Cuba’s Communist Party would thrive under democracy, but only if it gives up power soon

Cuba has been under communist rule since Fidel Castro overthrew Fulgencio Batista in 1959. After many years of international isolation and a trade embargo begun in the 1960s, President Obama last year ‘normalised’ relations with the country, creating potential for an eventual transition to democracy. Here, James Loxton argues that the Cuban Communist Party would stand a good chance of thriving in a hypothetical democratic future as an ‘authoritarian successor party’ – but that this likelihood decreases the longer the regime clings to authoritarian contro

Authoritarian Inheritance and Conservative Party-Building in Latin America

Beginning in the late 1970s, with the onset of the third wave of democratization, a host of new conservative parties emerged in Latin America. The trajectories of these parties varied tremendously. While some went on to enjoy long-term electoral success, others failed to take root. The most successful new conservative parties all shared a surprising characteristic: they had deep roots in former dictatorships. They were "authoritarian successor parties," or parties founded by high-level incumbents of authoritarian regimes that continue to operate after a transition to democracy. What explains variation in conservative party-building outcomes in Latin America since the onset of the third wave, and why were the most successful new conservative parties also authoritarian successor parties? This study answers these questions by developing a theory of "authoritarian inheritance." It argues that, paradoxically, close links to former dictatorships may, under some circumstances, be the key to party-building success. This is because authoritarian successor parties sometimes inherit resources from the old regime that are useful under democracy. The study examines five potential resources: party brand, territorial organization, clientelistic networks, business connections and a source of cohesion rooted in a history of joint struggle. New conservative parties that lack such inheritance face a more daunting task. Such parties may have better democratic credentials, but they are likely to have worse democratic prospects. This argument is developed through an analysis of four parties: Chile's Independent Democratic Union (UDI), Argentina's Union of the Democratic Center (UCEDE), El Salvador's Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA) and Guatemala's Party of National Advancement (PAN). Drawing on interview and archival data gathered during 15 months of fieldwork in five countries, this study contributes to three literatures. First, as the first book-length comparison of conservative parties in Latin America, it contributes to the literature on Latin American politics. Second, by developing a new theory of how successful new parties may emerge--the theory of authoritarian inheritance--it contributes to the literature on party-building. Third, by developing the concept of authoritarian successor parties, it sheds light on a common but underappreciated vestige of authoritarian rule and, in this way, contributes to the literature on regimes.Governmen

Development and initial validation of a rock climbing craving questionnaire (RCCQ)

Conceptual similarities have been identified between experiences of extreme sports athletes and those with drug and behavioural addictions. Evidence suggests rock climbers experience craving and other withdrawal-like states when abstinent from their sport. However, no studies have attempted to quantitatively measure the craving experienced by participants of any extreme sports. Such a measure could allow a greater understanding of the craving experienced by extreme sports athletes and a comparison of these across sports (e.g., surfing) and activities (e.g., drug-use). Therefore, using validated craving measures as a template, the aim of the two studies outlined here was to design and preliminarily validate a subjective multidimensional inventory that could be used to measure craving in the sports of rock-climbing and mountaineering (“RCCQ”). The aim of the first study was to investigate the factor structure of a preliminary measure of craving. Climbers (n = 407) completed the RCCQ. A 3-factor model explained 53.65% of the total variance in item scores. All 3 factors comprised 5 items each, which were conceptually labelled as “urge to climb” “negative reinforcement” and “positive reinforcement”. The aim of the second study was to validate the 15-item 3-factor RCCQ resulting from study one using confirmatory factor analysis. Climbers (n = 254) completed the questionnaire under a climbing-related cue condition or a cue-neutral condition. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) revealed a good model fit and that all individual parameter estimates were significant and standard errors were within reasonable limits once item 13 was removed from Factor 1. Study one supports the multi-dimensional nature of rock climbing craving and shows parallels with substance-related craving in reflecting intention and positive (desire) and negative (withdrawal) reinforcement. Study two confirms this factor structure and gives initial validation to the measure with evidence that these factors are sensitive to cue exposure. Given the preliminary nature of the data, any practical implications are tentative. However, if as shown here, craving for climbing (and potentially other extreme sports) is similar to that experienced by drug-users and addicts, there is the potential that climbing and other extreme sports could be used as a replacement therapy for drug users

A semi-automatic technique to quantify complex tuberculous lung lesions on 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computerised tomography images

Background There is a growing interest in the use of 18F-FDG PET-CT to monitor tuberculosis (TB) treatment response. However, TB causes complex and widespread pathology, which is challenging to segment and quantify in a reproducible manner. To address this, we developed a technique to standardise uptake (Z-score), segment and quantify tuberculous lung lesions on PET and CT concurrently, in order to track changes over time. We used open source tools and created a MATLAB script. The technique was optimised on a training set of five pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) cases after standard TB therapy and 15 control patients with lesion-free lungs. Results We compared the proposed method to a fixed threshold (SUV > 1) and manual segmentation by two readers and piloted the technique successfully on scans of five control patients and five PTB cases (four cured and one failed treatment case), at diagnosis and after 1 and 6 months of treatment. There was a better correlation between the Z-score-based segmentation and manual segmentation than SUV > 1 and manual segmentation in terms of overall spatial overlap (measured in Dice similarity coefficient) and specificity (1 minus false positive volume fraction). However, SUV > 1 segmentation appeared more sensitive. Both the Z-score and SUV > 1 showed very low variability when measuring change over time. In addition, total glycolytic activity, calculated using segmentation by Z-score and lesion-to-background ratio, correlated well with traditional total glycolytic activity calculations. The technique quantified various PET and CT parameters, including the total glycolytic activity index, metabolic lesion volume, lesion volumes at different CT densities and combined PET and CT parameters. The quantified metrics showed a marked decrease in the cured cases, with changes already apparent at month one, but remained largely unchanged in the failed treatment case. Conclusions Our technique is promising to segment and quantify the lung scans of pulmonary tuberculosis patients in a semi-automatic manner, appropriate for measuring treatment response. Further validation is required in larger cohorts

El misterio del excepcionalismo panameño

En las tres décadas desde la invasión estadounidense que derrocó a la dictadura del general Manuel Noriega, Panamá ha experimentado una transformación notable, y en gran parte ignorada. Se ha mantenido como una democracia estable y es hoy uno de los países más desarrollados de América Latina. Este artículo llama la atención sobre el ascenso de Panamá y destaca varias características intrigantes: es un caso raro de democratización exitosa por invasión militar; es uno de los casos más improbables del mundo de regeneración de un partido de origen autoritario; es un ejemplo destacado de gestión eficaz de los recursos por parte de una empresa estatal; y ha logrado un rápido desarrollo económico a pesar de niveles de corrupción extremadamente altos.En las tres décadas desde la invasión estadounidense que derrocó a la dictadura del general Manuel Noriega, Panamá ha experimentado una transformación notable, y en gran parte ignorada. Se ha mantenido como una democracia estable y es hoy uno de los países más desarrollados de América Latina. Este artículo llama la atención sobre el ascenso de Panamá y destaca varias características intrigantes: es un caso raro de democratización exitosa por invasión militar; es uno de los casos más improbables del mundo de regeneración de un partido de origen autoritario; es un ejemplo destacado de gestión eficaz de los recursos por parte de una empresa estatal; y ha logrado un rápido desarrollo económico a pesar de niveles de corrupción extremadamente altos

The culture of pretence: a hidden barrier to recognising, disclosing and ending domestic violence

Aims and objectives: To explore in detail how women perceived their experience of domestic violence and leaving or ending the abuse. This research also examined how service providers identified their professional role in assisting women to end such relationships. Background: Domestic violence against women continues to occur internationally. Reliable statistics are difficult to capture because of inconsistent definitions, contradictory methods of acquiring data and unreported incidents. Design: A qualitative study, undertaken in two phases, was conducted in Australia. Methods: Twelve women who had experienced domestic violence and ended those relationships participated in one semistructured interview (Phase 1). Twenty-five professionals from health, social sciences and law, whose work included assisting women experiencing domestic violence, participated in three focus groups (Phase 2). Thematic analysis guided by a narrative inquiry approach forms the framework for information collection and interpretation of data in this project. Findings: The barriers that impede women from disclosing abuse and taking action to end domestic violence are complex and varied between participants. Women did not always acknowledge or realise their relationship was precarious and often denied or minimised the abuse to cope with the domestic violence. Professionals identified that women did not always identify or acknowledge abuse inherent in their relationship although this delayed the provision of appropriate services. Conclusion: Whether women disclose abuse or deny violence in their relationship, acceptance by service providers and the offer of support is crucial to assisting women in violent relationships. Relevance to clinical practice: It is hoped that the findings may assist health practitioners, including nurses, to provide nonjudgemental support to women experiencing domestic violence whether women acknowledge the abusive relationship or not

The culture of pretence : a hidden barrier to recognising, disclosing and ending domestic violence

Aims and objectives. To explore in detail how women perceived their experience of domestic violence and leaving or ending the abuse. This research also examined how service providers identified their professional role in assisting women to end such relationships. Background. Domestic violence against women continues to occur internationally. Reliable statistics are difficult to capture because of inconsistent definitions, contradictory methods of acquiring data and unreported incidents. Design. A qualitative study, undertaken in two phases, was conducted in Australia. Methods. Twelve women who had experienced domestic violence and ended those relationships participated in one semistructured interview (Phase 1). Twenty-five professionals from health, social sciences and law, whose work included assisting women experiencing domestic violence, participated in three focus groups (Phase 2). Thematic analysis guided by a narrative inquiry approach forms the framework for information collection and interpretation of data in this project. Findings. The barriers that impede women from disclosing abuse and taking action to end domestic violence are complex and varied between participants. Women did not always acknowledge or realise their relationship was precarious and often denied or minimised the abuse to cope with the domestic violence. Professionals identified that women did not always identify or acknowledge abuse inherent in their relationship although this delayed the provision of appropriate services. Conclusion. Whether women disclose abuse or deny violence in their relationship, acceptance by service providers and the offer of support is crucial to assisting women in violent relationships. Relevance to clinical practice. It is hoped that the findings may assist health practitioners, including nurses, to provide nonjudgemental support to women experiencing domestic violence whether women acknowledge the abusive relationship or not

Utilisation of grain rations on sown pastures in central Queensland

A number of studies on Brigalow Research Station, Theodore, in Central Queensland, investigated the performance of different classes of cattle, with or without grain diets, on sown tropical pastures based on buffel and rhodes grasses. These studies were conducted for the Meat Research Corporation's DAQ 065 research project and monitored the growth, carcass attributes, meat quality and market suitability of weaner heifers and steers, 2% year-old steers and aged cull cows. The majority of grain feeding was on an ad lib basis during the winter-spring period when cattle growth rates on pastures are traditionally at or just above maintenance level. 21st Biennial Conference. 8-12 July 1996, University of Queensland. Brisbane

Utilisation of grain rations on sown pastures in central Queensland

A number of studies on Brigalow Research Station, Theodore, in Central Queensland, investigated the performance of different classes of cattle, with or without grain diets, on sown tropical pastures based on buffel and rhodes grasses. These studies were conducted for the Meat Research Corporation's DAQ 065 research project and monitored the growth, carcass attributes, meat quality and market suitability of weaner heifers and steers, 2% year-old steers and aged cull cows. The majority of grain feeding was on an ad lib basis during the winter-spring period when cattle growth rates on pastures are traditionally at or just above maintenance level. 21st Biennial Conference. 8-12 July 1996, University of Queensland. Brisbane