Did We Really Get Rid of Commands? Thoughts on a Theme from Elias Canetti

Neither in contemporary sociology nor in legal theory is much attention paid to the theoretical object of commands. This paper explores some features of commands that tend to remain largely invisible in social action, as well as largely under-theorized in the scholarly literature. The analysis draws on early reflection by Elias Canetti and tries to clarify the dynamics of the relationship between law and commands from a sociological perspective. The main claim is that command cannot be reduced to a linguistic entity, but has to be considered in the more complex frame of a direct relationship among subjects and their bodies within a shared space. Explanation of commands is made even more difficult by the fact that they take place in a space that is located ambiguously in between the realm of the subjective and that of the objective, in between passions and institutions. I would like to thank all those who gave me their important and valuable comments to improve earlier versions of this text: Rod Macdonald, Robert Leckey, Giolo Fele, Maria Paola Mittica, Ivan Pupolizio, Isacco Turina, and one anonymous editorial reviewer.     

State involvement in limiting textbook choice by school districts

Who gets to decide what textbooks are used in America’s public school classrooms varies by state. States can let each school district decide, provide standards that must be followed and make available an incomplete listing of books meeting those standards, or allow schools to choose books only from a list provided by the state. I present a model that provides an explanation for state limits on textbook selection by school districts. I examine the roles played by decision making costs, effectiveness of voters, religious composition, power of teachers, and propensity of state governments to interfere with or to help districts in textbook selection policies at the state level. There has been virtually no research on this topic. My findings corroborate the extant literature that addresses interference by state governments in local affairs and extend the morality politics literature by finding a strong link between religious fundamentalism and state-level policies. I also find that state book lists are less likely (1) in more educated states, where voters are better able to select the most appropriate textbook, (2) in states with smaller school districts, where voters are more involved in the schools, and (3) in states with stronger teacher unions, giving teachers more power in textbook selection.     

Motivations Behind Interstellar Exploration and Colonization

This article analyzes the main motivations behind manned interstellar exploration. There is a wide range of justifications for manned interstellar exploration. Some observers contend that the main reasons are the survival of the human species and the spreading of life in the universe. I argue that the survival of the human species is a very long-term threat and, as such, it is not the main driver for interstellar exploration within a reasonable time horizon. The discovery of habitable planets within 5 to 15 light years from Earth and the possibility that Earth will no longer define the limit of growth constitute stronger motivations. I argue that manned interstellar exploration will be achieved through the mobilization of both public and private resources, as in the past opening of new frontiers, with governments providing initial support in exploration and science, in advancing critical technologies, and in building space infrastructure. The private sector would then take the lead in creating new markets and in expanding humanity’s presence in space.     

Customary Rights in Scots Law: Test Cases on Access to Land in the Nineteenth Century

Rights of access to land in Scotland for community and public use became increasingly politicised in the nineteenth century. In test cases brought by both landowners and access campaigners, they were subject to determination by the Court of Session. This article examines the doctrinal developments in the area of customary rights in nineteenth-century Scotland, and the legal and political context in which those doctrines emerged. The decisions were made against a background of reaction against the abuse of privileges by burgh governors and superiors, on the one hand, and the movement for greater public access to land on the other. It is argued that the judges of the Court of Session based their decisions, in part, on judicial values regarding the value of test case litigation and the constitutional function of the court, as well as the sanctity of private property.