The EU Battle Groups in Sweden and the Czech Republic: What National Defense Reforms Tell Us about European Rapid Reaction Capabilities

Abstract

This article fills an important empirical gap concerning a key building block of the EU's Headline Goal 2010, the EU Battlegroups. It asks whether the Battlegroup concept has been robust enough to drive significant changes in two smaller EU member state militaries. We find that it has, though with important qualifications, in the Swedish case, but much less in the Czech case. We stress the importance of linkages between the Battlegroup concept and the prevailing defense reform ideas in each state. We argue that Battlegroup deployment would lead to even greater transformation but that European leaders currently have not faced powerful incentives to deploy the kinds of precise assets the Battlegroups provide. The article also addresses both the fiscal priorities that hamper military readiness and delay deployments and the substantial and enduring gap between word and deed for which EU military efforts have become known.     

REINVENTING THE PYRAMID

This article describes an orthodox teaching and learning process known as the pyramid. It sets out how this basic process can be used in mediation (and other) training courses. The variations, advantages, and disadvantages of this learning procedure are described. Analogies are drawn between the pyramid method and mediation. Finally, mediators are challenged to add this process and its variations to their repertoires both as trainers and as mediators.     

Public-sector strategy formulation

Abstract: The public sector encounters challenges in strategy formulation and implementation that are distinct from those faced by the private sector, and these include unique cycles of leadership changes, complex internal and external dynamics, and a variety of stakeholders who have diverse definitions of success and failure. To meet the contingencies generated by these factors, public bodies rely on process timelines based on the election cycle, identifying and focusing on key adversaries and supporters, ongoing communications, and utilizing the opportunities presented by real or perceived crises. In adapting to this combination of circumstances, public-sector managers can profitably draw on both deliberate planning methods and emergent strategies.     

Forensic Considerations for Preprocessing Effects on Clinical MDCT Scans

Manipulation of digital photographs destined for medico‐legal inquiry must be thoroughly documented and presented with explanation of any manipulations. Unlike digital photography, computed tomography (CT) data must pass through an additional step before viewing. Reconstruction of raw data involves reconstruction algorithms to preprocess the raw information into display data. Preprocessing of raw data, although it occurs at the source, alters the images and must be accounted for in the same way as postprocessing. Repeated CT scans of a gunshot wound phantom were made using the Toshiba Aquilion 64‐slice multidetector CT scanner. The appearance of fragments, high‐density inclusion artifacts, and soft tissue were assessed. Preprocessing with different algorithms results in substantial differences in image output. It is important to appreciate that preprocessing affects the image, that it does so differently in the presence of high‐density inclusions, and that preprocessing algorithms and scanning parameters may be used to overcome the resulting artifacts.     

The politics of hosting Chinese investment in Europe—an introduction

Though still a small percentage of the total stock of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) present in European countries, FDI coming from China has risen dramatically in the European Union (EU) since 2009. This introduction to the special issue on “The Politics of Hosting Chinese Investment in Europe” examines the political fears aroused by this recent surge and by the prospect of continued Chinese direct investment in European economies. After surveying patterns of Chinese investment in the EU, this introduction asks what is distinctive about the potential economic and political consequences of Chinese FDI and lays out the argument for and against treating Chinese FDI as sui generis.     

The future of urban water services in Latin America

In recent decades, problems with the provision of drinking water and sanitation services around the world have increasingly been addressed by attempts at privatisation, recasting clean water as an essentially economic, rather than public, good. This approach gained particular acceptance in Latin America, but with limited success. In order to address the full range of social, economic and environmental values necessary to sustain water resources over time, public and governmental involvement in establishing integrated water management, pursuing ‘soft path’ approaches, assuring stakeholder input and setting policy will be essential to the process.     

When the Line is Crossed... Paths to Control and Sanction Behaviour Necessitating a State Reaction

This article provides an overview of the various forms of proceedings available within 11 European criminal justice systems and reflects upon their core features. It also provides a picture of how far alternative, non-criminal proceedings are used by some of the systems as a different path to imposing a state reaction upon wrong-doers.