Kant's "World Republic"
<p>Like many of the intellectual constructions that inform his political thinking, Kant's ‘world republic’ is an Ideal of Reason. His theory of the ideal is expressly anti-utopian. The utopian is the one who thinks that the ideal can be realized, and who therefore sets out to destroy the obstacles that stand in its way. The Kantian believes that ideals cannot be realized, since we live in an imperfect world, impeded by empirical circumstances. Ideals must be construed as regulative principles, which guide us down the path of ameliorization. Hence we must strive always to amend things, and never to tear them down.</p>
<p data-mce-="">— <em>Kant, A Very Short Introduction</em>, by Roger Scruton, 2001, p. 127</p>