Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration Commons^™

The Force Of Rudd: Promoting Australia’S Campaign For The United Nations Security Council, Caitlin Byrne

Caitlin Byrne

Australia’s Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd is pressing ahead on a high profile public diplomacy campaign to secure support for Australia’s bid to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for 2013-14. There is much to be said about the public diplomacy value of political leaders in such campaigns. Kevin Rudd is a case in point. Previously Australia’s Prime Minister, Rudd is already well known and regarded among political and intellectual elite audiences across the globe. Despite fall-out within Australia’s domestic political environment that saw him removed from the post of Prime Minister (and replaced by Julia Gillard), Rudd has slotted seamlessly …

Hot Topic: Tennessee's Non-Smoker Protection Act (2011), Bonnie Jones

MTAS Publications: Hot Topics

Smoking in public places (notably municipal workplaces) is now recognized by the Tennessee Legislature as a public health issue and is, therefore, banned.

Hot Topic: Stimulus Law Under Cobra/Phsa, Bonnie Jones

MTAS Publications: Hot Topics

Local governments follow the rules via the Public Health Service Act (PHSA), which essentially mirrors COBRA.

June Roundtable: Human Rights In Central America, Introduction, Claudia Fuentes

Human Rights & Human Welfare

An annotation of:

“The Tormented Isthmus ”. The Economist. April 14 2011.

The Hearts And Minds Of The Citizens, Brooke Ackerly

Human Rights & Human Welfare

If the US contributes increased military support to Guatemala under the premise of curtailing the drug trade, it could inadvertently further destabilize this already politically unstable country. It certainly will not contribute to developing a sense of political alliance in the hearts and minds of its citizens. Concerns about destabilization in Guatemala (and Central America more generally) and the role of this destabilization in facilitating the drug trade have led the Economist to suggest that the solution is to increase military foreign aid to Guatemala.

Generic Wish-Lists For State-Centric Policies, Edzia Carvalho

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The Central America depicted in the article under review resembles a region visited by the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse—colonial Conquest, civil War, Famine and other natural disasters, and poverty, disease and Death. Added to this list of woes are the recent drug-fueled conflict, democratic instability, weak state capacity, and the socio-economic fallout of the economic recession in the United States. While the first half of the article records these problems, the author shifts gears in the second half and provides an array of responses to these challenges, with a forceful recommendation that states in the region focus their efforts …

Conflict Resolution Agenda: Approaching Its Expiration Date, Jonas Claes

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Conflict resolution scholars and policy-makers have traditionally prioritized research and policy measures dealing with political violence, treating criminal violence as a contextual factor in their analysis or as a subordinate policy concern. One may wonder why the value of a casualty differs depending on whether the fatal blow was caused by a tank, a gang knife, or even a typhoon. The prioritization of political violence over criminal violence seems morally unjustified considering that the killing rates in Guatemala and El Salvador are higher now than during the civil wars that ended in the 1990s. Despite similarities in the causes, manifestations, …

A Centrist Solution To Central American Violence And Inequality, Devin Joshi

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The northern triangle of Central America (El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras) has experienced horrific violence, poverty, and a vicious cycle of human rights violations for decades. Repeated natural disasters and the re-routing of the drug trade through Central America are not helping the situation. On the other hand, nearby Costa Rica has achieved a much higher standard of human rights, public safety, and political stability. Why? Costa Rica has put in place four pillars of development and stability lacking in most other countries in the region: a stronger state, an educated population, inter-racial cooperation, and a more inclusive democracy. For …

Components Of Population Change, Nebraska Counties, 1990-2000, Jerry Deichert

Archived Publications

Information from the 2000 Census released on March 15th by the US Census Bureau put Nebraska’s population at 1,711,263 persons. This was an 8.4 percent increase since the 1990 Census count.

The state’s population grew in two ways: births exceeded deaths, and more people moved into the state than moved out. The difference between births and deaths is referred to as natural change. If births exceed deaths, there is a natural increase in population; but if deaths exceed births, there is natural decrease in population. The difference between the number of people who move into an area and those who …

The Impact Of Transportation And Childcare Assistance On Self-Sufficiency In Families First Participants In Tennessee, Debra Anne Wolfe Shumaker

Doctoral Dissertations

States are not required to provide subsidies for childcare and transportation, but at the time of this writing all provided some supplements to TANF participants who were working, looking for work, or attending school. However, there has been little assessment of the effectiveness of these programs. Using data from a longitudinal study on Families First participants in the state of Tennessee, this exploratory study addresses the questions of whether transportation and childcare supplements contribute to the ability of TANF participants to move off welfare and support their families adequately through their own efforts, and whether outcomes from these services differ …

Assessing The Park Visitor Behavior At Los Osos Skate Park, Kristen Mcclay

Recreation, Parks, and Tourism Administration

Skateboarding began in California over 50 years ago and has grown internationally. The purpose of this study was to assess the behavior of park visitors at Los Osos Skate Park. This park was fully supervised and this study can serve as a tool for park management. The researcher observed the skate park during operating hours throughout April 2011. The subjects of this study were park visitors actively skateboarding, or passively watching. The dominant demographic for skateboarders were adolescent males. This study found peak times were weekdays afterschool, adult park visitors display the most positive behavior, and middle school park visitors …

Using Monte Carlo Simulations To Establish A New House Price Stress Test, James R. Follain, Seth H. Giertz

Department of Economics: Faculty Publications

The focus of this paper is on the house price stress test (termed ALMO) that was designed to assess the fiscal strength of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and, if necessary, to trigger remedial action in order to avert a crisis. We assess whether the ALMO stress test was an adequate representation of an extremely weak housing market, given the best available information leading up to the Great Recession. A Monte Carlo simulation model is developed to estimate the severity of low probability events (i.e., severe house price declines). We illustrate the complexity and subjective nature of the process used …

Coalition For Prisoners' Rights Newsletter, Vol 36-E, No. 6, Coalition For Prisoners' Rights

Coalition for Prisoners' Rights Newsletters

Some Briefs

Justicia de la Libertad Condicional

Voices From Inside, In Solidarity

Some Tax Breaks for the Wealthy

Municipal E-News: Issue 27: June 2011, Mtas

Municipal E-News

The “Municipal E-News” was created by MTAS in 2009 as part of our continuing efforts to meet our mission of providing timely, valuable information and assistance to Tennessee cities.

The Cresset (Vol. Lxxiv, No. 5, Trinity), Valparaiso University

The Cresset (archived issues)

No abstract provided.

Civil Resistance And The Corruption-Violence Nexus, Shaazka Beyerle

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

There are multiple ways in which corruption is linked to violent conflict, some direct and some indirect. For ordinary citizens, the experience of this nexus is the denial of basic freedoms and rights. In spite of such bleak circumstances, people can move from being victims and bystanders to becoming a force for transforming their societies. Citizens are engaging in civil resistance to curb corruption and win accountability and justice. This article: explores the linkages between corruption and violence; identifies the conceptual and practical limitations of top-down, technical approaches to combating corruption; articulates a bottom-up approach in which the civic realm …

"Just Say No": Organizing Against Militarism In Public Schools, Scott Harding, Seth Kershner

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

In an effort to counteract the growing militarization of schools, military counter-recruitment (CR) has emerged as an effective grassroots movement across the United States. Led by a small number of local activists, CR utilizes community organizing methods to confront the structures supporting military enlistment as a viable career option. Despite operating with limited resources, counter-recruitment has secured key legal and policy victories that challenge the dominant social narrative about military service. Three examples of counterrecruitment are profiled to illustrate the different tactics and strategies used for successful organizing within a culture of militarism.

Progress Delayed: State Of Tobacco Control Policymaking In Oklahoma From 2005-2011, Michael Givel, Ami Stearns, Andrew Spivak

Michael S. Givel

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY • Oklahoma’s 1987 Smoking In Public Places Act required the inclusion of smoking sections in restaurants and pre-empted more stringent local anti-tobacco laws with state regulations. • With the 2001 arrival of an aggressive new Commissioner of Health, Dr. Leslie Beitsch, the tide turned with new legislation (Senate Joint Resolution 21 in 2003) that prohibited smoking inside public places and restaurants were allowed to build separately-ventilated “smoking rooms.” • In 2004, State Question 713 increased the cigarette tax by 80 cents per package. • Dr. Beitsch resigned in 2003 and since that time, efforts toward clean air have …

Show Me The Money: Budget Advocacy In Indonesia, International Budget Partnership

International Budget Partnership

In "Show Me the Money: Budget Advocacy in Indonesia," authors from five civil society organizations – IDEA, the Inisiatif Association, Lakpesdam NU, the Centre for Information and Regional Studies (PATTIRO), and the Indonesian Forum for Budget Transparency (FITRA) – present five case studies on their budget work to fight against corruption and improve the allocation of government resources, and five case studies from smaller organizations based in various local districts in the country.

In addition, check out the related two-page summaries that explore the impact of civil society budget work in Indonesia to improve policies and outcomes in school funding, …

Secondary Spectrum Markets As Complements To Incentive Auctions, Scott J. Wallsten, John W. Mayo

Scott J. Wallsten

No abstract provided.