The Measurement of Pure Negative Freedom

Examining the question of whether or how far freedom is measurable contributes to the analysis of the concept of freedom in two ways. First, it involves attempting to establish criteria for answering questions about 'how free' individuals or societies are. Secondly, it helps to show how far different definitions of freedom really conflict, in as much as those definitions are themselves motivated by intuitive extent-of-freedom assessments in the first place. Critics of the 'pure negative' conception of freedom (freedom as the absence of purely physical impediments to action) have argued either that freedom is unmeasurable on such a conception, or that such a conception is counterintuitive, because the measurements of freedom implied by it conflict with the intuitive comparisons which we normally make. Closer examinations of the nature of measurement and of the nature of act individuation show both ofthese criticisms to be ill founded.     

Housing and the working class in an Indian metropolis

The paper examines a part of the housing market in the Indian metropolitan city of Bangalore. Some problems of housing finance from the viewpoints of families and of public authorities are indicated. It is argued that it is these financial problems that make access difficult for the poorer half of the population of Bangalore to forms of housing other than inner city slums or urban fringe informal housing. Public housing with its unrealistic standards of service provision, but especially its high initial access costs is not well designed to meet the needs of the majority of families. The paper concludes that unless public housing authorities emulate the private housing market they will continue to play a marginal role in housing in a city such as Bangalore. There are signs that this is happening in India with experimentation in both housing finance and lower service standards.     

Administration in a small capitalist state: The Hong Kong experience

This article is primarily concerned with the functions of bureaucracy in a minimal state and with how those functions might change in response to economic growth. It is predicated on the assumption that bureaucracy is necessary for economic growth even in those countries which seek to achieve such growth through the relatively free operation of the economy within the rubric of a capitalist state. Hong Kong is a case in point. Although it has often been taken as the epitome of the benefits which can be derived from keeping government out of the economy, the bureaucracy has in fact played a critical role in support of economic development. Aside from the functions which must be performed by any state, such as the maintenance of law and order, the administration of justice, and the provision of public works, three features of Hong Kong bureaucratic practice appear to have been important in the definition of the bureaucracy's tasks in the economic growth process. These are ‘value for money’ and the constant need to justify government expenditure; effective line implementation; and the ability to manage crises. If these constitute minimal essential requirements for such governments, they may provide useful criteria which small or micro-states, following capital growth models but not yet experiencing rapid economic development, can apply in assessing the capabilities of their own bureaucracies.     

英国公共住房政策和立法的发展及其对中国的启示——以利物浦为中心的案例分析

快速的城市化和工业化给公共住房问题带来了巨大的压力,社会的发展和不同历史时期政治的变化必将导致公共住房政策和立法的不时调整,这其中更多应属延续而非突变,但其中必有一些内在的本质因素属于解决城市公共住房问题所不可忽视的共性基因.利物浦是英国公共住房政策的先锋,以此为主要研究对象予以个案分析,将有助于对英国公共住房政策和立法的成功经验、失败教训予以总结.比较当代中国所面临的公共住房问题的现状,英国公共住房政策和立法的经验教训也许能为中国处理好21世纪的公共住房问题提供借鉴和启发.     

How "natural' are "kinds' of sexual orientation?

Law and Philosophy -     

How “Natural” are “Kinds” of Sexual Orientation?

Law and Philosophy -