Review of High Towers and Strong Places: A Political History of Middle- earth

A review of Timothy R. Furnish, High Towers and Strong Places: A Political History of Middle- earth (Toronto: Oloris Publishing, 2016). 166 pages. $35.00. ISBN 9781940992518

Review of Middle-earth and the Return of the Common Good

Review of Joshua Hren, Middle-earth and the Return of the Common Good (Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock, 2018). 214 pages. $26.00. ISBN 9781532611193

Review of Flora of Moddle-Earth: Plants of J.R.R. Tolkein\u27s Legendarium

Review of: Walter S. Judd and Graham A. Judd, Flora of Middle-Earth: Plants of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Legendarium (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2017). 424 pages. $43.95. ISBN 9780190276317

Finding Justice Scalia in Burma: Constitutional Interpretation and the Impeachment of Myanmar\u27s Constitutional Tribunal

While the comparative courts literature has yielded valuable insights into confrontations between political elites and judges, we still know relatively little about if and how jurisprudential methodology affects the ability of constitutional courts to survive such crises. How does the choice between originalism versus living constitutionalism affect a court’s relationship with the other branches of government? Do political elites tend to be more hostile towards certain methods of interpretation? The 2012 impeachment of Myanmar’s Constitutional Tribunal presents an interesting example of the interplay between jurisprudence and politics. After fifty years of military rule, Myanmar’s 2008 Constitution produced a new civilian government that appeared committed to political reform. However, when the Tribunal ruled that legislative committees did not have constitutional status, the legislature impeached all nine members, forcing them to resign. Less than two years after it was created, the Constitutional Tribunal was essentially defunct. This article argues that the Constitutional Tribunal’s approach towards constitutional interpretation did not ameliorate—and might have exacerbated—the crisis. Using a textualist or originalist methodology, the Tribunal struck down national legislation in four out of the five cases it heard. However, the Tribunal’s reasoning did not balance the legislature’s interests, much less account for the dramatic political reforms. The Tribunal also never provided a defense to its constitutional review power, and many legislators feared that the Tribunal was usurping their newfound power. Had the Tribunal adopted a more flexible approach—such as proportionality or living constitutionalism—it might have soothed the legislature’s fears while still reaching similar policy outcomes

Political Institutions in J.R.R. Tolkien\u27s Middle-earth: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying About the Lack of Democracy

Alexei Kondratiev Student Paper Award, Mythcon 45. Examines traditional political structures, theories of how they work, and how they play out in Tolkien’s Middle-earth among fantastic races and landscapes. Especially intriguing is the way in which the immortality of some races and individuals affects the power balance

Review of The Oxford Handbook of Science Fiction

A review of Rob Latham, ed., The Oxford Handbook of Science Fiction (Oxford, 2014). xv + 620 pages. $160. ISBN: 9780199838844

Embedded Judicial Autonomy: How NGOs and Public Opinion Influence Indonesia's Constitutional Court

This dissertation is an empirical attempt to explain how nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and public opinion influence Indonesia's Constitutional Court (Mahkamah Konstitusi). In doing so, it argues that the extent to which a court interacts with and responds to civil society - its "embeddedness" - is an important indicator of judicial empowerment. Embedded courts are better able to rely upon external stakeholders to bring important policy questions to the court's attention, provide it with relevant and accurate information, and protect the institution from government reprisals. The dissertation analyzes three mechanisms through which litigants interact with and influence the Constitutional Court. First, Indonesian citizens and organizations can file petitions for constitutional review. Because the Court can only adjudicate constitutional questions raised in the petitions, petitioners have considerable power to set the Court's agenda. Using an automated topic model, this dissertation finds that NGOs are significantly more likely to file petitions covering socioeconomic rights, such as education and labor, and human rights. This allows NGOs to not only determine which rights claims reach the Court, but also to frame the legal and policy questions for the justices. Second, litigants send signals about public opinion. The Indonesian public can empower the Constitutional Court by detecting and punishing government attempts to undermine judicial decisions. Although the justices do not measure public opinion directly, they can observe the size of the coalition supporting or opposing the petition, which acts as a signal of public opinion. This dissertation finds that the Court is significantly more likely to grant a petition if it is supported by a large number of petitioners. By contrast, it is less likely to do so if it receives a large number of non-litigant briefs opposing the petition. Thus, the justices seem to consider the level of public support for or opposition to petitions when adjudicating cases. Third, litigants can convince the Constitutional Court justices to quote their briefs in the final decision. Justices are more likely to quote a brief if they view the source as credible. Using plagiarism-detection software, this dissertation finds that the justices are more likely to quote text from briefs submitted by NGOs. NGOs possess the resources and expertise necessary to provide accurate information. They also rely heavily on their moral capital and reputation to advance policy goals. This helps persuade the justices to view their briefs as credible and informative. The dissertation utilizes an original dataset of 541 petitions for constitutional review submitted during the terms of the first three chief justices (August 13, 2003 - October 2, 2013), as well as 249 statements from the president, 243 statements from the legislature, 62 briefs from third parties supporting of the petition, and 141 briefs from third parties opposing the petition. This dissertation also makes use of dozens of interviews conducted with lawyers, NGO staff, judges, and scholars in Indonesia about litigation strategies, as well as qualitative analysis of several high-profile cases.PHDPolitical ScienceUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/144040/1/dnardi_1.pd

Long constitutions are not garrulous, but they are restrictive

Following the Scottish independence ‘No’ vote, many have suggested that the only way to clear up the heightening degree of incoherence that characterises the UK’s constitutional settlement is to start afresh with a constitutional convention, given its final expression through a new written Constitution. George Tsebelis and Dominic J. Nardi, Jr show that any such a constitution should aim for brevity, given that longer constitutions are both more rigid, yet in practice more often altered, according to evidence from OECD countries

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries