Why George W. Bush Is a Unilateralist and How It Will Affect the 2004 Presidential Election

ABSTRACT

U.S. President George W. Bush has had a stormy relationship with Europe. Bush campaigned on a theme of putting America's interests first and eschewing multilateralism when necessary. Since taking office, Bush has been true to his campaign pledges. Bush's style and substance have caused many in Europe to regard him as a “buffoon” at best and a dangerous cowboy at worst. What the Europeans do not seem to understand is that, for better or worse, George W. Bush's view of the world is held by a substantial portion of the American people, and even when the U.S. had a more Euro-friendly leader in President Bill Clinton, America's policies were often at odds with those preferred by its allies in Europe. This is due to a fundamental difference that has developed between Europe and the United States over the last century. Today, no matter who occupies the White House, American foreign policy is likely to be in conflict with Europe's. Far from being a liability, this difference is likely to be a political asset to George W. Bush in the 2004 presidential election.     

Urban unemployment and optimal tax policy in a small,open dual economy

This paper analyses optimal tax policies in a two‐sector model of an LDC, similar to that of Harris and Todaro [1970]. The analysis assumes a small, open economy with a non‐competitive urban wage which depends on prices of both agricultural and manufactured goods. Optimal policies are considered for cases where an employment subsidy in manufacturing and/or taxes on international trade are the only feasible instruments, and where government revenue has an excess burden. Comparisons are made with results obtained by Harris and Todaro, Hagen, and Bhagwati and Srinivasan, for similar models.     

Examining the Scope for National Lesson‐drawing on Climate Governance

The need to understand the scope for comparative lesson‐drawing on national‐level climate mitigation policy has acquired added significance due to the current impasse in international‐level governance. Greater policy learning or lesson‐drawing among peers at the national level could, to an extent, foster meaningful developments by overcoming generalised international apathy and inaction. In this respect, we analyse the features of one significant example of national climate policy in order to examine the scope for lesson‐drawing, thereby setting out a normative research agenda. The UK Climate Change Act 2008 remains one of the few examples of legally enshrined national mitigation legislation and hence provides a relevant, but surprisingly under‐researched, source of learning for policy‐makers worldwide. By analysing its development, critical features and implementation, this article shows that—despite criticism of the sustainability and implementation effectiveness of the Act—some aspects of the policy could provide lessons for other states, and hence are potentially transferable extraterritorially, although lesson‐drawing itself is conditional on contextual constraints.     

Welsh Devolution and the Union: Reform Debates after Brexit

The survey addresses three key reform debates relating to devolution in Wales. These concern first, the case for the further devolution of powers, notably those over criminal justice and policing; second, the defence of Wales’ devolved powers in the context of Brexit; and third, the rooting of devolution in new constitutional ideals, primarily the Welsh government’s preferred model of the UK as a voluntary association of nations, or the alternative pressed by the independence movement. In each case, there are strong pressures within Wales for resolutions which sustain and develop devolution; and in the case of independence, have the potential, with reform debates elsewhere, to transform the UK Union. However, there are also grounds for reflecting on the contested nature of further change, the long road that a case for independence may yet have to travel, and the interests of UK government.     

Gambling on compliance with the new 2005 Act: Do organisations fulfil new regulations?

Gambling is not a new phenomenon. Indeed gambling has been seen to be omnipresent throughout history and culture. However gambling has taken a new path. Online gambling is fast becoming a major pastime for many of society. The ease of access and convenience of play has led to an increase in the numbers of people gambling, and not just online. Within the increase of online gambling there has also been an increase in the regulation surrounding this industry. This paper explores the regulatory approach to online gambling within the UK. The researchers explore the Gambling Act 2005 (UK) and provide an empirical analysis of the UK major gambling organisation to determine what regulatory aspects they adopt and what safety measures they have in place to protect minors and to protect against financial crime. The researchers finally looks at policy implications for UK governments when regulating future online gambling.     

Representation and district magnitude in plurality systems

Despite the widely accepted theoretical prediction that high district magnitudes should yield less proportional results in plurality systems, empirical evidence is surprisingly mixed. We argue that these mixed results are ultimately due to a lack of clarity about the counterfactual being considered. We use a simple model to show that an increase in district magnitude reduces expected proportionality in a plurality system only if it is accompanied by a reduction in the number of districts. This conditional prediction helps to explain the diversity of existing findings and is consistent with our own analysis of both U.S. congressional delegations and local councils in Britain.     

More Damage to Japan＇s Image

正MY daughter,who is studying a master’s degree at Japan’s Waseda University,always asks me:Most people I meet in Japan are quite amiable,and Prime Minister Abe Shinzo is popular among the Japanese people,so why does China accuse Japan of deviating to the right?Shigeru Ishiba,secretary general of the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan,formerly Japan’s defense minister,also asked me during a China-Japan thinktank forum:Japan has kept to a peaceful road for decades since WWII,so why does China insist that Japan’s militarism is undergoing a     

Elected or Selected? The Continuing Constitutional Conundrum of House of Lords Reform

The 1911 Parliament Act decreed that Lords reform was ‘an urgent question which brooks no delay’, yet the subsequent 112 years have witnessed only sporadic and inchoate reforms. The issue has invariably suffered both from interparty disagreement between the Conservatives and Labour and, more importantly, intraparty disagreements owing to the divergent views and irreconcilable disagreements among Labour MPs over ‘what is to be done?’, and recognition that any reform which enhanced the legitimacy of the second chamber would threaten the pre-eminence of the House of Commons and a Labour government therein. A similar fate is likely to befall the Labour Party's latest proposal for replacing the current House of Lords with an elected second chamber. Meanwhile, the Conservative peer, Lord Norton, is seeking to place the House of Lords Appointments Commission (HOLAC) on a statutory basis and impose stricter criteria on prime ministerial nominations for peerages. Yet, this would still leave any Prime Minister with considerable powers of patronage in appointing members of the second chamber. This article therefore suggests that a Prime Minister should only be permitted to nominate 20 per cent of the membership, with the rest appointed via HOLAC itself, thereby depoliticising the process as far as practicably possible, and imbuing it with greater public trust.     

国债市场基准利率的形成

国债市场收益率是金融市场的基准利率.这是因为国债市场规模大,参与者多,国债品种齐全、风险小,流动性强、交易方式多,国家宏观调控政策容易切入.为了促使国债市场基准利率的形成,必须采取以下措施增大国债发行规模,完善期限品种,实行市场化发行方式,调整持有者结构,调整利率期限结构,恢复国债期货交易和完善国债回购交易,财政政策与货币政策的协调配合.