This thesis is concerned with two central questions. The first is theoretical and asks, "Can a direct appeal be made to the foundational principles of liberalism to support collective rights?" The second question is practical and asks: "Would such a defense serve the interests of contemporary Canadian Aboriginal claims to special constitutionally recognized collective rights known as the Aboriginal Right?" I utilize Will Kymlicka's defense of minority rights as the theoretical framework in assessing this first question and in assessing the latter, I refer to various reported Aboriginal conceptions of the so-called Aboriginal Right which have been formalized by Aboriginal people themselves through constitutional addresses, Royal Commission hearings, discussion papers and legal claims. Part I of the thesis involves an enquiry into the nature of the revisions that Kymlicka proposes to make to liberal theory, and asks whether, in making such changes, he is able to retain identification with the so-called "modern" liberals, with whom Kymlicka identifies himself, and consistently defend the kind of group minority rights of the sort actually being claimed in Canadian society today. I conclude that Kymlicka argument fails in two respects: it fails to do the work required of it by modern liberals and it ultimately fails to do the work required by the standards of Kymlicka own theory. In Part II, I argue that even if it were theoretically possible to protect the good of culture in the way that Kymlicka hopes, such a defense of collective rights fails in the most important respect: that is, it cannot do the work required of it by the Aboriginal people for whom it was designed.

The liberal tradition has borne great fruits since the dawn of the modern era by emphasizing the value of equality and personal liberty, and by developing a theory of rights. Despite its incredible success, many authors have been pointing to fissures in the liberal structure, including practical and theoretical problems with state neutrality, with the state’s stance vis-à-vis different cultures, and with liberalism’s purported radical individualism. It is my belief that the gains of liberalism can be reconciled within a new theory that better answers to such critiques. Citizenship Beyond Liberal Neutrality begins with an analysis of contemporary debate between liberalism and its critics. This leads to a discussion of the state’s relationship toward cultural identities, and to a discussion of the meaning of citizenship within a liberal-democratic state. What we need, I argue, is a civic identity that is both capable of judging cultural practices, and capacious enough for a citizenry characterized by reasonable pluralism. This common identity, moreover, provides a locus for attachment that is often found wanting in contemporary liberal theory. I draw on relevant insights from virtue theories, constitutional patriotism, and an ‘analogical’ understanding of public reason to inform a new, liberal-like conception of citizenship. In order to exemplify this conception, and to bolster the case for it, I consider how such a philosophy could play out with respect to two public policy areas that are central to citizenship, namely education and immigration. Distilled to its simplest, I argue for a theory of citizenship that admits a conception of the good, that can promote virtue while respecting autonomy, and that can provide a basis for civic unity.

In 1980, Ronald Reagan became the fortieth president of the United States following an election that was said to have presaged a political turn to the right in that country. This thesis identifies three broad historical themes that characterised the period in the immediate aftermath of the 1980 election. Firstly, there was the notion that the voting public was becoming more conservative in its choices in federal politics. This is tested by looking at voter behaviour in the 1982 midterm elections. Secondly, the idea that the liberal-conservative dialectic was becoming less important in United States politics is examined using as a framework the actions and statements of prominent liberals. Thirdly, the thesis examines the accuracy of prognoses that were being made about liberalism as a viable political entity in the wake of the 1980 elections. These themes are examined via a series of parallel, occasionally overlapping narratives, following the main strands of liberal activity and thought in one state California in the early 1980s. Many of the sources used were derived from commentary that was being made as events unfolded. The debate about the meaning of the 1980 election therefore changes and this change is part of the story told here. Answering some questions also involved using source material that was more reflective. Hence, parts of the thesis are historiographical. Despite its political content, this thesis is a work of history. It examines the drama of men and women acting within their time, bound by the world around them, but also trying to change that world.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Duke University, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references.

The objective of this paper is to ascertain the principles of the economic thinking of José Yves Limantour, and the changes they underwent, to explain the process of transformation of econo- mic liberalism which, as will be seen, tended more toward state intervention; this, incidentally, can be considered as the basis of economic nationalism as developed by the post-revolutionary governments. It follows, then, that the study of Limantour and his economic thinking seeks to explain the transformation process to which the Mexican liberal state was subjected in thelast decade of the 19th century and the first decade of the 20th. The study is divided into two sections, the first of which explores the general characteristics of the liberal state and its transfor- mations from the 1850s through to the 1900s. The second analyses the spheres of the Mexican economy that constituted the main focuses of Limantour’s interventions and regulation. / El objetivo del presente ensayo es conocer los principios del pensamiento económico de José Yves Limantour así como sus modificaciones para dar cuenta del proceso de transformación del liberalismo económico que como se verá, tendió más hacia el intervencionismo estatal, el cual dicho sea de paso puede ser considerado como la base del nacionalismo económico desplegado por los gobiernos posrevolucionarios. De ahí pues que el estudio de Limantour y su pensamiento económico pretenda dar cuenta del proceso de transformación del Estado liberal mexicano en la última década del siglo XIX y primera del XX. El trabajo se encuentra dividido en dos apartados, en el primero se estudiarán las características generales del Estado liberal y sus transformaciones desde los años cincuenta del siglo XIX hasta la primera década del siglo XX. En el segundo se analizarán los principales ámbitos de la economía mexicana donde Limantour incurrió en una mayor regulación e intervención.

The liberal tradition has borne great fruits since the dawn of the modern era by emphasizing the value of equality and personal liberty, and by developing a theory of rights. Despite its incredible success, many authors have been pointing to fissures in the liberal structure, including practical and theoretical problems with state neutrality, with the state’s stance vis-à-vis different cultures, and with liberalism’s purported radical individualism. It is my belief that the gains of liberalism can be reconciled within a new theory that better answers to such critiques. Citizenship Beyond Liberal Neutrality begins with an analysis of contemporary debate between liberalism and its critics. This leads to a discussion of the state’s relationship toward cultural identities, and to a discussion of the meaning of citizenship within a liberal-democratic state. What we need, I argue, is a civic identity that is both capable of judging cultural practices, and capacious enough for a citizenry characterized by reasonable pluralism. This common identity, moreover, provides a locus for attachment that is often found wanting in contemporary liberal theory. I draw on relevant insights from virtue theories, constitutional patriotism, and an ‘analogical’ understanding of public reason to inform a new, liberal-like conception of citizenship. In order to exemplify this conception, and to bolster the case for it, I consider how such a philosophy could play out with respect to two public policy areas that are central to citizenship, namely education and immigration. Distilled to its simplest, I argue for a theory of citizenship that admits a conception of the good, that can promote virtue while respecting autonomy, and that can provide a basis for civic unity.

This thesis is concerned with two central questions. The first is theoretical and asks, "Can a direct appeal be made to the foundational principles of liberalism to support collective rights?" The second question is practical and asks: "Would such a defense serve the interests of contemporary Canadian Aboriginal claims to special constitutionally recognized collective rights known as the Aboriginal Right?" I utilize Will Kymlicka's defense of minority rights as the theoretical framework in assessing this first question and in assessing the latter, I refer to various reported Aboriginal conceptions of the so-called Aboriginal Right which have been formalized by Aboriginal people themselves through constitutional addresses, Royal Commission hearings, discussion papers and legal claims. Part I of the thesis involves an enquiry into the nature of the revisions that Kymlicka proposes to make to liberal theory, and asks whether, in making such changes, he is able to retain identification with the so-called "modern" liberals, with whom Kymlicka identifies himself, and consistently defend the kind of group minority rights of the sort actually being claimed in Canadian society today. I conclude that Kymlicka argument fails in two respects: it fails to do the work required of it by modern liberals and it ultimately fails to do the work required by the standards of Kymlicka own theory. In Part II, I argue that even if it were theoretically possible to protect the good of culture in the way that Kymlicka hopes, such a defense of collective rights fails in the most important respect: that is, it cannot do the work required of it by the Aboriginal people for whom it was designed. / Arts, Faculty of / Philosophy, Department of / Graduate

Leftist governments are not very popular in media. However, South America seems to have ignored the critics and has elected several left wing governments in the recent years. This is also the case of Ecuador, a relatively small country, which has gone through interesting political and economic reforms since 2007. This thesis will try to evaluate the economic performance of Ecuador after this change happened, within the context of the general regime change to leftist or anti-neoliberal policies in the rest of the South American continent. The performance will be first compared between the countries according to their government's ideology through an econometric analysis of a group of economic, socio-economic and perceptual variables. After that, a more detailed analysis will be performed on Ecuador's indicators. Interestingly, results show an overall improvement of economic and socio-economic conditions in the countries under the leftist rule, which relies on a strong civic support, compared to the countries still following the neoliberal policies. The case study of Ecuador pretends to provide an example. of a successful performance since the country turned left in 2007.While this area is rarely analyzed, this thesis contributes some knowledge to the field about effectiveness of the current political economy in Latin America Moreover, it contributes to undermine critics often widespread in the media in cooperation with certain states and organizations for keeping the current unequal distribution of power and wealth intact.

Since Russia's war in Ukraine started, EU decided to start working with European Union Advisory Mission (EUAM) and Security sector reform (SSR) in order to build Ukraine into a safe, democratic country. Former studies have shown that EUs presence in Ukraine has turned Russia into an even more aggressive neighbor, which is why the object of this essay is to examine what EUAM has worked with and what the result of this work is. The study has been done through a single case study research with liberalism and security sector reform as theories. The result shows that EUAM have tried to implement a western european way of work, and have focused on reforms of institutions, courses and human rights. The result of EUAMs work is ambiguous; EUAM is happy with the work, but both the work with police reform, border guard and Security service have received criticism and has not fulfilled its full potential.

Previous research, which addresses the view of the revocation of citizenship for terrorist-related persons, is seemingly critical. It illustrates a lot of problems that an initiation of this action can cause, but despite this, a social debate is underway in Sweden about introducing this particular opportunity. What is really advocated in the Swedish social debate regarding this? The purpose of the study is, by using an argumentative analysis, to see which recurring themes and arguments are expressed in the Swedish social debate. These are then linked to socialistic, liberalistic and conservative views of citizenship in terms of a discussion. The results of the study shows that a number of themes and arguments are visible in the social debate, where it is argued about everything from IS-supporters being citizens regardless of action, to not having the right to take part in the society at all. The majority of the debaters are in favor of some types of action. The conclusion points to the fact that a conservative approach in the examined social debate is dominant, based on that the arguments mostly advocates some kind of action and responsibility. Given that radicalization is a result of exclusion, the conclusion also sheds lights on that lowering the evidence requirements would probably be the most optimal solution for Sweden when it comes to dealing with returning IS-supporters. / Tidigare forskning, som behandlar synen på återkallande av medborgarskap för personer med anknytning till terrorism, är till synes kritiskt inställd. Forskningen visar en hel del problematik ett införande av detta kan medföra, trots det pågår en samhällsdebatt i Sverige om att möjliggöra det. Syftet med studien är att med hjälp av en argumentationsanalys se vilka återkommande teman och argument som uttrycks i den svenska samhällsdebatten om återvändande IS-anhängare och ett återkallande av deras svenska medborgarskap. Detta återknyts sedan till socialistisk-, liberalistisk- och konservativ medborgarskapssyn i form av diskussion. Resultatet av studien visar att ett antal teman och argument synliggörs i samhällsdebatten, där det argumenteras om allt från att IS-anhängare är medborgare oavsett handling, till att de inte har rätt att ta del av det svenska samhället alls på grund av IS handlingar. Den övervägande delen debattörer är förnågon typ av åtgärd. Slutsatsen pekar mot att ett konservativt synsätt i den undersökta samhällsdebatten är dominerande, baserat på att de argument som framförs mestadels argumenterar för någon form av agerande och ansvarsutkrävande. Utifrån att radikalisering är ett resultat av exkludering är slutsatsen att en sänkning av beviskraven förmodligen skulle vara den mest optimala lösningen för Sverige när det gäller hanteringen av återvändande IS-anhängare istället för att återkalla deras svenska medborgarskap.