Rubrics » Bridging News
Does “Cultural Appropriation” Mean “Cultural Aggression”?
Zweig meant his variation of the old adage “Ubi panem, ibi patria” as an expression of the universality of beauty and culture and its power to unite people, regardless of ethnic background, nationality, or social class. His view of culture is certainly an ideal, one that is not acceptable in the modern game of identity politics. Currently, America’s netizen culturati are in a knot over the concept of “cultural appropriation”. The phrase is a semantically null assembly whose sole purpose is to create the illusion of division. The closest encyclopaedic explanation is the notion that there is no such thing as cultural exchange or fluidity in ideas, and any attempt to cross or meld cultures is an act of oppression against a vague and inconsistently chosen minority. Accepting compliments is not a distinguishing trait of the cultural police. More
The Romanian Community in Brussels, the Capital of the European Union, is the Second Largest One
I would like to thank you for the opportunity to contribute to the “The World of Romania” project, occasioned by what you define as the “(Inter)National Maturing Centennial of the Romanian Society and Statehood”.2018 is an important year for Romania, with a symbolic weight for the entire Romanian society, including the Romanian community here in Brussels. 2018 marks 100 years since the Great Union, and also 140 years since the proclamation of our country's independence. The Centennial, one of the most significant anniversaries in our history, represents a time for reflection, paying a tribute to the past and honouring it, but also an opportunity to look into the future with confidence. More
A Single European Tax?
The European budget is the main financial tool by which the process of economic integration and convergence is driven within the European Union. In the European construction, we can identify four tools aimed at initiating, conducting, and finalizing such a construction:An axiological tool: the set of European values on which and for which the European construction is initiated and made. Although a properly European set of values is still undergoing crystallization, many of them are in force and guide the formation of purpose and establishment of actions. This tool represents the final cause of the European construction;
A political tool: is the most important and productive tool. In fact, the European Union is a deliberative social construction, underwritten by an intellectual project[1]. Moreover, the European construction is based on fundamental political documents – the treaties – as primary macro-norms, which generate all the secondary and tertiary norms (communitarian legislation) to design the path of European construction. This tool represents the formal cause of the European construction; More
The Concept of Economic Capillarity
The term capillarity belongs, from a historical point of view, to physics, but it has been taken over, in terms of its general, philosophical significance, both by psychology and sociology, as well as by historical science. From a semantic point of view, capillarity indicates a property of a phenomenon or of some entity to evolve (from a spatial point of view or structural-functional properties) in a manner contrary to all laws and mechanisms known and accepted as governing the phenomenon or the respective entity. The classic example of capillary is that of a liquid that, in a tube narrow enough that its surface tension exceeds the value of the gravitational force, instead of moving down (more precisely, in the direction of the source of the gravitational force), moves in the opposite direction. More
The CORONAtion of Equality, the Abdication of Inequality
We all are equal in front of death, but we are living lives in unequal ways, because of our deeply uneven endowments and unsimilar chances that Gods or odds reserve for us. We are (supposedly) alike in front of laws, while some (one-sidedly) legislate fake sameness. Among the many questions we may ask while getting bored in the tight safety of our lazaretto homes: is Corona an equalizer? More
Foundation: The Very Basis in Makeup
Perhaps everyone who uses makeup has wondered at least once about its origins? Every little thing has its own past but not a lot of people know the history of foundation. Surprisingly, its antecedents are not as pretty.Foundation traces its origins back to Ancient Greece and Rome. Its first name was “white lead” due to the fact that it was used to make Mediterranean skin appear “fairer”. It was actually made from poisonous chalk which remained through the Middle Ages and Renaissance. In Queen Elizabeth I’s time, the “white lead” became “Venetian ceruse”, which was then formed of lead and vinegar in order to cover up smallpox scars. Unfortunately, this product had horrible side-effects such as hair loss, rotten teeth and permanent skin discoloration. Because of the toxic formula, makeup took a turn in the 19th century, making foundations out of zinc oxide, glycerine and calamine lotion. Still having the same purpose as the “Venetian ceruse”, it only came in three shades: white, pink and red. More
Central Asia: The World’s Next Powder Keg
Firstly, we shall explain the geographic and historic situation background of Central Asia. The name is self-explanatory when referring to the location of the region but what stands out is the climate, history and demographics. The land is mostly arid and sparsely populated while the Northern part is dominated by the Eurasian steppe, a flat grassland which stretches from Ukraine all the way to the northeastern parts of China. Historically this steppe was inhabited by nomadic or semi-nomadic peoples whose economic activity was herding and one of their main assets was the horse. The region was dominated by Iranian peoples until the Turkic migration (some 1000 years ago) happened. The land was fought over multiple times in history as it was once seen as an important connection between East and West due to the Silk Road. The inhabitants earned a reputation as great warriors especially when riding a horse (horse archery was one of their strong traits). For reference, here is a brief listing of the most important empires who ruled over Central Asia: the Persian Empire, Göktürks, Mongol Empire (and its successor states), Seljuk Turks, Timurids, Russian Empire (later U.S.S.R.) and even incursions coming in from China. More
Some Thoughts on the “Global Competitiveness”
Despite the argument by Krugman that “economists, in general, do not use the word competitiveness”, a cursory survey of the literature reveals a wide range of definitions of competitiveness and frequent usage of the concept. Moreover, although research on competitiveness has been popular for forty years, in recent time it appears to be flourishing as many economic phenomena are assessed according to whether they are competitive or non-competitive. This probably explains why the last several years have witnessed a growing academic and political debate over better ways to conceptualize and measure competitiveness. More
A Short Behavioural Analysis of the Changes to the Social Security Tax in Romania
Starting with January 1st 2018, the payment obligation which is automatically withheld regarding the social security contributions (for state pensions, health, and unemployment insurance) will be moved from the employer to the employee. In order to preserve the nominal net wage, the nominal gross wage was increased by an adequate rate. In fact, a combination of nominal gross wage increases and contribution rate decreases was used to this end. I would like to broach some predictable effects of the mentioned normative measure: a) the monetary illusion effect; b) the nominal income effect; c) the consumption and savings effects; d) the effect of social solidarity erosion; e) the efficient wage effect. More
Together We Can See Much Further
In 2018, Romania celebrates one of the most important landmarks in its history which has consecrated our country’s openness and attachment to the principles of understanding, friendship, and mutual respect within nations – the Centenary of the Great Union of all Romanians. Since fulfilling the age-old aspiration of the Romanian people, our country has made significant efforts to mitigate and eliminate conflicted and vengeful mentalities by promoting an example of cooperation, inclusiveness, tolerance, and respect, values that we constantly stand by today in our foreign policy. More
A Turkish Scenario for the Romanian Economy?
Since the Social Democratic Party’s (PSD) ascent to power in 2012, which was sealed by the 2016 Romanian parliamentary and local elections, some commentators and opposition leaders have compared the actions of Social Democratic leaders – such as former PM Victor Ponta or party chairman and Chamber of Deputies President Liviu Dragnea – not only with those of their peers in Hungary and Poland, but also to those of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. More
From the Intelligent State to the Responsible One
The state is not a manager only with regard to the society as a whole. If it was to be like that, a performant computer could have better accomplished whatsoever administrative tasks. The social contract on the basis of which the state is supposed to be generated implies both much more and much less than that. Let me provide some analytical explanations: More
