In Defence of the West: General Lauris Norstad,NATO Nuclear Forces and Transatlantic Relations 1956–1963

In the history of NATO, lack of Atlantic communality is a recurring theme. Atlantic cohesion was constantly challenged. However, the discord among NATO members rarely threatened the very existence of the Alliance. The late 1950s and early 1960s witnessed such a rare occurrence. In Europe the question of nuclear sharing triggered the development of blue-prints for a step-by-step replacement of the Atlantic security co-operation by a European Security Community. These blueprints were discussed among the EEC member-states and within the forum of the WEU. This study analyses not only those concepts, but also the role of the SACEUR, General Norstad, in defending NATO from external threats and internal decay. By studying the leeway of the SACEUR, this study tries to establish whether the subsystem of the international system, formed by the nations of the North Atlantic area after the Second World War, should be characterised as a system of hegemonic stability or as a pluralistic security community. The article is based on recently declassified archival material from both sides of the Atlantic.     

Recent Education Policy and School Reform in Bavaria: A Critical Overview

This paper gives a critical overview of school reform measures in the German state of Bavaria in the aftermath of the OECD's PISA 2000 and 2003 studies. While the highly selective Bavarian school system has provided the best test results among the German federal states, its overall performance in an international context has been less impressive. In order to improve the Bavarian education system a range of initiatives has been introduced in recent years. While following pedagogically sound ideas in most cases, however, the projects have been hampered by fiscal restraints, ideological reservations against breaking up the traditional three-tier system of secondary education, prevailing bureaucratic restrictions, and a lack of improvements in incentives for teachers' involvement in reform. As a consequence, genuine, fundamental changes in the traditional system have not so far been initiated.     

Multivariate Comparison of Male and Female Adolescent Substance Abusers with Accompanying Legal Problems

Purpose

The factors that distinguish adolescent male and female substance abusers with and without legal problems were investigated.

Method

Youths (N = 4,071) admitted for substance abuse treatment were administered the revised Drug Use Screening Inventory (DUSI-R) to measure severity of health, behavior, and social adjustment problems.

Results

Legal problems were more frequent among boys; however, severity of disturbance was greater in girls on 9 of 10 scales. Substance abusing girls and boys with legal problems reported more severe behavior, substance abuse, family adjustment, and peer relationship problems than substance abusing peers without legal problems. Quality of peer relationship mediated the association of family dysfunction, substance abuse and behavior problems with legal problems in boys only.

Conclusions

Gender and legal status both need to be taken into account to potentiate treatment prognosis of substance abusing youths.     

Marijuana But Not Alcohol Use During Adolescence Mediates the Association Between Transmissible Risk for Substance Use Disorder and Number of Lifetime Violent Offenses

Aim

This study determined the extent to which alcohol and marijuana use during adolescence mediates the relation between transmissible risk for substance use disorder (SUD) and lifetime number of different types of violent offenses.

Methods

The transmissible liability index was administered to 359 10-12 year old youths who were tracked to 22 years of age. Past year frequency of alcohol and marijuana consumption was longitudinally tracked to age 22 at which time lifetime violent offenses was recorded.

Results

Rate of increase in marijuana use mediated the association between transmissible risk and lifetime number of different types of violent offenses. No association was found between past year frequency of alcohol use and violent offenses.

Conclusions

Prevention directed at lowering the psychological characteristics associated with transmissible risk for SUD may also reduce violent offending.     

A model of local crime displacement

In this paper, we develop a two-region model of crime spatial displacement. For high crime regions, the crime rate in one locality is negatively influenced by the crime rate of the other. The magnitude of the displacement depends on the distance between the two regions and on their relative size. For given sized neighbors, a closer distance implies greater displacement. When one region is larger, relative to the other, this increases the displacement, holding distance fixed. Examples show that the displacement from the treated to the adjacent areas can be small, if the relative size of the former is small. Nonetheless, the displacement can be large for other nearby areas, provided that the treated region is relatively big. Neglecting this result can cause an upward bias at the estimated impact of a policy. We also analyze the consequences for the design of public policies.     

The role of information asymmetry in the market for university–industry research collaboration

This study concerns the market for research collaboration between industry and universities. It presents an analysis of the population of all Italian university–industry collaborations that resulted in at least one international scientific publication between 2001 and 2003. Using spatial and bibliometric analysis relating to scientific output of university researchers, the study shows the importance of geographic proximity in companies’ choices of university partner. The analysis also reveals inefficiency in the market: in a large proportion of cases private companies could have chosen more qualified research partners in universities located closer to the place of business.     

Demystifying "oxi" cocaine: Chemical profiling analysis of a "new Brazilian drug" from Acre State

Recent information from various sources suggests that a new illicit drug, called "oxi", is being spread across Brazil. It would be used in the smoked form and it would look like to crack cocaine: usually small yellowish or light brown stones. As fully released in the media, "oxi" would differ from crack cocaine in the sense that crack would contain carbonate or bicarbonate salts whereas "oxi" would include the addition of calcium oxide and kerosene (or gasoline). In this context, this work presents a chemical profiling comparative study between "oxi" street samples seized by the Civil Police of the State of Acre (CP/AC) and samples associated with both international and interstate drug trafficking seized by the Brazilian Federal Police in Acre (FP/AC). The outcome of this work assisted Brazilian authorities to stop inaccurate and alarmist releases on this issue. It may be of good use by the forensic community in order to better understand matters in their efforts to guide local law enforcement agencies in case such claims reach the international illicit market.     

Correlates of handgun carrying among adolescents in the United States

Weapon-related violence, especially the use of handguns, among adolescents is a serious public health concern. Using public-use data file from the adolescent sample (N = 17,842) in the 2008 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), this study examines the behavioral, parental involvement, and prevention correlates of handgun carrying. Overall, 3.1% of adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17 reported carrying a handgun in the past year. Results from a series of logistic regression models indicated that males, selling and using illicit drugs, were robustly associated with an increased probability of handgun carrying among adolescents. Furthermore, youth who carry handguns were significantly less likely to report a parent being involved in their lives and were significantly more likely to have encountered violence and drug prevention programming compared with youth who did not carry handguns. Implications of these results for prevention and policy are discussed.     

The Riddle of Charisma

The word “charisma” is widely and carelessly employed, without investigation or definition of the phenomenon. Rather than a singular attribute, charisma is complex, manifesting itself in at least three non-exclusive forms: innate charisma, achieved charisma, and the charisma of position. Given the human craving for leadership, understanding the different forms of charisma and their associated strengths and weaknesses helps us steer between, triumph, tragedy and travesty.     

Industrial safety: The political challenge∗

The Philosophical Origins of Modern Contract Doctrine. JAMES GORDLEY. Oxford. 1991. The Clarendon Press. 263 pp. £35 hb; £16.99 pb.

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