Never lost a penny: An assessment of federal deposit insurance

Current problems of the Federal deposit insurance system threaten not only to increase future Federal costs but also to destabilize the U.S. banking system as it faces new competitors. The system's problems can be traced to weakness in both the political and market feedback mechanisms. Current policies governing Federal deposit insurance are flawed in numerous respects. Recent extension of capital forbearance to troubled institutions appears to be another step in the wrong direction. Reforms are suggested that would improve political accountablity and market discipline. However, given resistance to such reforms, only a banking crisis seems likely to break the impasse.     

The effect of Japanese corporate acquisition on the us military-industrial base

This paper utilizes a technique called the analysis of competing hypotheses to study Japanese acquisitions that involve majority interests in US firms. Findings show that there seem to be strategic trends in the Japanese procurement process, and that there are four domestic product groups that appear to be particularly vulnerable. Such foreign control of American commercial enterprises may well be a threat to the economy and national security.     

Policy research and analysis: an empirical profile, 1975–1980

A content analysis was conducted on 181 randomly sampled articles published in nine leading social policy journals from 1975 through 1980. The purpose of the study was to obtain a methodological and substantive profile of the state of the art of the policy sciences. Results indicate the existence of two prevailing types of policy analysis: quantitative-empirical and rhetorical-discussive.The positions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the National Science Foundation, the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, or Applied Science Associates, Inc.     

The Enactment of Bayh–Dole

The Bayh–Dole Act of 1980 reversed 35 years of public policy and gave universities and small businesses the unfettered right to own inventions that resulted from federally funded research. The Act was opposed by the Carter administration, which had a different view of how to utilize the results of federally funded research to drive economic development. It is not widely appreciated that the bill had died in the regular sessions of the 96th Congress and was only passed into law in a lame duck session necessitated to pass the budget. Only a magnanimous gesture of respect for Senator Birch Bayh, who had been defeated in the 1980 election, on the part of Senator Russell Long allowed the bill to receive the unanimous consent needed to pass a bill in lame duck session. This article lays out the roles of the key congressional staffers who forged this historic compromise and the last minute maneuvers needed to obtain President Carters signature.     

Terror and triage: prioritizing access to mass smallpox vaccination

In response to the threat of a smallpox attack on the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ("CDC") recommended the establishment of smallpox clinics designed to distribute a vaccine to the entire U.S. population in a ten day period. However, a number of potential obstacles raise questions about the feasibility of this plan. What is needed is a plan that applies principles of triage to smallpox vaccine distribution following a bioterrorism attack. Only in this way can those most vulnerable--the previously unvaccinated--be protected from a significantly increased risk due to delays that might arise in executing the CDC plan.