Examining the constitutionality of Internet filtering in public schools: a US perspective

The use of Internet filters in public classrooms in the USA has been intensely debated, both in terms of its effectiveness and legality. The debate pits concerns to protect students from indecent material against issues of unconstitutional censorship. This paper examines the legal issues addressed in various rulings by the US Supreme Court pertinent to issues raised in the debate over the constitutionality of filtering in the classroom. The rulings and opinions offer valuable insights into the legal issues raised in this debate.     

The MMPI-2 L scale as a tool in police selection

The MMPI has been used extensively in the selection of law enforcement personnel. Because police officer candidates have been preselected, however, individuals with obvious mental disturbance have been screened out of the candidate pool before evaluation. It is necessary to search for more subtle variables to serve as predictors of unsatisfactory future performance. The L scale is a subtle variable which can suggest potential for problematic behavior. The value of the L scale in the selection process is discussed. Authors' Note: William U. Weiss, Ph.D., is professor of psychology. The University of Evansville, 1800 Lincoln Av., Evansville, IN 47722. Robert Davis, Ph.D., is executive vice-president and director of science, research, and development, for Matrix, Inc., and Cary Rostow, Ph.D., is president of Matrix, Inc., Baton Rouge, LA. Sarah Kinsman was a psychology major at the University of Evansville at the time this research was conducted.     

Neighborhood Conservation: Political Choices Under the Community Development Block Grant Program

Neighborhood conservation is an objective widely espoused byAmerican cities. But movement from advocacy of conservationto allocation of funds for specific neighborhoods involves difficultpolitical choices for local officials who must respond to neighborhoodscompeting for scarce resources. The experience of Rochester,New York, the state's third largest city, closely parallelsthe national experience—shifts away from renewal and clearanceactivities to conservation and rehabilitation of marginal urbanneighborhoods. Over the first six years of the CDBG program,Rochester officials changed from a general, inclusive approachto neighborhood conservation to a more targeted approach. Thesechoices were shaped in response to local economic, demographicand political factors, including a well-organized network ofneighborhood organizations. The article concludes that the Rochesterexperience led to strengthened relationships between neighborhoodassociations and city hall, but evidence of stabilization andrevitalization in assisted city neighborhoods is inconclusive. ^*The author gratefully acknowledges the comments by Paul R.Dommel, Christopher Lindley and Richard P. Nathan on an earlierdraft of this article.     

Making sense of referral fee statutes

State and federal prohibitions of referral fees have long plagued the health care sector because their broadly worded provisions threaten established and socially valuable business arrangements. Congress has recently instructed the Department of Health and Human Services to issue regulations that clarify the scope of the most threatening of these prohibitions, the Medicare and Medicaid felony referral fee statute. This article examines three possible analytical models for imposing a limiting construction on referral fee statutes by testing the models against three beneficial practices that the statute jeopardizes: physician recruitment, fee discounting, and efficiency bonuses. The article recommends primary reliance on an earned/unearned analysis that detects a prohibited referral fee by asking whether the fee is fully earned by legitimate, nonreferral services.