Central to Nozick’s Anarchy, State and Utopia is a defense of the legitimacy of the minimal state’s use of coercion against anarchist objections. Individuals acting within their natural rights can establish the state without committing wrongdoing against those who disagree. Nozick attempts to show that even with a natural executive right, individuals need not actually consent to incur political obligations. Nozick’s argument relies on an account of compensation to remedy the infringement of the non-consenters’ procedural rights. Compensation, however, cannot remedy (...) the infringement, for either it is superfluous to Nozick’s account of procedural rights, or it is made to play a role inconsistent with Nozick’s liberal voluntarist commitments. Nevertheless, Nozick’s account of procedural rights contains clues for how to solve the problem. Since procedural rights are incompatible with a natural executive right, Nozickeans can argue that only the state can enforce individuals’ rights without wronging anyone, thus refuting the anarchist. Thanks to Annette Dufner, Arnt Myrstad, Arthur Ripstein, Gopal Sreenivasan, James Sterba, Chloe Taylor, Sergio Tenenbaum, and Shelley Weinberg. Thanks also to Matt Zwolinski and Jonelle DePetro, who commented on earlier versions of the paper at the Central APA 2007 and at the 2006 Illinois Philosophical Association Conference (respectively). Finally, thanks to my graduate students at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign for their active engagement with the ideas during a seminar on liberal theories of justice (fall 2007). (shrink)

Discussion of Wittgenstein's Tractatus is currently dominated by two opposing interpretations of the work: a metaphysical or realist reading and the 'resolute' reading of Diamond and Conant. Marie McGinn's principal aim in this book is to develop an alternative interpretative line, which rejects the idea, central to the metaphysical reading, that Wittgenstein sets out to ground the logic of our language in features of an independently constituted reality, but which allows that he aims to provide positive philosophical insights into (...) how language functions. McGinn takes as a guiding principle the idea that we should see Wittgenstein's early work as an attempt to eschew philosophical theory and to allow language itself to reveal how it functions. By this account, the aim of the work is to elucidate what language itself makes clear, namely, what is essential to its capacity to express thoughts that are true or false. However, the early Wittgenstein undertakes this descriptive project in the grip of a set of preconceptions concerning the essence of language that determine both how he conceives the problem and the approach he takes to the task of clarification. Nevertheless, the Tractatus contains philosophical insights, achieved despite his early preconceptions, that form the foundation of his later philosophy. -/- The anti-metaphysical interpretation that is presented includes a novel reading of the problematic opening sections of the Tractatus, in which the apparently metaphysical status of Wittgenstein's remarks is shown to be an illusion. The book includes a discussion of the philosophical background to the Tractatus, a comprehensive interpretation of Wittgenstein's early views of logic and language, and an interpretation of the remarks on solipsism. The final chapter is a discussion of the relation between the early and the later philosophy that articulates the fundamental shift in Wittgenstein's approach to the task of understanding how language functions and reveal the still more fundamental continuity in his conception of his philosophical task. (shrink)

Collection of previously published material, 1975-1993.

This paper aims to confront two notions that have acquired a particular importance in contemporary reflections on the law: the notion of “un-law” (“Unrecht” or “non-droit”), that was constructed after the second WW in order to think about the specific nature of “Nazi law”; and the notion of “state of exception” (“Ausnahmezustand” or “état d’exception”), which is now commonly tied up with the idea of juridical anomie. This confrontation extends the analysis that is especially exposed by the very concept of (...) “un-law”, in order to think about the possibility of a “monstrous law” in a functional way, and not in a substantial one. In return, this new light will help to think of the discontinuities between a “state of exception” and a “state of un-law”. (shrink)

Abstract:Adaptive architecture has been investigated in its functional as well as technological capacities and potentials to respond to changing environmental conditions as well as user interactions – from kinetic façades to variable interiors. Yet, its dynamic aesthetics of various spatial, visual, and auditive states require further exploration, especially in relation to occupant perception and experience. We propose the phenomenological concept of atmospheres as a lens through which the aesthetics of adaptive architecture can be observed as fundamentally relational: as co-constituted by (...) “ambient qualities and human condition.” As these ambient qualities are getting more dynamic and are becoming increasingly manipulable with adaptive architecture, their critical reflection and negotiation is urgent; it has to involve occupants. (shrink)

In Canada, there are currently no guidelines at either the federal or provincial level regarding the provision of kidney transplantation services to foreign nationals (FN). Renal transplant centres have, in the past, agreed to put refugee claimants and other FNs on the renal transplant waiting list, in part, because these patients (refugee claimants) had health insurance through the Interim Federal Health Programme to cover the costs of medication and hospital care. However, severe cuts recently made to this programme have forced (...) clinicians to question whether they should continue with transplants for FNs, for financial and ethical reasons. This paper first examines different national policies (eg, in Canada, USA, France and the UK) to map the diversity of approaches regarding transplantation for FNs, and then works through different considerations commonly used to support or oppose the provision of organs to these patients: (1) the organ shortage; (2) the free-rider problem; (3) the risk of becoming a transplant destination; (4) the impact on organ donation rates; (5) physicians’ duties; (6) economic concerns; (7) vulnerability. Using a Canadian case as a focus, and generalising through a review of various national policies, we analyse the arguments for and against transplantation for FNs with a view to bringing clarity to what is a sensitive political and clinical management issue. Our aim is to help transplant centres, clinicians and ethicists reflect on the merits of possible options, and the rationales behind them. (shrink)

Cognitive Science, Volume 46, Issue 2, February 2022.

L’apport de la phénoménologie allemande à l’éthique a souvent été réduit aux intentionnalités et aux vécus axiologiques et affectifs, tels qu’ils furent décrits par Husserl. Or, cet apport est limité du fait que Husserl définissait d’abord l’intentionnalité comme un rapport à un objet dont nous sommes conscients. Dans ce qui suit, nous proposons d’emprunter une autre voie pour penser l’apport de la phénoménologie à l’éthique, en étudiant la phénoménologie des actes sociaux que les phénoménologues munichois développèrent en réponse à la (...) phénoménologie husserlienne. Cette phénoménologie des actes sociaux permet de considérer, de juger et de critiquer, d’un point de vue éthique, les façons dont nous entrons en relation intentionnelle non pas avec des objets éthiques, mais avec autrui. Notre propos suivra principalement les idées développées par Reinach, Pfänder, Daubert et Scheler, et prendra pour fil directeur les actes d’adresser un impératif et une invitation à autrui. (shrink)

D’ordre public, la fonction parentale doit servir à promouvoir l’intérêt du mineur. Les parents, même incarcérés, ne peuvent pas déroger à leur autorité. Si, dans les dispositions légales, aucun texte ne prévoit ipso facto la modification de l’exercice de l’autorité parentale en raison de l’incarcération, dans les faits, la situation de détention d’un parent produit des effets sur la fonction parentale. À partir d’une recherche interdisciplinaire (droit et psychologie) menée en France dans trois établissements pénitentiaires, les données quantitatives et qualitatives (...) issues de questionnaires et de focus-groups permettent à l’auteur d’étudier l’écart entre les principes communs issus des règles d’autorité parentale et la mise en œuvre pratique à travers le prisme de l’incarcération. Les résultats montrent que la détention peut conduire à des situations qui majoritairement affaiblissent l’effectivité de l’exercice des droits et devoirs parentaux. (shrink)

The outcome of very preterm infants is marked by the development of complications that can have an impact on the quality of life of the children and their families. The concept of quality of life and its evaluation in the long term raise semantic and ethical problems for French physicians in perinatal care. Our reflection aims to gain a better understanding of the representations surrounding quality of life in neonatal medicine.

Une situation de crise, ici représentée par une demande d’IVG, amène cette femme à exprimer sa plainte et sa difficulté de couple dans un cadre légal auprès d’un professionnel de l’écoute. Il s’ensuit pour elle une demande d’aide qui amène le professionnel à situer son écoute dans le cadre du Conseil conjugal puis, une nouvelle demande s’adressant au même professionnel pour une demande de thérapie avec changement du cadre.

En tant que soutien à la participation et à l’inclusion, le fauteuil roulant constitue un objet d’étude intéressant pour comprendre l’expérience quotidienne des personnes en situation de handicap physique. Cet article s’intéresse dès lors au fonctionnement du fauteuil, à ses déplacements, et à la fac¸ on dont le fauteuil influence l’identité individuelle de son utilisateur. À partir d’une ethnographie de dix-huit mois dans un township coloured du Cap (Afrique du Sud), cette approche du fauteuil roulant mobilise une lecture relationnelle et (...) intersectionnelle de la citoyenneté. Définie largement comme la relation à son corps, à son environnement, à ses proches, et à l’État, la citoyenneté est dès lors expérimentée à travers un réseau de relations sociales, institutionnelles et matérielles. En fin de compte, une telle approche soulève des questions bien plus larges autour de l’inclusion, de l’appartenance, et de la stigmatisation. Après une présentation du contexte de la recherche, trois sections de l’article examinent respectivement les concepts de citoyenneté active, citoyenneté moderne et droit à la ville. La conclusion revient quant à elle sur les apports d’une telle approche dans les études sur le handicap et en Afrique du Sud. (shrink)

Argumentation mining is an advanced form of human language understanding by the machine. This is a challenging task for a machine. When sufficient explicit discourse markers are present in the lang...

In Western countries today, a growing number of women delay motherhood until their late 30s and even 40s, as they invest time in pursuing education and career goals before starting a family. This social trend results from greater gender equality and expanded opportunities for women and is influenced by the availability of contraception and assisted reproductive technologies. However, advanced maternal age is associated with increased health risks, including infertility. While individual medical solutions such as ART and elective egg freezing can (...) promote reproductive autonomy, they entail significant risks and limitations. We thus argue that women should be better informed regarding the risks of advanced maternal age and ART, and that these individual solutions need to be supplemented by a public health approach, including policy measures that provide women with the opportunity to start a family earlier in life without sacrificing personal career goals. (shrink)