Friends in high places: The wealth effects of JFK's assassination on the assets of LBJ's supporters

This paper uses anecdotal evidence to identify a group of firms that had significant ties to President Lyndon Johnson and determines the effect of Johnson's unexpected rise to the Presidency on the market value of these firms. The unexpected nature of President Kennedy's death eliminates the confounding event problem typically associated with election results. We are able to identify four separate portfolios of firms that had political ties to Lyndon Johnson. Our research suggests that the market expected significant benefits to accrue to these firms as a result of Johnson's becoming President. When Catholic John Kennedy and Johnson were running together in 1960 a joke hop-scotched around the parties in Texas and Washington that Kennedy had told Johnson, “Lyndon, when we get elected I'm going to dig a tunnel to the Vatican,” and Lyndon had replied, “That's OK with me as long as Brown & Root gets the contract” (Dugger, 1982: 286).     

The Diffusion of Responsibility: An Alternative Perspective for National Policy Politics in the US

This article proposes a diffusion of responsibility perspective in analyzing post–World War II politics in the United States. Many analysts test the American system by a responsible party perspective, proposing reforms that will orient the system toward the goals of that model. Divided government has characterized much of the period since 1945 and identifiable (and wholly constitutional) politics has accompanied that development. The diffusion of responsibility alternative is characterized by a separated presidency, an expansive Congress, competition between the branches for shared power, and, absent a crisis, a tendency toward perpetuation.     

ACCOUNTING FOR RESULTS: PORTFOLIO EXPLANATORY NOTES BECOME PROGRAM PERFORMANCE STATEMENTS

Abstract: This paper outlines the place of performance evaluation in the recent administrative reforms and, in that context, assesses the changes made for the 1991–92 Program Performance Statements. The changes constitute a concerted attempt to improve the system of program evaluation throughout the Australian Public Service. Coherent and logical, they are based on a model of governance that seeks to establish a definitive demarcation between policy and administration, and hence confirm traditional notions of ministerial accountability. Analysis of these changes from a parliamentary perspective suggests that, unless there are serious reforms introduced into parliament, there is an increased likelihood that the monitoring of the bureaucratic machinery of government will become inadequate.     

Recent developments in medicine and law

This article addresses important developments in the field of medicine and law during the period of September 2000 through August 2001. It does not discuss every reported case or piece of legislation but surveys some of the more significant developments in the medicine and law arena.     

A method for group identification of hair infected with Microsporum

A method for identifying the group appurtenance of biological objects from subjects suffering from various diseases is developed. The method can be used in examination of putrefactive objects (blood, secretions, hair, etc.) and in cases when the group appurtenance cannot be identified by other methods.     

Collaboration over Adaptation: The Case for Interoperable Communications in Homeland Security

Analogizing the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to a corporate conglomerate consisting of multiple, formerly independent operating units with little in common and even less history of cooperation, this response to Professor Charles Wise prescribes the "bitter medicine" of interoperable communications. The critical function of assuring homeland security and disaster preparedness cannot depend on the uncertain trajectory of adaptive response.     

A Tale of Two Towns: Assessing the Role of Political Resources in a Community Electronic Network

In this study we examine responses to the recent expansion of information technology in two rural Minnesota towns. One of these towns took a cooperative approach to technology access, developing a community electronic network, while the other town relied on a more individualistic, entrepreneurial model. The present study examines citizens' attitudes concerning social, political, and technological issues in these two communities, with the goal of uncovering what kinds of attitudes and resources citizens need to have in order to help support and sustain a community electronic network. Structural equation modeling is used to specify the relationships among individuals' economic, political, and social resources, technology ownership and use, and awareness of and support for the community network. Drawing on a theory of social capital, we consider the relative importance of privately- oriented social engagement versus publicly- oriented political engagement in relation to collective outcomes. Our analysis shows that in the town with the broadly- based community electronic network, individuals' political as well as economic resources are linked to knowledge and use of computer resources, whereas in the comparison community, economic stratification alone drives computer access. The implications of these findings for issues of equity, access to technology, and the development of strong community ties are discussed.