Negotiating normative premises in democracy promotion: Venezuela and the Inter-American Democratic Charter

ABSTRACT

This article analyses negotiations on democracy promotion by looking at the case of the Inter-American Democratic Charter. It argues that Venezuela contested the concept of representative democracy during the Charter negotiations, advancing the notion of “participatory and protagonist democracy” and that, even if it was unsuccessful in its demands, the country contributed to deepening the debate on the concept of democracy, on which there is far from worldwide consensus. The article suggests that the main drivers of the negotiation process and the final agreement were domestic political changes in Venezuela, specific features of the negotiations, and the structural position of Venezuela in the field of democracy promotion in the global and regional contexts, which were, at the time, favourable to a compromising attitude to conclusion of the Charter, even if not to the concept of democracy.     

Dermestes maculatus (Coleoptera: Dermestidae) development under fluoxetine effect using two drug administration models

Fluoxetine is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, commonly used for the treatment of a variety of psychopathological conditions. As such, fluoxetine may be expected to appear in clinical and forensic cases. Dermestes maculatus De Geer (Coleoptera: Dermestidae) has been recognized as a relevant component of the insect fauna associated with decomposing human and animal remains. Experiments were conducted to study the effect of fluoxetine on developing D. maculatus using two‐drug administration models: a non‐living animal model (pork muscle) and a living one (Sus scrofa L. pigs). We assessed the duration of immature stages and total life cycle, as well as morphological parameters (body length, cephalic width, and weight). The effect of fluoxetine was studied at an overdose concentration: In the non‐living animal model the drug was mixed with macerated pork muscle (2000 mg/kg) and in the living animal model, pigs were given the drug orally (833 mg/kg). A control was used for each model. Daily observations were performed from the beginning to the end of the experiments. GC‐MS was used for drug detection and quantification. There were no statistically significant differences in the duration of immature stages, life cycle, larval mortality, morphological parameters, or sex ratio, between treatment and control, regardless of the drug administration model. Given that fluoxetine had no detectable effect on the development of D. maculatus, detection of this drug in forensic situations would not compromise the accuracy of PMI estimations.     

Trade Unions and Political Parties in Italy (1946–2014): Ideological Positions and Critical Junctures

The paper investigates party-union relationships in Italy (1946–2014) by hand-coding parties’ parliamentary speeches and trade unions’ congress motions. In line with the cartel party thesis, a time series analysis shows that the ideological closeness between the left-wing Italian General Confederation of Labour and left-wing parties deteriorated when the Italian Socialist Party (1980) and the heirs of the Italian Communist Party (1998) converged toward the centre of the ideological spectrum. Conversely, the closeness between the Catholic-inspired Italian Confederation of Workers’ Unions and the heirs of Christian Democracy increased after 1994, when the former party’s leftist factions became the major part of the Italian Popular Party.     

Understanding third‐party advertising: An analysis of the 2004, 2006 and 2008 Canadian elections

For approximately two decades, the federal regulation for third‐party election spending was the focus of repeated constitutional debate. However, with the 2004 Supreme Court decision in Harper v. Canada, a relative level of policy stability has been established. This stability permits us to evaluate the performance of spending limits according to the principles of the egalitarian model on which it is based. Using an original data set compiled from third‐party election advertising reports from the 2004, 2006 and 2008 federal elections, this article offers the first empirical analysis of this important election policy. A number of observations can be offered. First, third parties are not spending large amounts relative to spending limits. Second, despite legislative changes in 2006 banning all federal party contributions except those from individuals, there appears little strategic action by third parties in spending “around” contribution limits. During this three‐election cycle, third parties quite simply did not spend significant amounts. Current third‐party spending limits therefore appear to be situated comfortably within the expectations of the egalitarian model, though why third parties of all types spend so little remains in question.     

Refusing to be a reasonable man: Feminism takes on the law

Regina Graycar and Jenny Morgan, The Hidden Gender of Law (The Federation Press) Leichhardt, 1990; Ngaire Naffine, Law and the Sexes (Allen and Unwin) Sydney, 1990.     

Achievement of autonomy by nonhandicapped and mildly learning handicapped adolescents

This study examines the achievement of autonomy by a sample of 30 midly learning handicapped and 30 nonhandicapped adolescents. From participant observation over the course of a school year, a detailed account was obtained about the life of each subject, both in the home and among friends outside the home. Findings suggest that autonomy is achieved through a gradual process of negotiation during the high school years. The mildly handicapped adolescents generally lag behind their regular education counterparts in breaking away from the family. While almost three-fourths of the nonhandicapped sample had made significant gains toward increased freedom, less than half of the mildly handicapped sample had shed close supervision by parents. However, most of the handicapped adolescents were satisfied with the limited freedom they had. The data suggest that autonomy should be understood as relative to the needs and abilities of each individual. Not all adolescents develop at the same pace; not all feel the same desire to assert their independence from their parents when they reach a particular age.This research was supported by Grant HD23097 from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.Received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Irvine. Current interest is the adjustment problems of mildly learning handicapped adolescents.Received her Ed.D. from Columbia University. Current interest is social competence of mildly learning handicapped populations and family adjustment.