Philosophy Stack Exchange
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Questions tagged [political-philosophy]

Describing questions about the philosophy of politics and society which investigate concerns like liberty, justice and equality.

Describing questions about the philosophy of politics and society which investigate concerns like liberty, justice and equality.

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Does the idea of a welfare state fundamentally conflict with an open immigration policy?

Progressives and liberals in the US (myself included) typically support two ideas: That immigration should be open so that undocumented immigrants should be allowed to stay and provided a so-called "path to citizenship". That at least some form…
Alexander S King
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Legitimacy of modern colonialism in Asia and Africa

European colonialism in Asia and Africa last well into the modern age. Most Asian countries only became independent after WW II, and Most African nations became independent only in the 1950's and 1960's. That is way after the enlightenment, after…
user69715
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What's the difference between patriotism and nationalism?

What would be an example of an act that involves patriotism but not nationalism? According to Wikipedia, the definition of patriotism is: Patriotism is an emotional attachment to a nation which an individual recognizes as their homeland. This…
Jaime Caffarel
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Political Philosophy - who to vote for

Apologies if this is a bad forum for this question. Given the historic links between politics and philosophy, I thought it might be a worthwhile question. Otherwise, downvote away :) There are elections coming up and due to changes in the political…
Bob Tway
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Definition of Ownership

I am not student of philosophy so please forgive my sloppy question. I was having a discussion with someone about the definition of ownership. I was arguing that you do not really own property in the presence of property taxes, or while you are…
DKNguyen
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What underlying principles determine US parties' stands on issues?

IMO the stand US Republican and Democrats take on various social issues is completely illogical from the viewpoint of political philosophy. I cannot decipher the true underlying philosophy behind the choices so-called "left" and "right" make. For…
Michael
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Citizenship from birth vs contract with the state

In most systems of government one has various "duties and discretions" in relation to the state he was born to even though he did not signed any agreement with the state - nor was he asked whether he agrees or not. On the other hand there are…
daniel.sedlacek
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Montesquieu's political freedom : positive vs negative freedom?

“(Political) Freedom is the right to do whatever the laws permit.” This is a famous sentence of Montesquieu. Today we tend to describe philosophies of freedom with “positive freedom” and “negative freedom”, I think Montesquieu by this sentence fits…
benlogos
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Moral Universalism in US Constitution

I have always been fascinated by the Bill of Rights, but as a self diagnosed cultural relativist, I object to the Constitution's emphasis on Natural law/rights over rights derived from the state. For example, the right to life implies the right to…
Jay
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What are the benefits of protecting the weak from the stronger?

What are the benefits of using politics to protect the weak from the stronger? Rather than allowing for, say, slavery? By stronger I mean stronger by nature, i.e. particularly physical power and health, but also intelligence / ability and social /…
mavavilj
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How to explain that democracy isn't totality?

I was discussing with my friend about Star Wars. He told me that the emperor just wanted to create new political system and democracy, that was there, was totality, because it was only existing political system. I think he's wrong, but i couldn't…
kravemir
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Whose ideas are most influential for European Convention on Human Rights?

The European Convention on Human Rights is based on the idea of civil liberties, 18 articles in total. What philosophy is the foundation for these liberties? Specifically the right to privacy/private life?
Himmators
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How do Marxists account for depreciating value of commodities

If Marxists claim that useful labor is the source of a commodities value then would a commodity that has an expiration date, strawberries for example have as much value when they turn rotten as when they are fresh?
Brad
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How can we stop power abuse without anarchy?

One of my arguments for anarchy is that power abuse can only be eliminated by eliminating power "on paper" itself. But maybe I am wrong and there exist other ways to prevent power abuse without getting rid of power "on paper". If it's the case then…
rus9384
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Is fake news the same as propaganda?

Fake news is a term that has become current in the last few years. An older term that appears to have some family resemblence to this is propaganda. Are they in fact the same - if not, what are the essential differences?
Mozibur Ullah
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