Book reviews

Ackerman B &; A Alstott, The Stakeholder Society. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1999. 296pp. ISBN: 0–300–07826. US$26.00. http://www.yale.edu/yup

Adedeji A (ed.), Comprehending and Mastering African Conflicts: The Search for Sustainable Peace and Good Governance. London: Zed Books, in association with the African Centre for Development and Strategic Studies, Ijebu‐Ode, 1999. 377pp. ISBN: 1–85649–763–1. US$27:50. http://www.zedbooks.demon.co.uk

Berkovitch N, From Motherhood to Citizenship: Women's Rights and International Organisations. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1999. 207pp. ISBN: 0–8018–6028–8. US$34.95. http://www.press.jhu.edu/ press/index.html

Bourgia R &; SG Miller (eds), In the Shadow of the Sultan: Culture, Power and Politics in Morocco. Massachussets: Harvard University Press, 1999. 310pp. ISBN 0–932885–20–9. £12.50. http://www.hup.harvard.edu

Cohen R &; Westbrook R (eds.), Armana Diplomacy . Baltimore: John Hopkins University Press, 2000. 307pp. ISBN: 0–8018–6199–3. US$57.00. http://www.press.jhu.edu

Cullather N, Secret History: The CIA's Classified Account of its Operations in Guatemala. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1999. 142pp. ISBN: 0–8047–3311–2. US$39.50. http://www.sup.org

De Cerreno ALC &; A Keynan, Scientific Co‐operation, State Conflict: The Roles of Scientists in Mitigating International Discord. Edited conference papers published as Volume 866 of Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. New York, 1999, 281 pp, ISBN: 1 57331 203 7, US$27,00. Http://www.press.jhu.edu

Donoso BP, Across the Footsteps of Africa: The Experiences of an Ecuadorian Doctor in Malawi and Mozambique. Trenton: Africa World Press, 1999, 242pp. ISBN: 0–86543–640–1. US$19.95. http.//www.africanword.com

Drèze J, The Economics of Famine, An Elgar Reference Collection, Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar, 1999. pp. 524. ISBN: 1–85898–689–3. £130. http://www.e‐elgar.co.uk

Emmett T, ‘A study of the development of a movement of national liberation in Namibia, between 1915 and 1966’, in Popular Resistance and the Roots of Nationalism in Namibia, 1915–1966. Basel, Switzerland: P Schlettwein Publishing, 1999. 420pp. ISBN: 3–908193–03–6. Swiss F55. http://www.baslerafrika.ch/bns.htm

Gaubatz K T, Elections and War: The Electoral Incentive in the Democratic Politics of War and Peace. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press, 1999. 208pp. ISBN: 08047–3566–2. US$45.00. http://www.sup.org

Hawken P, Lovins AB &; LH Lovins, Natural Capitalism: The Next Industrial Revolution. London: Earthscan Publications Ltd, 1999. 396pp. ISBN: 1–85383–461–0. £18.99. http://www.earthscan.co.uk

Herbst J, States and Power in Africa: Comparative Lessons in Authority and Control. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2000, 280pp. ISBN: 069–10–10285. US$17.95. http://www.pupress.princeton.edu

Jett DC, Why Peacekeeping Fails. New York: St Martin's Press, 2000, 236pp. ISBN: 031–22269–85. US$49.95. http://www.stmartins.com

Hodgson G, Evolution and Institutions: On Evolutionary Economics and the Evolutions of Economics . Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, 1999. 345pp. ISBN: 1–85898–813–6. £55.00. http://www.e‐elgar.co.uk

Guha S, Environment and Ethnicity in India: 1200–1991. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. 217pp. ISBN: 0–521–64078–4. £35.00. http://www.cup.cam.ac.uk

Iheduru OM, The Politics of Economic Restructuring and Democracy in Africa. London: Greenwood Press,1999. 169 pp. ISBN: 0–313–30833–0. £37.50. http://www.greenwood.com

Jain PC, Indians in South Africa: Political Economy of Race Relations. Delhi: Kalinga Publications, 1999. 175 pp. ISBN: 81–85163–102‐X. US$80.00.

Kathadra A, Letters from Robben Island: A Selection of his Prison Correspondence, 1964–1989. Bellville and East Lansing: Mayibuye Books and Michigan State University Press, 1999. 263pp. ISBN: 087–01352–79 R120.00. http://www.msu.edu/unit/msupress/index.htm

Middleton N &; D Thomas (eds), World Atlas of Desertification. United Nations Environment Programme, 2^nd edition. London: Arnold, 1997.182pp. ISBN: 0–340–69166–2. http://www.unep.org     

An Unusual Pattern of Decomposition Associated with Suicidal Electrocution in a Bath

A 51‐year‐old man was found dead face down and partially submerged in a bathtub alongside two hairdryers. The hairdryers had continued to work, as the victim had bypassed the electrical board of the house prior to dropping them into the water. This had resulted in death due to electrocution, with subsequent heating of the bath water causing marked putrefaction and softening of the immersed body parts. The back and feet, which were not submerged, were preserved. The degree of anterior decomposition was not in keeping with the postmortem interval; however, regional decomposition with sparing of the back and feet provided a clue at autopsy as to the sequence of events. Individuals with training in, or knowledge of, electrical circuitry are capable of modifying domestic wiring so that safety switches and/or fuses can be bypassed ensuring that electrical devices will continue to function even while under water.     

Bacterial Degradation of Risperidone and Paliperidone in Decomposing Blood

The stability of two benzisoxazole antipsychotics was determined in vitro in decomposing porcine blood inoculated with bacteria, utilizing a high‐performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet and fluorescence detection method for drug quantitation. Stability experiments for risperidone and paliperidone were conducted at 7, 20 and 37°C for 4 days using sterile and bacterially inoculated porcine blood. The drugs were stable in sterile blood at each temperature and in inoculated blood at 7°C, but degraded significantly in inoculated blood at 20 and 37°C. Complete loss occurred within 2 days when incubated at 37°C. The benzisoxazole‐cleaved degradation products for both drugs were identified as 2‐hydroxybenzoyl‐risperidone and 2‐hydroxybenzoyl‐paliperidone utilizing liquid chromatography quadrupole‐time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry and accurate mass measurements. The degradation products have been found in postmortem case studies, including one case where risperidone and paliperidone were not detected, indicating complete conversion can occur in situ.     

Third party decline in the UK: The SNP and SDP in comparative perspective

The failure of ‘third’ parties to displace their larger rivals is a consistent (although not universal) feature of competitive democracies which have simple majority electoral systems. It is argued that there are structural features intrinsic to most third parties which tend to accelerate the process of decline once it has set in. Because of their reliance on individual members, these parties put great stress on individual participation and provide the opportunities for it. As a result, they are particularly subject to the effects of internal competition which electoral decline is likely to intensify. The study tests this hypothesis by looking at two cases of third party decline, and concludes that the mass branch party format is ill‐able to cope with electoral failure.     

Unity and Alliance: The Financial Future of Greater China

Greater China has been separated and divided for over a century. The reunification of Hong Kong and Macao on the eve of the New Millennium has paved the way for Greater China to reunify as a single economy with a single internationalized currency. History shows that financial and monetary collaborations are essential to the future of Greater China in the global arena. We argue that collaboration might begin with a common board in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Taipei for Greater China enterprises to list and trade in one synchronized market. The common board would also facilitate public and private bonds in support of the infrastructural development and globalization of Greater China enterprises. Due to its established financial market, system and culture, Hong Kong would be the undisputed home of the Greater China Enterprises Board. Financial collaboration would advocate monetary alliance when the Chinese renminbi is fully convertible. When the time comes, the offshore renminbi based in Hong Kong would become the counterpart of the Eurodollar in London. The Asianyuan, as it might be called, would be the truly internationalized and globalized renminbi.     

Far Apart but Close Together: A Quantitative and Qualitative Analysis of the Career Structure and Organisational Culture of the Post-War British Diplomatic Service

A good deal has been written about the organisation and structure of the British diplomatic establishment since 1945. This analysis uses detailed quantitative and qualitative data to develop an understanding of the background and career trajectories of the most senior figures in the Diplomatic Service in 1975. By tracing their careers, it is possible to identify more precisely than before the changing educational and social background of these individuals when compared with previous generations of diplomats. This analysis also examines certain core features of the culture of the diplomatic establishment during the post-war decades, analysing how it both shaped and was shaped by particular structures and practices. Despite the existence of a peripatetic career structure that dispersed members of the diplomatic establishment around the globe, there were still numerous opportunities for the kinds of personal contact necessary to maintain an integrated culture.     

Crime Reporting Decisions and the Costs of Crime

The paper develops a model of crime reporting based on an economic approach. It identifies the principal costs and benefits of reporting from the victim’s perspective, taking account of insurance provision and the risk of intimidation by an offender. It shows how a victim might use backward induction to infer a rational reporting strategy. The recording of crime by the police is a process that relies on victim reports, and is thus influenced by the reporting decisions made by victims. The paper uses empirical evidence from the British Crime Survey and from the International Crime Victims Survey to explore the hypotheses generated by the model. It finds support for the suggestion that the propensity to report a crime increases with the size of the loss entailed. The paper also explores the implications of the findings for the estimation of the costs of crime. Reporting and intimidation costs are generally excluded from bottom-up estimates of costs, an omission that may be quite serious in the context of offences such as domestic violence.