- University of Canberra, School of Government & Policy, Faculty Memberadd
- Democratic Theory, New Models Of Participatory And Direct Democracy, History of Democracy, Economic Democracy, Democracy, Democratization, and 10 moreMedia and Democracy, Monitory Democracy, Democide, Deliberative Democracy, Democracy Promotion, Democracy and Good Governance, New Models Of Democracy, Democracy and Cyber-Democracy Theory and Practice, Democracy and Citizenship Education, and Citizenship identities(Media and Democracy, Monitory Democracy, Democide, Deliberative Democracy, Democracy Promotion, Democracy and Good Governance, New Models Of Democracy, Democracy and Cyber-Democracy Theory and Practice, Democracy and Citizenship Education, and Citizenship identities)edit
- Old-fashioned grammarian of democracy. jeanpaulgagnon.work Student of "non-human democracy" in particular. https://j... moreOld-fashioned grammarian of democracy. jeanpaulgagnon.work
Student of "non-human democracy" in particular. https://jeanpaulgagnon.work/index.php/2020/06/15/a-new-tool-for-the-study-of-democracy/
See the Mendeley Dataset for nearly 4,000 signs of democracy: https://data.mendeley.com/datasets/pthgd7rx92/1
Tags: democratic theory, democracy, democracy meaning, representative democracy, parliamentary system, democratic countries, direct democracy, democratization, parliamentary democracy, types of democracy, parliamentary democracy, democratic peace theory(Old-fashioned grammarian of democracy. jeanpaulgagnon.work<br /><br />Student of "non-human democracy" in particular. https://jeanpaulgagnon.work/index.php/2020/06/15/a-new-tool-for-the-study-of-democracy/ <br /><br />See the Mendeley Dataset for nearly 4,000 signs of democracy: https://data.mendeley.com/datasets/pthgd7rx92/1<br /><br />Tags: democratic theory, democracy, democracy meaning, representative democracy, parliamentary system, democratic countries, direct democracy, democratization, parliamentary democracy, types of democracy, parliamentary democracy, democratic peace theory)edit
The principles and practices of democracy in the twenty-first century have changed drastically from how they were understood hundreds and even thousands of years ago. In the world today, we not only think about democracy differently and... more
The principles and practices of democracy in the twenty-first century have changed drastically from how they were understood hundreds and even thousands of years ago. In the world today, we not only think about democracy differently and practice it differently, we are also predicting new and distinct futures for it. On top of this, the origins of democracy have been brought into question while democratic theory has been picked apart and the practice of democracy has been presented with new challenges. This book argues that the result of these changes is a new understanding of democracy termed 'new democratic theory'. Through interviews with renowned democratic theorists working today, Ulrich Beck, Noam Chomsky, John Dryzek, John Dunn, Francis Fukuyama, David Held, Ramin Jahanbegloo, John Keane, Pierre Rosanvallon, Thomas Seeley, and Albert Weale, this book provides an in-depth exploration of new democratic theory. The result is striking with each interview highlighting new dimensions and changes to our understanding of democracy.
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The concept of democracy is fraught with ambiguity. There are none who know what democracy means, where it came from or indeed where it is going despite it being the system of governance that is most widely heralded for its modernity and... more
The concept of democracy is fraught with ambiguity. There are none who know what democracy means, where it came from or indeed where it is going despite it being the system of governance that is most widely heralded for its modernity and promotion of equality. For example, the theory and principles that underpin democracy are unimaginably complicated while its institutions across time and space are contradictory. The stark reality is that democracy is imprisoned by parochialism, subjectivity and myopia with humanity being governed by a system that it does not fully understand. If democracy is everywhere and everyone wants it, then how do we not know what it means? If we do not know what democracy means, then why is it forcefully driving our politics and societies? This extremely ambitious and illuminating book offers a way out by answering these important questions and by exploring democracy in its purest form.
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This introduction offers a post-foundational analytic tool for the study of democracy across time and space. The tool helps to manage the complexity of the discourse on democracy. This chapter argues that we do not know what democracy is.... more
This introduction offers a post-foundational analytic tool for the study of democracy across time and space. The tool helps to manage the complexity of the discourse on democracy. This chapter argues that we do not know what democracy is. The chapter is determined to offer a way forward. It establishes that this book will explain a theory of basic democracy. It describes that the democracy theories, concepts, practices and their nuances are many and that the resulting ambiguity interferes with politics globally. The lack of a scientific definition of democracy is a serious and present danger for contemporary politics and society. This logic is used to argue for the importance of the model and to justify why we need a way forward.
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Gaddafi and Libya : a case for just intervention? ... Gagnon, Jean-Paul (2011) Gaddafi and Libya : a case for just intervention? openDemocracy. ... Official URL: http://www.opendemocracy.net /jean-paul-gagnon/gadd... ... Full militaristic... more
Gaddafi and Libya : a case for just intervention? ... Gagnon, Jean-Paul (2011) Gaddafi and Libya : a case for just intervention? openDemocracy. ... Official URL: http://www.opendemocracy.net /jean-paul-gagnon/gadd... ... Full militaristic intervention cannot be justified on the ...
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Samuel Moyn provides insight into how the history of democracy can continue its globalization. There is a growing belief that the currently acceptable fund of ideas has not served the recent past well which is why an expansion, a... more
Samuel Moyn provides insight into how the history of democracy can continue its globalization. There is a growing belief that the currently acceptable fund of ideas has not served the recent past well which is why an expansion, a planetary one, of democracy’s ideas is necessary – especially now as we move deeper into the shadow of declining American/Western imperialism and ideology. Deciding which of democracy’s intellectual traditions to privilege is driven by a mix of forced necessity and choice: finding salient ground for democracy is likely only possible in poisoned traditions including European ones.
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bilities, Sikkink suggests, is best left unsaid. These days, responsibilities simply do not trend well. And if one cannot completely avoid using the r-word, it should only be employed as ameans of avoiding terms that are even less cool,... more
bilities, Sikkink suggests, is best left unsaid. These days, responsibilities simply do not trend well. And if one cannot completely avoid using the r-word, it should only be employed as ameans of avoiding terms that are even less cool, such as obligation or duty, which are not considered “persuasive” in our times (37). We live in a consumer culture that is notably narcissistic (Jean M. Twenge and W. Keith Campbell, The Narcissism Epidemic [Free Press, 2009]). In such a culture, a sense of individual entitlement overpowers the recognition of responsibility. Sikkink maintains that responsibilities are the hidden face of rights. She seems to be saying that the face of responsibility is also best hidden from view, the better to achieve the social and political changes one agrees with in a culture that cannot be persuaded we have any real obligations or duties.
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1. Introduction: New Democratic Theory? 2. The Impossibility of 'Knowing' Democracy with John Dunn 3. The Changing History of Democracy with Albert Weale 4. Democracy Before and After the State with Francis Fukuyama 5. The... more
1. Introduction: New Democratic Theory? 2. The Impossibility of 'Knowing' Democracy with John Dunn 3. The Changing History of Democracy with Albert Weale 4. Democracy Before and After the State with Francis Fukuyama 5. The Cultural Turn in New Democratic Theory with Ramin Jahanbegloo 6. Questions about the New Democratic Theory with David Held 7. The Reflexive Modernisation of Democracy with Ulrich Beck 8. Twists of Democratic Governance with John Dryzek 9. Certain Turns of Modernity in Democratic Theory with Pierre Rosanvallon 10. Broadening the Democratic Imagination with John Keane 11. Nonhuman Democratic Practice with Thomas Seeley 12. Global Leviathan Rising with Noam Chomsky 13. Conclusion Shapes of the Frontier
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Sue Donaldson, Janneke Vink, and Jean-Paul Gagnon discuss the problem of anthropocentric democratic theory and the preconditions needed to realize a (corrective) interspecies democracy. Donaldson proposes the formal involvement of... more
Sue Donaldson, Janneke Vink, and Jean-Paul Gagnon discuss the problem of anthropocentric democratic theory and the preconditions needed to realize a (corrective) interspecies democracy. Donaldson proposes the formal involvement of nonhuman animals in political institutions—a revolutionary task; Vink argues for changes to the law that would cover nonhuman animals with inviolable political rights; and Gagnon advises a personal change to dietary choices (veganism) and ethical orientations (do no harm). Together, the three proposals point to a future position where humans can participate in a multispecies world in which nonhuman others are freed from our tyrannical grasp.
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A short submission to the Australian Parliamentary Inquiry on supporting democracy in the Asia-Pacific region. Notably, it is not about elections and flags the difficult politics of hypocrisy and values promotion.
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What is democratic theory? The question is surprisingly infrequently posed. Indeed, the last time this precise question appears in the academic archive was exactly forty years ago, in James Alfred Pennock’s (1979) book Democratic... more
What is democratic theory? The question is surprisingly infrequently posed. Indeed, the last time this precise question appears in the academic archive was exactly forty years ago, in James Alfred Pennock’s (1979) book Democratic Political Theory. This is an odd discursive silence not observable in other closely aligned fields of thought such as political theory, political science, social theory, philosophy, economic theory, and public policy/administration – each of which have asked the “what is” question of themselves on regular occasion. The premise of this special issue is, therefore, to pose the question anew and break this forty-year silence.
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This introductory article to Democratic Theory’s special issue on the marginalized democracies of the world begins by presenting the lexical method for understanding democracy. It is argued that the lexical method is better than the... more
This introductory article to Democratic Theory’s special issue on the marginalized democracies of the world begins by presenting the lexical method for understanding democracy. It is argued that the lexical method is better than the normative and analytical methods at finding democracies in the world. The argument then turns to demonstrating, mainly through computational research conducted within the Google Books catalog, that an empirically demonstrable imbalance exists between the democracies mentioned in the literature. The remainder of the argument is given to explaining the value of working to correct this imbalance, which comes in at least three guises: (1) studying marginalized democracies can increase our options for alternative democratic actions and democratic innovations; (2) it leads to a conservation and public outreach project, which is epitomized in an “encyclopedia of the democracies”; and (3) it advocates for a decolonization of democracies’ definitions and practice...
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This chapter is a work of comparisons and contrasts. It aims to meet the need for carefully built conciliatory ontologies from works within the corpuses of Gramscian and Foucauldian thought. This chapter explores how Gramsci and Foucault... more
This chapter is a work of comparisons and contrasts. It aims to meet the need for carefully built conciliatory ontologies from works within the corpuses of Gramscian and Foucauldian thought. This chapter explores how Gramsci and Foucault thought of democracy. Both had interesting things to say about the individual. Her behaviour as a citizen, her role as a member of a society, and the expectations that she must fill are focuses. In this chapter I make the argument that Gramscian and Foucauldian theory support a democracy focused on citizen-experts who actively resist power.
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Abstract: This work will try to analyse China's naval policy off the Somali coast. The maincontribution this work will attempt to make is to offer evidence concerningwhether China's anti-pirating policies in the Gulf of Aden are... more
Abstract: This work will try to analyse China's naval policy off the Somali coast. The maincontribution this work will attempt to make is to offer evidence concerningwhether China's anti-pirating policies in the Gulf of Aden are more for thebenefit of the international ...
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Violence is detrimental to the stability of any democracy. If people are too scared to vote, or if they lack confidence in their government to bring peace, how will their voices be heard? By discussing how accountability, transparency,... more
Violence is detrimental to the stability of any democracy. If people are too scared to vote, or if they lack confidence in their government to bring peace, how will their voices be heard? By discussing how accountability, transparency, and ethics dissuade social confusion, ...
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This paper explains the idea of a synergism between cutting-edge renewable energy technologies and social services. This is designed to create 'free' services for the public. These 'free' services could occur if... more
This paper explains the idea of a synergism between cutting-edge renewable energy technologies and social services. This is designed to create 'free' services for the public. These 'free' services could occur if 'intensive' renewable energy generation technologies permitted the physical structures housing social services to sell megawatts of electricity. This would act as the income necessary to support the particular social service. The practice could bypass the public treasury. It could remove governments from the neoliberal versus nanny-state debates by creating a framework which would allow the marketplace to spur the growth of 'free' social services and the proliferation of renewable energy technologies. Private investors could gain returns on their capital from the income generated by the renewable energy technology. In turn, private investment would foster an increased provision of social services.
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Queensland's legal labour disputes history does not exhibit the current trend seen in Canada and Switzerland (Gravel & Delpech, 2008) where cases citing International Labour Standards (ILS) are often successful (which is not... more
Queensland's legal labour disputes history does not exhibit the current trend seen in Canada and Switzerland (Gravel & Delpech, 2008) where cases citing International Labour Standards (ILS) are often successful (which is not presently the case in ...
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The Fourth Estate, commonly referred to as the 'media', or vice versa, has an interesting type of power. It is typically protected by the commonly known right to 'freedom of speech'. And the practice of presenting... more
The Fourth Estate, commonly referred to as the 'media', or vice versa, has an interesting type of power. It is typically protected by the commonly known right to 'freedom of speech'. And the practice of presenting information to an audience is usually bound by a code of ethics ...
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This paper argues, somewhat along a Simmelian line, that political theory may produce practical and universal theories like those developed in theoretical physics. The reasoning behind this paper is to show that the theory of 'basic... more
This paper argues, somewhat along a Simmelian line, that political theory may produce practical and universal theories like those developed in theoretical physics. The reasoning behind this paper is to show that the theory of 'basic democracy'may be true by ...
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Sub-surface minerals are in most cases considered to be the proprietary right of a country should those minerals be found within its borders. PRO169 (Indigenous Peoples' Rights, International Labour Organization) has recorded... more
Sub-surface minerals are in most cases considered to be the proprietary right of a country should those minerals be found within its borders. PRO169 (Indigenous Peoples' Rights, International Labour Organization) has recorded instances where the private land ...
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Both “populism” and “populist” have long been considered ill-defined terms, and therefore are regularly misapplied in both scholarly and popular discourses.1 This definitional difficulty is exacerbated by the Babelian confusion of voices... more
Both “populism” and “populist” have long been considered ill-defined terms, and therefore are regularly misapplied in both scholarly and popular discourses.1 This definitional difficulty is exacerbated by the Babelian confusion of voices on populism, where the term’s meaning differs within and between global regions (e.g. Latin America versus Western Europe); time periods (e.g. 1930s versus the present), and classifications (e.g. left/ right, authoritarian/libertarian, pluralist/antipluralist, as well as strains that muddy these distinctions such as homonationalism, xenophobic feminism and multicultural neonationalism). While useful efforts have been made to navigate the vast and heterogeneous conceptual terrain of populism,2 they rarely engage with each other. The result is a dizzying proliferation of different definitions unaccompanied by an understanding as to how they might speak to each other. And this conceptual fragmentation reinforces, and is reinforced by, diverging assessm...
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SUPPLEMENT C2,234 Descriptions of Democracy: An Update to Democracy’s Ontological Pluralism
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SUPPLEMENT A2,234 Descriptions of Democracy: An Update to Democracy’s Ontological Pluralism
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This work by Richard Shapcott is, as the title provides, an introduction to international ethics. By taking a quick glance at the table of contents (see Figure 1) we see that he has systematically divided this particular discourse into... more
This work by Richard Shapcott is, as the title provides, an introduction to international ethics. By taking a quick glance at the table of contents (see Figure 1) we see that he has systematically divided this particular discourse into its normative areas of concern (in other words its major areas of argument or research). When reading, we also see that a great deal of work has gone into the publication because the narrative is flowing, the arguments continuous, and because the tone of the work maintained its critical position throughout.
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A person's usual engagement with taxes is that you pay them. You might do this through sales (goods and services) tax, your personal income tax, the capital gains tax, property taxes, or excise taxes. There are others. Most people... more
A person's usual engagement with taxes is that you pay them. You might do this through sales (goods and services) tax, your personal income tax, the capital gains tax, property taxes, or excise taxes. There are others. Most people also experience tax through that happy 'eofys' (end of fiscal year sale) moment when tax returns are usually due. You might even get some money back - more if you don't have a HECS debt. For others, usually the less lucky, there is a third way of engaging taxes. And that's through the audit.
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Dr. Richard Shapcott is the senior lecturer in International Relations at the University of Queensland. His areas of interest in research concern international ethics, cosmopolitan political theory and cultural diversity. He is the author... more
Dr. Richard Shapcott is the senior lecturer in International Relations at the University of Queensland. His areas of interest in research concern international ethics, cosmopolitan political theory and cultural diversity. He is the author of the recently published book titled International Ethics: A Critical Introduction; and several other pieces, such as, “Anti-Cosmopolitanism, the Cosmopolitan Harm Principle and Global Dialogue,” in Michalis’ and Petito’s book, Civilizational Dialogue and World Order. He’s also the author of “Dialogue and International Ethics: Religion, Cultural Diversity and Universalism, in Patrick Hayden’s, The Ashgate Research Companion to Ethics and International Relations.
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SUPPLEMENT B2,234 Descriptions of Democracy: An Update to Democracy’s Ontological Pluralism
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Review(s) of: Institutionalizing agonistic democracy: Post foundationalism and political liberalism, by Ed Wingenbach, Farnham, Surrey, Ashgate Publishing Limited, 2011, 238 pp., ISBN: 9781403531 $148.50 (hardcover).
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This book details the early political philosophy of Jean-Paul Gagnon. It deals with the ideas of democracy as something endemic to human nature; with practical methods for the improvement of democracy; and a mix of other political... more
This book details the early political philosophy of Jean-Paul Gagnon. It deals with the ideas of democracy as something endemic to human nature; with practical methods for the improvement of democracy; and a mix of other political concepts. The book also has a response to the Russian Federation's development of the 'mother of all bombs' which leads Gagnon to question reason itself in humanity's progress.
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The MDG deadline is fast approaching and the climate within the United Nations remains positive but skeptical. A common feeling is that a great deal of work and headway has been made, but the MDG goals will not be achieved in full by... more
The MDG deadline is fast approaching and the climate within the United Nations remains positive but skeptical. A common feeling is that a great deal of work and headway has been made, but the MDG goals will not be achieved in full by 2015. The largest problem facing the success of the MDGs is, and unless mitigated may remain, mismanaged governance. This argument is confirmed by a strong line of publications stemming from the United Nations and targeting methods (depending on a region or country context) such as improving governance via combating corruption, instituting accountability, peace and stability, as well as transparency. Furthermore, a logical assessment of the framework which MDGs operate in (i.e. international pressure and local civil socio-economic and/or political initiatives pushing governments to progress with MDGs) identifies the State's governing apparatus as the key to the success of MDGs. It is argued that a new analytic framework and grounded theory of democr...
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David Held is the Graham Wallace Chair in Political Science, and co-director of LSE Global Governance, at the London School of Economics. He is the author of many works, such as Cosmopolitanism: Ideals and Realities (2010); The... more
David Held is the Graham Wallace Chair in Political Science, and co-director of LSE Global Governance, at the London School of Economics. He is the author of many works, such as Cosmopolitanism: Ideals and Realities (2010); The Cosmopolitanism Reader (2010), with Garrett Brown; Globalisation/AntiGlobalisation (2007), Models of Democracy (2006), Global Covenant (2004) and Global Transformations: Politics, Economics and Culture (1999). Professor Held is also the co-founder, alongside Lord Professor Anthony Giddens, of Polity Press. Professor Held is widely known for his work concerning cosmopolitan theory, democracy, and social, political and economic global improvement. His Global Policy Journal endeavours to marry academic developments with practitioner realities, and contributes to the understanding and improvement of our governing systems.
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Dr. Isakahn is currently a research associate with the Centre for Dialogue at La Trobe University in Australia. His latest works include several forthcoming books: Democracy in Iraq is a monograph soon to be released; whilst The Edinburgh... more
Dr. Isakahn is currently a research associate with the Centre for Dialogue at La Trobe University in Australia. His latest works include several forthcoming books: Democracy in Iraq is a monograph soon to be released; whilst The Edinburgh Companion to the History of Democracy and The Secret History of Democracy, both done in concert with Stephen Stockwell, are edited collections. His most recent articles include “Targeting the Symbolic Dimension of Baathist Iraq,” “Measuring Islam in Australia” and “Manufacturing Consent in Iraq.” For further information regarding Dr. Isakhan and his works, please visit his website, www.benjaminisakhan.com.
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This thirteenth issue of the journal (Volume 7, Issue 1, July 2020) begins with Roberto Frega’s (CNRS) article “Against Analogy: Why Analogical Arguments in Support of Workplace Democracy Must Necessarily Fail”. Frega invites democratic... more
This thirteenth issue of the journal (Volume 7, Issue 1, July 2020) begins with Roberto Frega’s (CNRS) article “Against Analogy: Why Analogical Arguments in Support of Workplace Democracy Must Necessarily Fail”. Frega invites democratic and political theorists committed to the democratization of the workplace to ground themselves in specifics. Instead of working through metaphor and analogy which risks treating workplaces or firms as more or less the same, Frega argues we should first take issue with the question of which workplace or firm and thereafter work through the problem of how it can democratize. Analogies, Frega convincingly shows, simply do not have this productive capacity.
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The extant literature covering the plights of indigenous people resident to the African continent consistently targets colonial law as an obstacle to the recognition of indigenous rights. Whereas colonial law is argued to be archaic and... more
The extant literature covering the plights of indigenous people resident to the African continent consistently targets colonial law as an obstacle to the recognition of indigenous rights. Whereas colonial law is argued to be archaic and in need of review, which it is, this article argues the new perspective that colonial law is illegitimate for ordering the population it presides over – specifically in Africa. It is seen, in five case studies, that post-colonial legal structures have not considered the legitimacy of colonial law and have rather modified a variety of statutes as country contexts dictated. However, the modified statutes are based on an alien theoretical legality, something laden with connotations that hark to older and backward times. It is ultimately argued that the legal structures which underpin ex-colonies in Africa need considerable revision so as to base statutes on African theoretical legality, rather than imperialistic European ones, so as to maximise the law’...
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The central argument of this work is that “democratic constitutional legitimacy”[2] probably does not currently exist in the politics of any country internationally. This inherent problem in constitutionalism is an endemic governance... more
The central argument of this work is that “democratic constitutional legitimacy”[2] probably does not currently exist in the politics of any country internationally. This inherent problem in constitutionalism is an endemic governance problem most citizenries should be dealing with, only that we are not in a large extent doing so and haven’t been historically. This position was ascertained using a form of Beck and Grande’s (2010) cosmopolitan methodology in my doctoral thesis (which we shall return to). It is argued that every constitution is in need of considerable rethinking so as to bring its statutes in line with the interests of the plurality of individuals it oversees. Finally, this work attempts to show that research in this area of democratic constitutional legitimacy is lacking in the literature as only a few scholars presently engage the issue (namely Simone Chambers).
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The original, in its entirety, can be found on the Journal of Democratic Theory's website (www.journalofdemocratictheory.com) in the first issue of the first volume (2011). The original can be downloaded (.mp3) and can be found on offer... more
The original, in its entirety, can be found on the Journal of Democratic Theory's website (www.journalofdemocratictheory.com) in the first issue of the first volume (2011). The original can be downloaded (.mp3) and can be found on offer next to a polished transcript of the interview.
The original, in its entirety, can be found on the Journal of Democratic Theory's website (www.journalofdemocratictheory.com) in the first issue of the first volume (2011). The original can be downloaded (.mp3) and can be found on offer... more
The original, in its entirety, can be found on the Journal of Democratic Theory's website (www.journalofdemocratictheory.com) in the first issue of the first volume (2011). The original can be downloaded (.mp3) and can be found on offer next to a polished transcript of the interview.
The original, in its entirety, can be found on the Journal of Democratic Theory's website (www.journalofdemocratictheory.com) in the second issue of the first volume (2011). The original can be downloaded (.wmv) and can be found on offer... more
The original, in its entirety, can be found on the Journal of Democratic Theory's website (www.journalofdemocratictheory.com) in the second issue of the first volume (2011). The original can be downloaded (.wmv) and can be found on offer next to a polished transcript of the interview.
The original can be found on the Journal of Democratic Theory's website (www.journalofdemocratictheory.com) in the second issue of the first volume (2011). The polished transcript of this interview will appear in a forthcoming book... more
The original can be found on the Journal of Democratic Theory's website (www.journalofdemocratictheory.com) in the second issue of the first volume (2011). The polished transcript of this interview will appear in a forthcoming book titled: A New Democratic Theory?
It may also be viewed on the Journal of Democratic Theory's website. http://www.journalofdemocratictheory.com. The polished transcript will appear in the forthcoming book titled: A New Democratic Theory?
Professor Seeley engages the concept of "honeybee democracy." This talk contributes to the theory of "evolutionary democracy" wherein humans are seen to have evolved with - or through - democratic governance and government.
Professor David Held discusses the concepts of cosmopolitanism and democracy.
Professor Weale discusses recent changes that have occurred in certain areas of contemporary democratic theory (broadly conceived).
Professor Steckley explores whether the Huron-Wendat (pre-European contact) had a form or forms of democracy.
This talk is of central importance to anyone concerned with the growth of democracy in contemporary mainland China. It encouragingly points to the need for the 'Chinese' plurality to continue working on their own culturally-relevant... more
This talk is of central importance to anyone concerned with the growth of democracy in contemporary mainland China. It encouragingly points to the need for the 'Chinese' plurality to continue working on their own culturally-relevant systems of bottom-up democracy -- something, interestingly, not askance to many normative conceptions of democracy.
Erman masterfully whizzes us through an analytic deconstruction of conflict and contestation in democratic politics. Erman's analytic prowess is very quickly established. Her ability to categorize and deploy these various conceptual units... more
Erman masterfully whizzes us through an analytic deconstruction of conflict and contestation in democratic politics. Erman's analytic prowess is very quickly established. Her ability to categorize and deploy these various conceptual units in the discussion is nothing short of breath-taking. Needless to say, her conclusions are indeed highly convincing. One point among many in this talk, which deserves stressing, is that conflict is not a condition of politics: that is, we can theoretically do politics without conflict.
One of many interesting and eye-opening points that result from this talk is the argument that democracy and republicanism are not antagonistic. Indeed, republicanism can fall under the umbrella of democracy: it is a conception of... more
One of many interesting and eye-opening points that result from this talk is the argument that democracy and republicanism are not antagonistic. Indeed, republicanism can fall under the umbrella of democracy: it is a conception of democracy. Of particular interest to the reader is Slaughter's neo-Roman account of republicanism and how this is engaging globalization and challenges to the state.
This is a discussion of democracy in the Greater China region and brings to front many important issues relating to our cosmopolitan academy. One that I should like to stress here is the insistence on the need for greater collaboration... more
This is a discussion of democracy in the Greater China region and brings to front many important issues relating to our cosmopolitan academy. One that I should like to stress here is the insistence on the need for greater collaboration between 'Western' and 'Eastern' scholars -- especially the greater inclusion of the latter. Professor Lo's insights into the different conceptions of democracy in the Greater China region are important and require significant attention.
This talk proposes the idea of combining renewable energy technology with services to the public. I argue that we may have the opportunity to provide, for example, dental care to a local public for free if the building the dental clinic... more
This talk proposes the idea of combining renewable energy technology with services to the public. I argue that we may have the opportunity to provide, for example, dental care to a local public for free if the building the dental clinic is in produces enough energy to cover its costs. The building sells the energy for a profit which then goes to paying staff, equipment, etc.
Editor's Introduction to forthcoming issue of Democratic Theory Journal (2017).
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Is radical democracy only for humans? From Pateman's (1970) workplace participation to Habermas' communicative rationality (1984) and Laclau and Mouffe's counter-hegemony (1985), radical democratic thinking has conventionally taken the... more
Is radical democracy only for humans? From Pateman's (1970) workplace participation to Habermas' communicative rationality (1984) and Laclau and Mouffe's counter-hegemony (1985), radical democratic thinking has conventionally taken the human as the sole subject of politics. Whether through the formation of coalitions, citizens' assemblies, or social movement protest, it is the human who acts upon the world, and it is 'the human condition' (Arendt, 1958) that provides the possibility for democratic politics. More recently, however, democratic theorists have extended their attention beyond the human (Connolly, 2013). Questions are emerging regarding the political significance and potential agency of animals (Donaldson et al., 2021), natural events (Romero & Dryzek, 2021), rivers
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In this discussion of democracy's conceptual pluralism(s), Frederic Schaffer holds a guiding lamp to show what researchers should take into consideration in the study of "the democracies" and their "rough equivalents" as can be found... more
In this discussion of democracy's conceptual pluralism(s), Frederic Schaffer holds a guiding lamp to show what researchers should take into consideration in the study of "the democracies" and their "rough equivalents" as can be found across language, culture, time, and space. This act generates a focus on practical tactics in research and knowledge dissemination. Is it, for example, best to establish an international committee of democracy's epistemic experts to gather, code, and organize the meanings of democracy and their rough equivalents as can be found in the world? And, with such a committee or something altogether different, how can we relate this information to pro-democracy institutions and activists when so many appear to be interested only in liberal conceptions of democracy? The discussion ends with considerations of an open range of research and activism in the fields of democratic theory, comparative politics, and democratization.
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This article offers advice on how to use comparative democratic theory.
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In this article we introduce an input-oriented democratic innovation-that we term 'TaxTrack'-which offers individual taxpayers the means to engage with their political economies in three ways. After joining the TaxTrack program, an... more
In this article we introduce an input-oriented democratic innovation-that we term 'TaxTrack'-which offers individual taxpayers the means to engage with their political economies in three ways. After joining the TaxTrack program, an individual can: (1) see and understand how much, and what types, of taxes they have contributed, (2) see and understand how their tax contributions are, or have been, used, and (3) control what their tax contributions can, or cannot, be spent on. We explain this democratic innovation in two ways. The first is through evocation to prefigure what the innovation could look like in future practise which raises the prospects for both good and problematic outcomes. The second is through formal theory to produce a detailed model of the innovation to assist theory building. We conclude by discussing three interactive outcomes of 'TaxTrack' through the democratic innovations literature to establish the beginnings of a theory for the model. This theory tells us that 'TaxTrack' can return benefits to its users and the democratic regimes in which they are located but it may also place restrictions on output-oriented innovations like Participatory Budgeting.
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In this article we introduce an input-oriented democratic innovation-that we term 'TaxTrack'-which offers individual taxpayers the means to engage with their political economies in three ways. After joining the TaxTrack program, an... more
In this article we introduce an input-oriented democratic innovation-that we term 'TaxTrack'-which offers individual taxpayers the means to engage with their political economies in three ways. After joining the TaxTrack program, an individual can: (1) see and understand how much, and what types, of taxes they have contributed, (2) see and understand how their tax contributions are, or have been, used, and (3) control what their tax contributions can, or cannot, be spent on. We explain this democratic innovation in two ways. The first is through evocation to prefigure what the innovation could look like in future practise which raises the prospects for both good and problematic outcomes. The second is through formal theory to produce a detailed model of the innovation to assist theory building. We conclude by discussing three interactive outcomes of 'TaxTrack' through the democratic innovations literature to establish the beginnings of a theory for the model. This theory tells us that 'TaxTrack' can return benefits to its users and the democratic regimes in which they are located but it may also place restrictions on output-oriented innovations like Participatory Budgeting.
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This introductory article to Democratic Theory's special issue on the marginalized democracies of the world begins by presenting the lexical method for understanding democracy. It is argued that the lexical method is better than the... more
This introductory article to Democratic Theory's special issue on the marginalized democracies of the world begins by presenting the lexical method for understanding democracy. It is argued that the lexical method is better than the normative and analytical methods at finding democracies in the world. The argument then turns to demonstrating, mainly through computational research conducted within the Google Books catalog, that an empirically demonstrable imbalance exists between the democracies mentioned in the literature. The remainder of the argument is given to explaining the value of working to correct this imbalance, which comes in at least three guises: (1) studying marginalized democracies can increase our options for alternative democratic actions and democratic innovations; (2) it leads to a conservation and public outreach project, which is epitomized in an "encyclopedia of the democracies"; and (3) it advocates for a decolonization of democracies' definitions and practices and decentering academic democratic theory.
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Anthropology meets democratic theory in this conversation that explores indigeneity, diversity, and the potentialities of democratic practices as exist in the non-Western world. Wade Davis draws readers into the ethnosphere-the sum total... more
Anthropology meets democratic theory in this conversation that explores indigeneity, diversity, and the potentialities of democratic practices as exist in the non-Western world. Wade Davis draws readers into the ethnosphere-the sum total of human knowledge and experience-to highlight the extinction events that are wiping out some half of human ethnic diversity. Gagnon worries over what is lost to how we can understand and practice democracy in this unprecedented, globally occurring, ethnocide.
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Sue Donaldson, Janneke Vink, and Jean-Paul Gagnon discuss the problem of anthropocentric democratic theory and the preconditions needed to realize a (corrective) interspecies democracy. Donaldson proposes the formal involvement of... more
Sue Donaldson, Janneke Vink, and Jean-Paul Gagnon discuss the problem of anthropocentric democratic theory and the preconditions needed to realize a (corrective) interspecies democracy. Donaldson proposes the formal involvement of nonhuman animals in political institutions-a revolutionary task; Vink argues for changes to the law that would cover nonhu-man animals with inviolable political rights; and Gagnon advises a personal change to dietary choices (veganism) and ethical orientations (do no harm). Together, the three proposals point to a future position where humans can participate in a multispecies world in which nonhuman others are freed from our tyrannical grasp.
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Sue Donaldson, Janneke Vink, and Jean-Paul Gagnon discuss the problem of anthropocentric democratic theory and the preconditions needed to realize a (corrective) interspecies democracy. Donaldson proposes the formal involvement of... more
Sue Donaldson, Janneke Vink, and Jean-Paul Gagnon discuss the problem of anthropocentric democratic theory and the preconditions needed to realize a (corrective) interspecies democracy. Donaldson proposes the formal involvement of nonhuman animals in political institutions-a revolutionary task; Vink argues for changes to the law that would cover nonhu-man animals with inviolable political rights; and Gagnon advises a personal change to dietary choices (veganism) and ethical orientations (do no harm). Together, the three proposals point to a future position where humans can participate in a multispecies world in which nonhuman others are freed from our tyrannical grasp.
Research Interests:
Sue Donaldson, Janneke Vink, and Jean-Paul Gagnon discuss the problem of anthropocentric democratic theory and the preconditions needed to realize a (corrective) interspecies democracy. Donaldson proposes the formal involvement of... more
Sue Donaldson, Janneke Vink, and Jean-Paul Gagnon discuss the problem of anthropocentric democratic theory and the preconditions needed to realize a (corrective) interspecies democracy. Donaldson proposes the formal involvement of nonhuman animals in political institutions-a revolutionary task; Vink argues for changes to the law that would cover nonhu-man animals with inviolable political rights; and Gagnon advises a personal change to dietary choices (veganism) and ethical orientations (do no harm). Together, the three proposals point to a future position where humans can participate in a multispecies world in which nonhuman others are freed from our tyrannical grasp.
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This article applies spatial theory, or the view that phenomena are distributed in space, to democracy. This analysis demonstrates that plural (two or more) democratic practices are evident in three spatial categories: (1) vertical... more
This article applies spatial theory, or the view that phenomena are distributed in space, to democracy. This analysis demonstrates that plural (two or more) democratic practices are evident in three spatial categories: (1) vertical stratification (i.e. at different levels of governance), (2) horizontal separation (i.e. among different agents operating at each level of governance), and (3) social association (i.e. in workplaces, families, schools). This finding, that plural democratic practices are demonstrated by agents operating at multiple levels of governance and in various non-or quasi-governmental associations prompts us to argue that measures of democracy in the world should be extended to spaces "beneath", "above", and "outside" the national level-presently the dominant locus for regular batteries that test the quality and extent of democratic practices globally. However, global data on the quality and extent of democracy at these other levels needs to be built before such an extension can happen.
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As countries around the world went into lockdown, we turned to 32 leading scholars working on different aspects of democracy and asked them what they think about how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted democracy. In this article, we... more
As countries around the world went into lockdown, we turned to 32 leading scholars working on different aspects of democracy and asked them what they think about how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted democracy. In this article, we synthesize the reflections of these scholars and present five key insights about the prospects and challenges of enacting democracy both during and after the pandemic: (1) COVID-19 has had corrosive effects on already endangered democratic institutions, (2) COVID-19 has revealed alternative possibilities for democratic politics in the state of emergency, (3) COVID-19 has amplified the inequalities and injustices within democracies, (4) COVID-19 has demonstrated the need for institutional infrastructure for prolonged solidarity, and (5) COVID-19 has highlighted the predominance of the nation-state and its limitations. Collectively, these insights open up important normative and practical questions about what democracy should look like in the face of an emergency and what we might expect it to achieve under such circumstances.
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Samuel Moyn provides insight into how the history of democracy can continue its globalization. There is a growing belief that the currently acceptable fund of ideas has not served the recent past well which is why an expansion, a... more
Samuel Moyn provides insight into how the history of democracy can continue its globalization. There is a growing belief that the currently acceptable fund of ideas has not served the recent past well which is why an expansion, a planetary one, of democracy’s ideas is necessary—especially now as we move deeper into the shadow of declining American/Western imperialism and ideology. Deciding which of democracy’s intellectual traditions to privilege is driven by a mix of forced necessity and choice: Finding salient ground for democracy is likely only possible in poisoned traditions including European ones.
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What is democratic theory? The question is surprisingly infrequently posed. Indeed, the last time this precise question appears in the academic archive was exactly forty years ago,1 in James Alfred Pennock’s (1979) book Democratic... more
What is democratic theory? The question is surprisingly infrequently
posed. Indeed, the last time this precise question appears in the academic archive was exactly forty years ago,1 in James Alfred Pennock’s (1979) book Democratic Political Theory.2 This is an odd discursive silence not observable in other closely aligned fields of thought such as political theory,3 political science,4 social theory,5 philosophy,6 economic theory,7 and public policy/administration8 – each of which have asked the “what is” question of themselves on regular occasion. The premise of this special issue is, therefore, to pose the question anew and break this forty-year silence.
posed. Indeed, the last time this precise question appears in the academic archive was exactly forty years ago,1 in James Alfred Pennock’s (1979) book Democratic Political Theory.2 This is an odd discursive silence not observable in other closely aligned fields of thought such as political theory,3 political science,4 social theory,5 philosophy,6 economic theory,7 and public policy/administration8 – each of which have asked the “what is” question of themselves on regular occasion. The premise of this special issue is, therefore, to pose the question anew and break this forty-year silence.
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Both “populism” and “populist” have long been considered ill-defined terms, and therefore are regularly misapplied in both scholarly and popular discourses.1 This definitional difficulty is exacerbated by the Babelian confusion of voices... more
Both “populism” and “populist” have long been considered ill-defined terms, and therefore are regularly misapplied in both scholarly and popular discourses.1 This definitional difficulty is exacerbated by the Babelian confusion of voices on populism, where the term’s meaning differs within and between global regions (e.g. Latin America versus Western Europe); time periods (e.g. 1930s versus the present), and classifications (e.g. left/ right, authoritarian/libertarian, pluralist/antipluralist, as well as strains that muddy these distinctions such as homonationalism, xenophobic feminism and multicultural neonationalism). While useful efforts have been made to navigate the vast and heterogeneous conceptual terrain of populism,2 they rarely engage with each other. The result is a dizzying proliferation of different definitions unaccompanied by an understanding as to how they might speak to each other. And this conceptual fragmentation reinforces, and is reinforced by, diverging assessments of populism which tend to cast it as either “good” or “bad” for democracy (e.g. Dzur and Hendriks 2018; Müller 2015).