Money for our people? Decentralisation and corruption in Romania: the cases of the equalisation,infrastructure and pre‐university education funds

In spite of the attempts, in the most recent years, to introduce simple, accountable and rule‐based mechanisms governing the flows of funds for Romanian local governments (LGs) there is evidence showing that deviations from the norms are still widespread and undermine the stated goals of many policies. This article aims to explore to what extent the political factor (party affiliation, i.e. local informal power networks) interferes with the allocation of public funds as far as three main areas of decentralised policy are concerned: (i) the general purpose equalisation transfers; (ii) the Roads Fund grants and (iii) the transfers for financing the pre‐university education. These components represent a relatively large share of the local budgets and are illustrative for two important attributions Romanian LGs perform today: maintaining the local infrastructure and providing essential social services. Through a set of variables—measuring, on the one hand, the real pattern of resource allocation and on the other hand, the intensity of politicisation in the three areas—we tested the hypothesis that intergovernmental financial flows in Romania are to a large extent captured by rent‐seeking groups. It turns out that this is indeed the case with the funds for infrastructure, and much less so with the transfers financing pre‐university education. Some conclusions from these contrasting situations are drawn which reflect on the broader discussion, the link between decentralisation and corruption. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

ASEAN At 50: the global political economy’s contribution to durability

Why has the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) proved so durable as a regional organisation given the many challenges it has faced since its inception in 1967? This analysis makes use of an historical institutionalist approach. It shows how the global political economy, through the injection of aid and investment and the development of production networks and increased trade, generated a generally positive regional economic environment that encouraged cooperation. It also provided the resources for the gradual institutionalisation of ASEAN and the expansion of its reach through the establishment of associated regional organisations. The result was that these factors, in combination, contributed to ASEAN’s staying power.     

STR data for the 15 AmpFlSTR identifiler loci in the Western Romanian population

Allele frequencies for the 15 tetranucleotide short tandem repeat loci contained in the AmpFlSTR Identifiler kit were obtained from a population sample of 219 unrelated individuals born in the western part of Romania.     

Myocardial Bridging: A Meta‐Analysis of Prevalence

The main objective of this article was to analyze prevalence data about myocardial bridging (MB) in published studies. To this purpose, we performed a meta‐analysis of studies published in English literature that contained data about the prevalence of MB and its anatomical characteristics. The overall prevalence was 19% (CI: 17–21%); autopsy studies revealed an overall prevalence of 42% (CI: 30–55%), CT studies 22% (CI: 18–25%), and coronary angiography 6% (CI: 5–8%). Most bridges were located on the left anterior descending artery (82% overall, 63% on autopsy studies), had a mean thickness of 2.47 mm and a mean length of 19.3 mm. In conclusion, autopsy studies should be the gold standard in evaluating the actual prevalence of myocardial bridges, while in vivo high‐resolution CT scanning should be preferred to coronary angiography studies.     

Patterns of injuries in domestic violence in a romanian population

In Romania, the quantification of traumatic injuries is achieved in medical- legal services; therefore, each domestic violence (DV) victim needs a medical-legal certificate to prove in a court of law the presence of traumatic injuries. In this study, we aimed to determine the pattern of traumatic injuries in DV. A total of 219 consecutive DV cases were included. For each victim, a detailed medical-legal examination was performed, including specialized consults, if needed. Results were analyzed statistically using the SPSS software. Traumatic injuries in DV cases were usually located in the head, face, and neck areas and had a low severity index. Severe lesions were found in less than 10% and no sexual aggression was found. The severity increases with age and is higher for males than females. The pattern of DV-associated injuries we have encountered is similar to the one found in other similar studies. Knowing this pattern may be useful in clinical practice to detect cases of DV.     

Deaths due to jambia-inflicted lesions in a domestic environment

Domestic violence is a significant health problem affecting women all around the world by causing a wide range of physical and psychological traumas. Yemen has a very high percentage of women experiencing intimate partner violence (up to 50%) and a high mortality rate. In this article, we are presenting 3 particular cases of domestic violence deaths in which the weapon used was a jambia (jambia, jambiah, jambiya, djambia), a special dagger specific to Yemen and the surrounding areas. We are also summarizing the main characteristics of jambia-inflicted lesions and their thanatology.     

Acts of collusion: myth,media, and the populist imagination in the 2016 United States presidential election

ABSTRACT

This article considers the hypothesis that the 2016 nomination of Hillary Clinton appeared rigged because the Democratic Party persuaded itself that the next step in guaranteeing Obama’s legacy and advancing democratic progress would be the election of the first woman president. Democracy finds logical steps in politics suspicious (even dangerous); consequently, the constructed stability and order begin to falter or appear compromised. In this context, populist figures like Trump may gain political legitimacy by claiming to be outsiders speaking with the voice of the people. Populism, founded on a mythical notion of sovereignty, promises direct access to the democratic experience through four interconnected mythologies (unity, conspiracy, the golden age, and the savior), as evident in the 2016 election. The democratic struggle accordingly extended to Trump’s attacks on the media (as “fake news”) and to the Mueller investigation of collusion between the Trump campaign and foreign actors representing the Russian government.     

Particularities Regarding the Etiology of Sepsis in Forensic Services

If in clinical practice definitive diagnostic criteria had been established, after death sepsis is often difficult to diagnose, especially if a site of origin is not found or if no clinical data are available. This article will analyze the etiology of sepsis in a medical‐legal service with emphasis on the differences in diagnosing it in clinical and forensic environments. A total of 78 cases of sepsis cases diagnosed or confirmed at the autopsy were selected. The etiological agent was determined either during the hospitalization or by postmortem bacteriology. A high prevalence of Gram‐negative sepsis was found, especially multidrug‐resistant micro‐organisms. Most frequent etiological agents were Acinetobacter baumannii, Escherichia coli, Enterobacter, Enterococcus, Pseudomonas, and Klebsiella. Polymicrobial sepsis is much more frequent than in nonforensic cases. In legal medicine, the prevalence of Gram‐negative sepsis is much higher than in nonforensic autopsies, and the point of origin is shifted toward the skin and the gastrointestinal system.