This blog post examines how the limitations of legal wording and the scope of judicial discretion collide and harmonize, presenting a perspective that offers a balanced understanding of the tension between democratic legitimacy and purpose rationality.   A long-standing debate exists over whether legal interpretation must be strictly bound by the text. Some affirm such binding, arguing that...

This blog post examines the intellectual evolution and historical context that led Greek intellectuals under Roman rule to progress from compliance and compromise toward eventual assimilation.   In the mid-2nd century CE, Aristides, a Greek from a Roman province, delivered the Oration Against Rome, a speech describing the characteristics of Roman rule. This text holds particular significance...

This blog post examines how advances in science and technology influence legal judgments and why scientific techniques like radiocarbon dating are becoming increasingly important as evidence, using specific examples.   As science and technology rapidly advance and their influence expands into various aspects of daily life, the need for expert scientific knowledge in courtrooms is steadily...

This blog post examines how the risk premium—the reward for accepting risk—changes investor choices and portfolio composition, and how it redefines the balance between profitability and stability.   In economics, the composition of various financial assets held by an individual is called a portfolio. Each asset possesses unique characteristics related to profitability, risk, and liquidity...

This blog post examines the asymmetry between the happiness and pain brought by childbirth from a philosophical perspective, deeply exploring how the ethical meaning differs between what exists and what does not.   Marriage often leads naturally to having children, yet children may suffer harm by being born into this world. They may contract unwanted illnesses or endure the hardships of...

This blog post examines how the new warfare, brought about by globalization and the rise of non-state actors, is shaking the framework of nation-state-based democracy and what kind of shift it demands.   Modern democracy has developed within the political community of the nation-state, centered on nationalism, national identity, and the citizenship rights that accompany nationality. However...

This blog post examines the role of transaction costs in shaping firms’ decisions to buy from the market or produce internally, and specifically analyzes how these choices form firm boundaries and organizational structures.   The methodology of neoclassical economics, which explains economic phenomena starting from the choices of rational economic agents seeking to maximize their...

This blog post examines how the tradition of Roman law commentary, originating in 12th-century Bologna, led to a new scholarly transformation. It traces the flow from the authority of the Digesten, changes in interpretive methods, to Leibniz’s critical approach.   Serious study of the Corpus Juris Civilis began in the 12th century, centered in Bologna. At that time, this legal text was...

This blog post examines the trends of growth and inequality that shook the U.S. economy in the 20th century, providing an in-depth analysis of how changes in education, rather than technology, shaped the labor market and wage structure.   The U.S. economy of the last century can be divided into several distinct periods. From the 1930s until the late 1970s, income inequality moderated...

This blog post explores the beauty effects created by high heels alongside the hidden health burdens they carry, prompting us to consider what choices we should make.   Women and high heels are inseparable. For a long time, they have been considered an inseparable pair. High heels not only give women an elegant and sophisticated impression but also make their legs appear longer and...