** The new Journal of National Security Law & Policy has recently published its second issue featuring several meaty articles on interrogation, torture and the rule of law. The full contents of the issue, along with subscription information, are available online here.
** “Regulatory transparency–mandatory disclosure of information by private or public institutions with a regulatory intent– has become an important frontier of government innovation.” A new journal article assesses when and how such transparency works. See “The Effectiveness of Regulatory Disclosure Policies” by David Weil, et al, Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, Vol. 25, No. 1 (abstract only).
** The case of Sam Adams, the intelligence analyst who challenged official assessments of the size of Viet Cong forces during the Vietnam War, is revisited in a new book. “It’s the first complete narrative of the intelligence war at the heart of what went wrong in Vietnam, and it also happens to be highly relevant to what’s happening today in Iraq,” suggests the publisher. See “A Monument to Deceit: Sam Adams and the Vietnam Intelligence Wars,” by C. Michael Hiam, Steerforth Press, published April 25, 2006.
This report serves as a landscape assessment and toolbox from which local governments can negotiate an informed position when it comes to the levers available to them and includes a first-of-its kind analysis of eight executed community benefits agreements.
When a hurricane hits, it’s all hands on deck – that goes for federal data, too. Pulling back from our investments in timely, accurate, and accessible public data will only make us less prepared and put us all at greater risk.
This is bigger than a singular elimination of race and ethnicity questions. It could accelerate the second wave of widespread reductions to demographic data, leaving public health officials with even less information to deliver better health outcomes for all Americans.
Soft law was never meant to be a permanent solution. Treating it as one, and letting the sandcastle stand in for the skyscraper indefinitely, is how we end up with a decade of voluntary commitments and no enforceable accountability to show for it.