Michael Head - Böcker

This book examines the national and international law, human rights and civil liberties issues involved in governments calling out the armed forces to deal with civil unrest or terrorism. The introduction of domestic military powers has become an international trend. Troops already have been seen on the streets in major Western democracies. These developments raise major political, constitutional and related problems. Examining the changes underway in eight comparable countries—the United States, Canada, Britain, France, Italy, Germany, Japan and Australia—this book provides a review and analysis of this trend, including its implications for legal and political rights. The book will be of interest to the general public, as well as students, academics and policy-makers in the areas of human rights and civil liberties, constitutional law, criminal justice and security studies.

The issue of who has the power to declare war or authorise military action in a democracy has become a major legal and political issue, internationally, and is set to become even more pertinent in the immediate future, particularly in the wake of military action in Syria, ongoing wars in the Middle East, and tense discussions between the United States and its allies, and Russia and China. This book comparatively examines the executive and prerogative powers to declare war or launch military action, focusing primarily on the United States, Britain and Australia. It explores key legal and constitutional questions, including: who currently has the power/authority to declare war?who currently has the power to launch military action without formally declaring war?how, if at all, can those powers be controlled, legally or politically?what are the domestic legal consequences of going to war? In addition to probing the extensive domestic legal consequences of going to war, the book also reviews various proposals that have been advanced for interrogating the power to commence armed conflict, and explores the reasons why these propositions have failed to win support within the political establishment.

In a new era of rising protests, social unrest and political discontent globally, especially over climate change, war dangers, austerity measures and social inequality, the right to protest is a critical democratic right. Yet it is increasingly controversial and subject to government reaction. This book poses a crucial question: how to defend and extend democracy? It examines the critical historical, social, political, ethical and legal issues raised by the basic democratic right to protest and the legislative and executive measures being taken by governments to restrict it. These measures are examined with a focus on three countries with an English legal heritage: the United States, Britain and Australia. These states are frequently held up as models of liberal democracies, respecting core legal and democratic rights. However, an examination shows that they have adopted far-reaching anti-protest laws and other provisions that threaten protest rights and genuine democracy itself. This book will be of interest to all members of society, as well as students, academics and policy-makers in the fields of civil liberties and human rights, constitutional law, criminal justice, national security and environmental studies.

In a new era of rising protests, social unrest and political discontent globally, especially over climate change, war dangers, austerity measures and social inequality, the right to protest is a critical democratic right. Yet it is increasingly controversial and subject to government reaction. This book poses a crucial question: how to defend and extend democracy? It examines the critical historical, social, political, ethical and legal issues raised by the basic democratic right to protest and the legislative and executive measures being taken by governments to restrict it. These measures are examined with a focus on three countries with an English legal heritage: the United States, Britain and Australia. These states are frequently held up as models of liberal democracies, respecting core legal and democratic rights. However, an examination shows that they have adopted far-reaching anti-protest laws and other provisions that threaten protest rights and genuine democracy itself. This book will be of interest to all members of society, as well as students, academics and policy-makers in the fields of civil liberties and human rights, constitutional law, criminal justice, national security and environmental studies.

A fresh look at school improvement from the perspective of professional development.There are many things that teachers can do to improve the conditions for learning and teaching in their own schools. This book shows how staff can take the initiative and identify areas in their school in need of attention, and tackle them. It provides case-study accounts of schemes in a number of schools, together with accounts of the action research based development work undertaken by teachers to improve their schools. The studies illuminate issues such as: improving the quality of learning and teaching; developing an effective school council; building partnerships and community schemes; developing economic and industrial understanding.

A fresh look at school improvement from the perspective of professional development.There are many things that teachers can do to improve the conditions for learning and teaching in their own schools. This book shows how staff can take the initiative and identify areas in their school in need of attention, and tackle them. It provides case-study accounts of schemes in a number of schools, together with accounts of the action research based development work undertaken by teachers to improve their schools. The studies illuminate issues such as: improving the quality of learning and teaching; developing an effective school council; building partnerships and community schemes; developing economic and industrial understanding.

Until recently, internal use of the armed forces has been generally regarded by the public, as well as academic commentators, as conduct to be expected of a military or autocratic regime, not a democratic government. There is however growing concern that the 'war on terror' has been used to condition public opinion to accept the internal deployment of the armed forces, including for broader industrial and political purposes. This book examines the national and international law, human rights and civil liberties issues involved in governments calling out troops to deal with civil unrest or terrorism. As the introduction of military call-out legislation has become an emerging global trend in the opening years of the 21st century, there is considerable and growing interest in the constitutional and related problems surrounding the deployment of military forces for domestic purposes. Examining the changes underway in six comparable countries, the United States, Canada, Britain, Germany, Japan and Australia, this book provides a review and analysis of this trend, including its implications for legal and political rights.

In the post-2001 context of economic and political conflict, this book presents a timely and detailed examination of the role of the criminal law in the protection of the existing order from political dissent and destabilization. It reviews offences such as rebellion, treason, mutiny, espionage, sedition, terrorism, riot and unlawful assembly in the UK, US, Canada and Australia from a comparative perspective and investigates leading cases in their historical and political contexts. Also examining the impact on human rights and civil liberties, this book covers a neglected area of English-derived law and will encourage debate about crimes against states and governments.

Why have the early years of the 21st century seen increasing use of emergency-type powers or claims of supra-legal executive authority, particularly by the Western countries regarded as the world's leading democracies, notably the United States? This book examines the extraordinary range of executive and prerogative powers, emergency legislation, martial law provisos and indemnities in countries with English-derived legal systems, primarily the UK, the US and Australia. The author challenges attempts by legal and academic theorists to relativise, rationalise, legitimise or propose supposedly safe limits for the use of emergency powers, especially since the September 2001 terrorist attacks. This volume also considers why the reputation of Carl Schmitt, the best-known champion of 'exceptional' dictatorial powers during the post-1919 Weimer Republic in Germany, and who later enthusiastically served and sanctified the Nazi dictatorship, is being rehabilitated, and examines why his totalitarian doctrines are thought to be of relevance to modern society. This diverse book will be of importance to politicians, the media, the legal profession, as well as academics and students of law, humanities and politics.

This book examines the national and international law, human rights and civil liberties issues involved in governments calling out the armed forces to deal with civil unrest or terrorism. The introduction of domestic military powers has become an international trend. Troops already have been seen on the streets in major Western democracies. These developments raise major political, constitutional and related problems. Examining the changes underway in eight comparable countries—the United States, Canada, Britain, France, Italy, Germany, Japan and Australia—this book provides a review and analysis of this trend, including its implications for legal and political rights. The book will be of interest to the general public, as well as students, academics and policy-makers in the areas of human rights and civil liberties, constitutional law, criminal justice and security studies.

This book builds on Head’s previous work on Soviet legal scholar Evgeny Pashukanis, challenging Western academics who separate Pashukanis's theories from the complex realities of the Soviet state's decline under Stalin.It is not, this book argues, possible to analyse the emergence of Pashukanis as a preeminent Soviet legal theorist in the 1920s, and the subsequent retractions and reversals of his theories, outside their historical context. That context includes the prior development of Marxist legal theory, the contradictions and dynamics of the 1917 Russian Revolution, the early achievements of the Soviet state in law-related fields, the emergence of the Stalinist regime, and Pashukanis’ efforts to satisfy the demands of that regime. Reviewing the trials and the cruel methods used to pursue opponents of the Stalinist regime, the book draws on newly available material to offer a thorough analysis of what exactly it was in Pashukanis’ writings that made his disappearance essential for Stalin’s regime. In our current age of economic inequality, environmental crisis, and growing disillusionment with global capitalism, this book offers a fresh perspective on what happened in the Soviet Union, separating genuine revolutionary ideals from their later distortion.Revolution, Marxism and Law will appeal to scholars and students in legal theory, especially those interested in socialist legal theory, critical legal theory and Marxism, as well as those in other disciplines with an interest in Russia and the rise and fall of the Soviet Union.

As globalization continues to spread and evolve, so nation-states attempt to govern financialization, tax evasion, corruption, terrorism, civil and military conflicts and environmental dangers, social polarization and the complexities in human rights implementation, by institutional and transnational means. This volume discusses these issues from different legal perspectives and highlights the challenges of governing human activity in an age of remarkable interconnectedness. Covering a broad range of policy areas and analysis of emerging forms of governance from liberal to critical and Marxist, the chapters are legal in their approach and form an important contribution to the growing study of emergent forms of authority, coordination and power developing in response to the challenges presented by some of the key contemporary governance issues in the first half of the twenty-first century.

In the post-2001 context of economic and political conflict, this book presents a timely and detailed examination of the role of the criminal law in the protection of the existing order from political dissent and destabilization. It reviews offences such as rebellion, treason, mutiny, espionage, sedition, terrorism, riot and unlawful assembly in the UK, US, Canada and Australia from a comparative perspective and investigates leading cases in their historical and political contexts. Also examining the impact on human rights and civil liberties, this book covers a neglected area of English-derived law and will encourage debate about crimes against states and governments.

Until recently, internal use of the armed forces has been generally regarded by the public, as well as academic commentators, as conduct to be expected of a military or autocratic regime, not a democratic government. There is however growing concern that the 'war on terror' has been used to condition public opinion to accept the internal deployment of the armed forces, including for broader industrial and political purposes. This book examines the national and international law, human rights and civil liberties issues involved in governments calling out troops to deal with civil unrest or terrorism. As the introduction of military call-out legislation has become an emerging global trend in the opening years of the 21st century, there is considerable and growing interest in the constitutional and related problems surrounding the deployment of military forces for domestic purposes. Examining the changes underway in six comparable countries, the United States, Canada, Britain, Germany, Japan and Australia, this book provides a review and analysis of this trend, including its implications for legal and political rights.

The issue of who has the power to declare war or authorise military action in a democracy has become a major legal and political issue, internationally, and is set to become even more pertinent in the immediate future, particularly in the wake of military action in Syria, ongoing wars in the Middle East, and tense discussions between the United States and its allies, and Russia and China. This book comparatively examines the executive and prerogative powers to declare war or launch military action, focusing primarily on the United States, Britain and Australia. It explores key legal and constitutional questions, including: who currently has the power/authority to declare war?who currently has the power to launch military action without formally declaring war?how, if at all, can those powers be controlled, legally or politically?what are the domestic legal consequences of going to war? In addition to probing the extensive domestic legal consequences of going to war, the book also reviews various proposals that have been advanced for interrogating the power to commence armed conflict, and explores the reasons why these propositions have failed to win support within the political establishment.

As globalization continues to spread and evolve, so nation-states attempt to govern financialization, tax evasion, corruption, terrorism, civil and military conflicts and environmental dangers, social polarization and the complexities in human rights implementation, by institutional and transnational means. This volume discusses these issues from different legal perspectives and highlights the challenges of governing human activity in an age of remarkable interconnectedness. Covering a broad range of policy areas and analysis of emerging forms of governance from liberal to critical and Marxist, the chapters are legal in their approach and form an important contribution to the growing study of emergent forms of authority, coordination and power developing in response to the challenges presented by some of the key contemporary governance issues in the first half of the twenty-first century.

Why have the early years of the 21st century seen increasing use of emergency-type powers or claims of supra-legal executive authority, particularly by the Western countries regarded as the world's leading democracies, notably the United States? This book examines the extraordinary range of executive and prerogative powers, emergency legislation, martial law provisos and indemnities in countries with English-derived legal systems, primarily the UK, the US and Australia. The author challenges attempts by legal and academic theorists to relativise, rationalise, legitimise or propose supposedly safe limits for the use of emergency powers, especially since the September 2001 terrorist attacks. This volume also considers why the reputation of Carl Schmitt, the best-known champion of 'exceptional' dictatorial powers during the post-1919 Weimer Republic in Germany, and who later enthusiastically served and sanctified the Nazi dictatorship, is being rehabilitated, and examines why his totalitarian doctrines are thought to be of relevance to modern society. This diverse book will be of importance to politicians, the media, the legal profession, as well as academics and students of law, humanities and politics.

This fully updated third edition of Law in Perspectivefocuses on a range of powerful critical thinking tools drawn from logic, science, ethics, and political and social theory.Sections on terrorism and refugee law have been expanded, climate change is discussed throughout, and new chapters have been added on law and Indigenous people, lawyers’ ethics and corporate power.The book considers the relationship between legal theory, social theory and empirical research methods, as a guide for students taking on higher degrees in legal research. It also analyses key theories of the nature and social role of law, including legal positivism, natural law theory and Marxist theory of law.

For over forty years, Michael Head has been creating inspirational music that is rooted in the streets of Liverpool. He formed Pale Fountains with his friend Chris McCaffrey in the early 1980s, and then after McCaffrey tragically died from a brain tumour, he went on to create Shack with his brother John. But during a career that has been beset with tragedy, addiction, loss and bad luck, Head has continued to create exceptional music - and in 2022 he had his biggest commercial success with The Red Elastic Band's Dear Scott.This is Head's story. It is a story of growing up in Liverpool, of thwarted dreams, self-sabotage, chronic substance abuse, homelessness and brushes with death. It is also a story of an under-appreciated genius, of transcendental songs and the healing power of art and music and family and love.This is the life-affirming story of Michael Head, told in his own poetic voice, a man who walked barefoot over broken glass for forty years before the world caught up with what the faithful already knew: this man is Britain's greatest songwriter.

A thorough examination of Pashukanis’ writings, this book is a significant contribution to a proper assessment of Pashukanis’ work, the value of his theoretical legacy and the contemporary relevance of Marxist legal theory.Interest in the best-known Soviet legal scholar, Evgeny Pashukanis, remains widespread and his work retains considerable relevance. His writings provide a rich source of material on the Marxist theory of law and the state, as well as the attempts to apply that doctrine in Soviet Russia. In this book, Michael Head considers Pashukanis’ work both within its historical context and in relation to contemporary legal theory, answering a range of questions including: How and why did Pashukanis emerge as the pre-eminent Soviet jurist from 1924 to 1930?Why did he come under only minor criticism from 1930 to 1936 and then be denounced and executed in 1937 as a 'Trotskyite saboteur'?Why have many Western scholars generally praised the quality and originality of Pashukanis’ work, yet also drawn the conclusion that his fate illustrates the intrinsic impossibility of the entire communist project? Serving as an introduction to Pashukanis and Marxist legal theory and a timely contribution in light of the universal assault on civil liberties in the indefinite 'War on Terror' and the constant escalation of 'law and order' measures in Western societies, this volume is an invaluable resource for those interested in jurisprudence and critical thought.

A thorough examination of Pashukanis’ writings, this book is a significant contribution to a proper assessment of Pashukanis’ work, the value of his theoretical legacy and the contemporary relevance of Marxist legal theory.Interest in the best-known Soviet legal scholar, Evgeny Pashukanis, remains widespread and his work retains considerable relevance. His writings provide a rich source of material on the Marxist theory of law and the state, as well as the attempts to apply that doctrine in Soviet Russia. In this book, Michael Head considers Pashukanis’ work both within its historical context and in relation to contemporary legal theory, answering a range of questions including: How and why did Pashukanis emerge as the pre-eminent Soviet jurist from 1924 to 1930?Why did he come under only minor criticism from 1930 to 1936 and then be denounced and executed in 1937 as a 'Trotskyite saboteur'?Why have many Western scholars generally praised the quality and originality of Pashukanis’ work, yet also drawn the conclusion that his fate illustrates the intrinsic impossibility of the entire communist project? Serving as an introduction to Pashukanis and Marxist legal theory and a timely contribution in light of the universal assault on civil liberties in the indefinite 'War on Terror' and the constant escalation of 'law and order' measures in Western societies, this volume is an invaluable resource for those interested in jurisprudence and critical thought.