Suchergebnisse

In a famous article from 1959, David Easton claimed that political anthropology has nothing to tell a political scientist, since it does not treat the state as a separate sphere. To make such a claim, Easton had to assume stability in the distribution of functions between the Westphalian state & the co-existing society, similarity between European Westphalian states, & likeness between the European state & all other states in the world. Fifty years later it seems to be clear why Easton was mistaken, & why state comparisons that do not problematize the historical & sociological conditions of every single state formation have failed. If one wants to understand the state in the age of globalization, the point of departure must be to ask how the relationship between state & society continuously changes, not if it does. As Easton points out, this is exactly what political anthropology mainly has focused on. The article gives an overview of how this has been done, from Lewis Henry Morgan to James C. Scott. It calls on political scientists to study the state empirically to a higher degree, as an endogenous part of the analysis or a dependent variable, rather than treating it as either a given starting point, an exogenous part of the analysis, or an independent variable. 44 References. Adapted from the source document.

The liberal state, it has been argued, must be neutral between different conceptions of the good. Honoring individual autonomy & embodying ideals such as fairness & impartiality, the doctrine of state neutrality is intuitively appealing. Working as a restraint for state actions it is however problematic. In this paper, a possible solution to this predicament is outlined. Drawing on the distinction between liberty & what gives worth to liberty, it is argued that we must never accept non-neutral restrictions of liberty itself, but may pursue non-neutral policies affecting the distribution of what gives worth to liberty & may impose taxes funding non-neutral state actions, although such taxation inevitable limits the worth of our liberty. It is suggested that we, by adopting such a policy of limited state perfectionism, can recognize the right to individual autonomy without having to restrain the state from doing the good it can. References. Adapted from the source document.

This paper analyses how the public policies of potable water distribution have influenced the perceptions people in Villa Chaquimayu, a marginalized neighbourhood of Cochabamba (Bolivia), have about the State. This analysis is based on the theoretical distinction between 'State-system' and 'State-idea' proposed by Abrams (1988). Following Abrams, this paper examines both the practices the Bolivian State has implemented to deliver potable water to Villa Chaquimayu (State-system), and the notions people in this neighbourhood have about the State (State-idea). By using ethnographic data, this investigation shows that a deficient public management of potable water distribution has negatively influenced people's ideas and perceptions about what is the State.

Presents an upcoming research that focuses on building a theory on how states relate to emigrating people, how states are organized outside their territories, and how the emigrating people relate to their country of origin. The project will focus on countries in the Middle East with an emphasis on Turkey, Syria and Algeria. L. Pitkaniemi

Is it really meaningful to talk about "good" science? We hesitate. We desire good (state) science stumbling near a positivist scientific view. We wish for political science theory -- and practice as much as possible to emulate natural science theory and methodology -- to be objective, to look for hard facts, causal relationships, universal laws, and by using the "right" methods to reach the "right" or "true" knowledge and thus make us the "real" knowledge producers. At the same time we believe it is important to keep the discussion on good science not only alive but also always ongoing. Perhaps this is an ongoing discussion about our research efforts and research ideals of what constitutes good science? It is our guiding principle when we formulated the following manifesto for the good of science. Adapted from the source document.

Locating the beginning of the modern state-church debate at the end of the Protestant Reformation, the article (1) briefly traces the development of Pufendorf's theory of the church as a collegium under state law & the opposing doctrine of the Catholic Church as a societas perfecta independent of the state; (2) surveys the state-church relationship in Germany, Switzerland, & France; & (3) summarizes the development in Swedish law toward greater freedom of religion up to the most recent reforms, decoupling the (Lutheran) Church of Sweden from the state machinery (while retaining ultimate state control). Noting that, apart from the Church of Sweden, religious groups may only, now as previously, organize themselves in private-law associations, it concludes that the recent reform has preserved the traditional Swedish structure along majoritarian lines by endorsing Pufendorf's theory, thus in a sense further pursuing the Protestant Reformation in Sweden. 84 References. Adapted from the source document.

The central issue studied in this project is the neutrality of a state regarding moral values & life choices, particularly, the view of the state on what marriage is. Particularly, what neutrality regarding values would mean in actual political practice. The project consists of five parts: 1) How should neutrality be formulated theoretically? 2) Same-sex couples' right to marriage, 3) Polygamy & legal marriage, 4) Legality of incest , 5) Evaluation & conclusions. References. Adapted from the source document.

In recent Swedish political debate a former anonymous group has been noticed, political appointees in the political executives. In media they are often characterized as politicians and in the last decades an expansion of them has taken place, both at governmental and municipal level (Stockholm). However, studies of this key group are surprisingly few. The study is related to "politicization", a concept widely used in international political science. Not only the expansion (and the recent feminization) of the group is here discussed. Even more important is the changing patterns of careers and the creation of staffs of political appointees that surround the politicians. The changes can be viewed as an effort from the politicians to regain control of the bureaucracy. By studying this, at least in Sweden, neglected group, the concept on politicization also is developed. Adapted from the source document.

This article discusses the political relevance of recent proposals on universal basic income to the Swedish welfare state. I explore powerful arguments in favour of such proposals in this particular institutional context & confront them with two dimensions of the objection of political unfeasibility: (a) that basic income implies more fundamental normative & institutional discontinuity than sustainable implementanon allows & (b) that an adequate basic income would be unaffordable. I argue that this objection does not apply to all meaningful basic income schemes. Partial basic income & time-limited basic income promise to bring many advantages of a full basic income without implying a brutal clash with either (a) or (b). References. Adapted from the source document.

The paper argues that the Swedish 'neo-liberal' party (Moderaterna) has adapted its policies because of the popularity of the 'universal' Swedish welfare state. The party has come to accept that the modern welfare state is irreplaceable. We furthermore argue that the party's moderate electoral platform in 2006 is earnest. In the "short run" the party can only hope to achieve incremental changes & it recognizes this. Simultaneously however, the party in the "long run" wants to gradually change society. Over time the party in its rhetoric & ideological statements has emphasized the short & the long run differently. These differences between the 'neo-liberal' 1980s & 2006 should not conceal that the mechanism of welfare popularity largely remains the same. The party's actual policy proposals tend to suggest incremental changes only in both periods. Adapted from the source document.