Proper Reason Research Articles

A Note on the Proof of the Zero-One Law of Blum and Pathak

Let $\{(\Omega, \mathscr{A}, \mu_n), n \geqq 1\}$ be a sequence of probability spaces. Blum and Pathak [Ann. Math. Statist. 43 (1972) 1008-1009] proved a zero-one law for permutation invariant sets $A \epsilon \mathscr{A}^\infty$; which includes the zero-one laws of Hewitt and Savage [Trans. Amer. Math. Soc. 80 (1955) 470-501] and Horn and Schach [Ann. Math. Statist. 41 (1970) 2130-2131] as special cases. The proper reason for this is shown to be the fact that the set of measures admitting the zero-one law of Blum and Pathak coincides with the set of all strong limit points of measures admitting the zero-one law of Horn and Schach.

Domestic Factors in German Foreign Policy before 1914

Gordon Craig recently deplored the fact that political history, and particularly diplomatic history, no longer attracts the attention of historians or the public as much as has been the case up to now. In his opinion there is no proper reason why this should be so; foreign relations and diplomacy matter very much indeed, and deserve to be studied by historians on their own merits, at least up to a point. However, there are valid reasons why diplomatic history nowadays is in a sort of crisis, and why more and more historians have come to believe that it is not enough to study the diplomatic files, however diligently this may be done, and to inquire about the deeds and motives of the fairly small groups that monopolize decision-making in foreign relations. Most historians nowadays are agreed upon the principle that foreign policy must be explained just as much by finding the social and economic factors conditioning it, as by analyzing the activities going on the level of official diplomacy.