Are the rich too rich to be expropriated?: Economic power and the feasibility of constitutional limits to redistribution

Public Choice - Why is it that, in democracies, the poor do not expropriate the rich even though they outnumber them? In this paper we analyze the commonly held belief that the rich escape...     

An Alternative Constitutional Treaty for the European Union

We propose an alternativeto the Constitutional Treaty drafted by theEuropean Convention. Our proposaleffectively limits the domain of governmentat the Union level. It takes the incentivesof the European public actors into account.We propose a second chamber of EuropeanParliament composed of delegates of theparliaments of the member states and asecond court composed of delegates of thehighest courts of the member states. Theseinstitutions will be the guardians of thesubsidiarity principle. The principle ofthe separation of powers is implemented byabolishing the Commission's monopoly oflegislative initiative and by curtailingthe Council's legislative role. Treatyamendments will not be drafted by aninter-governmental conference but by aninter-parliamentary conference. We proposeto change the method of financing andintroduce referenda.     

Efficiency and effectiveness control based on economic analysis: The example of the Austrian court of audit

The purpose of this article is fivefold: First, we demonstrate the potential and importance of central auditing in Austria in section 2.1 before identifying the causes of public-sector inefficiency in section 2.2. Then we outline the organizational structure in section 3 and describe the need for return in section 4. We develop proposals for improving the central auditing system in section 5. In so doing, we endeavor not to succumb to the pervasive influence of the well-established, yet objectionable Austrian status quo, realizing that our proposals may be rejected by politicians and bureaucrats as being unrealistic.     

Oil, the Suez canal, and sterling reserves: economic factors determining British decisionmaking during the 1967 Arab-Israeli crisis

This article assesses the importance of economic factors for the development of British Middle Eastern policy during the 1967 Arab-Israeli crisis, based on newly declassified government documents. Policy shifted from threatening unilateral action against Nasser to multilateralism and neutraliry shortly before the June war. Economic considerations will be put in the context of anti-interventionist voices in the cabinet, in the defence establishment and within US policy. The article concludes that important reasons for the shift were economic, namely threats of an oil embargo, reserve withdrawals, and Suez Canal closure at a time of fiscal difficulties in Britain. In addition, an ideological shift in cabinet from 'imperial hangover' to anti-interventionism underlay the policy change.     

Austrian private foundations: directors' duties and liabilities under close scrutiny

The main purpose of this article is to make foreign citizensaware of the often unexpected exposures to liability when actingas a board member of an Austrian foundation.     

Protective Factors Interrupting the Continuity From School Bullying to Later Internalizing and Externalizing Problems: A Systematic Review of Prospective Longitudinal Studies

A systematic review is presented, based on prospective longitudinal studies, on protective factors that interrupt the continuity from bullying perpetration at school to externalizing problem behaviors later in life; and from bullying victimization to later internalizing problems. Some common factors were established, which seem to interrupt the continuity from school bullying perpetration and victimization to later maladjustment problems. These included having a good performance at school and good social skills, coming from a stable (undisrupted) family, being attached to parents, and having prosocial friends. Findings are consistent with the wider resilience literature on factors that confer emotional and behavioral adjustment to school youth. This is not surprising given the interconnectedness and common pathways between bullying and other risk behaviors. Effective antibullying and other multicomponent programs may successfully interrupt this long-term continuity. Future intervention research should be informed by the resilience literature and incorporate existing findings in future program planning.     

CT‐Guided,Minimally Invasive,Postmortem Needle Biopsy Using the B‐Rob II Needle‐Positioning Robot

CT‐guided, minimally invasive needle biopsy techniques can be used to retrieve tissue or body fluid samples for histologic tissue diagnoses in forensic investigations. The purpose of this study was an evaluation of CT‐guided needle‐positioning robot B‐Rob II. To operate under CT guidance, we adopted the B‐Rob II robotic needle placement system and its workflow. The accuracy and speed of the procedure were tested on a gelatin phantom in a series of 21 biopsies. We achieved an average needle placement accuracy of 1.8 mm (±1.1 mm) using robotic assistance. The procedure required an average of 2 min 21 s. The needle placement accuracy for minimally invasive needle biopsies using the B‐Rob II biopsy robot is sufficiently accurate and fast for forensic postmortem examinations of focal organ changes. Further tests will be performed to test the feasibility of the robot for performing biopsies of focal organ changes in human bodies.