Devolution in a ‘Stateless Nation’: Nation‐building and Social Policy in Scotland

The implications of the 2011 Scottish election and the proposed referendum on Scottish independence for the future of social policy across the devolved UK are profound but far from certain. It is crucial to understand not only the historical nature of this conjuncture but to develop an adequate conceptual understanding of the place of social policy in the dialectic between state and nation in Scotland. To this end, we critically examine theories that depict Scotland as an essentially ‘stateless nation’ in the light of recent developments. In so doing, we examine the implications for social policy of the changing character of statehood in Scotland, the nature of civil nationalism, and the problem of legitimacy in Scotland for the UK as a multinational state. As the architecture of statehood is re‐negotiated, strong centrifugal pressures are being created for a more distinct divergence of social policy in Scotland from the rest of the UK regardless of the outcome of the independence referendum. Policy‐making is ensnared in a series of tensions, not just between Westminster and Holyrood but also, more broadly, tensions between competing principles of social justice and territorial justice, and competing demands between welfare nationalism and competitive nationalism.     

Decency and the Liberal International (Dis)Order: Moral Limits and the Possibilities of a Global Pluralist Politics

This article analyzes the tension between the liberal ideals of freedom and equality and cultural difference. It argues that decency has become intertwined with the fragility of the liberal international order by providing a problematic threshold of international justice. The idea is that as global pressures mount for protecting the human dignity of persons/peoples, they also congeal or harden decency’s political and social constraints (impartiality, neutrality, and basic rights enforcement) on engaging others. Decency as a moral threshold of international justice, the article claims, has become static or a self-reinforcing limitation. This contradictory decency/dignity dynamic of the liberal international order not only explains how states have aggressively asserted their interests by absorbing these constraints, but also how politics can limit the pragmatic potential to bridge the various social gaps in values and belief systems. This article seeks to conceptualize a pluralist ethos that shows how such constraints can be reimagined as, or turned into, the conditions of possibility/freedom that transition us to a global pluralist politics. It concludes with a discussion of the refugee crisis and Islamism, showing how both cases resonate the felt stigmatization and alienation within the liberal international order.     

从楚山禅师坐化看佛教死亡超越理论的当代价值

楚山绍琦禅师是明代四川著名高僧,临济宗传人。他的教化与行持紧扣禅宗"直指心性"的宗旨,以"识心为本"的心性禅著称。他坐化圆寂,肉身不坏流存后世。其所言所行以及离世方式展示了佛教的死亡超越理论,对佛教自身社会形象的定位和提升有深刻启示,并对当代临终关怀、安乐死等诸多生命伦理难题的应对具有启发价值。     

如何科学地看待国学

对国学应该有一个科学态度,既不能盲目地视之为无瑕美玉,全盘照搬到现代生活中;也不能盲目地视之为全是糟粕,一概拒斥。与建立对国学的科学态度相关,还需要建立对西学的科学态度。只有建立起这两个方面的科学态度,才有益于建设中国特色社会主义的新文化。     

西部开发与民族文物干部的培养

在西部开发过程中 ,要保护民族文物 ,离不开民族文物干部。举办民族文物培训班 ,是培养民族文物干部的捷径。     

略论党的三代领导集体西部开发战略思想及其实践

新中国成立 5 0年来 ,党的三代领导集体为推动西部地区经济发展进行了艰辛的探索和大胆的实践。 5 0年代初到 70年代末 ,在“均衡发展”战略指导下 ,对西部地区进行过几次较大规模的开发建设 ;80年代初到 90年代中期 ,在共同富裕与“两个大局”思想指导下 ,在西部地区兴建了一批基础设施 ;90年代中期以来 ,实施对口支援 ,使西部经济获得较快发展 ,特别是跨入新世纪之际 ,以江泽民为核心的第三代中央领导集体又作出了西部大开发的战略决策 ,这必将对西部经济发展产生深远影响。     

川西藏区藏族中小学校长心理控制源的调查分析

川西藏区地处四川省西部,其特殊的历史地理环境使得这一区域成为藏、汉、羌、彝等民族的聚居地,成为多元文化相互影响、相互碰撞的交汇之地。生活在这里的个体,特别是承担着振兴民族教育事业的各位藏族中小学校长们,在面对相对艰苦的自然环境、相对贫乏的教育资源、特别是面对多种文化交互影响的过程中,在个体心理控制源上表现出怎样的特征呢?作者采用罗特(Rotter.J.B)编制的《内在—外在心理控制源量表》对126名来自四川省甘孜、阿坝和凉山地区的藏族中小学校长进行了测试。结果表明:1、该地区藏族中小学校长的心理控制源在总体上倾向于内控性;2、其内控性在性别、年龄、学校所在地这三个因素上差异不显著;3、被测试的藏族中小学校长们普遍具有较强的社会适应能力。     

他山之石--西方学界对中国回族伊斯兰教的研究述评

本文在阅读原著的基础上,回顾了自19世纪下半期以来西方学者尤其是英美学者对中国回族伊斯兰教进行研究的标志性作品,并试图对其内容、方法和观点进行扼要的评述,以观照当前国内正在兴起的回族学研究.     

试论西部地区发展特色经济的市场条件

特色经济应该是具有发展活力和市场竞争力、有市场供给和需求条件的经济,应该是有效率的经济,是一种扬优成势的经济。特色经济是相比较而言,不存在绝对意义上的特色经济。发展特色经济取决于资源禀赋。由于资源要素结构及配置过程的差异性,不同区域的经济结构总是存在差异,区域差异是一种自然状态。区域差异是发展特色经济的基础。发展西部地区特色经济要确立市场观念、竞争观念、效率观念。     

论西部大开发中的民族法制建设

本文分析了西部大开发中民族法制建设的必要性、原则 ,提出了加强民族法制建设的几个方面。作者认为 ,必须重视和加强西部大开发中的民族法制建设 ,特别要加强少数民族政治权利、少数民族文化、少数民族风俗习惯、少数民族宗教 ,以及民族地区生态、民族地区市场经济方面的法制建设。惟其如此 ,才能顺利实施西部大开发的战略 ,才能真正实现民族平等、团结和共同繁荣 ,才能帮助少数民族走上现代化的发展道路。