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AbstractAccording to some observers, Japanese foreign policy has traditionnally been that of a "reactive state", content to respond to the actions of others, whilst for others, notably Susan Pharr, this policy has been that of a "defensive state", seeking to minimize risks and maximize benefits. This article opts for the latter interpretation, but wonders if Japan has been capable of adopting a more proactive foreign policy in the post-Cold War era more commensurate with its real importance internationally. It emphasizes the internal and external difficulties which Japan must overcome before such a new foreign policy becomes a reality.

The term Political Ridiculous refers to a large-scale change in political culture. The hypothesis of this article is that this mutation is at a fundamental aesthetic level for politics. The tragical as the foundation of politics has been replaced by the comical. Another hypothesis is that the transition to contemporary fascism is made through the methodological use of the political ridiculous transformed into capital, especially in electoral processes shaped by populism. The article therefore proposes to introduce the concept of ridicule through an analysis of the laughable as a psycho-political form of control and social catharsis.

ABSTRACTThis paper examines the making of public policy from a probability-based consequentialist perspective. Using nuclear deterrence policies as an example, I show that those truly committed environmental protection, those who truly care about the environment should not accept probability-based consequentialism without the reconsideration principle, a principle introduced in this paper. The reconsideration principle must be accepted, because without it, probability-based consequentialism can justify continuing to act on policies even when they have failed, and even when they undermine their original goal altogether. Thus, we conclude that the reconsideration principle is neeaed to insure connection between the justification policies and their success.

Since economy incites interpretations, it belongs to semiotics. Economy is one of semiotic forms of reasoning in politics. This paper deals with semiotics, the logic of politics, and the link between politics and psychology. The domain of politics is founded on the encounter between identities of actors expressed in exchange, in money, in trade, and in metalinguistic terms. The semiotics of economy is a political form of semiotics since money is an expression of power. The institution of money and of swap exchange are expressions of semiotization of the economy because money may be compared to language. The institution of money by power can be compared to the institution of language by political power. Economy also belongs to politics because there is in it an expression of utopia and of imagination. Hence, it is possible to apply to economy the three instances elaborated by psychanalyst J. Lacan : the real, the imaginary, and the symbolic.

Keywords: Sémiotique, pouvoir, monnaie, économie politique, change, échange, Semiotics, Power, Money, Political Economy, Exchange, Trade

ABSTRACTThis article discusses the necessity of reintegrating political history into Quebec historiography. With no pretense of being exhaustive, it outlines the conditions of and certain steps necessary for such a reintegration, and attempts to present its limitations and its possibilities. Focussing on a better comprenhension of the nature of the political and on an analysis of the internal tensions of the discipline in Quebec since the end of the 1960s, it proposes that this reintegration will be possible only through a renewal of traditional political history, directed towards new objects of study and new approaches, and through a revalorisation of the political itself. To demonstrate this contention, the article analyses a number of aspects of the work of political and other historians. It then examines, deplores and explains the past and present isolation of political history. Finally, it invites, in a spirit of mutual respect, a dialogue between historians of all fields in order to promote the reintegration of political history into historical explanation. From this will emerge the renewed position that political history might occupy in the practice of history today.

We attempt to situate political capital in the Quebec context by measuring its parliamentary consequences among elected members of the National Assembly who have served since 2003. To measure the parliamentary consequences of political capital, we mainly study the impact of two factors—previous political experience of elected officials at other levels of government, and family ties—on access to various important parliamentary positions. Two sets of regression models are presented. The first set analyzes the accession to parliamentary office of MPs throughout their legislative career, while the second set replicates the variables of the first set, applying them only to parliamentary recruits. We conclude that political capital can only play a role in an individual's legislative career in certain very specific contexts. Family ties have no impact on access to legislative positions, while federal or provincial political experience has a slight positive effect when considering the entire career of elected officials. Local political experience (municipal or school) has significant negative effects on the chances of accessing different parliamentary positions.

Keywords: capital politique, fonctions parlementaires, carrières parlementaires, dynasties politiques, représentation politique, Québec, political capital, parliamentary functions, parliamentary careers, political dynasties, political representation, Quebec