Global Democracy: A Symposium on a New Political Hope

The idea that the values and norms of democracy can also be applied to global politics is increasingly debated in academe. The six authors participating in this symposium are all advocates of global democracy, but there are significant differences in the way they envision its implementation. Some of the contributors discuss if and how substantial changes undertaken by states, mostly in their foreign policies, may also generate positive consequences in global politics. Other contributors address the nature of the international arena and the possible reforms it should undergo starting with the reform of international organizations. The debate combines theoretical aspects with normative proposals that could also be advanced in the political arena and offers a wide range of perspectives on the attempts to achieve a more democratic global political community.     

Majoritarian democracy and globalization versus ethnic diversity?

While some types of democracy can sustain ethnic and cultural diversity, others can clearly undermine it. In The Dark Side of Democracy, Michael Mann argues that extreme crimes like genocide and ethnic cleansing tend to occur, or at least be legitimized, within a majoritarian democracy framework. This article broadens Mann's approach in two directions: first, it confirms that majoritarian democracy in plural societies can provide the pre-existing institutional context where conflict, nationalism and exclusion can thrive, eventually degenerating into self-destruction. Second, it focuses on the tendency by some governments to turn to patriotism and populism as sources of legitimacy at a time when the latter appears to be crumbling. In addition, the article questions both the ‘democratic peace’ and the ‘failed democratization’ approaches for their reliance on an ideal type and fixed notion of democracy, arguing that the latter has been weakened by neoliberal globalization, particularly as it interacts with the legacy of pre-existing forms of majoritarianism. The article concludes that these forces need to be studied simultaneously in order to have a broader picture of the contemporary weakening of democratic practices and institutions within some nation-states.     

Organized crime and regional development. A review of the Italian case

This paper offers a review of the effects of organized crime on regional economic development, with particular reference to the case of Italy. After reviewing the empirical studies that analyse the relationship between crime and economic development, the paper examines the regional distribution and the social costs of some crimes (in particular extortion) that can be linked to mafia type criminality.     

Rapid amplification of commercial STR typing kits

Forensic DNA typing is currently conducted in approximately 8–10 h. The process includes DNA extraction, quantitation, multiplex PCR amplification, and fragment length detection. Today's commercial multiplex short tandem repeat (STR) typing kits are not optimized for rapid PCR thermal cycling. Current protocols require approximately 3 h for amplifying a multiplex containing 15 STR loci plus amelogenin. With the continuing development of miniaturization technologies such as microfluidic and micro-capillary devices, there is a desire to reduce the overall time required to type DNA samples. Such miniature devices could be used for initial screening at a crime scene, at a border, and at airports. There is also the benefit of reducing the required PCR amplification time for labs typing single-source reference samples. Surveys of fast processing polymerases working in combination with rapid cycling protocols have resulted in the development of a ‘rapid’ PCR amplification protocol. Results are obtained in less than 36 min run on a standard peltier-based thermal cycler employing a heating rate of 4 °C/s. Capillary electrophoresis characterization of the PCR products indicates good peak balance between loci, strong signal intensity and minor adenylation artifacts. Genotyping results are concordant with standard amplification conditions utilizing a standard 3 h (non-rapid) thermal cycling procedure. The rapid assay conditions are robust enough to routinely amplify 0.5 ng of template DNA (with 28 cycles).     

Comparison of Different Swabs for Sampling Inorganic Gunshot Residue from Gunshot Wounds: Applicability and Reliability for the Determination of Firing Distance

This study concentrates on samples of bare pork skin, with and without bristles, and dried bovine ribs shot with a semi‐automatic pistol to find the best methodology and sampling surface in the search for inorganic gunshot residues (IGSR). Four quadrants of known surface areas were sampled at different distances from the bullet's hole with different swabs: tapes in graphite, Leukosilk® white tape, 3M® transparent tape, and a cotton swab to assess the technique able to collect the highest amounts of IGSR with the lowest contribution of the blank. The cotton swab wet in 10% HNO₃ gave the best results. The highest amounts of IGSR, measured by ICP‐OES and MS, were detected on a surface of 3‐cm radius from the bullet's edge. The amount of metals collected decreased with the firing distance between 20 and 60 cm. The procedure was efficient for sampling different tissues like skin and bones.     

The Difficult Task of Diagnosing Prostate Cancer Metastases on Dry Bone

The interpretation of pathology on skeletal remains is mandatory for implementing the biological profile and for disease recognition. Prostate cancer is one of the most common tumors, with a high preference for the skeleton as a primary site of metastasis. Its diagnosis on bone is however still ambiguous, due to its “osteoblastic” and resorptive manifestation. This study investigates distribution and appearance of prostate cancer metastases on dry bone on six known cases (selected from the Milano Cemetery Skeletal Collection) and one healthy individual. A macroscopic inspection was performed highlighting the abnormalities observed, describing location, shape, dimension, and aspect. A great amount of proliferative and mixed lesions was noticed, but also cases of pure lytic lesions were displayed. The multiple appearances of the manifestations observed display the difficulty in correctly identifying such a pathology, but also the potential and advantages provided by investigating a study sample with known antemortem history.     

Histological Determination of the Human Origin of Bone Fragments

Abstract:  A frequently encountered task in the forensic scenario is verification of the human origin of severely degraded fragments of bone. In these cases histological methods which consider osteon size and morphology can prove to be useful. The authors in the present study verify the applicability of published algorithms to flat and subadult bones from human, dog, cat, cow, rabbit, sheep, pig, chicken, quail, and turkey samples. Metric analysis was performed on 2031 Haversian canals. Analyses carried out on human samples confirmed a success rate of around 70% on long adult bones; however the percentage of wrong answers was particularly high in the case of newborns and older subadults as well as on flat bones in general. Results therefore suggest that such regression equations should be limited only to bone fragments from long adult bones.     

The difficult issue of age assessment on pedo-pornographic material

The issue of juvenile pornography has seen an increase in the past few years of the number of expert opinions requested to forensic pathologists, paediatricians and other various experts within the forensic and medical fields concerning the age of represented individuals. Regardless of the entity of the problem, no actual method exists which can allow us to give an objective and scientific answer, particularly in the postpubertal stage. Using parameters related to sexual maturation can be very dangerous. Nonetheless some experts still insist with similar types of “expertises”. This study aims at verifying the ability of different experts in assessing age of postpubertal individuals represented in pornographic material. Results underline the difficulties and major uncertainties of age evaluation by visual observation of photographic material particularly when the subjects have reached the sexual maturation stage – and therefore in verifying whether the individual is above or below 18 years of age (an important age limit for most European countries as far as this type of crime is concerned). Furthermore the study stresses the need both to search for an alternate approach and to apply extreme caution in judicial evaluation.     

Domino effect or internal developments? The influences of international events and political ideologies on Catalan and Basque nationalism

Although comparative studies of nationalism have recently experienced a resurgence, few attempts have been made to analyse the reciprocal influences exerted upon one another by nationalist movements. This article distinguishes between a domino effect which denotes a concrete change at the governmental level, and a demonstration effect which signifies more general influences on nationalist movements exerted by ‘external’ models. A comparative analysis of external ideological influences on Basque and Catalan nationalism reveals that the domino effect metaphor does not easily apply to nationalism, while demonstration effects are often confined to certain sectors of these nationalist movements, generally the most radical ones.     

The nationalisation of electoral politics: A conceptual reconstruction and review of the literature

This article revisits the theory of the nationalisation of electoral politics from both a conceptual and a methodological perspective. Presenting and evaluating this theory through a critical analysis of the major works, the article focuses on the analytical utility and the theoretical interest of such a re‐examination, and provides a new conceptual and operational definition of this political phenomenon. The concept of nationalisation is discussed in regard to three electoral dimensions: homogeneity of support; uniform swing; and responses to national factors. Combining these three dimensions, the article provides a typology of the different forms of nationalisation, explores the possibilities of its analytical application, and tries to establish the extent to which the operational definition of nationalisation corresponds to the conceptual and theoretical definition.