IRAQ AND THE LESSONS OF VIETNAM: Introduction

Abstract

The following is the Introduction from a published collection of articles edited by Lloyd C. Gardner and Marilyn B. Young, Iraq and the Lessons of Vietnam: Or, How Not to Learn from the Past (New York and London: The New Press, 2007. 322pp. 978-1-59558-149-5). The book's Table of Contents appears on p. 486 below.

The specter of Vietnam has been buried forever in the desert sands of the Arabian Peninsula. — George H.W. Bush, 1991     

“(O)n the side of justice and peace”: 1 Canada on the League of Nations Council 1927–1930

Although very much an international novice, Canada secured election to the League Council in September 1927. It did not, on the whole, have a notable impact on its proceedings. Its people, too, were little moved by its presence at Geneva. And while its Prime minister enjoyed his one visit to the League, his scepticism about it remained undimmed. Nonetheless, its three-year Council term had a number of important consequences. It engineered what was on the face of it a significant amendment to League procedures regarding minorities. The experience and horizons of its Department of External affairs were widened. It became accepted that a Dominion—or India—should always sit on the Council. Its status—and that of the other Dominions—as states equal with Britain was underlined. And by demonstrating that it was not in Britain's pocket, Canada's political standing was greatly enhanced. Internationally, it had arrived.     

A Community Leadership Initiative for Scotland?

The Scottish Executive intends to introduce a statutory power of community initiative and of community planning in the forthcoming Local Government Bill. Community planning is developing as an important aspect of local governance in Scotland. It is viewed as a way for councils at the local level to work together with the community, voluntary and private sectors to develop and deliver an agreed joint vision for their communities. This article examines the nature of the community planning concept in Scotland and considers the lessons arising from experience to date. It addresses the tensions in community planning arising from its dual function of bringing some order to the fragmented institutional arrangements for service delivery and providing a strategic, integrated framework for the management of change.     

Advisory agencies in Canada: an introduction

Abstract. This paper reports the results of a sample survey of the members of 76 Canadian federal and provincial advisory agencies. These agencies serve as as entities wherein the widespread interests of the public on a particular policy issue area may be aggregated. The paper introduces the subject, reviews some of the American experience with such agencies, and introduces findings from this Canadian study both about members' attitudes toward their agency and the work of their agency, and about the members themselves. The study finds that such agencies constitute another level at which interest accommodation occurs. It also suggests that as the level at which advice is rendered increases the belief in the seriousness and importance of the work increases. As for the members, the study concludes that they represent more of an educated elite than perhaps would be assumed to be the case with citizen participatory bodies. The study concludes that advisory agencies seem to have a useful role in the administrative-policy process, at least insofar as members are concerned. Summary : There would appear to be little doubt that insofar as participants are concerned advisory agencies, appointed with sufficient solemnity and liaising with sufficiently senior policy-makers, are considered worthwhile components of the policy process, especially where matters of economics are concerned. We shall turn now to the members themselves.     

Psychopathy,expert testimony,and indeterminate sentences: Exploring the relationship between Psychopathy Checklist‐Revised testimony and trial outcome in Canada

Purpose. Psychopathy, as measured by the Hare Psychopathy Checklist‐Revised (PCL‐R), has the potential to inform judges attempting to preventatively detain Canada's highest risk offenders. However, studies examining the stigma of the psychopathy label give reason to exercise caution when expert witnesses introduce PCL‐R scores into their testimony. Methods. Judges' written or oral judgments were gathered from a publically available database in Canada. Dangerous offender hearings (N = 136) were examined to determine how factors within expert witness testimony were related to sentences of indeterminate or determinate length. Results. Results show a trend for PCL‐R scores to be related to trial outcome. Specifically, psychopathy diagnoses were correlated to experts' ratings of treatment amenability which were in turn related to trial outcome. In addition, experts tended to show partisan allegiance in the way they scored offenders on the PCL‐R. Conclusion. Discussion advocates a measure of caution when using PCL‐R testimony in an adversarial court context. Further research clarifying the role psychopathy plays in court decisions is also encouraged.     

Data retention

Use of our mobile communication devices tells a good deal about us. It is often the case that what number calls what number, at what times and frequencies and, in the case of mobile phones from and to what geographical locations can be as revealing to law enforcement and national security agencies as the actual contents of messages. Inevitably, though, this may involve the processing of data concerning millions of people who have no inclination to engage in unlawful conduct. Establishment of a legal regime for data retention that balances the claims of law enforcement agencies to prevent and detect criminal and terrorist activities has proved to be a difficult task. A number of legal challenges have been brought before the British and European Courts and this note seeks to consider and place in context the recent litigation involving the legality of the United Kingdom's Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Act 2014 (Watson and Others v. Secretary of State [2018] EWCA Civ 70).