Deliberate Discretion?: The Institutional Foundations of Bureaucratic Autonomy (Cambridge Studies in Comparative Politics)

Book Description

The laws that legislatures adopt provide a crucial opportunity for elected politicians to define public policy. But the ways politicians use laws to shape policy vary considerably across polities. In some cases, legislatures adopt detailed and specific laws in an effort to micromanage policymaking processes. In others, they adopt general and vague laws that leave the executive and bureaucrats substantial discretion to fill in the policy details. What explains these differences across political systems, and how do they matter? The authors address these issues by developing and testing a comparative theory of how laws shape bureaucratic autonomy. Drawing on a range of evidence from advanced parliamentary democracies and the U.S. States, they argue that particular institutional forms--such as the nature of electoral laws, the structure of the legal system, and the professionalism of the legislature--have a systematic and predictable effect on how politicians use laws to shape the policymaking process.

Regulating Infrastructure: Monopoly, Contracts, and Discretion

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A brief review

Regulating Infrastructure: Monopoly, Contracts, and Discretion
José A. Gómez-Ibáñez
Manufacturer: Harvard University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Similar Items:

Reforming Infrastructure; Privatization, Regulation, and Competition (Policy Research Reports)
Granting and Renegotiating Infrastructure Concessions: Doing it Right (Wbi Development Studies)
The Economics of Regulation: Principles and Institutions
Regulation and Development (Federico Caffè Lectures)
Privatization, Restructuring, and Regulation of Network Utilities (Walras-Pareto Lectures)

ASIN: 0674011775

Book Description

In the 1980s and '90s many countries turned to the private sector to provide infrastructure and utilities, such as gas, telephones, and highways--with the idea that market-based incentives would control costs and improve the quality of essential services. But subsequent debacles including the collapse of California's wholesale electricity market and the bankruptcy of Britain's largest railroad company have raised troubling questions about privatization. This book addresses one of the most vexing of these: how can government fairly and effectively regulate "natural monopolies"--those infrastructure and utility services whose technologies make competition impractical?

Rather than sticking to economics, José Gómez-Ibáñez draws on history, politics, and a wealth of examples to provide a road map for various approaches to regulation. He makes a strong case for favoring market-oriented and contractual approaches--including private contracts between infrastructure providers and customers as well as concession contracts with the government acting as an intermediary--over those that grant government regulators substantial discretion. Contracts can provide stronger protection for infrastructure customers and suppliers--and greater opportunities to tailor services to their mutual advantage. In some cases, however, the requirements of the firms and their customers are too unpredictable for contracts to work, and alternative schemes may be needed.

Customer Reviews:

A brief review.......2007-08-01

This book combines case-studies, historical overviews, and analysis of past and present infrastructure regulation. From the standpoint of someone who has worked in this industry for about a year, I found this to be an informative, well-written overview with an especially detailed elaboration of the development of regulations and governmental regulatory agencies from the end of the nineteenth century to middle of the twentieth. The author strives to present a balanced picture of the pros and cons of regulation, but it is fairly clear that he is prima facie against the idea of government regulation (he ends his book though with an admission that there is still much to learn about the application of regulatory schemes). There is much in this book to admire (I especially liked the discussions on unbundling, capture, and the influence of varying conceptions of private property) and very little to be dissatisfied with (I would have been more happy to see some of the historical narrative abridged and replaced with a more in-depth case-study examination of the correlation between deregulation and efficiency).

Becoming a Woman of Discretion: Cultivating a Pure Heart in a Sensual World

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Straight to the Heart

Becoming a Woman of Discretion: Cultivating a Pure Heart in a Sensual World
Nancy Leigh DeMoss
Manufacturer: Life Action Ministries
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Look: Does God Really Care What I Wear?
Lies Women Believe: And the Truth that Sets Them Free
Biblical Portrait of Womanhood: Discovering and Living Out God's Plan for our Lives
The Power of Words
Feminine Appeal

ASIN: 0940110156

Book Description

No woman sets out to tear down her home. But it happens in many subtle ways - with our attitudes, our words, and our actions. Walk verse-by-verse through Proverbs 7 to discover specific characteristics of the foolish woman. A series of penetrating questions is included, to help identify ways that we as women may unknowingly be "tearing down" the lives of those around us.

Customer Reviews:

Straight to the Heart.......2007-05-13

I loved this booklet! This in-depth look at Proverbs 7 will speak to all women...young and old, married or single. It was a great reminder of age old truths, with practical applications.

Police And Policing Law (The International Library of Essays in Law and Society)

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Police And Policing Law (The International Library of Essays in Law and Society)

Manufacturer: Ashgate Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Criminal Law | Law | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0754625788

Average customer rating:

An excellent overview

Understanding Police Use of Force
Howard Rahtz
Manufacturer: Criminal Justice Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Legal System | Government | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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Understanding Police Use of Force: Officers, Suspects, and Reciprocity (Cambridge Studies in Criminology)
Local Government Police Management (Municipal Management Series)
Are Cops Racist?
Above the Law: Police and the Excessive Use of Force
How to Be a Great Cop

ASIN: 1881798429

Book Description

"It is always an ugly story. Whether it's the videotaped beating of Rodney King, 41 shots fired by New York police officers in the Amadou Diallo death, or a single shot killing an unarmed teenager in Cincinnati, police use of force is perhaps the most contentious issue in our country."

So begins Howard Rahtz's balanced and insightful overview of the use of force in American policing. This book strives to enrich public discussion by tracing current trends in the use of force, exploring the impact of this issue on race relations, and evaluating the numerous options proposed for minimizing the use of force in police work.

The author notes that police in the U.S. rarely use force against civilians, and that the use of deadly force has steadily declined in the past 25 years. Nevertheless, he cautions that force situations are often fraught with grave dangers for citizens, communities and police officerse themselves. Although there is no panacea, Rahtz outlines numerous areas where improvements can be achieved in reducing the use of force.

Customer Reviews:

An excellent overview.......2003-11-13

Howard Rahtz has written a very perceptive, thoughtful piece on the appropriate use of force in police situations. He brings in examples that can only come from years of experience in the field, and he makes you think about how the use and threat of force is part and parcel of everyday police work. He points out that in many situations cops should think about their actions, even when ordinary citizens would not think twice about whether police force was approporiate.

Book Description

Although most police activities do not involve the use of force, those that do reflect important patterns of interaction between officer and citizen. After a brief survey of prior research, this study presents new data and findings to examine these patterns. The force factor applied and the sequential order of incidents of force is included in the analysis. The authors also examine police use of force from the suspect's perspective, and create a new conceptual framework, the Authority Maintenance Theory, for examining and assessing police use of force.

The Judicial Application of Law (Law and Philosophy Library)

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The Judicial Application of Law (Law and Philosophy Library)
Jerzy Wróblewski
Manufacturer: Springer
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0792315693

Book Description

The Judicial Application of Law is an important contribution to analytical jurisprudence. It gives a thorough account of all that is involved in the idea of `applying' law as this is carried out by judges. Thus it explores analytically a vital idea for our understanding of legality as a value to which systems of government aspire. This is achieved by the rigorous construction and examination of models of the various steps involved in judicial decision making, including elements both of interpretation and of fact finding, and by the exploration of various possible ideologies of the application of law.
The book takes as its main material for analysis statute-based legal systems in the form these took within socialist legal systems prior to the recent revolutions, being based principally on the law of Poland up to 1989.
This is the last work, posthumously translated, by the most distinguished analytical jurisprudent of modern Poland.

Police Use of Force: A Line Officer's Guide

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A Must Read!
Police use of force, the standard for the new millennium.
A great plan
A good primer on the use of force by police
very thoughtful and effective use of force model

Police Use of Force: A Line Officer's Guide
Thomas T. Gillespie , D. G. Hart , and John D. Boren
Manufacturer: Varro Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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Similar Items:

Understanding Police Use of Force
Use of Force: Expert Guidance for Decisive Force Response

ASIN: 1888644826

Customer Reviews:

A Must Read!.......2000-02-22

This book is a must for use of force trainers and academies. In my former role as an Academy Director this would have been the system to implement. The book is based upon a training model that is clear and complete (verbal to deadly). The graphics can be used to establish appropriate use of force for community or court purposes. It is my understanding that there is an instructor development course that will certify the system.

Police use of force, the standard for the new millennium........2000-02-18

After reviewing the "Police Use of Force" textbook I was totally amazed at the ease with which the authors had taken a complex subject and presented it in a manner, which made it easily defined and understandable by all whom read the text. As a thirty-year police officer, twenty of which were spent as a police administrator, and a police trainer, I was impressed with the authors ability to remove the ambiguity our officers must deal with when they are left no other alternative than the use of force. "That which is necessary to effect the arrest", is one of the most open ended statements, which time and again is interpreted after the fact, and in a sterile setting, making it very difficult to determine the appropriateness of the force used. This model makes that statement obsolete.

The model's ability to define appropriateness of force prior to it's use, the show force/use force component, and guidelines for dealing with deadly assault situations faced by officers are just three of the many concepts that place this use of force continuum in a class by itself. The "Reactive Control Model" should become the standard for all police use of force situations. Our profession and the communities we serve would all benefit from its implementation.

Vincent F. Faggiano Commander (Retired) Rochester, NY Police Department

A great plan.......2000-02-14

All too often, officers don't understand their use of force policy until they are under investigation for excessive use of force. This book tells you ahead of time what is an appropriate response to a given threat and even guides you through the all important report writing process to justify the actions you took. This the most complete and logical use of force book I have seen, and I highly recommend it.

A good primer on the use of force by police.......2000-02-11

This book is a good primer for police use of force for both the line officer and administrator.

However, the Reactive Control Model is simplistic and might lead officers and administrators to believe that appropriate levels of force have been used when in fact either to little force or to much force was used.

Often, Police professionals like models because they make things simple. For example, the suspect does A, you, the officer, does B. Unfortunately, this is not possible because each and every situation requires it's own analysis based on the facts and circumstances of the case on hand. Use of force models do make good training tools and this one works better than many others that I have seen.

It is very hard for a use of force model to reflect the criteria of Graham vs. Connor. If you don't already have a good understanding of the fundamentals of police use of force this book is a good place to start. If you do have a good understanding of Police Use of Force then you may want to skip this book unless you have a need or desire to be familiar with "new" material.

This book is much better than: "Use of Force, Expert Guidance for Decisive Force Response." by Brian Kinnaird

very thoughtful and effective use of force model.......1999-07-30

written by expert practitioners and trainers, their understanding of the use of force and relevant legal issues is clear and highly useful to the street cop. content of book is well organized and readily useable as a training module. furthermore, the "reactive control model" is a helpful guide in all use of force situations.

Laws Harsh As Tigers: Chinese Immigrants and the Shaping of Modern Immigration Law (Studies in Legal History)

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Laws Harsh As Tigers: Chinese Immigrants and the Shaping of Modern Immigration Law (Studies in Legal History)
Lucy E. Salyer
Manufacturer: The University of North Carolina Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Similar Items:

In Search of Equality: The Chinese Struggle against Discrimination in Nineteenth-Century America
At America's Gates: Chinese Immigration during the Exclusion Era, 1882-1943
Immigration Stories
Public Policy in the United States: At the Dawn of the Twenty-First Century
Closing the Gate: Race, Politics, and the Chinese Exclusion Act

ASIN: 0807845302

Book Description

Focusing primarily on the exclusion of the Chinese, Lucy Salyer analyzes the popular and legal debates surrounding immigration law and its enforcement during the height of nativist sentiment in the early twentieth century. She argues that the struggles between Chinese immigrants, U.S. government officials, and the lower federal courts that took place around the turn of the century established fundamental principles that continue to dominate immigration law today and make it unique among branches of American law. By establishing the centrality of the Chinese to immigration policy, Salyer also integrates the history of Asian immigrants on the West Coast with that of European immigrants in the East.

Salyer demonstrates that Chinese immigrants and Chinese Americans mounted sophisticated and often-successful legal challenges to the enforcement of exclusionary immigration policies. Ironically, their persistent litigation contributed to the development of legal doctrines that gave the Bureau of Immigration increasing power to counteract resistance. Indeed, by 1924, immigration law had begun to diverge from constitutional norms, and the Bureau of Immigration had emerged as an exceptionally powerful organization, free from many of the constraints imposed upon other government agencies.

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