ARTICLES
John Rawls and the Republican Critique. Much Ado about nothing? By Joan Balcells.
This paper attempts to review J. Rawls' definition of political liberalism in the light of Q. Skinner's republican criticism of the idea of freedom as deriving from Machiavelli's speeches. Skinner's contention that freedom as assumed by political liberalism is not robust enough and that it disregards responsibilities and obligations crutial for its own preservation is revealed inapropriate, at least when contrasted with Rawls'. Indeed, political liberalism as it stands takes those concerns well into account, so that both views are not so differing after all. If anything, Skinner's republican criticism shows a certain degree of dissatisfaction revolving around the way political theory is constructed, specially since it focuses too much on ideas at the expense of disregarding the real functioning of political systems in everyday world. The paper closes with the implication that both views would do well if they worked conjointly rather than on opposing sides. [Download full text]
Edward W. Said: 60 Years After the Naqbah and the Denial of Citizenship to Palestinian Refugees. By J. Jesús Camargo
The aim of this article is to look back on the Palestinian Naqbah -after sixty years of Israelian occupation and colonization- through the works of Edward W. Said, as well as to look into the true and catastrophic consequences of the creation of a 'national Jewish home' in the land of Historic Palestine. The situation of Palestinian refugees is also analized, as one of the most tragic consequences of the creation of the State of Israel. On that account, the systematic denial of the Palestinian citizenship is portrayed, both in Israel , Lebanon , Egypt and Jordan.[Download full text]
Wise Words . By Ger Groot.
Excerpt from Ger Groot's Adelante, ¡contradígame! Filosofía en conversación. Ger Groot is a professor of philosophy at the Rotterdam Erasmus Universiteit and a collaborator for the NRC Handelsblad and De Groene Amsterdammer . This book includes 18 interviews of the author with contemporary philosophers and addresses topics of the outmost interest for his interviewees. Please find attached here the introduction of the book. [Download full text]