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It is not generally appreciated that contemporary arguments for democracy are still infused with old prejudices that make little or no sense in the 21st century. Examples include the belief that democracy is a God-given ideal, or that it is intrinsically peaceful, or that it excels at fostering economic growth. Against these untenable prejudices, a new case can be made for democratising our thinking about what
Por que a democracia?
Article in Grial, Revista Galega De Cultura, Número 167 Julio/agosto/septiembre 2005 View and read Spanish PDF format
Remarks on Robert Cooper’s Towards a European Army?
There is an old rude saying that diplomats generally have such long noses that they cannot see beyond them. Robert Cooper proves that this is not necessarily the case. His published interviews, memoranda, short essays and his Breaking of Nations – a very good book with a grandness of title redolent of Adam Smith’s Wealth [...]
Against Servitude, CSD Interview with Quentin Skinner
Quentin Skinner talks to John Keane about Machiavelli, Hobbes, and the neo-Roman theory of liberty. This is an edited extract from a long interview conducted with him in May 2000 by John Keane and Milton Tosto. This text was published in the CSD Bulletin, Summer 2000, Vol. 7. N. 2: 10-13. Quentin Skinner is Regius Professor of [...]
On the road to Utopia?
John Keane interviews Francis Fukuyama and asks him if the wake proved premature. Source: ‘The Weekend Review’, The Independent, June 19, 1999 The ‘end of history’ made a star of Francis Fukuyama. John Keane meets him to ask if the wake proved premature. History is fickle. In 1988, it played a mean trick on Francis Fukuyama. [...]
Democracy and the Decline of the Left
From Norberto Bobbio, 1989, Democracy and Dictatorship. The Nature and Limits of State Power, Polity Press. Introduction (vii-xxviii) Read Introduction (vii-xxviii) published in Norberto Bobbio, 1997 in PDF format