The Democracy and the Ethics in the Light of Contingency

In this article, the author explores the relationship between ethics and democracy taking in account the contingency and its far-reaching consequences within the complex structures of democracy. To start with some basics, affiliation to the historically constituted contingencies is the ethical experience of borders/limits for the non-substantial political community. After developing the list of opportunities of democracy, the article goes on to discuss the inherent instability of democracy and the value-laden discussions the democracy is exposed to. The article then proceeds to analyse the structural links between the production of power and the freedom critical reviewing the Enlightenment-thought of indivisible freedom. Much of the contemporary philosophical discussion of these issues is enchanted by the spirit of deliberation. The author agrees with the orientation of theories of deliberative democracy but they tend to neglect issues of the links between power and freedom in democracy and the performative-persuasive practice of agents of democracy. The discussion here, while mostly raising questions rather than claiming to provide definitive answers, tries to point to the ethical dimensions of the trans- formation of contingencies

Self-Government in Yugoslavia: The Path to Capitalism?

This chapter analyzes self-governing Yugoslavia in the context of capitalism. Regarding the problem of capitalism in socialist world, the practice of the former Yugoslavia cannot be ignored. The socialist Yugoslavia was predetermined to be qualified as capitalist. The Yugoslav leadership developed: (a) self-government, (b) elements of market-biased socialism, and (c) openness to the international economy or the integration in the world market. Its economy achieved remarkable results by the mid-1960s. Some notable economists compliment the results and suggest that the model is sustainable. However, since the mid-1960s, regressive tendencies have emerged that perpetuate significant social dissatisfaction. In 1968, students protested against the state of Yugoslav socialism, believing that it had absorbed capitalism. Others felt that Yugoslav socialism had not sufficiently developed market-based socialism. There were authors that argued that Yugoslav socialism had become capitalist but without capitalist rationality. In the 1970s, the de iure existing federation became a de facto confederation with closed national economies. The chapter discusses the presence of elements of capitalism in this form of socialism based on (a) dependence on the world market, (b) banks as the institutionalization of “financial mode of capital,” and (c) the existence of perpetuated unemployment

Čvorovi između fašizma, post-fašizma i neoliberalizma

Ovaj članak je napisan u kontekstu rasprave o neoliberalizmu u Srbiji. Ne mali broj komentatora jenegirao postojanje neoliberalizma u stilu da je to ideološka izmišljotina nezadovovoljnih sa sadašnjim stanjem sveta, ili jeftini resentiman. Neoliberalizam zaista može da postaje prazni šlagvort, ako se nevezuje za strukturalne determinacije kapitalizma. Ovde se to pretpostavlja, ali se traga za još jednomdeterminacijom bez koje se mnogo toga ne može razumeti: fašiza

Povratak strukturalnoj kritici: da li je sinteza kritike i krize ponovo moguća u „kasnom“ kapitalizmu?

Retrospection and transformation of the phenomena of criticism and crisis in social theory in recent decades have led to the weakening and even “illegitimate” renunciation of the said doublet. The paper presents an analysis of the renewal of discourse on criticism/crisis and its effects with special consideration of the possibilities of structural criticism. We included several authors of recent analyses as well as the viewpoints that have led to reconsideration of historical and analytical dynamics of two categories, structure and conjuncture, as a form of analysis of current structural processes in terms of structural analysis and criticism. The paper comprises three parts. The first part is a reflection on the reason criticism and crisis have been subjected to different processes of derogation despite their original connection. In the second part, we show the effects of different ways that crisis has manifested itself in capitalism and explain its dispersive and “non-punctual” modalities. The third part raises the question of chances of reuniting the crisis and “immanent criticism” based on structural criticism, and we further articulate its connections with immanent criticism. Structural criticism is viewed as a connection between immanent criticism and transcendent orientation that is focused on the reconnection between crisis and criticism, the elements related to capitalism.Preispitivanje i transformacija fenomena kritike i krize u društvenoj teoriji su poslednjih de cenija doveli do slabljenja pa i do delegitimacijskog osporavanja navedenog dubleta. U radu se razmatraju mogućnosti obnove diskursa o kritici/krizi s mogućim delatnim učincima, uz poseban osvrt na mogućnosti strukturalne kritike.Različiti autori recentnih analiza se uzima ju u obzir, te se razmatraju stanovišta koja vode do ponovnog razmatranja istorijskog i ana litičkog dinamizma kategorija strukture i konjunkture kao razrade aktuelnih strukturalnih procesa u terminima strukturalne analize i kritike. Rad se sastoji iz tri dela. U prvom delu razmatramo zbog čega su kritika i kriza koje su izvorno spojene podvrgnuti različitim proce sima derogiranja. U drugom delu pokazujemo efekte promene načina ispoljavanja krize u kapitalizmu, tačnije osvetljavamo njenu disperzivne i ne-punktualne modalitete. U trećem delu postavljamo pitanje o šansama ponovnog spajanja krize i kritike na osnovu navigacije strukturalne kritike, nadalje artikulišemo njene veze sa „imanentnom kritikom“. Strukturalna kritika se analizira kao spoj između imanentne kritike i transcendentnog usmerenja koji radi na reconnections between crisis and critique as the elements of relationship to capitalism

The State of Exception at the Legal Boundaries : Re-Evaluation Of A Critical Concept

This article focuses on the notion of the state of exception, accounting for its legal and political meanings. In discussing Agamben’s analysis of the state of exception, the article provides an alternative genesis of the state of exception, with a special focus on the role of liberalism, nuclear war, and the sources of the state of exception that was instituted in the U.S.A. after the terrorist attacks on September 11. The article stresses that the state of exception should not be described as an “anomic state” that suspends the law, but that the relationships are much more complex, wherein the legal and non-legal “organically” intertwine. The article ends with an analysis of the neoliberal relationship to the state of exception

Two conflicting interpretations of social philosophy

In this paper I present two philosophers, namely Maurice Merle- au-Ponty and Jean-Paul Sartre, but from the perspective of social philosophy. I emphasize that social philosophy proves to be a rarity today, and this expla¬ins the necessity of articulation of the achievements of these philosophers. In particular, I analyze the relationship between the articulation of intersubjec¬tivity and social philosophy and on the basis of these relations I present the differences and conflicts between the aforementioned philosophers. Merleau- -Pontys philosophy is explained from the perspective of unbroken intersubjec-tivity; the philosophy of Sartre is presented on the basis of the relation between transcendental subjectivity and intersubjectivity. The article follows the ge-nealogical approach, that is, it highlights the dynamics of the thinking of these thinkers in order to show the displacements. Finally, I develop the thesis that the late Sartre, who remained within the frames of Marx’s approach, actually reinterprets the early indications to be found in Merleau-Ponty con¬cerning social philosophy. Consequently, late Sartre is still an important re¬ference point in terms of the critical philosophy of society

Vanredno stanje na granicama prava : prevrednovanje jednog kritičkog koncepta

Članak se fokusira na pojam vanrednog stanja, uzimajući u obzir njegova pravna i politička značenja. Raspravljajući s Agambenovom analizom vanrednog stanja, članak nudi alternativno objašnjenje geneze vanrednog stanja, sa posebnim osvrtom na ulogu liberalizma, nuklearnog rata i izvora vanrednog stanja koje je bilo uvedeno u SAD nakon terorističkih napada 11. septembra. U članku se naglašava da vanredno stanje ne treba opisati kao „anomično stanje” koje suspenduje pravo, već je reč o mnogo kompleksnijim odnosima u kojima se ono pravno i nepravno „organski” prepliću. Članak se završava analizom neoliberalnog odnosa prema vanrednom stanju

Spirituality, Crisis, and Illusions

This article deals with the structural interpretations of the ongoing crisis. The author considers the approaches of Joseph Alois Schumpeter and Tibor Scitovsky that thematize the long-run destiny of capitalism. The viewpoint is constituted as the relation between the structural socio-economic tendencies and existential constellations. What is addressed by the crisis is capitalism as a dependent system. The author emphasizes that capitalism cannot survive without the outside sphere, reciprocal interactions, economics of community, eco-system and complex eco-social moments. This can be applied to the frequently mentioned embeddedness which is related to Polanyi and other researchers who are influenced by Polanyi’s concepts. Embeddedness can be analyzed through the holon, from the inside perspective. Only comprehensive perspective enables to see the entire horizon, since capitalism cannot summarize the eco-system, not even with the most sophisticated techniques that recognize monetary expressions

Une convergence sous tension : les Magyars de Voïvodine et leur relation à la « mère patrie »

the interests of ethnic Hungarian political formations in the province and parties in Hungary itself. Every Hungarian government since 1989 has proclaimed its support for an ethnic-based cultural unity that transcends borders, but the meanings assigned to this "unity" vary. The objectives of integrating Hungary in Europe and in NATO, which have been top priorities on the country's foreign policy agenda, have not always been compatible with the goals of minority policies. In recent years, relations between communities in Voivodina have changed for the worse. As a consequence, Hungarians in the province risk being disenfranchised and separated from Hungary by an "iron curtain" of visas.Cet article porte sur la relation politique entre une minorité et sa « mère patrie » et prend l'exemple des rapports des Hongrois de Voïvodine (Serbie) avec la Hongrie. Il met en évidence l'existence de contradictions, dues à des trajectoires sociales différentes, entre les intérêts des partis ethniques hongrois en Voïvodine et des formations politiques de la Hongrie. Depuis 1989, chaque gouvernement hongrois a proclamé son engagement en faveur d'une unité eth no culture Ile transcendant les frontières mais les significations attribuées à cette « unité » ont varié. Plus généralement, la politique étrangère hongroise a été dominée par les objectifs d'intégration euro-atlantique, lesquels n'ont pas toujours concordé avec ceux de la politique des minorités. Dans un contexte où, ces dernières années, les rapports intercommunautaires en Voïvodine se sont dégradés, les risques d'une marginalisation des Hongrois de Voïvodine - séparés de la Hongrie par le « rideau de fer » de la politique des visas - sont particulièrement saillants.Losoncz Alpar, Ragaru Nadège. Une convergence sous tension : les Magyars de Voïvodine et leur relation à la « mère patrie ». In: Revue d'études comparatives Est-Ouest, vol. 38, 2007, n°4. Les politisations de l'identité dans les Balkans contemporains, sous la direction de Nadège Ragaru . pp. 149-172