农民流动、城市化、劳工权益与西部开发——当代中国的市场经济与公民权问题

“下苦人”的悲歌———从摄影集《麦客》谈起这些年来各种渲染“民俗文化”的产品可谓铺天盖地了。为了经济 (旅游业 )利益、政治动机 (反对“全盘西化”)以及精英阶层高雅的审美需求 ,“开发民俗文化资源”在一些地方已经成了口号。从纯粹商业化的各种“民俗村”、“民俗文化风情旅游”和“民俗文化节” ,到具有浓厚政治色彩的曲阜祭孔大典和黄陵祭祖仪式 ,从文人雅客的民俗采风 ,到文化人类学家的民俗研究 ,各种现存的、已死亡的乃至纯粹是今人“创作”(如“大红灯笼高高挂”)出来的“民俗”让人眼花缭乱。所以当友人推荐一本“民俗摄影…     

The government, the market, and the problem of catastrophic loss

This article addresses the comparative advantage of the government to the private property/casualty insurance industry for the provision of insurance coverage for catastrophic losses. That the government can play an important role as an insurer of societal losses has been a central public policy principle since at least the New Deal. In addition, our government typically automatically provides forms of specific relief following unusually severe or unexpected disasters, which itself can be viewed as a form of ex post insurance. This article argues that, for systemic reasons, the government is much less effective than the private property/casualty insurance market in providing coverage of losses generally, but especially of losses in contexts of catastrophes.     

Music,rowing, and the aesthetics of rhythm

Having “good rhythm” is essential in both music and competitive rowing, but what exactly constitutes “good rhythm,” and how do we achieve it? Although rhythm is often discussed in purely auditory terms, I argue that rhythm is fundamentally a multisensory, kinesthetic phenomenon. By drawing parallels between music and rowing, I illustrate how biological motion principles underlie the parameters of rhythm in both disciplines, and how the cognition and appreciation of rhythm is deeply embodied. I suggest that the two main ways in which rhythms generate pleasure in both music and rowing are by enabling behavioral synchrony between individuals, and by engaging the body in the cognitive process of rhythm perception and prediction. In essence, “good rhythm”—a rhythm that is enjoyed and appreciated—is rhythm that moves.     

进化主义原理、价值及世界秩序观——梁启超精神世界的基本观念

一般把严复看成是中国“社会达尔文主义”的主要代表人物，但是，如果我们真正进入到梁启超的思想世界中，我们有更多的理由把梁启超看成是西方“社会达尔文主义”在中国的最合适代理人。梁启超通过把进化主义设定为普遍的公理和普遍的价值，建构起了他的合群民族主义和强权主义世界秩序观，建构起了他的社会政治变革观和社会历史进步观。梁启超的思想以多变著称，但他对进化主义原理和价值的信奉，前后基本上保持了连续性。处在民族和国家危机中的梁启超，不仅用进化主义来解释中国的困境，而且也用进化主义来促进中国的富强。他把进化主义与强权主义结合在一起，目的是急于使中国用物质力量迅速武装起来，同帝国主义展开生死竞争，但这同时也把帝国主义的掠夺正当化，他本身从而也失去了“人道”和“公理”的立场。进化主义使梁启超焦虑，但它也使梁启超具有了期望未来伟大进步的乐观主义态度。这样，中国一时的危机，似乎又成了加强梁启超未来快乐的催化剂。以上的这些看法，是本文对以往关注不够的梁启超的进化主义从四个方面进行了全面考察之后所得出的。由此我们揭示和展现了梁启超精神世界的复杂性。     

Civilization,Culture, Technology,and the Market

The largest, the cruelest empire in the history of mankind is rapidly disintegrating. But we must not be deluded. The ruins of great empires do not yet mean the emergence of a new, happier, and wiser society. The empire has not yet disintegrated entirely. But even when it does, this will not mean that the people inhabiting one-sixth of the earth's surface will live better, that life will become happy, and that our countrymen will be freer, richer, healthier, better educated, and more humane. Even the cessation of the activity of the CPSU does not mean that the destructive force of lawlessness, militarism, the suppression of human dignity, stagnation, conservatism, the terrible discomfort of everyday life, unprecedented exploitation, general incompetence, parasitism, and technological backwardness is a museum relic forever consigned to the past.     

Distance,Turnout, and the Convenience of Voting*

Objectives. This research examines how distance factors into the costs associated with political participation. We hypothesize that the political geography of a voter's residence affects not only the likelihood that he or she will vote, but whether the voter will choose between traditional Election Day voting or nontraditional means, such as casting an absentee ballot by mail, or going to an early‐voting site. Methods. Using a geographic information system (GIS), we calculate Manhattan‐block distances between voter residences and their respective precinct and nearest early‐voting sites in Clark County, NV for the 2002 mid‐term election. We then use these calculated distances to predict, with multinomial logistic regression, the likelihood of nonvoting, precinct voting, and nontraditional voting. Results. Our evidence suggests that the cost of traveling to reach a traditional voting site is associated with nonvoting to a point, but the relationship between distance and participation is nonlinear. Distance to traditional voting sites is also highly associated with choosing to vote by mail. Would‐be nonvoters are more inclined to use proximate election‐day sites than proximate early‐voting sites, probably because they decide to vote so late in the campaign. Conclusions. Our findings have important implications for democratic theory, ongoing efforts to reform the electoral process, and the practice of voter mobilization.