Alaska: North to the Future of Federal Marijuana Regulation

The personal freedom Alaskans not only expect, but rely upon, exposes a significant need for federal cooperation in the reformation of marijuana laws, including the removal or reclassification of marijuana in the Controlled Substances Act. This Comment summarizes this issue in light of Alaska’s recent recreational marijuana legalization. In doing so, elements unique to Alaska and their likely influence on the state\u27s upcoming marijuana legislation; the history and evolution of Alaska marijuana laws; and the scholarly literature on Alaska marijuana law regarding the tensions between federal and state marijuana regulation are discussed. This Comment proposes that marijuana be removed from the Controlled Substance Act and that the federal government take a page out of Alaska\u27s book in setting up a new marijuana regulatory system by shifting oversight of marijuana regulation from the Drug Enforcement Administration to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Such a solution could provide for consistency among the continuing emergence of state recreational marijuana laws while still allowing each state to properly police itself on the basis of its unique needs

Book Review: Public International Law: An Australian Perspective

This article is a book review of Sam Blay, Ryszard Piotrowicz and Martin Tsamenyi (eds) Public International Law: An Australian Perspective, (2 ed, Oxford University Press, Melbourne, 2005) (424 + xl pages) NZ$95. The book explains and illuminates the complexities of international law in the contemporary world from an Australian perspective. MacDonald praises the authors for acknowledging the geopolitical context in which conventions were agreed, and in which contemporary decisions are made by governments. Given the broad interest in international law and actions taken in its name, and given the misreporting and misuse of legal arguments in modern political discourse and public commentary, MacDonald recommends the book to students of all disciplines, journalists, commentators and politicians alike.&nbsp

Boot camps: An alternative sanction for better or worse

In the past twenty years boot camps have been evaluated for effectiveness on reducing recidivism, crowding, and costs to the Departments of Corrections. Program and offender characteristics have been studied. This analysis intends to determine how well studied boot camps are, why there is so much disagreement in the findings, and what impact, if any, boot camp programming has had in corrections

Disability and forgiveness: An intervention to promote positive coping for persons with disabilities

Disability is an event that forever changes a person\u27s life. Throughout the coping and adaptation process, many experience negative thoughts and feelings such as anger, anxiety, depression, and multiple forms of frustration. Some of these may be related to a disability, while others are by-products of the negative experiences, attitudes, and treatment of persons with disabilities. These include societal barriers and injustices and changes and losses that often accompany a disability. Counseling professionals can assist persons with disabilities in learning to improve their coping process by learning about approaches and, in this case, interventions to help promote healing and positive coping. In order to cultivate forgiveness, the present article clarifies the meaning of forgiveness and its relevance to persons with disabilities, discusses barriers to and benefits of forgiveness, and provides a rationale for developing the forgiveness intervention and information about the content and modules it contains. Implications concerning ways counselors can use the forgiveness intervention and future directions for study are also discussed

Creating and Implementing a One Hour Inclusive Excellence Training for Faculty and Instructors

At the MGH Institute of Health Professions we designed a one-hour program for clinical nursing instructors to increase knowledge of challenges faced by diverse students, to foster open-minded attitudes, and to present teaching strategies to maximize student success. We believe principles from this training can be customized to any setting. Participants will role play using vignettes taken from student experiences. Our clinical faculty found our vignettes realistic and the teaching strategies helpful. In this workshop, participants will work in groups to create training programs for faculty colleagues

Therapeutic effects of building resilience: an observation of two case studies

Resilience is an emerging area of research interest. Resilience has much relevance and applicability to persons with disabilities and to the situations lived and experienced by people with disabilities.1–3 However, few resilience interventions, specifically tailored to the needs of people with disabilities, have been developed and empirically studied. Stuntzner and Hartley3 began to change this trend with the development of a 10-module resilience intervention. Presented as a part of this article are two case studies of people who completed an initial resilience intervention pilot study conducted by Stuntzner and MacDonald.4 The case studies represent people living with varying disabilities and diagnoses and illustrate the application and usefulness of resilience interventions in their lives. Based on these initial findings, resilience and resilience-skill building approaches may help assist people with disabilities in reducing negative emotions and cultivating more positive ways of coping. Additional research is warranted to learn more about the utility of resilience interventions among people with disabilities

The Therapeutic Triad of Disability

For many counseling professionals, the exploration of forgiveness, selfcompassion or resilience can seem daunting, particularly when determining ways to apply these concepts to people with disabilities and their specific needs. When approaching this task, counselors may ask themselves several questions, including: Where do I start? Which concept is most important? Is one of them more relevant for this population? How can I best help people explore one or all of these concepts? Good questions indeed but not always easy ones to answer. To help counselors understand each of these concepts, the three authors of this article developed a model called the therapeutic triad of disability. The therapeutic triad provides counselors a means with which to consider one or all of these approaches as a gateway to healing and a pathway to hope for clients

Exploration of a resilience intervention among women with disabilities: an examination of two case studies

People who live with a disability are faced with the prospect of adjusting to the disability and its associated life experiences. Many people encounter negative and hurtful situations such as unemployment, lack of adequate resources, changes in relationships and social support, negative societal attitudes, bias, and discrimination, and so forth. Women with disabilities are subject to these same negative encounters, but they often experience several others based on their gender (i.e., higher rates of abuse, poverty, and financial independence). Given the likelihood that women may experience additional stressors with fewer supports in place, professionals must focus on the needs of women with disabilities and the sources of support. To meet this important need, two case studies are presented. The case studies are comprised of two women living with varying disabilities who completed Stuntzner and Hartley’s.110-module resilience intervention. The women share information about their experience in working through the resilience intervention and in learning resilience-based skills to help them deal with their initial concerns and stressors. Both women reported decreases in depression and anxiety and increases in resilience and forgiveness as a result of working through the interventio

Structuring Photovoice for Community Impact: A Protocol for Research With Women With Physical Disability

Women with disability face participation barriers based on long-held misconceptions around their identity that adversely affect their health, income levels, and access to education and employment. It has been noted that photographs produced through photovoice methodology can help dismantle attitudinal and environmental barriers that people with disability continue to confront, but this method is rarely assessed for impact. In this protocol paper, we merge principles of feminist theory, photovoice methodology and integrated knowledge translation to generate 1. exhibition-quality participant-created photography on identity, 2. discussion around and insight into inclusion for women with disability and 3. a public exhibition to understand any impact these photographs may have on audiences and discriminatory barriers. Photographs, text, discussions and audience feedback are to be interrogated through thematic and narrative analysis. By aiming our arts-based research findings for a public audience, we hope to advance understanding of female identity and inclusion.Frauen mit Beeinträchtigungen erleben oft Teilhabebarrieren infolge langdauernder Fehleinschätzungen über ihre Identität, gefolgt von negativen Effekten für ihre Gesundheit, ihr Einkommen und ihren Zugang zu Bildung und Arbeit. In rückliegenden Arbeiten wurde bereits gezeigt, dass Fotos, die mittels des Photovoice-Verfahrens produziert wurden, halfen, Einstellungs- und Umgebungsbarrieren abzubauen, allerdings wurde die Methode kaum mit Blick auf möglichen öffentlichen Impact genutzt. In diesem Protokollpapier haben wir Prinzipien miteinander verbunden, die auf feministische Theorien, die Photovoice-Methode und integrierte Wissensvermittlungspraktiken zurückgehen, um 1. ausstellungsreife Fotografien zur Identität der Forschungsteilnehmerinnen zu generieren, 2. zur Diskussion von und Einsicht in Inklusion für beeinträchtige Frauen beizutragen und 3. eine Ausstellung zu initiieren, um zu verstehen, welchen Impact die Fotos auf das Publikum und auf diskriminierende Barrieren haben können. Fotografien, Texte, Diskussionen und Publikums-Feedback wurden einer thematischen und narrativen Analyse unterzogen. Indem wir mit unserer kunstbasierten Forschung eine breite Öffentlichkeit adressierten, hoffen wir, zu einem besseren Verständnis von weiblicher Identität und Inklusion beigetragen zu haben