Empty Homes and Acquisitive Crime: Does Vacancy Type Matter?

American Journal of Criminal Justice - Research suggests that vacant homes are associated with a variety of negative outcomes for communities, including higher rates of some crimes. A few studies...     

The Topography of Sino–Romanian Relations in the Post-Cold War Era (1990–2015)

This article looks, from a Romanian perspective, at developments in Sino–Romanian relations over the past 25 years, with a focus on two factors that shaped bilateral cooperation: the political matrix of interactions and the mutual pursuit of economic and security benefits. In this context, the article argues that, although the existing pattern of cooperative outputs and the two states’ behavioural dynamics were largely by-products of a divergent interplay of endogenous variables and exogenously-articulated influences, Sino–Romanian relations in the post-1989 era were mainly characterised by an adaptive inertia, circumscribed by a tradition of tacit, formal, and informal (positive) cooperation.     

Vaginorectal impalement injury in a 2-year-old child--caused by sexual abuse or an accident?

Anogenital impalement injuries are rarely encountered in clinical or forensic practice. If seen in children and if incurred under suspect circumstances, sexual abuse must be considered in the differential diagnosis. Here we describe the case of a 2-year-old girl admitted to hospital with a vaginorectal impalement injury. According to the girl's parents, she had slipped in the bathroom and fallen onto the handle of an upright toilet bowl brush. Since a second slight anal injury was present, the parents' account appeared inconsistent. Therefore, physicians from the Institute of Legal Medicine were consulted to investigate the possibility of underlying sexual abuse. Because they could not rule out that the injuries could have been caused by sexual abuse, they recommended having the police immediately examine the site of the purported accident for evidence. The police and forensic investigations, however, verified the parents' account of an accidental injury. Thus, in this case, the initiation of a police inquiry, which is not compulsory in Germany even when sexual abuse is strongly suspected, led to the exoneration of the father.     

Max Weber: Family History, Economic Policy, Exchange Reform

Max Weber descended from Anglo-German merchant families with world-wide connections. This helped make him a cosmopolitan nationalist. Fittingly Weber at first tried to pursue a career in international commercial law. Family connections informed his understanding of South American wheat exports and North American railroad capitalism and of the tariff issues resulting therefrom. This in turn influenced his critique of the Prussian agrarian capitalists, especially of their opposition to trading in grain futures. Weber championed a strong capital market and efficient exchanges. His economic policies remain of exemplary interest insofar as they link the presumptive, if contested, national interest with an unsentimental acceptance of the world economy.