This Research Note trilogy (Research Notes 27 - 29, 2001-02) attempts to summarise a large body of literature on conservation, liberalism and socialism.

In December last year the US took formal action to terminate the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty. This was done because the treaty stands in the way of its desire to develop and deploy systems to defend against attacks by ballistic missile delivered weapons of mass destruction. The American decision is controversial, both inside Australia and...

Over the past 25 years in Australia many laws affecting marriage have been instituted by the Commonwealth. However, there remains intact one major limitation, namely, that prohibiting marriage between persons of the same sex. This Research Note details the Hight Court of Australia's interpretation of the term 'marriage' in s. 51(xxi) of the Australian Constitution.

On 4 December 2001 a 33 year old man died in Brisbane from a suspected heart attack after earlier being subdued by police using oleoresin capsicum (OC) spray. During the past decade OC sprays have become popular with law enforcement and corrections personnel as a less than lethal force option. This Research Note outlines what...

The Research Note examines the relation between political trust and social capital, and briefly surveys some indicators of their respective levels in Australia. It examines reported declines in political trust and whether this trend reflects a diminution in stocks of social capital in this country.