Al Capone and the Internal Revenue Service: State-sanctioned criminology of organized crime

The story of Al Capone's rise and fall as a Chicago gangster has always depended upon selective dissemination of federal agency records, particularly records of the Internal Revenue Service. Capone history, therefore, is state-sanctioned history. The IRS view of the Capone organization, and of the tax evasion conviction, cannot be easily challenged without access to the corpus of the IRS records. Unfortunately, these records remain sealed from public access, despite the fact that selective releases were made prior to 1977 to journalists, popular authors, film producers and historians. Continued secrecy over the Capone records perpetuates a state-sanctioned criminology of organized crime. Calder v. Internal Revenue Service ¹ attempted without success to unlock the corpus of IRS-Capone records to investigate the state-sanctioned view.     

Coping with energy insecurity: China’s response in global perspective

Already the world’s second largest energy consumer, China has accounted for more than a third of the increase in global oil demand since 2000. Due to infrastructural bottlenecks as well as supply shortages, intensified by sustained growth, the PRC is likely to become an increasingly important factor in global oil and gas markets, and to pursue an increasingly active energy diplomacy. Reducing energy vulnerability will be a key imperative. The PRC is striving to reduce its energy vulnerability by: (1) promoting energy efficiency; (2) diversifying away from its heavy reliance on coal and oil, toward nuclear power and natural gas; (3) improving domestic energy infrastructure; (4) promoting national energy champions; (5) deepening reliance on congenial nations; and (6) reducing reliance on sea lanes dominated by the U.S. Navy. Kazakhstan, Iran, Russia, Venezuela, Australia, and African energy producers are special priority targets of its energy diplomacy, which is likely to become more salient in China's overall foreign policy in coming years.     

A pregnant pause: federalism, equality and the maternity and parental leave debate in Canada

In Reference re E.I. the Supreme Court of Canada was asked to assess the constitutionality of the federally administered maternity and parental leave benefit regime. This social programme has been a key site of feminist struggle in Canada, with attention focused in recent years on whether the benefit, as delivered, was an equality-enhancing regime. This note examines the way in which the questions posed to the Supreme Court of Canada were framed in a manner that obscured the essential equality dimensions of the issue before the Court. It is argued, however, that, notwithstanding the relatively formal division of powers answer that the Court was called upon to give, the decision is a promisingly substantive reflection on the debate over the most effective means to recognize the care-giving labour of Canadian parents through the delivery of this benefit.     

Toward a contemporary tradition for menarche

A cultural tradition to acknowledge a girl's first menstrual period is proposed in order to overcome the negative connotation of the event. Three basic questions regarding such a tradition are addressed: Who would participate? What would it mean? What type of activity should it be? A research team consisting of a psychologist, a nurse, and a social worker suggests answers based on their interviews with mothers and daughters, as well as their collection of menarche anecdotes from women psychologists.     

Dysbarism. A review

This review of dysbarism outlines the development of the knowledge of the effects of pressure changes on tissues and organs, which is related to a complex of physical, physiological and pharmacological changes. It also shows that with the ever increasing pressures to which man is subject the effects can be regarded as total body rather than the traditional concept of a few target organs.     

Cultivating Evidence-Based Pathways for Cannabis Product Development: Implications for Consumer Protection†

Disparities between federal and state cannabis regulation, coupled with protracted federal enforcement, have facilitated the proliferation of a multi–billion dollar cannabis industry that generally evades compliance with federal consumer protection laws. The Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) established regulatory pathways for the lawful development of products such as food, drugs, and dietary supplements. The FDCA uses a science-based approach to protect consumers from harmful products, but early inconsistencies between state and federal cannabis regulation prevented and/or discouraged the cannabis industry from complying with FDCA requirements. Cannabis products are promoted as safe and attributed with providing effective therapeutic treatment for numerous medical conditions, yet the claims often lack the rigorous evidence-based support typically expected by regulators and the medical community. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced its expectation that cannabidiol (CBD) products comply with the FDCA and follow a science-based approach to product development. The FDA is addressing violations involving unsubstantiated CBD health claims and is working to clarify the future regulatory pathway for CBD products. Meanwhile, the state-approved cannabis market continues to operate, selling numerous products that have circumvented the FDCA consumer protections. This article examines the need for strengthening consumer protections in the cannabis market. We use evidence-based medicine as a model to address the importance of science-based product development and to contextualize a science-based comparison of regulatory pathways for cannabis drugs, food, and dietary supplements.