Just Hierarchy between Citizens

2020 ◽  
pp. 66-105
Author(s):  
Daniel A. Bell ◽  
Wang Pei
Keyword(s):  
Soft Power ◽  
Political System ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Political Community ◽  
The Political ◽  
Public Officials ◽  
Willingness To Serve ◽  
Political Communities ◽  
Political Meritocracy ◽  
China Today

This chapter turns to just hierarchies between citizens—mainly strangers to one another—in modern large-scale political communities. It argues that hierarchies between rulers and ruled in such communities are justified if the political system selects and promotes public officials with above-average ability and a willingness to serve the political community over and above their own private and family interests. The chapter demonstrates that this kind of ideal—the “political meritocracy”—helped to inspire the imperial political system in China's past and Chinese political reformers in the early twentieth century, and may help to justify the political system in China today. However, the meritocratic system needs to be accompanied by democratic mechanisms short of competitive elections at the top that allow citizens to show that they trust their rulers and provide a measure of accountability at different levels of government. In the Chinese context, however, there is a large gap between the ideal and the reality. Thus, this chapter recommends that a judicious mixture of Confucian-style “soft power” combined with democratic openness, Maoist-style mass line, and Daoist-style skepticism about the whole political system can help to reinvigorate political meritocracy in China.

On the Selection of Good Leaders in a Political Meritocracy

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel A. Bell
Keyword(s):  
Social Skills ◽  
Political System ◽  
Political Community ◽  
Public Officials ◽  
Political Leaders ◽  
High Quality ◽  
System P ◽  
Political Meritocracy ◽  
Ruling Party ◽  
Selection Of

This chapter examines which abilities and virtues should set the standard for the selection and promotion of public officials/servants so that China's political system can be improved. The discussion draws on the following assumptions: it is good for a political community to be governed by high-quality rulers; China's one (ruling) party political system is not about to collapse; the meritocratic aspect of the system is partly good; and it can be improved. The chapter then offers suggestions about which qualities matter most for political leaders in the context of large, peaceful, and modernizing (nondemocratic) meritocratic states, followed by suggestions about mechanisms that increase the likelihood of selecting leaders with such qualities. The findings reveal which abilities, social skills, and virtues matter most for political leaders in the context of a large, peaceful, and modernizing political meritocracy. These findings are used as a standard for evaluating the Chinese meritocratic system.

scholarly journals Un modelo de análisis político comparado para videojuegos de simulación de gobierno. Estudio de caso con 'Frostpunk', 'Tropico IV' y 'Civilization V'

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 257-281
Author(s):  
Carlos Moreno Azqueta ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Political Science ◽  
Political System ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Political Community ◽  
Analytical Models ◽  
The Political ◽  
Science Literature ◽  
Analysis Model ◽  
Independent Variables

In this paper we present a large-scale comparative analysis model for videogames in which the player manages the development of a political community, which we will call «government simulators». The model, built upon political-science literature and other analytical models for videogames, uses a set of operationalized variables to synthesize the components of the political system represented in games, as well as the structure of objectives and other elements that guide the player’s action, to finally compare them with a set of independent variables. The model will be tested by applying it to three famous government simulators that have received notable academic attention (Civilization V, Tropico IV and Frostpunk), to finally discuss its advantages and limitations.

scholarly journals Geographical Change of the Japanese National Land in the 200 Years Using INŌ’s Map with GIS

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 1-2
Author(s):  
Yuji Murayama ◽  
Yuki Iwai
Keyword(s):  
Political System ◽  
Industrial Development ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Geographic Information ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
The Political ◽  
Spatial Transformation ◽  
Survey Line ◽  
The Difference ◽  
The 19Th Century

<p><strong>Abstract.</strong> This presentation discusses the regional changes quantitatively in the 200 years through the overlay analysis of the present map and the INŌ’s map made by Tadataka INO in 1821 (Figure 1). INO surveyed the coastline and major roads on foot. He investigated not only survey lines, but also various geographic information such as rivers, lakes, mountains, village names, castles, temples, administrative boundaries, etc. Visualizing all of the 214 sheets of the INŌ’s large-scale map with Geographic Information Systems (GIS), we can analyse the national land condition seamlessly at the end of the Edo era.</p><p>Methodological point of view, we have serious problems including the scale, projection, identification of geographic features and so on, when we compare the old map with the present. In this connection, digitalizing the INŌ’s map as the GIS data is very useful to examine the spatial transformation scientifically during the 200 years. The digital INŌ’s map was constructed by employing the geo-reference function of GIS with the triangulation method. The survey line was converted into the line feature of vector data, and the place names were converted into the point feature of raster data. The distance of the survey line was measured by GIS-based geometric operation.</p><p>We obtained the following findings. The distributions of villages, ports, and facilities in western Japan were denser than those in eastern Japan in the 19th century. This was caused not only by the difference in natural environment and landform but also by socioeconomic factors including the locations of the castle towns and industrial activities. The regional structure has been dramatically transformed by the modernization of the political system, transportation system, and industrial development in reclaimed areas (Figure 2). It is concluded that most parts of changes in regional characteristics have been attained by overcoming the natural constraints. However, the difference in the political system has also been influential to the formation of the present regional system.</p>

scholarly journals What Does a Constitution Expect from Immigrants?

2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (7) ◽  
pp. 1641-1656 ◽  
Author(s):  
Uwe Volkmann
Keyword(s):  
National Culture ◽  
Social Practice ◽  
Political System ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Political Community ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Actors ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Media ◽  
Clear Idea

It is a long-established commonplace in any debate on immigration that immigrants should integrate into their receiving society. But integrate into what precisely? Into the labor market, into the legal order, into the political system, into a national culture whatever this might comprise? The Article tries to approach the question from the legal point of view and looks for hints or clues in the constitution which might help us with the answer. For this purpose, it explores the general theory of the constitution as it has been shaped by its professional interpreters as well as by political actors, the media and the public. The main intuition is that “constitution” is not only a written document, a text with a predefined, though maybe hidden meaning; instead, it is a social practice evolving over time and thereby reflecting the shared convictions of a political community of what is just and right. Talking about constitutional expectations toward immigrants then also tells us something about ourselves: about who we are and what kind of community we want to live in. As it turns out, we may not have a very clear idea of that.

The centrality of politeia for Aristotle’s Politics: Aristotle’s continuing significance for social and political science

2014 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 139-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clifford Angell Bates
Keyword(s):  
Political Science ◽  
Comparative Politics ◽  
Homo Sapiens ◽  
Political Community ◽  
Political Life ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
Global Concern ◽  
Political Communities ◽  
Regime Analysis

Political theorists today are addressing issues of global concern confronting state systems and in so doing are often forced to confront the concept of Homo sapiens as a ‘political animal’. Thus theorists considering Aristotle’s Politics attempt to transcend his polis-centric focus and make the case that Aristotle offers ways to address these global concerns by focusing on Empire. This article, contra Dietz et al., argues that Aristotle’s political science is first and foremost a science of politeia and that this approach to the operation and working of political systems is far superior to recent attempts at regime analysis in comparative politics. Thus Aristotle’s mode of examining political systems offers much fruit for those interested in approaching political phenomena with precision and depth as diverse manifestations of the political communities formed by the species Aristotle called the ‘political animal’. From this perspective, focusing on the politeia constituting each political community permits an analysis of contemporary transformations of political life without distorting what is being analyzed.

scholarly journals The Dominants of Contemporary Political Culture and the Transformation of Political Governance

2021 ◽  
pp. 128-138
Author(s):  
A. D. Tumanov
Keyword(s):  
Political Culture ◽  
Political System ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Local Level ◽  
The Political ◽  
Expert Interviews ◽  
Diversity And Inclusion ◽  
Managerial Decisions ◽  
Political Communities ◽  
Political Governance

Contemporary political governance is increasingly dependent on the trends of global globalization, changing in the context of global migration and constantly creating and changing multinational communities. This article aims to analyze the existing policies of social inclusion that form the basis of political culture, which plays a significant role in the system of modern political governance in the era of globalization. The aim of the paper is to substantiate the importance of changing the political space for creating a policy of diversity and inclusion, aimed at forming a modern political culture that meets the current trends in governance in the era of globalization. The major research issue of this paper is the question of which points of political culture are the most transformative for the modern political system. The article analyzes the dominant features of modern political culture, which should be paid attention to both in theoretical analysis and in making managerial decisions. The research method is an open-ended written expert survey — 23 experts took part in the survey; the volume of the material obtained as a result of the survey is 48,000 words. The analysis and processing of information was carried out using the methods of systematization, problem-management design and the method of identifying problem dominants. Expert interviews allowed us to identify a number of measures that the political authorities can take to strengthen the transformational potential of political culture. These include the creation of political initiatives and easily accessible opportunities for political integration; the development of an inclusive and tolerant society through the reallocation of resources to help various kinds of minorities, aimed at helping them understand and use their rights and responsibilities; and the development of creativity and innovation as the basis of a new type of political culture. The results of the analysis of expert interviews complement modern international research on the formation of a new political culture and its impact on the formation of the political system. As a result of the research, the author comes to the conclusion that modern political culture assumes controlled diversity, and this is the basis for the transformation of the political system in the near future. The main dominants of political culture are the strengthening of the importance of the local and, in particular, the strengthening of the importance of the urban environment; the development of the political culture of migrants; inclusiveness of political communities, especially at the local level.

scholarly journals “Soft” Power of China: Efficiency and Response to the Current Challenges

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 22-27
Author(s):  
Lesia Dorosh ◽  
◽  
Myroslava Yablonska ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Global Health ◽  
Soft Power ◽  
Political System ◽  
Research Centre ◽  
The Political ◽  
Military Power ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Hard Power

The features of the “soft” power of the PRC, which are significantly based on its indicators of "hard" power – economic and military power, – have been studied. It is noted that there is a difference in the assessment of the state of “soft” power of China by Western countries and, accordingly, by China itself. Emphasis was placed on the prospects for the embodiment of China’s cultural “soft” power and its obstacles. Vulnerabilities in China’s “soft” power have been explored, including the political system and civil society. The importance of the tools of "mask" and "vaccine" diplomacy in the arsenal of "soft" power of China used to minimize the negative effects of the pandemic on China’s image and elevate its status as a leader in global health, have been analyzed. The effectiveness of the Chinese “soft” power has been analyzed through the studies conducted by the “Pew Research Centre” and “Portland Communication” agency. The importance of economic “soft” power in China’s conquest of new allies, including Asia and Africa, has been noted. It is emphasized that the most successful “soft” power is among countries where China is not burdened with accusations of human rights violations. It is noted that one of the main problems in China’s implementation of “soft” power policy is the dissonance between the image that China seeks to project and the country’s actions.

scholarly journals How Far Does the European Union Reach? Foreign Land Acquisitions and the Boundaries of Political Communities

Land ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Torsten Menge
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Political Community ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Land Acquisitions ◽  
The People ◽  
Global Power ◽  
Foreign Land ◽  
Political Philosopher ◽  
Political Communities

The recent global surge in large-scale foreign land acquisitions marks a radical transformation of the global economic and political landscape. Since land that attracts capital often becomes the site of expulsions and displacement, it also leads to new forms of migration. In this paper, I explore this connection from the perspective of a political philosopher. I argue that changes in global land governance unsettle the congruence of political community and bounded territory that we often take for granted. As a case study, I discuss the European Union’s Renewable Energy Directive as a significant driver of foreign land acquisitions. Using its global power, the European Union (EU) is effectively governing land far outside of its international borders and with it the people who live on this land or are expelled from it. As a result, EU citizens ought to consider such people fellow members of their political community. This has implications for normative debates about immigration and, in particular, for arguments that appeal to collective self-determination to justify a right of political communities to exclude newcomers. The political community to which EU citizens belong reaches far beyond the EU’s official borders.

Demoi-cratic Constituent Power

2020 ◽  
pp. 87-104
Author(s):  
Markus Patberg
Keyword(s):  
European Integration ◽  
Political System ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
The Political ◽  
Constituent Power ◽  
Constitutional Politics ◽  
The Public ◽  
Cross Border ◽  
Political Communities ◽  
The Eu

This chapter turns to the public narrative of ‘We, the peoples of Europe’, according to which constituent power in the EU lies with the peoples of the member states, and asks to what extent it can be defended in systematic terms. In doing so, it draws on the political theory of demoi-cracy, which interprets the EU as a political system for the joint self-government of separate political communities. Building on the proposals of central demoi-cratic authors, the chapter discusses how the distinction between pouvoir constituant and pouvoir constitué could find a place in the theoretical framework of demoi-cracy. It then proceeds to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the resulting view. While the demoi-cratic model of constituent power is convincing in its claim that the national peoples must not be bypassed in EU constitutional politics, it fails to draw the necessary conclusion from the fact that European integration has brought about politically significant relations between the citizens of Europe—namely, that there is the need to enable the expression of cross-border cleavages.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document