In practice, this may have the effect of reasserting basic social democratic principles in politics but, ultimately, the outcome of the economic crisis and the ideological polarisation of the past few years point towards a more radical and unstable conclusion than a return to the post-war settlement.
Mr Schäuble said afterwards that he expects Muslims to sign up to Germany's "basic social and religious principles", such as equality of men and women.The cancellation of the Mozart opera may even speed up the process, because it shows the importance of averting a real clash of cultures.
For anyone seduced by this vision -- and it is, thanks to Mr. Field's skilled direction and Tom Wilkinson's performance, undeniably seductive -- "Behind the Sun" offers a cautionary glimpse into a world in which such violence is a basic principle of social order, the rule rather than the exception.
As a basic principle of social psychology, we tend to like people who like us.
As another basic principle of social psychology, we also tend to like people who are the same as us.
In Civilities and Civil Rights: Greensboro, North Carolina, and the Black Struggle for Freedom, William H. Chafe wrote, "Prizing civility means that people who become confrontational or argumentative have violated a basic principle of social discourse, and they should be shunned and condemned".
The "first subject of justice," Rawls says, is principles that regulate the basic social institutions that constitute the "basic structure of society" (TJ sect.2).
Gift exchange was a basic social mechanism, and reciprocity was something of a universal ethical principle, certainly in pre-industrial societies.
A basic principle of our social covenant is that we do not discriminate against people on the basis of circumstances that they cannot choose, like race, sex and disability.
