Lessons on Railway Reorganization

CHINA has announced reorganization of its railways. For most people from the U.K. this news might evoke apprehensive shudders. Reorganization of Britain’s railways led to successive disasters.First the system was privatized, and a catastrophic series of fatal rail crashes followed.The railway track and other infrastructure were     

NORMLESSNESS,POWERLESSNESS, AND TROUBLE WITH THE LAW*

This paper examines the conditions under which normlessness leads to trouble with the law and the mechanisms through which social structure affects trouble with the law. Objective conditions of structural inconsistency, common in low socioeconomic positions, can lead to normlessness. The results presented here show that the association of normlessness and trouble with the law depends on whether normlessness is combined with a sense of powerlessness or with one of instrumentalism. Among persons who see themselves as powerless, normlessness is not associated with trouble with the law. Among persons who see themselves as instrumental, normlessness is associated with greater trouble with the law.     

中国海军的崛起:从区域性海军力量到全球性海军力量?

经过"后毛泽东时代"近四十年的经济发展与科技现代化,当前中国所拥有的资源已足以构建具有战略影响力的海军力量。与此同时,中国在其近域边疆的战略优势不断增强,这使得中国人民解放军可以将其军事预算重心从内陆军事力量转移至海军防御。因此,即使其经济增长放缓,中国仍将具有充足的财力、科技资源以及战略条件来建设一支"大海军",从而对美国在东亚的海上安全构成越来越大的挑战,即使美国军事技术保持领先势头,这种挑战依然存在。据预测,十年内中国现代化海军规模将超越美国。这种变化将对未来全球海洋秩序产生巨大影响。虽然美国期望维持其全球海洋优势,但中国海军的崛起将会迫使美国将更多的海军力量集中于东亚海域,以制衡中国海军力量。同样,中国也可能会希望拥有全球性海洋军事优势。但随着美国海军对中国海军的日益关注,中国人民解放军将不得不集中力量发展其在东亚区域的海军力量,以维护其海洋安全。因此,由于海军大国维持地区安全的作用已经不复存在,中国海军的崛起将会导致东亚地区的不稳定,甚至还会导致欧亚大陆宽泛区域不稳定性的增强。     

Key Issues in China’s Tax Reform

正TAX reform is one of the most widely discussed issues in China.In this respect,it is far from being unique!In the U.S.,disputes over health care payments and taxation of better-off citizens underlined last year’s government shutdown.The question of who will pay the tax increases that are inevitable in China as it begins to build more comprehensive health care and social security systems will be key not only to its economic development,but also to its