The First Amendment gives U.S. citizens a Hohfeldian legal immunity that disables Congress from removing citizens’ legal liberty to criticize the government. Any attempt by Congress to remove this liberty would fail, but such an attempt would still wrong citizens. The familiar concept of claim-violation does not fully account for this wrong. Claims name actions that ought not be performed and are violated when those actions are performed. Immunities names actions that cannot be performed. Congress would wrong citizens not by doing something it ought not do but by attempting and failing to do something it cannot do. Using elements of Jean Hampton’s expressive theory of punishment, I analyze Congress’ attempt (and other similar acts) as an expressive act that denies the existence of immunities. Congress’ immunity-“contradiction” would wrong U.S. citizens by denying the value that generates the immunity, by causing damage to the acknowledgement of the citizens’ value, and by threatening the existence of the immunity.

The control system is an original and sound system of this Country. The Founder of this Country, Dr. Sun Yat-sen, proposed after he established this Republic that the control power should be practiced by an independent body to highlight the functions of such power, rather than putting it under the legislative power as in the 3-Separated Powers common to many Western countries. This thesis begins by examining the status and nature of control power in the 5-Separated Powers as in the constitutional regime of this Country from a perspective of separation of powers. It follows by exploring the evolution of mandates of the Control Yuan as a result of various constitutional amendments during the 1990s when the Government undertook constitutional amendments engineering for the promotion of democratic development. This thesis then analyzes the impact of such constitutional amendments upon the practice of control power from existing laws and regulations relevant to the control power and provides the views of this author. It then analyzes the status quo of the practice of functions of the Third Control Yuan by its Members, in comparison to the statistics on the functional practice of the Second Control Yuan, so as to comprehend the efficacy of the practice of functions of the Third Control Yuan. In the conclusion, the author puts forward his own findings and suggestions on the practice of control power by the Third Control Yuan.

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.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oklahoma, 1996. / Includes bibliographical references.

controversial since the ratification of the Constitution in 1789. In 1793, the Supreme Court ruled that the states had no sovereign immunity. The Eleventh Amendment reversed this ruling about the Constitution. The Eleventh Amendment itself has also been very controversial. We study the history and development of sovereign immunity jurisprudence from the founding of the United States until the present time.

Plant-parasitic nematodes (PPN) are a serious problem in vegetable production and can cause severe damage to several crops. In rural, low-input farming nematode damage is much higher and yields can be completely destroyed. Some Commercial nematicides have been withdrawn from the market due to health and environment concerns. These need to be replaced by alternative nematode control strategies of which soil amendments is one alternative. Nine non-crop plant species used in various forms in traditional healing, viz. Cassia abbreviata, Cissus cactiformis, Euphorbia ingens, Ipomoea kituiensis, Maerua angolensis, Senna petersiana, Synadenium cupulare, Tabernaemontana elegans and Urginea sanguinea were screened under glasshouse conditions for their effect on the plant-parasitic nematode (PPN) (Meloidogyne incognita) on tomato. Subsequent assessments in microplots and in the field supported the glasshouse results in terms of suppression of root-knot nematode numbers with crudely milled soil amendments of C. cactiformis, M. angolensis and T. elegans. Tomato growth responses in these trials showed a tendency of phytotoxic effects after treatment of soil with crude leaf meal of E. ingens and S. cupulare. In the microplot study, the overall soil-amendment treatment effect was greater than that of three soil types on the performance of the tomato, although soil type might have had an effect on nematode suppression. Due to lack of correspondence between tomato leaf nutrient contents and the nutrient contents of the soil amendments it is suggested that these noncrop materials had negligible soil fertilization effects. In vitro bioassay studies confirmed that extracts of varying polarity of both plant products M. angolensis and T. elegans might be toxic to J2 stages of the root-knot nematode M. incognita. All extracts tested of M. angolensis caused immobility of J2, whereas only three extracts of T. elegans affected mobility of J2 adversely. Duration to 50 % effect, as well as extract concentration to cause immobility of the J2 varied but where movement ceased the J2 did not recover for up to 98 hours. This study has demonstrated the potential of locally available botanical materials for use as amendments in plant-parasitic nematode management and tomato growth and productivity improvement. This would particularly be true for small-scale application in subsistence agriculture. It is believed that these amendments could be used as control measures in integrated nematode control strategies. Their potential use could be adopted by small-scale farming communities, domestic gardeners and commercial farmers in the Mpumalanga, Limpopo and Kwazulu/Natal Provinces of South Africa where the relevant materials are available in useful quantities. Over-exploitation of natural resources should be avoided at all cost, however. / Thesis (PhD (Environmental Sciences))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013

Plant-parasitic nematodes (PPN) are a serious problem in vegetable production and can cause severe damage to several crops. In rural, low-input farming nematode damage is much higher and yields can be completely destroyed. Some Commercial nematicides have been withdrawn from the market due to health and environment concerns. These need to be replaced by alternative nematode control strategies of which soil amendments is one alternative. Nine non-crop plant species used in various forms in traditional healing, viz. Cassia abbreviata, Cissus cactiformis, Euphorbia ingens, Ipomoea kituiensis, Maerua angolensis, Senna petersiana, Synadenium cupulare, Tabernaemontana elegans and Urginea sanguinea were screened under glasshouse conditions for their effect on the plant-parasitic nematode (PPN) (Meloidogyne incognita) on tomato. Subsequent assessments in microplots and in the field supported the glasshouse results in terms of suppression of root-knot nematode numbers with crudely milled soil amendments of C. cactiformis, M. angolensis and T. elegans. Tomato growth responses in these trials showed a tendency of phytotoxic effects after treatment of soil with crude leaf meal of E. ingens and S. cupulare. In the microplot study, the overall soil-amendment treatment effect was greater than that of three soil types on the performance of the tomato, although soil type might have had an effect on nematode suppression. Due to lack of correspondence between tomato leaf nutrient contents and the nutrient contents of the soil amendments it is suggested that these noncrop materials had negligible soil fertilization effects. In vitro bioassay studies confirmed that extracts of varying polarity of both plant products M. angolensis and T. elegans might be toxic to J2 stages of the root-knot nematode M. incognita. All extracts tested of M. angolensis caused immobility of J2, whereas only three extracts of T. elegans affected mobility of J2 adversely. Duration to 50 % effect, as well as extract concentration to cause immobility of the J2 varied but where movement ceased the J2 did not recover for up to 98 hours. This study has demonstrated the potential of locally available botanical materials for use as amendments in plant-parasitic nematode management and tomato growth and productivity improvement. This would particularly be true for small-scale application in subsistence agriculture. It is believed that these amendments could be used as control measures in integrated nematode control strategies. Their potential use could be adopted by small-scale farming communities, domestic gardeners and commercial farmers in the Mpumalanga, Limpopo and Kwazulu/Natal Provinces of South Africa where the relevant materials are available in useful quantities. Over-exploitation of natural resources should be avoided at all cost, however. / Thesis (PhD (Environmental Sciences))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013

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.

A inexistência de uma regra única que discipline a prevalência de norma constitucional federal sobre norma constitucional estadual, e vice-versa, no sistema federativo brasileiro, é tratada aqui enfocando tão somente os vínculos que dizem respeito aos agentes públicos. Embora as normas constitucionais federais devessem, em princípio, aterem-se à estrutura estatal, à divisão de competências e prerrogativas dos poderes, e às garantias individuais e sociais, os constituintes brasileiros preocuparam-se em regular matérias que recebem o status de constitucionais porque foram guindadas a tanto, seja pela força dos fatos sociais ou, até mesmo, por mero fisiologismo. Nesse terreno, mais próprio da legislação comum, é que está o epicentro das Emendas Constitucionais que têm reflexos nas Constituições Estaduais e em toda a legislação. Cuida-se aqui deste fenômeno e das suas conseqüências nas normas que regulam a Administração Pública e seus agentes. / The fact that there is not an unique rule about the predominance of the precept of the Federal Constitution over the State Constitution and vice versa in the brazilian federative system, is here treated focusing only the public agents relations. Although the federal constitutional rules should mainly deal with State structure, competence division and prerogatives, as well as individual and social garanties, brazilian constituent worried about themes that received the status of constitutional norms because they were turned to it, either by the social facts force, either by pure physiologism. In this field, peculiar to ordinary law, is situated the epicenter of the constitutional amendment that reflects in the State Constitutions and in all the ordinary law. Here this phenomenon is treated as well as its consequences in the laws that regulate Public Administration and its agents.

In 2008, the Supreme Court announced its decision in the landmark Second Amendment case, D.C. v. Heller. In its decision, the Court construed the scope of the right to bear arms for the first time. To that end, the Court found that the right to arms is an individual right, unconnected with military service. In this essay, I use the opinion of the Court and the dissents thereto as a lens by which to view the history and historiography of the right to bear arms, as well as the Supreme Court's jurisprudence on the subject. In the course of this analysis, I argue that there are numerous problems with the Court's reasoning, as well as that of the dissents. Further, complications and ambiguities in the historical record have contributed to the misunderstanding of the original meaning of the Second Amendment and its appropriate interpretation as part of the Constitutional text. I argue that the proper interpretation of the Second Amendment is one that construes the right as robust and individual, worthy of its place in the Bill of Rights, but certainly subject to reasonable regulation.