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This book is the first in-depth comparative study of Scottish devolution and the first to analyse the impact of the European dimension. With focus on the periods leading up to the referendums in 1979 and 1997, it investigates positions and strategies of political parties and interest groups and how these influenced constitutional preferences at mass level and ultimately the referendum results. Based on rigorous analysis of an extensive body of quantitative and qualitative sources, it builds a ground-breaking argument that challenges the widespread thesis that support for devolution was a consequence of Conservative rule between 1979 and 1997. It shows that the decisive factors were changing attitudes to independence and the role of the European dimension in shaping them. The book is essential reading for students and scholars of British, European and comparative politics from 3rd-year courses upwards and will also appeal to lay readers interested in contemporary affairs.

The first comparative study of Scottish devolution over time and the first to analyse the impact of Europe. Rigorously researched and accessibly written. Essential reading for students and scholars of British and European politics.

THE WRECKING CREW How Conservatives Rule By Thomas Frank Metropolitan. 369 pp. $25 Last I checked, conventional wisdom held that conservatives see the world in black and white while the more nuanced vision of liberals allows for shades of gray.

[...] while he isn't invoked quite as frequently, the fingerprints of the one-time executive director of the College Republicans National Committee - former White House adviser Karl Rove - are all over the sequences detailed in Frank's book.

[...] while Mr. Frank talks about the right's penchant for conspiracy thinking, he proves himself guilty of the same thing, writing of \"win-win sabotage,\" \"win-win incompetence\" and \"win-win corruption.\"

BOOK REVIEW; What's the real bottom line?; The author argues that the GOP embraces contradictions and mediocrity in government to better serve American business, not the public. Government contractors today not only build submarines and fighter planes; they also collect income taxes and write budgets for federal agencies; at policy meetings about the Iraq war, contractors take the minutes.

Michael Lind reviews the book \"The Wrecking Crew: How Conservatives Rule\" by Thomas Frank.

This chapter contains sections titled: References and Further Reading

Some recent work on populist conservative forces engaged in legal mobilization in Europe highlights the involvement of US-based conservative legal advocacy organizations and their European affiliates. These groups are linked to efforts to resist the integration of Europe and the power of the European courts to implement the projects of liberal, left-leaning pro-EU social forces. Little attention thus far has focused on the lawyers active in these advocacy groups, their ties to the American conservative legal movement and the transnational lawyer networks of which they are a part. This essay sketches an agenda for future research on the composition, operations, strategies and discourse of this complex constellation of conservative lawyers and their organizations.

Background The Lafontaine criteria are the most commonly cited criteria for predicting unstable distal radius fractures. However, formal validation of the performance of these criteria remains limited. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate the Lafontaine criteria as a diagnostic prediction rule for distal radius fractures, assess the inter-rater reliability and predictive ability of various parameters for distal radius instability, and develop new criteria for fracture instability using reliable and highly predictive factors. Methods This retrospective study included 274 adult patients with acute distal radius fractures treated with closed reduction and immobilisation between January 2019 and December 2022. Patients who underwent immediate surgery, were lost to follow-up before 4 weeks, or had unacceptable alignment after reduction were excluded. The Lafontaine criteria were validated using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC). Criteria with an AUROC > 0.7 were considered acceptable. The criteria were updated using risk factors with stronger associations in the multivariable logistic regression analysis, and the inter-rater reliability of potential predictors was evaluated. Results The median age of the patients was 63 years; 78% were female. Redisplacement occurred in 39% of the cases. The AUROC for the Lafontaine criteria was 0.65 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.57–0.74). Multivariable logistic regression showed that age 56–74 years (odds ratio [OR] 3.92, 95% CI 1.82–9.16, p  < 0.001) age > 74 years (OR 6.34, 95% CI 2.66–16.2, p  < 0.001), associated ulna fracture (OR 1.61, 95% CI 0.92–2.84, p  = 0.10), and initial radial shortening > 3 mm (OR 5.78, 95% CI 3.11–11.2, p  < 0.001) were the strongest predictive factors of fracture instability. These predictors demonstrated substantial inter-rater reliability, making them suitable for clinical use. Updating the model with these risk factors resulted in an AUROC of 0.74 (95% CI 0.66–0.82). Conclusions The performance of the Lafontaine criteria in discriminating unstable distal radius fractures was unacceptable in our study cohort. The updated criteria using age group (< 56 years, 56–74 years, and > 74 years), associated ulnar fractures, and initial radial shortening > 3 mm was found to have moderate discrimination; however, further research is warranted to improve the prediction and measurement reliability of fracture instability.