Handout for Prof. Matt Pamental's presentation, 5 May 2003.

Deweyan Democracy: Between Constitutionalism and Proceduralism

Introduction
	1. The presentation will be in two parts--one theoretical
	and one illustrative.

Theoretical Interpretatons of Liberal Democracy
	1. Three Ways to Think About Justice:
		A. Question: Is there an independent standard or
		criterion by which we can determine the "Just"
		outcome to a particular situation?
		B. Perfect Procedural Justice
		C. Imperfect Procedural Justice
		D. Pure Procedural Justice

	2. Liberal democracies are based on the idea that the
	comprehensive doctrines that fix one's conception of
	justice (i.e., the independent standard) are open to
	rational disagreements, and hence those notions of
	justice are not legitimate aims of a political body.

	3. constitutional Democracy vs. Pure Proceduralism
		A. Constitutional Democracy
		B. Proceduralism
		C. Problems with Constitutionalism and Pure
		Proceduralism.

	4. Deweyan Deliberative Democracy
		A. Deliberative Democratic Theory
			i. Democracy should be (minimally)
			committed to:
				a) Conscious social
				reproduction--
				b) Non-repression
				c) Non-discrimination
			ii. Four reasons democracy should be
			committed to a deliberative procedure
			(i.e., accept deliberative constraints on
			the political process)
				a) Scarce resources
				b) Self-Interest
				c) Incompatible values
				d) Inadequate understanding
			iii. Moral conditions for deliberation
				a) Moral claims must be supported
				with reasons that are acceptable
				in principle by others who are
				also committed to finding fair
				terms of social cooperation.
				b) Empirical claims must be
				consistent with reliable methods
				of inquiry
				c) Moral Accommodation--
		B. Deweyan Democracy as an Ideal of Associated
		Living
			i. Democracy more than just a set of
			institutions and procedures--it is
			primarily a mode of associated living
			ii. Intelligent Inquiry
				a) Begins with accurate
				understanding of situation and
				the circumstances and interests
				that led to the situation
				(requires moral perception)
				b) Identifies all of the relevant
				interests that are at stake in
				the situation
				c) Accepts moral principles not
				as absolutes, but as guides or
				tools for the development of
				potential solutions
				d) Develops potential solutions
				by imagining various means-ends
				combinations and hypothesizing
				how well such "ends-in-view"
				would resolve the current dilemma
				e) Acts not out of certainty, but
				out of experiment attitude
			iii. Community of Interests
				a) Genuine interests are social,
				not individual
				b) Ought to take a broader, more
				inclusive understanding of what
				our interests really are.

Deweyan Democracy: The Case of NMHP

	1. No More Homeless Petts--Overview

	2. NMHP--Successes

	3. NMHP as an example of Deweyan democracy

		A. Contrast with PETA/UARC, NMHP's approach is
		grass-roots, community based activism based on
		_common_ interests.

		B. Treats discussions of on-going projects
		deliberatively.

Conclusion

	1. Deweyan democracy is deliberative

	2. Dewayn democracy, so understood, seems to work quite
	well, and for obvious reasons

	3. NMHP, as an example of Deweyan democratic procedure,
	bears out of my suggestions