adapted from the source document.

The article includes the bulk of the results of research conducted in 1998 on the social status of female artists in the Republic of Croatia (doctoral thesis). The typology based on ancient Greek mythology (the Muses, the Nymphs, Eurynome) in the manner of Weber's ideal types enables the manifestation of diverse forms of female identity. Female artists recognize & distinguish two dimensions of power: the will for power (Nietzsche, Hegel) & the power for women (N. Hartsock). This recognition is demonstrated by a contradictory & ambivalent understanding of this notion, in fact by its redefinition (the "struggle with ease," they are & are not fighters), by the salient distancing from the will for power & the assertion of the power for women. Some female artists recognize the importance of gender for success in the world of art but an equal number of them do not. However, the majority think that awards, juries' decisions, & the opinion of the public & the critics do not depend on an artist's gender. Those among them who are aware of the importance of gender for success & recognition think that women are in an inferior position. 1 Table, 12 References. Adapted from the source document.

In numerous European countries, majority nations & national minorities that live in them, aware of the complexity of relations between majorities & minorities in the ethnic sense & the ensuing dangers, have engaged in mutual accommodation & compromise, thus fashioning certain models of coexistence. Constitutional provisions of European states prove that there is no single model of recognition of the rights of national minorities. Still, European states may be divided into three groups: (1) those that advocate the constitutional principle of the integral nation & refuse to recognize any other ethnic origin of their citizens; (2) those that do not divide their ethnic communities into majority & minority ones, which means that they do not recognize the category of the national minority, but protect the ethnic identity of their members by distinguishing their citizens by the languages they use; & (3) those that recognize the notion of the majority nation & national minorities. The latter states have elaborated provisions regarding the rights of national minorities, particularly the protection of their national, cultural, religious, & linguistic identity, with major differences in the scope of individual rights. 6 References. Adapted from the source document.

Contrary to the prevalent criticism of the modern nation-state, the author thinks that it is an institution ethically valid in itself. A nation-state is a political entity in which the boundaries of state & nation coincide. National identity is a source of communitarian solidarity & trust, essential for the formation of a state. The author thinks that the state, as a means of national self-determination can relinquish many of its functions & delegate them to supranational bodies, under the condition that it can regain them. Certain areas, such as social & cultural policy & certain aspects of economic policy, due to their importance for the preservation of the national identity should remain in the hands of the nation-state. In their foreign policy, states ought to respect several basic norms: renouncing the use of force or other forms of pressure, honoring agreements, solidarity in adversity, & reducing the unfair distribution of resources. The author deals with the problem of multinational states & concludes that the separate national groups in principle have a right to secession & the creation of their own state. Adapted from the source document.

The understanding and clarification of important social events as themes must be derived from the hermeneutic code of the epoch. The millennial threshold was marked by processes of integration and particularisation, which were observed, as constitutive principle or principle of legitimate refutation, also in the bringing down of socialist orders and the establishment of supranational associations. Thus a discussion of the (empirical) position and (normative) status of ethnic minorities must as well be positioned in a universal European context, in which the predominant role is played by liberal theory and liberal practice. In societies going through transformation from ideological to legal state, answers to multi-ethnic needs must be sought in the patterns of liberal philosophy, taking into account (a) the delusion of Western theory that the change of regime brings about a spontaneous springing up of liberal institutions from the socialist ruins, and (b) the possible disproof of the assertion that the recognition of collective rights of ethnic minorities violates the liberal principle of universal equality of citizens as abstract members of the state. On the other hand, it is necessary to understand and acknowledge the historical heritage when solving the issue of ethnic minority rights in the countries of Eastern and Central Europe, since the issue was absorbed in their authoritarian past by the ideological supranational programme. All the falsity of the "state of peoples and ethnicities" was fully exposed at the outset of transition, when the regime crisis arose coupled with the crisis of state identity. The states which divided themselves and seceded did fall apart exactly along the lines of the ethnic components. It is precisely in view of the described experience (along with the "surplus of violence" syndrome) that the post-Yugoslavian consolidation necessarily requires institutional guarantee and practical recognition of particular ethnic identities. Adapted from the source document.

The author shows that the processes of globalization cannot diminish the role of the nation-state -- as the sole recognizable political community -- in the implementation & development of democracy, though they are undoubtedly going to alter its functioning & make it more complex. When exploring democracy & its expansion outside the borders of the nation-state, we should keep in mind that people do not act solely on a rational interest basis, but also on the basis of values; & that identities, not just interests, are the underlying determinants of their political activity. That is why the theory of cosmopolitan democracy must come to grips with the issue of the legitimation of the cosmopolitan political community as well as of the cosmopolitan democratic political system. This paper addresses these issues. The analysis has shown that these are complex & open questions without which a valid discussion about the transnational political organizations & processes of the cosmopolitan or regional integration & democratization is not possible. The question of the legitimation of the political community (unfortunately, rarely discussed) is in a way primordial in relation to the issue of the legitimation of the political system & political authorities. This issue has been neglected because it is thought that pluralism defines democracy; consequently, the imperative of a certain level of social & cultural homogeneity as a condition of its functioning has been overlooked. The concept of global citizenry requires the creation of a new political identity, while cosmopolitanism must prove that this identity can be brought about without a "democratic deficit" or a "bureaucratic-oligarchic surplus." This is not easy, if we keep in mind the fact that the law & legalism by themselves are not conducive to political commitment & loyalty to political decisions. 39 References. Adapted from the source document.

The end of the Cold War brought about the emergence of a new geopolitics, one not greatly burdened with former international geopolitical views. One significant shift has been the recognition that geopolitical events cannot be limited to national states & their borders. Of course, states are still central for the world's geopolitical map, but no longer as the sole factors in the global geopolitical system. On the one hand, under the influence of globalization, new conditions have arisen, influenced by geopolitical factors; on the other, new entities are emerging whose influence is very similar to that of the central factors -- contemporary states. These similarities are primarily reflected in the claims of sovereign control over a certain territory, the organization of government on it, the shaping of a particular national identity by the majority population, etc. It is these new territorial & political units that contribute to the deconstruction of the geopolitical order; the disintegration of the Soviet Union is the best illustration. Adapted from the source document.

This article addresses the question of the relationship between Croatia & the Balkans as a geographical & civilisational space & the way it shaped discursive changes in the immediate post-Tudman period which started in the year 2000. The focus of the study is the articulation of 'the West' & 'the Balkans' in the Croatian political discourse that leads to the argument that a deeper cooperation between Croatia & the European Union is closely connected with the reconstruction of Croatian identity. The problem of the Balkans as the 'radical other' to the Croatian subject & difficulties in cooperation with that region demanded a thorough examination of Croatian identity & its relations with ethics & responsibility as promoted by the European Union. The study employs discourse analysis as a method of analyzing the text, which is rooted in the post-structuralist theoretical approach. Adapted from the source document.