Mind Slaughter: The Neutralizations of Jihadi Salafism

This article focuses on the neutralizations of the jihadi Salafi ideology. It is divided into three parts. The first describes the various rhetorical accounts that ordinary people use to neutralize conventional moral controls against inhumane conduct. The second traces how these accounts inform and drive the jihadi Salafi worldview. The third, and concluding, part of the article sketches out the policy implications of the analysis set out here, arguing that any attempt to derail the global Salafi jihad must critically undermine the core neutralizations of the jihadi Salafi ideology, since it is these which enable jihadi combatants to escape conventional moral constraints and perpetrate acts of inhumanity.     

Jihadi Strategic Studies: The Alleged Al Qaida Policy Study Preceding the Madrid Bombings

This article analyzes an Al Qaida strategy document about Iraq that received considerable attention after the Madrid bombings because of its references to the Spanish elections. The current article discusses the origin, content, and significance of the document and argues that it represents a hitherto unidentified genre in radical Islamist literature, namely "jihadi strategic studies." The text, which is secular in style, analytical in its approach, and pragmatic in its conclusions, displays a level of political awareness that breaks with most preconceptions about religious fundamentalist thought. Moreover, it dispels the myth of a unified and coherent "Al Qaida ideology."‐     

Reclaiming Scholarly Authority: Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi's Critique of Jihadi Practices

This article deals with the attempts by the radical Islamist ideologue Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi to reclaim scholarly authority over jihad, a phenomenon he has helped promote but that has led to excesses he disagrees with and has increasingly become the prerogative of fighters instead of scholars. These attempts by al-Maqdisi to reassert his own jihadi authority are expressed through criticism of certain jihadi practices and advice to jihad fighters. Because al-Maqdisi has been in the forefront of radical scholars calling for jihad, his criticism has been dismissed by some jihadis as revisionism of his earlier views and as the words of a man lacking any fighting experience himself. This article argues that al-Maqdisi's criticism of certain jihadi practices does not constitute revisionism of his earlier views but is an effort to take greater scholarly control of the jihadi trend that he has partly inspired but which—in the hands of militants—has also developed beyond what he sees as useful and even Islamically legitimate.     

Multimedia Content Coding and Analysis: Unraveling the Content of Jihadi Extremist Groups' Videos

This article presents an exploratory study of jihadi extremist groups’ videos using content analysis and a multimedia coding tool to explore the types of video, groups’ modus operandi, and production features that lend support to extremist groups. The videos convey messages powerful enough to mobilize members, sympathizers, and even new recruits to launch attacks that are captured (on video) and disseminated globally through the Internet. They communicate the effectiveness of the campaigns and have a much wider impact because the messages are media rich with nonverbal cues and have vivid images of events that can evoke not only a multitude of psychological and emotional responses but also violent reactions. The videos are important for jihadi extremist groups’ learning, training, and recruitment. In addition, the content collection and analysis of extremist groups’ videos can help policymakers, intelligence analysts, and researchers better understand the extremist groups’ terror campaigns and modus operandi, and help suggest counterintelligence strategies and tactics for troop training.     

Comparison of Visual Motifs in Jihadi and Cholo Videos on YouTube

Homegrown Sunni extremists (jihadis) and Latin American street gang members (cholos) represent potential threats to national security. Both groups are known to inhabit the video- sharing website YouTube. Videos representative of each group were selected at random, and the visual motifs in the videos were categorized. Findings suggest similarities and differences between the two groups that may have significance for how practitioners address each threat, and for determining the likelihood that the two groups may begin to work in concert. The portraits that emerge of jihadis and cholos may assist in developing strategies to counter the violence perpetrated by each.     

Terrorism as Transnational Advocacy: An Organizational and Tactical Examination

This article attempts to shed light on the dynamics and machinations within terrorist organizations by incorporating a heretofore overlooked literature which is directly applicable, that of transnational advocacy networks (TANs). Terror networks have been described using every possible analogy, from multinational corporations to organized crime to the anthropomorphic classic “cut off the head, and the body will die.” In reality, terrorist organizations function in much the same way, and using many of the same techniques, as transnational advocacy networks concerned with issues like the environment or human rights. By describing these characteristics, and comparing TANs and Terror TANs (TTANs), this article aims to offer insight into the tactics and motivations that define modern, as well as the much heralded post-modern, terrorism.     

Turnover,Trust, and Transfers: An Examination of Local Government Budget Execution

Abstract

Studies of budget execution focus either on the procedural aspects of internal controls and adjustments or the necessity of the changes made in the original budget. Adjustments made on an ongoing basis without undermining the integrity of the budget has been generally seen as a necessary means of creating flexibility while maintaining appropriate controls. In this context, our article addresses one aspect of the local government budget—whether turnover in key leadership and professional position affects the amount of transfer and reprogramming made during the execution process. Based on surveys of municipal budget offices in the Greater Cincinnati area, we report that turnover in some leadership positions does affect budget transfers. This finding also supports the proposition that the stability of key budget roles is an important factor in the budget execution process.     

An Examination of Pre-Purchase Information-Search Tendencies of an Immigrant Population

Abstract

Perhaps because immigration is currently one of the most hotly debated issues in America (e.g., Kuttner 2004), there is little appetite, especially lately, in the academic literature for an examination of some of the more serious, but lesser known issues that go along with this key demographic factor. These currently ignored issues nonetheless have serious implications for businesses (Crock 2004), the government (Bernstein et al. 2004), public-policy makers (Magnusson and Kripalani 2003) and social-service providers (Dobbs 2004), among others.

One such much ignored, albeit serious issue is that of how immigrants gather information to solve problems (including those of consumption) in their new host culture. This issue has been barely investigated in the academic literature, though anecdotal evidence from the popular press show that it has serious implications for marketers (Vence 2002), public-policy makers (Aldrich and Variyam 2000) and social-service providers (Stewart 1996), among others.

Consequently, in this paper I investigate this issue as follows. First, I focus on Chinese-American immigrants, for reasons I explain later in this paper. Second, I examine assimilational differences between these individuals, again, for reasons I explain later in this paper. Third, I investigate how these differences affect how these individuals search for information prior to the purchase of three durable products (personal computer, video camera and color television) and one non-durable product (dandruff-control shampoo). What I found is that each of the cultural, identificational, and structural assimilation has (1) distinct effects on this search behavior and (2) these effects vary by type of Product-purchase. I conclude by discussing implications of these findings for marketers, social-service providers and public-policy makers, among others.     

“伦人”与“天下”——解读以朝贡体系为核心的古代东亚国际秩序

支配古代东亚国际秩序的基本原理是“角色原理”。这是一种与“单位平等原理”不同的国际秩序原理,它源于核心行为体亲属集团内角色的自然差别,对行为体行为的评价基于对角色的预期。适用于中国人人际关系三个圈子中的三种文化,即“亲人文化”、“熟人文化”和“生人文化”也同样作用于国际行为体之间。与“单位平等原理”相比,“角色原理”对行为体有更高的道德要求,并且内化这种原理基本不触及行为体的身份认同问题,这是“天下”国际秩序及其原理得以高度内化的重要原因。     

论“少女妈妈”溺婴行为的非刑罚化处遇——从两例溺婴案件引发的思考

“少女妈妈”是最近随着社会环境变化所产生的一个新问题，这个特殊群体溺婴的特妹行为为司法处罚带来困境和尴尬。本文从两个案例出发，从该类行为的社会危害性、人格刑法论、刑罚可罚性以及刑法谦抑精神的角度为“少女妈妈”溺婴行为寻找“安全出口”，试图使其去刑罚化。     

Counterterrorism,Community Policing and the Flags Protests: An Examination of Police Perceptions of Northern Ireland's Operation Dulcet

In 2013 Northern Ireland (NI) witnessed the most protracted period of public-disorder ever seen in the United Kingdom. After Belfast City Council voted to fly the Union flag in-line with the manner adopted in the rest of the United Kingdom, loyalist protestors blocked roads, attacked offices, and held marches through Belfast city center. During what became known as Operation Dulcet, police had to respond to the protests and violence, mindful of existing tensions in NI. This article reports on data collected from interviews conducted with officers involved in the policing of these events. The findings demonstrate that the police response was understood using narratives concerning the primacy of human rights, a focus on perceived proportionality, and ultimately, related to the potential violence linked to historic conceptions of community divisions in NI.     

Variations in the Recidivism of Treated and Nontreated Sexual Offenders in New Jersey: An Examination of Three Time Frames

This study examines the recidivism of sexual offenders in New Jersey at three different time intervals: three years, five years, and ten years after release from prison. The sample is comprised of sexual offenders released from the general prison population (untreated sample, n = 150) and the Adult Diagnostic and Treatment Center (ADTC) (treated sample, n = 150), a sex offender specific facility. The goals of this study were twofold: (1) to identify the recidivism rates of sexual offenders and to determine whether sexual offenders who receive treatment demonstrate lower levels of recidivism and (2) to examine whether differences in recidivism exist among the varying time frames and offender subtypes. The results indicate that treated sex offenders maintained decreased nonsexual recidivism rates. Additionally, offenders who committed acts of rape and offenders followed up after six years had increased rates of recidivism.     

审视金融危机背景下的中俄能源合作

金融危机使世界经济遭遇重创,却为中俄能源合作提供了新的契机。2009年4月21日,两国共同签署了《中俄石油领域合作政府间协议》,标志着两国能源合作实现重大突破。然而,中俄在能源合作领域取得的进展不能掩盖其存在的问题,在实际合作运作中,仍然存在着各种复杂的问题,这也使人们认识到中俄能源合作的艰巨性。在肯定机遇、认识困难的同时,仍要坚信随着两国睦邻友好合作关系的加强和战略协作伙伴关系的不断深化,中俄能源合作必然会继续向前发展,不断获得互利双赢的成果。     

The Centrality of Non-traditional Groups for Security in the Globalized Era: The Case of Children

The globalized security situation characterized by transnational threats and international interventionism in "new wars," connect non traditional local actors and traditional global actors to one another in unprecedented ways. We argue that children in particular need to be highlighted because they are highly pertinent to the globalized security situation, yet they make up one of the few agents that have remained non-politicized in the eyes of the scholarly community. The article suggests a framework of analysis that can generate analyses on security of traditional as well as non-traditional agents. Placing non-traditional groups in the center of attention serves to mirror the complexities of the current security situation better.     

哥伦比亚政府反毒反恐战略及其对南美邻国影响—解析“哥伦比亚计划”

从20世纪70年代开始,哥伦比亚的三大武装组织—准军事组织（“哥伦比亚联合自卫军”）、游击队（主要包括“哥伦比亚革命武装力量”和“哥伦比亚民族解放军”）和政府军—之间的对抗不断加剧。同一时期,哥伦比亚还成为世界上最大的非法古柯作物种植区和可卡因产地,毒品组织与以上三大武装的联系和矛盾日益复杂。     

国外共产党现状及前景

目前,世界上约有100个国家127个仍保持原名的共产党或坚持马克思主义性质的政党(苏东剧变前世界共产党总数是180多个,剧变之初降到120多个.此外,还有20余个从过去的共产党改名或分裂出来的党),党员总人数约700多万(不包括中共),党员人数过万的共产党有30个,执政和参政的共产党约25个.共产党从地区分布看,亚洲29个,非洲8个,欧洲55个,大洋洲3个,美洲32个.从国外共产党力量现状看,发达国家、发展中国家、原苏东地区国家和越朝老古现存社会主义国家的表现各有不同.