Democracy, Risk, and Community

This controversial book explores the connection between technological risk and basic concepts of liberal political theory and practice. Arguing that modern risks are emergent and therefore not reducible to individual actors or events, Hiskes demonstrates how risks challenge the most basic concepts of liberal political theory and democratic politics, including the ideas of consent, authority, rights, and moral responsibility. He argues forcefully that successful policy for risk depends on understanding the dynamic between risk and liberal concepts.