Jasmine Farrier
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780813192628
- eISBN:
- 9780813135496
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University Press of Kentucky
- DOI:
- 10.5810/kentucky/9780813192628.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, American Politics
Is the United States Congress dead, alive, or trapped in a moribund cycle? When confronted with controversial policy issues, members of Congress struggle to satisfy conflicting legislative, ...
More
Is the United States Congress dead, alive, or trapped in a moribund cycle? When confronted with controversial policy issues, members of Congress struggle to satisfy conflicting legislative, representative, and oversight duties. These competing goals, along with the pressure to satisfy local constituents, cause members of Congress to routinely cede power on a variety of policies, express regret over their loss of control, and later return to the habit of delegating their power. This pattern of institutional ambivalence undermines conventional wisdom about congressional party resurgence, the power of oversight, and the return of the so-called imperial presidency. This book examines Congress's frequent delegation of power by analyzing primary source materials such as bills, committee reports, and the Congressional Record. The book demonstrates that Congress is caught between abdication and ambition and that this ambivalence affects numerous facets of the legislative process. Explaining specific instances of post-delegation disorder, including Congress's use of new bills, obstruction, public criticism, and oversight to salvage its lost power, the book exposes the tensions surrounding Congress's roles in recent hot-button issues such as base-closing commissions, presidential trade promotion authority, and responses to the attacks of September 11. It also examines shifting public rhetoric used by members of Congress as they emphasize, in institutionally self-conscious terms, the difficulties of balancing their multiple roles.Less
Is the United States Congress dead, alive, or trapped in a moribund cycle? When confronted with controversial policy issues, members of Congress struggle to satisfy conflicting legislative, representative, and oversight duties. These competing goals, along with the pressure to satisfy local constituents, cause members of Congress to routinely cede power on a variety of policies, express regret over their loss of control, and later return to the habit of delegating their power. This pattern of institutional ambivalence undermines conventional wisdom about congressional party resurgence, the power of oversight, and the return of the so-called imperial presidency. This book examines Congress's frequent delegation of power by analyzing primary source materials such as bills, committee reports, and the Congressional Record. The book demonstrates that Congress is caught between abdication and ambition and that this ambivalence affects numerous facets of the legislative process. Explaining specific instances of post-delegation disorder, including Congress's use of new bills, obstruction, public criticism, and oversight to salvage its lost power, the book exposes the tensions surrounding Congress's roles in recent hot-button issues such as base-closing commissions, presidential trade promotion authority, and responses to the attacks of September 11. It also examines shifting public rhetoric used by members of Congress as they emphasize, in institutionally self-conscious terms, the difficulties of balancing their multiple roles.
Stephen M. Bainbridce
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- October 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780300175219
- eISBN:
- 9780300195071
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Yale University Press
- DOI:
- 10.12987/yale/9780300175219.003.0018
- Subject:
- Political Science, American Politics
The Bloomberg–Schumer Report, the Paulson Committee Interim Report, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Report were three major studies that evaluated the decline of capital markets in the United ...
More
The Bloomberg–Schumer Report, the Paulson Committee Interim Report, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Report were three major studies that evaluated the decline of capital markets in the United States. This chapter discusses the evidence gathered in these studies, which confirms that there is a growing deterioration of competitiveness of capital markets.Less
The Bloomberg–Schumer Report, the Paulson Committee Interim Report, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Report were three major studies that evaluated the decline of capital markets in the United States. This chapter discusses the evidence gathered in these studies, which confirms that there is a growing deterioration of competitiveness of capital markets.
Simon J. Nuttall
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198293361
- eISBN:
- 9780191684982
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198293361.003.0005
- Subject:
- Political Science, European Union
This chapter discusses the preparation for the negotiations on Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) in Europe. The preparations included the authorization of preparatory work in 1988, the production of ...
More
This chapter discusses the preparation for the negotiations on Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) in Europe. The preparations included the authorization of preparatory work in 1988, the production of the Delors Committee Report in 1989, the approval of the Report at Madrid, and the finalization of the agreement for an Intergovernmental Conference (IGC). Various events, including the Gulf War and the German Unification, affected the EMU negotiations. This made the Common Foreign and Security Policy a more important issue in the IGC.Less
This chapter discusses the preparation for the negotiations on Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) in Europe. The preparations included the authorization of preparatory work in 1988, the production of the Delors Committee Report in 1989, the approval of the Report at Madrid, and the finalization of the agreement for an Intergovernmental Conference (IGC). Various events, including the Gulf War and the German Unification, affected the EMU negotiations. This made the Common Foreign and Security Policy a more important issue in the IGC.
Christine Hine
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- August 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780262083713
- eISBN:
- 9780262275408
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262083713.003.0003
- Subject:
- Society and Culture, Technology and Society
This chapter can be regarded as the continuation of the preceding chapter; in this section, the author extends his views in the field of systematics in a detailed way. The chapter explores the role ...
More
This chapter can be regarded as the continuation of the preceding chapter; in this section, the author extends his views in the field of systematics in a detailed way. The chapter explores the role of ICTs in systematics as a case study through the analysis of high-profile and public commentary. Politicization issues, the relationship between material and virtual cultures, and the historical specificity of systematics are briefly covered in the next parts of the chapter. The chapter also investigates the role of new and existing digital computer technologies and the Select Committee Report in the field of systematics. The data for this case study, drawn from the 2002 policy report, was produced by the United Kingdom's House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology. The conclusion of the chapter explains that further exploration is needed on the study results.Less
This chapter can be regarded as the continuation of the preceding chapter; in this section, the author extends his views in the field of systematics in a detailed way. The chapter explores the role of ICTs in systematics as a case study through the analysis of high-profile and public commentary. Politicization issues, the relationship between material and virtual cultures, and the historical specificity of systematics are briefly covered in the next parts of the chapter. The chapter also investigates the role of new and existing digital computer technologies and the Select Committee Report in the field of systematics. The data for this case study, drawn from the 2002 policy report, was produced by the United Kingdom's House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology. The conclusion of the chapter explains that further exploration is needed on the study results.
William Rehg
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- August 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780262182713
- eISBN:
- 9780262255318
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262182713.003.0010
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
In this chapter, the critical-contextualist approach is applied to a case study in which the findings of three expert committee reports on the possible links between diet and health are analyzed. ...
More
In this chapter, the critical-contextualist approach is applied to a case study in which the findings of three expert committee reports on the possible links between diet and health are analyzed. Such committee reports sponsored by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) are helpful in explaining the cogency of scientific argumentation. This case analysis, by using different source materials and argumentation-theoretic tools, highlights three directions of normative concern on the part of participants. These directions include the content of the reports, the quality of the committee transactions, and the public merits of the reports. The chapter concludes with the discussion of tensions in the rhetorical use of process ideals that are identified after examining the debates surrounding the reports and NAS procedures.Less
In this chapter, the critical-contextualist approach is applied to a case study in which the findings of three expert committee reports on the possible links between diet and health are analyzed. Such committee reports sponsored by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) are helpful in explaining the cogency of scientific argumentation. This case analysis, by using different source materials and argumentation-theoretic tools, highlights three directions of normative concern on the part of participants. These directions include the content of the reports, the quality of the committee transactions, and the public merits of the reports. The chapter concludes with the discussion of tensions in the rhetorical use of process ideals that are identified after examining the debates surrounding the reports and NAS procedures.
Kenneth McK Norrie
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2015
- ISBN:
- 9781845861193
- eISBN:
- 9781474406246
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9781845861193.003.0037
- Subject:
- Law, Family Law
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child requires state parties to submit a report every five years on how they are fulfilling their obligations, and the UK Children's Commissioners jointly ...
More
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child requires state parties to submit a report every five years on how they are fulfilling their obligations, and the UK Children's Commissioners jointly produced a separate report to the UN Committee explaining how, in their view, the UK still fails in its obligations. This commentary discusses that report from 2008, drawing attention in particular to the continued low age of criminal responsibility, the minimal protections against discrimination afforded children, and the continued legality of corporal punishment of children.Less
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child requires state parties to submit a report every five years on how they are fulfilling their obligations, and the UK Children's Commissioners jointly produced a separate report to the UN Committee explaining how, in their view, the UK still fails in its obligations. This commentary discusses that report from 2008, drawing attention in particular to the continued low age of criminal responsibility, the minimal protections against discrimination afforded children, and the continued legality of corporal punishment of children.
William T. Daniel
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780198716402
- eISBN:
- 9780191784972
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198716402.003.0005
- Subject:
- Political Science, European Union
This chapter tests the remaining three hypotheses considered by the book: that MEPs with higher levels of education and experience within the European Parliament will be selected to write more ...
More
This chapter tests the remaining three hypotheses considered by the book: that MEPs with higher levels of education and experience within the European Parliament will be selected to write more legislative committee reports and that these relationships will be amplified by the initiation of co-decision with the Council of Ministers. The chapter presents the theory that committee reports are of significant value for MEPs to obtain, as they steer the preferences of the broader legislature. Negative binomial regression analysis, using background data on all elected MEPs, reveals that reports are routinely assigned to senior MEPs with the educational background needed to handle the complex subject matter taken up by EU legislation. This is particularly true since the increases in the EP’s relative power under co-decision.Less
This chapter tests the remaining three hypotheses considered by the book: that MEPs with higher levels of education and experience within the European Parliament will be selected to write more legislative committee reports and that these relationships will be amplified by the initiation of co-decision with the Council of Ministers. The chapter presents the theory that committee reports are of significant value for MEPs to obtain, as they steer the preferences of the broader legislature. Negative binomial regression analysis, using background data on all elected MEPs, reveals that reports are routinely assigned to senior MEPs with the educational background needed to handle the complex subject matter taken up by EU legislation. This is particularly true since the increases in the EP’s relative power under co-decision.
Richard A. Shweder
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231168809
- eISBN:
- 9780231538794
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231168809.003.0010
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Moral Philosophy
This chapter examines academic freedom at the University of Chicago, which proudly thinks of itself as a Socratic, free-thinking, and contentious institution. More specifically, it considers the ...
More
This chapter examines academic freedom at the University of Chicago, which proudly thinks of itself as a Socratic, free-thinking, and contentious institution. More specifically, it considers the antiquarian view of academic freedom associated with two constitutional conservatives, both of them famous for their advocacy of judicial restraint: Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter and his former law clerk Alexander Bickel. The chapter explores the ancient Socratic ideal of freedom of thought and the application of the methods of critical reason as the ultimate ends of academic life. It also discusses the University of Chicago's conception of academic freedom as articulated in the Kalven committee report and whether faculty and administrative governance is a threat to academic freedom. It suggests that what makes a great university great is its commitment and willingness to nurture and protect the ardor and fearlessness of autonomous minds to follow the argument where it leads regardless of moral, political, or commercial interests or popular opinion.Less
This chapter examines academic freedom at the University of Chicago, which proudly thinks of itself as a Socratic, free-thinking, and contentious institution. More specifically, it considers the antiquarian view of academic freedom associated with two constitutional conservatives, both of them famous for their advocacy of judicial restraint: Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter and his former law clerk Alexander Bickel. The chapter explores the ancient Socratic ideal of freedom of thought and the application of the methods of critical reason as the ultimate ends of academic life. It also discusses the University of Chicago's conception of academic freedom as articulated in the Kalven committee report and whether faculty and administrative governance is a threat to academic freedom. It suggests that what makes a great university great is its commitment and willingness to nurture and protect the ardor and fearlessness of autonomous minds to follow the argument where it leads regardless of moral, political, or commercial interests or popular opinion.
Maidul Islam
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- June 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780199489916
- eISBN:
- 9780199097197
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780199489916.003.0004
- Subject:
- Political Science, Indian Politics
Chapter 3 assesses the underlying political logic of community-based affirmative action and reservation that is promoted as the new ameliorative policy, addressing the deprivation of Indian Muslims ...
More
Chapter 3 assesses the underlying political logic of community-based affirmative action and reservation that is promoted as the new ameliorative policy, addressing the deprivation of Indian Muslims under conditions of economic reforms. It does so by engaging with the findings and policy prescriptions of the Sachar Committee Report, the Ranganath Misra Commission Report, and the post-Sachar Evaluation Committee Report. Besides, the chapter points out the missing links of the Sachar Committee Report and presents a host of other suggestions that the committee did not recommend for the socio-economic development of Indian Muslims. While evaluating the merits of the Sachar and Misra Commission reports along with defending the ethical grounds for the affirmative action for Muslims in India, this chapter also tries to unearth the limitations of the approach of the government towards Muslim minorities in the context of neoliberal dispensation.Less
Chapter 3 assesses the underlying political logic of community-based affirmative action and reservation that is promoted as the new ameliorative policy, addressing the deprivation of Indian Muslims under conditions of economic reforms. It does so by engaging with the findings and policy prescriptions of the Sachar Committee Report, the Ranganath Misra Commission Report, and the post-Sachar Evaluation Committee Report. Besides, the chapter points out the missing links of the Sachar Committee Report and presents a host of other suggestions that the committee did not recommend for the socio-economic development of Indian Muslims. While evaluating the merits of the Sachar and Misra Commission reports along with defending the ethical grounds for the affirmative action for Muslims in India, this chapter also tries to unearth the limitations of the approach of the government towards Muslim minorities in the context of neoliberal dispensation.
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- June 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780804760638
- eISBN:
- 9780804770989
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Stanford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.11126/stanford/9780804760638.003.0002
- Subject:
- Political Science, Conflict Politics and Policy
Fear became established in the minds of the people of the United States during n the “war on terror.” Warnings from the White House and its critics reinforced each other, creating an echo chamber of ...
More
Fear became established in the minds of the people of the United States during n the “war on terror.” Warnings from the White House and its critics reinforced each other, creating an echo chamber of public fears. Nuclear anxieties after 9/11 motivated the Bush administration to be clearer with the truth. These anxieties were justified, but they caused the distraction of many Americans. It is noted that exceptional leadership and dogged persistence were important to the possible decrease of nuclear dangers during the Cold War. Five particularly horrific years of living dangerously in the nuclear age are observed: 1945, 1949–1950, 1962, 1983, and 2001. NSC 68 and the Gaither Committee report provide two of the significant clarion calls of nuclear danger. The strategic concept of George W. Bush for preventing new nuclear dangers primarily depended on U.S. military dominance. Cohesion among major powers was one of the casualties of the second U.S. war against Saddam Hussein.Less
Fear became established in the minds of the people of the United States during n the “war on terror.” Warnings from the White House and its critics reinforced each other, creating an echo chamber of public fears. Nuclear anxieties after 9/11 motivated the Bush administration to be clearer with the truth. These anxieties were justified, but they caused the distraction of many Americans. It is noted that exceptional leadership and dogged persistence were important to the possible decrease of nuclear dangers during the Cold War. Five particularly horrific years of living dangerously in the nuclear age are observed: 1945, 1949–1950, 1962, 1983, and 2001. NSC 68 and the Gaither Committee report provide two of the significant clarion calls of nuclear danger. The strategic concept of George W. Bush for preventing new nuclear dangers primarily depended on U.S. military dominance. Cohesion among major powers was one of the casualties of the second U.S. war against Saddam Hussein.
Abusaleh Shariff
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- June 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780199461158
- eISBN:
- 9780199086788
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199461158.001.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Economic Sociology
The political discourse in India experienced a fundamental shift when the Sachar Committee Report revealed that despite the national and state governments’ minority development policies and ...
More
The political discourse in India experienced a fundamental shift when the Sachar Committee Report revealed that despite the national and state governments’ minority development policies and programmes, the Muslim community was among the most deprived and backward, worse off than the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, in most of the outcome indicators. Many new pro-poor and inclusive policies were introduced as a response to the recommendations of the report. This book makes a critical assessment of the impact of ‘post-Sachar’ policies, bridging the gaps in empirical measurements and analytical documentation, and making them accessible to the public at large. The book recommends policies and institutions required for ensuring the constitutional right to equal opportunity for all Indian citizens, especially minorities, such as setting up of an Equal Opportunity Commission and systematically computing a diversity index to improve the process of assimilation of the deprived groups, including the minorities, into the national mainstream.Less
The political discourse in India experienced a fundamental shift when the Sachar Committee Report revealed that despite the national and state governments’ minority development policies and programmes, the Muslim community was among the most deprived and backward, worse off than the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, in most of the outcome indicators. Many new pro-poor and inclusive policies were introduced as a response to the recommendations of the report. This book makes a critical assessment of the impact of ‘post-Sachar’ policies, bridging the gaps in empirical measurements and analytical documentation, and making them accessible to the public at large. The book recommends policies and institutions required for ensuring the constitutional right to equal opportunity for all Indian citizens, especially minorities, such as setting up of an Equal Opportunity Commission and systematically computing a diversity index to improve the process of assimilation of the deprived groups, including the minorities, into the national mainstream.
Robert J. Zimmer
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231168809
- eISBN:
- 9780231538794
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231168809.003.0011
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Moral Philosophy
This chapter examines some of the history and context of academic freedom and its meaning, with particular emphasis on the uses of that history at the University of Chicago. Academic freedom is a ...
More
This chapter examines some of the history and context of academic freedom and its meaning, with particular emphasis on the uses of that history at the University of Chicago. Academic freedom is a particular feature of universities and colleges, and the chapter begins with an overview of the purpose and value of universities. It then considers the nature and role of the Kalven committee report, which reflects long-standing views within the University of Chicago on the subject of academic freedom and the critical role that the report played in the implementation of this value. It contextualizes the Kalven report within institutional culture and summarizes its principles, such as the statement that “the focus on rigorous, intense, and open inquiry carried out by the faculty and students of the University must be accompanied by the greatest possible intellectual freedom.” The chapter also discusses the report's emphasis on the University's responsibility “to protect the academic freedom of faculty and students both by its own neutrality and the protection from internal and external forces that would seek to dampen it”.Less
This chapter examines some of the history and context of academic freedom and its meaning, with particular emphasis on the uses of that history at the University of Chicago. Academic freedom is a particular feature of universities and colleges, and the chapter begins with an overview of the purpose and value of universities. It then considers the nature and role of the Kalven committee report, which reflects long-standing views within the University of Chicago on the subject of academic freedom and the critical role that the report played in the implementation of this value. It contextualizes the Kalven report within institutional culture and summarizes its principles, such as the statement that “the focus on rigorous, intense, and open inquiry carried out by the faculty and students of the University must be accompanied by the greatest possible intellectual freedom.” The chapter also discusses the report's emphasis on the University's responsibility “to protect the academic freedom of faculty and students both by its own neutrality and the protection from internal and external forces that would seek to dampen it”.
Jonathan R. Cole
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231168809
- eISBN:
- 9780231538794
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231168809.003.0004
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Moral Philosophy
This chapter examines the logic and limits of academic freedom using the ideals and logic of the University of Chicago's Kalven committee report as a point of departure. It discusses the nature of ...
More
This chapter examines the logic and limits of academic freedom using the ideals and logic of the University of Chicago's Kalven committee report as a point of departure. It discusses the nature of the threats against academic freedom and the roles that the university and its faculty ought to play in responding to them, arguing that great universities cannot be created or continue to exist without a vigilant defense of this value. It supports the Kalven committee report's declaration that the best of our universities are by design meant to be unsettling—to be critical of our society's weaknesses, as a source for new, even radical ideas (in all disciplines) that must also meet the test of extreme methodological rigor. The chapter asserts that whenever academic freedom is under fire, we must rise to its defense with courage—and without compromise. We should remember that the proper goal of higher education is enlightenment—not some abstract ideal of “balance”.Less
This chapter examines the logic and limits of academic freedom using the ideals and logic of the University of Chicago's Kalven committee report as a point of departure. It discusses the nature of the threats against academic freedom and the roles that the university and its faculty ought to play in responding to them, arguing that great universities cannot be created or continue to exist without a vigilant defense of this value. It supports the Kalven committee report's declaration that the best of our universities are by design meant to be unsettling—to be critical of our society's weaknesses, as a source for new, even radical ideas (in all disciplines) that must also meet the test of extreme methodological rigor. The chapter asserts that whenever academic freedom is under fire, we must rise to its defense with courage—and without compromise. We should remember that the proper goal of higher education is enlightenment—not some abstract ideal of “balance”.
John W. Schiemann
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780190262365
- eISBN:
- 9780190262396
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190262365.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, American Politics, Political Theory
This book examines whether interrogational torture is effective in obtaining valuable information and at what cost in terms of torture’s brutality and frequency. Interrogational torture’s ...
More
This book examines whether interrogational torture is effective in obtaining valuable information and at what cost in terms of torture’s brutality and frequency. Interrogational torture’s effectiveness is a necessary condition for its justification by utilitarian proponents. This book tackles this age-old question head on in a new way, employing mathematical game theory – but reserving the math for the appendices. The book draws on historical accounts, previously secret CIA documents in the war on terrorism, and the proposals advanced by torture proponents to build a game theoretic model of interrogational torture. Illustrating the model outcomes with narratives from Pinochet’s Chile to Algeria to the use of enhanced interrogation techniques against Al Qaeda operatives at CIA black sites, the book compares the results of the model with proponent benchmarks on information reliability, torture frequency, and torture severity. These benchmarks both predict what should emerge from the model according to the proponent’s own logic as well as constitute the necessary conditions for the justification of the proponent ideal. The results of the model violate the necessary conditions for justifying the practice – interrogational torture fails to reliably generate valuable information but will be both more frequent and more brutal than proponents expect and are willing to accept. Having shown that interrogational torture is ineffective, the book then demonstrates just why and how it fails. A Postscript compares the benchmarks and the game theoretic model’s predictions to the findings of the 2014 Senate Intelligence Committee report on the CIA interrogation program.Less
This book examines whether interrogational torture is effective in obtaining valuable information and at what cost in terms of torture’s brutality and frequency. Interrogational torture’s effectiveness is a necessary condition for its justification by utilitarian proponents. This book tackles this age-old question head on in a new way, employing mathematical game theory – but reserving the math for the appendices. The book draws on historical accounts, previously secret CIA documents in the war on terrorism, and the proposals advanced by torture proponents to build a game theoretic model of interrogational torture. Illustrating the model outcomes with narratives from Pinochet’s Chile to Algeria to the use of enhanced interrogation techniques against Al Qaeda operatives at CIA black sites, the book compares the results of the model with proponent benchmarks on information reliability, torture frequency, and torture severity. These benchmarks both predict what should emerge from the model according to the proponent’s own logic as well as constitute the necessary conditions for the justification of the proponent ideal. The results of the model violate the necessary conditions for justifying the practice – interrogational torture fails to reliably generate valuable information but will be both more frequent and more brutal than proponents expect and are willing to accept. Having shown that interrogational torture is ineffective, the book then demonstrates just why and how it fails. A Postscript compares the benchmarks and the game theoretic model’s predictions to the findings of the 2014 Senate Intelligence Committee report on the CIA interrogation program.
Natasha Behl
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- July 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780190949426
- eISBN:
- 9780190949457
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780190949426.003.0003
- Subject:
- Political Science, Democratization, Political Theory
Chapter 3 focuses attention on women’s unequal experience of the Indian state through an examination of the debates surrounding the 2012 gang rape. Chapter 3 examines both the progressive political ...
More
Chapter 3 focuses attention on women’s unequal experience of the Indian state through an examination of the debates surrounding the 2012 gang rape. Chapter 3 examines both the progressive political opening and the retrenchment of patriarchal norms following Jyoti Singh’s murder, and argues that this opening and retrenchment are emblematic of the Indian state’s radical promise of equality and its horrific failure to achieve this equality. An analysis of politicians’ responses demonstrates how gendered norms operate to exclude women in the name of inclusion. This analysis highlights the difficulty of eradicating gendered violence through legal reform, demonstrates the unpredictability of the political process, and shows how gendered norms operate in the public sphere to undermine and frustrate progressive change. The chapter outlines the difficulty of turning to the law as a liberatory strategy in a liberal democracy and shifts attention to other spheres of life as potential sources for more egalitarian social relations.Less
Chapter 3 focuses attention on women’s unequal experience of the Indian state through an examination of the debates surrounding the 2012 gang rape. Chapter 3 examines both the progressive political opening and the retrenchment of patriarchal norms following Jyoti Singh’s murder, and argues that this opening and retrenchment are emblematic of the Indian state’s radical promise of equality and its horrific failure to achieve this equality. An analysis of politicians’ responses demonstrates how gendered norms operate to exclude women in the name of inclusion. This analysis highlights the difficulty of eradicating gendered violence through legal reform, demonstrates the unpredictability of the political process, and shows how gendered norms operate in the public sphere to undermine and frustrate progressive change. The chapter outlines the difficulty of turning to the law as a liberatory strategy in a liberal democracy and shifts attention to other spheres of life as potential sources for more egalitarian social relations.