13 October 2020
The Ugly German
The novel’s two ugly Americans provide useful models for two facets of hegemony as Gramsci theorized it. Hegemony, he insisted, is more than a state of cultural domination. It is better understood as a process of socio-historical change that takes place before power is institutionalized. The two drivers of the hegemonic process Gramsci theorized are consensus and coercion. Continue reading >>
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04 June 2020
In Praise of Uncertainty
The Bundesverfassungsgericht's PSPP decision will have immense consequences. I have no reason to doubt the alarm raised by so many informed and respected commentators. But here’s one small thing that has been lost in the debate so far. The Court’s decision to go its own way on a question of European law might be seen as evidence of the influence of the common law tradition in the European legal system. That’s no bad thing, and it’s probably unavoidable in any case. Continue reading >>
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27 July 2017
Literature as Human Dignity: The Constitutional Court’s Misguided Ban of the Novel Esra
Maxim Biller’s novel Esra ends with the line: “The cave [...] Continue reading >>
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13 January 2017
How to Kill an Idea: An American’s Observations on the NPD Party-Ban Proceedings
Next Tuesday, the German Federal Constitutional Court will announce its decision on the federal states’ application seeking to ban the National Democratic Party of Germany (NPD). In times of a far-right surge all over Europe, the procedure offers ample opportunity to reflect on a constitutional democracy's right to take repressive measures against odious ideas. Continue reading >>07 October 2015
Schrems v. Commissioner: A Biblical Parable of Judicial Power
We might celebrate the Court’s decision in Case C-362/14 as an improbable victory of good (data-privacy) over evil (consumer and intelligence data abuses). But I want to offer some words of caution about god-like judicial power. Continue reading >>
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26 February 2014
Poor Prospects for Internationalization: Germans and Americans in Law Faculties Jenseits des Atlantiks
Introduction For all the noise it makes about internationalizing German [...] Continue reading >>
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30 October 2013
“Ein gewisses Maß an Heuchelei in der deutschen Sorge”
Russell Miller, einer der besten Kenner des deutschen Verfassungsrechts in den USA, erklärt die amerikanische Sicht auf die NSA-Enthüllungen - warum sie vielfach nicht als Problem und jedenfalls nicht als rechtliches Problem gesehen werden und weshalb die zur Schau getragene Empörung der Bundesregierung einen Monat, nachdem das BVerfG die Überwachung von Bundestagsabgeordneten durch den Verfassungsschutz für grundgesetzwidrig erklärt hat, nicht frei von Heuchelei ist. Continue reading >>30 October 2013
“Some Amount of Hypocrisy in the German Alarm”
Russell Miller, a leading expert on German constitutional law in the USA, explains the American perspective on the NSA affair - why Americans don't see it as a legal problem or even as a problem at all, and why the German alarm one month after the Constitutional Court declared the surveillance of members of the Bundestag by the German internal intelligence service unconstitutional appears somewhat hypocritical to American eyes. Continue reading >>
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16 July 2013
Wie die NSA wurde, was sie ist
Die von Edward Snowden enthüllte Überwachungspraxis des US-Geheimdienstes NSA und ihr rechtlicher Rahmen haben einen historischen Hintergrund, der bis in die Nixon-Ära der 70er Jahre zurückreicht. Diesen Hintergrund hat Russell Miller letzte Woche in einem Vortrag an der Universität Freiburg beleuchtet und dabei einige sehr unbehagliche Schlussfolgerungen für die Gegenwart gezogen. Hier das Transkript des Vortrags in voller Länge. Continue reading >>16 July 2013