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Constitutional Hacks
The constitutions underpinning modern nation-states have proven to be necessary for the proper functioning of liberal democracy. But if a codified structure for the exercise of power were enough, liberal democracy would not be in crisis today.
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Linda Colley, The Gun, the Ship, and the Pen: Warfare, Constitutions, and the Making of the Modern World, Liveright, 2021.
Jan-Werner Mueller, Democracy Rules, Allen Lane, London, 2021; Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York, 2021.
LONDON – It is the crucible of war, Linda Colley argues, that forges constitutions. This claim raises an important question: What will today’s belligerent, combative politics in many countries mean for the future of liberal democracy, whose principles and values are arguably under siege like never before?