Download or read book The Oversight written by Charlie Fletcher and published by Orbit. This book was released on 2014-05-06 with total page 487 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Exciting, exhilaring, scary and moving in equal measure, The Oversight is a teeming world of dark deeds and dark magics, brilliantly realized." -- M. R. Carey The Oversight of London has been sworn for millennia to prevent the natural and the supernatural worlds from preying on each other. Now, at its lowest ebb, with its headquarters destroyed and its last members scattered far and wide, this secret society will battle for survival and face the harshest foe it has ever met: itself.

Download or read book Congressional Investigations and Oversight written by Lance Cole (Law teacher) and published by Carolina Academic Press LLC. This book was released on 2023 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines the legal and policy issues surrounding congressional investigations through a series of case studies, with an emphasis on the second half of the twentieth century to date. The new and updated second edition covers significant developments from the Obama and Trump administrations, including the two Trump impeachments, the January 6 Committee investigation of the 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, and recent Supreme Court decisions on congressional investigative powers. The book is organized by case study topic, with each chapter using two or three case studies to introduce and analyze a discrete area of legal authorities and policy issues. The central thesis and organizing principle of the book is the importance of effective congressional oversight and investigative activities in our American democratic system of government, especially in the aftermath of the disputed 2020 presidential election. In addition to collecting legal authorities, the book includes relevant historical information and structural analysis of government functions, with an emphasis on separation of powers issues. The use of a case study format, rather than a traditional law school casebook format, is intended to present the subject matter in a way that can be used to teach undergraduate and graduate school courses as well as law school courses. The authors combine original congressional and judicial source materials with book excerpts and explanatory text, as well as notes and questions for each case study, to make the subject matter accessible to graduate and upper-level undergraduate students in government and political science courses, as well as to law students.

Download or read book Stoneheart written by Charlie Fletcher and published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. This book was released on 2010-07-25 with total page 484 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A city has many lives and layers. London has more than most. Not all the layers are underground, and not all the lives belong to the living. Twelve-year-old George Chapman is about to find this out the hard way. When, in a tiny act of rebellion, George breaks the head from a stone dragon outside the Natural History Museum, he awakes an ancient power. This power has been dormant for centuries but the results are instant and terrifying: A stone Pterodactyl unpeels from the wall and starts chasing George. He runs for his life but it seems that no one can see what he's running from. No one, except Edie, who is also trapped in this strange world. And this is just the beginning as the statues of London awake This is a story of statues coming to life; of a struggle between those with souls and those without; of how one boy who has been emotionally abandoned manages to find hope.

Download or read book Keeping a Watchful Eye written by Joel D. Aberbach and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2001-06-29 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Congressional oversight activity has increased dramatically since the early 1970s. Congressional committees now spend more of their time holding hearings to review the activities of federal agencies, and committee staff members are busy collecting information about what goes on during program implementation. This book examines the reasons behind the surprising growth of congressional oversight. Using original data collected for this project, Joel D. Aberbach documents the increase in oversight activity and links it to changes in the political environment. He explores the political purposes served by oversight, the techniques Congress uses to uncover information about the activities of the federal bureaucracy, and the reasons why topics get on the oversight agenda. He concludes that even though the U.S. government system was not designed with a large administrative sector in mind, its ability to expose bureaucratic behavior to public scrutiny is impressive, and the Congress plays a vital role in this endeavor.

Download or read book Central Bank Governance and Oversight Reform written by John Cochrane and published by Hoover Press. This book was released on 2016-05-01 with total page 377 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A central bank needs authority and a sphere of independent action. But a central bank cannot become an unelected czar with sweeping, unaccountable discretionary power. How can we balance the central bank's authority and independence with needed accountability and constraints? Drawn from a 2015 Hoover Institution conference, this book features distinguished scholars and policy makers' discussing this and other key questions about the Fed. Going beyond the widely talked about decision of whether to raise interest rates, they focus on a deeper set of questions, including, among others, How should the Fed make decisions? How should the Fed govern its internal decision-making processes? What is the trade-off between greater Fed power and less Fed independence? And how should Congress, from which the Fed ultimately receives its authority, oversee the Fed? The contributors discuss whether central banks can both follow rule-based policy in normal times but then implement a discretionary do-what-it-takes approach to stopping financial crises. They evaluate legislation, recently proposed in the US House and Senate, that would require the Fed to describe its monetary policy rule and, if and when it changed or deviated from its rule, explain the reasons. And they discuss to best ways to structure a committee—like the Federal Open Market Committee, which sets interest rates—to make good decisions, as well as offer historical reflections on the governance of the Fed and much more.

Download or read book Government Accountability and Legislative Oversight written by Riccardo Pelizzo and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-11-12 with total page 127 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The purpose of the book is to investigate parliaments’ capacity to oversee government activities, policies and budget legislation. By analysing the survey data that the World Bank Institute in collaboration with the Inter-Parliamentary Union collected from 120 parliaments, Pelizzo and Stapenhurst show what tools are available to parliaments worldwide, which tools are more or less common, how oversight capacity can be estimated, how oversight capacity is related to other institutional and constitutional factors. In addition to discussing the conditions under which oversight capacity is greater, the authors perform some analyses to assess the policy implications of oversight capacity. Specifically, they look at the impact of oversight capacity on the quality of democracy and on the level of good governance.

Download or read book Oversight written by Michael D. Minta and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2011-08-08 with total page 175 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Oversight answers the question of whether black and Latino legislators better represent minority interests in Congress than white legislators, and it is the first book on the subject to focus on congressional oversight rather than roll-call voting. In this important book, Michael Minta demonstrates that minority lawmakers provide qualitatively better representation of black and Latino interests than their white counterparts. They are more likely to intervene in decision making by federal agencies by testifying in support of minority interests at congressional oversight hearings. Minority legislators write more letters urging agency officials to enforce civil rights policies, and spend significant time and effort advocating for solutions to problems that affect all racial and ethnic groups, such as poverty, inadequate health care, fair housing, and community development. In Oversight, Minta argues that minority members of Congress act on behalf of broad minority interests--inside and outside their districts--because of a shared bond of experience and a sense of linked fate. He shows how the presence of black and Latino legislators in the committee room increases the chances that minority perspectives and concerns will be addressed in committee deliberations, and also how minority lawmakers are effective at countering negative stereotypes about minorities in policy debates on issues like affirmative action and affordable housing.

Download or read book The Project Oversight Guide written by Herbert Marshall Jr. and published by Universal-Publishers. This book was released on 2022-01-15 with total page 254 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Whether you are a project manager tasked with overseeing an outsourced capital project or an owner investing in a major project critical to the future of your business, you are most likely starting at a disadvantage. A savvy contractor's project team is likely to be populated with project management professionals who have read an abundance of literature on how to maximize project value for themselves. Unfortunately, as any book search will show you, there is virtually no guidance out there for how to successfully oversee a capital project from an owner's perspective. In project management terms, the client or owner is just a "managed external stakeholder." The book is intended to bridge the gap between knowing how to run a project and knowing how to oversee one. Readers of the POG will find out that project oversight and project management are uniquely different disciplines. Bad project oversight can make an otherwise good project fail, whereas good oversight can lead a substandard project team or contractor to succeed in delivering the expected return on investment. Did you know that, when done right, project oversight more than pays for itself? By reading the POG, students of project management, project management professionals, and owners will gain insight into all facets of the oversight of capital projects, including tools and techniques, organizational design, best practices, behaviors, and processes. The POG packages this information in an examples-based look-see at real situations and lessons learned from the field. WORDS OF PRAISE and REVIEWS The Project Oversight Guide is a much needed and significant addition to project management literature. Well done! --Robert Brese, Former CIO, Department of Energy The framework in The Project Oversight Guide drives project performance to a "win-win" outcomes for owners and contractors! --Kelly Powers, President, Williams Industrial Services If you read this book, it will surely improve the prospects for your capital projects ending in a more predictable and successful outcome. --Cliff Eubanks, 36-year Oversight Senior Executive

Download or read book Reinforcing Rule of Law Oversight in the European Union written by Carlos Closa and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2016-10-13 with total page 357 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides an analysis of key approaches to rule of law oversight in the EU and identifies deeper theoretical problems.

Download or read book The Paradox written by Charlie Fletcher and published by Orbit. This book was released on 2015-08-18 with total page 418 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Exciting, exhilaring, scary and moving in equal measure, The Oversight is a teeming world of dark deeds and dark magics, brilliantly realized." -- M. R. Carey The Last Hand of the Oversight still patrols the border between the natural and supranatural, holding a candle to the darkness. But this new Hand is unproven, its fresh members untrained, its veterans weary and battle-scarred. Their vulnerability brings new enemies into the city, and surprising new allies from across the sea. But most surprising of all are new revelations about the Oversight's past, revelations that will expose the true peril of the world in which Sharp and Sara are trapped -- the secret of the Black Mirrors, and what lies beyond. And the catastrophic danger that will follow them home, if they ever manage to return. The dark waters rise. The candles are guttering. But the light still remains. For now. . .

Download or read book Watchdogs on the Hill written by Linda L. Fowler and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2015-03-22 with total page 279 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An essential responsibility of the U.S. Congress is holding the president accountable for the conduct of foreign policy. In this in-depth look at formal oversight hearings by the Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations committees, Linda Fowler evaluates how the legislature's most visible and important watchdogs performed from the mid-twentieth century to the present. She finds a noticeable reduction in public and secret hearings since the mid-1990s and establishes that American foreign policy frequently violated basic conditions for democratic accountability. Committee scrutiny of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, she notes, fell below levels of oversight in prior major conflicts. Fowler attributes the drop in watchdog activity to growing disinterest among senators in committee work, biases among members who join the Armed Services and Foreign Relations committees, and motives that shield presidents, particularly Republicans, from public inquiry. Her detailed case studies of the Truman Doctrine, Vietnam War, Panama Canal Treaty, humanitarian mission in Somalia, and Iraq War illustrate the importance of oversight in generating the information citizens need to judge the president’s national security policies. She argues for a reassessment of congressional war powers and proposes reforms to encourage Senate watchdogs to improve public deliberation about decisions of war and peace. Watchdogs on the Hill investigates America’s national security oversight and its critical place in the review of congressional and presidential powers in foreign policy.

Download or read book Intelligence and Security Oversight written by Sophie Richardson and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-06-14 with total page 140 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents a comprehensive source document on intelligence and security oversight and review. It compares the oversight arrangements found in nine countries—New Zealand, Australia, Canada, United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Netherlands, Norway and South Africa. This is done through an analysis of a wide range of areas including statutory basis, agencies overseen, membership, tenure, appointment/dismissal, mandate, powers, access to classified information, complaints function, reporting and, in the case of parliamentary committees, the frequency of meetings. Within an annotated bibliography section Richardson and Gilmour also provide detailed summaries of other relevant research and commentary aligned with oversight and review practices. Intelligence and Security Oversight: An Annotated Bibliography and Comparative Analysis comprehensively demonstrates the powers and limitations placed with, and on, oversight bodies, appealing to academics, researchers and practitioners in the intelligence and security environment.

Download or read book Civilian Oversight of Police written by Tim Prenzler and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2015-11-03 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Exploring the complex and controversial topic of civilian oversight of police, this book analyzes the issues and debates entailed by civilian oversight by using worldwide perspectives, in-depth case studies, and a wealth of survey data. Integrating and summarizing decades of research from many locations around the globe, Civilian Oversight of Polic

Download or read book The Growing Gap Between Emerging Technologies and Legal Ethical Oversight written by Gary E. Marchant and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2011-05-19 with total page 233 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: At the same time that the pace of science and technology has greatly accelerated in recent decades, our legal and ethical oversight mechanisms have become bogged down and slower. This book addresses the growing gap between the pace of science and technology and the lagging responsiveness of legal and ethical oversight society relies on to govern emerging technologies. Whether it be biotechnology, genetic testing, nanotechnology, synthetic biology, computer privacy, autonomous robotics, or any of the other many emerging technologies, new approaches are needed to ensure appropriate and timely regulatory responses. This book documents the problem and offers a toolbox of potential regulatory and governance approaches that might be used to ensure more responsive oversight.

Download or read book Green Construction Project Management and Cost Oversight written by Sam Kubba and published by Butterworth-Heinemann. This book was released on 2010-05-20 with total page 561 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Green Construction is a specialized and skilled profession, and the author has extensive experience in this field. With this in mind, the reference is designed to provide practical guidelines and essential insights in preparing competent and professional looking ?Project Analysis Reports? and ?Project Status Reports?. The book also provides numerous tips on how to phrase the language of reports in a manner that is articulate and clearly understood by Real Estate Lenders and investors, as well as being an indispensable companion for both information and stimulus. Written in a conversational manner, this book will clarify the nuts and bolts of green construction, finance, and cost monitoring? as a profession, and will outline the many attributes required to being successful in this field. Moreover, it will scrutinize the mechanics of organizing monthly meetings, contractor payment certifications, budgets, change orders, construction schedules, code compliance, waivers of lean, and much more. Drawing on over 30 years of personal experience across the world - both as an employee and as an employer, the reader will learn how to plan and implement sound business strategies and form alliances in a global context. The book also offers important information and penetrating insights into the process of setting up and working as a due-diligence consultant. In a clear, practical style, it will be explained how to identify opportunities for business development and how to maximize return. It will also articulate how to meet new challenges as well as avoid many of the pitfalls along the way. For the individual professional, this guide provides useful information and tips to help secure a high paying professional position. The book will include amongst other things, up-to-date information on hundreds of useful contacts. Topics covered in this guide include: types of services offered, the consultant's role on the construction loan team, what the lender needs to know, and marketing techniques. The guide will also include a comprehensive appendix that will contain numerous sample letters (e.g. for marketing and certification), building loan agreements, AIA forms, lender/consultant agreement, closeout documents and much more. Likewise included will be an extensive list of useful references from a variety of resources, and much more. Indeed, this handbook will be the most detailed & comprehensive program on the market. It meets all the criteria of a major work and will provide vital and absorbing reading. Provides a detailed blueprint of how to conduct monthly meetings, investigations, understand typical client/consultant agreements, analyze contractor requisitions Includes sample letters, reports, forms and agreements for easy reference Practical guidelines for preparing Property Analysis and Property Status Reports Includes a glossary of important terms, abbreviations and acronyms

Download or read book Intelligence Oversight in the Twenty First Century written by Ian Leigh and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2018-08-15 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines how key developments in international relations in recent years have affected intelligence agencies and their oversight. Since the turn of the millennium, intelligence agencies have been operating in a tense and rapidly changing security environment. This book addresses the impact of three factors on intelligence oversight: the growth of more complex terror threats, such as those caused by the rise of Islamic State; the colder East-West climate following Russia’s intervention in Ukraine and annexation of Crimea; and new challenges relating to the large-scale intelligence collection and intrusive surveillance practices revealed by Edward Snowden. This volume evaluates the impact these factors have had on security and intelligence services in a range of countries, together with the challenges that they present for intelligence oversight bodies to adapt in response. With chapters surveying developments in Norway, Romania, the UK, Belgium, France, the USA, Canada and Germany, the coverage is varied, wide and up-to-date. This book will be of much interest to students of intelligence studies, security studies and International Relations.

Download or read book The Oversight written by Will Eaves and published by Pan Macmillan. This book was released on 2012-06-28 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1983, an ordinary teenager called Daniel Rathbone fell in love, spurned a friend, and stumbled on the ability to see in the dark. On his twenty-fifth birthday, Daniel is bequeathed a second no less unusual gift - a Victorian writing box, the legacy of his father and the repository of his youthful secrets, and of his current feelings of guilt.When a visit from the once-spurned friend, Carey Schumacher, coincides with the death of a contemporary, Daniel's peculiar endowments are enlisted to make lasting sense of lost time and place. From Bath to Brixton, from the 1960s to the 90s, The Oversight follows a trail of thwarted and victorious affections. It is an intently comic tale of vision and delusion; of family, friendship and desertion; and of the divisively cruel need to belong. A multi-layered debut of distinction. 'Deeply impressive... Eaves simply does not put a foot wrong' Evening Standard 'Remarkable... I was so absorbed in the novel, so admiring of its cleverness and poise... a moving , frequently funny and impressive debut' Sunday Times 'Eaves hasn't created a hero who can leap tall buildings, he's created something rarer still: a vivid portrait of a man getting to grips with adulthood' The Face 'Subtle wondrous...intelligence and taste...gems of dry humour...a varied and accomplished first novel' Scotland on Sunday