Life and Work of Lieutenant Colonel of Militia Alexey N. Ovchinnikov in 1920s – 1941

This article reconstructs the early history of the Soviet militia in Western Siberia. The research was based on the personal archive of Lieutenant Colonel A. N. Ovchinnikov and previously unpublished official documents stored in the archives of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the Altai Krai and in the Novosibirsk Region. The research featured A. N. Ovchinnikov’s professional activity and personal participation in the development of militia in the Altai Krai and Kuzbass. When A. N. Ovchinnikov joined the militia forces, the institution was undergoing some radical reforms, e.g. it merged with the Joint State Political Directorate, became militarized and politicized, etc. In the 1920s – 1940s, the Soviet militia turned into a command and administrative system that made collectivization and industrialization possible. Militia officers were evaluated not only by their professional qualities, but also by their party affiliation, political views, and education. The sources made it possible to reveal A. N. Ovchinnikov’s personal position in the process of militia development in the 1930s – 1940s. Despite the constant personnel shortage and the low level of education, the party managed to improve the discipline, qualifications, moral qualities, and political consciousness of militia officers, thus increasing their performance. The authors believe that personal historic narratives can be a valuable contribution to the historical studies of Soviet militia.

Universal Mail Ballot Delivery Boosts Turnout: The Causal Effects of Sending Mail Ballots to All Registered Voters

Some American states have transitioned to universal voting-by-mail, where all registered voters receive a ballot in the mail. While this practice was growing in popularity prior to the 2020 general election, universal voting-by-mail was suddenly used in a larger number of states due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In this paper, we utilize a unique situation in which registered voters in some legislative districts in Los Angeles County were subjected to universal voting-by-mail in the March 2020 primary, while most of the rest of the Los Angeles County electorate was not. Using difference-in-difference and regression discontinuity designs, we estimate the causal effects of universal voting-by-mail on voter turnout and on who votes. Our results indicate that voter turnout increased by around 3\% for voters who do not automatically receive a ballot in the mail otherwise, and the increase is larger for registered partisan voters than those without a party affiliation.

The Usability of Face Coverings Used to Prevent the Spread of COVID-19

Objective To describe the perceived usability and usability problems associated with face coverings used to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Background Since public health experts have now identified the appropriate use of facemasks as one of the critical elements in an effective COVID mitigation strategy, understanding how people use and care for them has become important. Method Data were collected via a survey that was shared on social media to which 2148 people responded. Participants were asked to identify the category class of the face covering they most often wear, rate its usability, answer demographic information, and questions about their mask use and hygiene, and identify issues they may suffer in relation to face cover use. Results Overall, users appear to perceive their face coverings favorably from a usability and satisfaction standpoint, even though almost two-thirds of users indicated that they experienced discomfort and problems with glasses fogging with the most popular mask types. When considering demographic information, users’ political party affiliation appears related to how they perceive the usability of their face covering. Conclusion Designers should work to improve the fit and comfort properties of protective masks; evidence suggests the System Usability Scale may be a useful tool in those efforts. Application Understanding mask design and behavioral issues related to their use can help in the development of masks and will maximize their acceptance and effectiveness in the field.

Flying Flags at Weddings in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Nationalism and the Limits of Flag Power

This study examines the practice of ethnic communities in Bosnia and Herzegovina flying a state, entity, religious, or foreign flag at wedding ceremonies in public spaces. The wedding custom is analyzed through the lens of Hannah Arendt’s discussion of the way nationalism in the modern era links family and state. After a tragic war, flag power in this context appears to exacerbate nationalism and ethnic tensions in a polyethnic society trapped in a dysfunctional state structure created by the Dayton Accords. The empirical study finds that flag power does not, in fact, privilege ethnic solidarity over national solidarity to the degree that social and political theory would have us imagine. The national identity of being Bosnian is more likely to be exemplified. A clustered, stratified, random sample of 2,500 subjects over the age of eighteen was drawn from the country’s population, including the two entities, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska and Brčko District. Survey questions involving face-to-face structured questions asked participants whether flags were flown at their weddings, which flags were flown, and attitudes toward the wedding custom. Variations by age, religiosity, education, ethnicity, type of flag flown, and political party affiliation are reported and interpreted.

The potentials of heresthetic and rhetoric in an open framing situation: theory and evidence from a survey experiment

To win a policy debate, political actors may apply two analytically distinct counterframing strategies, rhetoric and heresthetic. Rhetoric is when counterarguments are formulated in the original dimension of the debate, while heresthetic is using arguments in a different dimension compared to the original frame. Although both rhetoric and heresthetic are ubiquitous phenomena in the process of public opinion formation, there are no general rules to specify their efficacy. Drawing on a survey experiment carried out in Hungary in 2020 (N = 2000), this paper uncovers the factors determining the effect of the two strategies. Introducing a conceptual distinction between open and trade-off framing situations, the paper demonstrates that the structure of the situation matters. While heresthetic has a robust effect in trade-off framing situations, rhetoric may have a strong impact in open framing situations. Moreover, the effectiveness of counterframing depends on the party affiliation of respondents and the strength of their related attitudes.

Affirmative action measures and electoral candidates’ positioning in Zambia

ABSTRACTWhile the increase of women in elected office has received much scholarly attention, less attention has been paid to the dynamics of resisting gender quotas in countries that fail to adopt such measures despite regional and international pressure. We develop a context-sensitive typology of affirmative action measures that includes gender quotas and funding incentives and explore determinants of electoral candidates’ positioning in the context of Zambia. Using a sequential mixed-methods approach and unique data, we examine how candidates of different gender, party affiliation, and level of electoral success position themselves when asked to choose between different options. Intriguingly, electoral success and party allegiance – whether a candidate is affiliated with a current or former government party – are more important than gender. This finding is relevant for the debate on feminist democratic representation by showing that candidates are likely to have their more radical views muted when getting into position.

Economic voting in the Philippines

The article wanted to find out if elections in the Philippines are economically motivated. Using 2019 gubernatorial election results, a logit model with inflation rate, unemployment rate, provincial revenue, and poverty incidence for the economic variables and party affiliation with the President and membership in a political family as the political variables was tested to explain the probability of an incumbent governor to be re-elected. The marginal effects tell us that a change in the unemployment rate decreases the predicted probability of a governor being reelected but interestingly, a change in the poverty incidence rates has the opposite effect.

“Criticism of bourgeois sociology” in Soviet Russia of the 1920s: the Birth of a Genre

В статье рассматриваются условия и идейные предпосылки зарождения особого жанра в марксистской социологии – «критики буржуазной социологии». Лидер боль-шевистской партии и основатель советского государства, В.И. Ленин, придал этой критике государственно-политическое значение, выдвинул её программу и задал образец. На конкретных примерах он показал, что «принцип партийности» в философии применим в качестве универсальной методологии подозрения и разоблачения идейных противников. Выявляются причины и анализируются последствия подмены доктринальной критики идеологическим разоблачением. Рассматриваются позитивные социокультурные функции доктринальной критики по существу. The article discusses the real historical conditions and ideological prerequisites for the emergence of a special genre in Marxist sociology – «criticism of bourgeois sociology». The leader of the Bolshevik party and the founder of the Soviet state, V.I. Lenin, gave this criticism state-political significance, put forward its program, outlined its focus and set a pattern. Using concrete examples, he showed that the «principle of party affiliation» in philosophy is applicable as a universal methodology for suspecting and exposing ideological opponents. The causes are identified and the consequences of substituting doctrinal criticism with ideological unmasking initiated by V.I. Lenin are analyzed. The positive sociocultural functions of doctrinal criticism in essence are considered.

Partisanship shapes US attitudes to climate policy

Significance Although acceptance of the reality of climate change is growing, views on how government should respond divide sharply by party affiliation. US polling data suggest that partisanship is a stronger factor in shaping public attitudes toward the risks and policies associated with climate change than an individual’s age or location. Impacts The recently enacted Biden infrastructure bill includes significant funds to improve resilience and advance clean energy. One-quarter of the USD2tn spending bill now before the Senate is earmarked for issues associated with climate change. Work on climate issues in response to regional concerns will result in a patchwork of state and local policies. Changes in insurance availability for homes and businesses in vulnerable areas will be an increasing factor in policy decisions.

Public Opinion Change and the Uniqueness of Gay Rights

Chapter 8 demonstrates that support for marriage equality is the fastest liberalizing attitude in the history of American public opinion. Abortion rights and gay rights divide the American public along similar lines (by region, religiosity, and party affiliation), but gay rights has undergone a remarkable transformation, while attitudes toward abortion rights are relatively static. One reason for the difference is that gay people have come out of the closet, while abortion histories remain closeted. Chapter 8 also shows that support for marriage equality seems to have made Americans more appreciative of all kinds of queer rights, including transgender rights. Marriage equality reduced the stigmas faced by all queer people and paved the way for more appreciation of all kinds of gay rights, exactly as the proponents of marriage equality said that it would.