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民主作为现代法政理论核心,现代政治社会公民的基本生活方式,是当下以及未来我国理论与实践的重要议题,亦是我国宪法的庄严承诺。本期刊出的宾夕法尼亚大学Edward L.Rubin教授于世纪之交所撰的《超越民主》一文,旨在从理论层面回应这一常谈常新的话题。Rubin教授认为,由于西方福利国家发展进程中行政权力不可避免地扩张而使得起源于前现代的“民主”概念无法为当下诸多政治实践提供合理解释。有鉴于此,Rubin教授主张将理论目光聚焦于政府与公民之间的互动关系,进而提出取代民主的替代性描述。本文共分四个部分:前两个部分集中于民主概念与民主理论的历史性分析与批判;后两个部分则分别集中于选举和行政层面分析政府与公民间的互动模式。在某种程度上,本文堪称20世纪民主理论之“巡礼”。
As the core of the modern theory of law and democracy, the basic life style of the modern political and social citizens is an important issue of our country’s theory and practice now and in the future. It is also the solemn promise of our country’s constitution. This issue of Professor Edward L. Rubin of the University of Pennsylvania at the turn of the century, “Beyond Democracy,” is a treatise that aims to respond to this often talked-about topic on a theoretical level. Professor Rubin believes that the concept of “democracy” originating from the pre-modern era can not provide a reasonable explanation for many current political practices due to the inevitable expansion of administrative power in the development of Western welfare states. In view of this, Professor Rubin advocates putting the theoretical focus on the interaction between the government and citizens, and then proposes an alternative description of democracy. This article is divided into four parts: the first two parts focus on the historical analysis and criticism of the concept of democracy and democratic theory; the latter two parts focus on the election and administrative levels respectively analyze the interaction between government and citizens. To a certain extent, this article is called the “Tour” of the 20th century’s theory of democracy.