Interstate Cooperation: The Roles of the State Attorneys General

State attorneys general are major participants in intergovernmentalrelations in the United States. This article presents six modelsthat may explain their interactions with each other and teststhree hypotheses associated with two models. Their interactionscomport with the cooperative and the innovation-diffusion models.Only limited evidence supports the hostility model and its associatedhypothesis. No evidence supports the mercantilist and competitivemodels. The response from only one attorney general suggestedhis actions are based on the benign neglect model. The conclusionis drawn that the cooperative activities of the attorneys generalhave produced a more harmonious federal system in terms of enforcementpolicies.     

关于消防行政执法中自由裁量权的几点思考

没有自由裁量权,现代行政将会失去其价值和意义.本文从自由裁量权的特征、存在的合理性及其法律监控和救济等几个方面对目前我国消防行政执法中存在的问题进行相关思考,并提出合理建议.     

浅议民主党派在构建社会主义和谐社会中的作用

建设中国特色的社会主义、实现中华民族的伟大复兴,是包括各民主党派在内的全国各族人民的共同愿望.中国共产党作为执政党,在十六届四中全会上正式提出了构建"社会主义和谐社会"的概念,这是对中国特色社会主义事业认识的新发展,是对十六大提出的全面建设小康社会目标的深化和拓展.这种对科学社会主义理论与社会主义初级阶段具体现实有机统一的整合性认识,既坚持了马克思主义关于社会主义建设的理论原则,又牢牢立足于社会主义初级阶段的基本条件和国情,是人们对社会主义社会发展人性化要求的最真切、最具体的体现.     

Priming Gender: Campaigning on Women's Issues in U.S. Senate Elections

The gender gap has been an important feature of American elections since 1980. Yet, most explanations for the effects of gender on voting behavior focus on differences between men and women without taking account of how campaign strategies may serve to highlight or mask these differences. I examine how Senate candidates act strategically in deciding whether and how to target women voters. I find that candidates make these decisions based largely on two factors: (1) the importance of these issues to the state's voters and (2) whether gender gaps had been decisive in previous statewide contests. Analysis of exit-poll data indicates that when campaigns focused more on women's issues, women became more likely to vote Democratic while the vote choices of men were unaffected. Thus, campaign strategies do appear to influence the importance of gender differences in voting behavior.     

Neither Seen Nor Heard: Children's Citizenship in Contemporary Democracies*

This article addresses the subject of children's citizenship in liberal democracies. While children may lack full capability to act in the capacity of citizens, the political status to which they have been relegated leaves much to be desired. Paternalist policies dictate that children be represented politically by their parents, leaving them as or more vulnerable and excluded from private life as women were under coverture. Lacking independent representation or a voice in politics, children and their interests often fail to be understood because the adults who do represent them conflate, or substitute, their own views for those of children. Compounding this damage is the tendency for democratic societies to view children not as an ever-present segment of the populace, but rather as future adults. This encourages disregard for children's interests. Until democratic societies establish a better-defined and comprehensive citizenship for children, along with methods for representation that are sensitive to the special political circumstances faced by children, young people will remain ill-governed and neglected by democratic politics.     

美国输出“娱乐化”文化产品的审视与思考

扩张主义一直是美国核心文化的重要组成部分。对外文化扩张则作为美国实践对外扩张主义的主要切入口,成为美国对外进行价值观传播的主要战略手段。通过对外输出"娱乐化"文化产品,美国在推销美国式民主、争取民意人心方面收获巨大。面对美国的文化扩张,我们要理性地对待,并努力从加强自身文化建设入手来抵制西方价值观的侵蚀。媒体工作者要肩负起时代赋予的责任,对内重视维护和弘扬我国的优秀本土文化,对外主打"文化牌",巧用"娱乐化"文化产品,积极传播我国的优秀文化和文明。     

论微博时代民主党派的角色定位

作为一种新兴网络沟通技术手段,微博的出现改变着互联网的舆论格局,并对中国社会产生深刻的影响。微博时代已悄然来临,但作为参政党的各民主党派,在微博时代中的角色定位却仍不够清晰,并不能完全适应当前网络民主发展的需要。如何通过微博拓展民主党派政治参与的渠道,提升参政议政的能力,使之明确在微博时代中的角色定位,需要更多的思考。