States of Exception on the Mexico–U.S. Border: Security, "Decisions," and Civilian Border Patrols

Civilian border patrol groups, like the much publicized Minutemen, who engage in the unofficial and unauthorized patrolling of U.S. borders, have proliferated in recent years. They have received an overwhelming amount of press, both national and international, but have garnered very little scholarly attention. In this article, I explore this phenomenon with an eye toward addressing conceptual and theoretical issues raised by the existence and practices of these groups. Specifically, how do we conceptualize civilian border patrol groups in terms of their relationship to statecraft, identity, and security? Do they have implications for the ways in which sovereignty and the political can be understood? I argue that while Carl Schmitt's theory of the political and the Copenhagen School's securitization theory are useful in attempting to understand and theorize the practices of these groups, the case ultimately points to the need for a reexamination of some of Schmitt's concepts including sovereignty and the political. Evidence from this case suggests that we should not limit our understanding of decisions that result in contemporary manifestations of exceptionalism to those controlled by the state or elites. Rather, decisions can arise in numerous locales and can be made by seemingly insignificant agents. This has implications for how we understand the practices that can lead to exceptionalism as well as how we understand sovereignty and the political.     

The Japanese Nuclear Industry: A Regrettable Exception

Months after the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan, the real truth hidden by incompetence and dissembling by Japanese authorities has emerged: Three of the four nuclear power plants at Fukushima suffered a meltdown. Japan's leading anti‐nuclear crusader and two French public figures worried about the impact on the future of nuclear technology respond.     

Making Visible the Invisible: Visuality,Narrativity, and Victimhood in Greek Cypriot Memorials

Political memorials and memorial locations in Cyprus function as “figures of memory” that regulate political rhetoric, detect (hi)story-telling, and shape identities, both on a collective as well as on an individual level. Although they seem to go unnoticed in the citizens’ daily routines, they exert profound influence in Greek Cypriot society where remembering and honoring the dead fighters according to the socially institutionalized religious and social rites constitute fundamental prerequisites of “belonging.” The paper will argue that the esthetics applied on the memorials along with their density on the island and the commemoration of individual fighters blur the boundaries between private and public and foster the collective awareness of us. At the same time, line us with the awareness of the self because of the emotional impact visual narratives exert on both a collective and an individual level. Memorial narratives secure a “homogeneous array of reactions” and become powerful propaganda tools because they are the pivotal vehicles in the perception of loss and instruments in the construction of victimhood within the Greek Cypriot society. The paper will sustain that the effect intense exposure causes interacts with the workings of implicit memory, influences dispositions, behaviors, and mental structures and radically intervenes in the process of reality perception.     

Policy Shocks: On the Legal Auspices of Latin American Migration to the United States

In this paper, I compare the transition into legal permanent residence (LPR) of Mexicans, Dominicans, and Nicaraguans. Dominicans had the highest likelihood of obtaining residence, mostly sponsored by parents and spouses. Mexicans had the lowest LPR transition rates and presented sharp gender differentials in modes: women mostly legalized through husbands while men were sponsored through IRCA, parents. Nicaraguans stood in-between, presenting few gender differences in rates and modes of transition and a heavy dependence on asylum and special provisions such as IRCA and NACARA. I argue these patterns stem from the interplay of conditions favoring the emigration of and the specific immigration policy context faced by migrant pioneers; the influence of social networks in reproducing the legal character of flows; and differences in the actual use of kinship ties as sponsors. I discuss the implications of these trends on the observed gendered patterns of migration from Latin America.     

在美国花钱

圣诞节前商品大减价 美国的商家除了打出季节性处理商品外,还有节日性处理,而最受人瞩目的当数圣诞节前,这是个商品大消费的黄金季节.我曾在圣诞节前夕到过新奥尔良港,整座城市沉浸在节日的氛围中,街道两旁的窗前布置着鲜花和彩灯,街上彩旗飘飘,霓虹闪烁,人们欢歌笑语.     

Health in the United States.

On the whole, the American people consider themselves healthy and, according to the major health indicators, they are becoming healthier all the time. The expectation of life at birth is one and one-half times what it was at the beginning of the century. Many of the leading causes of death have experienced significant declines in rates in the last decade. Nevertheless, the minority populations frequently lag behind the white population with respect to health indicators. Prevention in the health field is being stressed through immunization programs and programs to influence individuals to change their habits. Nutrition is playing a larger role in public life; considerable publicity has been given to dietary goals for promotion of good health. The health service industry has grown rapidly. Health care has expanded and its costs have trebled since 1970. In the 1980s, interest will undoubtedly focus on minority populations and health, on how the economically disadvantaged may better be served, on the effects of an aging population on the health care system, and on how life-styles which undermine health care can be changed. The U.S. Surgeon General has established national health goals for the 1980s that will improve the nation's health if they are achieved.     

美国在朝核问题上意欲何为

2002年10月3日,美国总统特使、美负责东 亚及太平洋事务的助理国务卿凯利访问平壤,不少人希望凯此行能够开启朝美对话的大门。但美10月16日宣布,朝在凯利访问期间承认有秘密开发核武器的计划,世人瞠目。朝核问题再度引人注目。12月,在美停止按照1994年朝美日内瓦框架协议向朝     

Changes of ethnic composition in the Baltic States

"The aim of this article is to analyze changes in the ethnic structure in the Baltics. The publication of the results of the 1989 Census data allows one to analyze the dynamics of ethnic structure in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania since the 1920s." The author notes that "as a result of significant changes in all demographic processes in the 90s, the proportion of the titular nationalities in all three Baltic States has increased for the first time, while the proportion of Slavs, particularly of Russians, decreased."     

美国社会生活拾零

在美国买房子 屈指算来,来美国已有五个年了,手头也有了些积蓄,加上老婆、孩子都跟了过来,就着手买房子,作长久打算。看了好多新房子旧房子,要么对房子不满意,要么对所在社区不满意,要么嫌房价太贵,可看了半年,房价就涨了半年,而且没有一点停的迹象,最后不得已咬牙花了近30万美元,在一个比较满意的社区买了一栋已使用了20多年的Ranch(平房)。 老父从国内来看我们,见我们花了200多万元人民币买了这么一个一拳可以打个洞、一脚可以踹倒一面墙的旧房子,很是心疼。他知道我们小夫妻这两年虽存了一些钱,但添置这添置那,现在手头离30万还差得远。而且他还担心我们在美国人生地不     

Adolescent suicide myths in the United States

In the United States, teen suicide rates tripled over several decades, but have declined slightly since the mid-1990s. Suicide, by its nature, is a complex problem. Many myths have developed about individuals who complete suicide, suicide risk factors, current prevention programs, and the treatment of at-risk youth. The purpose of this article is to address these myths, to separate fact from fiction, and offer recommendations for future suicide prevention programs. Myth #1: Suicide attempters and completers are similar Myth #2: Current prevention programs work. Myth #3: Teenagers have the highest suicide rate. Myth #4: Suicide is caused by family and social stress. Myth #5: Suicide is not inherited genetically. Myth #6: Teen suicide represents treatment failure. Psychiatric illnesses are often viewed differently from other medical problems. Research should precede any public health effort, so that suicide prevention programs can be designed, implemented, and evaluated appropriately. Too often suicide prevention programs do not use evidence-based research or practice methodologies. More funding is warranted to continue evidence-based studies. We propose that suicide be studied like any medical illness, and that future prevention efforts are evidence-based, with appropriate outcome measures.     

联合国不是美国的一件外衣

中国爱把少数男性在婚姻问题上歧视女性的 行为称之为“把女人当作一件外衣,需要的时候穿上,不需要的时候就扔在一旁”。现在,美国对联合国采取实用主义的态度,需要的时候就想方设法打联合国的旗号,得不到或者不需要的时候,就甩开联合国单干,这在一定程度上与那些歧视女性的男性有相似之处。