Razón de Estado y razones del Estado, (Decimas Conferencias Aranguren)

Abstract

As against bad «reasons of state», both past and present, a number of good reasons of state are put forward here as sound demands for times to come. One of the aims we try to attain is a necessary theoretical and practical retrieval of politics along with culture and ethics in the public field. As against the prevailing untrammelled power of economics -in particular its purportedly one version, namely «scientific capitalism» and the quite lopsided globalization- it becomes mandatory to completely take into account the view-point of general interests (both national and transnational, universal); and, within that framework, legitimate individual interests, mainly those of broad social sections least endowed with bargaining leverage and resources. The ground for those good reasons of state (and reasons, too, for a civil society critically harmonized with the state) lies in an ethics of enlightened values of freedom, equality and brotherhood (solidarity), as well as of such security as stems from social cohesion (a conjunction of justice and efficiency).