Gramsci & Machiavelli (was Re: Ethical foundations of the left)

[Kenneth MacKendrick]

At 12:52 PM 8/1/01 -0400, you wrote:
>>>We can't even make the rulers behave differently, not to mention 
>>>overthrow them, by urging them to read Habermas & reminding them of the 
>>>virtue of the ISS.
>>
>>The ISS is not a virtue. You have misunderstood, rather fatally I might add.
>
>That depends on how you define virtue.  It appears that cognitive 
>consensus between Habermasians & non-Habermasians on key terms in 
>discussion will be impossible, constituting an outcome unwelcome in 
>Habermas's theory.
>
>Yoshie

Define virtue however you want. If it means idealizations inherent to 
communicative processes irregardless of the intentions of participants 
then, by all means, the ISS is a virtue.

As for actual consensus, it is irrelevant to Habermas's theory whether a 
consensus actually emerges. The fact that it is anticipated by those 
committed to discursively redeeming their validity claims is enough.

ken