The Question of Diminution of Income for Justices and Judges of the Supreme Court and the Inferior Courts of the United States

Selected from a small committee to compose a first draft of a declaration of independence of the American colonies from Great Britain, Thomas Jefferson set pen to paper and began what would be a litany of offenses committed by the Crown against the people of the soon-to-be United States of America. Included in that world-changing document was a passage dealing with the colonial judiciary and its past subjugation to the wishes of George III:     

A Transnational Perspective on Psychosurgery: Beyond Portugal and the United States

The history of psychosurgery is most often recounted as a narrative wherein Portuguese and American physicians play the leading role. It is a traditional narrative in which the United States and, at times, Portugal are central in the development and spread of psychosurgery. Here we largely abandon the archetypal narrative and provide one of the first transnational accounts of psychosurgery to demonstrate the existence of a global psychosurgical community in which more than 40 countries participated, bolstered, critiqued, modified and heralded the treatment. From its inception in 1935 until its decline in the mid-1960s, psychosurgery was performed on almost all continents. Rather than being a phenomenon isolated to the United States and Portugal, it became a truly transnational movement.     

Socio-economic Dislocation and Inter-war Emigration to Canada and the United States: A Scottish Snapshot

During the 1920s emigration from Scotland exceeded the natural growth of population. Yet relatively little attention has been paid to the mechanisms of relocation, the regional and occupational origins and destinations of the emigrants or their demographic profile. This article draws on the recently compiled Scottish Emigration Database to provide a quantitative snapshot of the circumstances of 18,512 passengers who embarked on the lower Clyde in the first four months of 1923. The first section explains the rationale, methodology and historiographical context of the database. Then, after outlining the economic, social and political climate in inter-war Scotland, the article investigates the extent to which decay, dislocation and disillusionment – or alternatively opportunity and ambition – provoked transatlantic emigration. Reference is made to local and regional issues within Scotland, notably in the urban-industrial central belt and the crofting communities of the Hebrides. Setting the Scottish experience within the wider framework of British emigration policy between the wars, it also evaluates the effectiveness of empire settlement legislation in recruiting and retaining settlers for Canada against the competing attractions of the United States.     

Trade and culture: the United States

ABSTRACT

The US government has long held that cultural goods and services represent an economic sector like any other and should be liberalized. The American cultural and digital industries enjoy a strong competitive advantage and constitute a leading export sector. This US stance has antagonized many countries pursuing cultural policies. This has led the US government to soften its trade strategy and accept financial measures, as well as a broader array of ‘traditional’ cultural regulatory instruments. At the same time, the United States insists on the absence of restrictions in digital networks, through which cultural contents are to be increasingly distributed and accessed. Under the negative-list negotiating approach, whereby everything is liberalized save for specific exceptions, states parties to US trade agreements have secured a varying array of measures. However, only a handful, essentially industrial countries, have secured digital exceptions, the latter coupled with conditions raising questions concerning their applicability.     

North Korea's diplomacy to engage the United States

For the past two decades relations between North Korea and the United States have become increasingly hostile. Pervasive and vociferous criticism of North Korea's dangerous and seemingly irrational behaviour has focused on Pyongyang's use of nuclear brinkmanship, violations of human rights and general disregard for the well-being of the North Korean people, as exemplified by its decision to develop a nuclear programme while the country suffered from widespread famine. However, an alternate view put forth by both American and South Korean experts on North Korea holds that Pyongyang's use of the nuclear wager primarily has been intended to demand Washington's attention in order to initiate bilateral talks and eventually normalise relations with the US. Certainly, Pyongyang's actions have been ham-fisted at times; however, its commitment to the goal of normalisation has been unwavering. The current controversy regarding North Korea's nuclear programme may serve as a necessary step to build trust between Washington and Pyongyang and might continue for sometime, given the short history of direct engagement. However, one thing is clear: neither Washington nor Pyongyang can afford to go back to the starting point.