Australian counterfactuals

The Secret History of the Convict Colony: Alexandro Malaspina's report on the British Settlement of New South Wales, by Robert J. King. Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 1990. xii + 179 pp. £25. ISBN 0–04–610020–2.

Taming the Great South Land: a history of the conquest of nature in Australia, by William J. Lines. Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 1991. xx + 337 pp. £30. ISBN 1–86373–017–6.

Governing Savages, by Andrew Markus. Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 1990. x + 214 pp., illus. £9.95 paperback. ISBN 0–04–442150–8. Sydney, by Jan Morris. Viking, London, 1992. 246 pp. £16.99. ISBN 0–670–82745–2.

Australia's Immigrants 1788–1988 (2nd edition), by Geoffrey Sherington. Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 1990. x + 199 pp., illus. £9.95 paperback. ISBN 0–04–442204–0.     

Partisan Development in Post-Soviet Ukraine

ABSTRACT

The development of mass partisanship and party identification in post-Soviet societies is a controversial subject of scholarly research. One prevalent view argues that post-Soviet citizens are distrustful of parties and that it will take generations for party identification to appear in these societies. Others argue that partisanship is emerging as a result of citizens perceiving meaningful differences between the parties. If party identification is forming, partisanship should be relatively stable across time at the individual level. This study takes a rare look at 1999 panel data from Ukraine to determine the degree of partisan stability. The findings demonstrate that meaningful party identification appears to be emerging for a significant proportion of the population due to political information and this partisanship is influencing election decision making among Ukrainian voters.     

Exploring Transnational Civil Society: A Comparative Study of Colombian,Dominican and Mexican Immigrant Organizations in the USA

ABSTRACT

European integration has added an extra dimension to the perceived crisis of contemporary democracy. Many observers argue that the allocation of decision-making powers beyond the nation state bears the risk of hollowing out the institutional mechanisms of democratic accountability. In EU governance, the Commission has emerged as a particularly active and imaginative actor promoting EU–society relations, and it has done so with the explicit desire to improve the democratic legitimacy of the EU. However, assumptions concerning the societal prerequisites of a working democracy differ with the normative theory of democracy employed. Therefore, expectations concerning the beneficial effect of institutional reforms such as the European Commission's new governance strategy, which was launched at the beginning of the century, vary according to normative standards set by different theories of democracy on the one hand and to the confidence in the malleability of society on the other. Our contribution seeks to pave a way for the systematic assessment of the democratic potential of the European Commission's consultation regime. To this purpose, two alternative theoretical conceptions that link participation to democracy will be presented. A list of criteria for both conceptions that enable us to empirically assess the democratic potential of the EU Commission's participatory strategy will then be presented.     

杰斐逊与美国新闻自由的确立

杰斐逊是美国历史上最博学、最勤奋的思想家和政治家之一。自由是他终其一生追求的理想。从《独立宣言》的发表到权利法案的通过乃至自由条款中新闻自由的确立,杰斐逊都成绩斐然。本文正是以新闻自由为主线,考察他作为思想家,其"至上论"新闻自由思想提出的历史背景、哲学意蕴及主要内容;作为政治家,他是怎样践行和确保新闻自由的,进而体会杰斐逊是怎样将思想与行动(政治实践)紧密结合的。杰斐逊是他那个时代最为真诚的新闻自由主义者。杰斐逊的新闻自由思想实际上与他的民主理论和哲学理念一脉相承,是杰斐逊民主理论的集中体现。     

论发展工作场所的民主参与

中国处于经济体制转型、产业结构调整、劳动关系重组、利益格局变化的特殊时期,在劳动者面临诸多困境的情况下,传统意识形态所坚持的工人阶级的主人翁地位空心化,造成民主管理和职工合法权利的缺失。本文提出创新工作场所的民主参与形式,并从重构工人参与的理论、挖掘本土化的民主管理资源、政府要对工作场所中劳动关系进行积极的干预、加速工会组织内部的民主化进程等几个方面探讨了工作场所的民主参与的路径。     

中国传统政治文化与社会主义民主政治

建设社会主义的民主政治，既要继承中国文化的优良传统，又要借鉴人类政治文明的有益成果。中国传统政治文化具有伦常式、君子式、重人治轻法治的特点，同时又有较丰富的民本思想和独特的人文精神。其中既有不利于民主政治发展的因素，也有与民主相容的成分。所以，应剔除其“糟粕”、吸取其“精华”，通过改革创新变不利因素为有利因素，实现社会主义民主政治与中国传统政治文化的有机结合。     

和谐治理视野下政府与民间组织关系探析

民间组织作为连接政府与社会的纽带，对于社会治理的作用越来越显著。21世纪的公共管理问题是政府、民间组织及企业共同发挥作用的过程。本文立足于和谐治理视野下政府与民间组织关系的探求，梳理了民间组织与政府关系的理论模式；回顾了中国政府与民间组织关系的历史；研究了政府与民间组织关系的发展策略，提出建立民间组织与政府的良性互动关系是当代中国实现和谐治理的目标之一。     

论党的三代领导集体对民营经济认识的深化

我们党对民营经济的认识经历了一个逐步深化的过程。经过三代领导集体对民营经济认识的不断探索,民营经济在我国社会主义建设中的重大作用和历史意义逐步得到确认。特别是党的十六大报告和2004年3月《宪法》修订案,为民营经济的进一步发展消除了思想观念和政策体制的障碍。     

民主·宪政民主及其低度程序法则

人是民主的目标,任何意义的民主都与人的生活方式有关;政府是民主的载体,民主是引领政府走向人道的唯一方法。民主政治的核心程序是竞争性的选举,但选举仅仅是一种低度的民主形式。宪政民主乃民主体制与宪政主义的有机结合,使它得以运转的低度程序法则,正是现代政府合法性的低度标准。     

毛泽东人民民主专政理论新探

毛泽东关于人民民主专政的思想是在中国革命的实践中产生的 ,其发展经历了一个迂回曲折的过程。人民民主专政的职能主要包括两个方面 ,即在人民内部实行民主和对敌人实行专政。人民民主专政与无产阶级专政既有联系又有区别。我国的人民民主专政与马克思恩格斯曾经设想的、与在苏联曾经实行的无产阶级专政相比 ,有着自己独具的特色。