The Strife of Systems

The Strife of Systems
Author: Nicholas Rescher
Publisher: University of Pittsburgh Pre
Total Pages: 296
Release: 2010-11-23
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 0822976382

The disagreement of philosophers is notorious. In this book, Rescher develops a theory that accounts for this conflict and shows how the basis for philosophical disagreement roots in divergent 'cognitive values'-values regarding matters such as importance, centrality, and priority. In light of this analysis, Rescher maintains that, despite this inevitable discord, a skeptical or indifferentist reaction to traditional philosophy is not warranted, seeing that genuine value-conflicts are at issue. He argues that philosophy is an important and worthwhile enterprise, notwithstanding its inability to achieve rationally constrained consensus on the issues. Given the nature of the enterprise, consensus is not a realistic goal, and failure to achieve it is not a defect. Accordingly, Rescher argues against the revisionist views proposed by Richard Rorty and Robert Nozick. His discussions are devoted to providing a clear view of why philosophical problems arise and how philosophers address them.

States, Scarcity, and Civil Strife in the Developing World

States, Scarcity, and Civil Strife in the Developing World
Author: Colin H. Kahl
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Total Pages: 352
Release: 2018-06-05
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0691188378

Over the past several decades, civil and ethnic wars have undermined prospects for economic and political development, destabilized entire regions of the globe, and left millions dead. States, Scarcity, and Civil Strife in the Developing World argues that demographic and environmental stress--the interactions among rapid population growth, environmental degradation, inequality, and emerging scarcities of vital natural resources--represents one important source of turmoil in today's world. Kahl contends that this type of stress places enormous strains on both societies and governments in poor countries, increasing their vulnerability to armed conflict. He identifies two pathways whereby this process unfolds: state failure and state exploitation. State failure conflicts occur when population growth, environmental degradation, and resource inequality weaken the capacity, legitimacy, and cohesion of governments, thereby expanding the opportunities and incentives for rebellion and intergroup violence. State exploitation conflicts, in contrast, occur when political leaders themselves capitalize on the opportunities arising from population pressures, natural resource scarcities, and related social grievances to instigate violence that serves their parochial interests. Drawing on a wide array of social science theory, this book argues that demographically and environmentally induced conflicts are most likely to occur in countries that are deeply split along ethnic, religious, regional, or class lines, and which have highly exclusive and discriminatory political systems. The empirical portion of the book evaluates the theoretical argument through in-depth case studies of civil strife in the Philippines, Kenya, and numerous other countries. The book concludes with an analysis of the challenges demographic and environmental change will pose to international security in the decades ahead.

Winds of Strife

Winds of Strife
Author: U. G. Gutman
Publisher:
Total Pages: 548
Release: 2020-11-06
Genre:
ISBN:

"They burned me and mine. I'm not done until I burn them and theirs in return." Witch-hunts have plagued the kingdom of Olyanath for decades. Thousands were slain due to the king's paranoia of women who practice Senspiritic magic. No more. Nye and his companions have seen enough of murder and misogyny. Fifteen years have passed since he joined the witch-hunters, and now, at long last, an opportunity to destroy them from the inside reveals itself. An opportunity to overthrow the king and end his reign of cruelty. But fifteen years of pretense have taken a toll. The strive for vengeance has steered Nye toward a path of violence and villainy. His hands are stained by the blood of countless innocents, his heart is scorched by grief, and his sanity hangs by a thread. Even if he can kill the king and see this revolution through, it may not suffice to purge the voices from his head.

Chasing Reality

Chasing Reality
Author: Mario Bunge
Publisher: University of Toronto Press
Total Pages: 361
Release: 2006-01-01
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 0802090753

Dealing with the controversies over the reality of the external world, this work offers a defense of realism, a critique of various forms of contemporary anti-realism, and a sketch of the author's version of realism, namely hylorealism. It examines the main varieties of antirealism and argues that all of these in fact hinder scientific research.

Thinking in Systems

Thinking in Systems
Author: Donella Meadows
Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing
Total Pages: 242
Release: 2008-12-03
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1603581480

The classic book on systems thinking—with more than half a million copies sold worldwide! "This is a fabulous book... This book opened my mind and reshaped the way I think about investing."—Forbes "Thinking in Systems is required reading for anyone hoping to run a successful company, community, or country. Learning how to think in systems is now part of change-agent literacy. And this is the best book of its kind."—Hunter Lovins In the years following her role as the lead author of the international bestseller, Limits to Growth—the first book to show the consequences of unchecked growth on a finite planet—Donella Meadows remained a pioneer of environmental and social analysis until her untimely death in 2001. Thinking in Systems is a concise and crucial book offering insight for problem solving on scales ranging from the personal to the global. Edited by the Sustainability Institute’s Diana Wright, this essential primer brings systems thinking out of the realm of computers and equations and into the tangible world, showing readers how to develop the systems-thinking skills that thought leaders across the globe consider critical for 21st-century life. Some of the biggest problems facing the world—war, hunger, poverty, and environmental degradation—are essentially system failures. They cannot be solved by fixing one piece in isolation from the others, because even seemingly minor details have enormous power to undermine the best efforts of too-narrow thinking. While readers will learn the conceptual tools and methods of systems thinking, the heart of the book is grander than methodology. Donella Meadows was known as much for nurturing positive outcomes as she was for delving into the science behind global dilemmas. She reminds readers to pay attention to what is important, not just what is quantifiable, to stay humble, and to stay a learner. In a world growing ever more complicated, crowded, and interdependent, Thinking in Systems helps readers avoid confusion and helplessness, the first step toward finding proactive and effective solutions.

Methodology of Criminal Law Theory: Art, Politics or Science?

Methodology of Criminal Law Theory: Art, Politics or Science?
Author: Shin Matsuzawa
Publisher: Nomos Verlag
Total Pages: 236
Release: 2021-05-27
Genre: Law
ISBN: 3748904754

In dem Band wird erörtert, ob die Strafrechtstheorie (bzw. die allgemeine Rechtstheorie) als ein Zweig der Wissenschaft angesehen werden kann. Dabei werden folgende Fragen behandelt: In welchem Sinne ist die Strafrechtslehre eine Form der Wissenschaft? Kann es systemische Entwicklungen in der Strafrechtstheorie geben? Die Frage nach dem Wesen der strafrechtlichen Erkenntnis ist eng verknüpft mit der Frage, was Rechtswissenschaft im Allgemeinen ausmacht. Eine Diskussion im Bereich des Strafrechts kann einen Beitrag zur allgemeinen Diskussion in der Rechtstheorie leisten und deutlich machen, wo die Strafrechtstheorie steht, wenn die juristische Forschung mit den Herausforderungen der Interdisziplinarität konfrontiert wird. Mit Beiträgen von Petter Asp, Thomas Elholm, Liang Genlin, Luís Greco, Eric Hilgendorf, Jørn Jacobsen, Heike Jung, Massimiliano Lanzi, Shin Matsuzawa, Kimmo Nuotio und Michael Pawlik.

Knowledge at the Boundaries

Knowledge at the Boundaries
Author: Nicholas Rescher
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 257
Release: 2020-09-25
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 3030484319

The book offers a reflection on the nature, scope, and limits of knowledge that have been at the focus of the author's work over decades. The essays collected in this volume expound and extend these efforts in exploring the outer fringes of understanding: the outer boundaries of conceivability, the limits of cognition, and the ramifications of ineffability and paradox. They join in exploring the lay of the land at the boundaries of knowledge. The first chapters address basic facts regarding the conceptualization of knowledge. This is followed by a study on how to deal with problems relating to the affirmation and considerations of truth. The final chapters scrutinize the limits of demonstration and the inherent impossibility of realizing an ideal systematization of our knowledge of totalities. The book affords novel perspectives regarding the thought of a widely appreciated philosopher. It is an original work aimed for readers interested in the theory of knowledge and philosophy of cognition.