Epistemic and ethical responsibility during the pandemic

Intellectual (specialised) knowledge is omnipresent in human lives and decisions. We are constantly trying to make good and correct decisions. However, responsible decision-making is characterised by rather difficult epistemic conditions. It applies all the more during the pandemic when decisions require not only specialised knowledge in a number of disciplines, scientific consensus, and participants from different fields, but also responsibility and respect for moral principles in order to ensure that the human rights of all groups are observed. Pandemic measures are created by politicians, healthcare policy-makers, and epidemiologists. However, what is the role of ethics as a moral philosophy and experts in ethics? Experts in ethics and philosophy are carefully scrutinising political decisions. Levy and Savulescu (2020) have claimed that Ethicists and philosophers are not epistemically arrogant if they question policy responses. They played an important role in the creation of a reliable consensus. This study analyses epistemic and moral responsibility, their similarities, analogies, and differences. Are they interconnected? What is their relationship and how can they be filled with actual content during the pandemic?

The Symposium on Overcoming Modernity and Discourse in Wartime Japan

The symposium on overcoming modernity (kindai no chōkoku) that took place in Tokyo in 1942 has been much commented upon, but later critics have tended to over-emphasize the wartime political context and the ideological connection to Japanese ultra-nationalism. Closer examination shows that the background and the actual content of the discussion were more complicated. The idea of overcoming modernity had already appeared in debates among Japanese intellectuals before the war, and was always open to different interpretations; it could indicate Japanese ambitions to move beyond Western paradigms of modernity, but in other cases it referred to more radical visions of alternatives to modernity as such. Some versions linked up with Western critiques of existing modernity, including traditionalist as well as more future-oriented ones. These differentiations are evident in the symposium, and associated with diverse schools of thought. An important input came from representatives of the Kyoto school, the most distinctive current in twentieth-century Japanese philosophy. Despite the suppression of Marxist thought, the background influence of the unorthodox Marxist thinker Miki Kiyoshi was significant. Another major contribution came from the group known as the Japan Romantic School, active in literature and literary criticism. Other intellectuals of widely varying persuasions, from outspoken nationalists to Catholic theologians, also participated. The result was a rich but also thoroughly inconclusive discussion, from which no consensus on roads beyond modernity could emerge.

Determination of Caffeine and Sodium Benzoate in Both Imported and Locally Manufactured Energy Drinks Using HPLC and Spectrophotometer

Three groups of energy drinks have been examined for sodium benzoate and caffeine using HPLC and spectrophotometer methods. Those brands include original UK brand which coded (RE), another two brands of (RL and B) which are imported from Austria to local companies, and the rest produced locally which are coded (T, FB, S and FE). The results showed that all brands contain sodium benzoate at different concentrations. FB brand comes out on top by containing around 416mg/l which was far above the permitted level by FAO/WHO, on the other hand the RE brand contained the lowest amount of sodium benzoate when analysed using HPLC. Results of caffeine examination showed that all samples contained lower levels of caffeine as it is claimed in their label to contain 300mg/l, in contrary to sodium benzoate the lowest concentration of caffeine found in the FB brand which was 13.78mg/l and the highest level of caffeine was found in FE brand which was 208.95mg/l. From the obtained results it is clear that none of the energy drink brands declared the actual content of both caffeine and sodium benzoate which usually required by food legislation and law. Therefore, it is considered as mislabelling which is recommended that the health authorities in our country to subject the local producers and the importers to present the required information on the labels without misleading consumers. It is also recommended to educate the population and put restriction on the local shops and supermarkets not to sell energy drinks to individuals under 16 years old.

Study reveals “dark side” of training in Israeli Defense Force that instills conservative values at odds with more progressive organization

Purpose The study was inspired by previous research showing the importance of congruence between declared and actual content. But the authors said there was a dearth of research into incongruence between training content and values of an organization. Design/methodology/approach The study focused on a leadership skills development course in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The course was developed and delivered by military clergy. The initial purpose was to investigate the effectiveness of intra-organizational training for developing leadership skills. But qualitative analysis of the data revealed an incongruence between the declared content of the course – to develop leadership skills – and the actual content of the course – instilling conservative values. Findings The authors said that the military clergy in the IDF hold conservative views that are traditional and nationalist, whereas the formal values of the IDF are quite different. They are based on the values of democratic state and military professionalism. The authors say this incongruence “may be harmful and cause a long-term clash of values in the organisation”. Originality/value The authors said the most important contribution was to illuminate the potential “dark side” of training. Exposing the covert side of training can inspire scholars to search for more hidden in organizational HR routines, they said. Awareness of the potential “dark sides” should also lead to improvements in training, making it more effective in the short and long term. An important practical implication was that a “clash of values” might occur between traditional values and the organization’s formal values.

Voters’ short-term responsiveness to coalition deals

Government formation in multiparty systems requires election winners to strike deals to form a coalition government. Do voters respond and how do they respond to coalition government deals? This paper examines the short-term consequences of coalition government formation on voters in European democracies relying on survey panel data and original content analysis of coalition agreements. It tests theoretical expectations that deal with both the actual and perceived ideological shifts parties make when joining coalition deals as well as the effect of a much simpler heuristic cue based on preferences. The findings indicate that coalition deals have consequences on party preferences, but voter perceptions play a much stronger effect than the actual content of coalition deals. These results have important implications for our understanding of public opinion and provide important insights into the current difficulties and challenges of government formation and representative democracy.

REGISTER OF BAD-FAITH SUPPLIERS AND PRINCIPLE OF GOOD FAITH IN CIVIL LAW

В статье показываются изменения Федерального закона от 05.04.2013 № 44-ФЗ «О контрактной системе в сфере закупок товаров, работ, услуг для обеспечения государственных и муниципальных нужд», вступающие в силу 01.07.2021. Доказывается, что наименование реестра недобросовестных поставщиков и его фактическое содержание не совпадают. Оспаривается критерий включения исполнителей в публичный реестр на основании их недобросовестности. Приводятся предложения по совершенствованию действующего законодательства. The article shows the changes in the Federal Law of 05.04.2013 No. 44-FZ «On the contract system in the field of procurement of goods, works, services to meet state and municipal needs», which enter into force on 01.07.2021. It is proved that the name of the register of bad-faith suppliers and its actual content do not coincide. The criterion for including contractors in the public register on the basis of their bad faith is contested. The suggestions for improving the current legislation are provided.

Abuso de direitos fundamentais na teoria estruturante do direito: a partir do "caso do pintor no cruzamento"

A pesquisa trata da adequação da noção de abuso de direitos fundamentais à teoria estruturante do direito, de Friedrich Müller. Muito embora tanto a teoria interna, de Müller, como a teoria externa, de Robert Alexy, rejeitem a noção de abuso de direitos fundamentais – indicando que não há espaço para ela, na dogmática dos direitos fundamentais –, essa encontra-se expressa no texto da Constituição brasileira e foi adotada pelo Supremo Tribunal Federal. Investigam-se, com abordagem qualitativa bibliográfica e documental, os fundamentos específicos da aversão da noção pela teoria estruturante, dita interna. Parte-se da crítica dirigida por Alexy à dogmática do âmbito da liberdade de arte enunciada por Müller, em especial à solução dada no caso do pintor no cruzamento; analisa-se a crítica dirigida por Müller à concepção de abuso de direitos fundamentais de Hans-Ulrich Gallwas; testa-se a hipótese de abertura dogmática da teoria estruturante a concepção de abuso de direitos fundamentais distinta. Conclui-se que a rejeição da noção pela teoria estruturante somente se refere à concepção de Gallwas; e que o abuso de direitos fundamentais, entendido como incongruência entre uma aparência de direito decorrente da interpretação de textos jurídicos e o conteúdo real do direito, não é aprioristicamente incompatível com a teoria estruturante.(The research deals with the adequacy of the notion of abuse of fundamental rights to the Friedrich Müller’s structuring theory of law. Although both Müller's internal theory and Robert Alexy's external theory reject the notion of abuse of fundamental rights - indicating that there is no room for it in the fundamental rights’ dogmatic - it is expressed in the text of Brazilian Constitution and was adopted by the Federal Supreme Court. The specific foundations of the aversion of the notion to the structuring theory, so-called internal, are investigated with a bibliographic and documental qualitative approach. It starts from the criticism directed by Alexy to the dogmatic of the scope of the freedom of art enunciated by Müller, in particular to the solution given in the case of the painter at the crossing; Müller's criticism of Hans-Ulrich Gallwas's conception of abuse of fundamental rights is analyzed; the hypothesis of a dogmatic opening of the structuring theory is tested to a distinct conception of abuse of fundamental rights. It is concluded that the rejection of the notion by the structuring theory only refers to Gallwas's conception; and that the abuse of fundamental rights, understood as incongruity between an appearance of law resulting from the interpretation of legal texts and the actual content of the law, is not a priori incompatible with the structuring theory.)

Self-Devotion as a Cultural Value in the Consciousness of Young Russians

The article reflects the dynamics of key values of the Russian linguocultural community. The research presents a comprehensive analysis of the data of a psycholinguistic experiment aimed at explicating the real content of the value of self-devotion marked by precedent names. Actual content modeling of the value of self-devotion was carried out with the help of semantic gestalt method and then compared with the semantic gestalt constructed in compliance with dictionary data.The research suggested that the minds of young people possess that meaning of self-devotion stands that contrasts the traditional one. According to the majority of respondents, self-devotion is not considered a moral law, moreover, a significant part of participants (25%) defines such an action as stupidity.The change in the list of precedent names that personify this value in the linguistic consciousness of a modern person was experimentally proven. It was revealed that one of the main factors determined by changes in the cultural code are history textbooks used today in the educational process. In the course of psycholinguistic text analysis of these textbooks, it was proved that they do not meet the main criteria that enable a directed transmission of cultural meanings. As a result, there is a gradual disappearance of precedent names traditional for culture, and there is also a tendency of including the values of Western culture into the content of the cognitive base of the Russian linguocultural community.

Maat vs. The statue of Égalité: A critical analysis of Ataa Ayi Kwei Armah’s Wat Nt Shemsw: The way of companions

In this paper, we endeavor to restore Mꜣꜥt ‘Maat’ as truth to her rightful place by challenging erroneous and demonstrably incorrect notions as they appear in Ataa Ayi Kwei Armah’s Wat Nt Shemsw: The Way of Companions. By cross-referencing Ataa Armah’s vague allusions to “ancient Egyptian” mythology with actual textual documentation from Kmt ‘Black Nation/Land of Blacks’ (so-called “ancient Egypt”), we will interrogate the assertions made about the myths of the kmt(yw) ‘Black people’. We find that where Ataa Armah’s statements are at odds with the texts of Kmt ‘Black Nation/Land of Blacks,’ it is necessary to bring this information to light so that the readers can learn the actual content of these myths for themselves. In conclusion, we find that to truly understand Kmt ‘Black Nation/Land of Blacks,’ Afrikan champions interested in restoring the truth of Mꜣꜥt ‘Maat’ must let the Ancestors speak without Eurasian interpreters or interpretations.

Post-Christian Presupposition in Post-truth

This paper attempts to describe the challenges and opportunities of social media in post-truth. The author will discuss this in this paper that is first the process of presuppositions formation. Second, post-Christian presuppositions. Third, build theological presuppositions. The author found that the need for institutions that spread can discover elements of hoax in the narrative. Second, agencies are watching the news and responding to public criticism. Third, there is a competition to create the actual content—fourth, literacy training. Fifth, there is a guarantee of freedom of expression.