Functions of drinking for Native American and White youth

Despite long concern in the United States over alcohol consumption by adolescents and problems associated with drinking among Native Americans, few studies have dealt with the functions of drinking for Native American and White youth. The findings presented here are based on responses to a self-report questionnaire administered to ninth- through twelfth-grade students at two high schools in Fremont County, Wyoming — the county where the great majority of Wyoming's Native American population resides. Based on work by Jessor, Carman and Grossman, 30 items concerning positive-social, personal-effect, and experiential reasons for drinking were examined. Although there are some statistically significant differences in responses to individual items and statistically significant differences between Indian and White males and females on the Personal-Effect and Positive-Social categories of items, the functions of drinking appear to be quite similar for these Indian and White youth.Received his Ph.D. in sociology from Yale University in 1966. Current research interest is determining the impact of a heroin treatment program on the incidence and prevalence of heroin use in Cheyenne, Wyoming.     

Assisted suicide under the European Convention on Human Rights: a critique

In a high profile case, a terminally ill woman, Diane Pretty, challenged the United Kingdom prohibition on assisted suicide as incompatible with certain fundamental rights which are guaranteed under the European Convention on Human Rights. Mrs Pretty's battle was ultimately unsuccessful, with a total of three courts and 15 judges ruling against her. Such unanimity of opinion might well be thought to represent the coup de grace for arguments about the right to assistance in death under European human rights law. However, in this article it is suggested that, in limited circumstances, such assistance might yet still be possible under the Constitution.