The Clandestine Political Economy of War and Peace in Bosnia

Most contemporary intrastate military conflicts have a criminalized dimension: In various ways and to varying degrees they use smuggling networks and criminal actors to create and sustain the material basis for warfare. Despite its importance, the criminalized side of intrastate war and its legacy for postwar reconstruction is not a central focus of analysis in most scholarly accounts of armed conflict. A detailed examination of the Bosnian conflict illustrates the explanatory usefulness of a "bottom up," clandestine political economy approach to the study of war and post-war reconstruction. Drawing on interviews with former military leaders, local and international officials, and in-country observers, I argue that the outbreak, persistence, termination, and aftermath of the 1992–1995 war cannot be explained without taking into account the critical role of smuggling practices and quasi-private criminal combatants. The article suggests the need for greater bridging and broadening of the study of security, political economy, and crime.     

‘AlterNative’ approaches to criminal justice: John Braithwaite’s theory of reintegrative shaming revisited

Conservative crime control measures, such as incarceration, capital punishment, and boot camps, have done little, if anything, to prevent and control crime in North America and elsewhere. What, then, is to be done? Like other progressive criminologists, I contend that we need to radically rethink the administration of justice and seek insight from First Nations societies and communities that rely on informal means of resolving a wide range of conflicts. The main objective of this essay is to demonstrate that such ‘AlterNative’ social control strategies are more effective and humane means of curbing crime and achieving social justice. The progressive initiatives proposed here are heavily informed by the Inuit model of restorative justice and John Braitwaite’s theory of reintegrative shaming. These have the potential to alleviate much pain and suffering caused by crime and other symptoms of structured social inequality.     

Election outcomes under different ways to announce preferences: an analysis of the 2015 parliament election in the Austrian federal state of Styria

We use preference data from the 2015 parliament election in the Austrian federal state of Styria to analyze different voting rules. An exit poll right after the election collected data on ordinal and cardinal preferences from approximately 1000 actual voters. Our analysis is threefold. First, we determine the hypothetical social outcomes under different voting rules; second, we investigate the stability of the outcomes under those rules. Finally, we provide a categorization of different types of parties and analyze the impact of certain voting rules (Plurality Rule, Plurality Run Off, Hare System, Condorcet Method, Approval Voting, Borda Rule, Evaluative Voting, and Majority Judgment) on the performances of parties in those scenarios.     

Bestandverträge in Einkaufszentren: Aktuelle Entwicklungen in Judikatur und Rechtspolitik

Nachdem es zuletzt etwas ruhiger um die Frage nach der korrekten Qualifikation von Bestandvertr?gen in Einkaufszentren (EKZ) geworden zu sein schien, sind nunmehr wieder interessante Entwicklungen zu verzeichnen. Einerseits liegt eine neue Entscheidung des OGH vor, die als weiterer beachtlicher Schritt zur Konsolidierung der einschl?gigen Judikatur gewertet werden kann. Andererseits werden dem Vernehmen nach gegenw?rtig massive Anstrengungen unternommen, um eine gesetzgeberische Intervention zu diesem Themenkomplex herbeizuführen. Im folgenden Beitrag werden die geschilderten aktuellen Entwicklungen n?her dargestellt und gewürdigt.     

Questioning Cognitivism and Constructivism in IR Theory: Reflections on the Material Structure of Ideas

In recent years, it has been highlighted in international relations theory that mainstream approaches neglect the role of ideas in relation to the formation of interests and international co-operation. This article critically discusses the renewed emphasis on ideas. 'Cognitive' and 'constructivist' approaches are outlined as the two main strands in the debate and a neo-Gramscian position within it is sketched. Importantly, a neo-Gramscian position is able to conceptualise the material structure of ideas, thereby overcoming the separation between ideas and material structure from the very beginning.