Elders and the Courts

Abstract

This article examines how trial courts should address complex issues of an aging society. More older people, living longer, will enter courthouses with underlying problems that will impede effective access and court processes and will require judges to enhance linkages with community health, mental health, and social services providers. The article analyzes how court systems perceive these issues and explores how they have begun to address them. It concludes with an argument in support of innovative new approaches to assist courts in responding to emerging issues of older adults.     

Gender,visuality and violence: visual securitization and the 2001 war in Afghanistan

Visual securitization (the discursive processes by which images are assigned security implications) is integral to understanding how war and political violence is made possible. However, its insights have yet to be coupled with feminist international relations (IR) scholarship, which is alert to the connections between gender and (in)security. This article synthesizes these two research areas through Lene Hansen’s (2011) framework of visual securitization to investigate the gendered logics that underpinned the 2001 war in Afghanistan. By analyzing 123 photojournalistic images alongside American media texts and foreign policy discourse, I argue western images of Afghan women enacted a specific visuality through which they became constructed as a legitimate matter of security. The article makes two important contributions through this analysis. Firstly, it extends feminist understanding of the war in Afghanistan by demonstrating how the interplay between the visual and textual, and the gendered and racial logics operating within such interplay, visually produced Afghan women as a referent object of security. Secondly, this argument illustrates how gender can be critical in enabling the acceptance of visual securitizations, and how such securitizations can be enacted through gendered representations of insecurity and threat.     

“Those who come to do harm”: The Framings of Immigration Problems in Costa Rican Immigration Law

This article examines the political rationales at work behind the particularly repressive 2006 Costa Rican immigration law and subsequent immigration reform process and resulting 2010 law through an analysis of two rival framings of immigration in Costa Rica. First, I examine how the rushed nature of the 2006 law constructed a crisis in which migrants, particularly Nicaraguans, represented urgent threats to national security. Next, I examine the 2010 law that emerged from the reform process and the alternative framings of immigration as an issue of human rights and integration that migration advocates contributed to the new law. I argue that the juxtaposition of integration and security frameworks in the new law reinforces the law's most repressive measures, contributing to an overall project of securitization and marginalization of immigrants.     

Contracting-Out in the United Kingdom

Abstract

Contracting-out was introduced in the United Kingdom in 1978 as part of the arrangements for the State Earnings-Related Pension Scheme (SERPS) in order to avoid duplication with the existing well-developed defined benefit occupational pension plan sector. Members and sponsors of contracted-out schemes were able to save on their social security contributions in recognition of the fact that they were accruing equivalent benefits through an occupational pension plan. Later on this concept was extended to those with individual money purchase pension plans. This article considers a brief history of contracting-out, the principles of contracting-out, some problems associated with contracting-out, the implications of the introduction of stakeholder pensions and State Second Pension, and the latest rebate review and rebate orders. It examines how U.K. pensions policy since 1978 has been based on a partnership between social security and private pension plans.     

British terrorism preemption: Subjectivity and disjuncture in Channel “de-radicalization” interventions

This article examines Channel “de-radicalization” interventions, which take place on individuals suspected of having the potential to commit terrorist crimes. Situated within critical security studies, the article explores the British Prevent programme by utilizing primary interviews with hard-to-reach Channel mentors and senior Prevent officials. Following the work of anticipatory risk-governance scholarship, this research illuminates the three processes of risk-visibilization (how an individual becomes sufficiently “seen” as harbouring risk that they are offered Channel mentorship), risk-calculation (how practitioners negotiate supposed riskiness), and risk-knowing (how practitioners “know” risks they observe). It demonstrates how the practice of preemptive counter-terrorism is subsumed inherently by—even relies upon—subjectivity and human prejudice, and fundamental disagreements between practitioners. Through substantial empirical contribution on the phenomenon of Channel interventions, the discussion highlights ultimately that the algorithmic rationale of preemptive risk-spotting normalizes the suspicion of banal and everyday behaviors, precisely because such interventions are ultimately deployed through worst-case imaginations.     

Attachment,Conflict Resolution,and Sexual Satisfaction in Adoptive Couples

Abstract

Attachment theory affirms that one’s partner is vital to fostering support and security. It is important for adoptive couples to be mindful of this support because it is at the forefront of healthy family functioning. With a sample of adoptive couples (n?=?166), this study examines the influence of attachment style on conflict resolution and sexual satisfaction. Significant findings indicate that an avoidant attachment style is directly associated with lower conflict resolution and sexual satisfaction. Better conflict resolution significantly predicts greater sexual satisfaction. These findings demonstrate the importance of establishing a more secure romantic attachment in clinical work with adoptive couples.     

Rewritten in stone: imperial heritage in the sacred place of the nation

ABSTRACT

This article examines the relationship between architectural transformations and the reshaping of memory in post-imperial urban space. It reflects on two forms of symbolic violence: first, iconoclastic acts of reshaping space to reflect national self-determination and moving away from empire, and second, acts that embody the recovery of imperial legacies. It analyzes the recent restoration of the Habsburg-built Alba Iulia citadel in the eve of Romania’s Centennial celebrations of the 1918 Alba Iulia assembly which proclaimed the unification of Transylvania with Romania. It interrogates the intentionality of architectural transformations and how this heritage project expresses the frictions between memory narratives centred on the nation and forms of imperial duress and nostalgia. It traces how the after-lives of empire materialize in the built environment, as they do in the attitudes and yearnings of the cultural elite. Moreover, it reflects on parallels between European post-imperial and Global South post-colonial nation-building.     

The logic of protection: narratives of HIV/AIDS in the UN Security Council

ABSTRACT

When HIV/AIDS was first addressed by the UN Security Council in 2000, it was seen as the culmination of a successful securitization process and a pivotal moment for introducing human security. However, concern for the epidemic was paired with problems in including a nonmilitary issue on the Security Council’s agenda and the fear that peacekeepers were vectors of HIV. Reports of peacekeepers being involved in sexual exploitation and abuse added to these problems. This article aims to understand how gender has informed the efforts to address these issues and to rehabilitate peacekeeping forces and the Security Council from the legitimacy challenges that arose in this context. The article argues that including nonmilitary issues on the Security Council agenda requires adjustment to fit a war/peace logic. Drawing on feminist theories on security and protection, the analysis shows that the security narrative on HIV/AIDS did not form a coherent protection logic until the 2011 reformulation, when HIV/AIDS was constructed as part of the problem of wartime rape. This reformulation is interpreted as an appropriation of gender equality to reproduce a military security doctrine.     

Reconciling Competing Globalizations through Regionalisms? Environmental Security in the Framework of Expanding Security Norms and Narrowing Security Policies

Abstract

This article examines environmental security regimes in 16 regional organizations and asks whether regions can effectively implement environmental security norms. It first defines these norms and discusses their emergence at the international level. At the same time, through the literature review, the article posits that the globalization of security threats has simultaneously led to a retrenchment of coercive non-state security strategies. Consequently, the article contends that the globalization of security norms has made them ineffectual because they have not properly addressed tangible security threats. At the same time, nation-state-based hard power security measures (especially border controls) have not adequately addressed the underlying causes of transnational threats related to human and environmental security. For this reason, the article examines how well regional approaches to security contribute to both protection against imminent violence and the promotion of human and environmental security through medium-term development strategies. The article contends that the emergence of regional environmental security regimes should be fostered by reinforcing regional security architectures through public participation mechanisms.     

Problems and Issues in Social Casework,by Scott Briar and Henry Miller. New York,Columbia University Press, 1971. 274 Pages, $9.00. Hardbound

Abstract

The rapid growth and increasing visibility of ethnic and racial groups has vigorously challenged social work to educate students for ethnic-competent practice in cross-cultural settings. This article examines an approach to teaching effective intervention involving ethnic and racial groups and helping students integrate cultural factors and society's concerns into clinical practice. Pedagogical issues and classroom processes of teaching culturally sensitive and competent interpersonal practice are discussed. Implications are drawn for culturally sensitive education and issues are raised for critical examination.     

Terror as potentiality – the affective rhythms of the political

ABSTRACT

The paper addresses the ways in which the cultural, the affective and the political intersect, counter and/or feed upon one another in the context of contemporary terror. Initially, building upon Machiavelli and Hobbes, we deal with the political significance of terror (and the fear it provokes), emphasizing its potentiality, which inscribes future within the present. Then we turn to an analysis of terror in the prism of securitization. Terror, in this respect, amounts to de-materialization (the enemy as spectre), de-temporalization (the erasure of the temporal difference between the present and the future), and de-territorialisation the breakdown of the distinctions between ‘inside’ and ‘outside’. Following this, we observe how these three processes are dealt with at the subjective and objective (social) levels. Regarding the first, subjective, level we differentiate three attitudes as paranoid, panic and rational. Regarding the latter, we consider terror in terms of accident, risk and catastrophe. Then, discussing the rhythmic relations between these conceptualizations and their spatio-temporal consequences, we focus on the notion of catastrophe. We end with articulating the aporias emerging in this context     

Critical race theory in England: impact and opposition

ABSTRACT

This paper examines the development of Critical Race Theory (CRT) in England, in terms of impact and opposition. Since the early 2000s CRT has become a significant intellectual space for race-conscious scholars and activists in England. The current paper traces the growth of CRT in the field of education (where it has had the greatest impact since its arrival). It identifies the academic research, writing, networks and events that have established CRT in England. It discusses the substantive concerns of English CRT and how these are both similar to and distinct from CRT as developed in the USA. In England, CRT has also met with opposition. This paper examines the discourses of derision voiced by its antagonists, arguing that much of this antagonism has an atavistic quality, being rooted in long-standing antipathy towards race-conscious social analyses.     

Protecting Older People From Burglary: Prevalence of Security Devices in the Homes of Older Adults in Perth,Western Australia

ABSTRACT

Fear restricts the activity of older adults, potentially leading to social isolation and unhealthy life styles. Consequently, this population remains a priority for home security research and intervention. One option is to increase home security by installing security devices. However, little is known about how older adults protect their homes. In this study, 5,582 community-dwelling older people completed a cross-sectional survey. The survey was able to document the prevalence of security measures taken by older adults. More than 70% of the respondents had security screens and key-operated deadlocks and 148 (2.7%) respondents reported no security features. Respondents living alone had the lowest prevalence of home security devices. Female living alone protected their home differently from male living alone by installing different security devices. Logistic regression analysis indicated that older adults living in detached houses feel particularly vulnerable to burglary (p < .001). These survey findings have practical implication for burglary prevention.     

Ageing Adults with Intellectual Disabilities: Self-advocates' and Family Members' Perspectives about the Future

Abstract

Although the numbers of ageing adults with intellectual disabilities are increasing, current systems are ill-prepared to meet the unique needs of this population and research is needed to direct policies and practices aimed at supporting ageing adults with intellectual disabilities. This article presents the qualitative findings of research conducted in British Columbia (BC), Canada, which explored the future perspectives of 11 ageing adults with intellectual disabilities and 11 family members. Future concerns of the adults with intellectual disabilities included concerns for their ageing parents, for their future living arrangements, and about loneliness. Family members concerns centred on ensuring the future security of their loved one with an intellectual disability, addressing legal issues and financial security, and promoting future choice and self-determination. The results point to the importance of early and intentional planning that supports and balances the needs and desires of both ageing adults with intellectual disabilities and family members.     

Athletic Involvement,Academic Achievement,and Aspiration

Abstract

Prior to World War II, religion in America was characterized by a tripartite system of Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish groups. More recently, Robert Wuthnow (1988), James Davison Hunter (1991), and others have argued that religion in America has been “restructured” into a two-party system, consisting of liberals within these religions on one side and conservatives on the other. Most empirical research examining the restructuring of religion in America focuses on the two-party division within Protestant religious advocacy groups, noting how some Protestant groups are politically more similar to Catholics than to other Protestants. Little work has examined the extent to which this phenomenon applies to Washington offices, which are formally tied to parent religious bodies, particularly Jewish groups. By conducting interviews with Washington office leaders and examining office materials and websites during the 108th Congress, this study seeks to answer the question: How does the thesis of the restructuring of religion in America apply to 15 Washington offices? Results suggest the thesis applies to both Protestant and Jewish Washington offices. The priorities of liberal offices, such as social welfare and economic justice issues, differ from those of conservative offices that focus on life and morality concerns.     

The success of the Cuban success story: Ethnicity,power, and politics

This article examines the convergence of various forces that constructed a public image of Cuban Americans in the United States as a politically united, socially homogeneous, and economically successful ethnic group. The claims that comprise the Cuban “success story” are not well‐grounded in an objective, empirical reality, but do reflect the historical interplay of power and politics locally, nationally, and internationally. The focus is on how politicians, the media and the civic elite construct images of reality, the processes that determine which images gain prominence in the public mind, and the ways in which the images, themselves, shape social and political outcomes. Metropolitan Miami provides the laboratory, but the analytical approach generates important insights for the study of ethnicity and the politics of identity more generally.     

Family Support for the Elderly in Korea

Abstract

This article discusses major issues and concerns regarding family support for parents and elderly people in industrialized and urbanized Korea. It summarizes new trends in family support for elderly members, continuing influences of the traditional value of family support (filial piety), growing needs for public services for elderly people and their families, urgent calls for the state to assume greater responsibilities for providing social security and services for the elderly, needs for cross-cultural studies of family support, and certain cultural similarities and differences to be considered. The article concludes with some suggestions for future research.     

Writing ‘Conflict’: Whispers as a ‘Restorative’ Narrative

Abstract

This paper examines contemporary Kenyan popular fiction as a site of cultural production, where the contradictions of African modernity are played out. The paper focuses on one of Kenya's oldest popular fiction columns, Whispers, published in local newspapers since 1983. Constructed around a Kenyan family, which is deployed as an allegorical trope to read modern Kenya, the paper explores how the column introduces us to the anxieties that define life in contemporary Kenya. Although the narrative comprises many thematic concerns, reference is particularly made to the restive masculinity threatened by social change. The paper also provides a discussion of the constant ‘backward glance’, an attempt to look for stability in the past, part of the society's relentless search for models that could help Kenyans make sense of an uncertain present, and an even more doubtful future. The paper also engages with the narrative mode of this fiction, examining how humour, satire and parody deceptively make light of what are important issues affecting society.     

‘The Greatest Thing in North America’: Delmore Schwartz and Europe

Abstract

An argument is presented that Delmore Schwartz’s celebrations of his European literary heritage accentuate the ways in which he might be regarded as a specifically American poet: he cannot help but Americanize his European sources. These engagements also, however, unsettle the notion of a purely American poetry since they suggest that American writing can only be understood in relation to English and European traditions. Taking his concept of ‘international consciousness’ as its premise, the study examines how Schwartz’s allusions simultaneously serve to align his poetry with European works and to distance it from them. It also assesses Schwartz’s admiration for the international perspectives of modernist mentors (particularly T. S. Eliot), observing how this aspect of their work influences his own. A reading of ‘The Ballad of the Children of the Czar’, a poem in which Schwartz characteristically sets individual experience against a worldwide stage, is also given.     

Defining,censuring, and resolving: the EBRD,collective organic intellectuals and the global financial crisis in Eastern Central Europe

ABSTRACT

The paper asks what role the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) plays in coordinating policy reform in post-crisis Eastern Central Europe (ECE). How did the EBRD attempt to mitigate the effects of the crisis and what role did the institution play in the configuration of a post-crisis European political economy? The paper analyses the content of the annual EBRD Transition Reports (TR) as representation of thinking in the EBRD Chief Economist’s Office on the salient concerns relevant to its region of operations. The paper analyses TRs from 2007 to 2013 assessing the discursive shifts inside the EBRD establishing (1) how the TRs frame whether the region is in crisis, (2) apportioning censure for causing crisis and (3) how the EBRD TRs delineate the development of appropriate policy responses to the crisis. In conclusion the paper situates these processes as evidence of a further iteration of ‘fail forwards’ neoliberalization.