Fatalities associated with home-made pipe bombs in Northern Ireland

Pipe bombs are crudely constructed improvized explosive devices which are easily made at home. They are increasingly used by terrorists and others, and may inflict serious injuries and cause death. Four fatalities have occurred in association with their use in Northern Ireland between 1998 and 2002. In 2 cases, death was due to penetrating shrapnel injuries to the chest causing laceration of the great vessels, and a third fatality occurred due to a bomb fragment penetrating the cranial cavity. A pipe bomb exploded close to the back of the head of a fourth victim and this was associated with a severe brain injury. The pathologist was able to determine the position of the victim in relation to the explosion by interpreting the pattern of injuries. It seems likely that 2 of the victims had been involved in the construction, transport, or use of the devices. A third victim was entirely innocent and had been in the process of removing a pipe bomb, which had been thrown through the window of her home, when it exploded. The fourth victim was a member of the security forces who had been struck by a bomb fragment, in the region of the right eye, during a period of sectarian unrest.     

Beyond People Versus Place: A Place-Conscious Framework for Investing in Housing and Neighborhoods

This article argues for a next generation of place-conscious strategies that recognize the importance of neighborhoods in the lives of families, but look beyond narrowly defined neighborhood boundaries to address market-wide opportunities and barriers, capitalize on demographic and market trends underway at the regional scale, and envision alternative models of how neighborhoods can function for their residents. It offers five principles for ongoing experimentation and knowledge building: (a) develop citywide strategies that promote both inclusion and redevelopment; (b) anticipate and plan for residential mobility and neighborhood change; (c) connect residents of poor neighborhoods to city and regional opportunities; (d) capitalize on the coming rental housing boom; and (e) use data for continuous learning and accountability. Advancing this agenda will require enhanced capacity for collaboration and governance at the local levels.     

The Balance‐Sample Size Frontier in Matching Methods for Causal Inference

We propose a simplified approach to matching for causal inference that simultaneously optimizes balance (similarity between the treated and control groups) and matched sample size. Existing approaches either fix the matched sample size and maximize balance or fix balance and maximize sample size, leaving analysts to settle for suboptimal solutions or attempt manual optimization by iteratively tweaking their matching method and rechecking balance. To jointly maximize balance and sample size, we introduce the matching frontier, the set of matching solutions with maximum possible balance for each sample size. Rather than iterating, researchers can choose matching solutions from the frontier for analysis in one step. We derive fast algorithms that calculate the matching frontier for several commonly used balance metrics. We demonstrate this approach with analyses of the effect of sex on judging and job training programs that show how the methods we introduce can extract new knowledge from existing data sets.     

From Angels to Humans: Law,Coercion, and the Society of Angels Thought Experiment

Law and Philosophy - Whether legal systems are necessarily coercive raises normative concerns. Coercion carries a presumption of illegitimacy and a special justificatory burden. If legal systems...     

Symposium,Cannabis—Legal,Ethical, and Compliance Issues: Introduction

This introduction reviews six articles presented at the 2020 symposium, “Legal, Ethical, and Compliance Issues in Emerging Markets: Cannabis in the States.” Scholars from across the United States and Canada presented research using the lens of law and strategy, ethics, and compliance to focus on the U.S. cannabis industry. The articles are discussed within the framework of institutional voids common to emerging markets, which may include a lack of a fully developed regulatory system and issues related to financial markets. These institutional problems create complexity for consumers, producers, municipalities, and state governments in this industry, and make success for this market segment more challenging. The introduction contributes to the discussion by reviewing securities litigation involving the cannabis industry generally and specifically in light of some of the issues identified by authors in the special issue.     

WESTERN APPROACHES TO THE MIDDLE EAST (REVIEW ARTICLE)

This article considers five books about western countries' actions and policies in the Middle East over the twentieth century and beyond. The British with their mandates in Iraq, Palestine and Jordan, and the French in Syria and Lebanon, employed similar techniques. The role of the British in Palestine comes in for a deal of criticism By the time the Americans took over the dominant role in the region, the policy challenge was rather different. But the mistakes the Americans made were just as serious and the lessons of history were too often ignored.     

REVIEWS

Foreign books

Mit Feldmarschall von der Goltz Pascha in Mesopotamien und Persien. By his late General Staff Officer, Lieutenant‐Colonel Hans v. Kiesling. Leipzig: Dieterich ‘sche, publishers.

L'Islam et les Questions Musulmanes au point de vue Français: Conférence faite au centre des hautes études militaires, le 13 Avril, 1923. Par Général Brémond. Paris: Charles Lavau‐zelle et Cie, Editeurs Militaires.

English books

The Caliphate. By Sir Thomas Arnold, C.I.E., Litt.D. Oxford: Clarendon Press. 1924. 108. 6d. net.

Persian Literature in Modern Times. By E. G. Browne. Cambrige University Press. 1924. 35s. net.

Ben Kendim: A Record of Eastern Travel. By Lieut.‐Colonel the Hon. Aubrey Herbert. Edited by Desmond MacCarthy. Illustrated with six maps. London: Hutchinson and Co. 1924. 21s. net.

Anatolica. By Harry Charles Luke. London: Macmillan and Co., 1924. 16s. net.

Trans‐Jordan: Some Impressions. By Mrs. Steuart Erskine. London: Ernest Benn, Ltd. 1924. 12s. net.

Tales from Turkistan. By Stor Lob. London: Wm. Blackwood and Sons. 1924. 6s.

India: A Bird's‐Eye View. By the Earl of Ronaldshay, P.C., G.C.S.I., G.C.I.E. Constable and Co., London and Bombay, 1924. Price 18s.

From China to Hkamti Long. By Captain F. Kingdon Ward. Edward Arnold and Co. 1924. 18s. net.

Zanzibar: An Account of its People, Industries, and History. Zanzibar: The Local Committee of the British Empire Exhibition. Paper. Pp. xx + 84.