Spatial Variations in Church Burnings: The Social Ecology of Victimized Communities in the South*

Abstract In recent years, church burnings in the South have attracted a great deal of attention. Many commentators have charged that they are a product of strained race relations throughout the South, and particularly of severe racial tensions in Southern rural areas. In this study we evaluate these claims. We begin by mapping the spatial coordinates of recorded church burnings from 1990 to 1997, and find that church arsons indeed are concentrated in the South. Church burnings, however, are a more urban phenomenon than popular media accounts would suggest. Our analysis then explores the influence of contextual factors (population and locale, racial composition and inequality, so‐cioeconomic conditions, local religious ecology, and patterns of reported crime) on church burnings in counties located in the study region. Logistic regression models confirm that church arsons are most likely to occur in small metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) and non‐MSA counties containing a city of at least 10,000 residents. Church burnings also are especially likely in counties with a higher percentage of black residents, a larger number of churches relative to the rest of the state, and a higher arson rate. We conclude by discussing the implications of these findings for future research and public policy.     

The European Democratic Deficit,the Market and the Public Space: A Classical Liberal Critique

This article argues that attempts to utilize a Habermasian conception of the public space as a remedy for the democratic deficit deemed to be inherent within the political institutions of the European Union (EU) are unlikely to prove successful. It is argued that the instrumental goal demanded of the public space is contrary to the communicative rationality intrinsic to the Habermasian model. Moreover, the Habermasian conception of the public space as an arena independent of both the market and the state is non-operational because a public space independent of the market is inconceivable. An alternative conceptualization of the public space, focusing on the role of the market as a communicative process, and an alternative remedy for the European democratic deficit, focusing on liberal representative democracy, are proposed.     

Can social systems be autopoietic? Assessing Luhmann's social theory

The theory of autopoiesis, that is systems that are self‐producing or self‐constructing, was originally developed to explain the particular nature of living as opposed to non‐living entities. It was subsequently enlarged to encompass cognition and language leading to what is known as second‐order cybernetics. However, as with earlier biological theories, many authors have tried to extend the domain of the theory to encompass social systems, the most notable being Luhmann. The purpose of this article is to consider critically the extent to which the theory of autopoiesis, as originally defined, can be applied to social systems ‐ that is, whether social systems are autopoietic. And, if it cannot, whether some weaker version might be appropriate.     

现代俄语口语中省略词的使用

口语是语言变化、发展的重要环节。口语中的诸多表现手段缺少不了省略词的使用，而省略词的使用恰恰迎合了现代各种语言发展、变化的一个共同趋势，即简化趋势。本文从四个方面对现代俄语口语中省略词的使用情况进行了详细阐述，揭示了其在使用过程中所产生的语义、语法、词汇、修辞等方面的特点。     

A review of the epidentiological research on child sexual abuse. Community and college student samples

This article is the first of two consecutive reviews on the major empirical studies which have been carried out in an attempt to estimate the prevalence of child sexual abuse among females. The research is structured in terms of three sample categories: (a) probability and non-probability samples of the general population; (b) college student samples; and (c) clinical inpatient and outpatient samples. This part of the review deals with (a) and (b) and highlights a number of unresolved methodological issues which may contribute to the variance in reported prevalence rates. These include a myriad of definitions of child sexual abuse and different methods of eliciting information on possible histories of abuse. Despite these problems. taken as a whole the prevalence studies indicate the significant numbers of people who have experienced abuse and who are willing to disclose aspects of these abusive experiences.     

集权、分权、利益集团理论与美国公共行政的发展

本文从论述汉密尔顿、杰斐逊和麦迪逊政治思想入手，分析了以集权思想为特征的汉密尔顿＂古典式行政模式＂、以分权思想为特征的杰斐逊＂浪漫式行政模式＂和以利益集团思想为特征的麦迪逊＂新古典式行政模式＂产生的历史条件和原因，并从宏观上考察了３种＂行政模式＂在美国行政的不同发展阶段中的实践和影响。     

GIS的路径分析算法及实现

讨论了地理信息系统GIS的路径分析算法 ,并在MAPGIS环境下 ,以西南科技大学道路网为例 ,利用VC 及MAPGIS二次开发类库实现了其最短路径和最佳路径分析。     

基于神经网络的高级行政管理人才选拔方案群体决策支持系统研究

地方政府高级行政管理人才选拔及班子配备是组织人事部门领导人才管理的核心内容,它对一个地方的经济发展和社会进步有着举足轻重的作用。如何根据该地区的地理、经济、社会、文化等特点,选择最佳的地方政府高级行政管理人才选拔及班子配备方案,是组织人事管理工作中面临的主要研究课题之一。本文从分析传统的选择地方政府高级行政管理人才选拔及班子配备方案模式入手,根据神经网络和模糊数学理论,结合工人智能技术,提出了基于神经网络的地方政府高级行政管理人才选拔及班子配备方案群体决策支持系统(Group DecisionSupport Systemfor Lea…     

新疆与中亚跨国民族问题对我国安全的影响

近年来,随着中亚国家的独立,以及由此而引发的各民族政治、经济生活地位的起伏和民族关系的变化,使新疆与中亚跨国民族问题表现得异常突出,其表现形式主要有三:一是民族意识增长;二是以哈萨克族为主的跨国民族向境外移民问题;三是民族分立主义倾向.它对我国的军事安全、政治安全和文化安全构成了程度不同的威胁.