Organic impurity profiling of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) tablets seized in The Netherlands.

In this study, a new method was developed for the impurity profiling of illicit MDMA tablets. The extraction efficiency, linearity, repeatability and reproducibility of the method were evaluated. Eighty two MDMA tablets coming from presumed unrelated large seizures in 2004 (n >500 tablets) were analyzed by gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) in order to assess the discrimination power of the method. The latter was found to be practical, robust, relatively easy to perform, highly discriminative and yielding good chromatography. In addition, some new impurities were detected and identified. Their chemical structures and mass spectra are reported.     

Who Do You Trust? Ethnicity and Trust in Bosnia and Herzegovina

This article examines the question of trust in Bosnia and Herzegovina with a special focus on the role of ethnicity. We find generalised trust to be low and declining in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Moreover, generalised trust is negatively affected by the degree of ethnic heterogeneity in the region. However, a further examination of trust reveals a more complex relationship between ethnicity and trust: people tend to show low levels of trust in all other people irrespective of their ethnic belongings. We argue that ethnic distribution might capture some other regional specific characteristics that also affect the level of trust.     

Governance without a state: Can it work?

In this article we explore how much state is necessary to make governance work. We begin by clarifying concepts of governance and the “shadow of hierarchy” and we follow this clarification with a brief overview of empirical findings on governance research in developed countries. We then discuss the dilemmas for governance in areas of limited statehood, where political institutions are too weak to hierarchically adopt and enforce collectively binding rules. While prospects for effective policymaking appear to be rather bleak in these areas, we argue that governance research has consistently overlooked the existence of functional equivalents to the shadow of hierarchy. We assert that governance with(out) government can work even in the absence of a strong shadow of hierarchy, we identify functional equivalents to the shadow of hierarchy, and we discuss to what extent they can help overcome issues of legitimacy and effectiveness in areas of limited statehood.     

Book reviews

Turkey in the Middle East By Philip Robins. Pinter for the Royal Institute of international Affairs. 1991.130 pp. £22.50. ISBNO 86187 198 7. PBk £8.95. ISBN 0 86187 1995.

Hitler Slept Late and other blunders that cost him the war By James P. Duffy. London: Praeger. 1991.176pp. £17.50.

Alliance within the alliance: Franco‐German Military Cooperation and the European Pillar of Defense By David G. Haglund. Boulder: Westview Press, 1991. 213 pp.

Homeward Bound? Allied Forces in the New Germany Edited by David G. Haglund and Olaf Mager. Boulder: Westview Press, 1992. 299 pp. £24.95

Avoiding War: Problems of crisis management By Alexander L. George (ed.), Westview Press, 1991. 590 pp. £16.95.

The Future of NATO: Facing an Unreliable Enemy in an Uncertain Environment By S.N. Drew et al. Praeger Publishers, New York, 1991. pp. 206.

Parliament and international relations Edited by Charles Carstairs and Richard Ware. Milton Keynes: Open University Press, 1991. 195 pp. £12.99 (paperback)     

Under Two Flags: Symbolic Voting in the State of Mississippi

Participants in a specialelection held in the State of Mississippion April 17, 2001, voted overwhelminglyagainst changing the design of the state'sflag, which incorporates a symbol of theConfederacy. The determinants of voting onthe flag are analyzed and turnout rates inApril 2001 are compared with those forrecent gubernatorial and presidentialelections. We find that the flag votedivided Mississippians sharply along linesof race, class and political ideology. Akey empirical implication is that voterpositions in issue space tend to be morepolarized when political choices haveexpressive as opposed to instrumentalconsequences.     

From Cash to Accrual Budgeting and Accounting in the Public Sector: The Dutch Experience

Traditionally, governments used to deploy input‐based budgeting systems and cash‐based accounting systems. However, these systems do not provide the information that is necessary for a government to operate efficiently and effectively. Therefore, a growing number of countries have already shifted or are planning to shift from cash‐based to some form of accrual accounting in the public sector. Usually, the implementation of some accrual‐based system is linked to wider financial management reforms including performance management requiring information on cost. This paper focuses on the Dutch experience with the shift from cash‐based accounting and budgeting systems to an accrual‐based system.     

Corporate governance in Germany: The changing role of the banks

The article analyses the different channels ‐ industrial stakes, supervisory board mandates, proxy voting ‐ by which German banks can exert influence on industrial companies. The central thesis is that even where the banks have such influence they do not dominate the companies. A recent empirical study on the effects of the alleged bank dominance over industrial companies with detrimental effects on their performance is shown to contain major methodological mistakes. The relationship between banks and industry is undergoing some distinct changes. Banks have substantially reduced their industrial stakes as well as their representation on supervisory boards, which underlines that they are not striving for industrial leadership. Despite a clear trend in the German corporate sector to pay increasing attention to shareholder value and to provide more transparency in accounting, it seems premature to expect the German capital market, including the corporate governance system, to incorporate fully the Anglo‐Saxon model in the immediate future.     

Schranken des Rechts zur Pflichtteilsminderung nach § 773a Abs 3 ABGB

Das Recht auf Pflichtteilsminderung steht nach § 773a Abs 3 ABGB nicht zu, wenn der Erblasser die Ausübung des Rechts auf pers?nlichen Verkehr mit dem Pflichtteilsberechtigten grundlos abgelehnt hat. Im Rahmen dieser Bestimmung sind minderj?hrige und erwachsene Kinder gleich zu behandeln. § 773a Abs 3 ABGB ist auch auf solche Testamente anzuwenden, die vor dem 1. 7. 2001 (Inkrafttreten dieser Bestimmung) verfasst worden sind. Zum Entfall des Minderungsrechts führt aber nur ein Verhalten, das der Erblasser nach dem 1. 7. 2001 gesetzt hat. Für Dauersachverhalte (hier: das Verh?ltnis Eltern und Kind) gelten die Rechtsfolgen eines neuen Gesetzes ab seinem Inkrafttreten; mangels abweichender übergangsregelung ist der Teil des Dauertatbestands, der in den zeitlichen Geltungsbereich des neuen Gesetzes reicht, nach der neuen Rechtslage zu beurteilen.