Appeal to standard set theory in minimalist syntax is shown to be in conflict with the goal of analyzing dependency formation, a.k.a. movement, as involving genuine constituent copies. The underlying tension is due to extensionality, which—other things being equal—favors a perspective on dependencies in terms of multidominance. The above argument is developed against the backdrop of a recent exposition of minimalist syntax :229–261, 2019), which can be seen as exemplary. The resulting critical assessment should be taken as removing obstacles on (...) the way toward proper minimalist foundations for syntactic theory. (shrink)

Hans-Martin Sass, Honorary Professor of Philosophy. Founder and board member of the Centre for Medical Ethics, Bochum, Germany. Honorary Senior Research Fellow at Kennedy Institute of Ethics at Georgetown University, Washington, DC. Honorary Professor of the Bioethics Research Centre, Beijing. He has written more than 60 books and pamphlets, more than 250 articles in professional journals. Editor of the Ethik in der Praxis/ Practical ethics, Muenster: Lit. Founder and co-editor of the brochures “Medizinethische Materialien”, Bochum: ZME. He has (...) lectured in Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Brazil, Canada, Croatia, the Chech Republic, India, Iran, Israel, Italy, Japan, France, the Netherlands, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Switzerland and Taiwan. The interview devoted to exposition of the concept of bioethics in America and Germany, as well as the professor`s attitude to the idea of the integrative concept of bioethics. The concept of integrative bioethics has been developed in different countries, a component of this concept is the idea of the need for discussion on bioethics in various sectors of society. Equally important in this concept are the definitions of bioethics and the bioethical imperative proposed by Fritz Jahr in 1926. The scientist`s article, which was discovered in 1997, contains a new format of bioethical ideas, as well as a valuable opportunity to enhance understanding the term of bioethics as an integrative science. Interview has been conducted by Hanna Hubenko as a part of the joint international course «Integrative Bioethics». At the meeting it was discussed the experience of cooperation and plans for the future. Cooperation and feedback between scientists remains an unconditional prerogative, also in a pandemic situation. (shrink)

Zusammenfassung In ihrem Bestreben, die Funktionsweise totalitärer Systeme zu verstehen, insbesondere, die von Nazi-Deutschland begangenen Verbrechen zu begreifen, spricht Hannah Arendt von der Banalität des Bösen. Dabei geht sie über Kants Auffassung des radikal Bösen hinaus, ohne dessen moralische Bedeutung zu verwerfen, um angesichts der Erschütterung des traditionellen Verständnisses von Humanität durch den Eichmann-Prozess den Begriff der persönlichen Verantwortung zu retten. Insofern sie sich an der antiken griechischen Philosophie von Sokrates und Platon sowie an den Quellen des Judentums orientiert, wird (...) in Umrissen eine konzeptuelle Nähe zu Hermann Cohen sichtbar. Der dialogische und dialektische Charakter des Denkens, auf dem Arendts Widerstand gegen den Totalitarismus beruht, ist in Cohens Philosophie, die Arendt kaum wird gelesen haben, vorgeformt. Das von Cohen in seiner Auseinandersetzung mit Kant für Arendt herausgearbeitete radikal Gute lässt sich jedoch nur durch zwei regulativen Prinzipien annäherungsweise bestimmen: durch das Sokratische Prinzip des inneren Selbstgesprächs und den auf die moralische Sphäre angewandten Urteilsbegriff Kants. (shrink)

: In 1927, Fritz Jahr, a Protestant pastor, philosopher, and educator in Halle an der Saale, published an article entitled "Bio-Ethics: A Review of the Ethical Relationships of Humans to Animals and Plants" and proposed a "Bioethical Imperative," extending Kant's moral imperative to all forms of life. Reviewing new physiological knowledge of his times and moral challenges associated with the development of secular and pluralistic societies, Jahr redefines moral obligations towards human and nonhuman forms of life, outlining the concept of (...) bioethics as an academic discipline, principle, and virtue. Although he had no immediate long-lasting influence during politically and morally turbulent times, his argument that new science and technology requires new ethical and philosophical reflection and resolve may contribute toward clarification of terminology and of normative and practical visions of bioethics, including understanding of the geoethical dimensions of bioethics. (shrink)

First publication of a letter of Albert Einstein to Hans Vaihinger, dated May, 1919, concerning Vaihinger's concept of "Fiktionen", the role of Geometry in Poincaré's system, and the importance of "real culture" in the intellectual's style of life. The letter is introduced and annotated.

It is generally understood that Hegel’s influence in the United States was more or less restricted to the field of speculative philosophy. The philosophical importance of the St. Louis movement and The Journal of Speculative Philosophy is well known, just as Hegelian relationships to the New England Transcendentalists. Loyd D. Easton’s pioneering book Hegel’s First American Followers, described the independent Hegelian discussion in mid-nineteenth century Ohio. John B. Stallo and August Willich demonstrated clearly that under totally different cultural, social and (...) political preconditions than in Europe, controversial Hegelian concepts of state and society could yet be developed. Until now, however, it has not been noted that in the 1850’s there was, for a short time, a small, but significant expression of Hegelianism in the Texas Hill Country southwest of Austin, at Sisterdale, Comal County. Only some historians in the field of early Texas history have noticed that among the “lateinische Bauern” who emigrated in 1849/50 to Texas there was the Hegelian Ernst Kapp, a well-known author in the field of environmentology [Erdkunde], who settled in Sisterdale in 1849. (shrink)

Inhalt: Vorwort von H.-M. Pawlowski / S. Smid / R. Specht - H.-M. Pawlowski: Probleme der Rechtsbegrundung im Staat der Glaubensfreiheit - V. Gerhardt: Selbstandigkeit und Selbstbestimmung. Freiheit bei Kant und Schelling - H. Folkers: Die durch Freiheit gebaute Stadt Gottes - W. E. Ehrhardt: Mythologie und Offenbarung der Freiheit - W. Bartuschat: Uber Spinozismus und menschliche Freiheit beim fruhen Schelling - C. Cesa: Schellings Kritik des Naturrechts - H. J. Sandkuhler: F. W. J. Schelling - Philosophie als Seinsgeschichte und (...) Anti-Politik - D. Losurdo: Von Louis Philippe bis Louis Bonaparte - R. Pettoello: Die Dialektik der menschlichen Freiheit als Emanzipation und als Abfall von Gott - H. Klenner: Schelling und die Rechtsphilosophie - S. Smid: Freiheit als Keim des Rechts - W. Schmied-Kowarzik: Freiheit - Recht - Geschichte - J. Simon: Die Wirklichkeit der Freiheit (Kant, Schelling, Hegel) - W. Schild: Die verstandlichen Schwierigkeiten des Rechtsdenkens mit dem Freiheitsbegriff - Personenregister. (shrink)

Term and concept of bioethics originally were developed by Fritz Jahr, a Protestant Pastor in Halle an der Saale in 1927, long before the period, when bioethics in the modern sense was recreated in the US in 1970s and since that time has spread globally. Jahr’s bioethical imperative, influenced by Christian and humanist traditions from Assisi to Schopenhauer and by Buddhist philosophy holds its own position against Kant’s anthropological imperative and against dogmatic Buddhist reasoning: ‘Respect each living being as an (...) end in itself and treat it, if possible, as such’. Jahr interprets the 5th Commandment ‘Thou shall not kill’ offensively and liberally as ‘common morality’ which includes the obligation of caring for one’s own health, public health and health education within the wider framework of a universal bioethical Sittengesetz. In the article-translation the actual contemporary thoughts about the bioethical imperative, which serves not only the object of interdisciplinary study, but also the practical approach to acquiring responsibility and environmental image of thinking, are found. Didactic considerations of Yahr go beyond the paternalistic upbringing, they point to the content and methodological purpose of teaching ethics to ethical discourse. According to Yahr, ethics does not regulate philosophical, theological or political knowledge, does not act as a dictatorship of a way of behavior. Ethics is the conduct of discussions, the culture of discussion and communication. Following the philosophy of Yahr, Professor Hans-Martin Zass formulated the geo-ethical imperative: "Respect the Mother Earth and all natural life as it is, for which the responsible person is an end in itself, and get around as much as possible in this way!". In respect for all living things, there is a relationship between man and animals, plants, nature, including the health systems, educational-informational and research organizations. Pastor Fritz Jahr, who had no immediate influence during his times, built a strong first Protestant foundation for contemporary theological and ethical concepts in medical ethics, bioethics, and environmental ethics. (shrink)

To answer the question about the Christian foundation of the law, we first have to look for the foundation of the law in general. The reason why we follow the law voluntarily is not the law and its legal sanctions, but our religion or philosophy of life. »Grundwerte« or human rights offer no alternative foundation. Either they are part of the law - and not its foundation, or they are a particular philosophy of life beside others. The law of a (...) pluralistic state that guarantees freedom of religion and belief, and, consequently, is religiously and ideologically neutral, cannot be based on a particular philosophy of life, religion, or denomination. Thus, this law has to be »right« in the eyes of every religious community living in this state. It is, therefore, not a Christian law with respect to its foundation, but the Christians have been leaving their mark on its contents. (shrink)

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:The Clinic as Testing Ground for Moral Theory: A European ViewHans-Martin Sass (bio)A Philosopher’s View of Theory in the Clinical SettingThe clinic is a testing ground for theories. I am not clinician; I am a philosopher who has been in the clinic only as a patient or as an ethicist who never has had the final word nor was ever intended to have the final word. I have (...) learned that in the clinical setting general norms and conceptualizations in the Kantian sense must be tailored to real-life situations. From the philosophical schools of analytical reasoning, I learned the skills needed to analyze words and meanings and to dissect problems and so-called “solutions.” But even more impressive are the methodological skills of differential diagnosis, looking at medical problems from different angles and using different methods and instruments. The detail- and patient-oriented work of the clinician provides an excellent model of methodological clarity and professional devotion for a philosopher who assists those working for the “good of the patient.” That model has led to the development of what I call a theory and methodology of differential ethics. [End Page 351]Differential ethics is normative ethics, as it does not give up norms in favor of situational utility. Differential ethics does not venture out empty-handed in order to explore and find principles pre-existing in a given situation; rather it brings basic values and principles along with it and tries to discover the shape they must take and the priority they must be given in the situation at hand. Differential ethics differentiates between general norms and mid-level principles, virtues, and visions that must be introduced and protected effectively and specifically according to different scenarios (Sass 1993). From this European point of view, I shall briefly explain my position and comment on (1) the controversy between principlism and virtue theory, (2) differentiating and balancing, and (3) the importance of trust, both as a principle and as a virtue in the clinical setting.Principlism Versus Virtue Theory: A Mistaken ControversyFrom a European perspective, I find that the debate between the schools of virtue-theory and principlism in the United States is a mistaken controversy. The real conflict between the schools of thought is not methodology, but content. Tom Beauchamp (1995) gives examples of how one language or method can be translated into the other, and Edmund Pellegrino and David Thomasma (1988, p. 206) have formulated a rule for the virtuous physician that, in the language of principlism, reads “respect for autonomy,” but in the language of virtue theory reads “To assist my patients to make choices that coincide with their own values or beliefs, without coercion, deception, or duplicity.”In different situations, however, some systems of reference are more authoritative and effective than others. Appealing to professional virtues would be the most efficacious way to address an audience coherent in attitudes and concerned about personal character. Reaffirmation of personal and professional obligations in secular fraternities or religious communities works best when it includes an appeal to virtues in the language of the humanist tradition, moral theology, or professional ethics.But there are other situations in which authoritative attitudes and expectations are absent and society in general is searching for common, often dormant, principles that will hold it together whatever specific disagreements arise. Such a situation was present in 1978 when the Belmont Report (National Commission 1978) presented principles—respect for autonomy, nonmaleficence, beneficence, justice—and not virtues to guide moral and political reflections on and reactions to the ethical, legal, and social implications of modern biomedicine in a multi-faceted and multi-cultural society.The formal difference between the systems of principlism, virtue theory, and value theory becomes even less important when clinical-ethical questionnaires are used to understand specific scenarios or cases and to assess different options for proceeding. Thus, my first thesis is: Case discussion, scenario assessment, [End Page 352] and open questionnaires, rather than definite guidelines, bridge the difference between virtue theory and principlism, since such processes can employ any one language or a combination of all three.Differentiating and BalancingMy second thesis is: Whatever system of reference is used... (shrink)

: 5–7, and on Karl Theodor Bayrhoffer, “A Hegelian in South Wisconsin,” The Owl of Minerva, 12, 4, : 1–3.).

What is health? This question figures prominently in several ethical, medicinal and psychological issues. Against this background the paper investigates the definition and the understanding of health in Karl Barth‘s dogmatics in its theological framework. The reconstruction provides a model of health, which allows treating contemporary issues, because it presents a dynamic and relational model with several dimensions, including the dimension of will. The will to health, though depending on somatic, psychic and social conditions, plays an important role in handling (...) with diseases, in living with imperfections and in supporting healthy lifestyle and preventive measures. This will must be interpreted as the will and the power to be a human being with its gifts and limits. (shrink)

This is the first re-publication and first English translation of regulations concerning Human Experimentation which were binding law prior to and during the Third Reich, 1931 to 1945. The introduction briefly describes the duties of the Reichsgesundheitsamt, which formulated these regulations. It then outlines the basic concept of the Richtlinien for protecting subjects and patients on the one hand and for encouraging New Therapy and Human Experimentation on the other hand. Major issues, like personal responsibility of the physician or researcher, (...) teaching of ethics of research and therapy, and research and therapy on vulnerable populations, are compared with the regulations in the Nuremberg Code and subsequent regulations influenced by the Nuremberg Code. CiteULike Connotea Del.icio.us What's this? (shrink)

Die faszinierenden Fortschritte molekulargenetischen Wissens, vor allem die weitere Entzifferung des menschlichen Genoms, stellen das individuelle Selbstverständnis vor die Forderung nach einer kopernikanischen Revolutionierung der Denkungsart und führen die Anforderungen an Mündigkeit und Selbstverantwortung in neue Dimensionen von Aufklärung und Selbstbestimmung. Die rasante Entwicklung prädiktiver und präventiver Leistungen moderner Risikofaktorenmedizin fordert vom medizinischen Laien Gesundheitsmündigkeit und vom medizinischen Experten neue Formen beratender und begleitender Dienste. Genetische Prädiktion schwerer Erbkrankheiten macht eine ethische Diskussion des Begriffs verantwortlicher Elternschaft unerläßlich, ebenso die Zurückweisung (...) von Forderungen nach einer staatlich administrierten oder geförderten Eugenik. Gesundheitspolitik und -finanzierung werden deshalb Prinzipien wie Selbstbestimmung und Subsidiarität, sowie das traditionelle Prinzip der Solidarität, in der Diskussion um Verantwortung und Finanzierung von Gesundheit neu ausmessen müssen. (shrink)