As part of the interesting discussion between Black Pheonix, ersim, ho hon and others in this recent thread, Black Phoenix made this insightful comment: Sun Tzu definitely wrote not so much about “just war”, as he admonished rulers against War, using costs of war as arguments. Sun Tzu was not concerned with what would justify war. His solution was to end wars as … [Read more...] about The Chinese Order and Putin’s Comment on American Exceptionalism
Case Study on Democratic Self-Governance: NSA Oversight, a Straight Game of Poker?
If there is a religion in the modern world, it is the fanatic belief in democratic self-governance. From a philosophical perspective, the legitimacy of democratic self-government requires the notion of a public forum - a democratic corpus, a public sphere formed by citizens, if you will - to frame, debate and discuss political issues and events, free from "government … [Read more...] about Case Study on Democratic Self-Governance: NSA Oversight, a Straight Game of Poker?
Are The American and Chinese Dreams That Different – You Can’t Tell From Obama’s March on Washington Speech Yesterday
Yesterday, the U.S. marked the 50th anniversary of the "March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom." It was in that event 50 years ago that King gave his famous "I have a Dream" speech. By most accounts, Obama's speech is well-delivered and well-received - albeit "not as good." It could not be, Obama would explain, “[b]ecause when you are talking about Dr. King’s speech at the … [Read more...] about Are The American and Chinese Dreams That Different – You Can’t Tell From Obama’s March on Washington Speech Yesterday
Freedom of Speech: Case Study on That Medieval, Backward, Senseless French Law Against Insulting the French President
China is often regarded as a nation without Freedom of Speech - or at least a nation that disrespects Freedom of Speech, or a nation with serious infractions of Freedom of Speech. I have often argued that such disparaging conclusions rarely turn out to based on Freedom itself, but a disrespect of China's social, historical, and political contexts and current interests. I will … [Read more...] about Freedom of Speech: Case Study on That Medieval, Backward, Senseless French Law Against Insulting the French President
Abe Wins Huge in Japan… and some thoughts on the coverage…
On Sunday, Abe and his party secured a victory to win landslide victories. According to Foreign Policy, Riding a wave of stimulus money to the voting urns, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Liberal Democratic Party secured a majority in both of the country's legislative houses, delivering a stamp of approval for his economic policies and possibly setting up Japan … [Read more...] about Abe Wins Huge in Japan… and some thoughts on the coverage…