The essays in this volume explore several key issues facing democracies today. They discuss the dilemma of how to protect civil liberties and individual freedoms in the light of external threats and assess the policies adopted by governments in this area. The book also addresses the question of how free, exactly, free markets should be in an economy in order to secure social peace, before going on to highlight the rudiments of the model of social market economy, as applied in Germany. It examines the problem of the democratic and legitimacy deficits that beset European integration and suggests reforms for a more democratic European Union. Last but not least, by looking back in history, they provide evidence and propose policies for the revitalization of institutions in present-day democracies. The book is of considerable interest to researchers and students in economics and political science, as well as to readers who wish to gain insights into the thorny social issues involved.
