Cultures at War : Moral Conflicts in Western Democracies / T. Alexander Smith, Raymond Tatalovich.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Smith, T. Alexander, author.

Tatalovich, Raymond, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Social values--Political aspects.

Social values.

Social policy.

Genre:

Electronic books.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (302 p.)

Place of Publication:

Toronto : University of Toronto Press, [2019]

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Explains the rise and impact of moral conflicts on the recent political life of western democracies. The authors conceptualize all moral conflicts as clashes between egalitarian and hierarchical forces. At their core, moral conflicts are debates over "identity" and the status of various groups in society. The book is organized around the "stages" of the policy process, espcially agenda-setting and adoption. How the policy process is affected by moral debate is analyzed through numerous case studies drawn mainly from Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany. Central to the entire analysis are three moral conflicts-capital punishment, homosexuality, and abortion-though others, for example gun control, euthanasia, and fox-hunting, are included to illustrate specific points.

Contents:

Introduction: A new politics for a new century

Part 1: Raw material for a politics and policy of moral conflict

Status anxiety and political ideology

Cultural theory and warring cultures

Part 2: Morality politics by unconventional means

Breaking into or breaking apart the political system

Politicians strike back: legislative restraints on morality policy

The juridicization of the morality policy process

Bypassing elites: morality policy by Plebiscite

Part 3: Uncompromising ends of morality policy

Building political consensus and the public peace

Conclusion: morality policy and Democratic governance.

Notes:

Includes index.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 28. Aug 2019)

ISBN:

1-4426-0226-0

OCLC:

181843202