Is There a Canadian Philosophy?: Reflections on the Canadian Identity

Bibliography

IS THERE A CANADIAN PHILOSOPHY? We might take our lead from Ronald A.Heiner, who concludes from his investi­ gation of spontaneous orders that "the mixture of monopoly versus competitive forces embodied within different institutions may noticeably affect whether any historical trend toward greater social efficiency will evolve or not." Heiner sug­ gests that "wemight try to determine what kind of institutional features [empha­ sis added] would encourage or discourage a competitive discovery process from guiding their own future evolution" (Heiner 1990, 58). In his article, Heiner is studying the evolution of economic efficiency, but the situation is analogous in the case of political evolution. He writes: The development of learning and entrepreneurial skills required for a viable long run competitive process may itself depend on them generating both stabilizing and de­ stabilizing tendencies.... We thus might investigate how these seemingly opposing forces interact, perhaps even complementing each other under certain conditions. Likewise, we could analyse the circumstances under which one of these forces may become relatively more dominant, and how this might affect both short and long run dynamic tendencies of an economy [as well as a political process], (ibid.) 22. "Ontogenesis has to do with the predetermined development of individ­ uals, something indeed set by inherent mechanisms built into the genome of the germ cell. Bycontrast, phylogeny—that with which evolution is concerned—deals with the evolutionary history of the species or type.... [S]tudents of affairs unfa­ miliar with biology often fall victim to their ignorance and are led to 'historicist' beliefs" (Hayek 1988,26). 23. This principle is not put forth naively, that is, it is not intended as an absolute and the converse is not intended at all. The role of contingency must of course be recognized and the importance of benevolence to those who suffer is understood. 24. Or the 1995 Quebec referendum. Even in these cases, in a free society, the response to such emergencies is characterized by spontaneity as opposed to central organization. Bibliography Boettke, Peter J. 1990. "The Theory of Spontaneous Order and Cultural Evolution in the Social Theory of F.A. Hayek." Cultural Dynamics 3, no. 1. diZerega, Gus. 1989. "Democracy as a Spontaneous Order." Critical Review 3, no. 2 (Spring). Geertz, Clifford. 1973. The Interpretation of Cultures. New York: Harper Collins. Harris, Ingrid. 1996. A Natural History of Causality: Philosoph­ ical Principles Toward More Human Sciences.Ph.D.disser­ tation. Hamilton, Ont.: McMaster University. Hayek, F.A. 1973. Law, Legislation, and Liberty. Vol. 1: Rules and Order. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 168 DEMOCRACY IN CANADA: "CANADA" AS A SPONTANEOUS ORDER . 1988. The Fatal Conceit: The Errors of Socialism. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Heiner, Ronald A. 1990. "Hayekian Competition: From Coor­ dination to Creation." Cultural Dynamics 3, no. 1. Howard, Rhoda E. 1998. "Being Canadian." Citizenship Stud­ ies 2, no. 1. Hume, David. 1989. An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals. Oxford: Clarendon Press. Kirzner, Israel M. 1990. "Knowledge Problems and Their So­ lutions: Some Relevant Distinctions." Cultural Dynamics 3, no. 1. Kymlicka, Will. 1989. Liberalism, Community, and Culture. Oxford: Oxford University Press. . 1994. "Individual and Community Rights." In Judith Baker, ed., Group Rights. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. Lavoie, Don. 1990. "Introduction to F.A. Hayek's Theory of Cultural Evolution: Market and Cultural Processes as Spontaneous Orders." Cultural Dynamics 3, no. 1. Madison, G.B. 1990. "Between Theory and Practice: Hayek on the Logic of Cultural Dynamics." Cultural Dynamics 3, no. 1. . 1998. The Political Economy of Civil Society and Human Rights. London: Routledge. Moir, John S., and Robert E. Saunders. 1970. Northern Destiny: A History of Canada. Toronto: J.M. Dent & Sons. Polanyi, Michael. 1962. Personal Knowledge: Towards a Post­ Critical Philosophy.Chicago: University of Chicago Press. . 1967. The Tacit Dimension. New York: Doubleday. Rizzo, Mario J. 1990. "Hayek's Four Tendencies Toward Equi­ librium." Cultural Dynamics 3, no. 1. 169 IS THEREA CANADIAN PHILOSOPHY? Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. 1996. People to Peo­ ple, Nation to Nation: Highlights from, the Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. Ottawa: Minister of Supply and Services Canada. Smith, Adam. 1982. The Theory of Moral Sentiments. India­ napolis: Liberty Classics. 170 ...