Hard Questions for Democracy

Hard Questions for Democracy PDF Author: Raj Chari
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1135710201
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 194

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Book Description
The recent financial and economic crisis has forced governments and people from around the globe to ask some hard questions about how democracy has evolved. Some of these are old questions; others are new. Is democracy really the most desirable form of government? How democratic is policy-making during the financial and economic crisis? Why do vote-seeking parties in modern democracies actually make voters miserable? Can women’s under-representation in politics be explained because of voter bias? Why are some citizens still excluded from voting in their country? And can terrorist organizations that promote violence one day, really become democratic the next? This represents the first book of its kind to ask and answer a broad range of hard questions that need to be addressed in times of both flux and calls for democratic change throughout the world. It does so by bringing together leading social scientists and rising stars from around the globe. Interdisciplinary in its analysis, it is essential reading for students of comparative and international politics, political philosophy, gender studies and economics. The book's website can be found at: www.democracyquestions.com and it was originally published as a special issue of Irish Political Studies.

Hard Questions for Democracy

Hard Questions for Democracy PDF Author: Raj Chari
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1135710201
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 194

Get Book Here

Book Description
The recent financial and economic crisis has forced governments and people from around the globe to ask some hard questions about how democracy has evolved. Some of these are old questions; others are new. Is democracy really the most desirable form of government? How democratic is policy-making during the financial and economic crisis? Why do vote-seeking parties in modern democracies actually make voters miserable? Can women’s under-representation in politics be explained because of voter bias? Why are some citizens still excluded from voting in their country? And can terrorist organizations that promote violence one day, really become democratic the next? This represents the first book of its kind to ask and answer a broad range of hard questions that need to be addressed in times of both flux and calls for democratic change throughout the world. It does so by bringing together leading social scientists and rising stars from around the globe. Interdisciplinary in its analysis, it is essential reading for students of comparative and international politics, political philosophy, gender studies and economics. The book's website can be found at: www.democracyquestions.com and it was originally published as a special issue of Irish Political Studies.

Introducing Democracy

Introducing Democracy PDF Author: David Beetham
Publisher: UNESCO
ISBN: 9231040871
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 133

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Book Description
Presents a selection of questions and answers covering the principles of democracy, including human rights, free and fair elections, open and accountable government, and civil society.

Introducing Democracy

Introducing Democracy PDF Author: David Beetham
Publisher: Polity
ISBN: 9780745615196
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 160

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Book Description
This textbook, specially commissioned by UNESCO, addresses eighty of the most pressing questions about democracy today.

The Struggle for Democracy

The Struggle for Democracy PDF Author: Patrick Watson
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Democracy
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description


Citizenship in Hard Times

Citizenship in Hard Times PDF Author: Sara Wallace Goodman
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1009076981
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 235

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Book Description
What do citizens do in response to threats to democracy? This book examines the mass politics of civic obligation in the US, UK, and Germany. Exploring threats like foreign interference in elections and polarization, Sara Wallace Goodman shows that citizens respond to threats to democracy as partisans, interpreting civic obligation through a partisan lens that is shaped by their country's political institutions. This divided, partisan citizenship makes democratic problems worse by eroding the national unity required for democratic stability. Employing novel survey experiments in a cross-national research design, Citizenship in Hard Times presents the first comprehensive and comparative analysis of citizenship norms in the face of democratic threat. In showing partisan citizens are not a reliable bulwark against democratic backsliding, Goodman identifies a key vulnerability in the mass politics of democratic order. In times of democratic crisis, defenders of democracy must work to fortify the shared foundations of democratic citizenship.

Polls and Politics

Polls and Politics PDF Author: Michael A. Genovese
Publisher: State University of New York Press
ISBN: 0791485099
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 205

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Book Description
This hard-hitting and engaging examination of polls and American politics asks an essential question: do polls contribute to the vitality of our democracy or are they undermining the health of our political system? Leading scholars address several key issues such as how various types of polls affect democracy, the meaning attributed to polling data by citizens and the media, the use of polls by presidents, and how political elites respond—or do not respond—to public polls. The contributors assert that while polls tread a fine line between informing and manipulating the public, they remain valuable so long as a robust democracy obliges its political leaders to respond to the expressed will of the people.

Human Rights

Human Rights PDF Author: Cindy Holder
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107067146
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 489

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Book Description
The United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. A burgeoning human rights movement followed, yielding many treaties and new international institutions and shaping the constitutions and laws of many states. Yet human rights continue to be contested politically and legally and there is substantial philosophical and theoretical debate over their foundations and implications. In this volume, distinguished philosophers, political scientists, international lawyers, environmentalists and anthropologists discuss some of the most difficult questions of human rights theory and practice: what do human rights require of the global economy? Does it make sense to secure them by force? What do they require in jus post bello contexts of transitional justice? Is global climate change a human rights issue? Is there a human right to democracy? Does the human rights movement constitute moral progress? For students of political philosophy, human rights, peace studies and international relations.

Against Democracy

Against Democracy PDF Author: Jason Brennan
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400888395
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 309

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Book Description
A bracingly provocative challenge to one of our most cherished ideas and institutions Most people believe democracy is a uniquely just form of government. They believe people have the right to an equal share of political power. And they believe that political participation is good for us—it empowers us, helps us get what we want, and tends to make us smarter, more virtuous, and more caring for one another. These are some of our most cherished ideas about democracy. But Jason Brennan says they are all wrong. In this trenchant book, Brennan argues that democracy should be judged by its results—and the results are not good enough. Just as defendants have a right to a fair trial, citizens have a right to competent government. But democracy is the rule of the ignorant and the irrational, and it all too often falls short. Furthermore, no one has a fundamental right to any share of political power, and exercising political power does most of us little good. On the contrary, a wide range of social science research shows that political participation and democratic deliberation actually tend to make people worse—more irrational, biased, and mean. Given this grim picture, Brennan argues that a new system of government—epistocracy, the rule of the knowledgeable—may be better than democracy, and that it's time to experiment and find out. A challenging critique of democracy and the first sustained defense of the rule of the knowledgeable, Against Democracy is essential reading for scholars and students of politics across the disciplines. Featuring a new preface that situates the book within the current political climate and discusses other alternatives beyond epistocracy, Against Democracy is a challenging critique of democracy and the first sustained defense of the rule of the knowledgeable.

Democracy: Clarifying the Muddle

Democracy: Clarifying the Muddle PDF Author: Howard Burton
Publisher: Open Agenda Publishing
ISBN: 1771700416
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 37

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Book Description
This book is based on an in-depth filmed conversation between Howard Burton and renowned political theorist John Dunn, University of Cambridge. Through an engaging dialogue format, John Dunn candidly shares his deep insights on the historical development and current significance and future of democracy in different parts of the world and the relevance of political science departments in achieving democracy and other worthwhile goals. This carefully-edited book includes an introduction, Democratic Daze, and questions for discussion at the end of each chapter: I. Illusions and Confusions - Unmasking American stereotypes II. Historical Examinations - The power of etymology III. Thinking Deeper - Minimizing political bads IV. Trust and Belief - Thinking critically V. China - Challenging Western ideals? VI. India - The world’s largest democracy VII. Power to the People - Overthrowing autocracy and what happens next VIII. Towards Progress - Why we should care about all of this IX. Professional Indulgence - Critically examining “political science” About Ideas Roadshow Conversations Series: This book is part of an expanding series of 100+ Ideas Roadshow conversations, each one presenting a wealth of candid insights from a leading expert in a relaxed and informal setting to give non-specialists a uniquely accessible window into frontline research and scholarship that wouldn't otherwise be encountered through standard lectures and textbooks. For other books in this series visit our website (https://ideas-on-film.com/ideasroadshow/).

The Life and Death of Democracy

The Life and Death of Democracy PDF Author: John Keane
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1847377602
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 717

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Book Description
John Keane's The Life and Death of Democracy will inspire and shock its readers. Presenting the first grand history of democracy for well over a century, it poses along the way some tough and timely questions: can we really be sure that democracy had its origins in ancient Greece? How did democratic ideals and institutions come to have the shape they do today? Given all the recent fanfare about democracy promotion, why are many people now gripped by the feeling that a bad moon is rising over all the world's democracies? Do they indeed have a future? Or is perhaps democracy fated to melt away, along with our polar ice caps? The work of one of Britain's leading political writers, this is no mere antiquarian history. Stylishly written, this superb book confronts its readers with an entirely fresh and irreverent look at the past, present and future of democracy. It unearths the beginnings of such precious institutions and ideals as government by public assembly, votes for women, the secret ballot, trial by jury and press freedom. It tracks the changing, hotly disputed meanings of democracy and describes quite a few of the extraordinary characters, many of them long forgotten, who dedicated their lives to building or defending democracy. And it explains why democracy is still potentially the best form of government on earth -- and why democracies everywhere are sleepwalking their way into deep trouble.