Most Say Disaster Spending Does Not Require Offsetting Cuts: A Pew Research Center/Washington Post Survey

As Oklahoma recovers from severe damage caused by last week's tornado, a majority of Americans (59%) say federal spending in response to natural disasters is emergency aid that does not need to be offset by cuts to other programs, while 29% say such spending must be offset by cuts to other programs.While there are partisan differences in opinions about how disaster aid should be treated, majorities of Democrats (69%), independents (57%) and Republicans (52%) say that federal spending in response to natural disasters does not require offsetting spending cuts elsewhere.The national survey by the Pew Research Center and the Washington Post, conducted May 23-26 among 1,005 adults, finds broad support across demographic groups for the view that federal spending in response to natural disasters is emergency aid and does not need to be offset by cuts to other programs. Comparable majorities of those living in the Northeast (62%), Midwest (58%), West (58%) and South (57%) all agree that federal spending in response to disasters is emergency aid

Support for Same-Sex Marriage at Record High, but Key Segments Remain Opposed

As the Supreme Court prepares to decide a key case involving states' requirements to recognize same-sex marriage, public support for allowing gays and lesbians to marry legally continues its rapid rise: A 57%-majority of Americans now favor allowing same-sex marriage and 39% oppose. As recently as five years ago, more opposed (48%) same-sex marriage than supported it (42%).This is the highest level of support measured for same-sex marriage in nearly 20 years of Pew Research Center polling of the issue. Yet even as support for same-sex marriage has increased among nearly all segments in the public, some groups remain broadly opposed to gay marriage.The Pew Research Center survey, conducted May 12-18 among 2,002 adults, finds that partisans are as divided on this issue as ever: Today, 65% of Democrats and an identical percentage of independents favor gay marriage; only about one third (34%) of Republicans do so. Growing shares of all three groups support same-sex-marriage, yet the differences between Democrats and Republicans are as wide today as they were a decade ago

Labor Unions Seen as Good for Workers, Not U.S. Competitiveness

Analyzes survey findings on views of private and public sector unions; their effects on salary and benefits, working conditions, productivity, availability of good jobs, and U.S. companies' global competitiveness; and which side to take in disputes

A Deep Dive Into Party Affiliation: Sharp Differences by Race, Gender, Generation, Education

Democrats hold advantages in party identification among blacks, Asians, Hispanics, well-educated adults and Millennials. Republicans have leads among whites -- particularly white men, those with less education and evangelical Protestants -- as well as members of the Silent Generation.A new analysis of long-term trends in party affiliation among the public provides a detailed portrait of where the parties stand among various groups in the population. It draws on more than 25,000 interviews conducted by the Pew Research Center in 2014, which allows examination of partisan affiliation across even relatively small racial, ethnic, educational and income subgroups

When the working day is through: The end of work as identity?

This article seeks to present a counter-case to the ‘end of work thesis’ advocated by writers such as Beck, Sennett and Bauman. It argues that work remains a significant locus of personal identity and that the depiction by these writers of endemic insecurity in the workplace is inaccurate and lacks empirical basis. The article draws upon case study data to illustrate how, across a range of workplaces, work remains an importance source of identity, meaning and social affiliation

Continued Bipartisan Support For Expanded Background Checks On Gun Sales: More Polarized Views of the NRA's Influence

Two years after the failure of Senate legislation to expand background checks on gun purchases, the public continues to overwhelmingly support making private gun sales and sales at gun shows subject to background checks. Currently, 85% of Americans -- including large majorities of Democrats (88%) and Republicans (79%) -- favor expanded background checks, little changed from May 2013 (81%).The analysis in this report is based on telephone interviews conducted July 14-20, 2015 among a national sample of 2,002 adults, 18 years of age or older, living in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia (700 respondents were interviewed on a landline telephone, and 1,302 were interviewed on a cell phone, including 758 who had no landline telephone). The survey was conducted by interviewers at Princeton Data Source under the direction of Princeton Survey Research Associates International. A combination of landline and cell phone random digit dial samples were used; both samples were provided by Survey Sampling International. Interviews were conducted in English and Spanish. Respondents in the landline sample were selected by randomly asking for the youngest adult male or female who is now at home. Interviews in the cell sample were conducted with the person who answered the phone, if that person was an adult 18 years of age or older.As previous Pew Research Center surveys have found, there is broad support for expanded background checks even from those who say it is more important to protect gun rights than to control gun ownership

Political Polarization in the American Public: How Increasing Ideological Uniformity and Partisan Antipathy Affect Politics, Compromise and Everyday Life

Republicans and Democrats are more divided along ideological lines -- and partisan antipathy is deeper and more extensive -- than at any point in the last two decades, according to a nationwide 10,000-person survey conducted by the Pew Research Center and supported by MacArthur. The survey finds that divisions are greatest among those who are the most engaged and active in the political process and that polarization also affects everyday life

Genotype-Phenotype Correlation in 153 Adult Patients With Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia due to 21-Hydroxylase Deficiency: Analysis of the United Kingdom Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia Adult Study Executive (CaHASE) Cohort

Context: In congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) due to 21-hydroxylase deficiency, a strong genotype-phenotype correlation exists in childhood. However, similar data in adults are lacking.Objective: The objective of the study was to test whether the severity of disease-causing CYP21A2 mutations influences the treatment and health status in adults with CAH.Research Design and Methods: We analyzed the genotype in correlation with treatment and health status in 153 adults with CAH from the United Kingdom Congenital adrenal Hyperplasia Adult Study Executive cohort.Results: CYP21A2 mutations were distributed similarly to previously reported case series. In 7 patients a mutation was identified on only 1 allele. Novel mutations were detected on 1.7% of alleles (5 of 306). Rare mutations were found on 2.3% of alleles (7 of 306). For further analysis, patients were categorized into CYP21A2 mutation groups according to predicted residual enzyme function: null (n = 34), A (n = 42), B (n = 36), C (n = 34), and D (n = 7). Daily glucocorticoid dose was highest in group null and lowest in group C. Fludrocortisone was used more frequently in patients with more severe genotypes. Except for lower female height in group B, no statistically significant associations between genotype and clinical parameters were found. Androgens, blood pressure, lipids, blood glucose, and homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance were not different between groups. Subjective health status was similarly impaired across groups.Conclusions: In adults with classic CAH and women with nonclassic CAH, there was a weak association between genotype and treatment, but health outcomes were not associated with genotype. The underrepresentation of males with nonclassic CAH may reflect that milder genotypes result in a milder condition that is neither diagnosed nor followed up in adulthood. Overall, our results suggest that the impaired health status of adults with CAH coming to medical attention is acquired rather than genetically determined and therefore could potentially be improved through modification of treatment. (J Clin Endocrinol Metab 98: E346-E354, 2013)</p

Corporate sustainability reporting index and baseline data for the cruise industry

Sustainability policies and corporate reports demonstrate the impacts cruise companies acknowledge as their responsibility, and the actions put in place to address them. This paper develops a corporate social responsibility index based on the Global Reporting Initiative, with industry specific additions including labor and human rights, health and safety, and environmental and economic aspects. Companies disclose more management than performance data, which is typical of early stages of development. Companies disclosing less information focus on soft indicators which are easy to mimic and demonstrate posturing. Items disclosed tend to be marginal to the core of the business, have a positive economic impact or pre-empt sector regulation. Reports echo the voice of the corporations and not the demands of stakeholders. Institutional isomorphism has not influenced a homogenization in reporting, with only the largest firms reporting at this stage