Thesis advisor: Seth Jacobs / Congress' 1964 passage of the Tonkin Gulf Resolution represented the pinnacle of the legislature's conscious repudiation of its role as superintendent of America's foreign policy to the executive branch. Conversely, for most diplomatic historians, the passage of the 1973 War Powers Act marked Congress' reawakening to its supervisory role and the collapse of what historian Arthur Schlesinger Jr. termed the "Imperial Presidency." In fact, it was the 1970 repeal of the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, a resolution that embodied everything Congress had abdicated and all the dangers that abdication represented, that actually served to announce Congress' unwillingness to acquiesce to presidential foreign policy. The repeal of the Tonkin Gulf Resolution had long-term implications for the exercise of America's cold war foreign policy, effects that were most keenly felt by President Gerald Ford when Congress refused to allow U.S. intervention in Angola despite Ford's personal pleas to both legislative branches. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2007. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: History. / Discipline: College Honors Program.

Thesis advisor: Stephanie Greene / A Constitutional analysis of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 with respect to educational subsidies to religiously-affiliated universities; including a proposed framework for the adjudication of issues involving religion and the government. / Thesis (BS) — Boston College, 2009. / Submitted to: Boston College. Carroll School of Management. / Discipline: Carroll School of Management Honors Program. / Discipline: Business Law.

Thesis advisor: Dale Herbeck / The established standard for incitement articulated in Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969) has developed into a staple of First Amendment law. The Brandenburg standard for incitement works in the real world, but questions have been raised about whether it can be extended into cyberspace. This thesis examines this question through an analysis of threatening web sites such as the Nuremberg Files, and accompanying jurisprudence. The ability of web sites to incite illegal action is undoubtedly compromised by the characteristics that differentiate them from the physical world—What is to be done when laws intended to encompass a much simpler form of expression lose their relevance? / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2010. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Communication Honors Program. / Discipline: Communication.

Esta dissertação pretende contribuir para o conhecimento de dimensões pouco estudadas do processo político estadual, especialmente a política constitucional nos estados brasileiros. Propomos estudar então o processo de emendamento às Constituições Estaduais. Para tanto levantamos os textos das Constituições Estaduais promulgadas após 1989 e suas emendas aprovadas entre 1989 e 2014. A partir dos dados levantados desenvolvemos uma análise descritiva das Constituições e das Emendas aprovadas com o objetivo de identificar padrões e características do constitucionalismo estadual. Além da análise descritiva também comparamos três unidades de medida de extensão constitucional, a quantidade de artigos, de palavras e de dispositivos. Nas análises descritivas encontramos variabilidade tanto na extensão Constitucional quanto no tamanho do emendamento. A fim de identificar fenômenos associados à variabilidade no emendamento desenvolvemos uma análise simplificada em que optamos por modelos estáticos e bivariados. Dentre os testes efetuados destacamos três resultados. A constitucionalização de políticas públicas parece afetar significativamente o emendamento de forma que parte do processo legislativo utiliza a alteração constitucional para avançar a agenda. A maior fragmentação do sistema político leva a aprovação de emendas mais extensas. E finalmente que parte do emendamento às Constituições Estaduais é explicado pelas alterações efetuadas à Constituição Federal. / Our main purpose in this masters thesis is advancing the research on Brazilians state politics not yet adequately studied, mainly the state constitutional policy. Therefore, we intend an analysis on the amendment process of state Constitutions. Our first step was gathering the state Constitutions and their amendments between 1989 and 2014 and performing an exploratory descriptive analysis. Along with the descriptive analysis, we perform comparisons amongst three methods of measuring constitutional length, the number of articles, number of words and number of constitutional provisions. As a result of the exploratory analysis, we found considerable variability on state constitutional and amendment length. In order to identify possible phenomena related to amendment variability we perform a simplified analysis based on static and bivariate models. Amongst the performed tests, three results are noteworthy. The amount of public policies on Constitutional texts seem to increase the amendment. Higher party system fragmentation correlates with lengthier approved amends. Lastly, the state constitutional change shows an echo of the Federal Constitutional amendments.

Magister Artium (Development Studies) - MA(DVS) / Until fairly recently studies of children as actively engaged in the production of meaning making in their social lives has been overlooked, ignored or received marginal attention within the contemporary social sciences (Caputo 1995). There has since however been considerable growth in literature dedicated to extending our understanding of childhood (Hardman 1973; Caputo 1995; Waksler 1996; Morss 2002; Korbin 2003; Sawyer 2002). This has resulted in an emergent sense of legitimacy and focus on the role of children "as active and creative social actors" in society, particularly in the field of anthropology of children (Reis, 2006) and the establishment of the 'new' sociology of childhood. The point of departure for these emergent theoretical frameworks concern the traditional devaluing of childhood and children's perspectives in favour of "...a recurring set of dominant ideas within political and academic domains that draws a generational boundary between adults and children, in the process restricting children to subordinate and protected social roles" (Wyness 200:1 in Smith 2009:253). According to James & James (2004:76 in Smith 2009:252) law is a centrally important mediating influence in the social construction of childhood as vulnerable passive bystanders. This resonates with Moses who states that the rights prioritised for children within the South African Constitution are "protection-oriented conceiving children as vulnerable citizens rather than citizens with agency" (2008:329). Furthermore, according to Moses (2008:333) the conception of children in South African policy and that which underlies national service delivery, belies or contradicts perceptions of children as "active, meaning-makers, employing a range of coping strategies". This research therefore explores the representation of children and childhood within the Children‘s Amendment Act (41 of 2007); that is whether they are displayed as "active, meaning-making" citizens or passive vulnerable bystanders; and seeks to contrast that representation with the reality of children's worldviews, decision-making capabilities in their social lives in an attempt to highlight children as citizens with agency. The study used a qualitative exploratory approach which employed a range of qualitative research tools. Data was collected through a policy analysis, research workshops and focus 2 group discussions. Purposive sampling was used to compile a child sample composed of nine girls and ten boys. A social constructionist framework was used to thematically analyse the data. The results suggest that there are two general representations of children and childhood within the Act (41 of 2007); namely "the vulnerable child" and "the child as citizen and agent". The study offers recommendations for further research and improvements for service provision directed toward children, child welfare and childcare.

The purpose of this study was to identify and review the current legal boundaries of student speech and expression rights in public school, as developed and defined by the U.S. federal courts, to better enable educators to make informed decisions regarding student speech and expression when confronted with such situations. The study examined federal court student speech and expression decisions published between January 1, 1983 and December 31, 2008. Four Supreme Court decisions and numerous lower federal court decisions were reviewed and analyzed to identify the current legal boundaries of student speech and expression in school. The Supreme Court decisions in Tinker v. Des Moines Indep. Sch. Dist. (1969), Bethel Sch. Dist. v. Fraser (1986), Hazelwood Sch. Dist. v. Kuhlmeier (1988), and Morse v. Frederick (2007) were reviewed to identify the principles that express the Supreme Court's perspective of student speech and expression in school. The study then focused on the lower federal courts' interpretation and application of the Supreme Court's student speech and expression decisions to specific circumstances, and school leaders' utilization of these principles in making informed decisions regarding student speech and expression rights under the First Amendment. The study concluded that the current constitutional boundaries of student speech and expression rights in school were identified by applying the Supreme Court's student speech and expression principles to specific factual situations encountered by school leaders and addressed by the federal courts. The results of the study were condensed into a reference table that displays a spectrum of possible student speech and expression factual situations, identifies how the Supreme Court's student speech and expression principles may be applied to specific sets of facts, and provides educators with an instrument that may be used to assist in making informed decisions regarding student speech and expression in school.

This thesis explores the creation of the Second Amendment and how it has been interpreted over time. The purpose of this thesis is to understand present-day debates over gun control and offer an interpretation of the right that best suits the modern era. By analyzing the history of gun ownership in the United States, it is clear that the intention of the Second Amendment was to extend the right to the individual and should not be limited to collective use. As the Bill of Rights was extended to protect the people from state governments, the history of states’ rights in the regulation of firearms should be taken into account. With a country divided in their views on gun control policy, states should maintain the power to regulate arms, with federal courts intervening only when legislation is particularly radical. This thesis offers an interpretation of the Second Amendment best suited for the nation on both historical and practical by investigating the most prominent debates today: individual vs. collective rights, federal vs. states’ rights. With all things considered, this thesis concludes the most suitable interpretation of the Second Amendment for the people is: a right of the people protected, as individuals, from federal infringement, and regulated by the states, that are checked by the federal courts only when deemed necessary.

The competition for external capital amongst small and developing financial markets has resulted in a growing awareness of the importance of investor protection laws if markets are to be competitive. One particularly important aspect of such laws is the need to control the behaviour of insiders. Insider trading, widely perceived as trading by investors who have an unfair advantage by virtue of access to confidential information, represents a significant threat to market confidence and investors' willingness to invest in the market. For small markets therefore, not controlling such behaviour represents a significant cost in terms of the development of the market and the economy as a whole. However, while insider trading can do significant harm to the market, it also has the potential to be beneficial to the market as a signal of incorrectly priced information. The question becomes therefore how best to balance the advantages and disadvantages of insider trading. Most markets have relied on regulations to control insiders, however, little research has been done to establish if this is effective.This thesis seeks to provide additional evidence with respect to the role of regulation in controlling insider trading. The issue is explored within the context of the New Zealand market where recent legislation, the Securities Market Amendment Act 2002, offers a prime opportunity to seek further understanding on the issue. In particular, four studies focussed on the role of regulation with respect to insider trading are undertaken within this thesis. In the first the impact of the law change on the profitability and informational base of insiders is examined. A significant decline in profitability is observed in addition to evidence of a change in the informational basis of insiders' trades from knowledge of upcoming announcements to short-term market mispricing. The impact of the new law on four aspects of the market is then examined. A significant increase in liquidity is found following the introduction of the new law, as well as significant reductions in the cost of equity, bid-ask spread and return volatility. The law therefore appears to have improved these aspects of the market. The bid-ask spreads were then examined in more depth by observing the impact of the laws on the cost of informed trading. Strong evidence of a decline in the cost of informed trading was observed, along with significant decreases in the proportion of the spread composed of information asymmetry costs. The declines were largest for those firms most prone to insider trading.Lastly, the elements of an effective insider trading regime were investigated by examining the impact of various legal variables on the cost of informed trading and the total spread. The results indicated that stronger laws have resulted in lower spreads and less informed trading costs, and that effective regimes should prevent insiders passing on their information, should rely on financial penalties over criminal sanctions, and should be both enforceable and policed by a strong public regulator. Overall this thesis finds strong evidence that insider trading laws can be effective in controlling the behaviour of insiders, and that well drafted statutory regulations can be of significant benefit to the market.

This thesis is a history of moral rights in Australian law. It traces the historical discourse about moral rights in Australian law and demonstrates how that discourse has shaped the meaning moral rights have come to assume in their current form under the current regime contained in the Copyright Amendment (Moral Rijghts) Act 2000. This history examines the reception and later production of a moral rights discourse in Australian law, and reveals that the historical discourse about Australian moral rights was dominated by the three themes; foreignness, international obligation and economic impact. I contend these three themes fundamentally shaped moral rights as they now appear in the moral rights regime. As the history unfolds, it will become clear that the moral rights regime was organised around a specific repertoire of arguments and imaginings, and it is this discourse that informs this thesis. My argument is pursued in three stages. Section One of the thesis provides the historical detail of the moral rights trajectory in Australian jurisprudence, and reveals, within that history, the emergence of three dominant themes, which are pursued in subsequent detail. In addition to the history, this section also provides detailed discussion of the legislative provisions in order to illustrate moral rights as a product of the history, and it highlights some of the shortcomings of the regime and provides some background for the case study in Section Two. Section Two of the thesis interrogates the structure of the moral rights regime by applying the Act's provisions to the case study of indigenous creators, thus providing a contemporary example of how these rights may work in practice, as the result of the historical discourse. Thus this section sets the scene for final part of the thesis, which delves further into the historical discourse. Section Part Three follows the themes of the moral rights debate as they emerged historically. Reconceptualizing the moral rights discourse in this way helps to explain why the debates about moral rights took a particular course and produced the outcomes it did. The starting point for these discussions is a detailed examination of the themes of foreignness, international obligation and economic impact, and follows these themes as they evolved chronologically. In particular, the discussion reveals that the debates about moral rights effectively fall into two eras. The first era (1928-1988) centred around the question of whether Australia should introduce moral rights and the debates about the appropriateness of the reception. At the commencement of the second era (1988-2000) the question shifted to what form moral rights should take. This then provides a backdrop with which to understand why specific discussions about moral rights were sidelined during the years of debates leading up to the legislation; in particular, the subject and the object; which form the fulcrum of a moral rights action. This is an essential part of the history because it explains why the subject and the object came to be imagined and constructed in such a narrow and limited way and clarifies why the moral rights provisions appear manifestly ineffective, particularly for indigenous creators and their communities. This thesis contributes to legal history in three important ways. First, it provides a detailed account of a discourse about moral rights in Australian law, and in doing so challenges the long held assumptions about their reception and production. Second, it highlights the importance of history to legal discourse. Just as regulatory regimes, institutions, and rules are integral to the law, so too are the informal practices, discourses and contexts on which they were based. Third, it reminds the reader that history is a signpost, and this history of moral rights demonstrates that the way this law was derived, imagined and constructed has significance for the social, cultural and legal context in which that process takes place.

Adsorption kinetics and adsorption-desorption of atrazine on organoclay composites prepared with the surfactant 6-piperazin-1-yl-N,N'-bis-(1,1,3,3-tetramethyl-butyl)-(1,3,5)triazine-2,4-diamine and Houston Black clay were studied using the indirect batch equilibration procedure. The organoclay composites sorbed significantly more atrazine than the Houston Black clay. Adsorption equilibrium was reached after 72 h for the organoclay composites. Atrazine adsorption isotherms were described by linear partitioning. The Koc values ranged from 605 to 5271 L kg-1 for the organoclay composites compared to a value of 41 L kg-1 for the Houston Black clay. The organoclay composite containing 20% surfactant on a total weight basis provided the most efficient adsorption of atrazine, although organoclay composites containing much lower amounts of surfactant also adsorbed significant amounts of atrazine. An average of 11% of sorbed atrazine was released during desorption. Characterization of desorption products showed only atrazine molecules being released from the organoclay composites.