Marxism and bureaucracy

This thesis is concerned with the career of a concept within a t radi t ion of thought which combines social and p o l i t ica l theory and revolutionary ideology. The concept is 1 bureaucracy' ; the t radi t ion is revolutionary Marxism. The thesis attempts to explore the role and importance of the concept in the writings of several writers who stand at central and strategic points in the development of Marxist ref lect ion on bureaucracy, and to discuss the adequacy and u t i l i t y of these wr i ters' analyses of what they take ' bureaucracy1 to be. Marxists were not the only thinkers, nor were they the f i r s t , to discuss the role of bureaucracy in comtemporary and future societies. The thesis has therefore considered the thoughts of a number of pre- and non-Marxists. In par t icular , the writings of two thinkers who gave special attention to the social and p o l i t ic a l consequences of administrative imperatives - Henri Saint-Simon and Max Weber - have proved par t icular ly illuminating. Saint-Simon bequeathed to, or at least shared with Marxists, many important ideas and predictions which relate to our theme. Weber was both profoundly influenced by Marxist social theory, and, with regard to bureaucracy, profoundly c r i t ic a l of revolutionary Marxism. In this century the theories and prophecies of both wr i ters, as of Marxists themselves, have been put to test. The ideas discussed here have been concerned with, and greatly affected and at times challenged by, economic, social and p o l i t ica l developments in the past two centuries, and in par t icular by the course and fate of the f i r s t successful Marxist-led revolution, the Russian Revolution of 1917. The thesis has sought to take these developments, and thei r practical and theoretical consequences, into account

Eugene KAMENKA, Robert BROTWN, Martin KRYGIER, Alice ERH-SOON TAY, La burocracia. La trayectoria de un concepto, Méjico, Fondo de Cultura Económica, "Breviario" núm. 302, 1981, 289 páginas

Obra ressenyada: Eugene KAMENKA, Robert BROTWN, Martin KRYGIER, Alice ERH-SOON TAY, La burocracia. La trayectoria de un concepto. Méjico: Fondo de Cultura Económica, 1981

Poder atemperado. Cómo pensar, y no pensar, sobre el Estado de Derecho

El Estado de Derecho ha sido objeto de muchas más palabras rancias que de pensamientos frescos y hoy en día su aura dorada se ha atenuado. Con todo, es enormemente importante reflexionar correctamente sobre el mismo y creo que hay formas con las que esto se puede hacer mejor. El punto de partida crítico del argumento es una evaluación de los enfoques legalistas convencionales que, a pesar de las muchas diferencias que parecen importantes para sus autores, tienen en común que empiezan con la pregunta equivocada; siguen por una vía equivocada; y terminan en el lugar equivocado, con una respuesta estrecha y gremial de juristas a un problema social y político (además de jurídico) universal. No es de extrañar que, como se ha dicho de una buena persona, el Estado de Derecho es difícil de encontrar. Yo sostengo que, si empezamos y proseguimos de otra manera, acabaremos más cerca de un destino que merezca la pena visitar. Eso no hará que la búsqueda del Estado de Derecho sea un paseo de rosas, pero podría ayudarnos a evitar ser, una y otra vez, asaltados por la realidad. En lugar de empezar tratando de estipular qué es el Estado de Derecho, deberíamos preguntarnos para qué sirve: cuál es el objetivo, por qué es importante ese objetivo y qué se necesitaría para conseguirlo; sólo entonces cabe preguntarse qué podría hacer falta para lograrlo. Las respuestas variarán según el contexto, la época y las circunstancias y, por lo general, tendrán que ir más allá de las preocupaciones habituales. Así que hay que empezar por el problema y partir de ahí. El problema específico que debe resolver el Estado de Derecho, sostengo sin pretensión de originalidad, es el poder arbitrario. El carácter de cualquier solución debe ser atemperar (no sólo limitar) el ejercicio del poder para contener la arbitrariedad al mínimo. Entonces, la cuestión (la tercera cuestión, no la primera) es cómo hacerlo. Esto, casi con toda seguridad y en todas partes, dependerá de muchas más cosas de lo que sugiere el discurso convencional sobre el Estado de Derecho. El ideal del Estado de Derecho nunca es puramente jurídico, sino también social y político. Las soluciones serán diferentes, muchas no estarán implicadas, o irán más allá o permanecerán subyacentes o se situarán junto a la ley, y es mucho lo que está en juego

An analysis of specialist and non-specialist user requirements for geographic climate change information

This article was published in the journal, Applied Ergonomics [© Elsevier Ltd and The Ergonomics Society] and the definitive version is available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.apergo.2013.03.029The EU EuroClim project developed a system to monitor and record climate change indicator data based on satellite observations of snow cover, sea ice and glaciers in Northern Europe and the Arctic. It also contained projection data for temperature, rainfall and average wind speed for Europe. These were all stored as data sets in a GIS database for users to download. The process of gathering requirements for a user population including scientists, researchers, policy makers, educationalists and the general public is described. Using an iterative design methodology, a user survey was administered to obtain initial feedback on the system concept followed by panel sessions where users were presented with the system concept and a demonstrator to interact with it. The requirements of both specialist and non-specialist users is summarised together with strategies for the effective communication of geographic climate change information

Absolute calibration of Fujifilm BAS-TR image plate response to laser driven protons up to 40 MeV

Image plates (IPs) are a popular detector in the field of laser driven ion acceleration, owing to their high dynamic range and reusability. An absolute calibration of these detectors to laser-driven protons in the routinely produced tens of MeV energy range is, therefore, essential. In this paper, the response of Fujifilm BAS-TR IPs to 1–40 MeV protons is calibrated by employing the detectors in high resolution Thomson parabola spectrometers in conjunction with a CR-39 nuclear track detector to determine absolute proton numbers. While CR-39 was placed in front of the image plate for lower energy protons, it was placed behind the image plate for energies above 10 MeV using suitable metal filters sandwiched between the image plate and CR-39 to select specific energies. The measured response agrees well with previously reported calibrations as well as standard models of IP response, providing, for the first time, an absolute calibration over a large range of proton energies of relevance to current experiments

Approaching the rule of law

In a way, rule of law promotion is booming. A lot of people and organisations are contracted to work on it, a lot of money is spent on it, a lot of academics study it. And yet it is hard to boast of much success in actually fostering it, much less conjuring it ex nihilo or next to nihilo. That should not be surprising. The rule of law is not a natural fact but a rare achievement, and there are many forces that militate against it. And Afghanistan is not the easiest place to start. It is not at all clear, however, whether such 'hard facts' are the only source of our problems. Some, at least, derive from limitations we bring to the world. To put it bluntly, and fortunately in the words of another: in the business of rule of law promotion, 'we know how to do a lot of things, but deep down we don't really know what we are doing'. The authors in this book have a lot to tell us about the quest for the rule of law in Afghanistan; what is going on, what has been attempted, what was wise, what was stupid, what has failed, what has succeeded. They alert us, again and again, to facts that need to be recognised and often have not been, and to specific tactics and strategies, well or ill adapted to those facts

Book Review:Philip Selznick's Humanist Science

Philip Selznick, Professor Emeritus of Law and Sociology at UC Berkeley, died on 12 June 2010. He was born in 1919. Over 70 of the years in between were spent in fruitful engagement with large questions of social, political and moral significance, and a large part too in academic leadership, at once intellectual and institutiona

Good, Bad, and 'Irritant' Laws in New Democracies

This chapter explores reasons for numerous surprises and disappointments related to the use of law in building democracy and free media. Law was expected to constrain the possibilities for the arbitrary exercise of power (the rule of law), and to develop and enforce specific-purpose rules of the game fit for the salutary operation of the many complex domains and activities that make up a modern sociopolitical order, key among them the media and the polity. However, the reality has been more complicated and less attractive than some hoped. It is not surprising that bad laws have bad results. More interesting is when well-motivated laws and legal arrangements fail, as often they have. CEE is awash with legal experimentation designed precisely to allow free media to flourish. Apparently impeccable models are studied, emulated, transplanted, but they grow in very strange ways on foreign terrain