Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: Andreski (1954) assessed the impact of military power on social structure, introducing the concept of the Military Participation Ratio (MPR), or the proportion of the general population in military service. In the transition from labor-intensive to capital-intensive military operations, researchers tend to overlook the continuing significance of the MPR, arguing that the mobilization of human resources is no longer an adequate measure to evaluate the military power of a state. In the age of a small professional force, we argue that the MPR specifies the extent of the institutional presence of the military in society, capturing the dynamics between the military and the labor market. In order to adequately capture the military’s institutional presence, we contend that it is necessary to distinguish among the shifting roles of active as well as reserve components, civilian employees of the armed forces, and defense contractors. Having done so, we can offer a more complete and telling story of the transformation of the American military over the last century. What stands out in this story of change then is the tremendous increase in importance of the reserve components since the end of the Cold War.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Among the pending issues in East Asia such as Taiwan Strait and China?s military build-up, the issue of nuclear weapons of North Korea is the third factor to unstable the region, including the United States (Brookes 2005). At the end of the fourth round of six-party talk on September 19, 2005, North Korea made promise to the other parties that it would abandon nuclear weapons and its development program. However, the joint statement did not adopt any date for North Korea to abolish existing nuclear weapons. It is a game for North Korea to bargain the threat of nuclear weapons with energy, food, and economic aid from other countries. In the past, North Korea declared twice its intention of withdrawal from NPT, Non-proliferation Treaty, and it successfully gained the concession from other countries such as KEDO and international aid. To negotiate successfully with North Korea, it is impeccable to consider how North Korea plays game and how beneficial multi-party talks would be. In this paper with application software, I demonstrate the ratio between cooperative and non-cooperative games is not so large as people expect.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: This study examines how local newspaper narrative might differ from national newspaper narrative. Standard journalistic practices create a consistency of form and content. This assumption is examined in the following paper. Articles from the New York Times and the Austin-American Statesman were coded for stories on both the 2004 Presidential campaign and the controversy surrounding Tom DeLay. Coding with Burke’s pentadic ratios demonstrates differences not found with the in the journalistic practices alone.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: In order to capture hidden grant in student loan programs, Ziderman and his colleagues (Shen & Ziderman, 2008; Ziderman, 2003, 2004; Ziderman & Albrecht, 1995) had developed a methodology to calculate two critical measures of recovery loss: repayment ratio and recovery ratio. This study is particularly interested in applying this analytical framework to analyze government-subsidized student loan programs in China. Since there was a critical policy change in 2004, the present study compares the old (before 2004) and the new (after 2004) loan schemes in China using updated GSSL data.
The most striking finding is that two schemes have different repayment ratios. In addition, both old and new schemes have higher repayment ratios than the international average, but are close to the average of Asian countries. This study also finds that the increasing default rate and administrative cost reduce the recovery ratio and the relative efficiency index. In summary, it is recommends that government should offer more favorable loan interest and longer repayment period to reduce students’ repayment burden, especially for disadvantaged students. Second, universities should provide intensive personal credit education as a precaution for loan default. Finally, government should consider professionalizing loan service to reduce administrative costs.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Implementation of global norms of bank supervision in transition countries have been supposed to increase stability and enhance prudential practices. In this paper, through the examination of the implementation of Capital Adequacy Ratio in two transition countries with different institutional backgrounds, I argue that the implementation of this global norm, instead of contributing to the strengthening of prudential practice, it was the major source of conflict among various actors in banking. While looking at two countries with some of the best records in banking in Central and Eastern Europe, I show that the reason behind their success in developing prudential banking is not linked to the implementation of CAR, but rather to the various institutional solutions the two states found for copying with the hurdle. In Hungary, bank consolidation and later bank privatization paved the way for successful transition in banking, in Slovenia the strong supervisory practices of the Central Bank during bank rehabilitation assured high prudential standards.