International Dialogue

Notes from the Editor

I am glad to report that my office remains in disarray during this busy time of the year when ID is being “put together.” Disarray, I believe, is not necessarily a bad thing, suggesting that the creation of a volume of ID is a messy effort. At a time when academics are being given more and more forms to fill-out and committees to serve on, it is no surprise that would be journal editors look for ways to make editorship relatively “painless.” I understand their desire to reap the rewards of editing for the least amount of work. Perhaps streamlining ID’s editorial process is the way to go, but I am not there yet. There is something to be said for a more “visceral” process of managing a peer reviewed publication, resisting even the smallest inroads of large-scale organization. Whereas the economist E. F Schumacher, in his much read Small is Beautiful: Economics as if People Mattered, recognized that the day of large organizations was here to stay, he nevertheless clamored for retaining smallness within the beast. I, on the other hand, am working to maintain smallness and keeping the beast at bay. Although the journal has moved to a new server, and with it a certain degree of “outward” conformity to blend in with a new template, the journal remains the same. ID is far from falling victim to the corporatization of academic publishing, a phenomenon that has transformed the landscape of academic journals (not to mention book publishing).

This volume is as eclectic as ever. No surprise there! Of course, as editor, I continue to nudge the journal in certain ways, particularly when it comes to review essays and book reviews. Reviews of books on human rights, democracy, and political theory, as well as books by the Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Žižek continue to appear in this volume as they have in previous ones.

Volume 6 begins with an article entitled “Failure of Multiculturalism? Immigration, Radical Islamism, and Identity Politics” by Fatos Tarifa and Monica Di Monte. This work is quite timely, given the waves of immigrants from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) that are hitting Europe’s shores and land borders. The authors, from the southern flank of Europe—Albania and Italy, respectively—know this quite well. Unlike those who blindly favor multiculturalism, the authors shed light on the unintended consequences of the multiculturalism implemented by Western European governments. This volume also includes a thought provoking discussion piece by the philosopher David A. White, whose work on Heidegger and Wittgenstein have appeared in previous volumes of ID.

When I first approached David last December, I had already read a short article entitled “Living Philosophy” written by Robert Zaretsky. In that article, Zaretsky discussed Pierre Hadot and how the French philosopher understood philosophy. So what I had in mind for David was for him to pen a “relatively short discussion piece” dealing with Hadot, Zaretsky, and David’s own conception of philosophy. In May he sent me several questions about length, style, and content, which would now include Aristotle and Hume. At that point it was a waiting game to see what sort of piece would come from the north side of Chicago. As it turned out, what we have here in “Philosophers in Search of Life…” is a well-written and interesting discussion by someone who cares deeply about “broadening the scope of the philosophical enterprise.” This dense piece compresses idea upon idea to the point where the reader, while in midstream of the first reading, must acknowledge the need to come around for a second read. This is vintage White!

White’s discussion piece is followed by three review essays that focus on two European philosophers: François Laruelle and Slavoj Žižek and the important issue of humanitarian intervention. Fifteen reviews of books covering a wide range of disciplines fill-out this volume.

I thank the editors in Omaha and elsewhere, staff, and board members for their assistance in putting together this year’s volume. I want to especially thank Kathryn A. Cox Schwartz, who continues to serve as editorial assistant. Her contribution to ID since its inception has been invaluable. I am also pleased to announce that ID has expanded its editorial group. Angela Brown joins us as an administrative assistant. She is also a graduate student in sociology at UNO. Also, I am proud to announce that Edward Sankowski and Betty Harris, both on the faculty at the University of Oklahoma, will join ID as editorial assistants. There continues to be a need for additional editors, which we hope to fill in the coming months. Interested parties should send their letters of interest and CVs to rconces@unomaha.edu.

I thank all those who reviewed manuscript submissions to ID over the past year. I am grateful for their adherence to deadlines and, most importantly, their insightful comments to both editors and authors. The following list includes board members and external referees who reviewed submissions for this volume:

• Elizabeth Chalecki, University of Nebraska at Omaha
• Lisa Ferrari, University of Puget Sound
• Curtis Hutt, University of Nebraska at Omaha
• Ramazan Kilinç, University of Nebraska at Omaha
• Paul Kriese, Indiana University East
• Joseph Price, University of Nebraska at Omaha

- R.J.C. -- Omaha