A divisão dos regimes políticos em Aristóteles

Trata-se de um estudo sobre a filosofia política de Aristóteles, sobretudo no que toca à divisão dos regimes políticos. Como se sabe, segundo Aristóteles seis são os regimes políticos, três justos (realeza, aristocracia e república) e três corruptos (tirania, oligarquia e democracia). O autor se propõe a demonstrar que a distinção entre essas seis formas de constituição, no pensamento político aristotélico, não é primeiramente pelo número dos que exercem o mando ou pela finalidade com que governam, mas resulta da aplicação de certos princípios à distribuição do poder pelas diversas partes da comunidade política. Assim, a distribuição do poder segundo o estado de liberdade constituiria a democracia; a distribuição segundo o critério da riqueza, a oligarquia; a distribuição segundo o critério da virtude, a aristocracia e a realeza; a exacerbação dos princípios da democracia e da oligarquia culminaria na tirania; e a república ou governo constitucional seria constituída pela combinação harmônica de instituições democráticas, oligárquicas e aristocráticas, resultando no regime mais apropriado à maioria das comunidades políticas.

O princípio da impessoalidade nas decisões administrativas

Estuda-se nesta tese o conteúdo jurídico do princípio da impessoalidade, previsto no art. 37, caput, da Constituição Federal de 1988, especificamente para fins de parametrização, controle e responsabilidade das decisões administrativas. Estruturam-se três eixos temáticos: a) noções introdutórias ideias de aproximação necessárias ao contexto e ao conceito do princípio da impessoalidade e do alcance de sua projeção nas decisões administrativas (póspositivismo e neoconstitucionalismo; constitucionalização; julgamento por princípios; relevância dos princípios; interesse público; direito administrativo como sistema; neutralidade política e a questão da justiça); b) impessoalidade no direito administrativo comprovação de que o princípio da impessoalidade ostenta arquétipo aberto para conferir maiores cobertura e proteção aos valores tutelados pelo texto constitucional, com ênfase à organização administrativa impessoal para assegurar um agir naturalmente impessoal (instrumentalização recíproca de princípios constitucionais; antecedentes históricos; direito estrangeiro; doutrina brasileira; impessoalidade na Constituição, nas leis e na jurisprudência; conceito de impessoalidade); c) impessoalidade nas decisões administrativas construção de um conceito de impessoalidade específico para as decisões administrativas, concebido desde a ideia de ponderação e conciliação de todos os interesses legítimos públicos e privados envolvidos em cada caso concreto (conceito e distinção de decisão administrativa impessoal em relação à decisão judicial imparcial; garantias e requisitos para a adoção de decisões impessoais, com destaque para os deveres de fundamentação (motivação), processualização e participação; algumas implicações de decisões impessoais [funcionário de fato; diminuição da discricionariedade; desvio de poder; motivação na dispensa de empregados públicos; responsabilidade civil extracontratual do Estado; necessidade de reconhecimento dos direitos dos administrados; nepotismo e revisitação da reformatio in pejus]; consequências da quebra da impessoalidade nas decisões administrativas [anulação; responsabilização do Estado e responsabilização do servidor] e, finalmente, técnicas para adoção de decisões administrativas impessoais).

Brief for Amici Curiae Scholars of the Constitutional Rights of Children in Support of Respondent Edith Windsor Addressing the Merits and Supporting Affirmance

This amicus brief filed by Scholars of the Constitutional Rights of Children turns the spotlight on children in same-sex families. The brief enumerates the ways Section 3 of DOMA impairs children's interests by denying federal recognition of their parents' marriages.

Brief of Amici Curiae Scholars of the Constitutional Rights of Children in Support of Petitioners in Obergefell v. Hodges

Supreme Court precedent establishes that the government may not punish children for matters beyond their control. Same-sex marriage bans and non-recognition laws (“marriage bans”) do precisely this. The states argue that marriage is good for children, yet marriage bans categorically exclude an entire class of children – children of same-sex couples – from the legal, economic and social benefits of marriage. This amicus brief recounts a powerful body of equal protection jurisprudence that prohibits punishing children to reflect moral disapproval of parental conduct or to incentivize adult behavior. We then explain that marriage bans punish children of same-sex couples because they: 1) foreclose their central legal route to family formation; 2) categorically void their existing legal parent-child relationships incident to out-of-state marriages; 3) deny them economic rights and benefits; and 4) inflict psychological and stigmatic harm. States cannot justify marriage bans as good for children and then exclude children of same-sex couples based on moral disapproval of their same-sex parents’ relationships or to incentivize opposite-sex couples to “procreate” within the bounds of marriage. To do so, severs the connection between legal burdens and individual responsibility and creates a permanent class or caste distinction.

High Value Lies, Ugly Truths, and the First Amendment

Lying has a complicated relationship with the First Amendment. It is beyond question that some lies – such as perjury or pretending to be a police officer – are not covered by the First Amendment. But it is equally clear that some lies, even intentionally lying about military honors, are entitled to First Amendment protection. U.S. v. Alvarez, 132 S. Ct. 2537 (2012). To date, however, both Supreme Court doctrine and academic commentary has taken for granted that any constitutional protection for lies is purely prophylactic – it protects the liar to avoid chilling truthful speech. This Article is the first to argue, contrary to conventional wisdom, that certain types of lies paradoxically advance the values underlying the First Amendment. Our framework is descriptively novel and doctrinally important insofar as we provide the first comprehensive post-Alvarez look at the wide range of lies that may raise First Amendment issues. Because there was no majority opinion in Alvarez, there is uncertainty about which standard of constitutional scrutiny should apply to protected lies, an issue we examine at length. Moreover, our normative claim is straightforward: when a lie has intrinsic or instrumental value it should be treated differently from other types of lies and warrant the greatest constitutional protection. Specifically, we argue that investigative deceptions – lies used to secure truthful factual information about matters of public concern – deserve the utmost constitutional protection because they advance the underling purposes of free speech: they enhance political discourse, help reveal the truth, and promote individual autonomy. A prototypical investigative deception is the sort of misrepresentation required in order for an undercover journalist, investigator, or activist to gain access to information or images of great political significance that would not be available if the investigator disclosed her reporting or political objectives. Tactical use of such lies have a long history in American journalism and activism, from Upton Sinclair to his modern day heirs. Using the proliferation of anti-whistleblower statutes like Ag Gag laws as an illustrative example, we argue that investigative deceptions are a category of high value lies that ought to receive rigorous protection under the First Amendment. At the same time, we recognize that not all lies are alike and that in other areas, the government regulation of lies serves legitimate interests. We therefore conclude the Article by drawing some limiting principles to our theory.

Integration of Sustainable Development Principles into a Community Park

Characteristics of six operating hot spring recreational facilities were reviewed to identify opportunities for integrating a range of sustainable design and operation approaches into a community park. Potential operating cost savings were evaluated for a conceptual landscape project, bathhouse project, and swimming pool project that reduced the use of electricity, natural gas, water, the discharge of water, and solid waste generation. The projects showed a combined cost savings of approximately $40,000 per year by adopting passive solar design, energy efficient lighting, native vegetation, water efficient fixtures, and a natural swimming pool. The greatest potential operating cost reductions were observed for cutbacks in the use of swimming pool water and reductions in natural gas needed for building and swimming pool heating.

Integrated Water Resources Management: Principles for Coordination in the Coal River Watershed, West Virginia

Mountaintop removal (MTR) coal mining has had a significant influence on the water sources within the Coal River watershed of West Virginia. Using an approach such as Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) may improve management for the long-term protection and sustainability of the Coal River watershed‰Ûªs water resources. This Capstone project analyzes current site-specific information related to water quality and quantity and the impacts of MTR in the region, reviews current management challenges, and identifies key stakeholders to be included in IWRM planning. This information provided a foundation for the development of a preliminary IWRM coordination plan for the Coal River watershed based on IWRM principles and guidelines. It is hoped that this preliminary plan will contribute to the development of a final coordinated IWRM plan.

Robotic control systems based on bioinspired multi-agent systems: application of the principles of neuroscience to robotics

Robotics is a field that presents a large number of problems because it depends on a large number of disciplines, devices, technologies and tasks. Its expansion from perfectly controlled industrial environments toward open and dynamic environment presents a many new challenges, such as robots household robots or professional robots. To facilitate the rapid development of robotic systems, low cost, reusability of code, its medium and long term maintainability and robustness are required novel approaches to provide generic models and software systems who develop paradigms capable of solving these problems. For this purpose, in this paper we propose a model based on multi-agent systems inspired by the human nervous system able to transfer the control characteristics of the biological system and able to take advantage of the best properties of distributed software systems.

" Banish the self debasing principles, and scorn the disingenuity of readers. Humility has depressed many a genius into a hermit" : commencement essay, 1793

Two-page handwritten essay composed for the July 17, 1793 Harvard University Commencement by an unattributed author. The title is a quote from William Shenstone's essay "On Allowing Merit in Others." The essay begins, "Notwithstanding Philosophers have ever considered the human mind as a simple being..."

Translations of the Ottoman constitutional laws: the Wilayet Administrative Law, the Municipal Law and various other laws

Ottoman constitutional law of the 7th Dhil Hujjah, 1293 AH [December 24, 1876 AD] as amended. -- Regulations of the Chamber of deputies. -- Regulations of the Senate. -- Provisional law of administration of wilayets of the 13th March, 1329 AH [March 26, 1913 AD] as amended. -- Municipal law of the 27th Ramadhan, 1294 AH [October 5, 1877 AD] as amended. -- Law regulating chambers of commerce and industry, dated the 31st May, 1326 AH [June 13, 1910 AD]. -- Provisional law of expropriation on behalf of municipalities dated the 21st Kanun Thani, 1329 AH [February 3, 1914 AD]. -- Regulations of expropriation for public purposes, dated the 24th Tashrin Thani, 1295 AH [December 6, 1879 AD] as amended. -- The Press law of the 16th Tamuz, 1325 AH [July 29, 1910 AD] as amended.