Non State-wide Parties in Spain: An Attitudinal Study of Nationalism and Regionalism

The contribution of regional parties to the development of thestate of the autonomies in democratic Spain is the focus ofthis article. One of the most important features of the transformedstate is non-statewide parties (NSWPs) that have emerged asa result of diversity and expressions of regionalism. The levelof electoral strength and institutional presence, attitudinalbases of their electoral support, and perceptions of the territorialspace and representation of NSWPs are analyzed.     

A modest proposal to clarify the status of coca in the United Nations conventions

This essay surveys the status of coca in the United Nations Conventions, explains why it is confusing, how a few changes would eliminate some of the sources of conflict and help organize and control licit coca markets in the Andes. The current disorganized and weakly controlled legal coca market in Peru has been analyzed to demonstrate its deficiencies and to illustrate possible improvements in international drug control policies.     

Serial payers,serial losers? The political economy of Argentina’s public debt

A global neoliberal architecture has enabled many countries to increase their public debts to meet their fiscal needs. But since 2008 a number of European and North American economies have faced financial crises induced by unsustainable debts. This paper analyses the case of post-default Argentina since 2001, so as to better comprehend the political economy of public debt, especially in cases where governments are elected on anti-austerity platforms. Presidents Néstor and Cristina Kirchner were committed to a debt-reduction policy, yet Argentina faced a new, ‘selective’, default in 2014. This paper analyses how the country has been trapped in a cycle of debt dependency, which can only be interrupted by a comprehensive audit of the debt’s legitimacy followed by debt cancellation. Critical lessons are provided for other countries facing similar situations.     

Commode Cardia—Death by Valsalva Maneuver: A Case Series

The Valsalva maneuver is used in clinical medicine for the diagnosis and/or treatment of various cardiovascular conditions. It can also be used in activities of daily living, such as defecation. Due to the cardiovascular effects produced during the Valsalva maneuver, it may be contraindicated in certain medical conditions and could be a trigger of sudden cardiac death. The incidence and prevalence of death following Valsalva maneuver in the presence of underlying cardiovascular disease, or “commode cardia,” has not been examined. In 2012, the Wayne County Medical Examiner's Office (Detroit, MI) investigated 21 deaths that occurred on the toilet, fourteen of which were due to cardiovascular disease. In another 31 deaths in the bathroom due to cardiovascular disease, the possibility that the decedent defecated immediately prior to death could not be excluded. Hence, the incidence of commode cardia in this population ranges from 2.3 to 7.4% of all cardiovascular‐related deaths.     

Long Bone (Humerus,Femur, Tibia) Measuring Procedure in Cadavers

In this work, we present a measuring methodology for long bones of the limbs (humerus, femur, and tibia) of human corpses. Measurements of cadaveric height and long bone lengths were conducted on 72 corpses (20 females and 52 males) from the School of Medicine at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. Additionally, these measurements were compared with those taken from dry bones of a subsample of individuals. Our results show marginal differences (TEM% = 0.59) between cadaveric and dry bone measurements, resulting from different osteometric technical procedures. This note outlines the measuring methodology, which will be subsequently used to create regression formulas for stature estimation.     

The Determinants of Local Government's Financial Transparency

This paper contributes to the scarce literature on government transparency by analysing the impact of political and socio-economic factors on municipal financial transparency. Our sample covers the 100 largest Spanish municipalities in 2008. Compulsory publicity and transparency are key to public management (rule-of-law theory). Our data show that Spanish municipalities are providing financial information beyond the legal requirements, thus exceeding the compulsory disclosures required by the rule-of-law theory. The more taxes and more transfers per capita, the more financial information is disclosed and, accordingly, the higher the transparency is. Therefore the municipalities are not taking advantage of fiscal illusion or principal–agent effects, since they are not concealing higher levels of taxes and transfers from citizens. Furthermore, left-wing parties are more transparent than right-wing ones. Finally, the population also has a positive effect on the achievement of financial transparency.     

Measuring the efficiency of Spanish municipal refuse collection services

The aim of this article is to analyse the technical efficiency of the refuse collection services in 75 municipalities located in Catalonia, Spain. The analysis has been carried out using a great variety of techniques, both parametric and non‐parametric. Although the results naturally differ according to the technique used, they nevertheless are consistent in ranking the units analysed. Finally, we have looked into the relation existing between efficiency and the public or private management of the service. The results seem to support the idea that the framework for competition in which the service is provided could be more relevant than the private‐public management dichotomy.