The description for this book, Men and Nations, will be forthcoming.

This book is based on the premise that the realm of being is meaningful to the extent that we are able to view it comprehensively. Our understanding, in its degree, depends on the breadth of our knowledge; for everything, as we shall see, tends to shed light on everything else. But the knowledge we have today, although far exceeding that of our predecessors, does not serve this purpose of illumination insofar as it remains unassembled, partitioned among the minds of the (...) specialists who respectively represent the fields into which it is divided. ... In one of its aspects, this book is an exercise in perspective. As such, it will have much to say of the very small and the very large, of analysis and synthesis.--Preface. (shrink)

The advent of COVID-19 has been the occasion for a renewed interest in the principles governing triage when the number of critically ill patients exceeds the healthcare infrastructure’s capacity in a given location. Some scholars advocate that it would be morally acceptable in a crisis to withdraw resources like life support and ICU beds from one patient in favor of another, if, in the judgment of medical personnel, the other patient has a significantly better prognosis. The paper examines the arguments (...) for and against this approach from the point of view of natural law theory, especially using the principle of double effect. We conclude that it is inadmissible to withdraw life-saving medical interventions from patients who are still benefiting from them, on the sole grounds that other patients might benefit more. Those who are currently using such technology should only interrupt their treatment if, in the judgment of medical personnel and, if possible, taking into account the wishes and needs of the patient and his family, the treatment is deemed futile, burdensome, or disproportionate. (shrink)

Background The prioritization protocols for accessing adult critical care in the extreme pandemic context contain tiebreaker criteria to facilitate decision-making in the allocation of resources between patients with a similar survival prognosis. Besides being controversial, little is known about the public acceptability of these tiebreakers. In order to better understand the public opinion, Quebec and Ontario’s protocols were presented to the public in a democratic deliberation during the summer of 2022. Objectives (1) To explore the perspectives of Quebec and Ontario (...) citizens regarding tiebreakers, identifying the most acceptable ones and their underlying values. (2) To analyze these results considering other public consultations held during the pandemic on these criteria. Methods This was an exploratory qualitative study. The design involved an online democratic deliberation that took place over two days, simultaneously in Quebec and Ontario. Public participants were selected from a community sample which excluded healthcare workers. Participants were first presented the essential components of prioritization protocols and their related issues (training session day 1). They subsequently deliberated on the acceptability of these criteria (deliberation session day 2). The deliberation was then subject to thematic analysis. Results A total of 47 participants from the provinces of Quebec (n = 20) and Ontario (n = 27) took part in the online deliberation. A diverse audience participated excluding members of the healthcare workforce. Four themes were identified: (1) Priority to young patients - the life cycle - a preferred tiebreaker; (2) Randomization - a tiebreaker of last resort; (3) Multiplier effect of most exposed healthcare workers - a median acceptability tiebreaker, and (4) Social value – a less acceptable tiebreaker. Conclusion Life cycle was the preferred tiebreaker as this criterion respects intergenerational equity, which was considered relevant when allocating scarce resources to adult patients in a context of extreme pandemic. Priority to young patients is in line with other consultations conducted around the world. Additional studies are needed to further investigate the public acceptability of tiebreaker criteria. (shrink)

The Abidjan School is a school of thought that developed in the 1980s and 1990s in the Côte d'Ivoire inspired by the work of Louis-Joseph Lebret and Amartya Sen. It follows the empirical approach i...

Freedom and the Rule of Law takes a critical look at the historical beginnings of law in the United States, and how that history has influenced current trends regarding law and freedom. Anthony Peacock has compiled articles that examine the relationship between freedom and the rule of law in America. The rule of law is fundamental to all liberal constitutional regimes whose political orders recognize the equal natural rights of all.

The excellent quality and depth of the various essays make [the book] an invaluable resource....It is likely to become essential reading in its field.—CHOICE.

Malebranche ne dissocie jamais la théorie et la pratique. Son Traité de morale est une œuvre métaphysique. Ceci a sa raison dans les rapports entre la foi et la raison qui sont complémentaires. Le rapport de l'âme et de l'amour, conformément à une tradition platonicienne, est un lieu où l'on peut vérifier cette connexion. L'analyse de l'âme met en évidence la modernité de Malebranche dans sa conception de la conscience ou sentiment intérieur, où se révèle l'irréductibilité du sensible. L' (...) class='Hi'>amour est au sommet de l'âme, en ce qu'il coïncide avec la volonté du bonheur. En ce sens la théorie païenne est juste: une volonté aveugle et un amour d'instinct s'équivalent. Mais la liberté est le don du Dieu chrétien à l'homme. Avec la liberté seulement, un amour-propre déréglé est possible et pécheur. Inversement, le véritable amour, celui où l'âme se reconnaît elle-même, c'est la charité, qui est une sainte concupiscence; celle-ci est capable de nous inspirer le désir du vrai. L'amour de la vérité qui illumine l'âme est le sentiment qui reconnaît Dieu comme la souveraine Raison. (shrink)

Nietzsche rompt son contrat d’enseignant à l’Université de Bâle en 1870, il abandonne sa toute récente nationalité helvétique, et apatride rejoint comme infirmier le conflit qui vient de s’ouvrir avec la France. Très vite blessé, il débute sur son lit d’hôpital la naissance de la tragédie. Née dans la guerre cette généalogie de la tragédie en porte t-elle les stigmates? Ou encore, comment la guerre peut-elle produire un tel livre? Alors qu’il pose les bases de sa théorie deux autres socles (...) le portent, sa relation à la famille Wagner et les enjeux esthétiques qui y sont discutés et un projet de communauté artistique, éthique et scientifique envisagé avec Rohde. La Naissance de la tragédie qui devait révolutionner la pensée occidentale porte en elle ces tiraillements entre la guerre, l’amour et l’amitié. (shrink)