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The Specification of Human Actions in St Thomas Aquinas
Authors: Pilsner Joseph
Published: June 2006

Thomas Aquinas believed that human actions have kinds or species. He divided human actions into good, evil, or indifferent, and subdivided them into more particular kinds such as almsgiving, murder, fraternal correction, or theft. From his earliest consideration of this topic in the Commentary on the Sentences to his latest in the Summa Theologiae, he used five different terms — end, object, matter, circumstance, and motive — to identify what gives species to human actions. Some difficulties have been noted with respect to his thinking on this subject. A first such difficulty is that his teaching on a few of these terms seems at times inconsistent. For example, although Aquinas maintains in some texts that circumstances can give species to human actions, he seems to deny that they can in other texts. Further, although on some occasions he holds that a remote end is irrelevant for the specification of human actions, on other occasions, he seems to assert that a remote end is the most important principle for such specification. It is not easy to see at first how these seemingly contradictory statements can be true at the same time. A second difficulty is that it is hard to grasp how end, object, matter, circumstance, and motive could all refer to what specifies human actions. Although certain similarities in meaning can be recognized among them, no term seems to be a strict synonym of any other, ruling out an easy reconciliation. This monograph examines Aquinas’s understanding of these five terms to resolve these difficulties and propose a coherent account of his teaching on the specification of human actions.
1 Introduction
Authors: Pilsner Joseph
Published: June 2006

A crucial task for any moral theory is to determine what makes a human action to be of a certain kind. For instance, what makes almsgiving to be in its own species rather than in the species of theft or selling? Aquinas addresses this issue in a few of his works, most notably Commentary on the Sentences, De Malo, and the Summa Theologiae. However, a puzzle arises when his writings are examined carefully. Aquinas uses five different terms — end, object, matter, circumstance, and motive — to signify what gives species to human actions. Although similarities in meaning can be discerned among certain of these terms, it is difficult to grasp how all five could refer to what specifies human actions. In this monograph, the five terms used by Aquinas are examined and compared to propose a more comprehensive account of his teaching on specification of human action.
5 Object
Authors: Pilsner Joseph
Published: June 2006

Aquinas asserts on many occasions that human actions are specified by their objects. Two meanings he gives to the term ‘object’ are particularly significant. On some occasions, he uses ‘object’ to mean a thing in so far as it possesses a formal quality by which it defines a related action, habit, or power. To illustrate, as the colour of something (not its smell or taste) defines sight, so distinctive differences in what is willed determines whether human actions are morally good, evil, or indifferent, and whether they belong to more particular moral species such as almsgiving or adultery. On other occasions, Aquinas has a second meaning for ‘object’, namely, a proximate end. In this case, when he says an object specifies, he means that a proximate end (such as ‘taking an innocent life’) determines a moral species (such as ‘murder’), and that no further end an agent may pursue (such as wealth) is necessary to make this determination.
6 Matter
Authors: Pilsner Joseph
Published: June 2006

Aquinas sometimes says that matter specifies a human action, and frequently uses ‘matter’ as an alternative term for ‘object’. He does not hold that all matter can determine a human action’s species, but only that matter to which an action is specially related, called the ‘matter about which’ an action takes place or its ‘due’/‘undue’ matter. Aquinas has two different ways of explaining how matter can specify. On occasion, he argues that just as particular kinds of matter predispose for certain substantial forms (for instance, only flesh and bones can accommodate the human soul), so the distinctive characters of things willed predispose for certain kinds of human actions and habits (for example, pleasures of touch predispose for temperance, not courage). In other contexts, Aquinas uses explanations more familiar in his moral teaching: he says that matter specifies because a human agent wills some matter as an end, or because matter possesses a distinctive formal aspect (like an object’s).
8 Motive
Authors: Pilsner Joseph
Published: June 2006

Aquinas says that motives are responsible for the specification of human action. ‘Motive’ can generally refer to any principle of movement, but two meanings are especially significant in the context of the voluntary. First, one sees ‘motive’ referring to what attracts a person to action. In this context, Aquinas calls motives ‘proper objects of the will’ and insists that they specify as ‘ends’ of human action. Second, one sees motives referring to causes related to appetite. For example, Aquinas differentiates gluttony into five species (named by circumstances) because each species is associated with a distinctive motive, as when rapid digestion (motive) incites concupiscence and defines the species of gluttony called ‘too soon’. Since Aquinas holds that a passion is morally relevant only to the extent that it is voluntary, motives regarding appetite must be willed somehow for them to determine a species of sin.
9 Proximate and Remote Ends
Authors: Pilsner Joseph
Published: June 2006

There is an apparent paradox with respect to Aquinas’s teaching on proximate and remote ends. On some occasions, he seems to assert that a proximate end specifies a human action, while the remote end is inconsequential. On other occasions, he appears to hold not only that a remote end gives a species to a human action, but also that this species has greater formal influence than the species from a proximate end. The way to resolve this paradox is to realize that Aquinas addresses two different questions with respect to the specification of human action. Sometimes, he is exploring what is required to determine a particular species of human action. In this case, he thinks that willing a proximate end (such as ‘having intercourse with another’s spouse’) is sufficient to determine this action’s species (adultery), and that no further end would add something critical for making this determination. On other occasions, he is wondering what the species of an action would be in a case where a particular proximate end (such as theft) is already being willed by an agent for a particular remote end (such as murder or almsgiving). In this case, he believes that the human action in question has two moral species, one from each end; the species from the remote end has a kind of formal primacy, since the proximate end is being willed for the remote end’s sake.
Aristotle on the Principles of Change in Physics I
Authors: Bostock David
Published: June 2006

This essay is a commentary on Physics I, with special reference to the account of change in chapter 7. It is argued: (i) that Aristotle is mistaken when he attempts in the earlier chapters to present his account as the natural development of various Pre-Socratic views ‘on nature’; (ii) that as a result the main theme of his chapter 5 is a clear error; and (iii) that this raises an important question over how we should understand the apparent claims of chapter 6. All of this leads to the problem: How should we explain his remark at the end of chapter 7 that it is not yet clear whether the underlying thing, the thing that persists through change, is substance?
Aristotle's Theory of Form
Authors: Bostock David
Published: June 2006

This essay is a résumé of all the ways in which Aristotle uses his notion of form in books, which one thinks of as ‘preceding’ the Metaphysics (in order of exposition, if not in order of composition). It is argued that this notion is invoked for far too many purposes; in fact for anything that cannot be explained merely by appeal to matter. As a result, it comes to be assigned many different roles which are not compatible with one another, although Aristotle never seems willing to abandon any of them. This multiplicity of roles is continued into the Metaphysics, where yet more roles are added. This is the reason why one cannot give any coherent account of the various papers that form books Z and H of the Metaphysics.
Aristotle on the Eleatics in Physics I. 2–3
Authors: Bostock David
Published: June 2006

This essay argues that despite initial appearances, one can make good sense of Aristotle’s objections to Melissus (186a10-22), and one can find a comprehensible line of argument in the objections to Parmenides that follow (186a22-b12). However, the final section of chapter 3, i.e. 186b12-187a11, remains obscure. It evidently refers to an argument of Zeno’s, but it is unclear how the discussion is supposed to be relevant to that argument. A conjecture is offered, but without much confidence.
Aristotle, Zeno, and the Potential Infinite
Authors: Bostock David
Published: June 2006

This essay argues that Aristotle misdescribes his own position when he sums it up as the claim that infinity can only be potential and never actual. He readily accepts that there are processes which are actually infinite, that is, never-ending. But he denies that there can ever be a time when an infinite process has been completed. This means that he has to find some fault with Zeno’s well-known argument of Achilles and the tortoise, which he does by introducing the idea that points do not exist until they are ‘actualized’. It is argued that this idea, though ingenious and certainly appropriate to the problem, does not work out in the end.
2 Emergence of Informal Groups of States
Authors: Prantl Jochen
Published: June 2006

This chapter examines the question of what triggered the emergence of informal groups of states in the form of the advisory committees in the 1950s, and argues that their establishment has to be seen against the background of great power tensions in the Security Council. The early stages of UN peacekeeping saw a shift of governance from the Security Council to the Secretary-General and the General Assembly, which fostered the emergence of informal ad hoc groupings of states. The formation of advisory committees reflected the desire of the Secretary-General to strengthen his voice vis-á-vis the Security Council. When the lack of unanimity of the permanent members prevented the Council from assuming its responsibilities, the General Assembly took charge by recommending collective measures. However, when the Security Council was able to act, its resolutions and mandates entrusted to the Secretary-General often reflected a political compromise based on the lowest common denominator among its members. The workings of the two advisory committees established in the context of crises at the Suez Canal (1956-67) and in the Congo (1960-4) illustrate these points further.
Proliferation of Informal Groups in the Post‐Bipolar Era
Authors: Prantl Jochen
Published: June 2006

This chapter examines the question of why informal groups of states proliferated in the post-Cold war era. It argues that the proliferation of groups of friends and contact groups must be analyzed in the context of the mounting pressure on the United Nations’ conflict resolution machinery to respond to more complex crises than ever before. Informal groups of states are agents of incremental change, without formally changing the constitutional foundation of the Organization. At the same time, the post-Cold War era has permitted a political context that furthers the trend towards devolution of the substance of crisis management to informal groups of states, whereas the Security Council provides — at least in most cases — the form, that is, the legitimization for state action. The functions of diplomacy and its collective legitimization have become decoupled.
1 Historical Background
Authors: Gaynesford Maximilian de
Published: June 2006

The historical development towards the current standard account of I as a ‘pure indexical’ (‘purism’) has two main features. First, the gradual acquisition of a logical apparatus which can distinguish genuine from non-singular referring expressions, and categorize the latter into names, descriptive terms, indexicals, and so on. Second, the development and acceptance of three supposed doctrines: that a simple rule is sufficient to give the meaning of I (‘rule theory’); that one can use I to express thoughts without having to identify what is being referred to (‘independence’); and that as a matter of the meaning of I, any use of the term is logically guaranteed against failure to refer (‘the guarantee’).
5 Interim Conclusion
Authors: Gaynesford Maximilian de
Published: June 2006

‘Purism’, the claim that I is a pure indexical, is a contradictory position which requires the truth of three doctrines that have been shown to be myths: ‘rule theory’, ‘independence’, and ‘the guarantee’. A rash craving for simplicity explains its almost-universal support. ‘Purism’ is false for reasons that create a presumption in favour of a sharply diverging conception: that I is a deictic term. Thus, it is now necessary to establish what a ‘deictic term’ is, and whether I counts as one.
8 Referential Function (I)
Authors: Gaynesford Maximilian de
Published: June 2006

The referential function of any singular term is to provide a positive answer to the question: ‘which individual is being spoken of?’, that is, to achieve determinacy of reference. What enables a singular term to carry out this function is the ‘determinant’ of the term. Demonstration is not the determinant of deictic terms because they can fulfil their referential function by appeal to utterance-relative uniqueness, or by leading candidacy given the surrounding discourse or perceptual environment.
9 Referential Function (II)
Authors: Gaynesford Maximilian de
Published: June 2006

I fulfils its referential function in the deictic mode. Deictic terms fulfil their referential role by the action of making an individual salient. That is the genus to which demonstration, utterance-relative uniqueness, and leading candidature belong as species. I fulfils its referential role by making an individual salient. Salience is the determinant of the term.
10 Expressive Use
Authors: Gaynesford Maximilian de
Published: June 2006

I satisfies its expressive use in the deictic mode. It is the expressive use of any singular term to express thoughts. This requires that the speaker know the positive answer to the question: ‘which individual is being spoken of?’, that is, the term must achieve discriminability of reference for the speaker. Deictic terms require salience if they are to achieve discriminability of reference for the speaker, i.e., it is as the individual made salient that one must identify the referent of a use of a deictic term. It is as the individual made salient that one must identify the referent of a use of I.
Knowledge and Practical Interests
Authors: Stanley Jason
Published: June 2006

The thesis of this book is that whether or not someone knows a proposition at a given time is in part determined by his or her practical interests, i.e., by how much is at stake for that person at that time. Thus, whether a true belief is knowledge is not merely a matter of supporting beliefs or reliability; in the case of knowledge, practical rationality and theoretical rationality are intertwined. This thesis, called Interest-Relative Invariantism about knowledge, is defended against alternative accounts of the phenomena that motivate it, such as the claim that knowledge attributions are linguistically context-sensitive and the claim that the truth of a knowledge claim is somehow relative to the person making the claim. The strategies available for resolving skepticism to the strategies available for resolving other philosophical paradoxes are compared. For example, contextualist solutions to the sorites paradox and the liar paradox, as well as interest-relative accounts of the sorites paradox are considered. It is shown that the argument for the interest-relative character of epistemic notions is not the result of an application of a general strategy for resolving philosophical quandaries, but arises from the distinctive nature of epistemic properties.
2 Knowledge Ascriptions and Gradability
Authors: Stanley Jason
Published: June 2006

Many expressions in natural language, such as adjectives like tall and flat, or verbs such as like and regret are gradable, meaning that they occur in comparative constructions. It makes sense to speak of something being taller than another thing, or regretting something more than something else. It is argued that ‘know’ is not a gradable expression. This raises serious worries for versions of contextualism that treat ‘know’ as denoting relations of varying strength, relative to different contexts of use.
Contextualism, Interest‐Relativism, and Philosophical Paradox
Authors: Stanley Jason
Published: June 2006

This chapter discusses contextualist and interest-relative accounts of the sorites paradox and the Liar Paradox. It concludes that a pure interest-relative account is completely untenable for such cases. Thus, Interest-Relative Invariantism is plausible in the epistemic case only because of specific features of epistemic notions.
Introduction
Authors: Reath Andrews
Published: June 2006

This introductory chapter begins with a brief description of the purpose of the book, which is to understand various features of Kant's moral psychology, his conception of rational agency, his conception of autonomy, and related areas of his moral theory. An overview of the subsequent chapters is presented.
Autonomy of the Will as the Foundation of Morality
Authors: Reath Andrews
Published: June 2006

This chapter distinguishes the various claims that make up the thesis that autonomy of the will is the foundation of morality, and offers a reconstruction of the arguments on which they depend. To do so it argues that autonomy should be interpreted as a kind of sovereignty. The model for the autonomous agent is the political sovereign not subject to any outside authority, who has the power to enact law. The chapter proceeds as follows. Section II distinguishes some of the claims that go into Kant's doctrine of autonomy. Since the Sovereignty Thesis follows analytically from the concept of an unconditional moral requirement, Section III takes up Kant's concept of a practical law, to provide supporting material for later arguments. Sections IV to VII are organized around showing that the Formula of Universal Law (FUL) and the Formula of Autonomy (FA) are equivalent in content. The equivalence of the FUL and FA is established by the two ideas just cited (the Sovereignty Thesis and the claim that the FUL is the constitutive principle of a will with autonomy). It serves as a capsule statement of Kant's thesis that autonomy of the will is the foundation of morality. Finally, Section VIII shows how the normative conception of autonomy developed in this chapter bears on the analytical arguments of Groundwork, III, where Kant identifies freedom with autonomy on the way to arguing that a free will is subject to moral principles.
Legislating for a Realm of Ends: The Social Dimension of Autonomy
Authors: Reath Andrews
Published: June 2006

This chapter uses the connection between Kant's conception of autonomy and his concept of a realm of ends to explore a number of issues about the nature of autonomy. It begins by developing some general observations about how freedom and autonomy may be related to governance by rules and standards. We tend to think that rules restrict free activity, but there are also rules that make meaningful and creative activities possible. Attention to the different functions that rules serve, specifically to their constitutive role, supplies another key element in dissolving the conflict between autonomy and governance by rules. The chapter then considers instances where the freedom to engage in certain activities and governance by rules are not in tension. It introduces rules with a special (non-restrictive) function, but there is no thought that these rules are self-imposed or self-chosen. This framework is applied to Kant's conception of the autonomy of the moral agent.
Agency and Universal Law
Authors: Reath Andrews
Published: June 2006

This chapter offers some reflections about how the Formula of Universal Law (FUL) has been understood by those who think that it can provide substantive guidance about choice and action. If the FUL were a purely formal criterion of universalizability, it would not reliably lead to any substantive moral judgments. These theorists have not, in general, understood the FUL as purely formal. Rather, they have incorporated a conception of rational agency into this formula, either explicitly or implicitly. The chapter is organized as follows. Section II briefly discusses some of John Rawls's remarks about what he has called Kant's ‘moral constructivism’ — specifically his claim that a conception of the person plays a central role in specifying the content of a constructivist moral conception. Section III asks how the FUL needs to be understood if it is to play its intended role in the extended argument of the Groundwork. Section IV shows why one is entitled to read a conception of rational agency into the FUL, and then considers some of the elements of this conception. In particular, it tries to make precise different senses in which rational agents with autonomy are independent spheres of judgment and choice and the sources of their own actions. Finally, Section V looks at various ways in which this conception of autonomous agency figures in determining whether a maxim can be willed as universal law without inconsistency.
Self-Legislation and Duties to Oneself
Authors: Reath Andrews
Published: June 2006

This chapter considers some of Kant's ‘foundational’ remarks about duties to oneself and some of the problems that they raise. It focuses on the problems that emerge from Kant's attempt to dispel an apparent conceptual difficulty that he thinks attends the concept of duties to oneself. Essentially, he takes a fairly straightforward concept and, rather than shedding light on it, puts it under a cloud. The chapter begins with a brief commentary on the introductory sections of Kant' s treatment of duties to oneself. It then focuses on the general model of duty that appears to be operative in these passages. It considers how we should understand this general model of duty if we are to accommodate duties to oneself, and with how duties to oneself fit into a general model of duty that can be supported on independent grounds. The chapter also examines the connection, if any, between duties to oneself and Kant's notion of self-legislation — his thesis that the agents who are subject to moral requirements must be regarded as their legislators. Finally, it asks how duties to oneself fit into the social conception of morality and practical reason that can be attributed to Kant, and some variant of which is widely accepted among contemporary theorists who draw inspiration from Kant (constructivists, contractualists, and so on).
From Marx and Mao to the Market
Authors: Swinnen Johan F.M. , Rozelle Scott
Published: June 2006

The changes which led to the emergence of China as a global economic powerhouse, the integration of ten Central and Eastern European countries into the European Union (EU) and the uncertain path of Russia towards a market economy all started with the agricultural reforms in the Chinese countryside in the late 1970s. Since then, the changes have occurred so fast and the impact has been so vast that the importance of understanding the forces that unleashed this process, how these changes became possible, and the lessons for other developing countries cannot be overestimated. This book analyzes the economics and politics of agricultural reforms by comparing reform processes, their causes and effects across this vast region. The authors draw on a wide range of studies and new data, which compare reforms and economic impacts in more than 25 countries. They present a series of conclusions and implications on the role of economic reforms in growth, and the importance of initial conditions and political constraints in explaining the choices that were made and their effects.
Patterns of Transition
Authors: Swinnen Johan F. M.
Published: June 2006

This chapter documents the changes in agricultural output and productivity that occurred during transition for 25 countries, and identifies several transition patterns.
The Effects of the Reforms
Authors: Swinnen Johan F. M.
Published: June 2006

This chapter explains the effects of the different reforms which were chosen and implemented in various transition countries. It provides evidence on the effects of price and subsidy policy reform, property rights reform and farm restructuring, liberalization and the development of market institutions, and on the effects of the interaction between these reforms.
Lessons of Agricultural Transition
Authors: Swinnen Johan F. M.
Published: June 2006

This chapter draws several lessons from the analysis: (a) performance measurement, (b) the causes of success and failure of transition, particularly the importance of initial conditions, and (c) why some policy combinations were more successful than others.
Good Samaritanism
Authors: Fabre Cécile
Published: June 2006

This chapter argues that the duty of assistance outlined in Chapter 1 includes a duty to provide personal services in the form of rescue services to those who need them.
Prostitution
Authors: Fabre Cécile
Published: June 2006

This chapter argues that individuals have the right to sell and buy sexual services. It reviews the commodification and gender inequality objections to prostitution, and outlines ways in which the practice can and should be regulated.
Innovative Opportunities and Dependencies: Illustrations from Mobile Communications
Authors: Holmén Magnus , Magnusson Mats , McKelvey Maureen
Published: June 2006

This chapter examines the role played by innovative opportunities in driving economic transformation through dependencies between actors. It explores the extent of experimentation and inertia when actors identify, act upon, and realize innovative opportunities. Innovative opportunities are used to capture dependencies between key processes in innovation, as well as understand the systemic effects present in complex innovation activities characterized by uncertainty. The dependencies are illustrated by case studies of the early stages of development of technology and business platforms in the telecom industry. Empirical observations demonstrate dependencies between different actors which result in ‘systemic’ effects. These take the form of dependencies across different types of opportunities (technological, entrepreneurial, and productive ones), as well as dependencies across different elements of these processes (value perception, resource mobilization, and value appropriation). Such interdependencies are the force helping to drive flexibility and stability in economic transformations.
The Great Experiment: Public–Private Partnerships and Innovation in Design, Production, and Operation of Capital Goods in the UK
Authors: Davies Andrew , Salter Ammon
Published: June 2006

Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) are becoming the key mechanism for the design, production, and operation of capital goods in the UK public sector and elsewhere. This chapter focuses on the central motivations behind the movement towards PPPs, and explores the impact of these new contractual arrangements on innovation in the capital goods sector. The greatest impact of the new arrangements appears to be the emergence of a PPP industry and a new division of labour among private providers and public procurers of capital goods. In addition to its traditional role as designer and builder of systems, the private sector has taken on greater downstream responsibility for the operation and maintenance of systems previously handled in-house by public sector organizations.
The Effects of Technological Change on the Boundaries of Existing Firms
Authors: Robertson Paul L. , Verona Gianmario
Published: June 2006

This chapter explores the reciprocal relationship between technological innovation and the boundaries of the firm, and the paths in which firm boundaries might be expected to follow under different circumstances. It argues that while one might follow Langlois (2003) in believing that there will be a tendency for large, vertically-integrated firms to become less common in the technological environment that is currently unfolding, other tendencies will also be afoot, leading to a spectrum of different types of inter- and intra-firm relationships. This includes the creation of new giant enterprises whose evolution in the early 20th century was described by Chandler (1962, 1977) as the imposition of a ‘visible hand’ to reduce uncertainties in market-based relationships.
Transitions, Transformations, and Reproduction: Dynamics in Socio‐Technical Systems
Authors: Geels Frank W. , Kemp René
Published: June 2006

This chapter explores innovating and technological transformation in terms of competing socio-technical systems which evolve over long time periods. It examines changes in functional systems both from a theoretical and empirical perspective. It offers a typology of system changes and two brief case studies based on multilevel analysis: the hygienic transition from cesspools to integrated sewer systems (1870-1930) and the transformation in waste management (1960-2000) in the Netherlands. Three types of processes through which systems may change are described: reproduction, transformation, and transition. In the case of reproduction, there is no fundamental change at the meso level (the orientation of dominant actors, regime rules, and key technology or knowledge base), which is the case when stabilizing factors dominate. In the case of transitions and transformations in sociotechnical systems, there are meso-level changes created either by problems or new opportunities afforded by changes in technology and changes in the overall landscape. Transitions and transformations can only occur when developments at multiple levels amplify each other. This is worked out in a scheme of dynamic interactions between actors, systems rules, and social networks. The novelty of the scheme is that a regime perspective is combined with an actor perspective.
Principled Ethics
Authors: McKeever Sean , Ridge Michael
Published: June 2006

Moral philosophy has long treated principles as indispensable for understanding its subject matter. However, the underlying assumption that this is the best approach has received almost no defence, and has been attacked by particularists who argue that the traditional link between morality and principles is little more than an unwarranted prejudice. This book meets this particularist challenge head on and defends a distinctive view called ‘generalism as a regulative ideal’. After cataloguing the wide array of views that have gone under the heading ‘particularism’, the reasons why the main particularist arguments fail to establish their conclusions are explained. Generalism as a regulative ideal incorporates what is most insightful in particularism (e.g., the possibility that reasons are context sensitive - ‘holism about reasons’) while rejecting every major particularist doctrine. The book resists the excesses of hyper-generalist views according to which moral thought is constituted by allegiance to a particular principle or set of principles. It argues that in so far as moral knowledge and wisdom are possible, all of morality can and should be codified in a manageable set of principles, even if we are not yet in possession of those principles. Such principles are not objects of mere curiosity, but play an important role in guiding the virtuous agent.
Default Reasons
Authors: McKeever Sean , Ridge Michael
Published: June 2006

Because of its extremely ecumenical view of what considerations might count as reasons, particularism threatens to ‘flatten the moral landscape’ by making it seem that there is no deep difference between, for example pain and shoelace color. After all, particularists have claimed, either could provide a reason provided a suitable moral context. To avoid this result, particularists can try to draw a distinction between default and non-default reasons. This chapter argues that all but the most deflationary ways of drawing this distinction are either implausible or else insufficient to help the particularist avoid flattening the moral landscape. The difficulty can be avoided if the particularist’s extremely ecumenical view of reasons is rejected.
Constitutive Generalism
Authors: McKeever Sean , Ridge Michael
Published: June 2006

According to one dimension of the generalist tradition, moral principles are built into the very meaning of moral predicates. They are analytic truths, and thus anyone who is in fact competent with a given moral concept is (perhaps implicitly) committed to the associated principle that spells out the object to which the concept applies. On this view, certain moral principles are constitutive of moral thought and judgment; this view is called ‘constitutive generalism’. This chapter defends a form of generalism and it argues against constitutive generalism by deploying a version of G. E. Moore’s Open Question Argument.
From Moral Knowledge to Default Principles
Authors: McKeever Sean , Ridge Michael
Published: June 2006

This chapter argues that the bare possibility of moral knowledge in particular cases is already enough to ensure the availability of a certain sort of ‘hedged’ moral principle called a ‘default principle’. Default principles are consistent with holism about reasons because they claim that a given action has a given moral property only if no further feature of the situation explains why it does not. One obvious worry about this proposal is that default principles are vacuous (trivially true). This worry bears interesting parallels to worries about ceteris paribus laws in science. It is argued that once default principles are properly understood, this worry is easily met. The key point is to distinguish there being an explanation for a moral property’s absence from its absence being explained by some feature of the situation.
Beyond Default Principles: Trimming the Hedges
Authors: McKeever Sean , Ridge Michael
Published: June 2006

This chapter argues against the hedged principles laid out in Chapter 6. It contends that the best explanation of the possibility of practical wisdom entails that morality can be codified. It gives three main arguments. The first argument contends that generalism as a regulative ideal better preserves a broad scope for practical wisdom than its particularist rivals. In pressing this argument, it is shown how generalism is better situated to accommodate an important role for certain kinds of fiction and narrative in moral thinking. The second argument contends that generalism as a regulative ideal is better situated to distinguish the a priori from the a posteriori elements of moral knowledge than its particularist rivals. The third argument simply appeals to pre-theoretical intuitions about the codifiability of morality.
1 Return to Europe
Authors: Zielonka Jan
Published: June 2006

This chapter traces the initial gap between the current and the new member states. It tries to establish to what degree various domestic reforms undertaken by individual post-communist countries have succeeded in rendering them more compatible with the former EU-15. It argues that the overall success of the reform process is beyond doubt in all eight countries that joined the Union in 2004, and even in the so-called “pre-ins”: Romania and Bulgaria. However, although new members have made considerable progress in securing peace and building democracy and free markets, their progress is uneven across individual fields and countries, thus increasing diversity within the EU as a consequence of enlargement.
5 Democratic Governance
Authors: Zielonka Jan
Published: June 2006

This chapter examines major challenges to democratic governance. It finds that the enlarged EU is more likely to opt for neo-medieval rather than neo-Westphalian solutions, and shows that the Union is likely to have a more multi-layered and multi-centered governance structure. Various non-majoritarian institutions are likely to dominate over a weak European parliament(s). Neither the assertion of a European demos nor consolidation of a European public space is expected.
Governance Beyond Borders
Authors: Zielonka Jan
Published: June 2006

This chapter focuses on various aspects of “external” affairs in Europe. It first shows that the Union is not on its way to becoming a Westphalian type of international actor. Foreign and security policy is still largely in the hands of Member states and not the Union. Moreover, Member states are often hopelessly divided and eager to use various non-European institutional tools for their foreign and defense policies. The emerging international system in Europe also looks more medieval than Westphalian. The system is not anarchic, and collective bargaining over laws and procedures rather than balancing and ganging up over territorial gains is the essence of interstate politics at present.
Conclusions: Implications of Neo-medievalism
Authors: Zielonka Jan
Published: June 2006

This concluding chapter tries to identify the implications of neo-medievalism for the Union’s geo-strategic position, its governance capacity, and its political legitimacy. It also tries to establish how to handle the emerging neo-medieval empire in Europe. Although a neo-medieval empire would cause many problems and difficulties, it would also have some important advantages. A flexible neo-medieval empire in concentric circles would be in a better position than a European state to cope with the pressures of modernization and globalization. It would also be in a better position to compete with other great powers by pulling together vast European resources, without eliminating Europe’s greatest strength: its pluralism and diversity. A neo-medieval empire would also be well suited to provide conflict prevention in its neighborhood by shaping countries’ behavior through the mechanism of EU membership conditionality. A neo-medieval empire might even be in a good position to be seen as democratically legitimate by bringing governance structures closer to the citizens, and making the system more transparent and open.
The Political Economy of the Japanese Financial Big Bang
Authors: Toya Tetsuro
Published: June 2006

This book is a case study of structural reform in the Japanese financial sector. It adopts a novel approach, combining rational choice analysis from the field of political science with comparative institutional analysis from the field of economics. Its central hypothesis is that Japanese politics and policymaking have changed due to a combination of policy failures and scandals, as well as the emergence of the possibility of a change in government after 37 years of uninterrupted Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) rule. These factors are likely to affect other policy areas, meaning that decay in the financial policymaking process may lead to changes throughout the political economy. In making this argument, the book attempts to provide a realistic image of post-1995 financial politics by improving on existing behavioral assumptions of actors. It demonstrates that the Big Bang can be best understood as an outcome of the strategic interaction of state actors. More specifically, the Big Bang is the product of interaction between the LDP and Ministry of Finance, each pursuing organizational survival through cooperation, competition, and confrontation. The book is divided into three parts. Part I discusses the conceptual tools and background information in preparation for later analysis. Part II provides an empirical analysis of financial politics. Part III attempts to make sense of the developments analyzed in Part II by returning to the analytical frameworks developed in Part I.
Did Japanese Politics Change in the 1990s?
Authors: Toya Tetsuro , Amyx Jennifer
Published: June 2006

This chapter examines financial politics in the 1990s and the emergence of the Big Bang financial reforms in 1996. It discusses the main arguments of the book, namely that Japanese politics has changed since 1995; that the Big Bang resulted from strategic interaction between the Liberal Democratic Party and Ministry of Finance, and an increased role of the public in policymaking; and that there has been institutional change in financial politics since 1995 represented by the breakdown of the Convoy System and the decay of bureaupluralism. An overview of the chapters included in this volume is provided.
A Political Analysis of the Emergence of the Big Bang Initiative
Authors: Toya Tetsuro , Amyx Jennifer
Published: June 2006

This chapter examines the politics surrounding the emergence of the Big Bang Initiative, seeking to determine who brought it about and why. It focuses in particular on developments between the fall 1995 and November 1996, when then Prime Minister Hashimoto announced the initiative. It argues that the political economy of the Big Bang can be best explained according to the logic of actor behavior detailed in Chapter 3. This logic focuses on the maintenance of organization survival and holds across political parties, organizations, and firms.
Nasal Air Conditioning in Patients Before and After Septoplasty With Bilateral Turbinoplasty
Authors: Wiesmiller Kerstin , Keck Tilman , Rettinger Gerhard , Leiacker Richard , Dzida Rene , Lindemann Joerg
Published: June 2006

Objective: Septoplasty is one of the most frequently performed surgical procedures by ear, nose, and throat surgeons. Yet the objective control of success concerning septal surgery still is very difficult and causes controversy. Data concerning one of the main functions of the nose, namely the heating and humidification of inspired air, before and after nasal surgery, are still missing. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare intranasal air temperature and humidity values before and after septoplasty with bilateral turbinoplasty.

Methods: Sixteen patients were included in this prospective study. Intranasal temperature and humidity were measured in the anterior turbinate area close to the head of the middle turbinate. A miniaturized thermocouple and a humidity sensor were applied for continuous intranasal detection.

Results: Significant differences between temperature and humidity values before and after septoplasty could be observed, including absolute temperature, increase in temperature, absolute humidity, and increase in humidity. The postoperative values were significantly higher than the preoperative ones (P < .05).

Conclusions: According to the results of our study, patients seem to profit from septoplasty as heating and humidification as one of the most important nasal functions are restored and even improved after surgery. We therefore conclude that properly performed septoplasty is able to main its importance within the variety of nasal surgical procedures ensuring improved nasal function as well as patient contentment.
Thyroid Surgery: Changing Patterns of Practice
Authors: Terris David J. , Seybt Melanie W. , Siupsinskiene Nora , Gourin Christine G. , Chin Edward
Published: June 2006

Objective: The practice of thyroidectomy has evolved over the past 10 years with the introduction of minimally invasive surgery, laryngeal nerve monitoring, and outpatient surgery. We sought to investigate corresponding trends in the disciplines performing thyroid surgery.

Methods and Materials: The authors conducted a nonrandomized, case‐controlled comparison of surgical volumes and systematic analysis of publication volumes. Two surrogates for the proportion of thyroidectomies being performed by otolaryngologists–head and neck surgeons (OHNS) and general surgeons (GS) were chosen: 1) the operative case logs of graduates from American training programs in OHNS and GS from 1995 through 2004 were compared; and 2) the number of scientific articles published relating to thyroid surgery were systematically queried for two timeframes (1990–1994 and 2000–2004).

Results: There was a gradual increase in the mean number of thyroidectomies performed by GS residents from 13.2 in 1995 to 18.2 in 2004. During the same timeframe, the mean number of thyroidectomies performed by OHNS residents more than doubled from 15.0 to 33.5. The number of American GS thyroid publications from 1990 to 1994 was 79, compared with 98 in the period 2000 to 2004, representing a 24% increase. During the same timeframe, the number of American OHNS articles increased from 14 to 49 (a 250% increase). The relative proportion of thyroid publications authored by American otolaryngologists more than doubled from 15.1% to 33.3% (P = .0017).

Conclusions: A clear trend is emerging in the pattern of thyroid surgery in that a growing proportion of publications are being authored by otolaryngologists compared with general surgeons, and the average number of procedures performed by graduating chief residents is now 84% higher in otolaryngology compared with general surgery.
Treatment of Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Retromolar Trigone
Authors: Hao Sheng‐Po , Tsang Ngan‐Ming , Chang Kai‐Ping , Chen Chin‐Kuo , Huang Shan‐Sting
Published: June 2006

Objectives: Retromolar trigone (RMT) squamous cell carcinoma is uncommon but notorious for poor prognosis. We reviewed our experience in the management of RMT cancer to determine survival rates and to identify prognostic factors.

Methods: Fifty patients with RMT squamous cell carcinoma were treated with surgery and/or radiation or chemoradiation therapy between July 1993 and June 2004 at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taiwan. Patients were followed up for 3 to 106 months (mean, 36 months). There were 6 stage I, 13 stage II, 4 stage II, and 27 stage N patients.

Results: The 5‐year actuarial survival rate for stage I to N and all stages were 100%, 74.1%, 75%, 43.6%, and 60.6%, respectively. Seventeen (34%) patients had maxilla bone (11 [22%]) or mandible bone (9 [18%]) invasion. Eleven (22%) patients had masticator space involvement. Cervical metastasis rate was 26%. Multivariate analysis revealed that masticator space involvement, neck recurrence, and cervical metastasis were poor prognosticators of survival by order. The maxilla bone was more apt to be involved by RMT cancer than the mandible. Patients with masticator space involvement had a 5‐year actuarial survival rate of 22.5% and the mean survival time was only 37.8 months.

Conclusions: RMT squamous cell carcinomas are aggressive tumors. The maxilla is more apt to be involved than the mandible. Deep infiltration of the masticator space and invasion of the maxilla and mandible worsen the prognosis.
Treatment of Ranula in Pediatric Patients with Intralesional Injection of OK‐432
Authors: Lee Heung‐Man , Lim Hyun‐Woo , Kang Hee Joon , Chae Sung‐Won , Hwang Soon‐Jae , Jung Kwang‐Yoon , Woo Jeong‐Soo
Published: June 2006

Objective: To assess the efficacy of treatment of a ranula in children by intralesional injection of OK‐432.

Study Design: Retrospective analysis of 13 cases.

Methods: Review of medical records of pediatric patients with ranula treated by OK‐432 sclerotherapy from 2002 through 2005.

Results: Among 13 cases, 9 were completely regressed by injection therapy alone. Three cases were incompletely regressed. One case was cured by surgical excision. The follow‐up duration was 6 to 46 (mean 24.3) months. Adverse effects of OK‐432 injection were tolerable, and no complication was observed.

Conclusions: On the basis of our experience, sclerotherapy with OK‐432 was a safe and effective primary treatment for a ranula in children. Further study will be needed to conclude its long‐term effectiveness.