David Ingram | Loyola University Chicago (original) (raw)
Papers by David Ingram
The Ethics of Development: An Introduction systematically and comprehensively examines the ethica... more The Ethics of Development: An Introduction systematically and comprehensively examines the ethical issues surrounding the concept of development. The book addresses important questions such as: What does development mean? Is there a human right to development? If we aim for sustainable development in an age of global climate change, should developed nations sacrifice economic growth for the sake of allowing developing countries to catch up? Should eradication of poverty or diminution of radical inequality be the principal focus of developmental policy? What are the macroeconomic theories of development? And how have they informed development policy? How does development work in practice? Featuring case studies throughout, this textbook provides a philosophical introduction to an incredibly topical issue studied by students within the fields of applied ethics, global justice, economics, politics, sociology, and public policy.https://ecommons.luc.edu/facultybooks/1160/thumbnail.jp
I focus on the recent attempt by Habermas to provide a formal criterion for testing the legitimac... more I focus on the recent attempt by Habermas to provide a formal criterion for testing the legitimacy of group rights. Habermas argues that group-rights are legitimate only when they protect groups from discrimination by other groups. Group rights that aim to preserve groups against their own members, by contrast, are illegitimate. In my opinion, this way of drawing the distinction overlooks the link between anti-discrimination and preservation. Furthermore, I argue that preservation of a group identity can be legitimate so long as the group in question allows freedom of exit from the group.
The Modern Schoolman, 1992
Social Theory and Practice, 2006
The Philosophical Forum, 2000
Critics of race-conscious redistricting 1 frequently charge that it reinforces old racial stereot... more Critics of race-conscious redistricting 1 frequently charge that it reinforces old racial stereotypes and, most important for our purposes, encourages a divisive politics in which one group tries to impose its identity and interests on other groups. 2 As Justice Sandra Day O'Connor puts it, "a racial gerrymander may exacerbate the very patterns of bloc voting that majority-minority districting is sometimes said to counteract," thereby leading representatives to believe that their primary obligation is to represent only members of the racial group that elected them "rather than their constituency as a whole." 3 Racial divisiveness is not the only evil O'Connor finds in racial redistricting. Grouping minorities together according to racial categories, whether for purposes of affirmative action or for racial redistricting, encourages "us" to view "them" less as individuals with unique identities and interests than as faceless caricatures based on racist stereotypes.
American Journal of Sociology, 1997
ment, and some autocratic hierachies have lasted for centuries without mutual contractual agreeme... more ment, and some autocratic hierachies have lasted for centuries without mutual contractual agreements between rulers and ruled. Lichbach argues that many of the solutions to the collective action problem are not logically consistent, since they jettison the collective action research program’s core assumption of rational choice microfoundations (of course, this is not a core assumption for all who study collective action; Lichbach clearly situates himself in the Olsonian tradition). Lichbach argues that the collective action research program should not entirely abandon assumptions of rationality and self-interest (as many community solutions have), but they should not always retain the most narrow version of these assumptions either. His quite reasonable proposal is that rational choice microfoundations be used as an initial baseline and that they should be broadened only when rational action alone cannot account for collective action. This is an increasingly common position among rational choice theorists, but its lineage can be traced to a sociologist, Max Weber. Lichbach’s book illustrates the inevitable broadening of rational choice models as they have moved from economics into political science and sociology, at both the micro and macro levels of analysis. It should be a valuable resource for anyone interested in surveying the range of solutions to the problem of collective action.
Philosophy and Politics - Critical Explorations, 2022
This chapter shows that cosmopolitanism, international development and human rights can be articu... more This chapter shows that cosmopolitanism, international development and human rights can be articulated in ways that are more or less supportive of one another and of the expansion of global capitalism. The first section begins by exploring the role of international trade and global capitalism within canonical formulations of cosmopolitanism (Kant, Marx, Habermas). Next, we offer an historical reconstruction of the post-War development project from modernization to neoliberalism, as well as prominent critiques of it, in the form of dependency theory and the New International Economic Order. In the third section we turn to human rights, which we show can be mobilized in ways that are both supportive and critical of global capitalism. The chapter discusses successful appeals to human rights to challenge intellectual property rights, recommendations for infusing human rights provisions in the charters of transnational corporations under the banner of corporate social responsibility, and the impacts on human rights of capitalism’s destabilization of the planet’s ecology. The chapter concludes by considering alternatives to the dominant paradigm of cosmopolitanism, including “bottom up” cosmopolitanism and alternative approaches to development from the Global South such as Buen-Vivir.
In this paper I argue that the discourse theoretic account of human rights defended by Jürgen Hab... more In this paper I argue that the discourse theoretic account of human rights defended by Jürgen Habermas contains a fruitful tension that is obscured by its dominant tendency to identify rights with legal claims. This weakness in Habermas’s account becomes manifest when we examine how sweatshops diminish the secure enjoyment of subsistence, which Habermas himself (in recognition of the UDHR) recognizes as a human right. Discourse theories of human rights are unique in tying the legitimacy of human rights to democratic deliberation and consensus. So construed, their specific meaning and force is the outcome of historical political struggle. However, unlike other legal rights, they possess universal moral validity. In this paper I argue that this tension between the legal and moral aspects of human rights can be resolved if and only if human rights are conceived as moral aspirations and not simply as legal claims. In particular, I shall argue that there are two reasons why human rights ...
Ethics & Global Politics, 2019
Critical Theory to Structuralism
Developments in Anglo-American philosophy during the first half of the 20 th Century closely trac... more Developments in Anglo-American philosophy during the first half of the 20 th Century closely tracked developments that were occurring in continental philosophy during this period. This should not surprise us. Aside from the fertile communication between these ostensibly separate traditions, both were responding to problems associated with the rise of mass society. Rabid nationalism, corporate statism, and totalitarianism (Left and Right) posed a profound challenge to the idealistic rationalism of neo-Kantian and neo-Hegelian philosophies. The decline of the individual-classically conceived by the 18th-century Enlightenment as a self-determining agent-provoked strong reactions. While some philosophical tendencies sought to re-conceive the relationship between individual, society, and nature in more organic ways that radically departed from the subjectivism associated with classical Cartesianism, other tendencies sought to do just the opposite. This is one way of putting the difference between the two major movements within Anglo-American philosophy that I will be discussing in this essay. American pragmatism, which achieved the pinnacle of its popularity prior to 1940, traces its lineage back to empiricism as well as German Idealism. With the exception of William James, who is best known for his defense of radical empiricism, the other two important 20 th century pragmatists, John Dewey (1859-1952) and George
The Ethics of Development: An Introduction systematically and comprehensively examines the ethica... more The Ethics of Development: An Introduction systematically and comprehensively examines the ethical issues surrounding the concept of development. The book addresses important questions such as: What does development mean? Is there a human right to development? If we aim for sustainable development in an age of global climate change, should developed nations sacrifice economic growth for the sake of allowing developing countries to catch up? Should eradication of poverty or diminution of radical inequality be the principal focus of developmental policy? What are the macroeconomic theories of development? And how have they informed development policy? How does development work in practice? Featuring case studies throughout, this textbook provides a philosophical introduction to an incredibly topical issue studied by students within the fields of applied ethics, global justice, economics, politics, sociology, and public policy.https://ecommons.luc.edu/facultybooks/1160/thumbnail.jp
I focus on the recent attempt by Habermas to provide a formal criterion for testing the legitimac... more I focus on the recent attempt by Habermas to provide a formal criterion for testing the legitimacy of group rights. Habermas argues that group-rights are legitimate only when they protect groups from discrimination by other groups. Group rights that aim to preserve groups against their own members, by contrast, are illegitimate. In my opinion, this way of drawing the distinction overlooks the link between anti-discrimination and preservation. Furthermore, I argue that preservation of a group identity can be legitimate so long as the group in question allows freedom of exit from the group.
The Modern Schoolman, 1992
Social Theory and Practice, 2006
The Philosophical Forum, 2000
Critics of race-conscious redistricting 1 frequently charge that it reinforces old racial stereot... more Critics of race-conscious redistricting 1 frequently charge that it reinforces old racial stereotypes and, most important for our purposes, encourages a divisive politics in which one group tries to impose its identity and interests on other groups. 2 As Justice Sandra Day O'Connor puts it, "a racial gerrymander may exacerbate the very patterns of bloc voting that majority-minority districting is sometimes said to counteract," thereby leading representatives to believe that their primary obligation is to represent only members of the racial group that elected them "rather than their constituency as a whole." 3 Racial divisiveness is not the only evil O'Connor finds in racial redistricting. Grouping minorities together according to racial categories, whether for purposes of affirmative action or for racial redistricting, encourages "us" to view "them" less as individuals with unique identities and interests than as faceless caricatures based on racist stereotypes.
American Journal of Sociology, 1997
ment, and some autocratic hierachies have lasted for centuries without mutual contractual agreeme... more ment, and some autocratic hierachies have lasted for centuries without mutual contractual agreements between rulers and ruled. Lichbach argues that many of the solutions to the collective action problem are not logically consistent, since they jettison the collective action research program’s core assumption of rational choice microfoundations (of course, this is not a core assumption for all who study collective action; Lichbach clearly situates himself in the Olsonian tradition). Lichbach argues that the collective action research program should not entirely abandon assumptions of rationality and self-interest (as many community solutions have), but they should not always retain the most narrow version of these assumptions either. His quite reasonable proposal is that rational choice microfoundations be used as an initial baseline and that they should be broadened only when rational action alone cannot account for collective action. This is an increasingly common position among rational choice theorists, but its lineage can be traced to a sociologist, Max Weber. Lichbach’s book illustrates the inevitable broadening of rational choice models as they have moved from economics into political science and sociology, at both the micro and macro levels of analysis. It should be a valuable resource for anyone interested in surveying the range of solutions to the problem of collective action.
Philosophy and Politics - Critical Explorations, 2022
This chapter shows that cosmopolitanism, international development and human rights can be articu... more This chapter shows that cosmopolitanism, international development and human rights can be articulated in ways that are more or less supportive of one another and of the expansion of global capitalism. The first section begins by exploring the role of international trade and global capitalism within canonical formulations of cosmopolitanism (Kant, Marx, Habermas). Next, we offer an historical reconstruction of the post-War development project from modernization to neoliberalism, as well as prominent critiques of it, in the form of dependency theory and the New International Economic Order. In the third section we turn to human rights, which we show can be mobilized in ways that are both supportive and critical of global capitalism. The chapter discusses successful appeals to human rights to challenge intellectual property rights, recommendations for infusing human rights provisions in the charters of transnational corporations under the banner of corporate social responsibility, and the impacts on human rights of capitalism’s destabilization of the planet’s ecology. The chapter concludes by considering alternatives to the dominant paradigm of cosmopolitanism, including “bottom up” cosmopolitanism and alternative approaches to development from the Global South such as Buen-Vivir.
In this paper I argue that the discourse theoretic account of human rights defended by Jürgen Hab... more In this paper I argue that the discourse theoretic account of human rights defended by Jürgen Habermas contains a fruitful tension that is obscured by its dominant tendency to identify rights with legal claims. This weakness in Habermas’s account becomes manifest when we examine how sweatshops diminish the secure enjoyment of subsistence, which Habermas himself (in recognition of the UDHR) recognizes as a human right. Discourse theories of human rights are unique in tying the legitimacy of human rights to democratic deliberation and consensus. So construed, their specific meaning and force is the outcome of historical political struggle. However, unlike other legal rights, they possess universal moral validity. In this paper I argue that this tension between the legal and moral aspects of human rights can be resolved if and only if human rights are conceived as moral aspirations and not simply as legal claims. In particular, I shall argue that there are two reasons why human rights ...
Ethics & Global Politics, 2019
Critical Theory to Structuralism
Developments in Anglo-American philosophy during the first half of the 20 th Century closely trac... more Developments in Anglo-American philosophy during the first half of the 20 th Century closely tracked developments that were occurring in continental philosophy during this period. This should not surprise us. Aside from the fertile communication between these ostensibly separate traditions, both were responding to problems associated with the rise of mass society. Rabid nationalism, corporate statism, and totalitarianism (Left and Right) posed a profound challenge to the idealistic rationalism of neo-Kantian and neo-Hegelian philosophies. The decline of the individual-classically conceived by the 18th-century Enlightenment as a self-determining agent-provoked strong reactions. While some philosophical tendencies sought to re-conceive the relationship between individual, society, and nature in more organic ways that radically departed from the subjectivism associated with classical Cartesianism, other tendencies sought to do just the opposite. This is one way of putting the difference between the two major movements within Anglo-American philosophy that I will be discussing in this essay. American pragmatism, which achieved the pinnacle of its popularity prior to 1940, traces its lineage back to empiricism as well as German Idealism. With the exception of William James, who is best known for his defense of radical empiricism, the other two important 20 th century pragmatists, John Dewey (1859-1952) and George