The Business of Bribery: Globalization, Economic Liberalization, and the ‘Problem’ of Corruption

This paper is intended as a critical response to the emerging consensus within both academic and policy literatures that we are currently facing an epidemic of corruption which threatens to undermine the stability of economic and political development on both a national and global scale, and which requires both immediate and wide-ranging policy interventions. Based on a review of the publications and policy statements of the leading anti-corruption crusaders — namely the OECD, the IMF, and the World Bank — it will be argued that the recent concern with corruption is attributable, not to any substantive increase incorrupt practices, but rather, to the re-framing of corruption in light of broader shifts and transformations within the global economy

The Business of Bribery: Globalization, Economic Liberalization, and the ‘Problem’ of Corruption

This paper is intended as a critical response to the emerging consensus within both academic and policy literatures that we are currently facing an epidemic of corruption which threatens to undermine the stability of economic and political development on both a national and global scale, and which requires both immediate and wide-ranging policy interventions. Based on a review of the publications and policy statements of the leading anti-corruption crusaders — namely the OECD, the IMF, and the World Bank — it will be argued that the recent concern with corruption is attributable, not to any substantive increase incorrupt practices, but rather, to the re-framing of corruption in light of broader shifts and transformations within the global economy

Exploring the usage of social media in public libraries

Social media is one of the innovations which expands the option of web-based technologies to meet the needs of library users without access cost to them, and many public libraries in South Africa have embraced this technology. Against this backdrop, the purpose of the study was to examine the use of social media in the 8 public libraries in Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality in South Africa. Mixedmethods approach and a descriptive and case study research designs guided the study. Quantitative data was collected from 264 respondents using a questionnaire, and qualitative data from 16 library officials using an interview schedule. The study revealed that social media applications were used for conventional and web-based services such as Online Public Access Catalogue (WebOPAC), Prolib and Millennium Library Management System and free Internet access. However, lack of training activities, restrictive Wi-Fi access, low bandwidth, poor library officials’ attitudes and short time allocation to access the Wi-Fi make itdifficult for the library users and officials to fully benefit from the web-basedservices available and offered by these libraries. Mangaung MetropolitanMunicipality libraries should deliberately implement social media platforms, as this will contribute to how effectively their patrons can use and rely on their web-based services and other services. This study has implications to social media research, development and usage in public libraries.Keywords: social media, public libraries, library services, information access, Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality, South Afric

The Judges of the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation

The United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (or MDL Panel ) is one of a small number of special federal courts created pursuant to Article III by Congress and staffed by a Chief-Justice-appointed group of Article III judges for limited terms. The MDL Panel is a powerful judicial institution with substantial discretion over complex litigation in the United States. For all practical purposes, it controls where many of the most far-reaching and significant private civil actions will be resolved which can affect procedural and substantive rights of the parties. An understanding of who has served on the MDL Panel would shed light on both its structure and its decisions. In this article, we provided an analysis of the composition of the Panel, as well as comparing Panel appointments by the Chief Justice to those of the Judicial Conference Committees

Understanding and Taming Public and Private Corruption in the Twenty-First Century

We are pleased to present these articles that were originally presented at a symposium held at Osgoode Hall Law School on 6–7 November 2014.1 Our objective was to offer a symposium that looked at corruption from diverse perspectives, with a broad national and international focus on business, financial, governmental, private sector, and enforcement corruption. Both the Symposium and the compilation of this special issue of the Journal were unique. They required an interplay between contributions from professionals working on the ground in various countries around the world (such as practitioners working in the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, and Transparency International Canada, as well as police policy analysts and investigators working with various non-governmental organizations, partners in law firms, and investigative journalists) and academics who submitted scholarly articles based on their research pertaining to the phenomenon of corruption. Four academic articles form the body of this special issue. In addition, several professionals share their experiences and knowledge of the lived impact of corruption around the world; their contributions are found in the section entitled Supplement: Practitioners’ Perspectives. In this manner, we were able to incorporate not only scholarly peer-reviewed contributions but also, and of equal significance, the more practical knowledge and experiences of professionals working in the field

Understanding and Taming Public and Private Corruption in the Twenty-First Century

We are pleased to present these articles that were originally presented at a symposium held at Osgoode Hall Law School on 6–7 November 2014.1 Our objective was to offer a symposium that looked at corruption from diverse perspectives, with a broad national and international focus on business, financial, governmental, private sector, and enforcement corruption. Both the Symposium and the compilation of this special issue of the Journal were unique. They required an interplay between contributions from professionals working on the ground in various countries around the world (such as practitioners working in the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, and Transparency International Canada, as well as police policy analysts and investigators working with various non-governmental organizations, partners in law firms, and investigative journalists) and academics who submitted scholarly articles based on their research pertaining to the phenomenon of corruption. Four academic articles form the body of this special issue. In addition, several professionals share their experiences and knowledge of the lived impact of corruption around the world; their contributions are found in the section entitled Supplement: Practitioners’ Perspectives. In this manner, we were able to incorporate not only scholarly peer-reviewed contributions but also, and of equal significance, the more practical knowledge and experiences of professionals working in the field

OncoLog Volume 40, Number 02, April-June 1995

Creative strategies key in fight against liver cancer Getting patients home and back to their routines more quickly Teaching physicians how to prevent cancerhttps://openworks.mdanderson.org/oncolog/1050/thumbnail.jp

Public Libraries and Knowledge Commons in a Municipality in the Free State, South Africa

The purpose of the study is to examine the emergence of Commons in the public libraries in the Free State in South Africa using the Institutional Analysis and Development Framework. The study examined the roles of the libraries and communities, the linkage of the new library with open access to knowledge, level of awareness of both users, and the community and administrators. Also, the study examined the role of library users and their communities in the maintenance of the new library. The study adopted a qualitative research design to study 16 community leaders and 17 library staff using an interview schedule. The interview schedule was developed following the Institutional Analysis and Development Framework and administered by the researchers. Data analysis was conducted by a narrative approach to highlight the voices of the participants. Knowledge commons is emerging in the communities studied in a serendipitous manner; there is no formal national or regional policy that spells out what knowledge commons is and their entailments. There is strong evidence of community ownership and governance of human knowledge and other resources that are associated with learning and innovation in the communities

Fruit Processing, Seed Viability And Dormancy Mechanisms Of Persoonia Sericea A. Cunn. ex R. Br. and P. Virgata R.Br. (Proteaceae)

The morphology of the fruit and difficulties with fruit processing impose major limitations to germination of Persoonia sericea and P. virgata. The mesocarp must be removed without harming the embryo. Fermentation of fruit or manual removal of the mesocarp was effective but digestion in 32% hydrochloric acid (HCl) completely inhibited germination. The endocarp is extremely hard and therefore very difficult and time consuming to remove without damaging the seeds. The most efficient method was cracking the endocarp with pliers, followed by manual removal of seeds. Germination was completely inhibited unless at least half of the endocarp was removed. Microbial contamination of the fruit and seeds was controlled by disinfestation and germination of the seed under aseptic conditions. The results suggest that dormancy in these species is primarily due to physical restriction of the embryo by the hard endocarp

Percepciones de docentes acerca de las experiencias de desarrollo profesional: una preocupación que continúa

Teachers’ perceptions of professional development experiences related to process, content, and context were explored to better address leadership preparation needs. Teachers responded to the Professional Development Questionnaire, three demographic variables (teaching experience, Title 1 status, and current grade level) pertaining to the individual, and one open-ended comment field. A total of 327 teachers from a large western school district in the United States responded. The findings indicated that there were no significant differences for the three demographic grouping variables. Overall, results revealed low mean values, indicating that teachers disagreed or strongly disagreed with statements related to their professional development experiences. Teachers also indicated that their own building administrators did not value professional development. Finally, teachers’ perceptions of professional development also suggested that professional development topics were irrelevant, and that they were not provided with enough time to integrate topics into their current practice.Se exploraron las percepciones de maestros acerca de las experiencias de desarrollo profesional relacionadas con el proceso, el contenido y el contexto, a fin de responder mejor a las necesidades de preparación para el liderazgo. Maestros respondieron al Cuestionario de Desarrollo Profesional, tres variables de agrupaciones demográficas (experiencia enseñando, estado de Título 1, y nivel de grado actual) pertenecientes al individuo, y un campo de comentarios de composición abierta. Un total de 327 maestros de un distrito escolar grande del occidente de los Estados Unidos respondió. Los resultados revelaron que no había diferencias significativas para las tres variables de agrupación demográfica. En general, los resultados revelaron bajos valores promedios, indicando que los maestros estaban en desacuerdo, o fuertemente en desacuerdo con las declaraciones relacionadas a sus experiencias de desarrollo profesional. Los maestros también indicaron que sus propios administradores no valoraban el desarrollo profesional. Finalmente, las percepciones de los maestros de desarrollo profesional también sugirieron que los temas al respecto eran irrelevantes y que ellos no tenían suficiente tiempo para integrar dichas cuestiones en su práctica cotidiana