Women keep democracy’s heart beating in Mugabe’s Zimbabwe
Women keep democracy’s heart beating in Mugabe’s Zimbabwe [First published in The Conversation, and co-written with Mark Chou and Tezcan Gumus, this essay was borne from the deeply satisfying effect of a group of women, from a country maligned for its Mugabe relation, visiting various Australian parliaments and asking: where are your women, where are your […]
The Reflexive Modernization of Democracy
The Reflexive Modernization of Democracy [Ulrich Beck was at the London School of Economics when I was visiting London in early 2012 (I had a conversation with David Held then, too). I have a memory of us finding an occasional room to use, some hot desk, and sprucing it up a bit with books in […]
Schrödinger’s Democracy [This is chapter 4 of my first book, Evolutionary Basic Democracy, published in 2013 by Palgrave Macmillan. The name of the chapter, of course, comes from the Austrian physicist Erwin Schrödinger. A canine friend, who I have the pleasure of caring for, is also called Schrödinger (Odie for short). I have fond memories […]
Arguments for Evolutionary Democracy
Arguments For Evolutionary Democracy [This is the third chapter from my book Evolutionary Basic Democracy (Palgrave, 2013). It offers arguments in favor of the theory that forms of democracy have independently evolved many times in this world, especially among non-humans!] Abstract: I investigate the sciences for their use of the terms ‘democracy’ and ‘democratic’. Findings […]
Building a Gramsci-Foucault Axis of Democracy
Building a Gramsci-Foucault Axis of Democracy [This book chapter, originally published in David Kreps’ Gramsci and Foucault: A Reassessment, offers a consideration of democratic citizenship built from comparing and contrasting Gramsci’s works with Foucault’s. I remember the writing and editing process for this being an enjoyable one; especially good was reading the other chapters in […]
If our underwhelming politicians don’t pass the test, perhaps its time to make them sit one
If our underwhelming politicians don’t pass the test, perhaps its time to make them sit one Originally published by The Conversation, February 16, 2012. [Meritocratic folly. But I still think there’s something in this call to a higher epistocratic standard for politicians in Australia and other countries like it. I am now wondering, too, if there […]
Conflict in the 'South China Sea': Lessons from the Dene Peoples and the Arctic Conflict?
Conflict in the ‘South China Sea’: Lessons from the Dene Peoples and the Arctic Conflict? Originally published September 26, 2011, by the Centre for Strategic Research and Analysis (online April 1, 2014). [John Raulston Saul and Stephen Kakfwi spoke about “Aboriginal Sovereignty in the Arctic” on January 13, 2011, at the Munk School for Global […]
A feminine 'ethic of care' and the future of Australian democracy
A feminine ‘ethic of care’ and the future of Australian democracy Originally published by BroadAgenda, 16 August 2017. [This short essay, invited by BroadAgenda, forms one part of a two-step with Selen Ercan who wrote on the rise and rise of small p politics (and yarn!). This was back in the early days of the […]
The Olympic closing ceremony celebrates the myth of nations
The Olympic closing ceremony celebrates the myth of nations Originally published by The Conversation, August 13, 2012. [A critical gaze on the ceremony and symbolism of nations and nationhood in the Olympics.] As I sat there this morning watching the London 2012 closing ceremony, I was impressed by the artistry, choreography, stage-setting (an artistry unto itself), […]
TPP revealed: at last we have the details – and a democratic deficit to be fixed
TPP revealed: at last we have the details – and a democratic deficit to be fixed Originally published by The Conversation, November 9, 2015. [This short essay was written to emphasize the democratic deficit in the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations which took place over many years prior to 2015. The negotiations were defined by their secrecy, lack […]
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