Democratically consolidated,externally threatened,and NATO aligned: finding unexpected deficiencies in civilian control

It has long been presumed in the literature that consolidated democracies that face serious external threats or are NATO-aligned should feature strong, civilian control institutions and personnel. This study of Israel, India, Taiwan, Spain and Poland reveals otherwise. Utilizing biographical data compiled by the authors, we researched civilian personnel within each country’s defence ministry – the organizational hub of civil-military relations. Rather than finding evidence of strong civilian control, what we found instead were ministries with serious deficiencies: they did not have effective power; they failed to engage in defence planning or provide strategic guidance to the armed forces; they were led by military personnel and staffed by civilian employees not properly qualified to handle defence affairs. To explain these discrepancies, we argue that long-standing deficits in civilian expertise spur the delegation of ministerial defence positions to more knowledgeable officers. Comparisons are made with benchmark states that have achieved civilian ministerial control.     

Evaluation of canine training aids containment for homemade explosive and components by headspace analysis and canine testing

While canines are most commonly trained to detect traditional explosives, such as nitroaromatics and smokeless powders, homemade explosives (HMEs), such as fuel–oxidizer mixtures, are arguably a greater threat. As such, it is imperative that canines are sufficiently trained in the detection of such HMEs. The training aid delivery device (TADD) is a primary containment device that has been used to house HMEs and HME components for canine detection training purposes. This research assesses the odor release from HME components, ammonium nitrate (AN), urea nitrate (UN), and potassium chlorate (PC), housed in TADDs. Canine odor recognition tests (ORTs) were used with analytical data to determine the detectability of TADDs containing AN, UN, or PC. Headspace analysis by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) with solid-phase microextraction (SPME) or online cryotrapping were used to measure ammonia or chlorine, as well as other unwanted odorants, emanating from bulk AN, UN, and PC in TADDs over 28 weeks. The analytical data showed variation in the amount of ammonia and chlorine over time, with ammonia from AN and UN decreasing slowly over time and the abundance of chlorine from PC TADDs dependent on the frequency of exposure to ambient air. Even with these variations in odor abundance, canines previously trained to detect bulk explosive HME components were able to detect all three targets in glass and plastic TADDs for at least 18 months after loading. Detection proficiency ranged from 64% to 100% and was not found to be dependent on either age of material.     

RACIALLY HOMOPHILOUS SOCIAL TIES AND INFORMAL SOCIAL CONTROL

Social disorganization theory argues that racial/ethnic heterogeneity is a key neighborhood characteristic leading to social disorganization and, consequently, higher levels of crime. Heterogeneity's effect is argued to be a result of its fragmentation of social ties along racial/ethnic lines, which creates racially homophilous social networks with few ties bridging racial/ethnic groups. Most studies of social ties in social disorganization models, however, have examined their quantity and left unaddressed the extent to which ties are within or across different racial groups. This study goes beyond previous studies by examining the effects of both racially homophilous and interracial friendship networks on informal social control. Using multilevel models and data from 66 neighborhoods with approximately 2,300 respondents, we found that heterogeneity actually increased the average percentage of residents with interracial friendship networks, but the percentage of residents with interracial networks decreased the likelihood of informal social control. In contrast, the percentage of residents with White racially homophilous networks increased the likelihood of informal social control. Examining the microcontext of individuals’ networks, however, we found residents with interracial ties reported higher likelihoods of informal social control and that this effect was enhanced in neighborhoods with higher percentages of non‐White racially homophilous networks.     

法律对社会冲突的控制与和谐社会的构建

现实社会是冲突与和谐的统一体。和谐社会并不是不存在冲突,而是社会制度能够最大限度减少冲突。中国目前正处在构建社会主义和谐社会时期,需要从法律制度上对各种社会冲突进行有效控制。在立法上,建立一种服务于大多数人利益整合的制度,实现对利益的分配、保障和和谐;在司法上,做到阻止非法利益、平衡合法利益、容许法外利益,实现司法公正。     

Disputes in Japan: A cross-cultural test of the procedural justice model

Research on procedural justice has provided ample evidence that people are concerned not only with the outcome of disputes but also with the fairness of the procedures used to resolve disputes. The majority of the studies examining the importance of procedural justice have been conducted in the United States and Western European countries. This study tests the generality of the procedural justice model by examining the importance of fair procedures to people in a non-Western country, Japan. This study also examines the meaning of a fair procedure from a legal perspective. Past studies have drawn the procedural justice criteria considered from social psychology. We examine several additional criteria derived from the legal concept of due process of law. Results indicate that fair procedures are more important to subjects than fair outcomes in both a traffic accident dispute and a breach of contract case. Furthermore, across both types of disputes, fairness concerns are more important than nonfairness concerns. These results are consistent with findings from studies conducted in Western countries. A new finding that emerges from the study is that the clarity with which a procedure is formulated and presented is a strong determinant of procedural justice judgments.     

论我国历史上对性交易的法律管制

我国法律对性交易的打击虽非常严厉,但性交易却屡禁不止,并愈演愈烈.可见,我国现行的严禁主义存在问题.纵观我国历史大多数时期,性交易是合法的,并且性交易合法时期往往是社会环境比较宽松的时期,也往往是历史上的“盛世”之时.而性交易非法时期也往往是法律环境比较苛刻、社会控制比较严厉的时期.这样的时期里对性交易的管制往往就是严刑峻法,通过这样的管制也往往造成统治者不愿意看到的结果,并且最终都会放开对性交易的管制.     

《鹿特丹规则》下无单放货解决机制：从凭保函放货到凭指示放货

《鹿特丹规则》对无单放货问题设计了新的解决机制，通过使特定条件下的无单放货合法化，试图减轻承运人的负担，平衡船货双方的利益。采取规范分析的方法，对这一机制进行解构，论述其给各当事方的法律地位所带来的变化，认为对现有制度进行改良可能是更好的选择。     

网络传播淫秽电子信息犯罪的治理对策

文章围绕网络传播淫秽电子信息犯罪的治理问题展开论述,阐释了此类犯罪所触犯的刑法罪名及其相关的司法操作,分析了此类犯罪的危害性、犯罪行为特点以及犯罪主体特点,提出了严厉打击淫秽网站、加强相应的道德引导和法制教育、切实加强网络管理与监控、切断非法利益生成链条等综合性的治理对策。     

现代化犯罪视野下的中国刑事诉讼制度改革——对万毅博士“底限正义论”的质评

在现代化犯罪视野中审视各国刑事诉讼制度的改革与发展，可以得知，在现代化初级阶段，由于面临现代化犯罪大潮的压力，各国刑事诉讼制度的发展大体上首先是以犯罪控制为基本价值定位的。随着现代化的逐步深入，一国刑事诉讼制度中犯罪控制与人权保障的动态比例关系会发生微妙的变化。以这种历史考察为依据，对有学者以“底限正义”作为评判标准，得出我国刑事诉讼制度扭由和变形的判断、“底限正义”具有元规则地位、一国刑事诉讼制度改革必须遵照“底限正义”的“逻辑优先性”和“绝对要求性”进行等观点可以进行批驳.     

评述行政紧急权力的法律控制

紧急状态是任何社会在其发展过程中都不可避免的,因而行政紧急权力的动用在特定情况下也就同样不可避免。但是何为行政紧急权力,为什么要控制行政紧急权力以及如何控制行政紧急权力,这些关乎行政紧急权力有效运行的重大问题,伴随着紧急状态立法成为我国行政法学者热议的话题。学者们对行政紧急权力的基本属性还存在不同的理解,对行政紧急权力法律控制的必要性和控制路径也存在着不同的认识。加强对行政紧急权力在事前、事中、事后的法律控制是根本途径。