In his recent article Saving Samuel Huntington and the Need for Pragmatic Civil–Military Relations, Travis proposes a model of civil–military relations based on “pragmatic civilian control.” This model has three main shortcomings. First, it does not adequately answer the question of “professional supremacy” versus “civilian supremacy” in making crucial decisions during wartime. Second, the distinctions between “wars of choice” and “wars of necessity,” and about the “kind of war” being fought, key theoretical variables mentioned by the author, are hard to judge objectively. And third, the new model would likely exacerbate rather than diminish the problem of military leaders getting involved in political and even partisan controversies; this is particularly problematic, given the unusual situation of many military leaders in the Trump administration occupying civilian positions of authority. If it is to be of practical use to policy makers, future scholarship on pragmatism and civil–military relations must address these weaknesses.
This historical note focuses on the development of psychiatry and forensic expertise in Bucharest between c. 1840 and 1910 under the influence of the European Schools of Medicine of the time. During the 19th century, psychiatry became part of a larger medical agenda, which included the establishment of public and private hospitals and asylums, public health reforms and social legislation for the protection of mentally ill, family planning and ultimately law regulations regarding forensic psychiatry. To date, the history of Romanian psychiatry and forensic medicine in Romania has been neglected, although it proves very resourceful for the understanding the complex relationship between science, political ideals and national contexts, both at a regional and international level. This note provides an insight into the inception of modern psychiatry institutions and scientific advances in Romania, and to the medically trained personalities in Bucharest and Eastern European medicine.
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