Asiaing.com

By Radley Balko, Cato Institute, July 2006

No-Knock Raids—A special report on the militarization of law enforcement and the dramatic rise in the use of paramilitary police units for routine police work.

Americans have long maintained that a man’s home is his castle and that he has the right to defend it from unlawful intruders. Unfortunately, that right may be disappearing. Over the last 25 years, America has seen a disturbing militarization of its civilian law enforcement, along with a dramatic and unsettling rise in the use of paramilitary police units (most commonly called Special Weapons and Tactics, or SWAT) for routine police work. The most common use of SWAT teams today is to serve narcotics warrants, usually with forced, unannounced entry into the home.

This paper presents a history and overview of the issue of paramilitary drug raids, provides an extensive catalogue of abuses and mistaken raids, and offers recommendations for reform.

This guide was produced by the Center for Effective Collaboration and Practice of the American Institutes for Research, and the National Association of School Psychologists under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, Office of Special Education Programs (Grant # H327T60005), under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, and Safe and Drug-Free Schools Program provided additional support under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act and the Gun-Free Schools Act.

The purpose of this Action Guide is to help schools develop and implement a comprehensive violence prevention plan grounded in the principles of the Early Warning Guide. This Action Guide is based on evidence-based practices. Effective action plans are strategic, coordinated, and comprehensive. They involve schoolwide prevention, early intervention, and intensive services for students with significant emotional or behavioral needs, including those with disruptive, destructive, or violent behaviors.

Military Child Initiative, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg, School of Public Health, 

The School Connectedness - Improving Students' Lives monograph is the first in a planned series of monographs highlighting the best and promising practices for schools developed by the Military Child Initiative at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. The report identifies and explores successful approaches for improving "school connectedness" - the belief by students that they are a valued and integral part of their school.

There are approximately 1.5 million children and youth today in US public schools whose parents are in the military.  A high degree of mobility is demanded of these children and of their parents.  Complicating relocation is the reality that significant numbers of these young people are separated from at least one parent due to overseas deployment.  While these circumstances are unique, there are other populations of vulnerable and mobile youth whose lives are complicated by analogous factors. 

National Venture Capital Association (NVCA), 2006

NVCA's Annual Report, including articles on the state of the venture capital industry and the accomplishements of the Association during its 2005-2006 Fiscal Year.

The National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) is a trade association that represents the U.S. venture capital industry. It is a member-based organization, which consists of venture capital firms that manage pools of risk equity capital designated to be invested in high growth companies.

NVCA's mission is to foster greater understanding of the importance of venture capital to the U.S. economy, and support entrepreneurial activity and innovation.  The NVCA represents the public policy interests of the venture capital community, strives to maintain high professional standards, provides reliable industry data, sponsors professional development, and facilitates interaction among its members.

PriceWaterHouseCoopers , 2006

Merger and acquisition activity in the US entertainment and media (E&M) industry is on a strong growth trajectory, and this year is projected to reach levels not seen since 2001, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers' 2006 M&A Insights—US Entertainment and Media Industry, published by PricewaterhouseCoopers' Transaction Services E&M Practice.

Increasing levels of E&M industry consolidation—and deconsolidation—activity are being driven by a number of trends, led by the convergence of media, communications and technology; shifting consumer media consumption habits; and the increasing involvement and influence of private equity firms in deal making activity. Also fueling this activity is a move by some global E&M conglomerates to separate or divest non-core assets in an effort to increase shareholder value, according to the PwC report.

The Fraser Institute, September 2005

Economic freedom is almost 50 times more effective than democracy in restraining nations from going to war. In new research published in this year’s report, Erik Gartzke, a political scientist from Columbia University, compares the impact of economic freedom on peace to that of democracy. When measures of both economic freedom and democracy are included in a statistical study, economic freedom is about 50 times more effective than democracy in diminishing violent conflict. The impact of economic freedom on whether states fight or have a military dispute is highly significant while democracy is not a statistically significant predictor of conflict.

This year’s report notes that economic freedom remains on the rise. The average economic freedom score rose from 5.2 (out of 10) in 1985 to 6.4 in the most recent year for which data are available. In this year’s index, Hong Kong retains the highest rating for economic freedom, 8.7 of 10, closely followed by Singapore at 8.5. New Zealand, Switzerland, and the United States tied for third with ratings of 8.2. The United Kingdom, Canada, and Ireland ranked 6th, 7th, and 8th, respectively. Australia, Estonia, Luxembourg, and the United Arab Emirates tied for 9th.

Daring to Lead 2006 is a comprehensive national study of executive leadership at community-based nonprofits. Based on nearly 2,000 surveys from 8 metropolitan areas, the report provides current data on executive turnover, compensation, career plans, and retirement. It also explores leading causes of executive burnout---in particular, widespread frustration with boards of directors and funders. It identifies the skills that community-based executives most want and need to build along with the professional development strategies that they employ.

The report concludes with recommendations to executives, boards, funders, and capacity builders.