Dealing with Wayward Desire

The exercise of synchronic self-control is the way in which an actor can attempt to bring a desire into alignment with his better judgement at the moment and during the interval of time over which, but for the exercise of such self-control, the desire would become the actor’s preponderant desire, which the actor would then translate into an act contrary to his better judgment. The moral psychology of an actor who fails to achieve such self-control can be analyzed in two ways. One way is meant to be consistent with compatibilist metaphysics; the other with libertarian metaphysics. The implications of these analyses for the criminal law are complicated, but perhaps the most important is this: the criminal law should in principle recognize a partial excuse for an actor who exercises synchronic self-control but who gives up his effort because he believes that he can no longer continue to resist. His effort to achieve self-control thus fails, and he ends up translating into action the very desire he set out to control.

中国男性性自由的刑法保护盲点

男性遭受性侵犯是社会中既存的事实,男性在性侵犯中所受的痛苦及产生的社会影响,也是严重而深远的。长久以来中国刑法在此方面对被害人的法律救济却近乎空白,相对中国,其他一些国家却形成了较为完善的刑法保护规则,并取得了预期的效益。因而中国在这一领域内有必要借鉴和吸收他国的先进的立法模式并借此完善中国刑法的内容。     

法眼看辽宁西丰“拘传记者案”

辽宁西丰"拘传记者案"是地方公共权力侵犯公民宪法权利,侵害传媒新闻自由权,侵犯记者人身自由权的典型案例。该案例对我们的启示是,应着重在制度层面上调整地方党政机关职权划分和完善党对地方事务,尤其是司法事务的领导方式;在法律层面上进一步完善《刑法》、《刑事诉讼法》等相关法律,细化公安机关和检察机关司法行为的法定要件,特别是要尽快完善关于记者权利保护的立法等,以更好地保障新闻媒体和社会大众对我国各级国家机关及其工作人员进行舆论监督。     

中国近代两幕立宪活动的闹剧

在中国近代史上,曾经坚决反对立宪政治的封建顽固势力,为挽救摇摇欲坠的清王朝继续封建专制统治,以慈禧太后和袁世凯为代表的封建顽固势力,先后扯起立宪的大旗,中国政治似乎走上了现代化的道路,人们渴望立宪能把中国人民从封建专制中和帝国主义的压迫中解放出来。然而,立宪不过是封建顽固势力欺骗人民维护皇权复辟帝制的工具。中国人民的解放,中国政治的现代化,不仅仅是制定几布宪法,而是人民政治自由的实现。     

反社会人格障碍者犯罪的特点

反社会人格障碍是以行为不符合社会规范为主要特点,犯罪倾向极其明显,是极易导致犯罪的变态人格之一,本文对反社会人格障碍者犯罪在认识、情感、意志的特点进行理论阐述,为预防打击反社会人格障碍犯罪提供理论依据     

Respecting multiculturalism? Respecting religion?

ABSTRACT

This response to Balint focuses on his stance towards minority cultural and religious practices where he is in general sceptical of special accommodation. I argue that there are grounds to grant special rights and other accommodative measures towards such minorities on the basis of freedom and citizenship (both values Balint endorses), and appraisal respect, a value he rejects. The upshot is more support for a hands-on, active state than the hands-off state that Balint favours.     

国家安全视角下的航行自由

《联合国海洋法公约》虽然规定了航行自由制度,但未解决军事航行活动与沿海国国防军事安全之间的冲突问题。这种冲突的化解需要借助于其他国际法律制度,特别是和平解决国际争端的法律制度。我国既有维护海洋主权的客观要求,又在海外具有越来越多战略利益,因而需要从总体战略上考虑对待航行自由的法律态度。为应对其他国家可能以维护海洋资源和生态环境安全为由,对航行活动进行单方面、不恰当的限制,我国还应积极倡导宽松的航行自由制度,充分运用该制度维护国家经济安全,为国家开展保障海上丝绸之路和能源通道安全的海外行动提供法律支撑。     

The good of toleration: changing social relations or maximising individual freedom?

ABSTRACT

In this paper, I take issue with Peter Balint’s recent account of the value of toleration as an instrument for securing freedom-maximising outcomes in pluralistic societies. In particular, I question the extent to which the ideal of toleration can be entirely reduced to someone’s intentional withholding of negative interference whose value lies in the protection of individual negative freedoms. I argue that couching the value of toleration entirely in these freedom-maximising terms fails to do justice to the relational value of toleration. To see this value, we must also have in sight the drastic changes that appeals to toleration make to the nature of what goes on between the tolerator and the tolerated, not only to the state of affairs that is created by their relation.     

The Impact of Political Change on the State of Academia Including Academic Freedom in the Arab World: Libya as a Case Study

ABSTRACT

Furthering Western style academic freedom has been challenging, as Arab countries, especially Libya, have known only autocratic regimes throughout their modern existence. Amidst its current political and social upheaval, Libyan society is drifting towards the unknown. The problem addressed in this study is the impact of political change on the state of academia but, more specifically, academic freedom. Since the intervention in Libya by NATO states, many academics have lost their jobs. Some have become refugees outside of Libya as a direct result of the appropriation of most of the governmental posts in the country by religious and political radicals. The research questions reflect ways in which the new inserted de facto leaders of post-transitional Libya have impacted life on Libyan campuses and academic freedom.     

Behind COVID-19: Deepening Poverty in Cuba

The article explores the Cuban government's reaction to COVID-19, emphasising its control of the press and the role of the Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR). The main question is whether the health crisis could empower or weaken the government vis-à-vis civil society.