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"The final decades of the Ottoman Empire and the period of the French mandate in Syria and Lebanon coincided with a critical period of transformation in agricultural technologies and administration. Chemical fertilizers and mechanized equipment inspired model farms while government officials and technocratic elites pursued new land tenure, credit-lending, and tax collection policies to maximize revenue. These policies transformed rural communities and environments and were central to projects of reform and colonial control--as well as to resistance of that control. States of Cultivation examines the processes and effects of agrarian transformation over more than a century as Ottoman, Syrian, Lebanese, and French officials grappled with these new technologies, albeit with different end goals. Elizabeth Williams investigates the increasingly fragmented natures produced by these contrasting priorities and the results of their intersection with regional environmental limits. Not only did post-World War I policies realign the economic space of the mandate states, but they shaped an agricultural legacy that continued to impact Syria and Lebanon post-independence. With this book, Williams offers the first comprehensive account of the shared technocratic ideals that animated these policies and the divergent imperial goals that not only reshaped the region's agrarian institutions, but produced representations of the region with repercussions well beyond the mandate's end."

"Since the early 1990s, there has been an emphasis in international relations theory on the shift from a Cold War rationality of 'threat', to a post-Cold War rationality of 'risk'. However, in Risk and Securitization in Japan, 1945-1960, Piers R. Williamson argues that this assumption of a shift in rationality stems from a fundamental failure to distinguish between the concepts of threat and risk. By clarifying the concepts of threat and risk, this book challenges the prevailing hypothesis of a shift from threat to risk with the end of the Cold War, and in doing so presents a new explanatory model of risk that can be applied to Japan and elsewhere. In turn, it proposes that a full comprehension of the concept of risk can generate new understandings of political processes that would otherwise remain obscured. Williamson demonstrates how this can be done, proffering a new perspective on Japanese security discourse, especially the controversy between, on the one hand, early Japanese governments, prime ministers, Diet members, and those Japanese who drafted the Japanese proposal for the new constitution, and, on the other hand, intellectuals, peace movement activists, proponents of unarmed neutrality and the US-Japan security treaty. Including extensive archival material in the form of speeches, public statements and government documents, this book will be of huge interest to students and scholars of Japanese politics, international relations and history alike"--

"Since the early 1990s, there has been an emphasis in international relations theory on the shift from a Cold War rationality of 'threat', to a post-Cold War rationality of 'risk'. However, in Risk and Securitization in Japan, 1945-1960, Piers R. Williamson argues that this assumption of a shift in rationality stems from a fundamental failure to distinguish between the concepts of threat and risk. By clarifying the concepts of threat and risk, this book challenges the prevailing hypothesis of a shift from threat to risk with the end of the Cold War, and in doing so presents a new explanatory model of risk that can be applied to Japan and elsewhere. In turn, it proposes that a full comprehension of the concept of risk can generate new understandings of political processes that would otherwise remain obscured. Williamson demonstrates how this can be done, proffering a new perspective on Japanese security discourse, especially the controversy between, on the one hand, early Japanese governments, prime ministers, Diet members, and those Japanese who drafted the Japanese proposal for the new constitution, and, on the other hand, intellectuals, peace movement activists, proponents of unarmed neutrality and the US-Japan security treaty. Including extensive archival material in the form of speeches, public statements and government documents, this book will be of huge interest to students and scholars of Japanese politics, international relations and history alike"--

"Congress continues to register concern about the rapid rise in Medicare spending and the ability of existing funding mechanisms to support the program over the long term. A combination of factors has contributed to the rapid increase in Medicare costs. These include increases in overall medical costs, advances in health care delivery and medical technology, the aging of the population, and longer life spans. The issues confronting the program are not new; nor are the possible solutions likely to get any easier. For a number of years, various options have been suggested; however, legislative changes have focused on short-term issues. There is no consensus on the long-term approach that should be taken. This book provides an overview of Medicare. It begins with a brief program history, and then outlines the key features of Parts A and B, also known as 'Original Medicare.' That is followed by overviews of Part C and Part D, a discussion of program financing, and a brief discussion of future program directions."--Publisher's description

BACKGROUND: A well-designed cancer control plan is an important tool for a nation, state, or community to address the burden of cancer. Furthermore, it provides the opportunity to devise and implement measurable objectives. However, there has been little to no assessment of the success rates of such objectives. METHODS: I compared the success rate of objectives between US states' current plan and most recent past plan to determine the proportion of success in the United States overall. I also tested possible reasons for low success rates. RESULTS: The mean success rate was 20% for stringent successes (only exact matches between plans) and 28% for loose successes (exact and similar matches between plans). The magnitude of change in percentage between the baseline and target for loose objectives significantly predicted success (P = .0347). Higher change resulted in lower success. However, neither the number of objectives nor the level of overlap significantly predicted success rate. Nor was population size, region, or rural–urban status significantly related to success rate. The most successful states had high proportions of objectives that were measurable and a high number of overlapping objectives. CONCLUSION: I found that objective success rates were low for cancer control plans. To improve success rates, I suggest that future cancer control plans ensure each objective has a measurable baseline and realistically attainable target.

Diplomatic Players: the People Within and Without the Embassy -- Travel, Intelligencing, and the Skills of Information Management -- Diplomatic Letter-books: Writing, Copying, and Keeping Letters -- Writing Reputations: Copying Henry Unton's Letter-books -- Beyond the Embassy: Preservation, Consultation, and the Afterlife of Letters -- Abundance and Access: Letters in the Digital Archive.

The Great Recession was the most severe economic downturn since the Great Depression. Brought about by the collapse of the housing bubble in late 2007, it has had a global impact that continues to reverberate at all levels of government. Further, although the recession officially ended more than five years ago in June 2009, recovery has been historically slow and has had an impact on the public and private sectors, as well as on individuals. Many view local government as particularly vulnerable to this downturn and slow recovery, since sharp declines in housing values were predicted to reduce property tax revenues. Further, budget challenges at the federal and state levels have diminished the amount of intergovernmental aid made available to local governments. Adapted from the source document.