A Comparison of uninformed and informed death penalty opinions: A replication and expansion

This study examines the influence on death penalty opinions of participating in a college class on the death penalty. Students in the class (the experimental group) and in another class offered at the same time (the control group) were asked to complete a questionnaire regarding their attitudes toward capital punishment at the beginning and at the end of the semester. They were also asked factual questions that measured their knowledge about capital punishment. Overall, the results of the study suggest that both groups were not well informed during the pretest measure. However, at the end of the semester, the group enrolled in the death penalty class were more knowledgable, less supportive of the death penalty based on general/absrtact questions, and more likely to favor alternatives to capital punishment than were the students in the control group.     

Managing conflict in divided societies: Lessons from Tajikistan

This article presents a new approach to managing conflict in divided societies and describes how it is being implemented in Tajikistan. This approach involves two interrelated strategies: (1) a five-stage unofficial dialogue process aimed at probing the dynamics of the conflictual relationships among the parties and designing a sequence of interactive steps to changing the relationships; and (2) a civil society strategy aimed at building institutions of civil society that transcend the traditional divisions in the society. Randa M. Slim is a program officer in charge of the international civil society programs at the Kettering Foundation, 200 Commons Road, Dayton, Ohio 45459.Harold H. Saunders, former member of the National Security Council Staff and Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs, is Director of International Affairs at the Kettering Foundation, 444 North Capitol Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20001. They co-direct the Tajikistani dialogue program.     

The provision of government information: the federal Freedom of Information Act experience

Abstract. A little more than a decade has elapsed since public access to federal executive branch records, previously thwarted by a ‘need to know’ policy, was facilitated by a new operational premise in government information law. Presuming all executive department and agency documents should be available to the citizenry, other than categories permissively exempted by the statute, the Freedom of Information Act provides both the basic authority and the procedure for realizing ‘the people's right to know’ about the activities and operations of the state. Until recent times, however, experience with the foi Act was not particularly satisfying. In 1974, after Congress discovered the failure of the executive branch to seriously and faithfully administer the law, amendments were made to the original statute to assure efficient operation. Presently, annual report data, required by the improved For Act, seem to indicate that most federal agencies are having little difficulty in meeting the new administrative standards. Initial implementation costs are high for some agencies but are peculiar to only a few entities and must be regarded as starting expenses which will, in all likelihood, significantly diminish over the next few years. Efforts toward refining the foi Act and its administration continue. While a degree of vigilance is required to maintain the existing guarantees of the statute, an element of vision will contribute to not only an extension of ‘the people's right to know’ but to the further realization of open government in an open society as well. Sommaire. Un peu plus de dix ans se sont écoulés depuis qu'un nouveau prin-cipe de la loi sur l'mformation gouvemementale a facilité l'accès du public aux dossiers du pouvoir exécutif, accès qui était restreint précédemment par la politique de la « connaissance en fonction des besoins ». Prenons pour acquis tous les documents des ministères et organismes devaient ětre accessibles aux citoyens, à l'exception des catégories prevues par la loi, la législature procurait à la fois l'autorité légale et la procédure pour assurer « le droit du peuple à connaitre » les activités et les opérations de l'état. Ce n'est que depuis peu, cependant, que l'application de la loi sur l'accessibilite de l'information est relativement satisfaisante. En 1974, le Congrès s'est rendu compte que le pouvoir exécutif n'administrait la loi ni sérieusement ni fidèlement et a apporté des amendements au texte original pour en assurer l'application efficace. A l'heure actuelle, les données des rapports annuels, exigés par la loi amendée, semblent indiquer que la plupart des organismes fédéraux n'ont pas de difficultés à respecter les nouvelles normes administra-tives. Les coǔts initiaux de mise en oeuvre sont élévés pour certaines organisations, peu nombreuses cependant, mais il faut considérer ces dépenses comme une mise de fonds de départ qui, vraisemblablement, diminuera au cours des prochaines années. Les efforts se poursuivent dans le but d'amilious la loi sur l'accessibilité de l'information ainsi que son administration. Une certaine vigilance est néces-saire pour maintenir les garanties existantes mais il faudra ausi une certaine vision qui contribuera non seulement àétendre « le droit du peuple à con-naitre » mais permettra aussi d'avoir un gouvernement accessible dans une société ouverte.     

The transformation of the new deal party system: Social groups,political ideology,and changing partisanship among northern whites, 1972–1988

This paper examines the partisanship of a neglected segment of the American electorate—white northerners. Like their southern counterparts, northern whites have moved toward the GOP (Grand Old Party) and away from the Democratic party during the last two decades. In fact, a substantial plurality of northern whites now identify with the Republican party. Moreover, Democratic losses and Republican gains have not been confined to particular categories of social groups but have cut across groups traditionally identified with the parties. However, political ideology is closely related to the changing partisanship of northern whites. Liberals have become more Democratic and conservatives have become substantially more Republican since 1972. Moreover, the relationship between ideology and changing partisanship occurs within most categories of social group membership, suggesting that ideological orientations now override social group ties in the formation of partisanship. The northern white electorate, in sum, is undergoing an ideological transformation that is reshaping the contours of American politics.     

从TRIPS的谈判历程看知识产权国际规则的制定

<与贸易有关的知识产权协议>(TRIPS)自1995年签订以来,一直成为世界贸易组织(WTO)成员间经济交往中的争议焦点.通过审视TRIPS缔结的历史背景和谈判历程,分析TRIPS谈判前后成员国间特别是发达国家和发展中国家的利益冲突,以及促使TRIPS缔结的若干因素,可以为理解围绕TRIPS争议和为发展中国家更有力地参与TRIPS将来的谈判提供史鉴.