Law Librarian Blog

Targeting Blacks: Drug Law Enforcement and Race in the United States

New report from Human Rights Watch: "Ostensibly color-blind, the US “war on drugs” disproportionately targets urban minority neighborhoods, Human Rights Watch and The Sentencing Project said in two reports. Although whites commit more drug offenses, African Americans are arrested and imprisoned on drug charges at much higher rates, the reports find."  [RJ]

Human Rights Watch Special Focus: Beijing 2008

Check out Human Rights Watch's Beijing 2008 website, including, for example, the Agenda for Reform page:  Human Rights Abuses Shadow Countdown to 2008 Beijing Games. According to Human Rights Watch, major areas for human rights reform in the Olympic run-up are:

Forced evictions and school closures. The construction of facilities for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing has involved forced evictions of thousands of citizens in and around Beijing, often without adequate compensation or access to new housing. The pre-Olympic “clean-up” of Beijing has resulted in the closure of dozens of officially unregistered schools for the children of migrant workers.

Labor rights abuses. Thousands of migrant workers employed on Olympic and other construction sites across Beijing do not receive legally mandated pay and benefits including labor insurance and days off, and are often compelled to do dangerous work without adequate safeguards.

Repression of ethnic minorities. China continues to use the “war on terrorism” to justify policies to eradicate the “three evil forces” – terrorism, separatism, and religious extremism – allegedly prevalent among Uighurs, a Turkic-speaking Muslim population in China’s Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region. Uighurs who express “separatist” tendencies are routinely sentenced to quick, secret and summary trials, sometimes accompanied by mass sentencing rallies. The death penalty is common. In Tibet, Chinese authorities still view the Dalai Lama, in exile in India since 1959, as central to the effort to separate Tibet from China and view Tibetan Buddhist belief as supportive of these efforts. Suspected “separatists,” many of whom come from monasteries and nunneries, are routinely imprisoned.

Controls on religious freedom. China does not recognize freedom of religion outside the state-controlled system in which all congregations, mosques, temples, churches and monasteries must register. The government also curtails religious freedom by designating and repressing some groups as “cults,” such as the Falungong.

The death penalty and executions. The government does not publicize figures for the death penalty, but it is mandated for no fewer than 68 crimes. Though the exact number is a state secret, it is estimated that as many as 10,000 executions are carried out each year.

HIV/AIDS rights advocacy obstruction. Measures to address China’s HIV/AIDS crisis are hampered as local officials and security forces continue to obstruct efforts by activists and grassroots organizations to contribute to prevention and education efforts and to organize care-giving.

Use of house arrest system. Numerous human rights defenders and government critics have been harassed, detained and subject to house arrest. If today’s pattern holds, a pre-Olympic clampdown in the weeks and months before the Games is likely.

Ties with rights violators. China’s close relations with countries linked to severe, ongoing human rights violations are also a serious source of concern. China maintains relations with and provides aid to regimes including Sudan, the site of egregious human rights violations in Darfur, and Burma, whose military junta violently suppresses civilians. China has also not ratified the International Covenant on Political and Civil Rights, which it signed in 1998.

[JH]

PriceWaterHouseCoopers Releases It's 2007 Securities Litigation Study

From the report (pdf): 

After a two-year decline and a sluggish start to the year, total federal class actions filed in 2007 against foreign and domestic companies increased once more, reversing the previous downturn. Not surprisingly, much of the filing activity was due to subprime-related matters, which represented 30 of the 103 filings made in the second half of 2007 and 23% of the overall 2007 filings. Despite the increase, however, the total number of filings remains below the average of 180 that has been the norm since the enactment of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

Hat tip to beSpacific. [JH]

Active US Hate Groups Rise to 888 in 2007, a 48% Increase Since 2000

According to Southern Poverty Law Center, the number of hate groups operating in the United States has grown to 888. That's a 5 percent increase since last year and a staggering 48 percent increase since 2000. The increase has been driven largely by anti-immigrant hysteria. See generally, The Year in Hate by the Intelligence Project of the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Since the spring of 2005, some 300 new immigration restriction groups, including border vigilantes like the Minutemen and organizations that exist simply to harass Latino immigrants, have sprung up across the country. Of that number, 144 are listed as "nativist extremist" groups — organizations that do not merely seek to change immigration policy, but actively confront or harass individuals who they believe are undocumented. See The Anti-Immigration Movement. About this disturbing trend, Mark Potok writes:

The continuing increase was troubling and was attributable, in part, to the pundits and politicians who have fueled anti-immigrant feeling with false propaganda about immigrants' health, criminality, and contributions to the economy. It came along with new FBI statistics that indicate a 35% increase in hate crimes against Latinos — victims often assumed to be undocumented foreigners — during the period 2003-06.

Read Potok's editorial: Hope Amidst the Hate? Intelligence Report (Spring 2008)

In addition to the annual report, check out the Center's Hate Groups Map and Hatewatch Blog. You can take a stand against hate here. The page's widge will coordinate your location by zip code with the Center's hate groups map. [JH]

Human Rights Watch Releases Report Detailing Government Harassment of Chinese Lawyers

From the press release:

The 142-page report, Walking on Thin Ice: Control, Intimidation and Harassment of Lawyers in China, details consistent patterns of abuses against legal practitioners. These include intimidation, harassment, suspension of professional licenses, disbarment, physical assaults, and even arrest and prosecution when lawyers take politically sensitive cases, seek redress for abuses of power and wrongdoings by party or government agents, or challenge local power-holders.

Human Rights Watch also said that restrictions on lawyers risk exacerbating widespread social unrest as citizens are denied meaningful legal avenues to solve disputes. China has witnessed an explosion of social unrest in recent years, fueled by rising economic disparities and endemic abuses by unaccountable local officials. Issues such as illegal land seizures, forced evictions, relocations from dam areas, environmental pollution, unpaid social entitlements and administrative malfeasance have become burning social issues.   

Key Recommendations. Human Rights Watch urges the Chinese government to address the plight of lawyers and the legal profession by:

• Immediately releasing all lawyers arrested, detained, or under supervision as a result of their professional activities, including as human rights defenders;
• Ending all officially sponsored attacks on lawyers and holding the perpetrators of such attacks accountable under the law;
• Making lawyers associations fully independent, insulated from interference by Party officials, security officials, and the Ministry of Justice;
• Repealing aspects of annual bar registration for lawyers which allow judicial system authorities to put pressure on and arbitrarily retaliate against lawyers for political and other reasons;
• Revising key laws and regulations governing the legal profession to bring them into accordance with international standards;
• Ensuring that arbitrary restrictions are not placed on the press in the coverage of politically sensitive cases; and
• Ensuring that lawyers, like other citizens, are able to exercise their rights to freedom of expression, belief, association, and assembly.

[JH]

Investor and Industry Perspectives on Investment Advisers and Broker-Dealers

New report from the RAND Corporation:

"In theory, financial professionals are relatively distinct: A broker conducts transactions in securities on behalf of others; a dealer buys and sells securities for his or her own accounts; and an investment adviser provides advice to others regarding securities. Broker-dealers and investment advisers are subject to different regulatory structures. But trends in the financial services market since the early 1990s have blurred the boundaries between them. Regulatory reform requires a clearer understanding of the industry’s complexities. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission asked RAND to conduct this study to examine the professionals’ current business practices and whether investors understand differences between and relationships among them. The report describes a heterogeneous industry, with firms taking many different forms and offering a multitude of services and products and with investors failing to distinguish broker-dealers and investment advisers along regul! atory lines. Despite this, investors express high levels of satisfaction with the services they receive from their own financial service providers. This satisfaction was much more frequently reported to arise from the personal attention the investor receives than from the actual financial returns arising from this relationship."  [RJ]

How Knowledge is Reshaping the Economic Life of Nations

The Work Foundation has published The Knowledge Economy: How Knowledge is Reshaping the Economic Life of Nations. The report, part of the Foundation's three-year study that will conclude in April 2009, argues that the phenomenon of the knowledge economy is driven by the demand for higher value-added goods and services created by more sophisticated, more discerning and better educated consumers and businesses. These pressures have interacted with both technology and globalization, accelerating the process of change and enabling new and disruptive patterns of supplying consumers. [JH]

Fast Start for Soft Money Groups in 2008 Election

New report from the Campaign Finance Institute: "Soft money groups in the 2008 election are off to a strong start. Federally-focused 527 political organizations raised money in 2007 at a faster clip than in the comparable off year before the 2004 election. And 527 groups have generally adapted to the Federal Election Commission’s post-2004 regulatory restrictions. At the same time, the tighter controls helped spur expanded use of 501(c)(4) social welfare organizations for election purposes. While it is too early to forecast the level of publicly reported soft money financing in the 2008 cycle - 527s for example raised 15% of their 2003-2004 money and 42% of their 2005-2006 funds in the first year of those two-year cycles - soft money groups are poised to play a major role in the 2008 election." [RJ]

Shortchanging America’s Health 2008

New report from Trust for America’s Health:

"Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) released a new study that finds Midwestern states receive less funding from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) than other states.
Midwestern states receive less funding from the CDC than other states, at an average of $16.24 per person. Western states receive the second least, with an average of $19.74 per person. Northeastern states receive an average of $23.37 per person. Southern states receive the most CDC funding, with an average of $29.40 per person.

The new analysis, Shortchanging America’s Health: A State-By-State Look at How Federal Public Health Dollars Are Spent — 2008, reviews key health statistics and federal funding for public health on a state-by-state level.

Federal funding for disease and injury prevention programs in states averages out to be $17.23 per person for fiscal year (FY) 2007. However, CDC funding for individual states can vary by more than $56 per person, according to ! the analysis. Alaska receives more than any other state from the CDC at $69.76 per person. Kansas receives the least at $13.61 per person."  [RJ]

Spotlight on 2007: RAND Europe Annual Review

New report from the RAND Corporation: RAND Europe’s Spotlight on 2007 is the first year-end review of its kind for the organisation. It features the work of each of RAND Europe’s established teams as well as our emerging areas, while highlighting specific projects carried out in 2007 as case studies. Spotlight also provides information on RAND Europe’s development as a Unit of the RAND Corporation. Selected 2007 publications are listed along with names of clients and collaborators."  [RJ]

A Survey of University Cost Containment Practices

Cost Containment: A Survey of Current Practices at America’s State Colleges and Universities is a new report from the American Association of State Colleges and Universities:

"Member institutions of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities are witnessing measurable success in identifying and implementing cost containment strategies in order to reduce operating costs.  Nearly all survey respondents at AASCU institutions place high importance on cost containment, with most having implemented cost control strategies in multiple operational areas. As a result, a majority of the state colleges and universities participating in this study indicated sufficient satisfaction with their cost containment efforts. Institutions rely more on support and business functions in their cost control efforts than on core academic functions. Energy management and consortium purchasing are the two most common areas of focus for cost containment." 

Executive Summary
Download full version 
Read news release

[RJ]

Women and Nation-Building

New report from the RAND Corporation: "This study examines gender-specific impacts of conflict and post-conflict and the ways in which events in these contexts may affect women differently than they affect men. It analyzes the roles of women in the nation-building process and considers outcomes that might occur if current practices were modified. The recent nation-building activities in Afghanistan are used as a case study. Despite the difficulty of collecting data in conflict zones, the information available from Afghanistan provides several pragmatic points for consideration. Gender issues have been overtly on the table from the beginning of U.S. post-conflict involvement in Afghanistan, in part because of the Taliban’s equally overt prior emphasis on gender issues as a defining quality of its regime. Also, the issue of women’s inclusion is an official part of Afghanistan’s development agenda, so all the active agents in the nation-building enterprise have made conscious choices and decisions that can be reviewed and their underlying logic evaluated."  [RJ]

Coerced Evidence Contaminating Judicial System, Undermining Terrorist Prosecutions

New report from Human Rights First:

"The introduction of coerced evidence, obtained through the use of official cruelty, into military commission trials at Guantanamo Bay is rapidly contaminating the justice system and jeopardizing the prospects for the successful prosecution of terrorists, a new report charges.

The report--Tortured Justice: Using Coerced Evidence to Prosecute Terrorist Suspects—released by Human Rights First, finds the Bush administration has undercut its own intended use of the military commission system to bring those responsible for 9/11 to justice, by allowing the admission of evidence tainted by torture. The administration sanctioned the use of abusive interrogation methods, believing that the need to gather information by any means to prevent future terrorist attacks took precedence over the complications it would cause down the line in prosecuting crimes that had already taken place.

“Notwithstanding that torture and coercion consistently produce unreliable information, the administration’s miscalculation has produced a secondary system of defective justice,” said Deborah Colson, author of the report and a senior associate in Human Rights First’s Law and Security program. “By ignoring fundamental principles that underpin our justice system, the administration is compromising the successful prosecution of terrorist suspects.”  [RJ]

Grading the States 2008: A Management Report Card

New report from Governing Magazine: "Information is king. No single idea emerges more clearly from year-long research done for the 2008 Government Performance Project. As always, this report focuses on four fundamental areas of government management: Information, People, Money and Infrastructure. But this year, the elements that make up the information category — planning, goal-setting, measuring performance, disseminating data and evaluating progress — overlap with the other three fields to a greater degree than ever before. Information elements, in short, are key to how a state takes care of its infrastructure, plans for its financial future and deals with the dramatic changes affecting the state workforce."  [RJ]

Public Attitudes Toward the War in Iraq: 2003-2008

New report from the Pew Research Center:

"Five years after the start of the conflict in Iraq, many public evaluations of the situation in Iraq have turned more positive. But there has been no turnaround in the public’s opinion about the original decision to take military action in Iraq. While ratings of how things are going in Iraq have improved over the past year and more Americans now say the United States should keep troops there, the proportion saying the initial decision to go to war was wrong has increased since the spring of 2007.

In Pew’s latest national survey, conducted Feb. 20-24 among 1,508 adults, a 54% majority said the U.S. made the wrong decision in using military force in Iraq, while 38% said it was the right decision. Last March, 49% said the decision to got to war was wrong, while 43% said it was right. During the third and fourth years of the conflict public opinion on this question was divided, while in the war’s first two years clear majorities backed the decision to use force in Iraq! ."   

CREW Report Detailing Senators' Use of Positions to Benefit Family Members

The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) has released its first-ever analysis of the misuse of power by all members of the Senate to financially benefit their family members. The analysis covers the 2002, 2004 and 2006 election cycles. The new report, Family Affair - Senate names 87 senators from all 50 states: 42 Democrats, 43 Republicans and 2 Independents." 

And from the Senate's Virtual Reference Desk: Salaries of Members of Congress: A List of Payable Rates and Effective Dates, 1789-2008:

"From 1789 through 1968, Congress raised its pay 22 times using this procedure. Congressional salaries initially were $1,500. By 1968, they had risen to $30,000. Stand-alone legislation may still be used to raise Member pay, as it was most recently in 1982, 1983, 1989, and 1991, but two other methods — including an automatic annual adjustment procedure and a commission process — are now also available.

Under the annual adjustment procedure, Members are scheduled to receive a 2.8% adjustment in January 2009. Members originally were scheduled to receive a 2.7% increase in January 2008. The increase was revised to 2.5%, resulting in a salary in 2008 of $169,300, to match the percent increase in the base pay of General Schedule (GS) employees. By law, Members may not receive an increase greater than the increase in the base pay of GS employees. Congress voted to deny the scheduled January 2007 adjustment. Members previously received a pay increase (1.9%) in January 2006, increasing their salary to the rate of $165,200." 

[RJ]

ARL Study Reveals Many Research Libraries Are Also Publishers

ARL has published the results of a study of publishing services by ARL member libraries. Karla Hahn's report, Research Library Publishing Services: New Options for University Publishing (pdf), is based on a survey of ARL member libraries with follow-up interviews. It finds that research libraries are rapidly developing publishing services. By late 2007, 44% of the 80 responding ARL member libraries reported they were delivering publishing services and another 21% were in the process of planning publishing service development. Only 36% of responding institutions were not active in this arena.

Among the 44 percent of respondents that reported publishing activities:

• 88 percent report publishing e-journals.
• 79 percent publish conference papers and proceedings.
• 71 percent publish monographs.

Although the aggregate number of journal titles reported to be published by research represents "a very thin slice of the scholarly publishing pie," Hahn wrote, publishing activities, enabled by "emerging capabilities of digital information and networks," is clearly increasing. Respondents reported working on 265 titles, 131 of which were "established"; 81 were new titles; and 53 were "under development."

Key findings include:

• Service development is being driven by campus demand, largely from authors and editors.
• Substantial investment in open source applications such as Open Journal Systems, Open Conference Systems, D-Pubs, and DSpace is facilitating service development.
• Library publishing services are part of a range of new kinds of services libraries have developed or are developing, such as repository and digitization services.
• The use of various forms of revenue generation is common for publishing services, but core support comes from library resources and in some cases new campus funding.

Academic Law Libraries as ePublishers. Cincinnati's Marx Law Library publishes the Securities Lawyer's Deskbook, a project I inherited in 2001. At the time, I didn't think our little library should be in the publishing business. There was (and still is) no funding or staff support from the College of Law. Twice the project was almost axed because of library budget cuts but we were lucky to negotiate a licensing agreement with a SOX compliance vendor to offset some costs while keeping access to the Deskbook available free of charge.

Initially, I was amazed by the number of large SEC law firms that could bill out Lexis-Westlaw search charges easily but used the Deskbook instead. Now, I take that for granted. The Deskbook is the highest visited destination in the College of Law domain -- no other College of Law subdomain covers close -- and it generates tons of Law Library goodwill from our alumni.

I wonder what other academic law libraries are doing these days. Elmer, time for a new CALI-sponsored survey? [JH]

Advocacy Groups Dueling over Arbitration

The U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform has released a survey and research paper concerning arbitration. The survey found overwhelming support for arbitration among likely voters and the research paper rebuts Public Citizen's recent report, The Arbitration Trap:  How Credit Card Companies Ensnare Consumers (September 2007).

Arbitration Resources: U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform | Public Citizen

[JH]

Performance Right Would Harmonize Copyright Policy

From the press release: "A performance-right for recording artists would correct a needless exception in U.S. copyright law, states Tom Sydnor in, "A Performance Right for Recording Artists: Sound Policy at Home and Abroad," a Progress on Point released today by The Progress & Freedom Foundation. In addition, Sydnor concludes, the Passage of the Performance Rights Act would harmonize U.S. copyright law with those of other countries, benefiting both U.S. recording artists and the U.S. economy."  [RJ]

The New Middle East

New report from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace:

"Confrontational U.S. policy that tried to create a “New Middle East,” but ignored the realities of the region has instead exacerbated existing conflicts and created new problems, argues a new report from the Carnegie Endowment. To restore its credibility and promote positive transformation, the United States needs to abandon the illusion that it can reshape the region to suit its interests.

In The New Middle East, Carnegie Middle East experts Marina Ottaway, Nathan J. Brown, Amr Hamzawy, Karim Sadjadpour, and Paul Salem examine the new realities of the region by focusing on three critical clusters of countries—Iran–Iraq, Lebanon–Syria, Palestine–Israel, and on the three most pressing issues—nuclear proliferation, sectarianism, and the challenge of political reform—to provide a new direction for U.S. policy that engages all regional actors patiently and consistently on major conflicts to develop compromise solutions."  [RJ]

Conducting Counterinsurgency Operations: Lessons from Iraq (2003-2006)

New report from the RAND Corporation: "This research brief examines U.S. counterinsurgency (COIN) operations in Iraq from 2003 to 2006, including U.S. failure to protect Iraqi civilians; discusses implications for future conflicts; and recommends steps to improve U.S. COIN capabilities."  [RJ]

Conducting Counterinsurgency Operations: Lessons from Iraq (2003-2006)

New report from the RAND Corporation: "This research brief examines U.S. counterinsurgency (COIN) operations in Iraq from 2003 to 2006, including U.S. failure to protect Iraqi civilians; discusses implications for future conflicts; and recommends steps to improve U.S. COIN capabilities."  [RJ]

Beyond MySpace Complaints: An Updated Forecast of Worldwide Information Growth

The Diverse and Exploding Digital Universe, An Updated Forecast of Worldwide Information Growth Through 2011 (pdf) updates IDC’s inaugural forecast published in March 2007. Sponsored by storage giant EMC, key findings of this white paper indicate that it is time to upgrade the 1990's dot.com bubble's financed Internet infrastructure. Why? Well, it's not just because of MySpace users! [JH]

Key findings and recommendations from this EMC-sponsored IDC white paper include

• The digital universe in 2007 — at 2.25 x 1021 bits (281 exabytes or 281 billion gigabytes) — was 10% bigger than we thought. The resizing comes as a result of faster growth in cameras, digital TV shipments, and better understanding of information replication. By 2011, the digital universe will be 10 times the size it was in 2006.
• As forecast, the amount of information created, captured, or replicated exceeded available storage for the first time in 2007. Not all information created and transmitted gets stored, but by 2011, almost half of the digital universe will not have a permanent home.
• Fast-growing corners of the digital universe include those related to digital TV, surveillance cameras, Internet access in emerging countries, sensor-based applications, datacenters supporting “cloud computing,” and social networks.
• The diversity of the digital universe can be seen in the variability of file sizes, from 6 gigabyte movies on DVD to 128-bit signals from RFID tags. Because of the growth of VoIP, sensors, and RFID, the number of electronic information “containers” — files, images, packets, tag contents — is growing 50% faster than the number of gigabytes. The information created in 2011 will be contained in more than 20 quadrillion — 20 million billion — of such containers, a tremendous management challenge for both businesses and consumers.
• Of that portion of the digital universe created by individuals, less than half can be accounted for by user activities — pictures taken, phone calls made, emails sent — while the rest constitutes a digital “shadow” — surveillance photos, Web search histories, financial transaction journals, mailing lists, and so on.
• The enterprise share of the digital universe is widely skewed by industry, having little relationship to GDP or IT spending. The finance industry, for instance, accounts for almost 20% of worldwide IT spending but only 6% of the digital universe. Meanwhile, media, entertainment, and communications industries will account for 10 times their share of the digital universe in 2011 as their share of worldwide gross economic output.
• The picture related to the source and governance of digital information remains intact: Approximately 70% of the digital universe is created by individuals, but enterprises are responsible for the security, privacy, reliability, and compliance of 85%.

To deal with this explosion of the digital universe in size and complexity, IT organizations will face three main imperatives:

One. They will need to transform their existing relationships with the business units. It will take all competent hands in an organization to deal with information creation, storage, management, security, retention, and disposal in an enterprise. Dealing with the digital universe is not a technical problem alone.

Two. They will need to spearhead the development of organizationwide policies for information governance: information security, information retention, data access, and compliance.

Three. They will need to rush new tools and standards into the organization, from storage optimization, unstructured data search, and database analytics to resource pooling (virtualization) and management and security tools. All will be required to make the information infrastructure as flexible, adaptable, and scalable as possible.

Moving Toward a More Integrative Approach to Justice Reform

New report from the Open Society Institute: "In order to make real progress in breaking the cycle of incarceration, advocates need to develop collaborative approaches to abate the disproportionate numbers of the poor and people of color entering the criminal justice system, according to this OSI report."  [RJ]

The Global War on Terrorism: An Assessment

New report from the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments (CSBA):

"CSBA has released a new report, “The Global War on Terrorism: An Assessment,” authored by Senior Fellow Robert C. Martinage. Report concludes that US position in the GWOT has slipped since 2003—but suggests that tide may be turning against jihadi extremism."  [RJ]

US Tort Liability Index: 2008 Report

The Pacific Research Institute has published its US Tort Liability Index: 2008 Report. The Report measures the best and worst state tort law systems. The Pacific Research Institute developed the Index "as a tool for governors and state legislators to assess their tort systems and to enact laws that will improve the business climates of their states."

The U.S. Tort Liability Index: 2008 Report measures which states impose the highest and the lowest, tort liability costs both in absolute and in relative terms. Rankings are provided at the state level generally and by type of litigation.

Lowest tort liability cost states:

1. North Dakota
2. Alaska
3. North Carolina
4. Iowa
5. Virginia

Highest tort liability cost states:

1. Florida
2. New Jersey
3. New York
4. Illinois
5. Montana
6. Pennsylvania

Hat tip to beSpacific. [JH]

Combating Enemies Online: State-Sponsored and Terrorist Use of the Internet

New report from Heritage Foundation:

"Even before the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, security experts were becoming increasingly concerned about the vulnerability of U.S. computer systems and associated infrastructure. The 9/11 attacks amplified these concerns.

Less attention, however, has been paid to state sponsors of illicit computer activity, which are increasingly using the Internet to conduct espionage, deny services to domestic and foreign audiences, and influence global opinion. In addition, insufficient focus has been given to how terrorists exploit the Internet as a tool for recruiting, fund raising, propa­ganda, and intelligence collection and use it to plan, coordinate, and control terrorist operations. Combat­ing these malicious activities on the Internet will require the cooperation of federal entities, as well as friendly and allied countries and the private sector.

Recent cyber initiatives show promise, but a more concerted national effort is required, particularly in acquiring commercial capabilities and services, man­aging military intelligence and information technol­ogy programs, and developing a corps of professional national security practitioners."  [RJ]

One in 100: Behind Bars in America in 2008

New report from the Pew Center on the States:

"For the first time in history more than one in every 100 adults in America are in jail or prison—a fact that significantly impacts state budgets without delivering a clear return on public safety.  According to a new report released today by the Pew Center on the States’ Public Safety Performance Project, at the start of 2008, 2,319,258 adults were held in American prisons or jails, or one in every 99.1 men and women, according to the study.  During 2007, the prison population rose by more than 25,000 inmates.  In addition to detailing state and regional prison growth rates, Pew’s report, One in 100: Behind Bars in America 2008, identifies how corrections spending compares to other state investments, why it has increased, and what some states are doing to limit growth in both prison populations and costs while maintaining public safety."  [RJ]

Imperiled Treasures: How Recent Supreme Court Decisions and Agency Actions Have Endangered Southwest Waters and Wildlife

New report from the National Wildlife Federation:

"For thirty years the federal Clean Water Act broadly protected waters in the nation and across the Southwest. It sought, with a great deal of success, to safeguard important waters from pollution and destruction. Historically, it applied to waters from the Rio Grande to playa lakes. However, now the protections of the Act are being whittled away. Two recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions, Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (2001) and Rapanos v. United States (2006), have placed protections of many of the nation’s waters, such as intermittent and ephemeral streams and so-called “isolated” wetlands, in doubt. While these Supreme Court decisions have not overturned any of the current regulations that broadly protect waters, they have created significant legal confusion over the scope of the Act’s protections."  [RJ]

Iraq: The War Card

From the Center for Public Integrity:

"Leading up to the five-year anniversary of the Iraq war, the Center for Public Integrity has released the first analysis of its kind, "Iraq – The War Card: Orchestrated Deception on the Path to War." This comprehensive examination of top Bush administration officials' statements over a two-year period shows how top officials galvanized public opinion in the run-up to the March 18, 2003 invasion of Iraq. The project's chronology provides a framework for examining how the administration's false statements led the country into the war in Iraq. The results of this analysis question the repeated assertions of Bush administration officials that they were merely the unwitting victims of bad intelligence."  [RJ]

The U.S. Military Index

New resource from Foreign Policy:

"In an exclusive new index, Foreign Policy and the Center for a New American Security surveyed more than 3,400 active and retired officers at the highest levels of command about the state of the U.S. military. They see a force stretched dangerously thin and a country ill-prepared for the next fight."  [RJ]

The Religious Landscape of the United States

New report from the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life: "With unprecedented precision, a new Pew Forum survey details the religious affiliation of the American public and quantifies the remarkable dynamism taking place in the U.S. religious marketplace. Read the report and explore religion in America using online tools."  [RJ]

Unequal Access: Neglecting the National Voter Registration Act, 1995-2007

From press release:

"As the nation prepares for the 2008 election, a new study reveals that many states are routinely failing to offer low-income Americans an opportunity to register to vote as required by the federal National Voter Registration Act (NVRA). Unequal Access: Neglecting the National Voter Registration Act, 1995-2007, published this week by the non-partisan voting rights groups Demos and Project Vote, shows that 12 years after the NVRA’s requirements went into effect, voter registrations from public agencies that provide services to low-income Americans have declined dramatically.

Unequal Access: Neglecting the National Voter Registration Act, 1995-2007 examines voter registration data state by state, finding that in states across the nation—Virginia, Florida, Texas, Nevada and many others—public assistance agencies are neglecting to offer voter registration to all clients and applicants, as required by the law. Because of noncompliance with the NVRA, the rights of thousands of low-income citizens are violated daily."  [RJ]

Immigration to Play Lead Role In Future U.S. Growth

New report from the Pew Research Center:

"If current trends continue, the population of the United States will rise to 438 million in 2050, from 296 million in 2005, and 82% of the increase will be due to immigrants arriving from 2005 to 2050 and their U.S.-born descendants, according to new projections developed by the Pew Research Center.

Of the 117 million people added to the population during this period due to the effect of new immigration, 67 million will be the immigrants themselves and 50 million will be their U.S.-born children or grandchildren."  [RJ]

War by Other Means, Building Complete and Balanced Capabilities for Counterinsurgency

Final Report from the RAND Counterinsurgency Study Group:

"The difficulties encountered by the United States in securing Iraq and Afghanistan despite years of effort and staggering costs raises the central question of the RAND Counterinsurgency Study: How should the United States improve its capabilities to counter insurgencies, particularly those that are heavily influenced by transnational terrorist movements and thus linked into a global jihadist network? This capstone volume to the study draws on other reports in the series as well as an examination of 89 insurgencies since World War II, an analysis of the new challenges posed by what is becoming known as global insurgency, and many of the lessons learned in Iraq and Afghanistan. The report’s recommendations are based on the premise that counterinsurgency (COIN) is a contest for the allegiance of a nation’s population; victory over jihadist insurgency consists not of merely winning a war against terrorists but of persuading Islamic populations to choose legitimate government and reject violent religious tyranny. The authors evaluate three types of COIN capabilities: civil capabilities to help weak states improve their political and economic performance; informational and cognitive capabilities to enable better governance and improve COIN decisionmaking; and security capabilities to protect people and infrastructure and to weaken insurgent forces. Gompert and Gordon warn that U.S. capabilities are deficient in several critical areas but also emphasize that U.S. allies and international organizations can provide capabilities that the United States currently cannot. The authors conclude by outlining the investments, organizational changes within the federal government and the military, and international arrangements that the United States should pursue to improve its COIN capabilities."  [RJ]

State of the States 2008

Stateline.org’s annual report on state trends and policy, "State of the States 2008" is now available.  Check it out!  [RJ]

Pakistan and the War on Terror: Conflicted Goals, Compromised Performance

From the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace:

"The United States must shift its counterterrorism policy towards Pakistan away from a reciprocal approach—requiring Islamabad to perform desirable actions to receive support—towards one encouraging Pakistan to enact effective counterterrorism policies, not for an immediate payoff, but to strengthen institutionalized trust with the U.S. over time, according to a new report from the Carnegie Endowment.

In Pakistan and the War on Terror: Conflicted Goals, Compromised Performance, Carnegie Senior Associate Ashley J. Tellis points to growing dissatisfaction in the United States with the Musharraf regime’s commitment to counterterrorism operations, given the influx of U.S. aid. But while Pakistan’s performance in the “war on terror” has fallen short of expectations, Islamabad’s inability to defeat terrorist groups cannot simply be explained by neglect or lack of motivation. U.S. policy makers must take into account the specific and complex counterterrorism challenges facing Pakistan and move away from their current unsustainable policies."

Health Care Opinion Leaders’ Views on the Presidential Candidates’ Health Reform Plans

From the Commonwealth Fund:

"The 13th Commonwealth Fund/Modern Healthcare Health Care Opinion Leaders Survey asked a diverse group of experts for their perspective on the health care reform proposals of the 2008 presidential candidates. Survey participants strongly support reform proposals that applied a mixed private–public market approach. Additional favored policy strategies for reform include a requirement for individuals to obtain health insurance, new private market regulations, and a requirement for employers to provide coverage or contribute to a coverage fund. Alternatively, respondents think proposals that focus on tax incentives to purchase individual private health insurance are not an effective method for controlling the rising costs of health care or achieving universal coverage. Health care opinion leaders call for the next president to simultaneously address universal coverage and quality, efficiency, and cost containment policies to move our health care system toward high performance.

Also available are two related commentaries, Reform Is No 'Either-Or': We Must Fix the Payment System Along with Access and Tough Choices Ahead: Candidates Ignore Pain of Needed Cuts to Health Costs

What about our vets? The CBO has released The Health Care System for Veterans: An Interim Report:

"In recent years, the number of patients served by the medical system of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has increased substantially. At the same time, VA’s ratings for the quality of care and customer satisfaction have apparently improved. Many people both within and outside the department have pointed to several factors as being key to achieving those results:

• Organizational restructuring designed to share decisionmaking authority between officials in the central office, regional managers, and key personnel at dispersed medical facilities;
• Performance measurement targeted toward improving the quality of care; and
• Extensive use of health information technology (health IT).

This interim report provides a brief overview of VA’s medical system, summarizes some of the recent evidence on the quality of VA’s medical care and describes the incentives for quality that VA has included in its performance management system. The report also examines ways in which the department’s health IT may affect the quality of care. CBO’s final report, anticipated in early 2008, will address the potential for other government and private health care providers to make use of VA’s experience, along with other issues." 

[RJ]

New Study Estimates 151,000 Violent Iraqi Deaths Since 2003 Invasion

From the press release:

"A large national household survey conducted by the Iraqi government and WHO estimates that 151,000 Iraqis died from violence between March 2003 and June 2006.

The findings, published on the web site of the New England Journal of Medicine, are based on information collected during a wider survey of family health in Iraq, designed to provide a basis for the Iraqi government to develop and update health policies and plan services.

The estimate is based on interviews conducted in 9345 households in nearly 1000 neighbourhoods and villages across Iraq. The researchers emphasize that despite the large size of the study, the uncertainty inherent in calculating such estimates led them to conclude that the number of Iraqis who died from violence during that period lies between 104,000 and 223,000."