Representing the West and “non-believers” in the online jihadist magazines Dabiq and Inspire

ABSTRACT

This article analyses how jihadist ideology groups discursively represent “the West” and “non-believers” in their online propagandamagazines. In doing so, it contributes to the field of Critical Terrorism Studies conceptually, by considering the voices of violent actors, and methodologically, by illustrating how linguistic tools of enquiry can advance current knowledge of jihadist ideology groups. Our work adopts a case study approach, focusing on the online magazines Inspire and Dabiq, which are part of the propaganda machinery of, respectively, Al-Qaeda and ISIS. The analysis reveals a number of similarities and differences in the discursive strategies that these twogroups use. On the one hand, both Inspire and Dabiq support and further construct an “us versus them” dichotomy thatpolarises differences between their jihadist ideologies and those of Westerners/non-believers. On the other, Dabiq’s discursiverepresentation of “the West” targets a wider variety of individuals and groups of people and geographical locations than Inspire’s. Additionally, Inspire places a greater focus on the pejorative construction of “the West” than Dabiq, suggesting that Al-Qaeda places more emphasis than ISIS on presenting “the West” as the enemy of jihad.     

Can criminals create opportunities for crime? Malvertising and illegal online medicine trade

Opportunity theories suggest that the occurrence of an offence depends on the presence of a motivated offender and a specific condition in the environment that presents an opportunity for crime. While offenders may be able to choose among crime opportunities, the question is whether they can create new crime opportunities. Based on a qualitative analysis of court cases, investigative reports and the news media, this article examines the genesis of crime opportunities by looking into the malicious online advertising (malvertising) of substandard, spurious, falsely labelled, falsified and counterfeit (SSFFC) medical products. While further research on this topic is needed, the findings of the article help to understand the importance of unsavoury advertising as a tool that perpetrators use to manipulate consumer demand and proactively create (or expand) criminal markets.     

Organizational convenience for white-collar crime: opportunity expansion by offender behavior

The theory of convenience suggests that the extent of white-collar crime is dependent on financial motive, organizational opportunity, and willingness for deviant behavior. Organizational opportunity is at the core of convenience theory, where privileged and powerful offenders have legitimate access to resources in their professions to commit and conceal financial crime. This article introduces a dynamic perspective of organizational opportunity where a white-collar offender can cause opportunity expansion over time. Based on agency theory, social disorganization theory, and blame game theory, a case study is presented. The case study is concerned with a chief financial officer (CFO) who applied several opportunity expansion techniques before he conveniently was able to commit and conceal embezzlement in the business where he was employed.     

当前工会劳动保护监督的机遇和作为

劳动保护监督是中国工会工作的一个薄弱环节。近年来,国内外形势的发展,给工会劳动保护监督提供了机遇。中国工会应该把握时机,乘势而上,把维护劳动者的职业安全健康权作为维权的最大行动。     

LIFESTYLE,RATIONAL CHOICE,AND ADOLESCENT FEAR: A TEST OF A RISK‐ASSESSMENT FRAMEWORK*

Criminological research on fear of crime primarily has been based on, and supportive of, an opportunity framework. The current research tests an expanded risk‐assessment model of fear, which is rooted in an opportunity framework, by incorporating a measure of delinquent lifestyle, which is a known risk factor for victimization, using a sample of youth aged 10–16 years. The findings from longitudinal structural equation models do not support the applicability of a risk‐assessment model of fear in adolescence. Namely, although increased involvement in a delinquent lifestyle is associated strongly with an increase in victimization over time, no such association exists with the perceived risk of victimization. Most importantly, as adolescents become more involved in a delinquent lifestyle and are victimized at a higher rate than nondelinquent youth, their fear of victimization actually decreases at a significantly higher rate than more prosocial youth.     

中国-东盟自由贸易区的进程与前景

中国—东盟自由贸易区得以产生决非偶然,它是以全球贸易自由化的迅速兴起和中国加入世贸组织的区域影响为背景。中国与东盟正式签署了《中国与东盟全面经济合作框架协议》,确定了中国-东盟自由贸易区的目标、范围、措施、时间表,它为建立中国-东盟自由贸易区设计了基本架构,诚然,中国-东盟自由贸易区进程中,将面临来自区域内外的一系列挑战。不过,在中国与东盟之间,共同利益远大于分歧,合作机遇远大于挑战。     

委托代理分析:对警务人员有效管理的新理念

警察机构作为政府的组成部分具有典型的科层制结构。由此产生了大量的委托代理关系并带来了管理上的低效率。其主要原因是不对称信息的存在 ,机会成本的增加 ,规则制度的失灵。解放这一问题的管理新理念是 :一要正视下属人员的正当利益要求 ,在设计组织目标时力图协调好组织整体目标与个人目标的关系 ,使下属人员在追求自身利益最大化的同时客观上也能促进组织目标的实现 ;二要创建“合作型”的组织文化 ,在和谐合作的组织文化氛围中促进组织目标的实现。     

China's soybean crisis: the logic of modernization and its discontents

Lester Brown sounded an alarm in 1995: who will feed China? Against this backdrop, this contribution examines China's dramatic turn from having been a soybean net exporter, up until the mid-1990s, to being the biggest importer of genetically modified (GM) soybeans, since 2000. With China's growing soybean imports, domestic soybean production has experienced a drastic fall, creating an outcry about a ‘soybean crisis’ in China. This paper examines competing interpretations about China's soybean imports and how a wide arrange of heated debates and critical reflections have emerged about China's position in globalization, the role of the state in food security, the safety of GM foods, consumer rights, what constitutes scientific authority, and the power of transnational corporations. In these debates, Chinese critics have very different views about the US and South America, where significant GM soybeans are produced for export to China.     

Successful and Unsuccessful Pirate Attacks Worldwide: A Situational Analysis

Using concepts drawn from situational crime prevention theory, this study compares successful and unsuccessful pirate attacks (n = 4,638) against ships worldwide and the situational factors that help prevent such attacks. The results show that when a ship’s crew takes proactive self-protective measures that increase the perceived effort (increasing speed, employing evasive maneuvers) and increase the perceived risk (embarking private security, having watchman present, raising alarm, increasing lighting, anti-piracy) of perpetrating an attack, unsuccessful attacks are significantly more likely after controlling for environmental influences. Despite a few common data limitations, the study contributes to the crime prevention literature by analyzing piracy from a micro level instead of a macro level. Future research should examine how the piracy “ecosystem” contributes to the problem and the costs and benefits counter-piracy activities.