Globalization and Prison Privatization: Why Are Most of the World's For-Profit Adult Prisons to Be Found in the American South?

For a generation, students of comparative public policy and international politics have argued that global market discipline and the increasing mobility of international "best practices" have given rise to policy convergence at the global level. This paper uses the American case to investigate some of the forces thought to have given rise to the spread of private prisons. It finds that while there are prisons in a number of countries, the evidence of convergence is thin and seems to suggest that the core of the prison privatization is in the American South. It then examines several theories—the political economy of the prison boom and overcrowding, globalization theory, the politics of the new right and the idea of a "prison-industrial complex"—that have been used to explain prison privatization and the extent to which they are consistent with the empirical pattern. Each takes us some way to understanding that pattern, but none can provide a clear theoretical mapping.     

Why chads? Determinants of voting equipment use in the United States

This paper provides an empirical study of the determinants of voting equipment choice in the United States. We document that, in contrast to widespread belief, voting machines of older types, such as lever and punchcard systems, are not used in counties with lower income – and newer machines, such as optical scanners and electronic machines, are not used in – richer counties. We provide an economic explanation for this and other regularities of voting equipment usage in the United States. In our economic framework (a) the adoption of a new technology is more likely in richer and larger counties, but (b) the adoption of a new technology is less likely the more advanced is the technology already adopted in the county. The adoption of more advanced optical and electronic machines in the 1980s and 1990s was less likely in richer and larger counties that had already mechanized and computerized in previous decades than in poorer and smaller – and hence not yet computerized counties. Estimates of historical determinants of voting equipment choice support our hypothesis. In particular, the probability of using punchcard machines in the 1990s is positively related to a county’s income in the 1960s, when punchcard machines were first introduced. When the effect of past income is controlled for, the effect of more recent levels of income on the probability of using punchcard machines becomes negative.     

The Menzies Government,the American Alliance and the Cuban Missile Crisis

This paper questions the traditional view of the Australian‐American relationship: that Australian dependency entailed unequivocal support for American foreign policy. It uses a particular Cold War event — the Cuban Missile Crisis — to examine the extent to which the reaction of the Australian government conformed to the general perception of immediate and absolute endorsement of the Kennedy administration's position. The paper will argue that the actual response of the Menzies government, as distinct from its public pronouncements, was constrained rather than unconditional, considered rather than reflexive, and shaped by strategic calculations of Australian interests.     

Katherine Tonkiss,Migration and Identity in a Post-National World

Theories of Local Economic Development. Edited by Richard D. Bingham and Robert Meir. Newbury Park CA, Sage, 1993. Pp. 319. £20.50 pb.

Policy and Change. Edited by Randall Smith and Jane Raistrick. Saus Publications. 1994, Pp.442, £14.95 pb.

Economic Development Work Book ‐ Briefings on Key Economic Development Topics. National Development Project, Employment Department. Researched and Produced by Mersyside TEC and West London TEC, and edited by Andrew Coulson and Paul Lovejoy, 1994. Pp.220. £58.75 (£35.25 for TECs). Available from Nicholas Johnson, West London TEC, Sovereign Court, 15–21 Staines Road, Hounslow, Middlesex, TW3 3HA. Tel. 0181–577–1010. Fax 0181–570–9969)

Resolving Conflict: Strategies for Local Government. Edited by Margaret S. Herrman. International City Management Association (P.O. Box 2011, Annapolis Junction, MD 20701, USA), 1994. $29.95.

Local Government in the United Kingdom. By David Wilson and Chris Game (with Steve Leach and Gerry Stoker). Macmillan, 1994. Pp.377. £12.99 pb.

International Handbook of Local and Regional Government: A Comparative Analysis of Advanced Democracies. By Alan Norton. Aldershot, Hants: Edward Elgar, 1994. Pp.559 + xx. £85.00 hb.

Management Innovations in Urban Policy: Lessons from France. By Patrick Le Gales and John Mawson. Local Government Management Board, 1994. Pp.123. Free.

Urban Policy in Britain: The City, the State and the Market. By Rob Atkinson and Graham Moon. Macmillan, 1994. Pp.306. £35.00 hb, £11.99 pb.

Healthy Cities: Research and Practice. Edited by John K. Davies and Michael P. Kelly. Routledge, 1993. Pp.188. £35.00 Hb, £11.99 pb.

Normality is Hard Work—Trade Unions and the Politics of Community Care. By Mick Carpenter. London, Lawrence and Wishart, 1994 (published in association with UNISON). Pp.162. £14.99 pb.

Local Government in Britain (Sixth Edition). By TONY BYRNE. Penguin Books, 1994. Pp.665. £10.00 pb.

The Size and Efficiency Debate: Public Library Authorities in a Time of Change (British Library R &; D Report 6143). By Arthur Midwinter and Murray McVicar. Library Association Publishing Limited, 1994. Pp.106. £25.00. (Available from Bookpoint Limited, 39 Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4TD.)

Managing Your City or Town: A Reference Guide for the New Public Official. By Kenton G. Griffin. University Press of America, 1994. Pp.282 including appendices. $57.50 hb, $36.50 pb.

Community Profiling: Auditing Social Needs. By Murray Hawtin, Geraint Hughes and Janie Percy‐Smith. Open University Press, 1994. Pp.194. £12.00 pb.

Management of Quality in Local Government. Edited by Ian Sanderson. Longman, 1992. Pp.180. £21.00 hb.

Competing for Quality: A Manager's Guide to Market Testing. By Lynton Barker. Longman, 1993. Pp.217. £35.00 pb.

The Valuation of Changes in Quality in the Public Services: A Report prepared for HM Treasury by Brunei University. By Martin Cave and Others. HMSO, 1994. £19.00.

Research in Public Administration: Reflections on Theory and Practice. Edited by Jay D. White and Guy B. Adams. Sage, 1994. Pp.280. £26.95 hb, £12.95 pb.

Gender Audit 1994. Engender, Scotland. Pp.81, A4 loose‐leaf format. £7.00 (individuals), £15 (institutions).(Available from Scottish Women's Aid, Edinburgh)

Cassell Multilingual Dictionary of Local Government and Business. Edited by Clive Leo McNeir. Cassell, London, 1993. Pp.xv + 222. £50.

A la Recherche du ‘local’. Edited by Albert Mabileau. Paris, L'Harmattan, 1993. Pp.232.

Le système local en France (2nd edition). By Albert Mabileau. Paris, Monchrestien, 1994. Pp.157. FF60.

Gouvernement local et politique urbaines: Actes du colloque international, Grenoble, 2–3 février 1993, Edited by Sylvie Biarez and Jean‐Yves Nevers. Cerat, Paris, 1993. Pp.557.

Ombudsmen in the Public Sector. By Mary Seneviratne. Open University Press, 1994. Pp.148. £15.23 pb, £40.00 hb.

The New American Political (Dis)order. By Robert A. Dahl et al. Institute of Governmental Studies Press, University of California, Berkeley, 1994. Pp.xii + 102. $10.95.

Entwicklungschancen deutscher Stadte ‐ Die Folgen der Vereinigung. D. Henckel, B. Grabow, B. Hollbach, Hartmut Usbeck, Heinz Niemann. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart, Berlin, Cologne/Deutsche Ver‐meinde Verlag, 1993. Pp.567. DM78.

French Politics Today. By Peter Morris. Manchester University Press, 1994. Pp.182. £29.99 hb, £8.99 pb.

Lobbying in the European Community. Edited by Sonia Mazey and J. Richardson. Oxford University Press, 1993. Pp.263. £30.00.

Single Market to Social Europe: European Community in the 1990s. By M. Wise and R. Gibb. Longman, 1993. Pp.356. £13.99.     

Evaluating the potential of Protestant Christianity to stimulate democracy and good governance in sub-Saharan Africa through the valuing of the individual

ABSTRACT

The global distribution of Christians is expected to change by 2050, with the largest proportion of Christians – more than a billion – residing in sub-Saharan Africa. Historical and empirical studies have argued for a positive relationship between the proportion of Christians – Protestants in particular – and the development of liberal democracy. A key explanation for this positive influence is cultural, namely the valuing of the individual. Could the growth in Christianity have the potential to influence democratic development and good governance in the sub-Saharan region? To test our hypotheses – (1) sub-Saharan states with proportionally larger Protestant populations are more likely to have higher levels of democracy and good governance, and (2) sub-Saharan states with growing Protestant populations are more likely to have increasing levels of democracy and good governance – we employ a longitudinal and cross-sectional study (a panel of data) using data from the World Christian Database, Polity IV and the International Country Risk Guide. Our data show that the population share of Protestants is positively related with both levels of and growth in democracy and good governance. With the spread of Protestantism we could expect the future improvement of democracy and governance in the region.     

‘The fire rises’: identity,the alt-right and intersectionality

This article examines the ideology of the ‘alt-right,’ specifically in its relation to the importance of identity. Placing the alt-right within the context of the rising importance of identity within American society, the article discusses the alt-right as overlapping in significant ways with the identitarian elements within the American Left. Investigating the manner in which national/racial identity plays a central role in alt-right thinking and using the notion of ‘category-based epistemology’ for guidance, this article argues that the alt-right – rather than a quirk of the 2016 electoral cycle – is likely to increase in its importance as a ‘rightist’ form of intersectionality.     

Combating Asymmetric Threats: The Interplay of Offense and Defense

The overarching objective of this analysis is to examine the ways and means by which the United States could take the asymmetric battle-space and win against the ever-changing array of threats posed by nation-states and non-state actors. Today's security challenges are predominantly hybrids: offense and defense; symmetric and asymmetric; synchronous and asynchronous; regular and irregular; geographically-focused and globally-ubiquitous. This reality requires multi-dimensional thinking, nuanced approaches, and nimble, decisive execution guided by a new strategic paradigm. Fighting on the enemy's terms, scoring short-term wins at unjustifiably high costs in lives, treasure and lost opportunities is simply unacceptable.     

Saliva identification in forensic samples by automated microextraction and intact mass analysis of statherin

The enzyme α-amylase has long been a commonly targeted protein in serological tests for saliva. While being especially abundant in saliva, α-amylase is detectable in vaginal secretions, sweat, fecal matter, breast milk and other matrices. As a result, assays for α-amylase only provide a presumptive indication of saliva. The availability of mass spectrometry-based tools for the detection of less abundant, but more specific, protein targets (e.g., human statherin) has enabled the development of high confidence assays for human saliva. Sample throughput, however, has traditionally been low due to multi-step workflows for protein extraction, quantitation, enzymatic digestion, solid phase cleanup, and nano-/capillary-based chromatography. Here, we present two novel “direct” single-stage extraction strategies for sample preparation. These feature immunoaffinity purification and reversed-phase solid-phase microextraction in conjunction with intact mass analysis of human statherin for saliva identification. Mass analysis was performed on the Thermo Scientific Q-Exactive™ Orbitrap mass spectrometer with a 10-min analytical run time. Data analysis was performed using Byos^® from Protein Metrics. Two sample sets were analyzed with a population of 20 individuals to evaluate detection reliability. A series of casework-type samples were then assayed to evaluate performance in an authentic forensic context. Statherin was confidently identified in 92% and 71% of samples extracted using the immunoaffinity purification and solid phase microextraction approaches, respectively. Overall, immunoaffinity purification outperformed the solid phase microextraction, especially with complex mixtures. In toto, robotic extraction and intact mass spectrometry enable the reliable identification of trace human saliva in a variety of sample types.     

Which law applies? A reply to Professor Torremans

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

‘A book may be good for nothing; or there may be onlyone thing in it worth knowing; are we to read it all through?’(Samuel Johnson) This section is dedicated to the review ofideas, articles, books, films and other media. It will includereplies (and rejoinders) to articles, the evaluation of newideas or proposals, and reviews of books and articles both directlyand indirectly related to intellectual property law.

In a recent article,¹ Professor Torremans argues that the countryof origin (sometimes called the lex originis) should be thelaw applied to authorship and ownership of copyright.² There is no doubt that several countries do apply the countryof origin to initial ownership and authorship of copyright works.Citing both the Austrian and Belgian Codes on Private InternationalLaw as examples,³ Professor Torremans also mentions the decisionof the US Second Circuit of Appeals in . . . [Full Text of this Article]