Conservapedia - User contributions [en]

Collectivism

2012-02-29T22:43:36Z

EquisDulks:

'''Collectivism''' is the belief that an imagined welfare of a group takes precedence over individual rights and values. Economic collectivism is generally preferred by [[liberals]], while many who call themselves [[conservatives]] are social collectivists. [[Libertarians]] often embrace [[individualism]], generally accepted as the opposite of collectivism.

Collectivism thus is not to be confused with the fact that individual liberty allows, and love of others often enjoins, collective action. In other words, 1) civil society, beginning with the civil family, is not, by definition, [[parallel play]], but, rather, is a more-or-less informally coordinated balancing of complementary, and sometimes even conflicting, needs; whereas 2) collectivism is a consistent subsuming of the natural and civil rights of the individual, and thus of the family, to an unintelligently inflexible mere abstraction of those very rights.

==See also==
*[[Economic planning]]
*[[Socialism]]
[[category:political Terms]]
[[Category:Marxist terminology]]
[[Category:Liberal Falsehoods]]

Best of the public

2012-02-29T03:16:39Z

EquisDulks:

[[Image:Constitution.jpg|right|300px]]
The '''"best of the public"''' is an approach to education, scholarship, and biblical translation that was coined during an interview with ''Conservapedia'' and first published on December 3, 2009:<ref>Tom Breen. [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34270487/ns/us_news-faith/ Blessed are the conservative in Bible translation], ''Yahoo! News'', December 03, 2009.</ref>
{{cquote|<big>'''The best of the public is better than a group of experts.'''</big>}}
The concept then became a topic of discussion in the interview with the owner of ''Conservapedia'' on the Colbert Report on December 8, 2009.<ref>[http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/258144/december-08-2009/andy-schlafly The Colbert Report Videos: Andy Schlafly], ColbertNation.com, December 08, 2009.</ref> In early February 2010, [[Supreme Court]] Justice [[Clarence Thomas]] implicitly endorsed the concept of the "best of the public" with this response to a question by a state college student:<ref>http://abovethelaw.com/2010/02/clarence_thomas_rejects_ttt_label_for_his_law_clerks.php</ref>
{{cquote|I think there are smart kids a lot of places. ... [T]here is a bias. If you look at smart bloggers — or self-proclaimed smart bloggers — they referred to my clerks last year as TTT — 'third tier trash.' That's the attitude that you're up against.}}

Another way of expressing this concept is that "extraordinary achievements are attained by ordinary people."

The enigmatic Christian term the "Son of man" embodies how inspiration comes from the ostensibly ordinary rather than the esteemed experts. Most prophets were also ordinary men.

"Best of Public" means, in the most straightforward sense, someone who is conservative and disagrees with most experts on a particular subject.

==Examples==

The [[Conservative Bible Project]] may be the first to adopt the "best of the public" approach for a scholarly project. Other examples of approaches using the "best of the public" include:

===Intellectual examples===

*the [[Bible]]
:*the [[Gospel of Mark|earliest Gospel]] was likely written by a non-Apostle who witnessed the events as a young boy
:*the [[Epistle to the Hebrews (Translated)|Epistle to the Hebrews]] was written by an anonymous individual, yet its intellectual force is at the highest level
*the [[Apostles]]
*pamphleting, as in ''[[Common Sense]]''
*the solution of one of the greatest unsolved problem of our time, the [[Poincaré conjecture]] (see below)
*[[Ronald Coase]], an originally obscure economist, developed the now-accepted [[Coase theorem]] despite nearly unanimous rejection and opposition by experts
*[[Evariste Galois]], an unknown teenager, developed [[group theory]] and it took the mathematical experts a century to appreciate it
*[[Alexander Hamilton]], the most intellectually productive of the [[Founding Fathers]], was abandoned by his father, orphaned by the premature death of his mother, and then orphaned again by the suicide of his adopted father; he was stigmatized due to his social background and excluded from the local [[British]] school for it.
*the principle of trial by a jury of one's peers
*letters to the editor
*the design of Vietnam War Memorial (competition won by a college student, featuring ordinary soldiers)
*the design of the St. Louis Arch (competition won by an unknown architect, featuring openness)
*an obscure, unsuccessful author, [[Herman Melville]], wrote the greatest novel in English literature, ''[[Moby-Dick]]''
*an unknown and possibly uneducated playwright, [[William Shakespeare]], produced the greatest plays ever
*The [[Constitution of the United States of America]]. The [[Founding Fathers]], in their wisdom, chose to eschew the idea of "expert" hereditary nobility, but were also wary of the mob rule that could result with pure democracy; thus, they chose a democratic republic instead.
*The [[Electoral College]] was intended to be composed of the best of the public, who would judge who was best qualified to be President.
*'''''Conservapedia''''' posted [[Flaws in Richard Lenski Study|errors and flaws]] in a pro-[[evolution]] article by Professor [[Richard Lenski]] (published after a mere 14-day peer review), but [[PNAS]] [[Letter to PNAS|refused to correct the errors]] and Lenski responded with [[Conservapedia:Lenski dialog|petulant rants]] insisting his critic lacked "expertise".
*design of the distinctive Coca-Cola glass bottle, which resulted from a public contest in 1915.
*Internet blogs. Anyone can start a blog, and readers read the best blog posts. Such blogs have been responsible for breaking crucial news stories well before the "experts" of the traditional media--for example, the [[Monica Lewinsky]] story and [[Rathergate]]
*Layman Allen devised games like "WFF 'n proof" and Equations which reduced absenteeism, increased math achievement and achieved voluntary integration in the segregated Chicago school system. [http://o.b5z.net/i/u/6035566/f/pdfs/articles/chicagoreader.pdf]
*[[Homeschooled]] students tended to dominate the annual Math Counts competition to such an extent that the competition changed the rules to ban teams of homeschoolers from participating. <ref>http://theaquilareport.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2760:homeschoolers-count-national-math-competition-bans-homeschoolers&catid=49:people&Itemid=132</ref>

===Moral examples===

*[[Mary]], the mother of [[Jesus]]
*[[Stephen]], the first martyr
*Prophets in the [[Old Testament]]
*Lenny Skutnik, the [[Mississippi]] native who dove into the icy [[Potomac River]] to rescue passengers from the crashed airplane on Jan. 13, 1982.<ref>"I wasn't a hero," Lenny Skutnik said. "I was just someone who helped another human being. We're surrounded by heroes. What made this different was that it was caught on film and went all over the world." [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/12/AR2007011202052.html]</ref>

=== Political and legal examples ===

*[[William Penn]]'s approach to colonial [[Pennsylvania]], which even advertised to attract hard-working settlers of all ethnicity and religious beliefs; as a result [[Philadelphia]] quickly became the most prosperous and highly populated city in colonial [[America]]
*[[Ronald Reagan]] embraced and embodied the best of the public in his speeches and political philosophy, and personified it by his own political ascendancy outside of the party establishment
*the recall of the governor, the attorney general, and another top official in North Dakota in 1921 -- who were corrupt politicians devoted to state ownership of industry -- was organized and achieved by someone who never held public office<ref>http://www.nytimes.com/2003/08/23/opinion/recalling-the-first-recall.html?pagewanted=1</ref>
*the "[[common law]]" developed over centuries based on many day-to-day judicial decisions, relying on logic, custom and precedent, and such law was considered better than a statute drafted by one or a few experts
*the [[Australian]] 2020 summit employed the best of the public by bringing together 1,000 people from all over Australia to discuss and make plans for the country's future.<ref>http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/summit-not-just-another-talkfest/story-e6frg726-1111115465754</ref>

===Musical examples===

*"Battle Hymn of the Republic," the only significant song by Julia Ward Howe, written in the dark during a pre-dawn inspiration
*"I Can See Clearly Now," a massive one-hit wonder by Johnny Nash in 1972
*"American Pie," the only hit by Don McLean, one of the most thoughtful ballads to top the charts for several weeks
*"You Light Up My Life," the only hit by Debbie Boone, was a tribute to God that topped the charts for many weeks
*"Sunshine" (1971), which was not only a one-hit wonder by Jonathan Edwards, but it was included in his album only because a preferred song had been accidentally erased.<ref>here was a song on the album called ‘Please Find Me,’ and for some reason the engineer rolled over it. It got erased. We spent hours looking for it. We fired the engineer and put ‘Sunshine’ in its place.” [http://www.jonathanedwards.net/general/presskit-biography.php]</ref>
*"Ice Ice Baby" was the "B-side" filler panned by "experts" which became a massive hit because a disc jockey played it by chance; allegedly written by Vanilla Ice when he was 16<ref>"There's just something about the way its hook — a sample from Queen and David Bowie's ''Under Pressure'' — grabs you and flings you out onto the dance floor." [http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,318500,00.html]</ref>
*[[American Idol]]
*"[[The Star-Spangled Banner]]," the [[national anthem]] of the United States

:''(add more one-hit wonders)''

=== Military examples ===

*Eddie Rickenbacker, who had to drop out of school at age 12 in order to support his mother after his father died, became the "American Ace of Aces" with 26 victories in [[World War I]] (despite being relatively old), survived on a life raft for 54 days after his plane went down in [[World War II]] (despite being over 50 years old), and later spoke out for [[conservative]] views; Rickenbacker, a phenomenal race-car driver when WWI broke out, was rejected for flying but then fixed [[Billy Mitchell]]'s car and persuaded him to give Eddie a chance at aviation.<ref>http://www.acepilots.com/wwi/us_rickenbacker.html</ref>

===Athletics===

Anyone can enter, and winning is based solely on skill.
====Competitions====
*The [[Olympic Games]],<ref>Since 1990 there has been a qualifying requirement of reasonable success at a prior event.</ref> known for setting the most world records
*The [[Chicago Marathon]], known for setting records for the fastest American marathons
*The [[Tour de France]].<ref>In the 1920s it was open to all; now there is a qualifying process for teams.</ref>

====Achievements====
*[[Arthur Ashe]], son of a policeman, at the relatively old age of 31 crushed the nearly invincible 22-year-old Jimmy Connors in 1975 to become the only African American men's Wimbledon singles champion;<ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/5/newsid_2798000/2798971.stm</ref> Ashe won this upset with an ingenuous strategy of using offspeed volleys unfamiliar to the hard-hitting Connors.
*Dick Fosbury invented the Fosbury Flop despite criticism by all the experts. He won the 1968 Gold Medal with it, and now all imitate it.
*Bob Beamon, an obscure 22-year-old long jumper who barely qualified for the 1968 Olympic finals after fouling out on most attempts, then broke the world record by nearly two feet. In the preceding 30 years, the world record for the long jump had increased by only about 8 inches.<ref>http://www.infoplease.com/spot/summer-olympics-bob-beamon.html</ref>
*An unsuccessful Olympian, the medical student Roger Bannister broke the 4-minute barrier for the mile, which some experts considered impossible; now the record is 3:43.
*A little-known pitcher, Don Larsen, threw the only perfect game in [[World Series]] history (Game 5, 1956)
*[[David]], a boy of slight build, defeated the most feared warrior of all time, the mammoth [[Goliath]]
*Kurt Warner, one of the greatest football quarterbacks,<ref>Warner is the only quarterback who has led two ''different'', hapless teams to three Super Bowls.</ref> was originally cut by the Green Bay Packers, denied a tryout by the Chicago Bears, and ultimately only given a chance due to another player's injury.
*Tom Brady, arguably the best quarterback of all time,<ref>http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/story?columnist=smith_michael&id=2646827</ref> was given a chance at the NFL only after the experts had chosen 198 other players ahead of him in the 2000 NFL draft. He got to play only when Drew Bledsoe, chosen first by the experts in the 1993 draft, was injured.
*The Dallas Mavericks, having few stars, swept the heavily favored Los Angeles Lakers and then crushed the star-studded Miami Heat to win the 2011 [[NBA]] title.
*[[Jeremy Lin]], denied college basketball scholarships, left undrafted by the [[NBA]] and cut by a weak NBA team, joined the 8-15 Knicks and then took them on a seven-game winning streak, including wiping the floor with [[liberal]]-promoted [[Kobe Bryant]] of the favored Lakers
:''(add more)''

===Science and technology===
*the greatest river engineer ever, James B. Eads, lacked any formal education and his revolutionary successes (such as the Eads Bridge) were opposed by leading experts<ref name="Eads bridge">http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/eads/peopleevents/p_jbeads.html</ref>
*perhaps the greatest health program of the 20th century, using a new term he coined for his program ("[[aerobics]]"), was developed by military physician Kenneth Cooper outside of a major medical research facility
*"Moldy" Mary Hunt, a low-level lab worker, used a rotten cantaloupe to facilitate the first ''mass'' production of [[penicillin]].<ref>"Then, in 1943, Mary Hunt, a lab worker in Peoria, Illinois brought in a cantaloupe melon. It was said to have been infected with a 'pretty, golden mould'. This mould was 'Penicillium chrysogeum'. It yielded about 200 times as much penicillin as Fleming's mould. Florey used x-rays to mutate the mould, which eventually gave 1000 times the yield of penicillin from the original." [http://www.qi.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=11777&start=0&sid=270d7f1ec3dc7c97bbb3c84a264676cc]</ref>
*the [[free software]] movement and its ongoing development of the [[Linux]] operating system
*the development of a heavier-than-air, [[fixed wing]] aircraft by the [[Wright Brothers]], despite opposition and mockery by aviation "experts."
*[[Henry Ford]]'s mass-production techniques, which turned automobiles from a curiosity into the backbone of American industry despite Ford's lack of formal education.
*the investigation of the [[Challenger Disaster]] by maverick physicist [[Richard Feynman]]
*[[Steve Wozniak]] developed the first popular personal computer from a garage-based operation
*[[Leonardo Da Vinci]] is one of the most well known designers in history, yet was illiterate in Latin, and never attended a university.
*distributed computing projects such as [[Folding@home]] that combine the computing power of hundreds of thousands of standard home PCs to solve computationally intense problems.
*the [[intelligent design]] theory explaining the origins of our universe.
*Tired of being denied a voice in the elite liberal media, [[Conservative media]] finds its voice and is widely popular; [[FOX News]], Drudge Report, Breitbart.com, NewsMax, ''[[National Review]]'', Worldnetdaily.com.
*New astronomical discoveries are regularly reported by amateur astronomers, to then be published by "experts", advancing their careers in the process.
*The leading and most innovative internet browser, [[Firefox]], was developed in a not-for-profit effort outside of the multi-billion-dollar [[Microsoft]] and [[Google]] empires.
*[[Mikhail Kalashnikov]] was drafted by the Russian military, and despite being trained in poetry and literature, eventually was made a firearms designer. He drew upon inspiration from Russian literature, and the Bible to focus on simplicity, and dependability. This simplicity resulted in the atheist experts rejecting his designs, and declaring them unworkable. The experts were however ultimately proven wrong, when one of his designs went on to win an open design contest, and became the single most reliable and prevalent firearm in the world: the [[AK-47]].
*In 1919, philanthropist Raymond Orteig offered $25,000 to the first person to fly a solo, non-stop flight between New York and Paris. Although many wealthy aviation experts attempted to win this prize, it was an unknown amateur pilot named [[Charles Lindbergh]] who won it.
*In 1873, [[homeschooled]] [[Scotland|Scottish]] scientist [[James Clerk Maxwell]] discovered the system of equations bearing his name that describe [[electromagnetism]].

===Finance===

*Studies show that the public does as good a job at picking good stock investments as the experts do. For example, stock market indexes typically outperform funds managed by experts.

===Exploration and discovery===

*Despite billions of research dollars, technical experts and equipment for professional astronomers, amateur astronomers play a crucial role in outer space discoveries. ''See [[Comet Lovejoy]]''
*Christopher Columbus discovered the New World, despite near-unanimous expert opinion that his first voyage was doomed to failure. On his second voyage, he successfully returned to the same place he had previously reached, despite the limited navigational skills of the experts of the time.

===Journalism===
*As noted in Conservapedia's breaking news, the [[lamestream media]] is being replaced by [[YouTube]] videos of breaking news.<ref>Fernandez, Richard. "A Wired World in its Own Mirror." March 11, 2011. Pajamas Media. http://pajamasmedia.com/richardfernandez/2011/03/11/a-wired-world-in-its-own-mirror/?singlepage=true</ref>
*Large media outlets have begun presenting amateur reports from viewers. This began with [[CNN]]'s iReport<ref>http://ireport.cnn.com</ref> and later was adopted by [[Fox News]] (uReport<ref>http://ureport.foxnews.com</ref>) and others.

== Obstacles Created by Experts ==

Experts have self-interest in defending their theories, even if incorrect, and in perpetuating the system that has rewarded and applauded them. Some experts receive prodigious sums by promoting theories that are false or implausible, either in the media or in courtrooms.

Most experts reasonably fear loss in grants, compensation or awards if they take a position disfavored by [[liberal]]s.

===Examples===

One expert said about the revolutionary design of the Eads bridge to transport heavy ships by railroad over the [[Mississippi River]]:<ref name="Eads bridge"/>
{{cquote|I deem it entirely unsafe and impracticable.}}
The Eads bridge continues to stand to this day.<ref>http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/eads/sfeature/sf_footage.html</ref>

==The Best of the Public and the Invisible Hand==

The concept of best of the public was first articulated on [[Conservapedia]], although the effects have been observed by many great thinkers over the years. In a free society where the best of the public is allowed the latitude to excel, benefits accrue on many levels. [[Adam Smith]], the father of capitalism, observed this principle in effect; in his book ''[[The Wealth of Nations]]'', he described how the best of the public, when given the freedom to generate wealth, could generate a net beneficial and uplifting effect that goes beyond their individual enterprises. Smith called this the "[[Invisible Hand]]." However, he confined his observations to the sphere of economics, whereas the "Best of the Public" principle operates on many different levels.

Marriage and family, for example, serve as an illustration of the principle in the social arena. When marriage is allowed to function without government interference and misguided attempts at social engineering, the result is strong families; the best of the public raise children of superior virtue and character, who in turn grow up to pass those values on to their children. This, in turn, leads to a net positive effect on society known as the [[Invisible Hand of Marriage]].

The same uplifting principle can be seen in any situation in which the best of the public is allowed to freely function and attain its potential. Events like the Olympics and the Tour de France permit the best of the public to strive on a physical level, resulting in many new record-breaking performances. While the principle has seldom (as of yet) been applied to academic endeavors, the [[Conservative Bible Project]] demonstrates the benefits that can result.

==Opposition to the Best of the Public==

===Government restrictions===
History demonstrates that the best of the public can only thrive in a free society. The cream cannot rise to the top if it is weighted down; eagles cannot soar if they are shackled by an oppressive government. This understanding is at the heart of conservative wisdom.

For example: it is only in a [[free market economy]] that the best of the public will be truly free to drive innovation, develop new technologies, and generate new wealth. In an overly-regulated economy, the incentive to excel is greatly reduced. Innovation is replaced by stagnation, and achievement by mediocrity.

===Elite gatekeepers===
Likewise, in an academic environment in which elite "experts" serve as gatekeepers, truly innovative research is frequently squelched in favor of orthodoxy and blind consensus. The chilling effect "scientific experts" can have on honest research was clearly demonstrated by the [[Climategate]] scandal. Even when such "experts" do not actively conspire to suppress dissent, their use of expertise and consensus as a bully pulpit can still silence opposing (and possibly correct) viewpoints.

===Mobs===
It is important to note the difference between "Best of the Public" and "mob rule." Simply allowing the loudest or most numerous voices to prevail is not the same thing as allowing the best of the public to drive achievement. Sites such as [[Wikipedia]] operate on the principle of mob rule, and as a result, are plagued with bias, inaccuracy, and an inability to differentiate between significant insights and trivia.

One of the most pointed illustrations of this difference is the [[United States]] itself. The [[Founding Fathers]], despite not naming it, applied the "Best of the Public" principle in their attempts to craft a new government. Realizing the danger of mob rule, they rejected a pure democracy in favor of a democratic Republic--a system designed to ensure that, while all of the public would have a voice in their new government, the best of the public would guide that government as elected representatives. In so doing, they clearly affirmed that they believed the best of the public was better than a group of experts; in contrast, the nations of Europe still firmly subscribed to the notion that government should be in the hands of elite "experts" (the ruling families and nobility.)

===Obscurity===
The "best of the public" must be able to be heard. There are millions of books published, and even more books self-published without approval of traditional publishing houses. Many authors protest<ref>Paul Biba. [http://www.teleread.org/2009/09/18/self-publishing-e-books-and-legitimacy-part-3-of-a-series/ Self-publishing, E-books, and Legitimacy: Part 3 of a series], teleread.org, September 18th, 2009.</ref><ref>"[http://www.baen.com/library/palaver6.htm Prime Palaver #6]", Eric Flint</ref> that this is the greatest problem with modern publishing.

==Experts versus the Best of the Public==
Some confusion may exist over the difference between an "expert" and the "best of the public." The primary difference lies in the manner in which expertise is obtained. Most "experts" undergo highly specialized training, and in the process, become immersed in a sub-culture of like experts. This always carries the danger of [[groupthink]] and the pressure to conform. Also, academic credentialing consists almost entirely of repeating what professors say, rather than criticizing their errors.<ref>See, e.g., the movie "Dark Matter" for a candid portrayal of academic credentialing.</ref>

For instance, someone interested in obtaining a job in the field of climate science (whom we shall refer to as "Student A") would likely pursue a degree at an established university. In so doing, he would be immersed in the academic subculture of researchers and professors who have already obtained their degrees in that field. He would be subjected to their political views, preconceptions, and biases, and would likely find that these were presented as facts and as an integral part of the subject. Any questioning or dissent on his part might be harshly punished. Ultimately, he would be faced with a difficult choice: abandon his desire to be an accredited expert in that field, dishonestly pretend to believe in the questionable claims of his superiors, or convince himself that those claims were, in fact, the truth.

On the other hand, someone interested in learning about climate science, but not interested in becoming a credentialed expert (we'll call him "Student B,") would likely study a diverse variety of sources. Not confined to the insular and clannish academic subculture, he would speak with a wider range of people, and be exposed to a wider range of viewpoints. This would, in all probability, cause him to examine the claims of the experts with a more critical eye. Ultimately, his studies would not gain him a degree or the official imprimatur of the scientific community, but his understanding of climate science would very likely be more rounded and complete than that of Student A. He very well might disagree with the experts' point of view; at the very least, he would have a much better knowledge of its shortcomings.

A traditional, expert-dominated inquiry would dismiss the contributions of Student B, since he has not an "expert" - he has not received the official approval of the gatekeepers. A "best of the public" approach would accept the contributions of both Student A and Student B, since they are both members of the public. However, it would not place Student A's contributions on a pedestal and make them sacrosanct and immune to questioning. Student B would be free to bring in HIS expertise as well; as a result, the ensuing discussion would be much less one-sided and more comprehensive, and thus far more likely to result in accurate and truthful insights. Perhaps many ideas coming from people like Student B would be wrong, unprofitable, and therefore rightly rejected; the "best of the public" approach recognizes that not all ideas from the public are better than those of experts. However, it is very likely that some ideas from people like Student B will be true and helpful. This is the difference between the two approaches: such ideas will be heard under the "best of the public" method.

== Solution of the Poincaré Conjecture ==

The solution to the [[Poincaré conjecture]], one of the greatest unsolved math problems of the 20th century, was by the little-known [[Gregori Perelman]] who worked on his own and merely posted his solution on the internet. He had never been offered a permanent job and was critical of the lack of openness among mathematical experts as he described a rare exception:<ref>[http://www.notablebiographies.com/supp/Supplement-Mi-So/Perelman-Grigory.html Grigory Perelman Biography (emphasis added)], Encyclopedia of World Biography.</ref>
{{cquote|He actually told me a couple of things that he published a few years later. He did not hesitate to tell me. Hamilton's openness and generosity—it really attracted me. '''I can't say that most mathematicians act like that'''.}}
At great monetary sacrifice, Perelman refused to accept the awards conferred on him by experts after they eventually recognized the brilliance of his proof. A leading expert was accused of improperly trying to take credit for Perelman's work.

The Steklov Institute apparently declined to re-elect Perelman as a member in 2003, supposedly because the experts continued to doubt his proof. Reportedly Perelman has quit mathematics and was "jobless, living with his mother in St. Petersburg, and subsisting on her modest pension." He was quoted as saying:<ref>Mike Ciavarella. [http://imechanica.org/node/3360 Perelman limit case: not a single paper, refuse the Field medal, refuse reviewers], imechanica.org, June 17, 2008.</ref>
{{cquote|I can't say I'm outraged. Other people do worse. Of course, there are many mathematicians who are more or less honest. But almost all of them are conformists. They are more or less honest, but they tolerate those who are not honest. ... It is not people who break ethical standards who are regarded as aliens. It is people like me who are isolated.}}

In 2006, the mathematical establishment delivered another backhanded compliment to Perelman's achievement: he was awarded the [[Fields Medal]] on a shared basis with (1) an Obama-supporter who had jointly worked on a number theory problem, (2) a French mathematician-actor, and (3) a younger countryman who had achieved far less. This four-way split of the prize with far less significant achievements was inappropriate. Perelman declined this prize also.

== References ==

{{reflist|2}}

==See also==
* [[Expert Error]]
* [[Independent review]]
* [[Essay:Everyday Heroes]]
{{Conservapedia}}
{{Conservatism}}
[[Category:Conservapedia]]

Islam

2012-02-29T03:10:58Z

EquisDulks: /* Terminology */

[[File:Madina Haram at evening .jpg|center|800px|thumb|Al-Masjid al-Nabawi (the Mosque of the Prophet) in [[Medina]], [[Saudi Arabia]], the site of [[Muhammad|Muhammad's]] tomb.]]

'''Islam''' is a [[monotheism|monotheistic]] [[Abrahamic religion]] based on the teachings of [[Muhammad]] (or often [[Mohammed]] and other variants), a seventh century [[Arab]], diplomat, merchant, philosopher, orator, legislator, reformer, military general, and, according to Muslim belief, an agent of divine action. Muhammad was also born to the descendents of Abraham. Muhammed claimed to have received revelations from Allah via the archangel Gabriel, which were written in the [[Qur'an]] ([[Koran]]) - thus forming the core teachings of Islam. The word "Islam" means "submission" (to [[Allah]]) in [[Arabic language|Arabic]]. Islam teaches that one must gain salvation through submission to the one true God. Islam is known as one of the world's most violent religions; there have been over 16,000 terrorist attacks committed in the name of Islam since 2001.<ref>http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/</ref> [[Liberals]] however, frequently ignore the violence of Islam (refering to critics as "racists" and "Islamophobes") while they focus on attacking Christianity, a religion with a long history of charity and self sacrifice.<ref>http://www.ccusa.org/</ref><ref>http://www.bcbsr.com/topics/charity.html</ref> Critics of this view often cite the Great Crusades--an unsuccessful attempt by Western Christians to retake parts of the Byzantine Empire that had been conquered by Islamic armies--and various religious wars which were later fought in Europe between branches of Christianity.

A follower of Islam is called a "[[Muslim]]" or "Moslem", a term which means "one who submits (to Allah)". The older terms "Mohammedan" and "Muhammedan" ("follower of Muhammad"), have fallen out of use.<ref> Additional archaic terms for Muslims include "Hagarene", and "Saracen". Saracen as a term for Muslims was limited to the Crusade era, although it makes frequent re-appearances in pre-modern polemics. Hagarene was a more common term in pre-modern works, as it denotes the biblical connection of Hagar the mother of Ishmael who is reported as the patriarch of Islam. Additional names for Muslims in pre-modern and Medieval works are generally derived from misspellings.</ref>

==Theology==
There are no clergy, but there are religious teachers, or [[Imam]]s, who have their followings. All Muslims are supposed to follow the teachings of Muhammad, whom they believe to be Allah's ('''الله''' in [[Arabic]]) last and greatest [[prophet]]. The teachings of Muhammad are transmitted through the [[Qur'an]], the Hadith, and the Sunnah. The Sunnah is a general term for "the life and doings of the Prophet", which all Muslims are called on to replicate. The faith teaches that the Archangel [[Gabriel]] appeared to Muhammad in a cave reciting verbatim a revelation from Allah. The first word that Gabriel says to Muhammad is "Iqra" or "Recite/Proclaim",which is found in the 96th Sura of the Qur'an.

Muslims believe that God revealed the Qur'an (or Koran) to Muhammad. The key miracle of Islam comes from the historical condition of the illiterate and uneducated Muhammad, as the Qur'an is composed in an erudite and complex form of Arabic prose and poetry<ref>Proclaim! (or read!) in the name of thy Lord and Cherisher, Who created- Created man, out of a (mere) clot of congealed blood: Proclaim! And thy Lord is Most Bountiful,- He Who taught (the use of) the pen,- Taught man that which he knew not.(Surah 96:1-5)</ref>. The Qur'an was not written down in a systematic fashion until a decade after Muhammad died, preferable transmission being through oral recitation. The Qur'an is considered by muslims to be the pure and holy word of God, uncreated and eternal. In Islamic theology the term uncreated is very important, as it implies that there is no author for the Qur'an, only the delivering of the word to Muhammad who delivered it to the Sahab and the Salaf (The Companions and the Pure), who delivered it to the scribe delegated to record it in the reign of the Caliph Uthman bin Affan.

==Origins==
Like Christianity and Judaism, Islam originated in the Middle East. Islam claims to trace its roots back to Abraham through his son Ishmael. Muslims do not believe that Muhammad was the founder of Islam, rather that he restored the original faith of Abraham and the prophets that followed as recorded in the lost books of the Tawrat and Injil.

Based upon this belief, the [[Bible]], both the [[Old Testament|Old]] and [[New Testament]]s, is believed to have become corrupted through the [[Bible translations|translations and misinterpretations]] accumulated over several millenia. The criticism of the [[Torah]] centers around the reconstruction of the existing Biblical text required after the "[[Babylon]]ian captivity". The criticism of the New Testament centers in the many disputed gnostic texts which contradict the orthodox biblical canon. Interestingly, Islamic jurisprudence accepts that the Injil was complete and whole up until the revelation of Muhammad. Therefore there is some inconsistency in the claims made against the New Testament. For more information, see [[The Bible versus the Qur'an]].
[[Image:Mecca.jpg|thumb|right|300px|[[Mecca]], one of the holy cities of Islam.]]

==Today==
Islam is the worlds second largest religion, with over 1.6 billion followers, the number of Muslims is rapidly growing, mainly due to conversions, high birth rates, and redefinitions of the term 'Muslim'. Conversions to Christianity (from ''any'' faith or lack thereof) outnumber those to Islam, but cannot keep up with the birthrate discrepancy.<ref>[http://www.bible.ca/global-religion-statistics-world-christian-encyclopedia.htm World Christian Encyclopedia]</ref>
<ref>[http://www.orthodoxytoday.org/articles6/AlJazeerahAfrica.php Translation of AL-Jazeerah interview between Maher Abdallah and Shiekh Ahmed Katani]</ref>

[[Indonesia]] has the largest Muslim population in the world.

==Historical Background==

According to Islamic belief, in approximately 610 A.D., [[Muhammad]], a 40-year-old merchant of the Quraysh tribe in [[Mecca]], located in the Hijaz (now eastern [[Saudi Arabia]]), was commanded by the angel [[Gabriel]] (or Jibreel) to "recite" the message of Allah (The Muslim god). Gabriel said mankind had lost sight of Allah's previous messages to earlier prophets, [[Adam]], [[Noah]], [[Abraham]], [[Moses]], [[Solomon]], and [[Jesus]], among others, and that Muhammad was to spread Allah's message to all people so that mankind would know how to live, how to show respect for Allah, and how to prepare for the judgment day.

The message to Muhammad was to be God's last and fullest revelation, a direct copy of the Umm Al Khitab, the mother of all books located in heaven next to God; Muhammad was the "seal of the prophets." Muhammad won some converts to Islam in his local area, but his [[monotheist]] preaching threatened to undermine the profitable [[polytheist]] pilgrim traffic supporting many Meccan merchants. In 622 A.D., the merchants drove Muhammad and his followers out of Mecca to the city of Yathrib (later renamed [[Medina]], or the city - as in the city of the prophet). This flight (hijra) from Mecca to Medina marks the beginning of the Muslim lunar calendar, and is celebrated each year in the Hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca.

Muhammad's forces, composed of the sahaba (companions) from Mecca ,and the Ansar (allied tribes from Yathrib) started attacking the trade caravans going in and out of Mecca, cutting off its economic lifeline. After a series of battles between the Meccans and Muhammad's forces, Mecca finally accepted Muhammad's ultimatum to succumb and convert to Islam. The city welcomed the prophet back in 630. Muhammad died in 632.
[[File:Islam750.jpg|thumb|590px]]

Tribal elders in a traditional council called the "Shura" elected [[Abu Bakr]] to be Muhammad's successor, or [[Caliph]] (Khalifa). Abu Bakr united the tribes of the Arabian peninsula during his two years as head of the new faith. Upon his death, the elders elected [[Umar ibn al-Khattab]] the next Caliph. During Umar's ten year reign, Islam invaded and spread through conquest and negotiation into [[Egypt]], [[Syria]], [[Palestine]], [[Iraq]], and parts of [[Iran]]. Umar was assassinated by a Persian (modern day Iran) in 644, and was succeeded by [[Uthman ibn Affan]], who continued the invasions to spread Islam into [[North Africa]], [[Cyprus]], the rest of Iran, [[Afghanistan]], and parts of [[India]] and [[Pakistan]]. Over the next two centuries, Islamic armies continued to expanded Islam's empire into sub-Saharan Africa, [[Spain]], South-east and Central Asia, and [[Turkey]].

The Muslim armies conquered and superseded the ancient Sassanid and Byzantine empires which had ruled before. Within a generation of Muhammad's death Muslim armies occupied an empire stretching from the Nile river to the far off Iranian province of khorasan. Reasons for the rapid conquest are varied and obscure. The Arab armies were more akin to tribal war bands raiding and settling where and when they could. The Byzantine and Sassanid empires had been at war for centuries. The constant simmering conflict between Constantinople and Persia reached a climax in the early 7th century. The Sassanids conquered briefly Egypt and the Levant threatening the central Byzantine heartland of Anatolia. Under the military reforms of the emperor Heraclius, the Byzantine army consolidated and counter attacked, recapturing all that they had lost and capturing the Sassanian capital of Ctesiphon in 628.

This brief end of the Roman-Persian wars disrupted the frontier areas which had predicated their economies on raiding and mercenary activities. Two major areas in Arabia were directly affected. The Lackmid tribe and the Gassanid tribe both acted as mercenaries for the Persians and Romans. The official religion of both tribes analogically mirrored that of their overseers. Monophysite Christianity was common, particularly of the Jacobite sect. The death of Muhammad and the subsequent Ridda wars occupied these warrior tribes until the reign of Caliph Umar. Additionally, there was great religious unrest in the levant and Egypt. These areas resented the ruinous taxes and the harsh orthodoxy imposed by the emperor in Constantinople.

The same climate was present in the Sassanid realm with the rise of the dualism of the Manicheans. Under the Caliph Umar ,the Arab tribes which had concluded the infighting following the death of Muhammad were allowed to raid into the Byzantine and Sassanid fronteirs. The weakened state of both regimes from both military and economic exhaustion and religious unrest made them fertile picking grounds for the tribal warbands. The Arabs were chiefly successful in holding these areas in that they upheld a lightweight regime of low taxes based in the Islamic laws and distant government. Rather than employing an army of bureaucrats and nobility, the early Arab empire was more favorable towards maintaining the existing government structures under the leadership of Arab tribes. In this atmosphere it is hardly surprising to note the reports from both Muslim and Christian sources of peaceful capitulation and invitation of the invading forces.

==Divisions Within Islam==
Uthman was assassinated in 656 A.D. by soldiers who then installed Ali ibn Abu Talib, Muhammad's son-in-law, as [[Caliph]]. Ali's followers believed Muhammad had chosen Ali to be Muhammad's heir, and had disagreed with the selections of Abu Bakr, Umar, and Uthman as Caliphs. Ali's claim to the position was challenged by Muawiyah, a kinsman of the murdered Uthman. Five years later, Ali was assassinated by Kharjites, religious dissidents who broke away from the main body of Muslims because they rejected Ali's accepting arbitration to resolve his leadership dispute with Muawiyah. Ali's supporters, or the Shiah al-Ali (or Shiat Ali, partisans of Ali) believed that Ali was the true Caliph and was, in part, divinely inspired. Ali's sons, Hassan and Husayn followed as [[Shia]] Caliphs, Hassan dying in 669 or 670 A.D., possibly by poisoning, and Husayn slain by soldiers of his rival, the [[Sunni]] Caliph Yazid, in 680 A.D.

The Shia Muslim community has divided further as followers coalesced around several of Ali's descendants or successors, called [[Imam]]s. The "twelvers," predominant in Iran, believe the twelfth Imam is in hiding and will reveal himself just before judgement day. Ismailis rejected the seventh Imam and practice a spirituality that seeks hidden meaning in scripture. Ismailis ruled much of [[North Africa]] as the [[Fatimid Dynasty]] of [[Egypt]] in the tenth through the twelfth centuries, and today are found primarily in [[Pakistan]], [[Afghanistan]], and [[India]]. The Sunni majority reject the premise that men can be divine, including Muhammad, Ali, or Jesus, and did not accept any of the Imams who followed Ali. Sunnis remain more committed to traditions and less inclined to accept Shia mysticism. Today, about 15% of the world's Muslims are Shia and 85% are orthodox Sunni.

There are other factions within Islam. Sufis, a name possibly derived from the wool garments they wear, developed around mystical practices and trance-induced revelations. Sufis are found today in [[Turkey]], [[Syria]], and parts of [[Africa]]. Other movements have taken reform tracks, such as the Unitarians of [[Saudi Arabia]], also called [[Wahhabi]]s after their 18th century reformist founder Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab. The conservative Wahhabis are found today in Saudi Arabia and [[Qatar]]. Today the Wahhabi line has a tendency to produce extremists, such as [[Osama Bin Laden]]. Some critics would argue that the [[Taliban]] of Afghanistan took conservative reform to an extreme. Other sects or break-away groups include, among others, the Alawis found in Syria and Turkey, the [[Druze]] in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, and Israel, the Ibadhis (Kharjites) in Oman and Africa, the Ahmadiya of Pakistan, and the Zaydis of Yemen.

==Religious Guidance==
During his lifetime, Muhammad's companions learned and later transcribed the verses (surrahs) of the Qur'an as Muhammad spoke them. In Islam, the teachings of Mohammed were believed to be direct divine revelation from God.

The third Caliph, Uthman, collected and codified the various versions of the surrahs into one written Qur'an that became the standard Arabic text used by the world's Muslims today. The Qur'an is longer than the Bible and written in general order of longest chapters to shortest rather than in any order of when they were spoken, sometimes making the work appear to be confusing. In all there are 114 chapters. Most of the later recorded sayings of Mohammed, which were also more warlike, actually appear earlier in the text. Present-day Muslims look first to the Qur'an as a guide to life, then to the [[Sunnah]], or the way of the Prophet (his life as an example for others) as recorded by his early companions, and then to the [[Hadith]], a collection of the Prophet's sayings, comments, advice, and descriptions.

Frequently, Muslims disagreed over how to interpret certain passages in the Qur'an, the Sunnah, or the Hadith in their search for the ideal life and perfect path to heaven. From these interpretations Sunni Muslims developed four schools of law, or interpretations of law, named after their founders or early leaders: the Hanbali, considered the most strict school and predominant today in Saudi Arabia; Shafi, the school of widest acceptance, found in Egypt, parts of Palestine-Syria, south Arabia, and the Far East; Maliki, prevalent in North Africa, Sudan, and Nigeria; and Hanafi, considered the most moderate school, predominant in Ottoman Turkey and today found primarily on the Levant and Indian subcontinent. Frequently, Muslim countries have two separate legal systems, one for civil, criminal, or commercial law, and a second, and separate, system for religious law. Religious courts and their judges (qadis) might handle issues dealing with marriage, divorce, child custody, inheritance, religious education, charitable or religious property (Waqf), or family matters. Among Middle Eastern countries, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen have Shariah courts serving alongside their secular courts or have adopted [[Sharia]]h (Islamic law) as the basis of their legal systems.

====Clergy====
Sunni Islam does not have a priesthood or clerical hierarchy to conduct religious services or interpret scripture, but it does have prayer leaders, called Imams, and religious scholars, called Ulama, who often are educated men familiar with the Qur'an and able to offer commentaries on Qur'anic verses. Sunni Muslims also respect the teachings and interpretations of scholars, judges, and academics who may interpret laws, write treatises on Sharia (religious law) or Hadith, and issue Fatwas, religious declarations intended to enlighten or guide Muslims.

Shia Islam has a hierarchy that resembles a priesthood. Mullahs are prayer leaders, but usually do not interpret religious law. Mujtahids are religious scholars who may interpret law or passages from the Qur'an or Hadith. The lower order of Mujtahids are called Hojjatolislam. Ayat Allah (literally sign of God, also Ayatollah) is a higher order of Mujtahid who may issue Fatwas, or religious edicts, in addition to leading Islamic schools, interpreting religious law and the Qur'an, and offering sermons or discourses on proper Islamic behavior.

===Five Pillars of Islam===
*'''Shahadah (Profession of Faith)''' -The Shahadah is the Muslim profession of faith. 'ašhadu 'al-lā ilāha illā-llāhu wa 'ašhadu 'anna muħammadan rasūlu-llāh, a loose English translation reads "''There is none worthy of worship except God, and [[Muhammad]] is the messenger of God''" This testament can be seen as the foundation of all of the other tenets of Islam.

*'''[[Salat]] (Ritual Prayer)''' -All Muslims are required to Pray to God five times each day while facing [[Mecca]].

*'''Zakat (Charity)''' Able Muslims must donate to the poor based on the wealth one has accumulated. In current usage it is interpreted as 2.5% of the value of most valuables and savings held for a full [[lunar year]].

*'''Sawm (Fasting)''' All able-bodied Muslims (children, pregnant women, the elderly, and the ill are exempt) must fast during daylight hours during the daylight hours of the entire month of [[Ramadan]]. According to Muslims, this purifies the body and soul. Some Muslim sects allow military, police and emergency services personnel to receive an exemption from fasting from an imam, on the grounds that their work supports the community or national good.

*'''Hajj (Pilgrimage)''' All able-bodied Muslims must make a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in their lives.

==Other Aspects of Islam==
[[Image:Quran.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Pages from the Qur'an, the holy book of the Islamic religion.]]
====Jihad====
Jihad is the "effort" or "struggle" each Muslim faces in the everyday trials of life, such as the effort to get better grades in school, or the striving to achieve better results from a job, or the struggle to avoid sinful temptations. Jihad also can be applied to warfare; participating in jihad in Allah's cause was the third most important good deed listed in the Hadith, after prayer and honoring one's parents. Jihad often was a rallying cry for the military spread of Islam in the seventh through tenth centuries against non-Muslims.

====Osama bin Laden and Fundamentalists====
[[Osama bin Laden]], a follower of a particular brand of Islam popular in Saudi Arabia, has stated that Islam is at war with the United States and its allies. Some observers maintain that the number of Muslims who believe as bin Laden does is growing, and others go further to suggest that all "fundamentalist" Muslims are enemies of the West. But other observers differentiate between conservative "fundamentalists" and the "extremists" who follow murderers such as bin Laden or other terrorists. These observers suggest that the fundamentalists disagree with bin Laden as much as do Westerners, yet remain silent out of fear or disrespect for non-believing "infidels". Many westerners are still haunted by the images of cheering crowds dancing in the streets when the 9/11 attacks were announced and were disappointed at the lack of prominent condemnation of the attack from Islamic circles worldwide.

====People of the Book====
Christians and Jews are called "people of the Book" in the Qur'an and are considered earlier forerunners to Islam and viewed as brothers as long as they pay an extra tax when under Islamic rule. Islam, tracing its roots back to Abraham through his son Ishmael instead of Isaac as the Jews did, believes that they are the descendants of God's promise. Islam believes that both the Old and New Testament were corrupted and corrected by the Qur'an, but there is still an earlier link between the three religions. The view of Jews and Christians varied within different parts of the Qur'an and Islamic history. Much of current Islamic culture, even in places that were once very tolerant such as Egypt, has seen an upsurge in persecution and violence against Christians and Jews.

====Women in Islam====
[[File:Muslim girls at Istiqlal Mosque Jakarta Indonesia.jpg|left|thumb|240px|Muslim girls at Istiqlal [[Mosque]], Jakarta.]]
In pre-Islamic times women's rights were defined by tribal laws which differed amongst the tribes. Some women had absolute equity and the ability to hold power, while some women were treated worse than chattel; bride prices, unlimited polygamy, and female infanticide were a common theme. [[Sharia law|Islamic law]] offered a path for which Muslim men could regulate women in a legal system based on Muslim principles of jurisprudence on the Arabian peninsula. Treated merely as individual sex objects, women were granted very limited rights but as distinct legal individuals; forced to marry who their parents tell them to, women are required not to directly object in order for the marriage contract to have some form of validity.

Unlike the pre-Islamic times where unlimited polygamy occurred, [[Sharia law]] limits [[polygamy]] to a maximum of four wives at any one time, though the use of "temporary" marriage in effect rendered this restriction meaningless. Once married, only men are entitled to divorce any time they please. The reality of traditional Sharia law as applied in the modern era has shocked the modern conscience.<ref>Linda Rae Bennett, ''Women, Islam and Modernity'' (2005)</ref> These restrictions on women were put into place over a thousand years ago, and there has been little progress since. Women are still not allowed to drive a [[car]], they cannot ride [[bicycle]]s, are unable to [[vote]], have been prohibited from traveling abroad without permission, and they can't use public facilities when men are present.

[[File:Sharia.jpg|right|thumb|220px|Muslim woman tortured under Sharia law.]]
Women in Islam are treated as inferiors to men in almost every regard. In [[Sharia]], the testimony of one man equals that of five women. Women are required to cover the head and body in public, by wearing the hijab. Hijab is applied in different ways: a small scarf around the head and western street clothes may be acceptable in Cairo or Damascus but a full length opaque [[Burqa]] was enforced in Taliban Afghanistan. As of 2008, [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Iran]], and [[Pakistan]] are the most significant Middle Eastern countries where the government requires women to wear some form of restrictive garb, though cultural pressure in most Islamic countries offers women little choice but to submit to the dictat of hijab. Women who disgrace their family are put to death in "[[honor killing]]s"; buried halfway or sometimes up to their neck so they cannot run, women, who are in most cases victims, are stoned to death.

=====Islamic dress is a regular grounds for conflict in multicultural education=====

Treatment of women varies widely by country. In the Islamic state of Saudi Arabia women are forbidden from driving a car, traveling in public without their husband or a male family member as an escort, leaving their home without wearing Islamic dress, working or voting. Though not formally forbidden from owning property, they have no way of obtaining this as work is forbidden and only males are permitted to inherit - should a man die, his brothers, sons and father will all inherit before his wife. These restrictions are part of Sharia law and enforced by the police and a special Islamic office. Pakistan has similar restrictions, but to a lesser extent. In contrast, [[Turkey]] has a majority Muslim population and yet grants women some rights similar to those of men including property ownership, employment, and education to university level.

Muslim apologists suggest the extremely repressive policies of countries such as Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are cultural rather than religious, though these are the countries were traditional Islam is strongest. They point to the more moderate Islam practiced in Turkey as a demonstration that Islam and womens' rights are compatible, ignoring the efforts of traditionalists in Turkey to end the few freedoms women were granted by men.

Muslim women's status is controversial. Whilst Muslim men control and oppress Muslim women by compelling them to remain hidden behind the veil, sequestered in the home, and ignorant of the world by denying them access to education and worldly opportunities, Islamic apologists defend some practices. These men claim that many of the restrictions on women, such as the veil, are cultural traditions that pre-date Islam and are intended to protect women from predatory men. Unfortunately, such Muslim men ignore the fact that if a predatory man or group of rapists were to sexually assault a Muslim woman in Islam, she would be punished under Sharia law for "allowing" such an act to occur, and she would likely receive hundreds of lashes and years of jail time; the predatory man or men commonly go unpunished.

====Mecca, Medina, and Jerusalem====
Muhammad's home city of Mecca was the site of his earliest preaching and conversions, and is the location of the Kaaba, traditionally held to be the foundation stone of the first mosque built by Adam and later restored by Abraham, and now the focus of the annual pilgrimage (hajj). Some historians suggest that the Kaaba, a black stone probably meteoric in origin, was venerated by pre-Islamic polytheistic religions.

At first, Jerusalem was Islam's holy city and the focus of prayers, but Mecca became the center of Islam after Muhammad's return in 630. Medina, because of its early association with Muhammad and as the site of Muhammad's tomb, is second in importance to Mecca. Jerusalem is revered by Muslims as the site of Solomon's temple, Abraham's near sacrifice of his son Ishmael, and the scene of Muhammad's miraculous midnight journey, the latter two now enshrined in the [[Dome of the Rock]] mosque. According to the Qur'an (Surrah 17:1, Isra) and Hadith, Muhammad and Gabriel were taken on winged mules from Mecca to Jerusalem, where they ascended through the seven heavens to the presence of Allah. During the visit, Muhammad learned, among other points, that Muslims were to pray five times each day and to honor Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and the other prophets.

====Restrictions====
Observant Muslims are not supposed to eat pork and in general do not have dogs as pets; both swine and canines are considered unclean. Muslims can have dogs for safety. Muslims are prohibited from drinking alcoholic beverages, gambling, and from collecting interest on financial transactions.

===Female Genital Mutilation and Honour Killings===
FGM (also known as female circumcision) is mentioned in Hadith as an "honorable" condition for a woman, and act to carry out. It is a pre-Islamic tradition in parts of sub-Saharan Africa and the Arab world, though not in Coptic Egypt as some Islamic apologists claim. Female circumcision is not called for nor is it supported by the Qur'an.

Another pagan practice practice continued in Islamic countries is [[honor killing]], in which a brother, father, or uncle "restores" or "defends" a family's honor by killing the sister, daughter, or niece that "dishonored" the family through supposedly, "promiscuous" behaviour. This "promiscuous" activity often includes women from Islamic societies living in the West aspiring to a more open lifestyle. The "honor killing" is more ancient, and pagan in origin, but tolerated and practised more or less openly in some Muslim societies. Honor killings are not supported by the Qur'an and are directly commanded against with the Surah "Who so ever kills a human being for other than manslaughter or corruption in the earth, it shall be as if he has killed all mankind, and who so ever saves the life of one, it shall be as if he had saved the life of all mankind."

==Islam and Christianity==
see [[Dhimma]]

While Muslims do not believe Jesus to be the Son of God or in the Resurrection, they consider Him and His mother to be of God's most important prophets (Marian and Isa) otherwise known as Mary and Jesus. However, the Qur'an warns against worshipping Jesus, Muhammad, and other humans for fear of [[idolatry]].<ref>[http://www.ccg.org/_domain/ccg.org/Islam/Islam.htm Christian Churches of God Articles on Islam], March 10, 2007</ref>

The Qur'an states that non-believers will be punished, though the nature of the punishment is not specified (same as similar statements in the Bible and the Torah):

{{cquote|Surely, disbelievers are those who said:
'Allah is the third of the three (in a Trinity).' But there is no god but One, Allah.
And if they cease not from what they say, verily, a painful torment will befall the disbelievers among them.

Will they not repent to Allah and ask His Forgiveness? For Allah is Oft Forgiving, Most Merciful.

The Messiah , son of Mary, was no more than a Messenger; many were the Messengers that passed away before him. His mother was a Siddiqah (i.e. she believed in the words of God and His Books ).
They both used to eat food (as any other human eat).
Look how We make the signs clear to them, yet look how they are deluded away (from the truth)."
}}
::(Qur'an 5:73-75)

However, Islam does recognize Christians and Jews as "people of the book" since both refer to one God only, and recognize Abraham (Ibrahim in Arabic) as a founding prophet.

==Sharia==
[[Image:StarCresent.png|thumb|right|220px|The Star and Crescent is a symbol of Islam. It is featured in the national flag of [[Algeria]], [[Azerbaijan]], [[Malaysia]], [[Tunisia]], [[Mauritania]], [[Pakistan]], and [[Turkey]], amongst others]]
[[Sharia]] is the body of Islamic law. The term means "way" or "path"; it is the legal framework within which public and some private aspects of life are regulated for those living in a legal system based on Muslim principles of jurisprudence. It is not actually part of the canonical Qur'an; that is to say, it is not believed to be the direct word of God by Muslims, but rather the interpretation of it.

Sharia deals with many aspects of day-to-day life, including politics, economics, banking, business law, contract law, sexuality, marriage, divorce, and social issues. Most Islamic scholars regard Sharia as the body of precedent and legal theory established during the early stages of the Islamic Empire, though a few scholars also believe contemporary legal cases can and should shape the law, though such thinkers may be subject to ridicule and even threats from Islamists.

Sharia law proscribes often brutal punishments for acts, that, in the western world, are relatively minor. For example, under sharia law, converting from Islam is punishable by death,<ref>[http://www.ntpi.org/html/whyoppose.html]</ref> whilst women found guilty of adultery is punishable by stoning to death, which often includes many rape victims, as Sharia courts often regard a rape victim as guilty of adultery unless she can provide four witnesses to the act of rape.<ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/6148590.stm</ref> In cases involving the death penalty of corporal punishment, methods of carrying out the punishment are often barbaric, and include public beheading, chopping off of the hand, and flogging.<ref>http://saudiwoman.wordpress.com/2009/08/25/punishment-in-saudi-arabia/</ref> Many Islamist groups have been attempting to have Shariah courts set up in European countries, initially to rule over civil cases between Muslims in Europe.<ref>http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,422661,00.html</ref>

==Terminology==
Additional archaic terms for Muslims include, but are not limited to, "Hagarene" and "Saracen." The term Hagarene was more common in post-crusade Europe as it made specific reference to the biblical mother of Ishmael. Ishmael in the Muslim faith plays an analogous theological role to Isaac. Muslims do not use it today to avoid confusing worship of [[Muhammad]] with worship of [[Allah]]<ref>Schimmel, (1992)</ref>

==Ex-Muslims==
[[Michelle Malkin]] highlights a group of Ex-Muslims hoping to change the terms of debate about Islam in Europe. Maryam Namazie, the head of the British group said "Too many things in the media and government policies have been geared to pandering to the political Islamic movements and Islamic organizations." <ref> [http://michellemalkin.com/2007/06/20/ex-muslims-stand-up-in-britain/ Ex-Muslims stand up in Britain]</ref>

<ref>''Some of the text for this article was taken from "Islam: A Primer", Congressional Research Service Report for Congress (2003), a work in the public domain'' [http://www.history.navy.mil/library/online/islam.htm#back] </ref>

== See also ==
[[Image:Africa islam 87.jpg|thumb|Islam in Africa]]
*[[Arab American]]
*[[Islamic republic]]
*[[Qur'an]]
*[[Ramadan]]
*[[In the midst of a Maelstrom: the Holy Spirit and silence: an essay]] encounter of Israeli Messianic Jew and Egyptian Muslim in Alexandria
*[[List of countries by number of Muslims]]

==Further reading==
* Armour, Rollin. ''Islam, Christianity, and the West: A Troubled History'' (2002) [http://www.amazon.com/Islam-Christianity-West-Troubled-History/dp/1570754071/ref=sr_1_32?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259342713&sr=1-32 excerpt and text search]
* Armstrong, Karen. ''Islam: A Short History'' (2002) [http://www.amazon.com/Islam-History-Modern-Library-Chronicles/dp/081296618X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259342302&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Berkey, Jonathan P. ''The Formation of Islam: Religion and Society in the Near East, 600-1800'' (2002) [http://www.amazon.com/Formation-Islam-Religion-Society-600-1800/dp/0521588138/ref=sr_1_27?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259342713&sr=1-27 excerpt and text search]
* Campo, Juan Eduardo. ''Encyclopedia of Islam'' (2009), basic introduction
* Esposito, John J. ''The Oxford History of Islam'' (2000) [http://www.amazon.com/Oxford-History-Islam-John-Esposito/dp/0195107993/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259342302&sr=1-6 excerpt and text search]
* Glasse, Cyril. ''The New Encyclopedia of Islam'' ( 2nd ed. 2008)
* Lewis, Bernard. ''Islam in History: Ideas, People, and Events in the Middle East'' (2001), by leading conservative historian [http://www.amazon.com/Islam-History-People-Events-Middle/dp/0812695186/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259342525&sr=1-15 excerpt and text search]
* Martin, Richard C. et al. ''Encyclopedia of Islam & the Muslim World'' (2003), more advanced
* Newby, Gordon. ''A Concise Encyclopedia of Islam'' (2002) [http://www.amazon.com/Concise-Encyclopedia-Islam-Gordon-Newby/dp/1851682953/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259342942&sr=1-2 excerpt and text search]
* Robinson, Chase F. ed. ''The New Cambridge History of Islam'' (Volume 1) (2009), summarizes advanced scholarship
* Ruthven, Malise, and Azim Nanji. ''Historical Atlas of Islam'' (2004)
* Schimmel, Annemarie. ''Islam: An Introduction''. (1992)
* Sonn, Tamara and Mary Williamsburg. ''A Brief History of Islam'' (2004) [http://www.amazon.com/Brief-History-Blackwell-Histories-Religion/dp/1405109009/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259342302&sr=1-12 excerpt and text search]
* Wheatcroft, Andrew. ''Infidels: A History of the Conflict Between Christendom and Islam'' (2005) [http://www.amazon.com/Infidels-History-Conflict-Between-Christendom/dp/0812972392/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259342525&sr=1-13 excerpt and text search]

==External links==
*[http://muslim-canada.org/islam_christianity.html Islam and Christianity] - excellent article comparing and contrasting the two.
*[http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/quran/ Qur'an online in English]
*[http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/fundamentals/hadithsunnah/bukhari/ Sahih Bukhari (Hadith collection) online in English]
*[http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/fundamentals/hadithsunnah/muslim/ Sahih Muslim (Hadith collection) online in English]
*[http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/fundamentals/hadithsunnah/abudawud/ Sunan Abu-Dawud (Hadith collection) online in English]
*[http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/fundamentals/hadithsunnah/muwatta/ Malik's Muwatta (Hadith collection) online in English]
* Congressional Research Service, "Islam: A Primer", Report for Congress (2003), a work in the public domain and the source of part of this article [http://www.history.navy.mil/library/online/islam.htm#back]
*[http://www.creativeminorityreport.com/2011/01/islamists-torch-pope-in-effigy-again.html Islamists Torch Pope in Effigy, Again]
*[http://www.tribecatrib.com/news/2010/december/849_kind-strangers.html Muslims Saving Jews During World War II.] By Shane Dixon Kavanaugh.
*[http://differencesbetween.com/islam-and-muslim/ Difference Between Islam and Muslim]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

[[Category:Muslims]]
[[Category:Islam]]

Collectivism

2012-02-29T03:04:57Z

EquisDulks:

'''Collectivism''' is the belief that an imagined welfare of a group takes precedence over individual rights and values. Economic collectivism is generally preferred by [[liberals]], while many who call themselves [[conservatives]] are social collectivists. [[Libertarians]] typically prefer [[individualism]], generally accepted as the opposite of collectivism.

Collectivism thus is not to be confused with the fact that individual liberty allows, and love of others often enjoins, collective action. In other words, 1) civil society, beginning with the civil family, is not, by definition, [[parallel play]], but, rather, is a more-or-less informally coordinated balancing of complementary, and sometimes even conflicting, needs; whereas 2) collectivism is a consistent subsuming of the natural and civil rights of the individual, and thus of the family, to an unintelligently inflexible mere abstraction of those very rights.

==See also==
*[[Economic planning]]
*[[Socialism]]
[[category:political Terms]]
[[Category:Marxist terminology]]
[[Category:Liberal Falsehoods]]

Collectivism

2012-02-29T03:03:47Z

EquisDulks:

'''Collectivism''' is the belief that an imagined welfare of a group takes precedence over individual rights and values. Economic collectivism is generally preferred by [[liberals]], while many who call themselves [[conservatives]] are social collectivists. [[Libertarians]] often prefer [[individualism]].

Collectivism thus is not to be confused with the fact that individual liberty allows, and love of others often enjoins, collective action. In other words, 1) civil society, beginning with the civil family, is not, by definition, [[parallel play]], but, rather, is a more-or-less informally coordinated balancing of complementary, and sometimes even conflicting, needs; whereas 2) collectivism is a consistent subsuming of the natural and civil rights of the individual, and thus of the family, to an unintelligently inflexible mere abstraction of those very rights.

==See also==
*[[Economic planning]]
*[[Socialism]]
[[category:political Terms]]
[[Category:Marxist terminology]]
[[Category:Liberal Falsehoods]]

Infamous liberals

2012-02-28T01:33:26Z

EquisDulks:

Below is a list of infamous [[liberals]]:

* [[Joseph Stalin]]

* [[Adolf Hitler]]

* [[Margaret Sanger]]

* [[John Wayne Gacy]] - In an interview where he denied killing any of his victims, [[serial killer]] John Wayne Gacy said he was [[bisexuality|bisexual]] and "very liberal".<ref>http://s151.photobucket.com/albums/s151/candypop_02/Serial%20Killers/John%20Wayne%20Gacy/?action=view&current=SERIAL_KILLER_John_Wayne_Gacy_In-1.mp4</ref> Gacy was also a [[Democratic Party]] activist who had his picture taken with [[Rosalynn Carter]].<ref>http://www.digitaljournal.com/image/45527</ref>

* [[Charles Darwin]]

* [[Fred Phelps]], deranged pastor of the [[Westboro Baptist Church]]

* [[Mao Zedong]]

* [[Richard Dawkins]]
== See also ==

*[[Atheism and mass murder]]
*[[Atheism, pederasty and NAMBLA]]
*[[Atheism and uncharitableness]]
*[[Atheism and deception]]

{{Liberalism}}

==References==

<references/>

[[Category: Liberals]]

Scientology

2012-02-28T00:37:23Z

EquisDulks:

[[File:Supernatural-Scientology-Cross.jpg|thumb|Supernatural-Scientology-Cross.]]
'''Scientology''' is a new religion<ref>[http://www.ucalgary.ca/~nurelweb/papers/irving/scient.html Irving Hexham, Professor of Religious Studies, University of Calgary]</ref> established in the [[United States]] by science fiction author [[L. Ron Hubbard]] in 1954. His 1950 book ''Dianetics'' told readers they could rid themselves of negative past experiences, called "engrams", to live happier lives. Later Hubbard added idea involving the human soul, or "thetan" (each person's spiritual self or soul that passes through countless [[reincarnation]]s across trillions of years), and the origins of life and the universe. The organization has often been the subject of extreme controversy. <ref>[http://www.beliefnet.com/Faiths/Scientology/index.aspx Scientology Basics]</ref>

Unlike [[Christianity]], [[Islam]], or [[Judaism]], there is no single definitive text having authority. Instead, there are multiple books, read by adherents to increase their understanding of Scientology principles.
''Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health'', his seminal work on the subject, came out in 1950 and became a multi-million bestseller.<ref>Dianetics has sold over 21 million copies and is the best selling self-help book of all time. [http://www.religioustolerance.org/scientol1.htm ]</ref>
''The Way to Happiness'' is a 1980 booklet that lists 21 moral precepts.
:"Piece by piece, his teachings are revealed to church members through a progression of sometimes secret courses that take years to complete and cost tens of thousands of dollars." <ref> [http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-scientologysidea062490,0,7631220,full.story Defining the Theology.] </ref>

<blockquote>
''The goal of the Scientology [[religion]] is to achieve complete certainty of one's spiritual existence, one's relationship to the Supreme Being, and his role in eternity;'' <ref> [http://www.bonafidescientology.org/ Scientology.] </ref> but [[Heaven]], Hubbard said, ''is a "false dream" and a "very painful lie" intended to direct thetans toward a non-existent goal and convince them they have only one life.'' <ref> [http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-scientologysidea062490,0,7631220,full.story Defining the Theology.] </ref>
</blockquote>

Although Scientology argues its beliefs are not incompatible with Christian [[faith]], this is not so. Scientology is inconsistent with the beliefs of Christian faith; however ''we may observe that Scientology does entertain a fine goal in attempting to improve the world and man's lot within it, whether materially or spiritually. Many practitioners are dedicated and selfless in seeking such ends.'' Scientology is also known for its [[conservative]] stance on social issues (supporting [[Proposition 8]] in California, for example), which is commendable. Scientology's founder L. Ron Hubbard also recognized that [[homosexuality]] is immoral and a behavioral disorder, rather than a "healthy alternative lifestyle" as liberals shamelessly insist.<ref> [http://www.abundantgraceministries.org/new_page_5.htm From Science Fiction to Space-age Religion.] </ref>

== What Scientologists believe ==

* Belief in Deity: The nature of the Supreme Being is revealed personally.
* Incarnations: There are no particular human incarnations of [[God]].
* Origin of Universe and Life: All is manifestation of the universal spirit.
* After Death: Rebirths continue until the spirit become one with God.
* Why Evil?: Untrue ideas can result in wrongdoing.
* The Occult: Black magic is the inner core of Scientology.
* Salvation: Salvation and enlightenment is achieved through the practices and techniques of Scientology.
* Undeserved Suffering: Suffering occurs as part of the spirit's entrapment here in the physical universe.
* Death: It is sometimes a blessing, or irrelevant.
* Contemporary Issues: Scientology favors the use of their methodology for spiritual/mental healing and social betterment.

<blockquote>
The Creed of the Church of Scientology was written by L. Ron Hubbard shortly after the Church was formed in Los Angeles on February 18, 1954. <ref> [http://www.bonafidescientology.org/Creed/index.htm The Creed of the Church of Scientology.] </ref>
</blockquote>

== In the news ==
October 26, 2009.

<blockquote>

Paul Haggis, an Oscar-winning [[Canadian]] filmmaker has quit the Church of Scientology after 35 years over the organization's tolerance of "gay-bashing," its lying over the use of "disconnection," and its decision to release the intimate confessions of some of its former members who turned into critics. <ref> [http://www.canada.com/entertainment/movie-guide/Canadian+filmmaker+quits+Church+Scientology/2147889/story.html Canadian filmmaker quits Church of Scientology] </ref> (disconnection which means that a recruit is told to cut off from parents.)
</blockquote>

Tue Oct 27, 2009.
<blockquote>

A [[Paris]] court convicted the Church of Scientology of fraud and fined it more than euro 600,000 ($900,000) on Tuesday, but stopped short of banning the group's activities.

The group's French branch said it would appeal the verdict.

The court convicted the Church of Scientology's French office, its library and six of its leaders of organized fraud. Investigators said the group pressured members into paying large sums of money for questionable financial gain and used "commercial harassment" against recruits. <ref> [http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091027/ap_on_re_eu/eu_france_scientology Church of Scientology convicted of fraud in France] </ref>

</blockquote>

==Controversy and criticism==

Both the status of Scientology as a religion<ref>http://www.factnet.org/Scientology/scirelg.htm</ref> and its beliefs as well as its practices and manner of operation have been a subject of condemnation by both religious and secular sources.<ref>http://www.watchman.org/profile/sientpro.htm]</ref><ref>http://www.watchman.org/sci/historyofterror.htm</ref><ref>http://www.believersweb.org/view.cfm?ID=607</ref><ref>http://www.apologeticsindex.org/cpoint7</ref>
<ref>http://www.clambake.org</ref>

Christian apologist Craig Branch of Watchman Fellowship begins a documented examination of Scientology by stating,
<blockquote> Controversy continues to rage around Scientology, due mostly to the totalitarian and abusive nature of its practices. The evolution and history of Scientology raises serious and fundamental questions about freedoms and protections of religion and even what or who defines a religion. Scientology is an anomaly on even a diverse religious landscape. It does, in fact, involve religious belief (in what most outsiders would regard as science fiction). But that belief appears to have been built chiefly as a cover for exploitive commercial operations...Scientology's history of terror and abuse appears to be the result of its founder's delusion and paranoia. <ref>http://www.watchman.org/Sci/scientologymafia.htm</ref></blockquote>

Such charges are due in part to the tendency of Scientology to engage in intimidation and unethical or unlawful practices against those who have criticized or publicly opposed it, from former members, to national publications, to the [[United States]] government. This has resulted in Scientology being termed a "religious mafia", and "a commercial enterprise that masquerades as a religion."<ref>http://www.apologeticsindex.org/s04.html</ref><ref>cf. Scientology: the Sickness Spreads," Reader's Digest, September, l981, reprint, p.2</ref> In response to journalist Paulette Cooper's 1972 book, ''The Scandal of Scientology'',<ref>http://www.clambake.org/archive/books/tsos/sos.html</ref> Scientology launched filed 19 lawsuits against her,<ref>http://www.paulettecooper.com/scandal.htm</ref> contrived a false bomb threat made in her name, and planned and implemented various other attempts over the course of almost 15 years. A strategy called ''Operation Freakout'' sought "To get P.C incarcerated in a mental institution or jail, or at least to hit her so hard that she drops her attacks."<ref>http://www.shipbrook.com/jeff/CoS/docs/pcof1.html</ref><ref>http://www.holysmoke.org/pc/freako.htm</ref>

This plan was prevented from full implementation when a 1977 FBI raid on Scientology headquarters revealed the Scientology plot, among 48,000 documents detailing strategies against critics of the church. Comprehensive evidence revealed the theft of government documents by Scientology, spies planted in the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service, and the planting of listening devices, as part of ''Operation Snow White''.

The raid finally resulted in the conviction of Mary Sue Hubbard, wife of the Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard, and 10 more Scientologists. All received prison terms, though all are now free.<ref>Robert W. Welkos and Joel Sappell, 'Burglaries and Lies Paved a Path to Prison'' The Los Angeles Times, June 24, 1990</ref><ref>http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-scientologysidec062490,0,111873,print.story</ref><ref>The Watchman Expositor (Vol. 14, No. 5)</ref>

The original objective of Operation Snow White was to expose and expunge "all false and secret files of the nations of operating areas", and included plans to use blackmail, and to infiltrate and steal potentially damaging classified files on Scientology activities in various countries, from [[Algeria]] to the United States.<ref>http://xenu.net/archive/go/ops/go732/go732.htm</ref> These ranged from ''Operation Project DIG (AUDITION)'' in Australia, which called for giving compromising information on Conservative politicians to the Australian Labor Party so that the latter "could give the Federal Labor something to smear Victorian Conservatives with", to ''Project GRUMPY'' in Germany, which upheld obtaining files "by any means" from police, Interpol and immigration authorities.<ref>http://xenu.net/archive/go/ops/go732/go732p.htm</ref>

In 1991 [[Time magazine]] wrote a major exposé of Scientology, describing it as ''The Cult of Greed'', being <blockquote>
a hugely profitable, global racket that survives by intimidating members and critics in a Mafia-like manner. Scientology is quite likely the most ruthless, the most classically terroristic, the most litigious, and the most lucrative cult the country has ever seen.
<ref>[http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,972865,00.html Time, ''The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power'' pp. 32-33]</ref></blockquote>

Scientology unsuccessfully sued Time magazine over the revelatory story.<ref>http://www.watchman.org/sci/historyofterror.htm</ref>

Numerous other [[author]]s and publication have been additional targets of Scientology retaliation.<ref>http://www.lermanet.com/scientologynews/index.html</ref> In 1995, ''The American Jurist'' Magazine published, ''Dangerous Science: The Church of Scientology's Holy War against Critics'', which notes, <blockquote>
It is typical of the Church of Scientology to use lawsuits -- very many of which are dismissed as frivolous -- to intimidate, harass and quell its critics and defectors into silence. This scheme is even written into the church's doctrine.<ref>[http://www.lermanet.com/scientologynews/amjurist1195.html The American Jurist, November 1995]</ref> </blockquote>

Many other authorities have voiced concurring opinions,<ref>http://www.factnet.org/Scientology/crtquot.htm</ref> and or provided documented examples.<ref>http://www.lermanet.com/scientologyscandals/criminal.htm</ref><ref>[http://www.solitarytrees.net/pickets/sp944.htm ''Church of Scientology probes Herald reporter - Investigation follows pattern of harassment''. The Boston Herald, March 19, 1998</ref><ref>http://www.scientology-lies.com</ref>

In 1996, the popular ''Cult Awareness Network'', abbreviated as ''CAN'', a primary Scientology critic, was forced into bankruptcy by Scientology. An undercover Scientologist had infiltrated CAN, then 50 Scientologists filed suit against it, many containing almost identical language, after having sought to join the organization almost simultaneously and being denied. CAN's link to cult deprogramming enabled Scientology to file a lawsuit which resulted in a massive fine which added to CAN's legal debt, forcing bankruptcy. Legal maneuvering resulted in Scientology having control of the name and equipment, etc. and files of the old CAN, through Scientology associates. The files were then turned over to the ''Foundation for Religious Freedom'',<ref>http://www.apologeticsindex.org/c19.html</ref> one of many which serve as a "front" group for Scientology, or which are inordinately favorable to them.<ref>http://www.apologeticsindex.org/f00.html#ffrf</ref><ref>http://www.xenu.net/archive/IRS/#VIII</ref><ref>http://www.holysmoke.org/cos/cult-front-groups-latest.htm</ref>

An addition source of controversy has been the death of 36 year old Lisa McPherson at Scientology's Clearwater headquarters, which she was undergoing "care".<ref>http://www.watchman.org/sci/mcpherson.htm</ref>

Doctrinally Scientology is non-Christian (Hubbard even denied there was a Christ<ref>http://www.lermanet2.com/cos/nochrist.html</ref>), and is seen to be manifesting a form of [[New Age]] belief.<ref>http://www.watchman.org/sci/hubrel03.htm</ref> One researcher concludes that it is "an oversimplified form of regular psychotherapy mixed with hypnosis."<ref>Russell Miller,''Bare Faced Messiah'', Chapter 9</ref>

It is also pointed out that Satanist Aleister Crowley, was Hubbard's mentor and he lived with Crowley protege John Parsons, engaging in sex magic at their black magic mansion hospice (Los Angeles Times, 24 June 1990, p. A1).<ref>http://www.watchman.org/profile/sientpro.htm</ref>
<ref>http://www.clambake.org/archive/books/tsos/sos.html</ref>

Liberal religious cult apologist<ref>http://www.rickross.com/apologist.html</ref> J. Gordon Melton dismisses the charge that Scientology is a cult, as he does in regard to certain other dangerous groups.<ref>http://www.apologeticsindex.org/m06.html</ref><ref>http://www.apologeticsindex.org/c31.html</ref>

===Negative quotes===
Quotes from Scientology and other material<ref>http://www.xenu.net/archive/judge_quotes.html</ref> <ref>http://www.factnet.org/Scientology/shortquotes.htm</ref><ref>http://www.factnet.org/Scientology/sciequot.htm</ref> are often published in support of the critical position.

<blockquote>
If attacked on some vulnerable point by anyone or anything or any organization, always find or manufacture enough threat against them to cause them to sue for peace." - L. Ron Hubbard, Hubbard Communications Office Policy Letter, 15 August 1960, Dept. of Govt. Affairs
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
The purpose of the suit is to harass and discourage rather than to win. The law can be used very easily to harass, and enough harassment on somebody who is simply on the thin edge anyway, well knowing that he is not authorized, will generally be sufficient to cause his professional decease. If possible, of course, ruin him utterly. - L. Ron Hubbard, A Manual on the dissemination of material.
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
So we listen. We add up associations of people with people. When a push against Scientology starts somewhere, we go over the people involved and weed them out. Push vanishes." - L. Ron Hubbard, Manual of justice, 1959
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
A truly Suppressive Person or group has no rights of any kind and actions taken against them are not punishable.- L. Ron Hubbard, Hubbard Communications Office Policy Letter, 1 March 1965, HCO (Division 1) Ethics, Suppressive Acts, Suppression of Scientology and Scientologists</blockquote>
<blockquote>
[The court record is] replete with evidence [that Scientology] is nothing in reality but a vast enterprise to extract the maximum amount of money from its adepts by pseudo scientific theories… and to exercise a kind of blackmail against persons who do not wish to continue with their sect…. The organization clearly is schizophrenic and paranoid, and this bizarre combination seems to be a reflection of its founder, L.Ron Hubbard.” – Judge Breckenridge, Los Angeles Superior Court
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
Scientology is evil; its techniques are evil; its practice is a serious threat to the community, medically, morally, and socially; and its adherents are sadly deluded and often mentally ill… (Scientology is) the world’s largest organization of unqualified persons engaged in the practice of dangerous techniques which masquerade as mental therapy.” – Justice Anderson, Supreme Court of Victoria, Australia</blockquote>
<blockquote>
Scientology is quite likely the most ruthless, the most classically terroristic, the most litigious and the most lucrative cult the country has ever seen. No cult extracts more money from its members."
- Cynthia Kisser, the network's Chicago-based executive director, as quoted in Time, 5/6/91
</blockquote>

==Further reading==
*[http://www.watchman.org/sci/index.htm Various Christian doctrinal and historical articles on Scientology]
*[http://www.believersweb.org/view.cfm?ID=607 An exhaustive information source on Scientology]
*[http://www.factnet.org/Scientology/scirelg.htm Scientology as a "Religion"]
*[http://www.clambake.org Extensive information critical of Scientology from secular source]
*[http://www.waltermartin.com/scient.html Christian apologist Walter Martin on Scientology, audio and text]
*[http://www.xenutv.com Video source, including report by ABC’s Nightline]

== See also ==
*[[Scientific fraud]]
*[[Forgery]]
*[[Charles Manson]]

==External links ==
* [http://www.scientology.org/home.html Welcome to Scientology.]
* [http://www.beliefnet.com/Faiths/2001/06/What-Scientologists-Believe.aspx Beliefnet: What Scientologists Believe]
* [http://www.scientology.org/#/videos/ Official Church of Scientology]
* [http://www.bonafidescientology.org/ A REFERENCE WORK PRESENTED BY THE CHURCH OF SCIENTOLOGY INTERNATIONAL]
* [http://www.abundantgraceministries.org/new_page_5.htm From Science Fiction to Space-age Religion.]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

[[Category: Religion]]
[[Category:Pseudoscience]]
[[Category:Scientology]]
[[Category:Featured articles]]

Freedom

2012-02-28T00:08:19Z

EquisDulks:

[[image:USflag.jpg|thumb|right|350px|The flag of the [[United States]], a nation founded upon principles of personal freedom, has become a symbol of freedom and liberty in a wider sense, despite efforts with mixed results from both [[conservatives]] and [[liberals]] to hinder the freedom of American citizens.]]

'''Freedom''' is the state of being free or at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical restraint. More specifically, it can mean:

*Ability to act freely: a state in which somebody is able to act and live as he or she chooses, without being subject to any undue restraints or restrictions.
*Release from captivity or slavery: release or rescue from being physically bound, or from being confined, enslaved, captured, or imprisoned.
*The condition of being free; the power to act or speak or think without externally imposed restraints.
*Exemption: immunity from an obligation or duty.
*Civil liberty, as opposed to subjection to an arbitrary or despotic government.
*The right to enjoy all the privileges or special rights of citizenship, membership, etc., in a community or the like.

The desire for freedom was one of the founding principles of the United States of America. Today, freedom still stands proudly at the top of a list of aspirations for Americans. All Americans, no matter their creed or the color of their skin agrees that: "we shall have an association in which the free development of each is the condition for the free development of all".
<center>{{cquote|'''<big>Freedom incurs responsibility. That is why many men fear it.</big> -- [[George Bernard Shaw]]'''}}</center>
<center>{{cquote|'''<big>Freedom is one of the deepest and noblest aspirations of the human spirit.</big>-- [[Ronald Reagan]]'''}}</center> 

== Freedom & St Paul's Letter to the Galatians ==

John Hanneman wrote, "Inner freedom has to do with the very essence of our being." This "inner freedom" is the theme of [[St Paul]]'s letter to the [[Galatians]].

The [[Greek]] words for freedom appear 36 times in the [[New Testament]]. Paul uses them 28 times in his letters, and 10 times in Galatians alone. The purpose of this letter is clear: to explain how [[Christians]] have been released from the law and been given freedom in [[Christ]], how the [[Holy Spirit|Spirit]] has replaced the [[Torah]] in our lives.

Galatians reveals why people struggle so much with law. It identifies the key ingredient to becoming free, and how people can enjoy freedom in Christ. Paul writes: {{Bible quote|It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.|book=Galatians|chap=5|verses=1|version=NIV}}
In his word of greeting in the introduction, he says: {{Bible quote|Grace to you and peace from [[Father God|God our Father]], and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us out of this present evil age, according to the will of God the Father.|book=Galatians|chap=1|verses=3-4|version=NASB}} Here the [[apostle]] defines what he means by freedom. Following his wish for "grace and peace," he uses two phrases that capture for Christians the two ways they are free as a result of their relationship with God.

The first phrase is that the Lord Jesus Christ "gave Himself for our sins." Here the Apostle is describing our freedom from slavery to the power of [[sin]]. This is the great doctrine of [[Justification]]. We are born into sin, separated from God, but this separation can be overcome because God sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins. Through this [[atonement]], all of our sins, past, present, and future, have been paid for - all we need do is put our [[faith]] in Christ. John Stott comments: "The death of Jesus Christ was primarily neither a display of [[love]], nor an example of heroism, but a sacrifice for sin."<ref>http://www.speraindeo.org/julread.html</ref><ref>http://www.pbcc.org/sermons/hanneman/968.html</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External Links==
*[http://www.aim.org/wls/category/freedom/ What Liberals Say - Category: Freedom], [[Accuracy In Media]]

[[Category: United States of America]]
[[Category:Bible Study]]

Freedom

2012-02-28T00:07:59Z

EquisDulks:

[[image:USflag.jpg|thumb|right|350px|The flag of the [[United States]], a nation founded upon principles of personal freedom, has become a symbol of freedom and liberty in a wider sense, despite efforts with mixed results from both [[conservatives]] and [[liberals]] to hinder freedom of American citizens.]]

'''Freedom''' is the state of being free or at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical restraint. More specifically, it can mean:

*Ability to act freely: a state in which somebody is able to act and live as he or she chooses, without being subject to any undue restraints or restrictions.
*Release from captivity or slavery: release or rescue from being physically bound, or from being confined, enslaved, captured, or imprisoned.
*The condition of being free; the power to act or speak or think without externally imposed restraints.
*Exemption: immunity from an obligation or duty.
*Civil liberty, as opposed to subjection to an arbitrary or despotic government.
*The right to enjoy all the privileges or special rights of citizenship, membership, etc., in a community or the like.

The desire for freedom was one of the founding principles of the United States of America. Today, freedom still stands proudly at the top of a list of aspirations for Americans. All Americans, no matter their creed or the color of their skin agrees that: "we shall have an association in which the free development of each is the condition for the free development of all".
<center>{{cquote|'''<big>Freedom incurs responsibility. That is why many men fear it.</big> -- [[George Bernard Shaw]]'''}}</center>
<center>{{cquote|'''<big>Freedom is one of the deepest and noblest aspirations of the human spirit.</big>-- [[Ronald Reagan]]'''}}</center> 

== Freedom & St Paul's Letter to the Galatians ==

John Hanneman wrote, "Inner freedom has to do with the very essence of our being." This "inner freedom" is the theme of [[St Paul]]'s letter to the [[Galatians]].

The [[Greek]] words for freedom appear 36 times in the [[New Testament]]. Paul uses them 28 times in his letters, and 10 times in Galatians alone. The purpose of this letter is clear: to explain how [[Christians]] have been released from the law and been given freedom in [[Christ]], how the [[Holy Spirit|Spirit]] has replaced the [[Torah]] in our lives.

Galatians reveals why people struggle so much with law. It identifies the key ingredient to becoming free, and how people can enjoy freedom in Christ. Paul writes: {{Bible quote|It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.|book=Galatians|chap=5|verses=1|version=NIV}}
In his word of greeting in the introduction, he says: {{Bible quote|Grace to you and peace from [[Father God|God our Father]], and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us out of this present evil age, according to the will of God the Father.|book=Galatians|chap=1|verses=3-4|version=NASB}} Here the [[apostle]] defines what he means by freedom. Following his wish for "grace and peace," he uses two phrases that capture for Christians the two ways they are free as a result of their relationship with God.

The first phrase is that the Lord Jesus Christ "gave Himself for our sins." Here the Apostle is describing our freedom from slavery to the power of [[sin]]. This is the great doctrine of [[Justification]]. We are born into sin, separated from God, but this separation can be overcome because God sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins. Through this [[atonement]], all of our sins, past, present, and future, have been paid for - all we need do is put our [[faith]] in Christ. John Stott comments: "The death of Jesus Christ was primarily neither a display of [[love]], nor an example of heroism, but a sacrifice for sin."<ref>http://www.speraindeo.org/julread.html</ref><ref>http://www.pbcc.org/sermons/hanneman/968.html</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External Links==
*[http://www.aim.org/wls/category/freedom/ What Liberals Say - Category: Freedom], [[Accuracy In Media]]

[[Category: United States of America]]
[[Category:Bible Study]]

Freedom

2012-02-28T00:07:43Z

EquisDulks:

[[image:USflag.jpg|thumb|right|350px|The flag of the [[United States]], a nation founded upon principles of personal freedom, has become a symbol of freedom and liberty in a wider sense, despite efforts with mixed results from both [[conservatives]] and [[liberals]] to hinder freedom of American citizens.

'''Freedom''' is the state of being free or at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical restraint. More specifically, it can mean:

*Ability to act freely: a state in which somebody is able to act and live as he or she chooses, without being subject to any undue restraints or restrictions.
*Release from captivity or slavery: release or rescue from being physically bound, or from being confined, enslaved, captured, or imprisoned.
*The condition of being free; the power to act or speak or think without externally imposed restraints.
*Exemption: immunity from an obligation or duty.
*Civil liberty, as opposed to subjection to an arbitrary or despotic government.
*The right to enjoy all the privileges or special rights of citizenship, membership, etc., in a community or the like.

The desire for freedom was one of the founding principles of the United States of America. Today, freedom still stands proudly at the top of a list of aspirations for Americans. All Americans, no matter their creed or the color of their skin agrees that: "we shall have an association in which the free development of each is the condition for the free development of all".
<center>{{cquote|'''<big>Freedom incurs responsibility. That is why many men fear it.</big> -- [[George Bernard Shaw]]'''}}</center>
<center>{{cquote|'''<big>Freedom is one of the deepest and noblest aspirations of the human spirit.</big>-- [[Ronald Reagan]]'''}}</center> 

== Freedom & St Paul's Letter to the Galatians ==

John Hanneman wrote, "Inner freedom has to do with the very essence of our being." This "inner freedom" is the theme of [[St Paul]]'s letter to the [[Galatians]].

The [[Greek]] words for freedom appear 36 times in the [[New Testament]]. Paul uses them 28 times in his letters, and 10 times in Galatians alone. The purpose of this letter is clear: to explain how [[Christians]] have been released from the law and been given freedom in [[Christ]], how the [[Holy Spirit|Spirit]] has replaced the [[Torah]] in our lives.

Galatians reveals why people struggle so much with law. It identifies the key ingredient to becoming free, and how people can enjoy freedom in Christ. Paul writes: {{Bible quote|It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.|book=Galatians|chap=5|verses=1|version=NIV}}
In his word of greeting in the introduction, he says: {{Bible quote|Grace to you and peace from [[Father God|God our Father]], and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us out of this present evil age, according to the will of God the Father.|book=Galatians|chap=1|verses=3-4|version=NASB}} Here the [[apostle]] defines what he means by freedom. Following his wish for "grace and peace," he uses two phrases that capture for Christians the two ways they are free as a result of their relationship with God.

The first phrase is that the Lord Jesus Christ "gave Himself for our sins." Here the Apostle is describing our freedom from slavery to the power of [[sin]]. This is the great doctrine of [[Justification]]. We are born into sin, separated from God, but this separation can be overcome because God sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins. Through this [[atonement]], all of our sins, past, present, and future, have been paid for - all we need do is put our [[faith]] in Christ. John Stott comments: "The death of Jesus Christ was primarily neither a display of [[love]], nor an example of heroism, but a sacrifice for sin."<ref>http://www.speraindeo.org/julread.html</ref><ref>http://www.pbcc.org/sermons/hanneman/968.html</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External Links==
*[http://www.aim.org/wls/category/freedom/ What Liberals Say - Category: Freedom], [[Accuracy In Media]]

[[Category: United States of America]]
[[Category:Bible Study]]

Mike Huckabee

2012-02-26T19:38:15Z

EquisDulks:

{{Officeholder
|name=Mike Huckabee
|image=Hdyute7.jpg
|party=[[Republican]]
|spouse=[[Janet Huckabee]] (1974-present)
|religion=Baptist
|offices=
{{Officeholder/governor
|state=Arkansas
|terms=July 15, 1996-January 9, 2007
|preceded=Jim Guy Tucker
|succeeded=[[Mike Beebe]]
|former=n
}}
}}
'''Mike Huckabee''' (born August 24, 1955) is an American politician who served 11 years as governor of Arkansas (1996-2007) and was the runner-up to winner [[John McCain]] in the contest for the 2008 Republican nomination for president. <ref>[http://www2.arkansasonline.com/news/2008/mar/04/huckabee-bows-out/ ''Huckabee bows out''] 5 March 2008 Arkansas Online</ref> A former [[Baptist]] minister, he is [[conservative]] on the issues of [[abortion]], [[gun control]], [[homosexuality]] and [[evolution]].

Huckabee, after many years as a television personality and motivational speaker, combines conservative policy positions with a winsome friendly attitude that puts voters at ease. He came under attack as a "tax-and-spend liberal", especially by rival [[Fred Thompson]].<ref>See criticism reported by Jennifer Rubin, "Romney and Huckabee: Club for Growth Comparisons," [http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=22081 from ''Human Events'' Aug. 24, 2007] </ref> Huckabee's funding base was meager, with his family providing much of his organizational support. Throughout the presidential primary, Huckabee was viewed favorably by conservatives and Christian organizations such as the [[Homeschool Legal Defense Association]]. Former Speaker of the House [[Newt Gingrich]] predicted that Huckabee would catch on with Republican primary voters, calling him "the most interesting dark horse".<ref>http://www.wmcstations.com/Global/story.asp?S=6899608</ref>

Critical to his move from obscurity to the top rank of political contenders was his evangelical base, his conservatism, his appeal to southerners and his winsome personality.<ref> Dan Balz, "Huckabee's Rise and Rise," [http://blog.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2007/12/10/post_234.html ''Washington Post'' Dec. 10, 2007]; Michael D. Shear and Juliet Eilperin, "Suddenly, Huckabee Is in Romney's Rearview Mirror," [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/24/AR2007112401338_pf.html ''Washington Post'' Nov. 25, 2007]; "Shields and Brooks Mull Iowa Election Push, Baseball Scandal" [http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/politics/july-dec07/sbbaseball_12-14.html PBS, Dec. 14, 2007]</ref>
After losing to McCain Huckabee became a contributor on Fox News <ref>http://embeds.blogs.foxnews.com/2008/06/12/huckabee-joins-fox-as-contributor/ Huckabee joins Fox as Contributor </ref> and now hosts his own show called 'Huckabee.'

Conservatives in Arkansas and nationally have attacked his very lenient policy of pardoning criminals, some of whom went on to commit horrendous crimes, such as Maurice Clemmons, who murdered four police officers in Seattle in Nov. 2009. Other conservatives defend his actions in terms of Christian forgiveness. "This disaster is just one of Huckabee’s ill-considered clemency legacies," said [[Michelle Malkin]], while [[Rush Limbaugh]] referred to Clemmons as "Huckabee's Willie Horton". Huckabee faced conservative criticism during the 2008 primaries for granting a pardon to convicted rapist Wayne DuMond. Like Clemmons, DuMond returned to a life of crime, earning a second conviction before dying in prison in 2005.<ref> Conservatives lambasted Democratic presidential nominee [[Mike Dukakis]] in 1992 for his actions as governor in allowing Horton to go free. See [http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1109/30014.html Andy Barr, "Conservatives hammer Mike Huckabee over shooting," ''Politico'' Nov. 30, 2009]</ref>

==Career==
Huckabee was born and raised in Hope, Arkansas into a working class family.<ref> He did not overlap in Hope with [[Bill Clinton]] (1946- ) who was also born in Hope; Clinton left as a small child.</ref> Huckabee in his early teens became a radio announcer and preacher. He attended nearby Oachita Baptist College (BA 1975), and studied theology at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Dallas, Texas (1976-80, no degree.) He was minister at Baptist churches in Pine Bluff and Texarkana, Arkansas in the 1980s, gaining fame for his preaching style and for his religious shows on television. He was elected in 1989 as president of the Arkansas Baptist Convention, with 490,000 members; he was elected as a moderate in opposition to the hardline conservatives.

Huckabee is the author of health books featuring his exercise and weight-loss exercise program, and bass guitar player for his rock band, Capitol Offense. He is married to Janet (née McCain); they have three children.

==2008 Caucuses and Primaries==
''Main Article: [[Mike Huckabee 2008 Presidential Campaign]]''

Almost unknown in mid 2007, he climbed the polls steadily and won the closely watched Iowa caucus on Jan. 3, 2008. His base of support comprises "born again" evangelical Christians, who comprise 35% of the GOP voters.<ref>. Evangelicals comprise 48%-68% of Republicans in the South and border states, 47% in Iowa, and only 11% in New Hampshire. Andrew Kohut, "The G.O.P.’s Unanswered Question," [http://campaignstops.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/01/11/the-gops-unanswered-question/ ''New York Times'' Jan. 11, 2008]</ref>

Huckabee's campaign started to take off in summer 2007 after the high profile [[Ames Straw Poll]], where he came in 2nd place (18%) to Gov. Romney's 32%, ahead of Sen. Brownback's 15%. He won second place despite far less name recognition and far less spending - he spent about $35 per vote, whereas Romney spent more than $500 per vote. His victory placed him in the top tier of Republican primary candidates.<ref>http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/08/12/ftn/main3159786.shtml</ref><ref>http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=22081</ref><ref>http://www.americanresearchgroup.com/</ref> His second surge began after the Republican [[YouTube]] debate, where he was seen as calm, reasonable and positive next to the other candidates, many of whom attacked each other.

He was the winner of the straw poll after the Sept. 17th "valuesdebate".<ref>http://www.earnedmedia.org/kg0918.htm</ref> In October 2007, Huckabee overwhelmingly won the high-profile Family Research Counsel's Value Voter Summit straw poll. Out of those attending, Huckabee received more votes then all other candidates combined.<ref>http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/news/politics/blog/2007/10/romney_camp_stacking_the_value.html</ref>

Poll numbers show that Huckabee's strong debate performances, communication skills and likability had him steadily moving up in key primary states. He was victorious in the Republican Caucuses at the [[Iowa Caucuses]]<ref>http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/04/21/s.c.straw.poll/index.html</ref>, and came in third place in the New Hampshire Primary, where he personally expected to not even place in the top three.<ref>http://youdecide08.foxnews.com/2008/01/08/hillary-clinton-john-mccain-take-early-lead-in-new-hampshire-primary/</ref>

Huckabee perfected the shoestring operation. He raised only $2.3 million by October 2007, less than 5% of the money of each main rival. He never had enough money to send advance teams to organize events or drum up crowds, nor could he afford fund-raising operations, private polls, big-name political consultants, or a staff of policy advisers and media experts. He relied on volunteers from churches and the home-school movement to schedule his events. The retail politics of the first states did not cost much. He won in Iowa by relying on his quick wit, fluent oratory, and in lieu of commercials, as many TV and radio talk-show appearances as he could schedule. To draw crowds his rallies featured Hollywood star [[Chuck Norris]] and his own playing the bass guitar with local rock bands. As the election calendar turned to larger states he lacked the cash to compete, so in late Jan. 2008 he cut back on Florida operations to concentrate on a few smaller, overlooked southern states on Feb. 5.<ref>David D. Kirkpatrick, "Huckabee’s Money Woes Curtail Campaign," [http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/01/22/huckabees-money-woes-curtail-campaign/ ''New York Times'' Jan. 22. 2008]</ref>

He came in third in the [[Michigan]] primaries and a close second to McCain in [[South Carolina]]. He came fourth in the Florida Primary, losing to McCain, Romney, and Giuliani. Although he lost ground after a consistent string of defeats, he continued on to [[Super Tuesday]]. He succeeded in [[Alabama]], [[Arkansas]] (his home state), [[Georgia]], [[Tennessee]] and [[West Virginia]]. His success helped cause Mitt Romney to withdraw from the race. Despite McCain's unbeatable lead in delegates, Huckabee continued on trying to cause a split convention. He won the primaries in [[Kansas]] and [[Louisiana]]. But he lost all the primaries on [[Super Tuesday II]] and McCain succeeded in gaining the 1,191 delegates needed to win. Huckabee withdrew and endorsed Senator McCain.

He spoke at the Republican National Convention in favor of the McCain/Palin ticket, along with his former rivals, [[Fred Thompson]], [[Rudy Giuliani]], [[Mitt Romney]], and [[Sam Brownback]].

== Record as Governor ==
As governor of Arkansas, Huckabee both cut and raised taxes. For example, during his ten years in office, the Arkansas legislature enacted increases in tobacco, sales, and fuels taxes; however he also signed into legislation tax cuts over 90 times during that period. During his tenure as Governor welfare rolls declined by nearly half, and last year the state's economy grew 4.4%, beating the national average of 4.2%.<ref>http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1129494,00.html</ref>

In 1997 he introduced ARKids First, a health care plan which cut the number of Arkansas uninsured children in half.<ref>http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1129494,00.html</ref>

Throughout his tenure he also supported and helped pass pro-life bills through the Democrat controlled legislature.

In 2005 [[Time Magazine]] declared him one of "America's 5 Best Governors".<ref>http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1129494,00.html</ref>

In a controversial move, Huckabee aggressively pushed for the release of [[Wayne DuMond]], a serial rapist who had raped a 17-year-old girl, [[Ashley Stevens]]. Conservative Christians came in support of DuMond, after he had converted to Christianity in prison. Huckabee became DuMond's public advocate, writing him a personal letter of support and lobbying for his release to the state parole board. <ref>http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=45053</ref> The parole board agreed. Huckabee has denied having any involvement with Wayne DuMond, and his website claims he had not pressured the state parole board, despite three of the parole board members saying he had done so.

== Political Beliefs ==
===Taxes===
As governor, he signed the first broad-based tax-cut in state history and cut taxes over ninety times. Huckabee believes that the United States should enact a tax system known as the [[FairTax]], this system replaces the income tax with a voluntary consumption tax. Recently he signed the Presidential Taxpayer Protection Pledge to Americans for Tax Reform which promises to not raise taxes if elected president.<ref>http://www.atr.org/content/html/2007/march/030207pr-huckabeesignspledge.html</ref>

===Spending===
During his tenure, state spending rose 65.3% between 1996 and 2004, which was 3 times the rate of inflation. This has led to strong criticism from conservative groups like the [[Club for Growth]]. However, when he left office there was a surplus of over $800 million.<ref>http://www.clubforgrowth.org/2007/01/a_report_on_mike_huckabees_fis.php</ref> Huckabee has called on Bush to veto more spending bills by the democrat controlled congress.<ref>http://www.ajc.com/news/content/metro/cobb/stories/2007/09/08/huckabee_0909.html</ref> In August 2007, Grover Norquist, the president of Americans for Tax Reform, stated "Gov. Huckabee recognizes that the challenge is to rein in spending and reduce taxes."<ref>http://www.atr.org/content/html/2007/march/030207pr-huckabeesignspledge.html</ref>

===Abortion===
According to ''[[National Review]]'', as Governor of Arkansas, Huckabee signed a bill requiring parental consent for [[abortion]], and mandating notification by abortion providers to prospective parents that the unborn baby may feel pain, he also helped pass a bill through the Democratic-controlled legislature which stated that life began at conception.<ref>http://www.explorehuckabee.com/index.cfm?FuseAction=Issues.View&Issue_ID=11</ref><ref>http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=NmNjMmI1ODhjNGVlZWFmNTlmMGNiZTVjYTg1NTUzMTk=</ref> He also signed the Fetal Protection Act. He is known to be strongly pro-life.

He would favor [[Roe v. Wade]] being overturned and the federal governments recognition that life begins at conception.

===Marriage===
Huckabee is opposed to same sex marriage and civil unions. He also is a strong advocate for fathers' participation in child-raising.<ref>http://www.ontheissues.org/Mike_Huckabee.htm</ref>

===Second Amendment Rights===
As governor, he signed bills blocking frivolous lawsuits against gun manufacturers and removing restrictions on concealed [[Handgun permits|handgun permit]] holders. He became the first governor in the nation to have a concealed handgun license.<ref>http://www.explorehuckabee.com</ref>

===Immigration===
Huckabee opposed the McCain-Kennedy [[immigration]] bill because he stated it had problems with "credibility; secrecy; and spending".<ref>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Huckabee</ref> He believes the United States should seal the border first and deport illegal immigrants who have committed crimes.<ref>http://www.mikehuckabee.com/index.cfm?FuseAction=Issues.View&Issue_id=4</ref>

==Vertical Politics==
While campaigning, Huckabee has referred to what he calls Vertical Politics - politics aimed at making America stronger rather than festering [[Partisan politics in the United States|partisanship]]. Huckabee said, "Everywhere I go on the campaign trail, I meet voters with a real thirst for a healthy discussion of the issues. Ultimately, people don't care whether an issue comes from the left or the right. What they want to talk about are ideas that lift America up and make us better. It's what I call 'Vertical Politics'." <ref>http://www.mikehuckabee.com/index.cfm?FuseAction=verticalday.home</ref>

== Personal ==
[[Image:HuckabeeBand.JPG|right|thumb|200px|Huckabee playing with his band, ''Capital Offense'', during the 2007 [[Iowa Straw Poll]]]]
Huckabee was born in Hope, Arkansas, the same town where former president [[Bill Clinton]] was born. This coincidence led to one of Huckabee's campaign slogans, "give Hope one more chance."
Huckabee lost 110 pounds while governor of Arkansas and documented his weight loss and set out a 12-step plan for weight loss in his book ''Quit Digging Your Grave With a Knife and Fork.''<ref>http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7752179/site/newsweek/</ref> He has also made childhood obesity a major platform issue. He became the first person in his family to attend college when he attended Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, in Fort Worth, Texas; he graduated in only two and a half years.

The 52-year-old former governor and his wife live in [[Little Rock]] and have three grown children. Huckabee enjoys playing in his rock-n-roll band, Capitol Offense, which has played at the House of Blues in New Orleans, the Red Rocks Amphitheater in Denver, and for two presidential inauguration balls.
[[Image:Huckabee1.jpg|thumb|290px|left|[http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/12-09-2007/0004719299&EDATE= Dec. 17, 2007 with cover story]]]
==Quotes==
* "We've had a [[congress]] that's spent money like [[John Edwards]] at a beauty shop."<ref>''GOP presidential debate'' May 2006 [http://www.gopusa.com/theloft/?p=456 The Loft] Accessed 3 January 2008.</ref>
* "…my [[faith]] is my life. It defines me. I see no separation between my faith from my personal and professional lives."<ref>''Faith and Politics'' [http://www.mikehuckabee.com/?FuseAction=Issues.View&Issue_id=9 mikehuckabee.com] Accessed 3 January 2008.</ref>
* "When it comes to the red tape in government, I don't think I can part the Red Sea but I believe I can part the red tape."<ref>''GOP presidential debate'' Iowa, 12 December 2007.</ref>
* "[Some of my opponents] do not want to change the Constitution, but I believe it's a lot easier to change the constitution than it would be to change the word of the living God, and that's what we need to do is to amend the Constitution so it's in God's standards rather than try to change God's standards."<ref>''http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/01/15/579265.aspx''[http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/01/15/579265.aspx]</ref>
* "To think that we're going to go lock up 12 million people, or even round them up and drive them to the border and let them go, might make a great political speech, but it's not going to happen." ''[[Washington Post]]'', May, 2006.
* "(I) propose to provide all illegal immigrants a 120-day window to register with the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services and leave the country." ''Secure America Plan", December, 2007.
* "I didn’t major in math. I majored in miracles and I still believe in them." (In response to questions about his continuing campaign even after the liberal news media dismissed his primary campaign as a failure.)<ref>''Mike Huckabee's campaign rolls on'' February 2008 [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1578452/Mike-Huckabee%27s-campaign-rolls-on.html]</ref>

==Endorsements==
====Organizations====
For the first time in the organizations history, the [[Homeschool Legal Defense Association]] Political Action Committee endorsed a political candidate. The organization, which consists of 90,000 members, stated that they decided to endorse Huckabee because of he was, "[[conservative]], a friend of [[homeschooling]], a man of character, and a man with a mature faith in [[Jesus Christ]]".<ref>http://huckabee08.blogspot.com/2007/06/huckabee-on-roll-endorsements-and-polls.html</ref>

===South Carolina===
Huckabee has received some key endorsement during the course of his primary race. One such endorsement came from former [[South Carolina]] Governor, [[David Beasley]], who had before planned on staying on the sidelines throughout the [[Republican]] primary.<ref>http://www.sptimes.com/2007/05/27/news_pf/Opinion/Huckabee_s__a_maratho.shtml</ref>

Huckabee received another South Carolina endorsement from Iris Campbell, the former South Carolina First Lady and wife of former governor, the late [[Mike Campbell]].<ref>http://hotlineblog.nationaljournal.com/archives/2007/02/endorsement_wat.html</ref> During Mike Campbell's time in office, from 1987 to 1994, his endorsement of [[Ronald Reagan]] boosted the underdog's presidential primary race.

===Virginia===
In August 2007, Huckabee received a key endorsement from [[Virginia]]'s House of Delegates Speaker [[William J. Howell]]. Howell has been a member of the Board of Directors of the [[American Legislative Exchange Council ]](ALEC), the nation’s largest bipartisan, individual membership association of state legislators.<ref>http://www.mikehuckabee.com/index.cfm?FuseAction=NewsRoom.PressRelease&ID=216</ref>

===New Hampshire===
Huckabee picked up some key endorsements in the very significant primary in [[New Hampshire]]. In August 2007, New Hampshire's former Senator, Russell Prescott, and former Executive Councilor David Wheeler endorsed Huckabee.<ref>http://www.boston.com/news/local/politics/primarysource/2007/08/huckabee_endors.html</ref> Both figures remain very popular with social conservatives in the state.<ref>http://www.boston.com/news/local/politics/primarysource/2007/08/huckabee_endors.html</ref>

== External Links ==
* [http://www.mikehuckabee.com/ Mike Huckabee (official)]
*[http://www.mikehuckabee.com/index.cfm?FuseAction=Blogs.Home Huckabee Campaign Blog]
*[http://www.hucksarmy.com/ Grassroots Website]
*[http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=ZDA2NzhkZGI2ZjA4NWI2NmMyYzNkNjY1Y2QzMzlmYzA=Governors Win, The case for Mike Huckabee.], [[National Review]], S. T. Karnick, August 2007
*[http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=24068 There’s a Huckabee Born Every Minute], [[Ann Coulter]], [[Human Events]], 12/19/2007

==External Videos==
*[http://www.hucksarmy.com/video.php Huckabee online video collection]
===Supporter Videos===
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILPcnn9Sf94&eurl=http://www.mikehuckabee.com/index.cfm?FuseAction=Blogs.Home Huckabee - Cinderella Man]
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwfzk5RSQy4&eurl=http://www.hucksarmy.com/video.php?video=we_like_mike_huckabee We Like Mike - Huckabee]
*[http://www.hucksarmy.com/video.php?video=i_heart_huckabee_colbert_stewart I heart Huckabee]
===Personal Story===
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3YR3grKJ3Q&eurl=http://www.hucksarmy.com/video.php?video=story_of_mike_huckabee Part 1]
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8aBVYKpZNQ&feature=related Part 2]
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VZufUe0HGs&feature=related Part 3]
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tXZKfUg97o&feature=related Part 4]
===Ads===
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjYv2YW6azE&eurl=http://www.hucksarmy.com/video.php?video=chuck_norris_huckabee_facts "HuckChuckFacts"]

===Speeches===
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysdguwpgNZ0&eurl=http://www.hucksarmy.com/video.php?video=huckabee_family_research-01 FRC's Value Voter Summit Speech Part 1]
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Af5qyUzRT68&feature=related Value Voter Summit Speech Part 2]
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5v_qB0VDNI&feature=related FRC's Value Voter Summit Speech Part 3]
==Bibliography==
* Barone, Michael, and Richard E, Cohen. ''Almanac of American Politics: 2006'' (2005)

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Huckabee, Mike}}
[[Category:Republican Governors]]
[[Category:Arkansas Governors]]
[[Category:Former Governors]]
[[Category:Conservatives]]
[[Category:Clergy]]
[[Category:2008 Presidential Candidates]]
[[Category:Reagan Era]]
[[Category:Religion and Politics]]
[[Category:The 100 Americans The Left Hates Most]]

Ludwig von Mises

2012-02-26T19:35:31Z

EquisDulks:

[[Image:Ur8756.jpg|right|thumb|Ludwig von Mises]]
'''Ludwig von Mises''' (1881-1973) was an [[Austria]]n-born [[economist]] who emigrated to the [[United States]] to escape [[Nazi]] persecution. He was an [[advocate]] of free market and ''[[laissez-faire]]'' policies, and was an outspoken critic of [[socialism]] and is considered the founder the "neo-Austrian School" of economics, favored by many [[libertarianism|libertarians]]. Mises also felt that [[government]] should not take positions on morality.

Mises built on the [[Austrian School of Economics]] founded by [[Carl Menger]], as expressed in his book ''Principles of Economics''. Mises supported the Austrian emphasis on individual action and the benefits of a [[free-market economy]].

Mises' classic work was "The Theory of Money and Credit" (1912), in which he integrated [[macroeconomics]] into [[microeconomics]] by integrating the theory of money into the general theory of marginal utility. Other Austrian economists rejected his work, forcing Mises to start a neo-Austrian school of economics.

Mises felt that society does not benefit from an increase in the money supply, that increased money and bank credit causes [[inflation]] and business cycles. Mises supported a 100 percent gold standard.

A student of Mises, [[F.A. Hayek]], won the [[Nobel Prize]] in economics in 1974 for elaborating on Mises' business cycle theory.

<blockquote>
''Economic theory has demonstrated in an irrefutable way that a prosperity created by an expansionist monetary and credit policy is illusory and must end in a slump, an economic crisis. It has happened again and again in the past, and it will happen in the future, too.'' [http://oll.libertyfund.org/?option=com_staticxt&staticfile=show.php%3Ftitle=1887&chapter=109644&layout=html&Itemid=27]
</blockquote>

==Quotes==
* "Nothing can be expected from the future if men do not realize that they were on the wrong path."

==Books by Ludwig von Mises==

* ''The Theory of Money and Credit''
* ''Nation, State, and Economy''
* ''Socialism: An Economic and Sociological Analysis''
* ''Critique of Interventionism''
* ''Liberalism''
* ''Epistemological Problems of Economics''
* ''Omnipotent Government: The Rise of Total State and Total War''
* ''[http://www.mises.org/etexts/mises/bureaucracy.asp Bureaucracy]''
* ''Human Action: A Treatise on Economics''
* ''Theory and History: An Interpretation of Social and Economic Evolution''
* ''The Anti-Capitalistic Mentality''
* ''The Ultimate Foundation of Economic Science''

:::::''Mises wrote Human Action (1949), the most comprehensive case for economic liberty ever written.'' [http://www.theadvocates.org/celebrities/ludwig-von-mises.html]

===E-Books===
* [http://www.fee.org/library/books/thefree.asp ''The Free Market and Its Enemies: Pseudo-Science, Socialism, and Inflation''] Lecture Series, Volume 1, with an introduction by Richard Ebeling.
* [http://oll.libertyfund.org/Home3/Author.php?recordID=0184 Nine Books by Mises], made available online by the [http://www.libertyfund.org/index.htm Liberty Fund].
* [http://www.mises.org/humanaction.asp ''Human Action: A treatise on economics''] 1949 (4th edition, 1996). San Francisco: Fox & Wilkes. ISBN 0-930073-18-5. Made available online by The Ludwig von Mises Institute.
* [http://www.mises.org/humanaction/pdf/HumanActionScholars.pdf ''Human Action: The Scholars Edition''] Auburn, Alabama: Mises Institute, 1999. Re-issue of the classic 1949 Edition with new introduction and expanded index.
* [http://www.mises.org/etexts/mises/critique/contents.asp ''A Critique of Interventionism''], The Ludwig von Mises Institute.
* [http://www.mises.org/etexts/mises/anticap.asp ''The Anti-Capitalistic Mentality''], Libertarian Press 1990.
* [http://www.mises.org/efandi.asp ''Economic Freedom and Interventionism''], The Ludwig von Mises Institute.
* [http://www.mises.org/etexts/ecopol.asp ''Economic Policy: Thoughts for Today and Tomorrow''] Second Edition, with a New Introduction by [[Bettina Bien Greaves]], The Ludwig von Mises Institute.
* [http://www.mises.org/hsofase.asp ''The Historical Setting of the Austrian School of Economics''], The Ludwig von Mises Institute.
* [http://www.mises.org/liberal.asp ''Liberalism: In the Classical Tradition''], Online edition Copyright The Mises Institute, 2000.
* [http://www.mises.org/books/Theory_Money_Credit/Contents.aspx ''The Theory of Money and Credit'']. 1912 integration of microeconomics and macroeconomics. ISBN 0-913966-71-1. Online edition Copyright The Mises Institute.
* [http://www.mises.org/books/socialism/contents.aspx ''Socialism: An Economic and Sociological Analysis''] Von Mises' critique of Socialism
* [http://www.mises.org/th.asp ''Theory and History'']. 1957 treatise on social and economic evolution, with a preface by Murray N. Rothbard. Online edition Copyright The Mises Institute, 2000.

== See also ==

*[[Austrian School of Economics]]
*[[Capitalism]]
*[[Enterprise]]
*[[Friedrich Hayek]]
*[[Libertarianism]]
*[[Milton Friedman]]
*[[Murray Rothbard]]

==External Links==
*[http://mises.org/ Ludwig Von Misses Institute]

{{DEFAULTSORT: Mises, Ludwig von }}

[[Category:Economists]]
[[Category:Capitalists]]
[[Category:Libertarianism]]

Liberal values

2012-02-26T00:05:25Z

EquisDulks:

'''Liberal values''' refers to the [[values|value system]] commonly held by [[liberals]], just as [[Professor values]] and [[Hollywood values]] do for professors and Hollywood respectively. Liberal values tend to stand in stark opposition to [[conservative values]] and thus reject those things which [[conservatives]] hold to be dear and true. This includes, but is not limited to:

* Failing to educate others, particularly younger people, about the harm caused by a lack of conservative values.
* [[Censorship]] of ideas not deemed [[political correctness|politically correct]]. E.g., Liberal students protest or disrupt conservative guest speakers on [[college]] campuses.
* [[Liberal denial|Denial]] of politically incorrect truths such as the link between [[abortion]] and [[breast cancer]].
* Opposition to the [[free market]], instead favoring heavy [[socialism|regulation]].
* A desire for equal outcomes as opposed to equal opportunity.
* Excessive emphasis on awards and titles, especially those awarded by liberal institutions.
* To judge something immoral behavior is tantamount to being a bigot.
* [[Bigotry]] itself, an almost uniquely [[liberal]] trait.
* Confusing [[separation of church and state]] with state-sanctioned [[atheism]].
* A willingness to excuse any aggressive and irreverent behaviour in other countries, while harshly criticizing their own.
* Strict [[materialism]] and an overreliance on narrowly defined "reality".
* Contempt for authorities. [on the implication, of course, that the authorities in question are conservatives]
* Mistaking conclusions for facts.

'''In general, liberal values tend to undermine traditional society, and in certain instances can cause irreparable harm to the lives of individuals who are brought under their sway.'''

{{Liberalism}}

Liberal values

2012-02-26T00:04:29Z

EquisDulks:

'''Liberal values''' refers to the [[values|value system]] commonly held by [[liberals]], just as [[Professor values]] and [[Hollywood values]] do for professors and Hollywood respectively. Liberal values tend to stand in stark opposition to [[conservative values]] and thus reject those things which [[conservatives]] hold to be dear and true. This includes, but is not limited to:

* Failing to educate others, particularly younger people, about the harm caused by a lack of conservative values.
* [[Censorship]] of ideas not deemed [[political correctness|politically correct]]. E.g., Liberal students protest or disrupt conservative guest speakers on [[college]] campuses.
* [[Liberal denial|Denial]] of politically incorrect truths such as the link between [[abortion]] and [[breast cancer]].
* Opposition to the [[free market]], instead favoring heavy [[socialism|regulation]].
* A desire for equal outcomes as opposed to equal opportunity.
* Excessive emphasis on awards and titles, especially those awarded by liberal institutions.
* To judge something immoral behavior is tantamount to being a bigot.
* [[Bigotry]] itself, an almost uniquely [[liberal]] trait.
* Confusing [[separation of church and state]] with [[atheism]].
* A willingness to excuse any aggressive and irreverent behaviour in other countries, while harshly criticizing their own.
* Strict [[materialism]] and an overreliance on narrowly defined "reality".
* Contempt for authorities. [on the implication, of course, that the authorities in question are conservatives]
* Mistaking conclusions for facts.

'''In general, liberal values tend to undermine traditional society, and in certain instances can cause irreparable harm to the lives of individuals who are brought under their sway.'''

{{Liberalism}}

Liberal values

2012-02-26T00:02:21Z

EquisDulks:

'''Liberal values''' refers to the [[values|value system]] commonly held by [[liberals]], just as [[Professor values]] and [[Hollywood values]] do for professors and Hollywood respectively. Liberal values stand in stark opposition to [[conservative values]] and thus reject those things which [[conservatives]] hold to be dear and true. This includes, but is not limited to:

* Displaying a lack of alarmism, particularly toward younger people, about the harm caused by a lack of conservative values.
* [[Censorship]] of ideas not deemed [[political correctness|politically correct]]. E.g., Liberal students protest or disrupt conservative guest speakers on [[college]] campuses.
* [[Liberal denial|Denial]] of politically incorrect truths such as the link between [[abortion]] and [[breast cancer]].
* Opposition to the [[free market]], instead favoring heavy [[socialism|regulation]].
* A desire for equal outcomes as opposed to equal opportunity.
* Excessive emphasis on awards and titles, especially those awarded by liberal institutions.
* To judge something immoral behavior is tantamount to being a bigot.
* [[Bigotry]] itself, an almost uniquely [[liberal]] trait.
* Confusing [[separation of church and state]] with [[atheism]].
* A willingness to excuse any aggressive and irreverent behaviour in other countries, while harshly criticizing their own.
* Strict [[materialism]] and an overreliance on narrowly defined "reality".
* Contempt for authorities. [on the implication, of course, that the authorities in question are conservatives]
* Mistaking conclusions for facts.

'''In general, liberal values tend to undermine traditional society, and in certain instances can cause irreparable harm to the lives of individuals who are brought under their sway.'''

{{Liberalism}}

Liberal values

2012-02-26T00:00:18Z

EquisDulks:

'''Liberal values''' refers to the [[values|value system]] commonly held by [[liberals]], just as [[Professor values]] and [[Hollywood values]] do for professors and Hollywood respectively. Liberal values stand in stark opposition to [[conservative values]] and thus reject those things which [[conservatives]] hold to be dear and true. This includes, but is not limited to:

*Failure to warn people, particularly youngsters, about the harm caused by a lack of conservative values.
* [[Censorship]] of ideas not deemed [[political correctness|politically correct]]. E.g., Liberal students protest or disrupt conservative guest speakers on [[college]] campuses.
* [[Liberal denial|Denial]] of politically incorrect truths such as the link between [[abortion]] and [[breast cancer]].
* Opposition to the [[free market]], instead favoring heavy [[socialism|regulation]].
* A desire for equal outcomes as opposed to equal opportunity.
* Excessive emphasis on awards and titles, especially those awarded by liberal institutions.
* To judge something immoral behavior is tantamount to being a bigot.
* [[Bigotry]] itself, an almost uniquely [[liberal]] trait.
* Confusing [[separation of church and state]] with [[atheism]].
* A willingness to excuse any aggressive and irreverent behaviour in other countries, while harshly criticizing their own.
* Strict [[materialism]] and an overreliance on narrowly defined "reality".
* Contempt for authorities. [on the implication, of course, that the authorities in question are conservatives]
* Mistaking conclusions for facts.

'''In general, liberal values tend to undermine traditional society, and in certain instances can cause irreparable harm to the lives of individuals who are brought under their sway.'''

{{Liberalism}}

Liberal values

2012-02-25T23:59:37Z

EquisDulks:

'''Liberal values''' refers to the [[values|value system]] commonly held by [[liberals]], just as [[Professor values]] and [[Hollywood values]] do for professors and Hollywood respectively. Liberal values stand in stark opposition to [[conservative values]] and thus reject those things which [[conservatives]] hold to be dear and true. This includes, but is not limited to:

*failure to warn people, particularly youngsters, about the harm caused by a lack of conservative values.
* [[Censorship]] of ideas not deemed [[political correctness|politically correct]]. E.g., Liberal students protest or disrupt conservative guest speakers on [[college]] campuses.
* [[Liberal denial|Denial]] of politically incorrect truths such as the link between [[abortion]] and [[breast cancer]].
* Opposition to the [[free market]], instead favoring heavy [[socialism|regulation]].
* A desire for equal outcomes as opposed to equal opportunity.
* Excessive emphasis on awards and titles, especially those awarded by liberal institutions.
* To judge something immoral behavior is tantamount to being a bigot.
* [[Bigotry]] itself, an almost uniquely [[liberal]] trait.
* Confusing [[separation of church and state]] with [[atheism]].
* A willingness to excuse any aggressive and irreverent behaviour in other countries, while harshly criticizing their own.
* Strict [[materialism]] and an overreliance on narrowly defined "reality".
* Contempt for authorities. [on the implication, of course, that the authorities in question are conservatives]
* Mistaking conclusions for facts.

'''In general, liberal values tend to undermine traditional society, and in certain instances can cause irreparable harm to the lives of individuals who are brought under their sway.'''

{{Liberalism}}

Barack Hussein Obama

2012-02-25T21:59:14Z

EquisDulks:

{{Officeholder
|name=Barack Hussein Obama
|image=President Barack Obama.jpg
|party=[[Democrat]]
|spouse=[[Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama]]
|religion= [[Barack Obama's Muslim Heritage|Allegedly]] Christian
|offices=
{{Officeholder/president
|country=the United States
|number=44th
|terms=January 20, 2009-Present
|vp=[[Joe Biden]]
|preceded=[[George W. Bush]]
|former=n
|succeeded=
}}
{{Officeholder/senator
|state=Illinois
|terms=January 3, 2005 – November 16, 2008
|preceded=Peter Fitzgerald
|former=y
|succeeded=[[Roland Burris]]
}}
}}

'''Barack Hussein Obama II''' also known by the alias '''Barry Soetoro''' during his time in [[Indonesia]]<ref>[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQPXVJuT2vY Barry Soetoro the muslim - YouTube]</ref><ref>[[Barack Obama's Muslim Heritage]]</ref> (born August 4, 1961) is the 44th President of the [[United States]] and the controversial recipient of the 2009 [[Nobel Prize|Nobel Peace Prize]]. Overcoming a short political career, Obama defeated [[Republican]] nominee [[John McCain]] for the presidency in 2008, campaigning on promises of "hope" and "change". In effect, that change has been an embrace of [[socialism]] and [[liberal]] policies. Barack Obama has been widely criticized by the American [[business]] community and others for his anti-business policies that are killing American jobs during a period of high unemployment.<ref>
*[http://www.usnews.com/opinion/mzuckerman/articles/2010/07/16/obamas-anti-business-policies-are-our-economic-katrina Obama's Anti-business Policies are our Economic Katrina]
*[http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/016/619dvjlm.asp An Anti-Business President]
*[http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2010/08/small-businesses-are-not-hiring-why.html Small Businesses are not hiring. Why should they?]
*[http://www.americanthinker.com/2010/02/dear_mr_president_why_we_are_n.html Dear Mr. President: Why we are not hiring]
</ref> Trend forecaster [[Gerald Celente]] indicates that [[Obama administration]]'s response to the the failed American economy is more war and the creation of misleading [[economics|economic]] statistics.<ref>[http://www.opednews.com/articles/Washington-s-Response-to-a-by-paul-craig-roberts-110728-724.html Washington's response to the failed economy: More war]</ref>

Under President Obama's mismanagement of the economy, the United States Government's credit rating has, for the first time in it's history, been downgraded from AAA to AA+, and [[poverty]]<ref>http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/poverty/data/incpovhlth/2009/pov09fig04.pdf</ref> has increased markedly. By and large his policies to combat the recession, unemployment, slow growth, the deficit, and expanding [[national debt]], have failed.<ref>"The vast majority (73%) of respondents reported the fiscal stimulus enacted in February 2009 has had no impact on employment to date. While 68% also believe a jobs bill, such as the one recently enacted into law, will have no impact on payrolls, 30% do believe it will boost payrolls moderately". ''Industry Survey'', National Association for Business Economics, April 2010, [http://www.nabe.com/press/ind1004.pdf p. 2 pdf].</ref> Also on the domestic front, Obama passed an expensive [[health care]] bill in 2009 with no [[bipartisan]] support and 34 Democrats dissenting.

Fatalities in Afghanistan have more than doubled under Obama's leadership then in the preceding eight years combined, according to the Congressional Research Service <ref>[http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/R41084.pdf (pg. 3 pdf)]</ref>. Against his own Defense Secretary's advice, Obama [[Libyan uprising 2011|attacked Libya]] - a possible violation of the [[War Powers Act]]. After he announced the killing of [[September 11th]] mastermind and terrorist [[Osama bin Laden]], the [[U.S. State Department]] warned of the increased risk to the lives and safety of Americans around the world.<ref>http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/national_world&id=8273909</ref> Bin Laden's death had negligible long term impact on Obama's approval ratings, as seen in Gallup's daily poll.<ref>http://www.gallup.com/poll/113980/gallup-daily-obama-job-approval.aspx</ref>

==Early life==
:''Main article : [[Early life and career of Barack Hussein Obama]]''
:''See also : [[Barack Obama's Muslim Heritage]]''
Obama was born in Hawaii to Stanley Ann Dunham and [[Barack Obama Sr.]] - who had married just six months prior - on August 4, 1961 in [[Honolulu, Hawaii]]. The couple divorced in 1964. Barack Obama Sr. was not a [[Natural born citizen|citizen of the United States]]. Dunham remarried Lolo Soetoro, an [[Indonesia]]n student. When Obama was six, Soetoro returned to Indonesia, and Dunham and Obama followed.<ref name="db mother">{{cite web|url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2011-05-03/a-singular-woman-by-janny-scott-review-by-stacy-schiff/#|work=The Daily Beast|format=HTML|language=English|title=Dreams of His Mother|author=Stacy Schiff}}</ref> He spent four years in Indonesia before returning to Hawaii to be raised by his grandparents, Madelyn and WW2 veteran Stanley Armour Dunham. He would later attend Occidental College, [[Columbia University]] and then [[Harvard University]] for law school, where he would become the first black president of the Harvard Law Review. It has been disputed by some groups whether Obama was actually born in the United States; some people allege that he was born in Kenya. On April 27, 2011 Obama officially released his long form birth certificate, which many experts have determined to be a fake and no legal body has determined its authenticity .

==Illinois State Senate career==
[[File:O-2002-antiwar-rally-davidson.jpg|right|thumb|250px| Obama speaking at the October 2002 rally in Chicago organized by [[Carl Davidson]].<ref>Davidson is a longtime [[Mao]]ist and champion of the ''Thought of Mao Tse Tung.'' Davidson's anti-Trotskyite polemic, [http://www.wengewang.org/read.php?tid=10925 ''Left in Form, Right in Essence''] defends Maoist doctrine. Retrieved from 对当代托洛茨基主义的批判：英文论集百花齐放 - 中国文革研究网, March 15, 2010.</ref> ''"[H]e is a brutal man who butchers his own people,"'' nevertheless Obama opposed ''"dumb wars".'']]

In 1995 Obama openly sought and obtained the endorsement of the [[Marxist]] [[New Party]] in his quest to be elected to the Illinois State Senate.<ref>[http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/groupProfile.asp?grpid=7434 NEW PARTY (NP)], discoverthenetwork.org.</ref><ref>Rick Moran. [http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2008/06/obamas_alliance_with_marxists.html Obama's Alliance with Marxists], ''American Thinker'', June 03, 2008.</ref> He became the [[Democrat]] nominee and ran unopposed to win the election. Obama entered the Illinois Senate promising change to a corrupt system. He mixed often radical votes with more pragmatic agreements. Possibly one of his most radical votes was against requiring medical care for aborted children who survive [[abortion|the procedure]] - in fact the Illinois Planned Parenthood Council ascribed him a 100% rating for his consistently pro-choice votes.<ref name="cbs illinois">{{cite web|url=http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/01/17/politics/main2369157.shtml|title=Obama Record May Be Gold Mine For Critics|work=CBS|format=HTML|language=English|last=Clark|first=Amy S.|date=Jan. 17, 2007}}</ref> He was criticized for using the statehouse as a stepping stone for a more illustrious career: Steven J. Rauschenberger, a [[Republican]], said prior to Obama's election as president: “He is a very bright but very ambitious person who has always had his eyes on the prize, and it wasn’t Springfield. If he deserves to be president, it is not because he was a great legislator.”<ref name="nyt illinois">{{cite web|work=The New York Times|title=In Illinois, Obama Proved Pragmatic and Shrewd|last=Scott|first=Janny|format=HTML|language=English|date=July 30, 2007|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/30/us/politics/30obama.html}}</ref>

The statehouse was majority Republican, so the Senator was sometimes forced to compromise. He formed allegiances across party lines to pass [[campaign finance]] reform that banned most gifts by lobbyists, prohibited spending campaign money for legislators’ personal use and required electronic filing of campaign disclosure reports.<ref name="nyt illinois"/> Obama also helped pass a so-called “driving-while-black bill”, which required the police to collect data on the race of drivers they stopped as a way to monitor [[racial profiling]].<ref name="nyt illinois"/>

Obama established himself as a chief spokesperson in opposition to the [[War on Terror]] during an October 2002 rally at Federal Plaza in Chicago<ref>The rally was organized by Chicagoans Against War in Iraq (CAWI) later renamed Chicagoans Against War and Injustice. [http://www.noiraqwar-chicago.org/?page_id=2 About CAWI] by Carl Davidson, Nov 02 2006. Retrieved from Chicagoans Against War and Injustice, March 15, 2010.</ref> [[community organizing|organized]] by veteran [[Mao]]ist and webmaster of [[Progressives for Obama]],<ref>[http://www.linkedin.com/in/carldavidson Carl Davidson,] LinkedIn.com, retrieved March 13, 2010.</ref> [[Carl Davidson]].

===Radical foundation and connection to William Ayers===
{{main article|Radical roots of Barack Hussein Obama}}
In 1995 a cadre of like minded individuals gathered in the home of [[Weather Underground]] (WUO) [[terrorist]]s [[Bernardine Dohrn]] and [[William Ayers|William "Bill" Ayers]]. Dohrn,<ref>Georgie Anne Geyer and Keyes Beach "Cuba: School for U.S. Radicals", ''Chicago Daily News/Chicago Sun-Times'' five part series October 1970, excerpted in [http://foia.fbi.gov/filelink.html?file=/weather/weath1c.pdf FBI file Weather Underground Organization (Weatherman),] Part 1c pp. 5-7 pdf (113-115 in original). [http://therealbarackobama.wordpress.com/2009/06/07/clandestine-agents-of-the-cuban-government-ayers-dohrn-myers/]</ref> along with Carl Davidson, are veterans of [[guerrilla warfare]] training in [[Cuba]] prior 1968 Democratic National Convention riots. Ayers and Dohrn have taken credit for, and never denied, bombing the [[U.S. Capitol]], the [[Pentagon]] and the [[State Department]].

Ayers and Dohrn used their celebrity status among [[leftist]]s to launch Obama's career. Ayers, Dohrn and [[Jeff Jones]]<ref>[http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=106653 ''Obama's 'green jobs czar' worked with terror founder] Van Jones served on board of activist group where ex-Weatherman serves as top director'', By Aaron Klein, [[WorldNetDaily]], August 13, 2009.</ref> are authors of ''[[Bill_Ayers#Prairie_Fire_Organizing_Committee_and_Maoist_thought|Prairie Fire: The Politics of Revolutionary Anti-imperialism]],'' the title taken from ''The Sayings of Mao Zedong.''<ref>[http://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/mao/works/red-book/]</ref> The book declares "we are [[communist]] men and women."<ref>Harvey Klehr, ''Far Left of Center: The American Radical Left Today'' (Transaction Books, New Brunswick, 1988), 109.</ref> Ayers later jokingly, publicly admitted to ghostwriting Obama's book, ''Dreams From My Father''<ref>http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2011/03/ayers_affirms_he_wrote_dreams.html</ref> and Obama was to appoint several openly avowed Maoists to prominent White House and Executive Branch positions.<ref>http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704597704574487431322664964.html</ref>

==U.S. Senate career==
:''See also: [[Early_life_and_career_of_Barack_Hussein_Obama#U.S._Senate_.282004-2008.29|Barack Obama:U.S. Senate (2004-2008)]]''
[[Image:obama.jpg|thumb|left|Senator Barack Obama]]

Following a failed campaign for the U. S. House of Representatives, Obama ran for the open Senate seat from Illinois in 2004 against Republican candidate Jack Ryan. He won the seat after Chicago media outlets The Chicago Tribune newspaper and Chicago ABC affiliate WLS-TV; together with candidate Jack Ryan's Republican Primary opponents, sought and obtained the release of the confidential and personally embarrassing records in his California divorce from actress Jeri Ryan, forcing him to end his campaign. Ryan was replaced by the out-of-state candidate [[Alan Keyes]]. Obama won over Keyes 70% to 27% in the general election. Obama spent very little time in the Senate - "frustrated by his lack of influence and what he called the 'glacial pace' ... [he began] running for president even as he was still getting lost in the Capitol’s corridors."<ref name="nyt senate">{{cite web|work=The New York Times|publisher=The New York Times, Inc.|format=HTML|language=English|title=Obama in Senate: Star Power, Minor Role|author=Kate Zernike and Jeff Zelleny|date=March 9, 2008|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/09/us/politics/09obama.html}}</ref>

Obama frequently used the [[filibuster]] to obstruct the operations of government,<ref>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/03/AR2010020303801_pf.html</ref> voted against the [[minimum wage]]<ref>[http://uspolitics.about.com/od/legislatio1/a/HR2206.htm HR 2206 - Emergency Appropriations], Kathy Gill, Your Guide to U.S. Politics: Current Events. May 26 2007.</ref><ref>[http://more.gov.mtopgroup.com/2007/05/votes-hr-2206-iraq-supplemental.html Votes - H.R. 2206: Iraq Supplemental], May 28, 2007. Retrieved from Deeper Inside the Mountain, June 4, 2007.</ref> and debt ceiling increases,<ref>http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2011/04/obama-once-opposed-debt-ceiling-hike/237129/</ref> and recieved more than $126,000 in campaign contributions from [[Fannie Mae]]. The ''[[National Journal]]'' ranked him the most liberal senator in 2007.<ref name="ranked">{{cite web|url=http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-502163_162-3775451-502163.html|title=National Journal: Obama Most Liberal Senator In 2007|author=Brian Montopoli|date=January 31, 2008|work=CBS}}</ref>

==Presidential Election==
{{main article|Barack Hussein Obama 2008 Presidential campaign}}
Democrats began calling for an Obama candidacy after liberals lauded his 2004 [[Democratic National Convention]] speech.
===Campaign to be the Democratic nominee===
The race for the Democratic ticket originally seemed [[Hillary Clinton]]'s to lose, but was ultimately a close race between Clinton and Obama. Clinton would take a slim advantage in the popular vote, while Obama would carry significantly more states and territories. Obama's advantage with super-delegates over Clinton was about 2-to-1.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Superdelegate endorsements for Friday 6/6|work=Democratic Convention Watch|url=http://demconwatch.blogspot.com/2008/06/superdelegate-endorsements-for-friday.html}}</ref> Obama was able to attract the support of [[liberals]] by pointing out that he had come out against the [[Iraq War]] "from the beginning" whereas Clinton had voted in favor of the war in 2002.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/election2008/2008-01-31-democrats-debate_N.htm|title=Obama, Clinton stress differences on Iraq, issues|author=David Jackson|work=USA Today|format=HTML|language=English}}</ref>
===Campaign for the Presidency===
Obama campaigned against Senator [[John McCain]] in the general election. To the chagrin of Clinton supporters, he selected Senator [[Joe Biden]] to be his running mate, whereas McCain selected [[Governor]] of [[Alaska]] [[Sarah Palin]]. The Obama and Biden ticket would win the election, and Obama would become the nation's first [[African American]] president.

====Jeremiah Wright====
:''See also: [[Barack Obama and Liberation Theology]]''
One major dilemma that arose for Obama during his campaign was his connection to his preacher [[Jeremiah Wright]]. Obama and his wife (raised a Baptist) were members of the Trinity [[United Church of Christ]]<ref>http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1776246/posts</ref> in Chicago, a chruch that embraced [[black liberation theology]] and its emphasis on empowering so-called "oppressed groups" against "establishment forces". This denomination was the first in America to ordain gays as ministers.<ref>http://www.mcclatchydc.com/227/story/31079.html, Obama's church pushes controversial doctrines, March 20, 2008</ref> Church pastor Jeremiah Wright had been making inflammatory comments and posting his sermons online for sale. These include the statement "G-d damn America," and in describing the September 11th attacks, "We have supported state terrorism against the Palestinians and black South Africans, and now we are indignant because the stuff we have done overseas is now brought right back to our own front yards. America's chickens are coming home to roost."<ref>[http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/Story?id=4443788 Obama's Pastor: G-d Damn America, U.S. to Blame for 9/11]</ref> In addition, Rev. Wright blamed America saying "We supported Zionism shamelessly while ignoring the Palestinians and branding anybody who spoke out against it as being [[anti-Semitic]]."

In April 2008, after 20 years in the church, candidate Obama made public statements poised to set him at odds with the man who conducted his wedding and baptized his children. With the negative publicity persisting, a month later Obama ended the friendship, left Wright's church, and blamed the media.<ref>[http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/05/31/obama-resigns-church-membership-in-chicago/], Obama Drops Church Membership in Chicago, May 31, 2008</ref> Obama claimed “It’s not fair to the other members of the church who seek to worship in peace...", and distanced himself from Wright's sermons as "a bunch of rants that aren't grounded in the truth."<ref>USA TODAY, ''Obama breaks with former pastor, Candidate cites rants on U.S. role in terror, AIDS'', by Kathy Kiely and David Jackson [http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20080430/1a_offlede30_dom.art.htm]</ref><ref>''Obama Says He Is Outraged By Wright's "Rants"''[http://www.usnews.com/usnews/politics/bulletin/bulletin_080430.htm]</ref>

==Presidential career==
{{main article|Obama administration}}
[[File:Obama and George H. W. Bush.jpg|thumb|right|300px|President Barack Obama meets with former President George H. W. Bush in the Oval Office, Feb. 15, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza).]]
Under Obama's stewardship the United States has suffered the largest [[Federal budget deficit|deficit]]s<ref>http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/107xx/doc10708/11-06-mbr.htm</ref><ref>http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/118xx/doc11873/NovemberMBR.pdf</ref> in history and a credit downgrade from the rating agency Standard & Poor. However, during the Obama Administration the national deficit has increased at a much lower rate than during the Bush Administration. Most observers attribute the deficits to increasing benefits and welfare paid out on account of the Recession he inherited and has failed to end along with decreasing tax receipts. Standard & Poor decided to downgrade U.S. government deby after the debt ceiling debate debacle, where Congressional leaders refused to pass a bill authorizing borrowing to pay for the budget they had passed with much debate and controversy earlier in the year. Cynics have argued that rhetoric directed at the rating agencies about the issuance of AAA ratings to junk real estate bonds spurred the downgrade as a form of retribution. Ironically, the investor scare led to the flocking of investors to the safe haven of the Treasury bonds which had been downgraded, resulting in lower interest rates. As there are very few AAA bond markets, investors will likely continue to buy U.S. government debt for the foreseeable future. <ref>http://www.commentarymagazine.com/2011/04/18/the-sp-outlook-and-obama/</ref> When his [[economic stimulus]] program was adopted unemployment rose and stagnated in the 10% range, <ref>http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704476104575439172480870774.html?mod=googlenews_wsj</ref> leaving tens of millions without [[hope]] of finding a job.<ref>[http://data.bls.gov/PDQ/servlet/SurveyOutputServlet?data_tool=latest_numbers&series_id=LNS11300000&years_option=specific_years&include_graphs=true&to_month=1&from_month=2 United States Department of Labor], Bureau of Labor Statistics. Data extracted on: July 19, 2010 (4:31:11 PM).</ref>

Patrick H. Caddell and Douglas E. Schoen, writing in the [[Wall Street Journal]], noted, "Rather than being a unifier, Mr. Obama has divided America on the basis of race, class and partisanship." The commentators also note Obama's approach to governance has encouraged radical leftists to pursue a similar strategy on his behalf. Mary Frances Berry, former head of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission, acknowledged that the [[Obama administration]] has taken to polarizing America around the issue of race as a means of diverting attention from other issues, saying, "Having one's opponent [[race card|rebut charges of racism]] is far better than discussing [[Unemployment|joblessness]]."<ref>http://www.politico.com/arena/perm/Mary_Frances_Berry_91E3D9D5-C40D-440C-9D48-1C50CBC60C87.html</ref> Caddell and Schoen, who worked for President Carter and Clinton, respectively, further stated, "Mr. Obama has also cynically [[class warfare|divided the country on class lines]]. He has taken to playing the populist card time and time again. He bashes Wall Street and insurance companies whenever convenient to advance his programs, yet he has been eager to accept campaign contributions and negotiate with these very same banks and [[corporation]]s behind closed doors in order to advance his political agenda... President Obama's divisive approach to governance has weakened us as a people and paralyzed our political culture."<ref>http://online.wsj.com/article/NA_WSJ_PUB:SB10001424052748703700904575391553798363586.html</ref>

===Domestic policy===
====Popular bills====
Obama's first act of office was to sign the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act - effectively nullifying the [[Supreme Court]] case ''Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.'', which ruled that Ledbetter had to have filed a pay [[discrimination]] suit within 180 days of the first time Ledbetter was payed less than her male peers;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/30/us/politics/30ledbetter-web.html|work=The New York Times|format=HTML|language=English|title=Obama Signs Equal-Pay Legislation|author=Sheryl Gay Stolberg|date=January 29, 2009}}</ref> the law made corporations subject to suit within 180 days of each time the employee was unfairly paid.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://writ.news.findlaw.com/grossman/20090213.html?=features|work=FindLaw|author=Joanna L. Grossman|date=Feb. 13, 2009|format=HTML|language=English|title=The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009}}</ref>

On January 2, 2011, Obama signed the James Zadroga [[9/11]] Healthcare and Compensation Act.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wnyc.org/articles/wnyc-news/2011/jan/02/obama-signs-zadroga-act-law/|publisher=New York Public Radio|title=Obama Signs Zadroga Act into Law|author=Fred Mogul|date=January 02, 2011|work=wNYC|format=HTML|language=English}}</ref> The act, which afforded 9/11 first responders who were sickened by the dust from the collapse of the [[World Trade Center]] health care and compensation, passed [[Congress]] after its sponsored agreed to scale down the pricing from 7.4 to 4.2 billion dollars.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wnyc.org/articles/wnyc-news/2010/dec/22/zadroga-911-bill-passes-senate/|publisher=New York Public Radio|work=wNYC|format=HTML|language=English|title=Congress Approves 9/11 Health Bill|date=December 22, 2010}}</ref>

====Economic plan====
[[File:Keynes.jpg|thumbnail|right|190px|[[Barack Obama]] advocates the use of [[Keynesian economics|Keynesian economic concepts]] despite the fact that [[John Maynard Keynes]] was incompetent and a fraud.<ref>
*[http://centurean2.wordpress.com/2011/03/20/fabian-john-maynard-keynes-the-stealthy-enemy-of-human-freedom/ John Maynard Keynes the stealthy enemy of human freedom]
*[http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-02-22/deathbed-of-keynesian-economics-will-be-in-u-k-matthew-lynn.html Deathbed of Keynesian Economics will be in the UK]
*[http://www.iwf.org/inkwell/show/23102.html Will the G8 Repudiate the Philosophy of Living Beyond Our Means?]
*[http://www.keynesatharvard.org/book/KeynesatHarvard-ch09.html KEYNES AT HARVARD Economic Deception as a Political Credo BY ZYGMUND DOBBS]
</ref> ]]
{{see also|Obamunism|American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009}}
Critics of the Obama administration have coined the word "[[Obamunism]]" to describe Barack Obama's [[socialism|socialistic]] and "[[fascism]] light" [[economic planning]] policies.<ref>[[Benito Mussolini]] defined fascism as the wedding of state and corporate powers. Accordingly, trend forecaster [[Gerald Celente]] labels [[Obama administration corporate bailouts|Obama's corporate bailouts]] as being "fascism light" in nature.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thebigmoney.com/articles/daily-intel/2009/07/20/obamunism-inc|work=The Big Money|publisher=WashingtonPost.Newsweek Interactive Co. LLC|format=HTML|language=English|title=Obamunism, Inc.|author=David Sessions|date=July 20, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.smallbusinessadvocate.com/small-business-interviews/gerald-celente-6944|author=Jim Blasingame|title=Is the government creating a bailout bubble?}}</ref> Obamunism can also refer to Obama's [[Obama administration fiscal policy|ruinous fiscal policies]] and [[Obama administration monetary policy|reckless monetary policies]].<ref name="gerard">{{cite web|url=http://seekingalpha.com/article/120883-monetary-policynot-obama-s-stimulusis-what-needs-watching|title=Monetary Policy-Not Obama's Stimulus-Is What Needs Watching|author=Gerard Jackson|date=February 16, 2009|work=Seeking Alpha}}</ref><ref name="bam">{{cite web|work=New York Post|date=May 17, 2009|url=http://www.nypost.com/seven/05172009/postopinion/editorials/bams_wise_words_169731.htm|title=BAM'S WISE WORDS}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://blog.heritage.org/2009/03/24/bush-deficit-vs-obama-deficit-in-pictures/|title=Bush Deficit vs. Obama Deficit in Pictures|work=The Foundry|publisher=The Heritage Foundation|author=Conn Carroll|date=March 24th, 2009}}</ref> As seen in his own actions, Barack Obama instructed his advisors to find loopholes that would enable the president to act as a [[dictator]] by pushing through legislation and increases in spending without congressional authority.<ref>http://www.theblaze.com/stories/executive-dictatorship-obama-instructs-advisers-to-push-through-stimulus-projects-without-pesky-congressional-authorization/</ref>

[[Wall Street]] firms and banks that were bailed out were among Obama's biggest campaign supporters.<ref>http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/contrib.php?cycle=2008&cid=N00009638</ref> Therefore, the Obama administration bailouts of corrupt, unproductive, and reckless Wall Street firms was hardly surprising, and many argue that it was not helpful in making the United States economy more productive and prosperous by encouraging more risk taking through letting banks off with a slap on the wrist. Others argue that bailing out the banks kept credit flowing and prevented a much deeper recession and a total collapse of the financial system. The government will recoup some though not all of its capital infusions over time. A 2005 study found that government corporate bailouts are often done for mere political considerations and the economic resources allocated exhibit significantly worse economic performance than resources allocated using purely business considerations.<ref>http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=676905</ref> Proponents of [[free market]] capitalism said Bernanke should not have bailed out failing firms and instead should have allowed free market capitalism to quickly recover as it did in the depression of 1920 without government intervention (free market capitalists assert that government intervention drags out economic recessions and depressions).<ref>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czcUmnsprQI</ref>

Top trend forecaster [[Gerald Celente]] predicts that the corrupt economic policies of the Obama administration will lead to a second [[Great Depression|great depression]] (Celente predicted the 1987 US stock market crash, the dot.com crash, the US 2008/2009 recession, and the collapse of the USSR in the early 1990s) and may lead to a "second [[American Revolution]]" (Celente predicted the [[Tea Party Movement|tax protests]] that are now occurring in America).<ref name="celente1">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MMX3SKzrfU&feature=channel_page</ref><ref name="celente2">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sy9bfw1ebgw&feature=response_watch</ref> Celente also asserts that the costly and inefficient temporary short term methods that the Obama administration is using to alleviate economic problems in the short term (which is causing massive increases in [[Obama administration deficit spending]]) is only making matters worse and will not prevent the worse economic depression in United States history from occurring.<ref>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_C8K7rWkGGw</ref><ref>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LBffdIW0XA&feature=response_watch</ref>

The Obama administration has been sharply criticized for [[Obama administration deficit spending|its massive deficit spending]] and [[Obama administration monetary policy|its reckless monetary policy]] via vast increases in the [[money supply]], although inflation under Bernanke has been below the historic mean.<ref name="gerard"/><ref name="bam"/><ref>http://blog.heritage.org/2009/03/24/bush-deficit-vs-obama-deficit-in-pictures/</ref> Celente predicts that if a "second American Revolution" occurs in a peaceful and productive manner, it may include a [[Third Party System|third party movement]] of governance that will advocate a more [[free market]] [[capitalism]] approach to the American economy and a more strict interpretation of the [[United States Constitution|United States constitution]] as far as the authors' [[original intent]].<ref name="celente1"/><ref name="celente2"/>

During what the [[White House]] billed as [[Recovery Summer]], one half million workers per week continued losing their jobs. His signature legislative achievement, [[ObamaCare]],has been found to be [[unconstitutional]]<ref>http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-12-13/u-s-health-care-law-requirement-thrown-out-by-judge.html</ref> by several judges and constitutional by others, and is credited as a major cause of uncertainty, high [[unemployment]],<ref>http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=33220</ref> lagging job creation,<ref>http://blog.heritage.org/2010/08/05/it%E2%80%99s-official-medicare%E2%80%99s-finances-shadowed-by-uncertainty/</ref> and risk of a credit default crisis.<ref>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/28/AR2010032802353.html</ref><ref>http://www.thestreet.com/story/10703361/cramer-obamacare-will-topple-the-market.html</ref>

His 2012 Budget plan has been roundly criticized in the mainstream and liberal press as not a serious effort to deal with the nation's economic crisis.<ref>[http://republican.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=blogs.view&blog_id=1551d6f5-2ac9-4b8d-97ab-74def354024e Newspapers Call Out White House: ‘What Would That Path Be, Mr. President?’]</ref>

=====Healthcare=====
{{main article|Obamacare}}
On March 23, 2010, Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). The act had originated in the House of Representatives and passed September 17, 2009. The act was amended and passed the Senate prior to [[Democrat]] [[Ted Kennedy]]'s passing along party lines - just a filibuster-proof majority at 60-39. In what can be construed as a de facto rejection of the bill, [[Massachusetts]] voters elected a [[Republican]] candidate, [[Scott Brown]], who promised to vote against the bill,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/thefix/senate/scott-brown-wins-massachusetts-senate-race.html|work=The Washington Post|author=Chris Cillizza|date=January 19, 2010|title=Scott Brown wins Massachusetts Senate special election race|language=English|format=HTML}}</ref> but another Senate vote would not occur. Scott Brown was also an excellent campaigner and judged to be a better candidate than his rival, Martha Coakley. He has since achieved one of the most moderate senate voting records, likely to avoid the anger of his mostly liberal constituency. After Obama made a promise to issue an [[executive order]] that would ultimately prohibit the use of taxpayer subsidies to pay for [[abortion]] services,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://articles.latimes.com/2010/mar/22/nation/la-na-healthcare-passage22-2010mar22/3|work=The Los Angeles Times|format=HTML|language=English|title=House passes historic healthcare overhaul|date=March 22, 2010|author=Noam N. Levey and Janet Hook}}</ref> the [[House of Representatives]] would pass the bill as it left the Senate 219-212, with 34 Democrats and all other parties dissenting.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://articles.cnn.com/2010-03-21/politics/health.care.main_1_health-care-entire-house-democratic-caucus-pre-existing-conditions?_s=PM:POLITICS|date=March 21, 2010|author=Alan Silverleib|work=CNN|format=HTML|language=English|title=House passes health care bill on 219-212 vote}}</ref>

Amongst other things, the act mandates that the population purchase health care coverage or face punitive tax measures, and on this basis has been constitutionally challenged in the federal courts, with mixed results (three courts have upheld the act, two have declared it unconstitutional); thus, the Act is likely destined for [[Supreme Court]] reviewal. Plans originally proposed involved instituting a universal public insurance program, that is, extending Medicare to everyone. The universal mandate included in the act was originally a conservative idea that was enacted in Massachusetts under Republican Mitt Romney. Its supporters note that having health insurance results in reduced costs in paying for treatment of uninsured and forcing people to take responsibility for their healthcare. Due to ethical constraints, doctors cannot deny care to poor patients, resulting in the hospital and the healthcare system at large bearing the cost.

====Gulf oil spill====
{{main article|Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster}}
President Obama authorized offshore oil drilling in the [[Gulf of Mexico]]<ref>[http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2010/0430/Gulf-of-Mexico-oil-spill-imperils-Obama-s-offshore-drilling-plan Gulf of Mexico oil spill imperils Obama's offshore drilling plan,] By Mark Clayton, ''Christian Science Monitor'', April 30, 2010.</ref> stating, "oil rigs today generally don’t cause spills"<ref>White House Press Release, [http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-a-discussion-jobs-and-economy-charlotte-north-carolina Remarks by the President in a Discussion on Jobs and the Economy in Charlotte, North Carolina,] Office of the Press Secretary, April 02, 2010. Retrieved from whitehouse.gov 3 May 2010.</ref> and was widely criticized for his mishandling of the "[[Gulf oil spill disaster|worst environmental disaster]] in US history."<ref>[http://www.examiner.com/x-33986-Political-Spin-Examiner~y2010m4d29-Worst-environmental-disaster-in-US-history-Oil-slick-in-Gulf-of-Mexico-is-set-on-fire Worst environmental disaster in US history,] Maryann Tobin, ''Examiner'', April 29, 2010.</ref><ref>[http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/04/30/the-oil-spill-is-obamas-fault/?src=twt&twt=NytimesKrugman Conscience of a Liberal: The Oil Spill Is Obama’s Fault,] Paul Krugman, ''New York Times'', April 30, 2010.</ref>

====Don't Ask Don't Tell====
{{main article|Don't Ask Don't Tell}}
Candidate Obama promised to repeal a policy that originated in the Clinton era that prohibited inquiries into military personnel's [[sexual orientation]] while also barring "out" [[homosexuals]] from serving in the military. [[Liberals]] expressed anger when time passed and no effort to repeal the law was seen;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/nov/21/obama-to-delay-repeal-of-dont-ask-dont-tell/|work=The Washington Times|format=HTML|title=Obama to delay ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ repeal|language=English|author=Rowan Scarborough|date=November 21, 2008}}</ref> in fact, Obama's [[justice department]], as part of their duty to defend all laws passed by any administration, filed a brief arguing against the [[Supreme Court]] granting a [[writ of certiorari]] to a gay soldier challenging the law (the writ was not granted). In response, the soldier, James Pietrangelo II, a former Army infantryman and lawyer, said, “[Obama's] a coward, a bigot and a pathological liar. This is a guy who spent more time picking out his dog, Bo, and playing with him on the White House lawn than he has working for equality for gay people."<ref>{{cite web|work=Time Magazine|publisher=Time Inc.|format=HTML|url=http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1903545,00.html?imw=Y|title=Dismay Over Obama's 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Turnabout|author=Mark Thompson|date=Jun. 09, 2009}}</ref>

On December 15th, 2010, a bill was introduced in the [[House of Representatives]] to repeal the law - it passed a day later by a vote of 250-175;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2010/roll638.xml|title=FINAL VOTE RESULTS FOR ROLL CALL 638|format=HTML|work=Office of the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives}}</ref> it passed the Senate three days later 65-31.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=111&session=2&vote=00281|work=The U.S. Senate|title=U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 111th Congress - 2nd Session|format=HTML|language=English}}</ref> Obama signed the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010 on December 22nd.<ref name="g dadt">{{cite web|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/dec/22/obama-repeals-dont-ask-dont-tell|work=The Guardian|format=HTML|language=English|title='Don't ask, don't tell' repealed as Obama signs landmark law|date=22 December 2010}}</ref>

The [[Pentagon]] itself could not immediately implement the repeal and questioned whether it would hurt combat readiness.<ref name="g dadt"/> Senator [[John McCain]], the senior Republican on the Armed Services Committee, opposed the bill, saying "It may be premature to make such a change at this time and in this manner, without further consideration of this report and further study of the issue by Congress – for of all the people we serve, one of our highest responsibilities is to the men and women of our armed services, especially those risking their lives in combat.”<ref>{{cite web|url=http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/12/02/mccain-on-dont-ask-dont-tell-dont-rush/|title=McCain on ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’: Don’t Rush|date=December 2nd, 2010|format=HTML|author=David M. Herszenhorn|language=English|work=The New York Times}}</ref>

===Foreign policy===
[[File:Western Wall Obama.jpg|thumb|left|320px|At [[Western Wall]], Jerusalem, 2008.]]
As Senator, Obama was highly critical of President Bush and promised change. As President, Obama has tripled down in Afghanistan, widened the war into Pakistan, multiplied drone attacks, bombed Yemen and Somalia, and started an undeclared NATO war in Libya. On presidential war powers, surveillance questions, Guantanamo, detention policy and habeas corpus, Obama has similarly stayed the course, or expanded Bush's precedents. In a speech on May 19, 2011 Obama fully embraced the [[Bush Doctrine]] of preventative war.<ref>http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-news-in-obamas-speech/2011/05/19/AF4dFN7G_story.html</ref>

<blockquote>
The New America Foundation, which tracks the strikes, has listed 23 raids since the beginning of April, 2011, all but one in Pakistan’s tribal regions of North and South Waziristan. A June 20 attack was reported in Kurram, an area north of North Waziristan along the Afghanistan border.
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
The drone program has become increasingly controversial as the Obama administration has expanded its use beyond the Afghanistan and Iraq wars. Lethal missiles have been launched from unmanned aircraft in at least five countries in addition to Pakistan: Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Yemen, and, most recently, Somalia. The military’s Joint Special Operations Command used a drone last June to attack what officials said were two senior members of the Al Shabab militant group on the Somali coast. [http://www.boston.com/news/world/asia/articles/2011/07/04/cia_halts_drone_launches_from_pakistan_base/]
</blockquote>

====Commander-in-chief====
By Obama's third year as Commander-in-Chief, over 1200 American troops died in Iraq and Afghanistan - significantly more than the number who died during President [[George W. Bush]]'s term of office. And growing numbers of civilian contractors also have fallen. In the first half of 2010, 250 contractors reportedly died in Iraq and Afghanistan - more than the 235 military personnel who fell during the same period.<ref>http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/05/24/114662/what-price-war.html#ixzz1Nz07pg5O</ref>

=====National Defense=====
President Obama signed into U.S. law the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), only after his administration successfully lobbied to remove language from the bill that would have protected American citizens from being detained indefinitely without trial.<ref>Aaron Dykes. [http://www.infowars.com/president-obamas-ndaa-signing-statement-i-have-the-power-to-detain-americans-but-i-wont/ Obama’s Signing Statement on NDAA: I have the power to detain Americans… but I won’t], Infowars.com, January 1, 2012. </ref> After the legislation cleared Congress, the ACLU commented that if President Obama signed the bill it "will damage both his legacy and American’s reputation for upholding the rule of law," while executive director of the ''Human Rights Watch'' blasted the President for being ‘on the wrong side of history,’ noting that "Obama will go down in history as the president who enshrined indefinite detention without trial in US law."<ref>President Decides to Sign Ill-Conceived National Defense Authorization Act. [http://www.hrw.org/news/2011/12/14/us-refusal-veto-detainee-bill-historic-tragedy-rights US: Refusal to Veto Detainee Bill A Historic Tragedy for Rights], ''Human Rights Watch'', December 14, 2011. </ref><ref>[http://www.aclu.org/national-security/white-house-backs-away-defense-bill-veto-threat White House Backs Away from Defense Bill Veto Threat], ''[[ACLU]]'', December 14, 2011.</ref>

Section 1031 of the NDAA bill, which itself defines the entirety of the United States as a “battlefield,” allows American citizens to be snatched from the streets, carted off to a foreign detention camp and held indefinitely without trial. As reported by Infowars.com, the bill states that “any person who has committed a belligerent act” faces indefinite detention, but no trial or evidence has to be presented, the White House merely needs to make the accusation.<ref>Paul Joseph Watson. [http://www.infowars.com/obama-administration-demanded-power-to-indefinitely-detain-u-s-citizens/ Obama Administration Demanded Power To Indefinitely Detain U.S. Citizens], Infowars.com, December 12, 2011.</ref><ref>S.1867 [http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/F?c112:2:./temp/~c1122VN0Iv:e548990: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 (Engrossed in Senate [Passed Senate] - ES)], ''The Library of Congress'' THOMAS, 112th Congress (2011-2011), Accessed January 25, 2012.</ref><ref>Text of S.1867 - National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012. [http://www.opencongress.org/bill/112-s1867/text?version=es&nid=t0:es:281 Sec. 1031. Affirmation of authority of the Armed Forces of the United States to detain covered persons pursuant to the Authorization for Use of Military Force.], [[U.S. Congress]], ''OpenCongress.org'', (Accessed January 25, 2012).</ref>

=====Afghanistan=====
{{main article|Afghanistan War}}
Obama escalated troop strength<ref name="pbs">{{cite web|url=http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/obamaswar/themes/strategy.html#ixzz1LhWNImZp|title=Obama's New Strategy (March '09)|author=George Packer, Seth Jones, David Kilcullen, Rory Stewart, Andrew Exum, Col. Andrew Bacevich (Ret.)|work=PBS|language=English|format=HTML}}</ref> and defense costs in Afghanistan from $43.5 billion in George Bush's last year to $113.7 billion for 2011.<ref>Congressional Research Service, quoted in Gregory Anthony, ''What price war?''</ref> Adviser to General [[Stanley McChrystal]] David Kilcullen wrote, "One of the big strategic shifts is the use of language now which talks about Pakistan and Afghanistan as the same theater. Now we talked about Af-Pak long before the Obama administration came about, but the public use of that term, and the description of it as the Afghanistan-Pakistan campaign, sends a new message to people about how the administration is going to think about Afghanistan and Pakistan."<ref name="pbs"/> This became evident when, under the orders of Obama, a military SEALs team killed September 11th mastermind [[Osama bin Laden]] in Abottabad, Pakistan.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.newsweek.com/2011/05/05/commander-in-chief.html|title=Commander in Chief|author=Daniel Romano and Daniel Klaidman|date=May 05, 2011|work=Newsweek|publisher=The Newsweek/Daily Beast Company LLC|language=English|format=HTML}}</ref>

=====Guantanamo Bay=====
{{main article|Guantanamo Bay}}
One of Obama's campaign promises was that he would close the American detention center at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba - detainees would be flown to other countries while the ones awaiting trial would enter the American court system. Two days after taking office he signed an order directing the military to do so.<ref name="salon">{{cite web|url=http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/04/25/obama_guantanamo_rhetoric|work=Salon|title=The Obama/Gitmo timeline|author=Natasha Lennard|format=HTML|language=English}}</ref> But, in November 2009 Obama admitted that his self imposed deadline of January 2010 would be missed, and in March 2011 the president went back on his campaign promise, signing an executive order to create a formal system of indefinite detention for the prisoners.<ref name="salon"/>

=====Mexico=====

In May 2012, President Obama promised Mexican President [[Felipe Calderon]] that his administration would assist Mexico in curbing drug cartel violence, which has led to 30,000 deaths in Mexico. "President Calderon and I . . . stand together against the drug cartels that have unleashed horrific violence in so many communities," Obama said on May 19. "Mexico can count on the United States as a full partner in this effort.

The ''[[Washington Post]]'' has reported however that White House officials stopped a requirement for gun dealers to report bulk sales of high-powered semiautomatic rifles commonly used by illegal drug cartels. [[Justice Department]] officials had asked for White House approval to require thousands of gun dealers along the border to report the purchases to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms and Explosives. ATF investigators expected to get leads on suspected arms traffickers. Senior law enforcement sources said the proposal from the ATF was held up by then White House chief of staff [[Rahm Emanuel]].<ref>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/17/AR2010121706598.html</ref> Gun dealers have been required for decades to report the sales of multiple handguns to the ATF.

=====Libya=====
{{main article|Libyan uprising 2011}}
In February 2011, the political unrest that had spread through the Arab world showed up as protests in Libya. Colonel Muammar el-Qaddafi - dictator of Libya for 41 years - responded to the activism with a wave of violence.<ref name="nyt libya">{{cite web|url=http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/libya/index.html|work=The New York Times|publisher=The New York Times Inc.|format=HTML|language=English|title=Libya — Protests and Revolt (2011)}}</ref> The [[United Nations Security Council]] voted unanimously to impose [[sanctions]], and later authorized all members to take action to protect civilians. Obama, acting without approval from Congress and at the beckoning of the [[United Nations]], directed American forces to take out Libya's air defense system.<ref name="nyt libya"/> Obama later said, "[I]f we waited one more day Benghazi, a city nearly the size of Charlotte, could suffer a massacre that would have reverberated across the region and stained the conscience of the world."<ref>{{cite web|author=Barack Obama|url=http://www.npr.org/2011/03/28/134935452/obamas-speech-on-libya-a-responsibility-to-act|title=Obama's Speech On Libya: 'A Responsibility To Act'|date=March 28, 2011|publisher=National Public Radio ([[NPR]])|language=English|format=HTML}}</ref> [[Alan J. Kuperman]] - writing an editorial for the ''[[Boston Globe]]'' - suggested this statement was false, writing, "[I]ntervention did not prevent genocide, because no such bloodbath was in the offing. To the contrary, by emboldening rebellion, US interference has prolonged Libya’s civil war and the resultant suffering of innocents."<ref name="kuperman">{{cite web|author=Alan J. Kuperman|work=The Boston Globe|url=http://articles.boston.com/2011-04-14/bostonglobe/29418371_1_rebel-stronghold-civilians-rebel-positions|title=False pretense for war in Libya?|date=April 14, 2011}}</ref> Kuperman, a professor of public affairs at the University of Texas who authored a book called ''The Limits of Humanitarian Intervention'', further stated that the rebels had tricked the world into thinking a bloodbath was at hand and that Obama had lied to the American people in order to act on this theory.<ref name="kuperman"/>
<blockquote>
Gaddafi [never] threaten civilian massacre in Benghazi, as Obama alleged. The “no mercy’’ warning, of March 17, targeted rebels only, as reported by The New York Times, which noted that Libya’s leader promised amnesty for those “who throw their weapons away.’’ Khadafy even offered the rebels an escape route and open border to Egypt, to avoid a fight “to the bitter end.’’ <ref> [http://politicalcartel.org/2011/04/17/libya-and-the-obama-doctrine/ Libya and the “Obama Doctrine”.] </ref>
</blockquote>

However Gaddafi wrote to Obama:

<blockquote>
Gaddafi said he bore no ill will toward Obama. "We have been hurt more morally than physically because of what had happened against us in both deeds and words by you," he wrote. "Despite all this you will always remain our son whatever happened. We still pray that you continue to be president of the USA. We endeavour and hope that you will gain victory in the new election campaign." The letter, dated 5 April 2011 in Tripoli, is signed "Mu'aumer Qaddaffi, Leader of the Revolution".<ref>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/apr/06/gaddafi-obama-nato-libya?INTCMP=ILCNETTXT3487]</ref>
</blockquote>

Critics point out the only thing worse than starting a "stupid, unnecessary war" against a madman is losing it.<ref>http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/271847/war-libya-dumb-and-dumber-victor-davis-hanson</ref>

=====Iraq=====
{{main article|Operation Iraqi Freedom}}
Obama campaigned on a promise to carry out [[George W. Bush]]'s timetable to end the War in Iraq, which has been completed.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://articles.cnn.com/2011-12-17/middleeast/world_meast_iraq-troops-leave_1_1st-cavalry-division-camp-adder-troop-movements?_s=PM:MIDDLEEAST|work=CNN|title=Obama: Last U.S. troops leave Iraq|date=December 17, 2011|language=English|format=HTML}}</ref>

==See also==

*[[Political positions of Barack Obama]]
*[[Barack Obama and uncharitableness]]
*[[Barack Obama and abortion]]
*[http://www.ontheissues.org/barack_obama.htm]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

{{USPresidents}}
{{2008 presidential candidates}}
[[Category: Barack Hussein Obama]]
[[Category:Obama Presidency]]
[[Category:Obama Administration]]
[[category:Nobel laureates in Peace]]
[[Category:2012 Presidential Candidates]]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Obama, Barack Hussein}}

Juche

2012-02-25T21:57:44Z

EquisDulks:

'''Juche''' is the official state [[religion]] or [[ideology]] of the [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea]], better known as [[North Korea]].<ref>[http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/dprk/suryong.htm]</ref> The late North Korean dictator [[Kim Jong Il]] had a strong [[cult of personality]], and North Korean children were taught to revere him from a young age. For instance, the first phrase North Korean children were supposed to learn from their parents is "Thank you, Father Kim Il Sung”.

== References ==
<div class="references-small">
<references />

[[Category:Korean Politics]] [[Category:Communism]]

Green Party

2012-02-25T21:48:27Z

EquisDulks:

The '''Green Party''' is an essentially [[left-wing]] [[political party]] in the [[United States]] which places a strong emphasis on [[environmentalism]]. It supports many [[liberal]] social policies, as well as advocating moving politics to the [[grassroots]] and community level. It also supports [[national debt|debt reduction]], a conservative principle, though it generally supports doing this by raising taxes on the upper income brackets and cutting military spending.

There are other Green parties throughout the world, though most, if not all act independently of each other.

The Green Party's nominee for [[POTUS|President]] in 1996 and 2000 was [[Ralph Nader]]. It was [[Ralph Nader]]'s candidacy as the Green Party nominee in 2000 that reportedly split enough votes in [[Florida]] to enable [[George W. Bush]] to defeat [[Al Gore]] there, and that became the margin of Bush's victory for the entire nation.

The Green Party 2004 candidate was David Cobb, with Pat LaMarche as his running mate. In 2008, the Green Party nominee was ultraliberal former Congresswoman [[Cynthia McKinney]] of [[Georgia]].

==External Links==
*[http://www.gp.org/ Official Party Website]
*[http://www.gp.org/tenkey.shtml Ten Key Values of the Green Party]

[[category:United States Political Parties]]
[[Category:Environmentalism]]

Talk:Capitalism

2012-02-25T20:29:27Z

EquisDulks: /* Image */

Iran is non-capitalist? Excuse me?

"Anti Semitic"? You _are_ aware that Karl Marx was Jewish, right? --[[User:BobD|BobD]] 18:09, 14 April 2007 (EDT)
*He was ethnically Jewish yes. However, his parents were converts to Christianity. He was not raised Jewish and wrote many anti-semitic essays. He was a self-hating Jew! Google it. -- [[User:CoulterMan|CoulterMan]] 18:14, 14 April 2007 (EDT)

Cut:

:an economic system where the means of production are privately owned and operated

It's still capitalism, even if the government runs some businesses. There is no bright line of division between free market capitalism and a totally planned economy. Even under the Soviet Union, there was a thriving black market. Maybe we need an [[economic spectrum]] to describe the gradations of control. --[[User:Ed Poor|Ed Poor]] 05:21, 28 April 2007 (EDT)
:I endores this view and beleive Marxist rhetoric needs to be kept out of this article. Capitalism is not an ideology, unlike Marxism, and there is no comparison between the two on that basis. [[User:RobS|RobS]] 13:07, 28 April 2007 (EDT)
::I'd argue it is, but its tenets are rarely articulated. Anyone want to take a crack at it? (The big one seems to be that ANYTHING [[Enron|a corporation]] does to make money is inherently good.)
:::Don't bother. Gorby tried to salvage what he could, and still is a convinced Communst, but the rest of the planet has rejected the flawed notion that Communism is a completing "ideology" to Captialism. Please, abandon this moot point. [[User:RobS|RobS]] 13:37, 28 April 2007 (EDT)

* "It's still capitalism, even if the government runs some businesses." No it isn't!

"There is no bright line of division between free market capitalism and a totally planned economy." Yes, there is! -- [[User:AmeriCan|AmeriCan]] 22:32, 28 April 2007 (EDT)

== Image ==

HEE HEE! [[User:Guitarplayer|Guitarplayer]] 17:11, 25 June 2007 (EDT)
:The image is to demonstrate the absurdity of image choice at [[Socialism]]. --[[User:Hojimachong|'''Ĥøĵĭmåçħôńğ''']][[User_Talk:Hojimachong|talk]] 17:12, 25 June 2007 (EDT)
::Ok, I'll play your little game. Thank you for the BBC link, it really was very interesting reading, and something I've wanted to read for a long time. You, sir, have the floor now. Please support any claim you wish to make. Thank you. [[User:RobS|RobS]] 17:47, 25 June 2007 (EDT)
:::My claim is that if you wish to make a completely inaccurate generalization about a very broad and diverse ideology, that kind of logic should apply to all ideologies. You put socialism in the worst possible light, so I think it is only fair to show capitalism in the worst possible light. Do you disagree? Is there some sort of double standard taking place here? I would propose an image of, say, [[Alexander Hamilton]] for the capitalism article, and [[Karl Marx]] for the socialism article. Both are extremely relevant figures. --[[User:Hojimachong|'''Ĥøĵĭmåçħôńğ''']][[User_Talk:Hojimachong|talk]] 17:51, 25 June 2007 (EDT)
::::(A) I disagree with the premise, "Capitalism is an ideology." Now, it is up to you, using an argument or sources other than Marxist, to prove that it is an ideology. But we are getting ahead of ourselves. Right now, you need to support your fundamental claim, using this text, [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/209742.stm], for the statement,
::::''"Augusto Pinochet, a Chilean capitalist. Pinochet murdered approximately 3,000 "leftist sympathizers" to promote capitalism."'' [[User:RobS|RobS]] 18:07, 25 June 2007 (EDT)
:::::I don't care what term we use to define it; Capitalist and Socialism are two different ways of performing the same task. Whether it is an ideology, a way of life, an economic system, a belief... I don't care. Your attempts to pull the argument away from the core issue will not work. The issue at hand is the use of images, not whether it is an ideology. And I won't be using that source anymore, as I think we can both agree on the basics;
:::::*Chilean leftists attempted to promote communism (a form of socialism, not synonymous with socialism)
:::::*Pinochet murdered 3,000 leftists, to make sure that a capitalist economy stayed in place.
:::::A CIA report: [http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB212/19731027%20Intelligence%20Report.pdf]
:::::And for the record, I despise socialism; the basic ideal it promotes cannot be successfully attained, and it presents no motivation for work. I do, however, think that certain elements of socialist countries - say, socialized health care - would be of great benefit to America.
:::::Once again, the question dodging needs to stop. Capitalism and Socialism are both, let's say, "economic systems". Therefore, presenting capitalism in a strictly positive light, while presenting the absolute worst of socialism - dictators, fascists, and murderers - is a ridiculous double standard. I understand your personal objection to socialism, Rob, but that doesn't get to influence objective writing, correct? --[[User:Hojimachong|'''Ĥøĵĭmåçħôńğ''']][[User_Talk:Hojimachong|talk]] 19:00, 25 June 2007 (EDT)
::::::Ok, so (A) where in the CIA report can you support the claim,
::::::''Augusto Pinochet, a Chilean capitalist. Pinochet murdered approximately 3,000 "leftist sympathizers" to promote capitalism." ''
::::::(B) Can we assume you are unable to support the claim, "Augusto Pinochet, a Chilean capitalist. Pinochet murdered approximately 3,000 "leftist sympathizers" to promote capitalism," with the BBC cite, since you said, "I won't be using that source anymore", and will you remove it?

::::::(C) Hoji said, "Capitalist and Socialism are two different ways of performing the same task;" -- RobS does not agree with this.

::::::(D) Hoji said, "Capitalism and Socialism are both, let's say, 'economic systems';-- RobS does not agree with this either. [[User:RobS|RobS]] 20:33, 25 June 2007 (EDT)

:::::::Let's try this a similar way:
:::::::I don't agree with your agreement on C or D. Would you like to define them in your own manner? I proposed a compromise; an image of Hamilton on this article, and an article of Marx at [[Socialism]]. We can work out the captions later. So, do you agree with the image choice, or would you like something different? --[[User:Hojimachong|'''Ĥøĵĭmåçħôńğ''']][[User_Talk:Hojimachong|talk]] 23:12, 25 June 2007 (EDT)

::::::::Hoji my good man, you are backpeddling. The burden of proof is on you to prove that Capitalism is an ideology; and I suspect you cannot do that without using Marxist sources. So, by default, I win, unless you wish to pursue it further.

::::::::I don't see the meaining or purpose of an image of Hamilton on this page. Capitalism is not hardly an ideology, or an article of faith that anyone puts personal sentiments or emotion on. Let's assume momentarily old earth creation theory & evolution are true, i.e. that the human speicies is 130,000 years old; guess what? Capitalism fed the human species from day one until now. And there simply is no other explanation as to how the human species has survived this long. You say Marxism (socialism/communism/whatever) is an "economic system;" I say bullrot. Capitalism kept the Soviet Union alive for 70 years, not Socialism (Communism or Liberalism or whatever). The Managers of the Soviet system exterminated the old owners of property (by "property" I am refering to "capital"), stole their assets, appointed themselves slave masters, and continued a capitalist regime with themselves in charge.

::::::::So you see my friend, while we can scientifically and academically pick Marx's ''Das Kapital'' apart, and demonstrate its flaws and failings, by contrast [[Adam Smith]]'s ''Wealth of Nations'' is not a textbook of ideology or a substitute for the Bible. It is rather like a Volvo repair manual, it gives a mechanical description of operations that allow the human species to survive in a civilized society. [[User:RobS|RobS]] 23:35, 25 June 2007 (EDT)

:::::::::I am not trying to define capitalism as an ideology, I am trying to convince you, in a ridiculously off-topic argument, that the image currently in place is not accurate.
:::::::::So you wish to say that capitalism is ''not'' an ideology, but socialism is? You wish to define ''Das Kapital'' as an "alternative to the Bible"? You state that capitalism has kept humanity alive since day one?
:::::::::I'll indulge you and agree to that analysis of the situation. If socialism is an ideology, than communism is a ''type'' of socialism; like lassez-faire capitalism is a ''type'' of capitalism. Once again, trying to make "socialism" synonymous with "communism" is simply inaccurate. Including a picture of fascist dictators on the "socialism" article is simply wrong, and I believe you know this.
:::::::::You still attempt to change the subject, which remains the same; the image of Marx, Engels, Lenin, and Stalin on the [[Socialism]] article is misleading and inaccurate. --[[User:Hojimachong|'''Ĥøĵĭmåçħôńğ''']][[User_Talk:Hojimachong|talk]] 01:30, 26 June 2007 (EDT)
::::::::::Ok, so we found areas of common understanding. I'll reserve comment on the statement "lassez-faire capitalism is a type of capitalism."

::::::::::As to the statement, ""Augusto Pinochet, a Chilean capitalist...murdered approximately 3,000 "leftist sympathizers" to promote capitalism," your own friends contradict this premise right here in CP. [[Donald Kendall]] gives us an explanation of the Chilean coup:

:::::::::::''Allende's leftist regime was banning cola sales and other capitalist operations. These conspiracy theorists believe that Kendall used his influence with Nixon to persuade him to back the right-wing coup.
::::::::::Interesting entry; allegedly it had nothing to do with Capitalist/Communist, U.S./Soviet, left/right competetition. It was Coke/Pepsi capitalism, Coke being backed by Nixon & the U.S., Pepsi being the "national soda franchise" of the Soviet Union as the entry states. The godless Allende wanted to boot out Coca-Cola sales & let Soviet bottled Pepsi have a capitalist monopoly in Chile. And all this, it can be seen, came from a Marxist contributor here in Conservapedia.

::::::::::So, what evidence have you presented that is not simply another Marxist lie? To deny (a) the historic nature of the image in the Socialism article, or (b) the very name of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics is disengeuous. As to the idea it's misleading: Would you agree the incessant, unending discussion of Strom Thurmond, David Duke, racism, and the GOP is misleading? [[User:RobS|RobS]] 09:54, 26 June 2007 (EDT)

== Wait... ==
I find the Religious Right's (the dominating force behind Conservapedia) view on capitalism to be somewhat puzzling. The Religious Right believes that (I disagree; I'm a libertarian.) the government's duty is to enforce morality on its citizens while granting them as much economic freedom as possible. This stance is clearly negligent of the fact that in addition to promoting morality, Christianity and nearly every other major religion in the world promote charity. Members of the Religious Right argue that it is best for charity to be kept private, but it seems to me that if the government is to enforce morality on its citizenry, said citizenry should be forced into charity also. Thus, a non-hypocritical version of the Religious Right would be socialist, and, by extension, not be a religious right at all but religious statist. If anyone disagrees with me on this, I would love to debate. --X. Dulks

== FAR OFF POINT ==

CAPITALISM - An economic system in which the means of production, distribution and exchange are privately owned and operated for private profit. Webster's Dictionary

PRIVATE PROPERTY - As protected from being taken for public uses, is such property as belongs absolutely to an individual, and of which he has the exclusive right of disposition. Property of a specific, fixed and tangible nature, capable of being in possession and transmitted to another, such as houses, lands, and chattels.
- - Black's Law dictionary, sixth ed., p.1217

Concatenating the two, we get:
Capitalism is an economic system in which individuals absolutely own the means of production, distribution, and exchange.

Based on that simplification, it's clear that there are no capitalist nations around.
Either corporations (who are creatures of government permission and do not absolutely own) or governments claim power and authority over the means of production, distribution and exchange.

--[[User:Jetgraphics|Jetgraphics]] 14:36, 14 November 2007 (EST)

Fox News Channel

2012-02-25T20:16:13Z

EquisDulks: /* Fox Versus Obama */

[[Image:FNC logo.jpg|right|175px]]

The '''Fox News Channel''' is a [[United States]] [[cable]] and [[satellite]] [[news]] channel. It is a 24-hour general news service covering breaking news as well as political, business and entertainment news. For over 100 consecutive months, FNC has been the most-watched cable news channel in the country. FNC is available in more than 90 million homes. It is part of the Fox Television Stations Group, a subsidiary of [[Australia|Australian]]-born media mogul [[Rupert Murdoch]]'s [[News Corporation]]. [[Roger Ailes]] was named Chairman of the Fox Television Stations Group on August 15, 2005.

The Fox News Channel heavily favors [[neoconservatives]] and generally avoids or even sides against [[liberals]] on important social issues. The Fox News Channel is particularly weak in criticizing the [[homosexual agenda]] and [[abortion]].

==Founding==
The Fox News channel was started in 1996 by Murdoch and Roger Ailes. The two of them perceived a need for a news organization that offered more balanced reporting, one where the facts from all sides would be presented. Main-stream media "Political Correctness" was banished, with the news [[anchor]]s calling [[terrorist]]s what they were, (terrorists), instead of referring to them as "militants." As of February, 2007, polls show that over 20% of Americans say their main source of news is the Fox News Channel.

Fox News uses the slogan "Fair & Balanced" and has daily guest pundits from all sides of the [[political spectrum]]. Fox News also is non-hostile to conservative and [[Christian]] values, viewpoints, spokesmen, and ideas. Fox News has gained the reputation for reporting the news in an unbiased manner and then allowing the viewer to decide; "We Report, You Decide" is another of their on-air slogans.

Fox News has dominated the ratings of other cable news outlets.<ref>[http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-anderson4oct04,0,2195035.story?coll=la-opinion-center]</ref> Launched by media tycoon Rupert Murdoch and former political consultant Roger Ailes as a refuge for viewers fed up with real or perceived liberal bias everywhere in the so-called "[[mainstream media]]", Fox is the undisputed ratings champion of cable news. It's been trouncing [[CNN]], [[MSNBC]] and [[CNBC]] for years, and draws a much larger audience share than all competitors, including the three major broadcast news shows, combined. It is by far the most profitable news network in the world, on track to earn more than $700 Million in 2010. <ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/10/business/media/10ailes.html New York Times, January 9, 2010]</ref>

==Fair and Balanced==
[[Image:Fair_balanced.jpg‎ |thumb|left|Fair And Balanced Logo]]
Critics have been known to complain about the "Fair & Balanced" slogan. Former President [[Bill Clinton]] exploded at ''Fox News Sunday'' anchor [[Chris Wallace]] in September of 2006, accusing him of "a nice little conservative hit job" after being lightly pressed by Wallace about his record on fighting [[Al Qaeda]]. Democratic politicians and advocates have relentlessly attacked the cable network, sometimes accusing it of being a Republican [[propaganda|propaganda mill]]. Former Vice-President and environmentalist [[Al Gore]] has likened Fox to a right-wing "[[fifth column]]." Groups, such as [[MoveOn.org]], funded a classic [[schlockumentary]] entitled ''Outfoxed'', which purports to expose the channel's 'nefarious Republican agenda'. Some have referred to FOX News as "the propaganda arm of the Republican Party" or "Faux News." In a grandstanding gesture of political theater the group unsuccessfully petitioned the [[Federal Trade Commission]] to stop Fox's from using its slogan as "deceptive advertising". It was unanimously rejected. <ref>[http://www.showbizdata.com/news/36127/FTC-REJECTS-COMPLAINTS-AGAINST-FOX-NEWS FTC: "It's best to ignore nuts"]</ref> Fox News spokesman Rob Zimmerman told today's (Tuesday) Wall Street Journal: "If they can attack Fox News to this extreme, ''then all news organizations are at risk to be targeted by similar attacks. ... It's best to ignore nuts."''

Rolling Stone magazine charged that Ailes has “built the most formidable propaganda machine ever seen outside of the [[Communist]] bloc.” Ailes responded accusing NBC, CBS, ABC, The New York Times, and the rest of running a liberal propaganda machine. {{cquote| If they did fair and balanced news, we’d be out of business.}}

A recent comprehensive study by [[UCLA]] political scientist Tim Groseclose and University of Missouri-Columbia economics professor Jeffrey Milyo found [[Brit Hume]]'s ''Special Report'' — Fox's most straightforward news show — more centrist than any of the three major networks' evening newscasts, all of which are liberal. <ref>[http://rcp.missouri.edu/articles/milyo_media.html]</ref> The program is a model of smart news television.

Although it is true that the Fox's opinion shows (as opposed to its news shows) are, as they're supposed to be, frequently bombastic and opinionated; it is equally true that Fox's biggest super-star, [[Bill O'Reilly]] is not a mainstream Republican, but a registered [[Independent]] who sides with conservatives. He regularly charges the oil companies with price-gouging and attacks big business for quashing the little guy. Greta Van Susteren's politics are unclear, as she mostly covers the [[crime]]-of-the-day stories. [[Geraldo Rivera]] is traditionally liberal on most issues, with the exception of being a strong supporter of the military and stiff penalties for [[sex offender]]s.

Some liberal commentators, such as news analyst [[Marvin Kalb]], and [[Eleanor Clift]], are affiliated with the channel. In general, Fox News is closer to mainstream America than [[CBS]], [[ABC]], [[NBC]] or [[CNN]], its founding mission.

Conservatives have criticism for the Fox News Channel as well. For example, conservatives have complained about [[Fox News and homosexuality|how Fox News has covered the homosexuality issue]]. In 2006, the [[conservative]] reporter [[Peter LaBarbera]] wrote that "Fox News and Wal-mart are among the high-level ($10,000) sponsors of the [[National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association]]’s (NLGJA) 2006 Convention in Miami."<ref>http://americansfortruth.com/issues/corporate-promotion/corporations/food-beverage-household-brands/coca-cola</ref> In addition, their 'Fair and Balanced' motto allows [[liberal propaganda]], lies, deceit, and half-truths to gain an audience. In reality, Fox was judged to actually provide a more "fair and balanced" coverage in the 2008 Presidential race than all three MSM networks, who had a decidedly pro-Obama tilt, a study by the ''Center for Media and Public Affairs''. <ref>[http://www.cmpa.com/pdf/08summer.pdf Center for Media and Public Affairs: ''How TV News Has Covered McCain, Obama and Hillary'']</ref>

=== Fox News Liberals ===

Talk to any Fox News-hating liberal and you'll here the same old regurgitated talking point- ''"Fox is not Fair & Balanced,"'' ''"Rightwing propaganda."'' One network, Fox News, has twice the number of opposing commentators than does all media sources combined. If you add up the major media properties; ABC, NBC, CBS, MSNBC, CNN, PBS, New York Times, Washington Post, and Newsweek -- you get a total of five [[Token conservative | so-called conservative]] personalities among hundreds of liberals. At the least, Fox News employs the following [[liberal]]s;

*[[Juan Williams]]
*[[Alan Colmes]]
*[[Kirsten Powers]]
*[[Shepard Smith]]
*[[Geraldo Rivera]]
*[[Mara Liasson]]
*[[Bill Schulz]]
*[[Susan Estrich]]
*[[Ed Henry]]
*[[Bob Beckel]]

A 2009 national survey showed that 46% of those who watch FOX News “just about every day” are [[Democrat]]s or Independents. [[Dick Morris]] interpreted the numbers and determines, ''"Could it be that the [[Obama Administration]] is concerned about FOX News not because it is 'an arm of the Republican Party' but because it is so widely seen among Democrats and Independents?"'' <ref>[http://www.dickmorris.com/blog/fox-news-reaches-across-party-lines/ FOX NEWS REACHES ACROSS PARTY LINES, Dick Morris.com, October 19, 2009]</ref>

=== The Five ===
The show that replaced Glenn Beck's ratings dominance is 'The Five', described as a “roundtable ensemble of five rotating FOX personalities...." <ref>[http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/06/30/fox-news-to-replace-beck-with-the-five/, Fox News to Replace Beck With ‘The Five’, NYTimes, June 30, 2011]</ref>

Most often, the show pits Bob Beckel, a consistent defender of every Democratic Party talking point, against a panel of conservative or libertarian opponents. 'The Five' features Bob Beckel, Greg Gutfeld, [[Juan Williams]], [[Dana Perino]], [[Andrew Napolitano]], Geraldo Rivera, Andrea Tantaros, Eric Bolling, Monica Crowley, and Kimberly Guilfoyle.

== Ratings Dominance ==
Fox News Channel was the 2nd highest rated cable channel on all of television during the first quarter of 2009 in prime time Total Viewers. CNN was 17th and MSNBC 24th for the first three months of the year. FNC beat CNN and MSNBC combined and gained the most compared to the first quarter of 2008, up 24%. 2009's first quarter was FNC's 3rd highest rated quarter in prime time in the network's history — just behind Q4 '08 and Q3 '05. In prime time, ages 25-54 demo, and in total day in both categories, FNC grew more year-to-year than CNN and MSNBC combined. FNC had nine of the top 10 programs on cable news in Total Viewers.

[[Bill O'Reilly|The O'Reilly Factor]] has now been #1 on cable news for 100 consecutive months, up 27% in Total Viewers year-over-year. [Citation Needed]

[[Glenn Beck]] dominated the ratings before leaving the network in June 2011. Beck broke every single record for the 5 P.M. timeslot. The leftist mob learned to hate him with a passion and [[Center For American Progress]]' senior fellow [[Van Jones]] is taking credit for Beck's retirement.

April 2009 statistics showed three new programs beat CNN and MSNBC ''combined'' in total viewers during their respective time slots.

On the Record with Greta Van Susteren is up 55% in total viewers and 75% in the demo. Your World with Neil Cavuto is up 60% in Total Viewers and 102% in the demo. Glenn Beck, is up 212% in the demo and up 128% in total viewers. <ref>[http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/ratings/april_ratings_fnc_beats_cnn_and_msnbc_combined_115179.asp Media Bistro: April Ratings: FNC Beats CNN and MSNBC Combined]
</ref>

== Anti-elitist ==
Conservatives argue that Fox's real ethos is not Republican or conservative, but anti-[[elitist]] — a major reason it connects with so many Americans and annoys so many coastal elites. "There's a whole country that elitists will never acknowledge," Ailes once observed. "What people resent deeply out there are those in the 'blue states' thinking they're smarter." This anti-elitism shows itself in Fox's pro-U.S. stance in covering the [[Afghanistan]] and [[Iraq war]]s and its broadcasters' use of terms such as "terrorist" instead of the politically correct "militant" to refer to terrorists. Since the [[Vietnam War]] era, mainstream [[journalist]]s have tended to see such blunt language and side-taking as unsophisticated, a betrayal of journalistic [[objectivity]], or perhaps their own ingrained biases against government in general.

Another aspect of Fox's anti-elitism is the treatment of [[evangelical]] and [[fundamentalist Christian]]s with respect, far from the normal liberal media's depiction as lunatics or extremists. "We regularly have on the Rev. Franklin Graham, [[Dr. James Dobson]] and other religious leaders, just as we put on Pat Ireland and Eleanor Clift," Ailes said, continuing, ''"Most Americans believe in God and have that as their foundation in life. So why shouldn't we have as guests people that they like, respect and want to hear from?" '' Ailes said he didn't get "too worked up" by a Pew Foundation study that showed that Fox has more Republican viewers than CNN, CNBC or MSNBC and that his reporters and anchors insert their opinions into stories far more than competitors do. Numbers might have something to do with it: Fox is beating the combined audience of the other three. But Ailes dismissed Pew as a "liberal [[lobbyist|lobbying]] organization." He said, "Most polls today are not taken to provide information to the public but to get press for the organization taking the polls. I took a poll of Pew, and 98% of my organization found that they were biased", Ailes said with a wink. <ref>http://www.usatoday.com/life/columnist/mediamix/2005-04-06-media-mix_x.htm</ref>

In response, Project director Tom Rosenstiel said the study "was not a poll. It was a content analysis designed by a four-university research team and executed at the [[University of Alabama]]." ''One plus for Fox, he said, was that researchers found Fox News stories were more forthcoming about sourcing than their cable rivals.'' <ref>http://www.usatoday.com/life/columnist/mediamix/2005-04-06-media-mix_x.htm</ref>

== Fox Versus Fringe Views ==
"What really frustrates liberals about Fox, though, is simply that, along with [[talk radio]] and the conservative [[blogosphere]], it has helped shatter the left's near-monopoly on news and information. Fox's opinion-driven programming gives conservatives and liberals a chance to get a fair hearing for their ideas. But Democratic politicians and activists who go on Fox also must defend their views, often against tough questioning, something that happens less often on the networks, where most journalists are left-of-center, survey after survey has shown", said columnist Brian Anderson. "Even more significant, Fox came on the scene a decade ago as a professional news organization that could define and report news as something different from what the elite consensus says it is. To take one of many examples, the corruption of the [[United Nations]]' oil-for-food initiative in [[Iraq]], initially downplayed by the mainstream media because of their sympathy for internationalism, was uncovered — deemed newsworthy — on Fox."

All this wouldn't matter if Fox News wasn't so influential. But it is. According to the Pew Research Center, more than 20% of Americans now claim to get news from it, and lots of them (37%) are Democrats or independents. The network's success has also sparked a "Fox effect," leading some competitors to become more open to right-of-center opinions: MSNBC's "Scarborough Country," hosted by former Republican congressman [[Joe Scarborough]], is a prime example. Until a few years ago, Democrats never had to deal with all these conservatives in the media. <ref>http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-anderson4oct04,0,2195035.story?coll=la-opinion-center</ref>

Ailes said Fox News has no agenda. His charge to his reporters and anchors is simple: "If you make a mistake, get on the air as fast as you can and admit it. ... Do your homework. Make sure you reach out to a point of view you don't agree with to be sure you have some balance in your piece, because journalists, despite the public perception, are not empty-headed fools. They actually come to the job with some ideas and biases." When asked whether the media have a "conscious bias," Ailes said: "I don't know whether it's conscious or not. I think people who are biased to the left and right are by and large honest people who bring their life experience to whatever their beliefs are. I don't think there's some conspiracy of bias to the left, ''but I do think that [[New York]] and [[Los Angeles]] have different views than many people that I know from other parts of the country."'' <ref>http://www.usatoday.com/life/columnist/mediamix/2005-04-06-media-mix_x.htm</ref>

== Fox Versus Obama ==
[[Barack Hussein Obama]] has thin skin when it comes to criticism of his policies. The entire [[mainstream media]] has thrown its support to Obama and refuses to questions his policies. Fox News is the lone station that will criticize Obama fairly. Obama said, <ref>[http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/media_critic_fox_news/2009/06/19/227121.html Media Critic: Fox Only Press Doing Its Job] NewsMax, June 19, 2009</ref>
{{cquote| “I’ve got one television station that is entirely devoted to attacking my administration…That’s a pretty big megaphone. You’d be hard pressed if you watched the entire day to find a positive story about me on that front.” }}

The President has praised MSNBC and berated Fox News. Considering that MSNBC devoted itself to attacking George W Bush and his administration, this is hypocritical on Obama's part. To sum it up, all other major news networks have let themselves become servile heralds of the liberal agenda, while Fox news is the only station that will call Obama out on anything he does.

Media critic David Zurawik said “Thank goodness at least one TV outlet, Fox, is questioning Team Obama as it pushes for the kind of massive change in American life not seen since the era of Franklin Roosevelt,” and "...ABC, NBC, MSNBC, CNBC and the others allow their news operations to be used by the White House for partisan political reasons."

== Fox Versus Information ==
In striving to depict a [[conservative]] viewpoint of current events, Fox News has sometimes failed to properly inform its viewers. A famous example would be when Kim Jhong-Il died and his son Kim Il-Sung succeeded him, and a Fox reporter commented on how odd it is that Kim Jhong-Il and Kim Il-Sung have the same first name, obviously unaware that in Korea, one's last name comes before one's first name.

== Roger Ailes ==
[[Image:Rogerailes_1.jpg‎ |thumb|right|400px|Roger Ailes, Fox News CEO]]
[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,205966,00.html This is a transcript] of Ailes speaking to the Television Critics Association, which will be enlightening to readers digging into the Fox take on reporting and its reaction to controversy about its mission.

On November 20, 2008, [[Roger Ailes]], who now holds the titles of Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, FOX News and Chairman of FOX Television Stations, signed a new five year contract with News Corporation, it was announced by Rupert Murdoch, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. The contract will pay him over 23 million dollars in 2009. <ref>[http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/fnc/roger_ailes_signs_new_5year_deal_with_news_corp_101312.asp Ailes Inks 5 Year Deal With NewsCorp]</ref>

During Ailes' time with [[News Corporation|News Corp]], [[FNC]] passed [[CNN]] in ratings in all day parts in 2002 to become the number one news network in the country, nearing full distribution with more than 90 million subscribers. In 2007, he launched the [[Fox Business Channel]] which currently reaches more than 40 million homes and served as the biggest launch in cable television history. Throughout Mr. Ailes' tenure, FOX Television Stations has increased its market share each of the last three years with all time record shares in the last two years. In addition, Fox Television Stations has expanded its local news presence by nearly 100 hours a week in a challenging economic climate.
{{cquote|'''At a time when the broadcast networks are struggling with diminishing audiences and profits in news, he has built Fox News into the profit engine of the News Corporation. ''Fox News is believed to make more money than CNN, MSNBC and the evening newscasts of NBC, ABC and CBS combined.'' The division is on track to achieve $700 million in operating profit this year, according to analyst estimates.''' --- The New York Times, 1/9/2010 <ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/10/business/media/10ailes.html?pagewanted=all Ailes: Fox News Chief at the Pinnacle of Media and Politics ]</ref> }}

== Tony Snow ==
In April, 2006 the [[White House]] selected [[Tony Snow]], Fox News Anchorman, to be the new White House Press Secretary. "Snow, who in his roles as a [[pundit]] on Fox News and elsewhere has rapped Bush on several occasions, joined the White House only after extracting a promise that he would become an adviser to the president on day-to-day strategy...the former columnist will be the first outsider to become part of Bush's revamped inner circle.", said the [[Washington Post]]. <ref>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/26/AR2006042600558.html</ref>

Snow, 50, worked most recently as host for ''Fox News Sunday, with Tony Snow'' and as host of his own radio talk show. He was a director of speech-writing for President [[George H.W. Bush]] and has worked as a [[USA Today]] columnist, Editorial Page Editor of the [[Washington Times]], deputy editorial page editor of the [[Detroit News]] and frequent substitute for radio host [[Rush Limbaugh]]. <ref>http://whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/04/20060426.html</ref> Snow died July 12, 2008, after an unsuccessful battle with colon cancer.

==Bill O'Reilly==
The [[O'Reilly Factor]] has been the most watched cable news segment for eight years. [[Bill O'Reilly]] has interviewed Barack Obama and other high profile guests on his show.
:"FOX News destroys NBC and CNN on cable every night. We cover the news. We don't ignore it. And we don't denigrate it." - Bill O'Reilly
Bill O'Reilly is a registered independent, but sides with Republicans on most issues, excluding several Christian causes. Bill O'Reilly wrote the best seller "A Bold Fresh Piece of Humanity." Like [[Sean Hannity]] and other commentators on Fox, O'Reilly's role is that of an independent contractor, expressing his own opinions, not those of Fox News, as opposed to the networks news anchors, like Shepard Smith.

==Sarah Palin==
The network confirmed in January of 2010 that the former [[Alaska|Alaskan]] governor [[Sarah Palin]] had signed a multiyear contract to appear on the news station periodically. Potentially in a format similar to LtCol (ret) Oliver L. North's "War stories" documentary series. <ref>http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/11/sarah-palin-to-contribute-to-fox-news/?scp=2&sq=Palin&st=cse</ref>

==Red Eye w/ Greg Gutfeld==
Red Eye w/ Greg Gutfeld is a hybrid news / comedic satire show hosted by Greg Gutfeld. The show appears on Fox News at 3:00 a.m. EST on weekdays. Their ratings are remarkable for the time slot. <ref>[http://www.mediaite.com/online/red-eye-resurgence-more-demo-viewers-watch-fox-at-3am-than-cnn-at-8pm/ Red Eye Resurgence: More Demo Viewers Watch Fox At 3am Than CNN at 8pm, October 5th, 2009]</ref>
{{cquote|
The ratings came out for September and Red Eye is up over 30% in total viewers and up 50% in the key demo (25-54) since July. They have more overall viewers than every CNBC show, every MSNBC show that is on before Hardball, most of HLN, and American Morning on CNN.}}

September 2010 marks the third anniversary of RedEye w/ Greg Gutfeld. It was noted that their rating for 3:00 a.m. EST beat out [[CNN]],

{{cquote|This time, the show had better ratings in the A25-54 demographic than Campbell Brown at 8pmET and Larry King at 9pmET, and tied Anderson Cooper at 10pmET (Monday-Thursday).}}
==Fox News Channel and Homosexuality ==

''see also:'' [[Fox News and homosexuality]] and [[Homosexuality in the media]]

Currently, the Fox Broadcasting Company website declares concerning the [[National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association]] (NLGJA):
{{cquote|NLGJA Annual Conference and Job Fair
Fox News is a regular exhibitor at these annual Job Fairs. News Corp sponsored the opening reception for first time attendees in 2006, as well as sponsoring workshops on Journalism in various colleges in 2007.<ref>http://www.fox.com/diversity/outreach/lgbt.htm</ref>}}

In 2010, the [[National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association]] declared that [[Kelly Wright]], a Fox News Channel representative, attended NLGJA's 15th Annual New York Benefit.<ref>http://www.nlgja.org/news/NYE2010.htm</ref> According the Fox News Channel website: "Kelly Wright is co-anchor of "FOX & Friends Weekend" as well as a general assignment correspondent for FOX News Channel (FNC)."<ref>http://www.foxnews.com/bios/talent/kelly-wright/</ref> Wright is a graduate of the [[Christian]] university [[Oral Roberts University]].<ref>http://www.foxnews.com/bios/talent/kelly-wright/</ref> In January of 2010, the [[pro-life]] website published by Jill Stanek claimed Kelly Wright is a pastor.<ref>http://www.jillstanek.com/pregnancy/foxs-kelly-wrig.html</ref> According to [[Christianity]] and the [[Bible]], [[Homosexuality and the Bible|homosexuality is a sin]].
[[Image:Rev. Louis P. Sheldon Photo.jpg|thumb|Reverend [[Louis Sheldon]] of the [[Traditional Values Coalition]] ]]
The [[Traditional Values Coalition]] states the following regarding the Fox News Channel and the issue of [[homosexuality]]:
{{cquote|The [[National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association]] has hundreds of members and is heavily funded by Hearst newspapers, Knight-Ridder, [[CBS News]], [[CNN]], Gannett, [[NBC]], [[Los Angeles Times]], [[Fox News]], and more. Major newspapers throughout the U.S. have homosexual activists on their staffs who filter what you read about homosexuality.<ref>http://www.traditionalvalues.org/pdf_files/Homosexuality101.pdf</ref>}}

[[Accuracy in Media]] declared concerning the Fox News Channel:
{{cquote|Media organizations which underwrote the convention included NBC News, Times Inc., Turner Broadcasting, Knight-Ridder, the Washington Post and Fox News Network. That’s right - Fox News. This is supposed to be a conservative network. ABC, NBC, CBS, the New York Times, and USA Today all sent recruiters to the event, to hire open gays as journalists. Fitzpatrick comments, "By treating the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association as a legitimate counterpart to black and Hispanic journalists’ associations, these media organizations showed that they agree with the notion that homosexuals, a group defined by behavior rather than immutable characteristics, constitute a bona fide minority."<ref>http://ghroll.blogspot.com/2008/03/homosexuality-in-media.html</ref>}}
=== Bill O'Reilly and the homosexuality issue ===

''see also:'' [[Bill O'Reilly and the homosexuality issue]] and [[Homosexuality in the media]]

The [[American Family Association]] reported the following in regards to [[Bill O'Reilly]] who host the O'Reilly Report which is a popular program on the Fox News Channel:
{{cquote|On February 11, 2004, Bill O'Reilly, host of The O'Reilly Factor on the Fox News Channel, featured Kevin Jennings, the executive director of GLSEN (the Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network.) Jennings, former teacher turned homosexual activist, along with a lesbian counterpart, discussed GLSEN's new pro-homosexual curriculum on marriage being marketed to children and youth in public schools all across America under the guise of "tolerance."...

O'Reilly, watched heavily by conservatives and Christians alike, shocked much of his constituency on September 3, 2002 when he publicly announced his support of homosexual rights in the nation's largest “gay” publication, ''The Advocate''. His sympathetic, lenient views on “gay” adoption and his mixed-message stance on “gay” marriage have caused great dissent among his loyalists - and no doubt cost him viewers.<ref>http://www.afa.net/homosexual_agenda/GetArticle.asp?id=115</ref>}}

[[WorldNetDaily]] stated the following regarding O'Reilly and his exchange with the [[Ex-Homosexuals|ex-homosexual]] and evangelical minister Stephen Bennett:
{{cquote|Fox News is threatening to sue a prominent evangelical minister in the ex-homosexual movement who engaged in a volatile exchange over biblical morality on the top-rated television program "The O'Reilly Factor" in September.

Stephen Bennett, who says he left his homosexual lifestyle nearly 11 years ago, has distributed a 60-minute audio tape program called the "The O'Reilly Shocker," in which he responds to host Bill O'Reilly's characterization of people who take the Bible literally as "religious fanatics.".

Bennett said he has received hundreds of e-mails from viewers of the segment who said they were outraged at O'Reilly's "anger and verbal abuse." <ref>http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=30300</ref>}}

In response to the threatened lawsuit of the Fox News Channel the Agape Press reported:
{{cquote|But Mike DePrimo, senior litigation counsel for the American Family Association Center for Law & Policy, which represents Bennett, says Bennett has a right to distribute a recording of the program -- and that his use of the tape is legal under copyright law's allowance of fair use and comment.

"The law provides that even copyrighted material may be used, provided it's used not for commercial gain but for comment," DePrimo says. "Stephen Bennett used the material from the O'Reilly show simply to rebut the arguments O'Reilly put forward."

The attorney implies there may be another reason the popular O'Reilly wants distribution of the tape stopped -- and it has to do with image. "O'Reilly promotes himself as a [[conservative]]," DePrimo explains. "In fact, Bennett's tape shows that O'Reilly is simply another media elite who's advancing the [[Homosexual Agenda|homosexual agenda]] -- and he doesn't want to be exposed for what he is."<ref>http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/1/afa/32003a.asp</ref>}}

Bill O'Reilly describes himself as a practicing [[Roman Catholic]].<ref>http://www.billoreilly.com/newslettercolumn?pid=29184</ref> According to the [[Vatican]] individuals should not engage in homosexual acts as they are acts of serious depravity.<ref>http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20030731_homosexual-unions_en.html</ref>
=== Peter LaBarbera Concerning Fox News and homosexuality ===

''See also:'' [[Homosexuality in the media]]

[[Image:Peter.jpg|right|thumb|150px|[[Peter LaBarbera]] ]]
In April of 2009, [[Peter LaBarbera]] of [[Americans for Truth]] wrote:
{{cquote|How fascinating that [[Wayne Besen]] (left) is given the opportunity to appear on FOX News, of all places..., to critique alleged “[[homophobia|homophobic]]” attitudes and speech toward homosexuals — when he has such a well-deserved reputation for being one of the nastiest “queer” activists in the business.<ref>http://americansfortruth.com/news/gays-hating-ex-gays-wayne-besens-verbal-assault-on-greg-quinlan.html</ref>}}

In March of 2009, [[Peter LaBarbera]] declared:
{{cquote|Temple U. Professor Dr. Marc Lamont Hill (left), a frequent guest on FOX News, believes Americans are “[[homophobia|homophobic]]” because most still don’t like to see homosexuality (compared to heterosexuality) on TV or the big screen. We say Prof. Hill should get off his liberal high horse and stop lecturing Americans for their normal reaction to unnatural and immoral behavior....

Enough already. Gay sex is wrong, [[Homosexuality and health|unhealthy (especially between men)]], and my hunch is it’s still pretty off-putting to most FOX viewers who are honest with themselves. And that’s OK. But I’ll go further: if there is a growing acceptance of homo-sexual behavior, especially among young people, that’s not a good thing but a sign of America’s descent into decadence, and our departure from a transcendent Judeo-Christian moral code that has served this nation well.<ref>http://americansfortruth.com/news/were-all-homophobes-now-letter-to-foxs-red-eye.html</ref>}}

In 2006, [[Peter LaBarbera]] wrote:
{{cquote|Fox News and Wal-mart are among the high-level ($10,000) sponsors of the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association’s (NLGJA) 2006 Convention in Miami (Sept 7-10 at Loew’s Miami Beach Hotel). Every year, the NLGJA garners hundreds of thousands of dollars in Big Media sponsorships for its convention; this year it appears (based on the sponsorship list below) that the total is around half a milliion dollars in corporate support...

Our question for Fox News executives is: if you are truly “fair and balanced,” will you now give an equal and corresponding grant to Americans for Truth or another pro-family organization, say, Accuracy in Media, that counters the ubiquitous pro-”gay” spin in the media? We’ll be awaiting your answer.<ref>http://americansfortruth.com/issues/corporate-promotion/corporations/food-beverage-household-brands/coca-cola</ref>}}

=== Rupert Murdoch ===
[[Image:HillaryRupert1V.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Hillary Clinton with media magnate Ruppert Murdoch. ''Photo Courtesy Democrats Against Hillary''.<ref>[http://democratsagainsthillary.blogspot.com/ ''Democrats Against Hillary''].</ref>]]
The Fox News Channel is a [[United States]] [[cable]] and [[satellite]] [[news]] channel. It is part of the Fox Television Stations Group, a subsidiary of [[Australia|Australian]]-born media mogul [[Rupert Murdoch]]'s [[News Corporation]].

Slated reported in 2008 that since 1997, [[Republicans]] have received a slight majority - 56% of the $4.76 million in campaign donations from the Murdoch family and the [[News Corporation]]'s political action committees and employees.<ref>http://www.slate.com/id/2196085/</ref> However, [[Slate]] also reported in 2008: "Since Democrats won control of Congress in the 2006 elections, the company and its employees have given more than twice as much to [[Democrats]] as to [[Republicans]]."<ref>http://www.slate.com/id/2196085/</ref> Generally speaking, [[Republicans]] have less favorable views and policies concerning homosexuality than [[Democrats]].<ref>http://www.gallup.com/poll/137357/Four-Moral-Issues-Sharply-Divide-Americans.aspx</ref> The Pew Research Center reported in 2010: "In broad terms, voters view the Democratic Party's ideology as the opposite of the Republican Party's: 58% say the Democratic Party is either very liberal or liberal..."<ref>http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1669/political-ideology-democrats-seen-farther-from-center-than-republicans</ref> In the United States, twice as many liberals as conservatives (46% versus 22%) believe people are born homosexual and [[Views on Homosexuality|liberals generally have more favorable opinions about homosexuality]].<ref>http://people-press.org/report/?pageid=764</ref> In recent years, Rupert Murdoch has formed a relationship with the [[liberal]]s/[[Democrats]] [[Bill Clinton]] and [[Hillary Clinton]]. In 2005, he invited musician [[Bono]] and Bill Clinton to a company conference on the environment, [[Islam]] in the West, and future of the world.<ref>http://www.forbes.com/lists/2006/54/biz_06rich400_Keith-Rupert-Murdoch_639W.html</ref>

=== Knighthood by Roman Catholic Organization and Roman Catholic teaching on homosexuality ===
Rupert Murdoch has been married three times and divorced two times. Before Rupert Murdoch left his second wife, he was anointed as a member of the Pontifical Order of St. Gregory the Great, for his "unblemished character."<ref>http://weeklywire.com/ww/01-20-98/alibi_opinion.html</ref>

The [[Roman Catholic Church]]'s position is that having homosexual desires can be a choice in individuals but having homosexual desires is not a choice in respect to all individuals.<ref>http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20030731_homosexual-unions_en.html</ref><ref>http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_19861001_homosexual-persons_en.html</ref> However, as noted earlier, according to the [[Vatican]] individuals should not engage in homosexual acts as they are acts of serious depravity.<ref>http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20030731_homosexual-unions_en.html</ref>

== Also See ==

* '''[[Fox News and homosexuality]]'''
* '''[[Bill O'Reilly and the homosexuality issue]]'''
* '''[[Homosexuality in the media]]'''
* '''[[Fox Television and Religion]]'''
* '''[[Roger Ailes]]'''

== External Links ==

* [http://www.foxnews.com/ Fox News]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

[[Category: Fox News Channel]]
[[Category:Cable TV Networks]]
[[Category:Conservative Media]]
[[Category:Conservative news organizations]]

Theocracy

2012-02-24T01:19:49Z

EquisDulks: /* Theocracy and the Kingdom of Heaven */

'''Theocracy''' is a form of government ruled by divine means or by leaders considered to be divinely guided. [[Israel]] was a theocracy before King Saul. The Islamic Republic of [[Iran]] is a modern-day theocracy, as many commentators believe that the real power in its government lies not in allegedly "democratically-elected" leaders like [[Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]] but in clerics within the government since Iranian law requires Presidential candidates to be approved by the [[Guardian Council]] <ref>
Access Denied: Iran’s Exclusionary Elections Human Rights Watch [http://www.hrw.org/backgrounder/mena/iran0605/]</ref> and some Iranian laws on homosexuality and adultery come from the Sharia <ref>Netherlands, Sweden: Bar Deportations to Torture in Iran
- Officials Must Not Return Gay and Lesbian Asylum Seekers to Iran Human Rights Watch [http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/10/06/sweden14361.htm]</ref>. The [[Vatican]] is a formal Christian theocracy, with the [[Pope]] as head of both church and state.

Only two democracies reserve places in their legislature specifically for representatives of the state religion, these are the aforementioned Islamic Republic of Iran and the [[United Kingdom]] where Bishops of the [[Church of England]] sit in the upper chamber, the [[House of Lords]] under the designation of Lords Spiritual. By technicality, [[Vatican City]] is a theocracy, as it is ruled by the Pope, placed by a divine election.

==Theocracy as tyranny==

[[C.S. Lewis]] wrote:

:Of all tyrannies, a [[tyranny]] sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It would be better to live under [[Robber Baron|robber barons]] than under omnipotent moral [[busybody|busybodies]]. The robber baron's cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with the approval of their own [[conscience]]. [http://www.tsowell.com/quotes.html]

Theocracy may also describe any government which seeks to impose religious principles or law, such as the [[Sharia]], or the Hindu laws of [[Manu Smriti]] <ref>The laws of Manu George Buhler, translated by [http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/manu.htm]</ref> on its population, even if the government is formally [[secular]].

One well known example of such a state is Saudi Arabia who's legal system is based on the Sharia law, Saudi Arabia also has a [[religious police]] <ref>Saudi Arabia - The Legal System U.S. Library Of Congress [http://countrystudies.us/saudi-arabia/51.htm]</ref>

In Israel, civil cases under the [[Halakhah]] (traditional Jewish law based on the [[Torah]]) are allowed.

==Theocracy and the Kingdom of Heaven==

In a society where most people are centered on God, and really in touch with His love and His will, the formal system of laws and courts will probably be less necessary.
[[Sun Myung Moon|Rev. Moon]] said, "Eventually we will not need elections. If people go back to their hometowns and serve they will be asked to take public offices, become a king or queen, whoever becomes the center of their hometown does not need to be elected." (unofficial sermon notes, Nov. 23, 2010)

This idea is in contrast to the [[Taliban]]-style theocracy, in which [[Sharia law]] is imposed with sticks and whips and swords.

[[Category:Religion]]
[[Category:Forms of Government]]

== See also ==

*[[Philosophy]]
*[[Jewish philosophy]]

==References==
<references/>

Moral Majority

2012-02-21T00:08:37Z

EquisDulks:

The '''Moral Majority''' was a [[right-wing]] coalition organized in 1979 by Rev. [[Jerry Falwell]]. Its mailing lists reached 100,000 clergy representing over 7 million conservative, religious Americans. The Moral Majority, part of the [[Religious Right]] and partially responsible for moving the Republican Party to the right, organized a series of voting drives and political demonstrations to advance their conservative point of view and enhance the moral and religious attitudes of the nation. The Moral Majority is best known for their work in supporting [[Ronald Reagan]]'s election in 1980, and registering millions of voters to act on his behalf.

Preachers emphasized that the devil was at work in America and good Christians had to organize to stop him. [[Abortion]], a new issue in politics, was a major theme.

The Moral Majority played little role during the Reagan years; Falwell stepped down as its leader in 1987 and it was disbanded in 1989.
==Voters==
In the 1984 election, 9.4% of the voters itentified with the Moral Majority. They were disproportionately female, Evangelical, and highly religious, and felt negatively toward abortion, gays and lesbians, and the women's liberation movement.<ref>Clyde Wilcox et al. "The Second Coming of the New Christian Right: Patterns of Popular Support in 1984 and 1996," ''Social Science Quarterly'' 1999 80(1): 181-192</ref>

==Further reading==
* Shupe, Anson and William A Stacey. ''Born again politics and the moral majority: what social surveys really show'' (1982)
* Wilcox, Clyde; Sharon Linzey; and Ted G. Jelen. "Reluctant Warriors: Premillennialism and Politics in the Moral Majority," ''Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion,'' Vol. 30, No. 3 (Sep., 1991), pp. 245-258 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1386971 in JSTOR]
* Wilcox, Clyde. "Evangelicals and the Moral Majority," ''Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion,'' Vol. 28, No. 4 (Dec., 1989), pp. 400-414 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1386573 in JSTOR]

==References==
<references/>

[[category:Conservative Organizations]]
[[category:Religion and Politics]]

Cult

2012-02-19T19:17:19Z

EquisDulks: /* Catholic usage */

A '''cult''' is a term for a [[religion]] or community of belief that is regarded as illegitimate, heretical, or far outside mainstream beliefs. Although some consider it to be a statement of opinion, "cult" has well-defined meanings.

Some religions labeled "cults" are dangerous, and in rare but well-publicized cases have proven to be fatal, such as Jim Jones' group in the late 1970s in Guyana (see [[Jonestown Massacre]]).

== Sect vs. Cult ==

Strictly speaking, the terms "cult" and "sect" are not synonymous, although some people use the two terms interchangeably.
Although many groups consider themselves sects, naturally no group considers itself to be a cult.

== Definitions of "cult" ==

In a general sense, a cult is a group which exercises mind control over its followers.<ref name="def">[http://www.cultwatch.com/about.html About Cultwatch] [http://www.wfial.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=artGeneral.article_1 What is a Cult?] (Watchman Fellowship) [http://www.cults.co.nz/cultfaq/index.php#whatisacult Cult FAQ] (Cults.co.nz)</ref>

In a [[Christianity|Christian]] sense, a cult is a group which claims to be Christian but which has major doctrinal differences to normal Christianity.<ref name="def" />
{{QuoteBox|The word "cult" is not in the Bible but its direct corollary is heresy or heretic. Other Biblical terms are false teachers, false prophets and false brethren.<ref>[http://www.wfial.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=artGeneral.article_1 What is a Cult?] (Watchman Fellowship)</ref>}}

[[Josh McDowell]] and Don Stewart list typical characteristics of cults, although not all cults have all these characteristics.<ref>McDowell, Josh, and Stewart, Don, "Handbook of Today's Religions", Here's Life, 1983, ISBN 978-0840735010</ref>
* They claim to have a new revelation from God.
* They claim to have an exclusive interpretation of Scripture.
* They have a source of authority that supercedes the Bible.
* They have a view of Jesus contrary to biblical teaching.
* They reject orthodox Christianity as having departed from what it should be.
* They say one thing publicly but something different internally.
* They reject or have a distorted view of the [[trinity]].
* They keep changing their teaching.
* They have a strong leader who considers himself the messenger of God.
* They require "works", and never teach that salvation is simply by placing one's faith in Christ.
* They make false prophecies.

=== Catholic usage ===
In the [[Catholic]] Church, 'cult' can also be used to describe a follower's particular devotion to a [[saint]] or another aspect of the faith, eg the cult of [[St Mary]] or of the [[Holy Cross]]<ref>For example at [http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/virg/hd_virg.htm The Cult of the Virgin Mary in the Middle Ages]</ref>. This usage does not have the negative connotations of the more common meaning described on this page. It is much less commonly used in the present day to avoid confusion with dangerous cults.

== Examples ==

There have been cults which have claimed to be [[Christian]], as well as cults which claim some other religious affiliation, or no affiliation at all. One notable example of a cult is the "People's Temple" operated by [[Jim Jones]]. Jones' insistence that all his true followers drink poisoned fruit punch led to the deaths of 913 of his converts at their enclave of [[Jonestown]] in [[Guyana]].

== "Deprogramming" ==

The process of attempting to "rescue" people from cults, and reverse perceived or actual mind control, is known as [[deprogramming]], and is controversial from both a legal and social perspective.

== References ==
{{reflist|2}}

== External links ==
* [http://www.wfial.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.welcome Watchman Fellowship] (According to [http://www.apologeticsindex.org/ ApologeticsIndex], "Considered by many to be the foremost Christian countercult and apologetics ministry")
* [http://www.cults.co.nz/ Cults.co.nz]
* [http://www.cultwatch.com/ Cultwatch.com]
* [http://www.raullopez.org/moxon.htm Did Scientology Strike Back?] Article from June 1997 issue of ''American Lawyer'' about [[Scientology|Scientology's]] takeover of the Cult Awareness Network.
* [http://www.cesnur.org/ CESNUR] Center for Studies on New Religions
[[category:psychology]]
[[category:cults]]

Right-wing politics

2012-02-19T19:12:35Z

EquisDulks:

{{merge|political spectrum}}
In politics, '''right-wing''' historically referred to a society run by natural law or tradition. It currently can refer to a belief set made up of economic and social conservatism, and support for a strong military and an active foreign policy. The term, as well as left-wing come from the French Revolution, a reference to where people sat in parliament.

The term '''Rightist''' refers to someone on the 'right' side of the [[political spectrum]]. Politics on the 'right' usually imply taking positions in favor of the traditional system of a society, including its traditional values and its traditional ruling institutions. Compare: [[leftist]]. Following the left-right political spectrum, a "Right-Winger" could be referred to as anyone who favors having marginally more economic than personal liberties.

It is widely accepted, however, that there is not just one dimension of political thought, so that people can unambiguously be classified as 'right' or 'left'. Nonetheless, the [[political spectrum theory]] still has wide currency.
==Pejorative usage==
Usage of terms like "right wing" and "far right" by liberals about conservatives is usually intended to conjure up images of Nazi genocide (though an objective interpretation of the left-right political spectrum would reveal that the fascist regimes of WWII Europe were more statist than right-wing). Indeed, some critics openly liken Israel and its leaders to "Nazis", even though Israel is the most democratic country in the entire Middle East.<ref>Arabs have full citizenship rights in Israel, even serving as judges and legislators.</ref>

In modern politics, the term '''right wing''' is used by [[liberals]] in their attempt to make [[conservatives]] look extreme and unreasonable.

Example usage is, "He's a right-winger!" rather than simply, "He's [[conservative]]."

The term is used less frequently by [[liberals]] now because it has lost much of its pejorative effect.

==References==
{{reflist|small}}

[[category:political Terms]]

Right-wing politics

2012-02-19T19:11:41Z

EquisDulks: /* Pejorative usage */

{{merge|political spectrum}}
In politics, '''right-wing''' historically referred to a society run by natural law or tradition. It currently can refer to a belief set made up of economic and social conservatism, and support for a strong military and an active foreign policy. The term, as well as left-wing come from the French Revolution, a reference to where people sat in parliament.

The term '''Rightist''' refers to someone on the 'right' side of the [[political spectrum]]. Politics on the 'right' usually imply taking positions in favor of the traditional system of a society, including its traditional values and its traditional ruling institutions. Compare: [[leftist]]. Following the left-right political spectrum, a "Right-Winger" could be referred to as anyone who favors having marginally more economic than social rights.

It is widely accepted, however, that there is not just one dimension of political thought, so that people can unambiguously be classified as 'right' or 'left'. Nonetheless, the [[political spectrum theory]] still has wide currency.
==Pejorative usage==
Usage of terms like "right wing" and "far right" by liberals about conservatives is usually intended to conjure up images of Nazi genocide (though an objective interpretation of the left-right political spectrum would reveal that the fascist regimes of WWII Europe were more statist than right-wing). Indeed, some critics openly liken Israel and its leaders to "Nazis", even though Israel is the most democratic country in the entire Middle East.<ref>Arabs have full citizenship rights in Israel, even serving as judges and legislators.</ref>

In modern politics, the term '''right wing''' is used by [[liberals]] in their attempt to make [[conservatives]] look extreme and unreasonable.

Example usage is, "He's a right-winger!" rather than simply, "He's [[conservative]]."

The term is used less frequently by [[liberals]] now because it has lost much of its pejorative effect.

==References==
{{reflist|small}}

[[category:political Terms]]

Talk:Anti-Americanism

2012-02-19T19:08:04Z

EquisDulks: /* Proposal */

While I am not anti-American per say I do not have respect for Bush. However I agree that anti-American sentiment is alive and well.
[[User:AdenJ|AdenJ]] 07:25, 18 May 2008 (EDT)

:I'll have to research further, but:

::''"I have indicated it was not in conformity with the UN charter. From our point of view, from the charter point of view, it was illegal."'' - Kofi Annan

:Are we sure the initial invasion of Iraq had UN approval?
::yes it did: [http://www.fas.org/news/un/iraq/sres/sres0687.htm][http://www.fas.org/news/un/iraq/sres/sres0688.htm][http://www.un.org/Docs/scres/1990/scres90.htm][http://www.state.gov/p/nea/rls/15016.htm][http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/10/20021002-2.html][http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2002/SC7564.doc.htm] [[User:Karajou|Karajou]] 10:11, 22 May 2008 (EDT)

==Proposal==
Maybe it is a good idea to explore the "why" behind there being so much anti-American sentiment, yes? What is it that causes it? It could make for an interesting investigation and article. After all, people do not wake up and say, "I hate America." --[[User:JessicaT|JessicaT]][[User talk:JessicaT|''Ohayo gozaimasu!'']] 08:06, 18 May 2008 (EDT)

I completely agree with JessicaT on this. --X. Dulks

==Reason==
I dont think people are Anti-America more they are anti-Bush. I have been to America and thought the people and places were wonderful however when ever I Bush mbling with the English language and people like Rumsfeld lie through their teeth I get very grumbly.
[[User:AdenJ|AdenJ]] 05:46, 19 May 2008 (EDT)

== Wait... ==
Does criticism really constitute anti-Americanism? Criticism can be constructive and is key to progress- I think there are better ways to put this. --[[User:DReynolds|DReynolds]] 22:49, 2 February 2009 (EST)

"...and many are liberals who believe that other nations are equal to or beyond America in their achievements." [I will choose to be diplomatic here and not focus on the fact that America itself is not a country at all but a continent.] Are we supposed to bury our heads in the sand and forget that other countries achieve things, too? If we allow ourselves to believe that the USA always has and always will be number one at everything (which the USA's masses do already), the USA cannot possibly hope to move in any forward direction, much less stay competitive or diplomatic with other nations. This article, in my opinion, crosses the line from conservative to over-nationalist, far-right propaganda. --X. Dulks

Talk:Anti-Americanism

2012-02-19T19:06:34Z

EquisDulks: /* Wait... */

While I am not anti-American per say I do not have respect for Bush. However I agree that anti-American sentiment is alive and well.
[[User:AdenJ|AdenJ]] 07:25, 18 May 2008 (EDT)

:I'll have to research further, but:

::''"I have indicated it was not in conformity with the UN charter. From our point of view, from the charter point of view, it was illegal."'' - Kofi Annan

:Are we sure the initial invasion of Iraq had UN approval?
::yes it did: [http://www.fas.org/news/un/iraq/sres/sres0687.htm][http://www.fas.org/news/un/iraq/sres/sres0688.htm][http://www.un.org/Docs/scres/1990/scres90.htm][http://www.state.gov/p/nea/rls/15016.htm][http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/10/20021002-2.html][http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2002/SC7564.doc.htm] [[User:Karajou|Karajou]] 10:11, 22 May 2008 (EDT)

==Proposal==
Maybe it is a good idea to explore the "why" behind there being so much anti-American sentiment, yes? What is it that causes it? It could make for an interesting investigation and article. After all, people do not wake up and say, "I hate America." --[[User:JessicaT|JessicaT]][[User talk:JessicaT|''Ohayo gozaimasu!'']] 08:06, 18 May 2008 (EDT)

==Reason==
I dont think people are Anti-America more they are anti-Bush. I have been to America and thought the people and places were wonderful however when ever I Bush mbling with the English language and people like Rumsfeld lie through their teeth I get very grumbly.
[[User:AdenJ|AdenJ]] 05:46, 19 May 2008 (EDT)

== Wait... ==
Does criticism really constitute anti-Americanism? Criticism can be constructive and is key to progress- I think there are better ways to put this. --[[User:DReynolds|DReynolds]] 22:49, 2 February 2009 (EST)

"...and many are liberals who believe that other nations are equal to or beyond America in their achievements." [I will choose to be diplomatic here and not focus on the fact that America itself is not a country at all but a continent.] Are we supposed to bury our heads in the sand and forget that other countries achieve things, too? If we allow ourselves to believe that the USA always has and always will be number one at everything (which the USA's masses do already), the USA cannot possibly hope to move in any forward direction, much less stay competitive or diplomatic with other nations. This article, in my opinion, crosses the line from conservative to over-nationalist, far-right propaganda. --X. Dulks

Animal Farm

2012-02-19T18:42:59Z

EquisDulks:

[[Image:Animalfarm2.jpg|right|thumb]]
'''''Animal Farm''''' (1946) is an anti-[[Stalin]]ist "fairy story" by [[George Orwell]]. The story is a [[Satire|satirical]] [[allegory]] of the [[Russian Revolution]],<ref>"the various episodes are taken from the actual history of the Russian Revolution" [http://www.netcharles.com/orwell/articles/ukrainian-af-pref.htm Preface to the Ukrainian Edition of Animal Farm (written by Orwell)]</ref> particularly directed against [[Joseph Stalin|Stalin's]] Russia. The story's concept of "animalism" is used by Orwell to portray a generic view of [[socialism]], similar to that first expounded by [[Karl Marx]] (''Old Major''), who Orwell believed was naive in thinking that his philosophy would actually work. Orwell, although agreeing with the overall concept of equality through socialism,{{fact}} was critical of Marx because he didn't take into account the greed and jealousy which would eventually undermine the entire philosophy.<ref>"Orwell believed that although socialism is good as an ideal, it can never be successfully adopted due to uncontrollable sins of human nature." </ref> This idea was shown through ''Napoleon'' and the other pigs, who, through persuasion and force became the dominant authority on the farm. When Napoleon outlaws the "Beasts of England" anthem, he is demonstrating the ruthlessness of a state in which the initial ideal of socialism as a way to ensure equality among animals has been heavily distorted into a force of oppression. Many of the characters of Animal Farm are representative of real life characters or organizations involved in the Russian Revolution and are listed below.<ref>[http://barney.gonzaga.edu/~sbennet3/mead/lessonplans/animalfarm.htm Animal Farm - Comparison of characters to the Russian Revolution]</ref>

==Characters==

'''Old Major''': ([[Karl Marx]] and [[V.I. Lenin]]) A pig, and the leader of the animals before the revolution. He dies of old age before the revolt begins.

'''Boxer''': (The [[proletariat]]) A very strong horse whose attitude is very simplistic and uncaring, simply determining that, regardless of what leader on the farm say or do, he will make things come out right by working ever harder.

'''The sheep''': (Another aspect of the proletariat) They unquestioningly accept and parrot the leadership's [[propaganda]] and shout down dissenters.

'''Mollie''': (The [[tsar|czarist]] aristocracy) A female horse who is vain and shallow. Her low intelligence is seen in whatever she does, and she is easily led astray by flattery. However, some analysts of the story have expressed admiration for her as being one of the few non-pigs and non-humans in Animal Farm who takes control of her own life.

'''Snowball''': ([[Leon Trotsky]]) A pig who struggled with Napoleon for power. Possibly the most intelligent animal on the farm, he envisioned the windmill and much of the governance structure of the farm. Though he is often seen as a protagonistic "good guy," it is hinted at throughout the story prior to his exile that his motives, though not necessarily malicious, are less than saint-like.

'''Napoleon''': ([[Joseph Stalin]]) Another pig whose lust for power will stop at nothing. While taking a stand against Snowball's ideas every time they come up, Napoleon rarely presents any of his own.

'''Squealer''': ([[Propaganda]] newspaper [[Pravda]]) A porker who manages to convince, using questionable statistics and outright lies, everyone on the farm to accept whatever Napoleon declares.

'''Farmer Jones''': ([[Tsar]] [[Nicholas II]]) The owner of Manor Farm before the animals revolt. A drunkard, but not a bad farmer, Jones was often negligent in caring for the animals.

'''Farmer Frederick''': (German leadership, namely [[Adolf Hitler]]) The owner of the neighboring Pinchfield farm.

'''Farmer Pilkington''': (British leadership, namely [[Winston Churchill]]) The owner of the neighboring Foxwood farm.

'''Mr. Whymper''': (Outsiders involved in the affairs of the USSR) The 'face' of Animal Farm to the outside world. The pigs successfully convince him that conditions in Animal Farm are much better than they are.

'''Moses''': (Religion in general)<ref>"Moses represents Orwell's view of the Church. To Orwell, the Church is just used as a tool by dictatorships to keep the working class of people hopeful and productive." [http://www.netcharles.com/orwell/articles/col-afcp.htm Animal Farm Character Profiles]</ref> Farmer Jones's pet raven, whom the other animals resent because he does no work. He preaches about a wondrous land called Sugarcandy Mountain, where the animals will supposedly go when they die. The pigs try to convince the other animals that Moses is lying, but once they see his usefulness to them, they tolerate him.

==Animal Farm in film==

The book was made into an animated cartoon.

The book's idea of a false utopia was bitingly portrayed in "[[Toy Story 3]]", with a [[day care center]] substituting for the farm setting. "This isn't a family," one toy shouts. "It's a prison!" <ref>[http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-klavan-toy-story-3-20101102,0,6568516.story]</ref>

==Online version==
The text is now in the [[Public domain]], and may be found at the [http://orwell.ru/library/novels/Animal_Farm/ Orwell library].

==References==
<references/>

==Further reading==
* Rodden, John. "Appreciating Animal Farm in the New Millennium," ''Modern Age'' Volume 45, Number 1; Winter 2003 [http://www.mmisi.org/ma/45_01/rodden.pdf online edition]

==Links==
* [http://www.netcharles.com/orwell/articles/col-paf.htm George Orwell and the Politics of Animal Farm] - Paul Eissen

[[category:Novels]]
[[Category:Socialism]]
[[Category:Anti-communist books]]

Talk:Fascism

2012-02-17T01:30:52Z

EquisDulks: /* Creating Separate Article for Corporatism */

"They did not wish to preserve the existing order, or even to turn back the clock to some more stable century. They purposefully planned to transform the existing order into a new and all-absorbing authoritarianism, based upon the energies and frustrations of modern industrialism. The Fascists, in a meaningful sense, were revolutionaries." This is a debateable poimnt. In most Facist countries conservative forces rallied to a militant conservatism when they were under threat. The proclaimed ideals of Fascism; patriotism, loyalty, family, are those proclaimed by conservatives. The militancy was a product of circumstance [[user:stevendavy]]

Is anybody paying attention to this article? A liberal recently posted information which labels Conservapedia as fascist! We need to keep an eye on articles such as this. [[User:Scorpionman|Scorpionman]] 11:09, 7 March 2007 (EST)

Using "far-right" and "far-left" in reference to "state" in the first paragraph is not needed. And "far-left" makes no sense, since in the second paragraph Fascism is called the opposite of Communism, which is as far-left as you can get.--[[User:Dave3172|Dave3172]] 23:56, 7 March 2007 (EST)

It should be noted that Nazism is different from Fascism. This article treats both terms as if they're synonymous. - [[User:Thjazi|Thjazi]]

Since when was the swastika used for "mind control"? Also Mussolini hated Nazism, and Hitler made it clear that Nazism was not fascism. Therefore discussion of Nazism belongs in a seperate article, not one on fascism. Also most government types "impose social and economic regimentation". This isn't unique to fascism, or any ideology. America's Bill of Rights is a form of social regimentation. Also, this article treats fascism as just a type of government without fully explaining the ideology itself. This article talks more of Nazism and Communism than it does fascism. - [[User:mckennesaw|mckennesaw]]

If taken as stated, facism is only different from structure oriented conservatism (citation: They did not wish to preserve the existing order), but not from what could also be claimed of value oriented conservatism (They purposefully planned to transform the existing order into a new and all-absorbing authoritarianism, based upon the energies and frustrations of modern industrialism.) -- [[User:Schifra|SchiFra]]
:"structure oriented conservatism"? Nice try. Problem is, nobody seems to be able to define the "left" as anything other than "for change". Hitler was for change. [[User:RobS|RobS]] 14:20, 19 April 2007 (EDT)

The last sentence (The Fascists, in a meaningful sense, were revolutionaries) is not a well-supported or proven fact. Too close to an impression or an opinion. It should be deleted. -- [[User:Schifra|SchiFra]]
:Direct quote from Prof. Schlesinger. [[User:RobS|RobS]] 14:20, 19 April 2007 (EDT)

Which European nations have significant Fascist influence? There are none which have fascist parties or fascist ideologies that are legal or bona fide.

There should definitely be a section on this page that explains some of fascism's key characteristics like collectivism, nationalism and the like. [[User:Conservawesome|Conservawesome]] 12:08, 2 May 2007 (EDT)

==Political spectrum==

Cut from article:

:Though fascism is generally considered to be an ideology of the extreme right, it has important differences from conventional [[conservatism]]: for example, fascists favor state-sponsored corporatism over the free market (though they are vehemently opposed to socialism). Fascists and conservatives have co-operated in many countries, but conservatives have clamped down on fascist movements in others (witness, for example, the fate of the Iron Guard in Romania). Mussolini himself started out on the political Left.

Calling fascism '''and''' conservatism "right-wing" adds nothing to the article. We need better definitinos of all three terms, before we can do anything like that.

We also need to be sure whether Fascism includes Nazism. --[[User:Ed Poor|Ed Poor]] 14:57, 11 May 2007 (EDT)
:I think the addition how nazism puts an emphasis on race is very good. The etymology of the word, as defined in the mainspace however, I'm not certain is accurate. The term "faces", I've always understood to refer to the weapon a "fascist" weilded, and it was a symbol of "defence", or "defence of the (Roman Empire) realm". Hence a "fascist" is literally a "defender", or "defender of the realm". The term also is very much more akin or synonomous with French "Chauvinism". [[User:RobS|RobS]] 16:58, 11 May 2007 (EDT)

See also [[Fascism_Talk]]{{unsigned}}
:This does not belong in a mainspace. [[User:RobS|RobS]] 16:58, 11 May 2007 (EDT)

I changed the sentence which overtly attempted to create a tenuous connection with socialism. The truth is, most of the central tenets of fascism (including militarism, nationalism, authoritarianism, and anti-communism) as well as the racism, homophobia, and antisemitism inherent in the related ideology of Nazism are more traditionally linked with the right. I also changed the bizarre statement that fascism as an ideology was discredited because of the military defeat of the axis powers. It may have declined as a movement as a result of the defeat of the axis as well as widespread opposition to fascism during and after the war, but that has nothing to do with whether or not it is a reasonable ideology (of course to realize that it's not, all you have to do is read about it). I'd actually like to change that entire paragraph. It's a horribly written hodge-podge of completely unrelated statements, and it ends with inaccurate and pseudo-racist nonsense (which I removed). Arthur Schlesinger's quote at the end is an obvious attempt to build upon the earlier connection between socialism and fascism, and to distance it from conservatives. Of course, the quote (aside from being derived from a misunderstanding of the different manifestations and definitions of the term conservative) makes an important point and should be included in the article, so I did not remove it. It desperately needs some context and analysis however, which I don't feel suited to do, particularly since I don't actually agree with the likely intentions of whoever put up the quote. ~~

:The first edit I made was immediately removed, although my edit was completely even-handed and a much better representation of scholarly opinion. Pierre Laval was hardly a fascist, and Quisling was hardly a socialist. Hayek's comment is at best controversial, and even fascists themselves dispute the connection. It is hardly significant that a young politically engaged person who is dissatisfied with the current order who jump from one radical revolutionary ideology to another completely different one. My edit preserved the fact that many fascists began their lives as socialists, while removing the unstated implication that fascism is a movement of the left, which MOST SERIOUS SCHOLARS know acknowledge is incorrect. I'm going to try editing again with a compromise, but I suspect it will be reverted again. ~~
::Swearing again will result in a block. [[User:Bohdan|Bohdan]]

== Edit proposal ==

As this is a controversial subject, I thought I'd post my edit proposal on the talk page rather than editing the article directly. Claims have been made that not all fascisms were against Christianity, citing Francisco Franco's Fascism as an example. A change to the page has been made, but it has been reverted without answering the matter in depth. A good way to address that issue and at the same time deny it would be making this change:

"Although some Fascist regimes in the past, such as Francoism, have claimed to embrace religion, they have done so only for a matter of political expediency. Every form of totalitarianism is in fact, by its own nature, anti-religious. Totalitarian regimes demand, in fact, the complete submission and devotion of the citizen to the state, and any religion present in the state means a divided allegiance in the believers. In addition, the moral values promoted by religions are clearly at odds with most of the methods employed by totalitarian states. Religion and totalitarianism are therefore to be considered completely incompatible."

What do you think of it?
--[[User:Maquissar|Maquissar]]

#Your proposal would meet with better acceptance if you signed it. Try using <nowiki>~~~~</nowiki> at the end of your post; the website will add your signature automatically, along with a timestamp.
#I don't know who reverted such a change in the past.
#It sounds like a good addition, and I hope you can provide reference for it. --[[User:Ed Poor|Ed Poor]] [[User talk:Ed Poor|Talk]] 10:23, 23 February 2010 (EST)

Sorry, I signed now. What sort of reference are you talking about? There are some interesting studies by certain Yale professors about the relationship between religion and totalitarianism, I could find a quote if needed. --[[User:Maquissar|Maquissar]] 21:33, 23 February 2010 (EST)

I clarified the statement on religion and Franco according to SilvioB's notes. -[[User:Danq|danq]] 21:36, 23 February 2010 (EST)

:Dang! That was good. Bohdan, please don't block me for swearing ;-) --[[User:Ed Poor|Ed Poor]] [[User talk:Ed Poor|Talk]] 23:42, 23 February 2010 (EST)

Talk:Fascism

2012-02-17T01:30:14Z

EquisDulks: /* Edit proposal */

Fox News Channel

2012-02-16T23:51:45Z

EquisDulks:

[[Image:FNC logo.jpg|right|175px]]

The '''Fox News Channel''' is a [[United States]] [[cable]] and [[satellite]] [[news]] channel. It is a 24-hour general news service covering breaking news as well as political, business and entertainment news. For over 100 consecutive months, FNC has been the most-watched cable news channel in the country. FNC is available in more than 90 million homes. It is part of the Fox Television Stations Group, a subsidiary of [[Australia|Australian]]-born media mogul [[Rupert Murdoch]]'s [[News Corporation]]. [[Roger Ailes]] was named Chairman of the Fox Television Stations Group on August 15, 2005.

The Fox News Channel heavily favors [[neoconservatives]] and generally avoids or even sides against [[liberals]] on important social issues. Its lead commentators strongly support [[Newt Gingrich]] for president, and FNC may have cancelled [[Glenn Beck]]'s popular show because of his opposition to Newt. The Fox News Channel is particularly weak in criticizing the [[homosexual agenda]] and [[abortion]].

==Founding==
The Fox News channel was started in 1996 by Murdoch and Roger Ailes. The two of them perceived a need for a news organization that offered more balanced reporting, one where the facts from all sides would be presented. Main-stream media "Political Correctness" was banished, with the news [[anchor]]s calling [[terrorist]]s what they were, (terrorists), instead of referring to them as "militants." As of February, 2007, polls show that over 20% of Americans say their main source of news is the Fox News Channel.

Fox News uses the slogan "Fair & Balanced" and has daily guest pundits from all sides of the [[political spectrum]]. Fox News also is non-hostile to conservative and [[Christian]] values, viewpoints, spokesmen, and ideas. Fox News has gained the reputation for reporting the news in an unbiased manner and then allowing the viewer to decide; "We Report, You Decide" is another of their on-air slogans.

Fox News has dominated the ratings of other cable news outlets.<ref>[http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-anderson4oct04,0,2195035.story?coll=la-opinion-center]</ref> Launched by media tycoon Rupert Murdoch and former political consultant Roger Ailes as a refuge for viewers fed up with real or perceived liberal bias everywhere in the so-called "[[mainstream media]]", Fox is the undisputed ratings champion of cable news. It's been trouncing [[CNN]], [[MSNBC]] and [[CNBC]] for years, and draws a much larger audience share than all competitors, including the three major broadcast news shows, combined. It is by far the most profitable news network in the world, on track to earn more than $700 Million in 2010. <ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/10/business/media/10ailes.html New York Times, January 9, 2010]</ref>

==Fair and Balanced==
[[Image:Fair_balanced.jpg‎ |thumb|left|Fair And Balanced Logo]]
Critics have been known to complain about the "Fair & Balanced" slogan. Former President [[Bill Clinton]] exploded at ''Fox News Sunday'' anchor [[Chris Wallace]] in September of 2006, accusing him of "a nice little conservative hit job" after being lightly pressed by Wallace about his record on fighting [[Al Qaeda]]. Democratic politicians and advocates have relentlessly attacked the cable network, sometimes accusing it of being a Republican [[propaganda|propaganda mill]]. Former Vice-President and environmentalist [[Al Gore]] has likened Fox to a right-wing "[[fifth column]]." Groups, such as [[MoveOn.org]], funded a classic [[schlockumentary]] entitled ''Outfoxed'', which purports to expose the channel's 'nefarious Republican agenda'. Some have referred to FOX News as "the propaganda arm of the Republican Party" or "Faux News." In a grandstanding gesture of political theater the group unsuccessfully petitioned the [[Federal Trade Commission]] to stop Fox's from using its slogan as "deceptive advertising". It was unanimously rejected. <ref>[http://www.showbizdata.com/news/36127/FTC-REJECTS-COMPLAINTS-AGAINST-FOX-NEWS FTC: "It's best to ignore nuts"]</ref> Fox News spokesman Rob Zimmerman told today's (Tuesday) Wall Street Journal: "If they can attack Fox News to this extreme, ''then all news organizations are at risk to be targeted by similar attacks. ... It's best to ignore nuts."''

Rolling Stone magazine charged that Ailes has “built the most formidable propaganda machine ever seen outside of the [[Communist]] bloc.” Ailes responded accusing NBC, CBS, ABC, The New York Times, and the rest of running a liberal propaganda machine. {{cquote| If they did fair and balanced news, we’d be out of business.}}

A recent comprehensive study by [[UCLA]] political scientist Tim Groseclose and University of Missouri-Columbia economics professor Jeffrey Milyo found [[Brit Hume]]'s ''Special Report'' — Fox's most straightforward news show — more centrist than any of the three major networks' evening newscasts, all of which are liberal. <ref>[http://rcp.missouri.edu/articles/milyo_media.html]</ref> The program is a model of smart news television.

Although it is true that the Fox's opinion shows (as opposed to its news shows) are, as they're supposed to be, frequently bombastic and opinionated; it is equally true that Fox's biggest super-star, [[Bill O'Reilly]] is not a mainstream Republican, but a registered [[Independent]] who sides with conservatives. He regularly charges the oil companies with price-gouging and attacks big business for quashing the little guy. Greta Van Susteren's politics are unclear, as she mostly covers the [[crime]]-of-the-day stories. [[Geraldo Rivera]] is traditionally liberal on most issues, with the exception of being a strong supporter of the military and stiff penalties for [[sex offender]]s.

Some liberal commentators, such as news analyst [[Marvin Kalb]], and [[Eleanor Clift]], are affiliated with the channel. In general, Fox News is closer to mainstream America than [[CBS]], [[ABC]], [[NBC]] or [[CNN]], its founding mission.

Conservatives have criticism for the Fox News Channel as well. For example, conservatives have complained about [[Fox News and homosexuality|how Fox News has covered the homosexuality issue]]. In 2006, the [[conservative]] reporter [[Peter LaBarbera]] wrote that "Fox News and Wal-mart are among the high-level ($10,000) sponsors of the [[National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association]]’s (NLGJA) 2006 Convention in Miami."<ref>http://americansfortruth.com/issues/corporate-promotion/corporations/food-beverage-household-brands/coca-cola</ref> In addition, their 'Fair and Balanced' motto allows [[liberal propaganda]], lies, deceit, and half-truths to gain an audience. In reality, Fox was judged to actually provide a more "fair and balanced" coverage in the 2008 Presidential race than all three MSM networks, who had a decidedly pro-Obama tilt, a study by the ''Center for Media and Public Affairs''. <ref>[http://www.cmpa.com/pdf/08summer.pdf Center for Media and Public Affairs: ''How TV News Has Covered McCain, Obama and Hillary'']</ref>

=== Fox News Liberals ===

Talk to any Fox News-hating liberal and you'll here the same old regurgitated talking point- ''"Fox is not Fair & Balanced,"'' ''"Rightwing propaganda."'' One network, Fox News, has twice the number of opposing commentators than does all media sources combined. If you add up the major media properties; ABC, NBC, CBS, MSNBC, CNN, PBS, New York Times, Washington Post, and Newsweek -- you get a total of five [[Token conservative | so-called conservative]] personalities among hundreds of liberals. At the least, Fox News employs the following [[liberal]]s;

*[[Juan Williams]]
*[[Alan Colmes]]
*[[Kirsten Powers]]
*[[Shepard Smith]]
*[[Geraldo Rivera]]
*[[Mara Liasson]]
*[[Bill Schulz]]
*[[Susan Estrich]]
*[[Ed Henry]]
*[[Bob Beckel]]

A 2009 national survey showed that 46% of those who watch FOX News “just about every day” are [[Democrat]]s or Independents. [[Dick Morris]] interpreted the numbers and determines, ''"Could it be that the [[Obama Administration]] is concerned about FOX News not because it is 'an arm of the Republican Party' but because it is so widely seen among Democrats and Independents?"'' <ref>[http://www.dickmorris.com/blog/fox-news-reaches-across-party-lines/ FOX NEWS REACHES ACROSS PARTY LINES, Dick Morris.com, October 19, 2009]</ref>

=== The Five ===
The show that replaced Glenn Beck's ratings dominance is 'The Five', described as a “roundtable ensemble of five rotating FOX personalities...." <ref>[http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/06/30/fox-news-to-replace-beck-with-the-five/, Fox News to Replace Beck With ‘The Five’, NYTimes, June 30, 2011]</ref>

Most often, the show pits Bob Beckel, a consistent defender of every Democratic Party talking point, against a panel of conservative or libertarian opponents. 'The Five' features Bob Beckel, Greg Gutfeld, [[Juan Williams]], [[Dana Perino]], [[Andrew Napolitano]], Geraldo Rivera, Andrea Tantaros, Eric Bolling, Monica Crowley, and Kimberly Guilfoyle.

== Ratings Dominance ==
Fox News Channel was the 2nd highest rated cable channel on all of television during the first quarter of 2009 in prime time Total Viewers. CNN was 17th and MSNBC 24th for the first three months of the year. FNC beat CNN and MSNBC combined and gained the most compared to the first quarter of 2008, up 24%. 2009's first quarter was FNC's 3rd highest rated quarter in prime time in the network's history — just behind Q4 '08 and Q3 '05. In prime time, ages 25-54 demo, and in total day in both categories, FNC grew more year-to-year than CNN and MSNBC combined. FNC had nine of the top 10 programs on cable news in Total Viewers.

[[Bill O'Reilly|The O'Reilly Factor]] has now been #1 on cable news for 100 consecutive months, up 27% in Total Viewers year-over-year. [Citation Needed]

[[Glenn Beck]] dominated the ratings before leaving the network in June 2011. Beck broke every single record for the 5 P.M. timeslot. The leftist mob learned to hate him with a passion and [[Center For American Progress]]' senior fellow [[Van Jones]] is taking credit for Beck's retirement.

April 2009 statistics showed three new programs beat CNN and MSNBC ''combined'' in total viewers during their respective time slots.

On the Record with Greta Van Susteren is up 55% in total viewers and 75% in the demo. Your World with Neil Cavuto is up 60% in Total Viewers and 102% in the demo. Glenn Beck, is up 212% in the demo and up 128% in total viewers. <ref>[http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/ratings/april_ratings_fnc_beats_cnn_and_msnbc_combined_115179.asp Media Bistro: April Ratings: FNC Beats CNN and MSNBC Combined]
</ref>

== Anti-elitist ==
Conservatives argue that Fox's real ethos is not Republican or conservative, but anti-[[elitist]] — a major reason it connects with so many Americans and annoys so many coastal elites. "There's a whole country that elitists will never acknowledge," Ailes once observed. "What people resent deeply out there are those in the 'blue states' thinking they're smarter." This anti-elitism shows itself in Fox's pro-U.S. stance in covering the [[Afghanistan]] and [[Iraq war]]s and its broadcasters' use of terms such as "terrorist" instead of the politically correct "militant" to refer to terrorists. Since the [[Vietnam War]] era, mainstream [[journalist]]s have tended to see such blunt language and side-taking as unsophisticated, a betrayal of journalistic [[objectivity]], or perhaps their own ingrained biases against government in general.

Another aspect of Fox's anti-elitism is the treatment of [[evangelical]] and [[fundamentalist Christian]]s with respect, far from the normal liberal media's depiction as lunatics or extremists. "We regularly have on the Rev. Franklin Graham, [[Dr. James Dobson]] and other religious leaders, just as we put on Pat Ireland and Eleanor Clift," Ailes said, continuing, ''"Most Americans believe in God and have that as their foundation in life. So why shouldn't we have as guests people that they like, respect and want to hear from?" '' Ailes said he didn't get "too worked up" by a Pew Foundation study that showed that Fox has more Republican viewers than CNN, CNBC or MSNBC and that his reporters and anchors insert their opinions into stories far more than competitors do. Numbers might have something to do with it: Fox is beating the combined audience of the other three. But Ailes dismissed Pew as a "liberal [[lobbyist|lobbying]] organization." He said, "Most polls today are not taken to provide information to the public but to get press for the organization taking the polls. I took a poll of Pew, and 98% of my organization found that they were biased", Ailes said with a wink. <ref>http://www.usatoday.com/life/columnist/mediamix/2005-04-06-media-mix_x.htm</ref>

In response, Project director Tom Rosenstiel said the study "was not a poll. It was a content analysis designed by a four-university research team and executed at the [[University of Alabama]]." ''One plus for Fox, he said, was that researchers found Fox News stories were more forthcoming about sourcing than their cable rivals.'' <ref>http://www.usatoday.com/life/columnist/mediamix/2005-04-06-media-mix_x.htm</ref>

== Fox Versus Fringe Views ==
"What really frustrates liberals about Fox, though, is simply that, along with [[talk radio]] and the conservative [[blogosphere]], it has helped shatter the left's near-monopoly on news and information. Fox's opinion-driven programming gives conservatives and liberals a chance to get a fair hearing for their ideas. But Democratic politicians and activists who go on Fox also must defend their views, often against tough questioning, something that happens less often on the networks, where most journalists are left-of-center, survey after survey has shown", said columnist Brian Anderson. "Even more significant, Fox came on the scene a decade ago as a professional news organization that could define and report news as something different from what the elite consensus says it is. To take one of many examples, the corruption of the [[United Nations]]' oil-for-food initiative in [[Iraq]], initially downplayed by the mainstream media because of their sympathy for internationalism, was uncovered — deemed newsworthy — on Fox."

All this wouldn't matter if Fox News wasn't so influential. But it is. According to the Pew Research Center, more than 20% of Americans now claim to get news from it, and lots of them (37%) are Democrats or independents. The network's success has also sparked a "Fox effect," leading some competitors to become more open to right-of-center opinions: MSNBC's "Scarborough Country," hosted by former Republican congressman [[Joe Scarborough]], is a prime example. Until a few years ago, Democrats never had to deal with all these conservatives in the media. <ref>http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-anderson4oct04,0,2195035.story?coll=la-opinion-center</ref>

Ailes said Fox News has no agenda. His charge to his reporters and anchors is simple: "If you make a mistake, get on the air as fast as you can and admit it. ... Do your homework. Make sure you reach out to a point of view you don't agree with to be sure you have some balance in your piece, because journalists, despite the public perception, are not empty-headed fools. They actually come to the job with some ideas and biases." When asked whether the media have a "conscious bias," Ailes said: "I don't know whether it's conscious or not. I think people who are biased to the left and right are by and large honest people who bring their life experience to whatever their beliefs are. I don't think there's some conspiracy of bias to the left, ''but I do think that [[New York]] and [[Los Angeles]] have different views than many people that I know from other parts of the country."'' <ref>http://www.usatoday.com/life/columnist/mediamix/2005-04-06-media-mix_x.htm</ref>

== Fox Versus Obama ==
[[Barack Hussein Obama]] has thin skin when it comes to criticism of his policies. The entire [[mainstream media]] has thrown its support to Obama and refuses to questions his policies. Fox News is the lone station that will criticize Obama fairly. Obama said, <ref>[http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/media_critic_fox_news/2009/06/19/227121.html Media Critic: Fox Only Press Doing Its Job] NewsMax, June 19, 2009</ref>
{{cquote| “I’ve got one television station that is entirely devoted to attacking my administration…That’s a pretty big megaphone. You’d be hard pressed if you watched the entire day to find a positive story about me on that front.” }}

The President has praised MSNBC and berated Fox News. Considering that MSNBC devoted itself to attacking George W Bush and his administration, this is hypocritical on Obama's part. To sum it up, all other major news networks have let themselves become servile heralds of the liberal agenda, while Fox news is the only station that will call Obama out on anything he does.

Media critic David Zurawik said “Thank goodness at least one TV outlet, Fox, is questioning Team Obama as it pushes for the kind of massive change in American life not seen since the era of Franklin Roosevelt,” and "...ABC, NBC, MSNBC, CNBC and the others allow their news operations to be used by the White House for partisan political reasons."

== Roger Ailes ==
[[Image:Rogerailes_1.jpg‎ |thumb|right|400px|Roger Ailes, Fox News CEO]]
[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,205966,00.html This is a transcript] of Ailes speaking to the Television Critics Association, which will be enlightening to readers digging into the Fox take on reporting and its reaction to controversy about its mission.

On November 20, 2008, [[Roger Ailes]], who now holds the titles of Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, FOX News and Chairman of FOX Television Stations, signed a new five year contract with News Corporation, it was announced by Rupert Murdoch, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. The contract will pay him over 23 million dollars in 2009. <ref>[http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/fnc/roger_ailes_signs_new_5year_deal_with_news_corp_101312.asp Ailes Inks 5 Year Deal With NewsCorp]</ref>

During Ailes' time with [[News Corporation|News Corp]], [[FNC]] passed [[CNN]] in ratings in all day parts in 2002 to become the number one news network in the country, nearing full distribution with more than 90 million subscribers. In 2007, he launched the [[Fox Business Channel]] which currently reaches more than 40 million homes and served as the biggest launch in cable television history. Throughout Mr. Ailes' tenure, FOX Television Stations has increased its market share each of the last three years with all time record shares in the last two years. In addition, Fox Television Stations has expanded its local news presence by nearly 100 hours a week in a challenging economic climate.
{{cquote|'''At a time when the broadcast networks are struggling with diminishing audiences and profits in news, he has built Fox News into the profit engine of the News Corporation. ''Fox News is believed to make more money than CNN, MSNBC and the evening newscasts of NBC, ABC and CBS combined.'' The division is on track to achieve $700 million in operating profit this year, according to analyst estimates.''' --- The New York Times, 1/9/2010 <ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/10/business/media/10ailes.html?pagewanted=all Ailes: Fox News Chief at the Pinnacle of Media and Politics ]</ref> }}

== Tony Snow ==
In April, 2006 the [[White House]] selected [[Tony Snow]], Fox News Anchorman, to be the new White House Press Secretary. "Snow, who in his roles as a [[pundit]] on Fox News and elsewhere has rapped Bush on several occasions, joined the White House only after extracting a promise that he would become an adviser to the president on day-to-day strategy...the former columnist will be the first outsider to become part of Bush's revamped inner circle.", said the [[Washington Post]]. <ref>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/26/AR2006042600558.html</ref>

Snow, 50, worked most recently as host for ''Fox News Sunday, with Tony Snow'' and as host of his own radio talk show. He was a director of speech-writing for President [[George H.W. Bush]] and has worked as a [[USA Today]] columnist, Editorial Page Editor of the [[Washington Times]], deputy editorial page editor of the [[Detroit News]] and frequent substitute for radio host [[Rush Limbaugh]]. <ref>http://whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/04/20060426.html</ref> Snow died July 12, 2008, after an unsuccessful battle with colon cancer.

==Bill O'Reilly==
The [[O'Reilly Factor]] has been the most watched cable news segment for eight years. [[Bill O'Reilly]] has interviewed Barack Obama and other high profile guests on his show.
:"FOX News destroys NBC and CNN on cable every night. We cover the news. We don't ignore it. And we don't denigrate it." - Bill O'Reilly
Bill O'Reilly is a registered independent, but sides with Republicans on most issues, excluding several Christian causes. Bill O'Reilly wrote the best seller "A Bold Fresh Piece of Humanity." Like [[Sean Hannity]] and other commentators on Fox, O'Reilly's role is that of an independent contractor, expressing his own opinions, not those of Fox News, as opposed to the networks news anchors, like Shepard Smith.

==Sarah Palin==
The network confirmed in January of 2010 that the former [[Alaska|Alaskan]] governor [[Sarah Palin]] had signed a multiyear contract to appear on the news station periodically. Potentially in a format similar to LtCol (ret) Oliver L. North's "War stories" documentary series. <ref>http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/11/sarah-palin-to-contribute-to-fox-news/?scp=2&sq=Palin&st=cse</ref>

==Red Eye w/ Greg Gutfeld==
Red Eye w/ Greg Gutfeld is a hybrid news / comedic satire show hosted by Greg Gutfeld. The show appears on Fox News at 3:00 a.m. EST on weekdays. Their ratings are remarkable for the time slot. <ref>[http://www.mediaite.com/online/red-eye-resurgence-more-demo-viewers-watch-fox-at-3am-than-cnn-at-8pm/ Red Eye Resurgence: More Demo Viewers Watch Fox At 3am Than CNN at 8pm, October 5th, 2009]</ref>
{{cquote|
The ratings came out for September and Red Eye is up over 30% in total viewers and up 50% in the key demo (25-54) since July. They have more overall viewers than every CNBC show, every MSNBC show that is on before Hardball, most of HLN, and American Morning on CNN.}}

September 2010 marks the third anniversary of RedEye w/ Greg Gutfeld. It was noted that their rating for 3:00 a.m. EST beat out [[CNN]],

{{cquote|This time, the show had better ratings in the A25-54 demographic than Campbell Brown at 8pmET and Larry King at 9pmET, and tied Anderson Cooper at 10pmET (Monday-Thursday).}}
==Fox News Channel and Homosexuality ==

''see also:'' [[Fox News and homosexuality]] and [[Homosexuality in the media]]

Currently, the Fox Broadcasting Company website declares concerning the [[National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association]] (NLGJA):
{{cquote|NLGJA Annual Conference and Job Fair
Fox News is a regular exhibitor at these annual Job Fairs. News Corp sponsored the opening reception for first time attendees in 2006, as well as sponsoring workshops on Journalism in various colleges in 2007.<ref>http://www.fox.com/diversity/outreach/lgbt.htm</ref>}}

In 2010, the [[National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association]] declared that [[Kelly Wright]], a Fox News Channel representative, attended NLGJA's 15th Annual New York Benefit.<ref>http://www.nlgja.org/news/NYE2010.htm</ref> According the Fox News Channel website: "Kelly Wright is co-anchor of "FOX & Friends Weekend" as well as a general assignment correspondent for FOX News Channel (FNC)."<ref>http://www.foxnews.com/bios/talent/kelly-wright/</ref> Wright is a graduate of the [[Christian]] university [[Oral Roberts University]].<ref>http://www.foxnews.com/bios/talent/kelly-wright/</ref> In January of 2010, the [[pro-life]] website published by Jill Stanek claimed Kelly Wright is a pastor.<ref>http://www.jillstanek.com/pregnancy/foxs-kelly-wrig.html</ref> According to [[Christianity]] and the [[Bible]], [[Homosexuality and the Bible|homosexuality is a sin]].
[[Image:Rev. Louis P. Sheldon Photo.jpg|thumb|Reverend [[Louis Sheldon]] of the [[Traditional Values Coalition]] ]]
The [[Traditional Values Coalition]] states the following regarding the Fox News Channel and the issue of [[homosexuality]]:
{{cquote|The [[National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association]] has hundreds of members and is heavily funded by Hearst newspapers, Knight-Ridder, [[CBS News]], [[CNN]], Gannett, [[NBC]], [[Los Angeles Times]], [[Fox News]], and more. Major newspapers throughout the U.S. have homosexual activists on their staffs who filter what you read about homosexuality.<ref>http://www.traditionalvalues.org/pdf_files/Homosexuality101.pdf</ref>}}

[[Accuracy in Media]] declared concerning the Fox News Channel:
{{cquote|Media organizations which underwrote the convention included NBC News, Times Inc., Turner Broadcasting, Knight-Ridder, the Washington Post and Fox News Network. That’s right - Fox News. This is supposed to be a conservative network. ABC, NBC, CBS, the New York Times, and USA Today all sent recruiters to the event, to hire open gays as journalists. Fitzpatrick comments, "By treating the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association as a legitimate counterpart to black and Hispanic journalists’ associations, these media organizations showed that they agree with the notion that homosexuals, a group defined by behavior rather than immutable characteristics, constitute a bona fide minority."<ref>http://ghroll.blogspot.com/2008/03/homosexuality-in-media.html</ref>}}
=== Bill O'Reilly and the homosexuality issue ===

''see also:'' [[Bill O'Reilly and the homosexuality issue]] and [[Homosexuality in the media]]

The [[American Family Association]] reported the following in regards to [[Bill O'Reilly]] who host the O'Reilly Report which is a popular program on the Fox News Channel:
{{cquote|On February 11, 2004, Bill O'Reilly, host of The O'Reilly Factor on the Fox News Channel, featured Kevin Jennings, the executive director of GLSEN (the Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network.) Jennings, former teacher turned homosexual activist, along with a lesbian counterpart, discussed GLSEN's new pro-homosexual curriculum on marriage being marketed to children and youth in public schools all across America under the guise of "tolerance."...

O'Reilly, watched heavily by conservatives and Christians alike, shocked much of his constituency on September 3, 2002 when he publicly announced his support of homosexual rights in the nation's largest “gay” publication, ''The Advocate''. His sympathetic, lenient views on “gay” adoption and his mixed-message stance on “gay” marriage have caused great dissent among his loyalists - and no doubt cost him viewers.<ref>http://www.afa.net/homosexual_agenda/GetArticle.asp?id=115</ref>}}

[[WorldNetDaily]] stated the following regarding O'Reilly and his exchange with the [[Ex-Homosexuals|ex-homosexual]] and evangelical minister Stephen Bennett:
{{cquote|Fox News is threatening to sue a prominent evangelical minister in the ex-homosexual movement who engaged in a volatile exchange over biblical morality on the top-rated television program "The O'Reilly Factor" in September.

Stephen Bennett, who says he left his homosexual lifestyle nearly 11 years ago, has distributed a 60-minute audio tape program called the "The O'Reilly Shocker," in which he responds to host Bill O'Reilly's characterization of people who take the Bible literally as "religious fanatics.".

Bennett said he has received hundreds of e-mails from viewers of the segment who said they were outraged at O'Reilly's "anger and verbal abuse." <ref>http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=30300</ref>}}

In response to the threatened lawsuit of the Fox News Channel the Agape Press reported:
{{cquote|But Mike DePrimo, senior litigation counsel for the American Family Association Center for Law & Policy, which represents Bennett, says Bennett has a right to distribute a recording of the program -- and that his use of the tape is legal under copyright law's allowance of fair use and comment.

"The law provides that even copyrighted material may be used, provided it's used not for commercial gain but for comment," DePrimo says. "Stephen Bennett used the material from the O'Reilly show simply to rebut the arguments O'Reilly put forward."

The attorney implies there may be another reason the popular O'Reilly wants distribution of the tape stopped -- and it has to do with image. "O'Reilly promotes himself as a [[conservative]]," DePrimo explains. "In fact, Bennett's tape shows that O'Reilly is simply another media elite who's advancing the [[Homosexual Agenda|homosexual agenda]] -- and he doesn't want to be exposed for what he is."<ref>http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/1/afa/32003a.asp</ref>}}

Bill O'Reilly describes himself as a practicing [[Roman Catholic]].<ref>http://www.billoreilly.com/newslettercolumn?pid=29184</ref> According to the [[Vatican]] individuals should not engage in homosexual acts as they are acts of serious depravity.<ref>http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20030731_homosexual-unions_en.html</ref>
=== Peter LaBarbera Concerning Fox News and homosexuality ===

''See also:'' [[Homosexuality in the media]]

[[Image:Peter.jpg|right|thumb|150px|[[Peter LaBarbera]] ]]
In April of 2009, [[Peter LaBarbera]] of [[Americans for Truth]] wrote:
{{cquote|How fascinating that [[Wayne Besen]] (left) is given the opportunity to appear on FOX News, of all places..., to critique alleged “[[homophobia|homophobic]]” attitudes and speech toward homosexuals — when he has such a well-deserved reputation for being one of the nastiest “queer” activists in the business.<ref>http://americansfortruth.com/news/gays-hating-ex-gays-wayne-besens-verbal-assault-on-greg-quinlan.html</ref>}}

In March of 2009, [[Peter LaBarbera]] declared:
{{cquote|Temple U. Professor Dr. Marc Lamont Hill (left), a frequent guest on FOX News, believes Americans are “[[homophobia|homophobic]]” because most still don’t like to see homosexuality (compared to heterosexuality) on TV or the big screen. We say Prof. Hill should get off his liberal high horse and stop lecturing Americans for their normal reaction to unnatural and immoral behavior....

Enough already. Gay sex is wrong, [[Homosexuality and health|unhealthy (especially between men)]], and my hunch is it’s still pretty off-putting to most FOX viewers who are honest with themselves. And that’s OK. But I’ll go further: if there is a growing acceptance of homo-sexual behavior, especially among young people, that’s not a good thing but a sign of America’s descent into decadence, and our departure from a transcendent Judeo-Christian moral code that has served this nation well.<ref>http://americansfortruth.com/news/were-all-homophobes-now-letter-to-foxs-red-eye.html</ref>}}

In 2006, [[Peter LaBarbera]] wrote:
{{cquote|Fox News and Wal-mart are among the high-level ($10,000) sponsors of the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association’s (NLGJA) 2006 Convention in Miami (Sept 7-10 at Loew’s Miami Beach Hotel). Every year, the NLGJA garners hundreds of thousands of dollars in Big Media sponsorships for its convention; this year it appears (based on the sponsorship list below) that the total is around half a milliion dollars in corporate support...

Our question for Fox News executives is: if you are truly “fair and balanced,” will you now give an equal and corresponding grant to Americans for Truth or another pro-family organization, say, Accuracy in Media, that counters the ubiquitous pro-”gay” spin in the media? We’ll be awaiting your answer.<ref>http://americansfortruth.com/issues/corporate-promotion/corporations/food-beverage-household-brands/coca-cola</ref>}}

=== Rupert Murdoch ===
[[Image:HillaryRupert1V.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Hillary Clinton with media magnate Ruppert Murdoch. ''Photo Courtesy Democrats Against Hillary''.<ref>[http://democratsagainsthillary.blogspot.com/ ''Democrats Against Hillary''].</ref>]]
The Fox News Channel is a [[United States]] [[cable]] and [[satellite]] [[news]] channel. It is part of the Fox Television Stations Group, a subsidiary of [[Australia|Australian]]-born media mogul [[Rupert Murdoch]]'s [[News Corporation]].

Slated reported in 2008 that since 1997, [[Republicans]] have received a slight majority - 56% of the $4.76 million in campaign donations from the Murdoch family and the [[News Corporation]]'s political action committees and employees.<ref>http://www.slate.com/id/2196085/</ref> However, [[Slate]] also reported in 2008: "Since Democrats won control of Congress in the 2006 elections, the company and its employees have given more than twice as much to [[Democrats]] as to [[Republicans]]."<ref>http://www.slate.com/id/2196085/</ref> Generally speaking, [[Republicans]] have less favorable views and policies concerning homosexuality than [[Democrats]].<ref>http://www.gallup.com/poll/137357/Four-Moral-Issues-Sharply-Divide-Americans.aspx</ref> The Pew Research Center reported in 2010: "In broad terms, voters view the Democratic Party's ideology as the opposite of the Republican Party's: 58% say the Democratic Party is either very liberal or liberal..."<ref>http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1669/political-ideology-democrats-seen-farther-from-center-than-republicans</ref> In the United States, twice as many liberals as conservatives (46% versus 22%) believe people are born homosexual and [[Views on Homosexuality|liberals generally have more favorable opinions about homosexuality]].<ref>http://people-press.org/report/?pageid=764</ref> In recent years, Rupert Murdoch has formed a relationship with the [[liberal]]s/[[Democrats]] [[Bill Clinton]] and [[Hillary Clinton]]. In 2005, he invited musician [[Bono]] and Bill Clinton to a company conference on the environment, [[Islam]] in the West, and future of the world.<ref>http://www.forbes.com/lists/2006/54/biz_06rich400_Keith-Rupert-Murdoch_639W.html</ref>

=== Knighthood by Roman Catholic Organization and Roman Catholic teaching on homosexuality ===
Rupert Murdoch has been married three times and divorced two times. Before Rupert Murdoch left his second wife, he was anointed as a member of the Pontifical Order of St. Gregory the Great, for his "unblemished character."<ref>http://weeklywire.com/ww/01-20-98/alibi_opinion.html</ref>

The [[Roman Catholic Church]]'s position is that having homosexual desires can be a choice in individuals but having homosexual desires is not a choice in respect to all individuals.<ref>http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20030731_homosexual-unions_en.html</ref><ref>http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_19861001_homosexual-persons_en.html</ref> However, as noted earlier, according to the [[Vatican]] individuals should not engage in homosexual acts as they are acts of serious depravity.<ref>http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20030731_homosexual-unions_en.html</ref>

== Also See ==

* '''[[Fox News and homosexuality]]'''
* '''[[Bill O'Reilly and the homosexuality issue]]'''
* '''[[Homosexuality in the media]]'''
* '''[[Fox Television and Religion]]'''
* '''[[Roger Ailes]]'''

== External Links ==

* [http://www.foxnews.com/ Fox News]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

[[Category: Fox News Channel]]
[[Category:Cable TV Networks]]
[[Category:Conservative Media]]
[[Category:Conservative news organizations]]

Vladimir Lenin

2012-02-16T23:47:56Z

EquisDulks: /* Lenin on revolution */

[[Image:Khvhkgfiy.jpg|right|thumb|Vladimir Lenin]]
'''Vladimir Lenin''' (born Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov <ref>"Vladimir Ilyich Lenin" (Russian: Владимир Ильич Улянов, Ленин) was the pseudonym he used after 1900 to disguise his identity.</ref>) (1870-1924) was the leader of Russian Communism and an important theoretician of Marxism. Coming to power in 1917 he became dictator of the [[Soviet Union]]. All over the Soviet Union there were statues and paintings honoring his memory; some were removed when Communism collapsed in 1991.

==Early Life==
Lenin was born on April 22, 1870 (later to be celebrated as [[Earth Day]]) to a middle class Russian family; his parents were school teachers. In 1889, he became a [[Marxist]] after his older brother was hanged for the murder of Tsar Aleksandr II. Lenin obtained a law degree shortly afterwards, and by 1895 was a [[subversion (political)|subversive]] who was arrested and sent to a prison in [[Siberia]] as punishment. He was in exile 1900-1917. He collaborated with Georgy Plekhanov and others to set up the clandestine newspaper ''Iskra'' (The Spark), designed to "ignite" radical consciousness. In the pages of ''Iskra'', Lenin denounced any alliance with liberals or other elements of the bourgeoisie because they would keep power in the hands of the middle class. He emphasized social democracy--equality of condition, rather than political democracy, as the basis for individual freedom. His major theoretical publication was the pamphlet "What Is to Be Done?" (1902). In 1903 he organized and controlled the '''"Bolshevik"''' wing of the Russian Social Democratic Labor party, fighting the opposition "Mensheviks." Lenin, like his populist predecessors in the Russian radical movement, stressed the need for a small elite vanguard to lead the revolution

Despite disapproval of the Mensheviks, Lenin's followers continued to raise money through a mixture of bank robberies, kidnapping, extortion, terrorism, and murder. Unlike the leaders of other Marxist organizations, Lenin did not spent the money on his own lifestyle and carefully strengthened his movement.

With German help he returned to Russia after the [[Tsar]] abdicated in March 1917 and a short-lived liberal democracy allowed for free elections. At the time, most Bolsheviks were more interested in using the ballot box to gain political power. Lenin rejected elections,and declared, "History will not forgive us if we do not take power now."

==Revolution==
In 1917 Lenin opposed Russia's continued participation in World War I and advocated proceeding directly to a socialist revolution, bypassing bourgeois rule. He rejected cooperation with the Provisional Government and drove some old Bolsheviks out of the party, while coopting many younger, more radical members. [[Joseph Stalin]], [[Grigori Zinoviev]], and others rallied to Lenin's side during the elections to the party's Central Committee during the 7th Party Conference in April 1917 and became the new leadership. The Bolsheviks were allowed free expression of disagreements until a decision by the Central Committee was reached, and then no opposition or disagreement was permitted. Lenin now ruled the Bolsheviks from his base in Petrograd (St. Petersburg).

In October 1917, Lenin masterminded a [[coup d'etat]] which overthrew the [[Provisional Government]] which had replaced the [[Russian Empire]]. In what historian [[Simon Sebag Montefiore]] has described as a comedy of errors, the Winter Palace was shelled and the Provisional Cabinet was placed under arrest by a mixture of Red Guards and radical sailors from the Kronstadt Naval Base.
==Dictator==
Lenin ruled the [[Soviet Union]] under Marxism-Leninism, until 1922, when he had a debilitating stroke and retired.

{{Cquote|A wide campaign of "education" was undertaken to show the people why "workers' rule" meant, in practice, [[Nomenklatura|managers]]' rule. Where necessary, the education by the word was supplemented with education by [[firing squad]] or [[concentration camp]] or forced labour battalion. <ref>James Burnham, ''The Managerial Revolution'', (1940).</ref> }}

==Death==
Lenin, a workaholic who avoided vacations and downtime, died in 1924 following a series of progressively more serious strokes. [[Joseph Stalin]] was his even more brutal successor.
==Interpretations==
===Lenin on revolution===
Before 1917, Lenin thought that revolution was more likely to break out in Russia than in any other country on the continent, and he expected the outbreak of other revolutions in Europe, or at least in Central Europe, after the Russian Revolution. During the Civil War he considered a short period of War Communism as an extension of the revolutionary situation from which a direct path might open toward socialism. However, after the failure of War Communism he returned to his earlier viewpoint, that is, to the necessity of a transition period. This was reflected in the New Economic Policy (NEP) - which meant a transition including both private enterprise and a market economy. Stalin deemed the transition favored by Lenin to be too dangerous, because it carried with it the threat of a defeat and an eventual restoration of capitalism

===Dictatorship of the proletariat===
see also [[Dictatorship of the proletariat]]
Lenin saw the Marxist concept of the "Dictatorship of the proletariat" in terms of a dictatorship exercised not by a democratically chosen majority but by a [[Revolutionary Vanguard|vanguard minority revolutionary party]], ruthlessly controlled by a few leaders like himself. He eventually accepted the need for a state bureaucracy, and his more extreme opposition to the bourgeoisie led him to favor their exclusion and disenfranchisement to the benefit of the urban working class.

==Leninism as a religion==
Lenin's utopian design of a revolutionary community of virtuosi was a typical political religion of an intelligentsia longing for an inner-worldly salvation, a socialist paradise without exploitation and alienation, to be implanted in the backward Russian society at the outskirts of the industrialized and modernized Western Europe. The Russian Revolution of October 1917 accomplished the institutionalization of a political religion combining a political and sacral monopoly of power and belief. Consequently, the Leninist policy of social extermination of political opponents, ideological rivals, and stigmatized social classes became a sacral obligation to be fulfilled by the new ideological orthodoxy. The beginning iconography of a Leninist sacral tradition praised Lenin as a messianic and numinous leader. This process of iconographic work in progress culminated after Lenin's death in the sacral Lenin cult. The Lenin mausoleum served as the monumental centerpiece of sacral rites and practices to be enacted by the Stalinist orthodoxy. Joseph Stalin's invention of a sacral tradition of Marxism-Leninism qualified him as the only true disciple of Lenin. Therefore, Stalin claimed the monopoly of the infallible interpretation of the holy scriptures, summarized in his own dogmatic performances. In this sense, Stalin's Leninism became itself the religion of the Soviet state.<ref>Klaus-Georg Riegel, "Marxism-Leninism as a Political Religion," ''Totalitarian Movements and Political Religions'' 2005 6(1): 97-126 in [[EBSCO]]</ref>

==Image and memory==
After his death in 1924 Stalin portrayed Lenin as an infallible humanitarian; his writings were viewed as gospel. Museums were devoted to his life and work, cities were named for him, and huge statues and monuments honored his memory. Beginning in 1985, however, the Lenin cult began to crumble. Party chairman [[Mikhail Gorbachev]] was a faithful disciple of Lenin, but he now faced the reality that the economically bankrupt Communist state was rapidly decaying. As the Communist nation unraveled, so did the Lenin personality cult. Leningrad residents voted to restore the St. Petersburg name; the once-crowded museums attracted few visitors; and Lenin's philosophy and actions were found less than perfect. In 1991 as Communism fell, the statues and paintings went into cold storage. By 1995 plans were being made to bury Lenin's corpse, which was finally acknowledged to be putrefying just as the remains of any other mortal, as the cult itself fell into "the dustbin of history."<ref> Trevor J. Smith, "The Collapse of the Lenin Personality Cult in Soviet Russia, 1985-1995," ''Historian'' 1998 60(2): 325-343, in [[EBSCO]]</ref>
== See also ==
*[[Karl Marx]]
*[[Joseph Stalin]]
==Further reading==
===Biography===
* Clark, Ronald W. ''Lenin'' (1988). 570 pp.
* Service, Robert. ''Lenin: A Biography'' (2002), 561pp; standard scholarly biography; a short version of his 3 vol detailed biography
* Volkogonov, Dmitri. ''Lenin: Life and Legacy'' (1994). 600 pp.
===Specialized scholarly studies===
* Anderson, Kevin. ''Lenin, Hegel, and Western Marxism: A Critical Study'' (1995) 311 pp.
* Copleston, Frederick Charles. ''Philosophy in Russia: From Herzen to Lenin and Berdyaev'' (1986). 445pp. by a conservative
* Debo, Richard K. ''Survival and Consolidation: The Foreign Policy of Soviet Russia, 1918-1921'' (1992).
* Marples, David R. ''Lenin's Revolution: Russia, 1917-1921'' (2000) 156pp. short survey
* Pipes, Richard. ''A Concise History of the Russian Revolution'' (1996) [http://www.amazon.com/Concise-History-Russian-Revolution/dp/0679745440/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1232393501&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search], by a leading conservative
* Pipes, Richard. ''Communism: A History'' (2003), by a leading conservative
* Pipes, Richard. ''Russia under the Bolshevik Regime.'' (1994). 608 pp.
* Pomper, Philip. ''Lenin, Trotsky, and Stalin: The Intelligentsia and Power.'' (1990). 446 pp.
* Schapiro, Leonard and Reddaway, Peter, eds. ''Lenin: The Man, the Theorist, the Leader - a Reappraisal'' (1987). 317 pp.
* White, James D. ''Lenin: The Practice and Theory of Revolution'' (2001) 262pp.

===Primary sources===
* Desai, Meghnad, ed. ''Lenin's Economic Writings.'' (1989). 363 pp.
* Pipes, Richard, ed. ''The Unknown Lenin: From the Secret Archive.'' (1996). 185 pp.
==References==
<references/>

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lenin, Vladimir}}
[[Category:Russian History]]
[[Category:Soviet Union]]
[[Category:Dictators]]
[[Category:Communism]]
[[Category:Socialism]]
[[Category:Mass Murderers]]

Conservative

2012-02-16T12:48:55Z

EquisDulks:

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| style="text-align: center; padding: 10px 40px 10px 40px;" | [[Previous_Breaking_News/Conservatives| Previous Breaking News: Conservatives]]
|}
A '''conservative''' is someone who adheres to principles of personal [[responsibility]], moral values, and [[limited government]], agreeing with [[George Washington]]'s [[Farewell Address]] that "[[religion]] and [[morality]] are indispensable supports" to political prosperity.<ref>[http://usinfo.state.gov/usa/infousa/facts/democrac/49.htm United States Department of State] George Washington, farewell address, 1796</ref><ref>[[Merriam-Webster]]'s Online Dictionary has the following definition of conservative: "tending or disposed to maintain existing views, conditions, or institutions : TRADITIONAL"[http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/conservative] Therefore, a conservative Christian would be one that tends to adhere to the morally sound doctrines of the early Christianity and [[Judeo-Christian]] values.</ref>

Former President [[Ronald Reagan]] said, "The basis of conservatism is a desire for less government interference or less centralized authority or more individual freedom."<ref>http://www.reason.com/news/show/29318.html</ref>
[[Image:Aaag.jpg|thumb|Ronald Reagan, the 40th President of the United States, is the epitome of American conservatism.]]

The ''sine qua non'' of a conservative is someone who rises above his personal self-interest and promotes moral and economic values beneficial to all. Alternatively, a conservative is willing to learn and advocate the insights of [[economics]] and the morality of the [[Bible]] for the benefit of all, recognizing that the Bible is the most [[logic]]al book ever written. Specifically, conservatives seek or support:

* [[Limited government]] and balanced budgets
* [[Capitalism]] and [[free market|free markets]]
* [[Classroom prayer]]
* Respect for human life and prohibition of [[abortion]]
* The [[death penalty]] for heinous murders proven beyond reasonable doubt
* [[Abstinence]] education
* Traditional [[marriage]], not [[same-sex marriage]]
* [[Family values]], including traditional relationships and division of labor within the household
* Respect for differences between men and women, boys and girls
* [[Censorship]] against [[pornography]]
* The [[Second Amendment]] right to keep and bear arms
* Economic allocative efficiency (as opposed to popular equity)
* Parental control of education ([[parental rights]])
* Private medical care and retirement plans
* Canceling failed social support programs
* No [[world government]]
* Enforcement of current laws regarding [[immigration]]
* Respect for our military ... past and present
* Rejection of [[junk science]] such as [[evolution]] and [[global warming]]
* Minimal Taxation
* [[Federalism]] (Separation of powers among the National, State and Local governments)
* Favoring [[states' rights]] over federal power, while accepting the Constitutional role of the federal government
* A strong national defense
* An [[Originalism|Originalist]] interpretation of the [[United States Constitution|Constitution]]

__TOC__ 
==Hall of Fame==
Conservative scholar Clinton Rossiter<ref> Rossiter, "The Giants of American Conservatism," ''American Heritage'' 1955 6(6): 56-59, 94-96, online in [[EBSCO]]</ref> names [[Alexander Hamilton]], [[John Adams]], [[John Marshall]], [[Daniel Webster]], [[John C. Calhoun]], [[Elihu Root]], and [[Theodore Roosevelt]] to the "Conservative's Hall of Fame,"'' with John Adams as the greatest of American conservatives.

===Presidents===
Periodically a conservative has been elected president of the United States. The most prominent conservative presidents include:
*[[George Washington]] (1789-1797)
*[[James Monroe]] (1817-1825)
*[[Grover Cleveland]] (1885-1889, 1893-1897)
*[[Warren G. Harding]] (1921-1923)
*[[Calvin Coolidge]] (1923-1929)
*[[Ronald Reagan]] (1981-1989)
*[[George W. Bush]] (2001-2009) (with respect to taxes and Supreme Court nominations)

The most prominent conservative Congresses have been:

*The 80th Congress (elected in 1946)
*The 104th Congress (elected in 1994)

===Movement===
[[Movement conservatives]] are those who accept the logic of conservatism across-the-board, and stand up for its powerful principles despite [[liberal]] ridicule. Movement conservative activists include:
*[[Phyllis Schlafly]], opposed [[ERA]]
*[[Larry McDonald]], Congressman, on board [[KAL 007]] when shot down by the Soviets near [[Moneron Island]].
*[[Jesse Helms]], Senator, specialist in foreign policy
*[[Pat Buchanan]], commentator
*[[Jerry Falwell]], religion
*[[Michele Bachmann]], congresswoman
*[[Ann Coulter]], columnist
*[[Rush Limbaugh]], radio
*[[Michelle Malkin]], commentator
*[[Glenn Beck]], commentator

===Key leaders===
*[[Barry Goldwater]] - 1964 Republican candidate, lost to liberal Democrat [[Lyndon Johnson]] but revived the conservative movement inside the GOP
*[[Russell Kirk]] - Theorist & intellectual
*[[Irving Kristol|Irving]] and [[William Kristol]] - Notable [[neoconservatives]]
*[[Margaret Thatcher]] - British prime minister between 1979 and 1990, held views similar to Reagan's
*[[Milton Friedman]] - Chicago-school [[libertarian]] [[economist]], influential during Reagan administration; leader of the [[Chicago School of Economics]]

==US Voters==
In America, most conservatives support the [[Republican Party]], but not exclusively so. In the 2008 election, 35% of the voters identified themselves as conservatives. Of them, 78% voted for [[John McCain]] and 20% for [[Barack Hussein Obama]], with the 20% accounting for Obama's margin of victory. Only 22% of the voters were liberal; they favored Obama 89%-10%. In the middle were 44% who called themselves moderates. They split for Obama by 60%-39%. (Minor candidates won 2% of the vote.)<ref> See [http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/results/polls/#USP00p1 Presidential 2008 Exit Poll]</ref>
[[File:Conservative-republican-brain.jpg|thumb|350px]]
===Religious differences between political conservatives and political liberals===
The Barna poll conducted in November 2008 shows significant differences between the 32% of Americans who called themselves as “mostly conservative” on social and political matters; and the 17% who called themselves “mostly liberal” on social and political matters. The others --50%--were moderates with positions somewhere in-between.<ref> See [http://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/13-culture/258-survey-shows-how-liberals-and-conservatives-differ-on-matters-of-faith on line results] </ref>

Some findings:
Political liberals are less than half as likely as political conservatives to firmly believe that the Bible is totally accurate in all of the principles it teaches (27% versus 63%, respectively); to strongly believe that [[Satan]] is real (17% versus 36%); and to firmly contend that they have a personal responsibility to share their religious beliefs with others (23% versus 48%).

[Note: "Liberal" and "conservative" in this survey are based on politics]

Liberals are also far less likely than conservatives to strongly believe each of the following:
*their religious faith is very important in their life (54% of liberals vs. 82% of conservatives);
*a person cannot earn their way into [[Heaven]] by doing good deeds or being a good person (23% vs. 37%);
*their faith is becoming an increasingly important moral guide in their life (38% vs. 70%);
*the church they currently attend is very important in helping them find direction and fulfillment in life (37% vs. 62%);
*their primary purpose in life is to love God with all their heart, mind, strength and soul (43% vs. 76%);

political conservatives were more likely than liberals to:
*read the Bible, other than at church events, during the past week (57% vs. 33%, respectively)
*attend a religious service during the past week (62% vs. 35%)
*[[pray]] to God, other than at a religious service, during the past week (91% vs. 76%)
*share their religious beliefs with others, during the past year (56% vs. 39%, among the born again Christians interviewed from each segment)
*have ever participated in a short-term missions trip, either within the U.S. or in another country (12% vs. 6%)

*2% of conservatives and 11% of liberals were [[atheist]] or [[agnostic]]
*15% of conservatives and 2% of liberals were [[Evangelical Christians|Christian evangelicals]]
*conservatives were twice as likely as liberals to be categorized as [[born again]], based on their theological views about salvation (63% vs. 32%)
*According to one statistic, 21% of conservatives were associated with the [[Roman Catholic Church]], compared to 30% among the liberals, though the issues of abortion, marriage and the [[Obama]] Administration's attempt to force Catholic schools to provide free health care including abortion and contraception have caused many Catholics to move to the right.

== Barack Obama and American Conservatism Backlash ==
In October of 2009, Niles Gardiner reported in the [[Britain|British]] newspaper ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'':
{{cquote|This week’s striking [[Gallup]] poll on political ideology is further confirmation that the United States is in essence a conservative nation, which has ironically become even more conservative under [[Barack Obama]]. According to Gallup, 40 percent of Americans describe their political views as conservative, 36 percent as moderate and 20 percent as liberal. This is the first time conservatives have outnumbered moderates in America since 2004.<ref>http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/nilegardiner/100014891/barack-obama-has-failed-to-defeat-conservatism-in-america/</ref>}}

== Conservative news organizations ==
:''See also: [[Conservative news organizations]] and [[Conservative media]]''
Some of the more notable news organizations which tend to be more conservative are [[WorldNetDaily]] and [[NewsMax]]. [[Fox News]], though often called conservative, tends to be more [[neoconservative]] than [[conservative]].

== Conservative magazines and blogs ==
:''See also: [[Conservative media]]''
Well known conservative magazines in the United States include ''[[National Review]]'', ''[[Policy Review]]'', ''[[The Weekly Standard]]'' and others.

Some notable [[Conservative blogs|conservative political blogs]] include the [[Heritage Foundation]]'s Policy Weblog, ''[[Human Events]]'', [[Michelle Malkin]], Newsbusters, Townhall.com and others.

== Neoconservatives ==

American commentators who ally themselves with the conservative movement but reject its religious or moral underpinnings are generally known as [[neoconservatives]].<ref>Jonah Goldberg, [http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=ZWMxNWNiNDJkY2JmNTExY2E1MzdkYWU3MWU1MTBiOGU= "What Is a 'Conservative'?"], [[National Review|National Review Online]], 11 May 2005</ref>

In the United States, conservatives are generally characterized by the following beliefs:

# Support of [[limited government]].
# A preference for freedom of opportunity over equality of result.
# [[Patriotism]], [[nationalism]], and support of a strong defense.
# Support of the institution of [[marriage]].
# Emphasis on social values, like [[prayer]] and [[pro-life]] principles.

In contrast, neoconservatives generally support [[Big government|bigger government]] and [[globalism]], and tend to downplay the significance of social values.

== Paleoconservatives ==

[[Paleoconservatives]] are conservatives who are more focused on social issues and American sovereignty, and are suspicious of both big government and big business. They also lean against foreign interventionalism. Neoconservatives criticize this with the pejorative term of "[[isolationism]]," as they believe in promoting [[democracy]] worldwide, even where different religious or value systems are incompatible with democracy-induced changes in control.

Among paleoconservatives was Democratic Congressman from Georgia, [[Larry McDonald]]. He was also second Chairman of the [[John Birch Society]], and President of Western Goals. McDonald was aboard [[Korean Airlines Flight 007]] when it was shot down by the [[Soviet Union|Soviets]] near [[Moneron Island]] in 1983.

==Fiscal Conservatism vs. Social Conservatism==

''For further details on the two related philosophies, see [[Fiscal conservatism]] and [[Social conservatism]]''

Recently, a division has been created between fiscal conservatism and social conservatism. Fiscal conservatism centers around a low and [[Balanced budget|balanced]] government [[budget]], and generally is opposed to programs such as [[Social Security]] and [[Medicare]]. Its primary goal is to reduce government spending significantly. Social Conservatism, on the other hand, focuses on the moral issues of conservatism. A social conservative will oppose [[same-sex marriage]], [[abortion]], and the teaching of [[evolution]] in schools. The majority of Conservatives (including most of the [[Republican Party]]) fall into both categories, however some fall into one or the other, but not both. Notably, [[Libertarians]] are strong fiscal conservatives but are not socially conservative. For instance, the [[Libertarian Party]] Platform <ref>[http://www.lp.org/platform]</ref> expresses support for the fiscally conservative principles of ending publicly funded [[welfare]] and [[healthcare]] programs as well as reducing government spending overall significantly. However, it also expresses support for [[same-sex marriage]] (with some libertarians leaning towards the ultimate goal of total [[marriage privatization]]) as well as maintaining the legal status of abortion.

Some Republicans and [[Democratic Party|Democrats]] also fit one category but not the other. Former [[New Mexico]] governor [[Gary Johnson]], who is seeking the Republican presidential nomination in 2012, was deemed "the most fiscally conservative governor" while he was in office (and probably earned that honor given all the spending cuts he made) but at the same time, he supports [[marriage privatization]] and [[abortion]] (though he believes ''[[Roe v. Wade]]'' should be overturned on Constitutional grounds). Also, several Democrats have expressed opposition to same-sex marriage and/or abortion, but still support liberal fiscal programs such as Social Security. They would be the opposite of Johnson - socially conservative but fiscally liberal.

== Personal conservatism ==
Because Conservatives often have strong political views, there can be a tendency to see conservatism as a purely political ideology. However, there is also a strong personal side to conservatism - being a conservative is as much about applying conservative values to one's everyday life as it is about campaigning and voting for conservative candidates. In general, conservatives can be characterized by a strong sense of personal [[morality]], a willingness to observe their culture's traditions and customs, and a desire to be respectable and to show due respect to other members of the community.
==History of American conservatism==
===Textbook problems===
:''See also: [[Textbook bias]]''
College-level teaching about conservatism has been distorted by a "liberal state paradigm"--that is, [[textbook]]s usually interpret recent American history in terms of the origins and successes of political liberalism--especially the [[New Deal]], the [[welfare state]], [[labor union]]s, and [[Civil Rights Movement|Civil Rights]] for blacks and [[equality]] for women. Conservative politics is usually defined as a reaction: as a [[free market]] reply to the growth of [[big government]]; as an expression of outrage against declining support for tradition and Christian morality. Where the violent Wobblies ([[Industrial Workers of the World|IWW]]) and illegal sit down strikes of the 1930s are seen as heroic, exposing [[Communist]] subversion by [[Joe McCarthy]] is denounced as the nadir of political morality.<ref> See Leonard Moore, "Approaching Conservatism," ''OAH Magazine of History,'' 17 (January 2003) [http://www.oah.org/pubs/magazine/conservatism/moore.html online edition]</ref>

===Loyalists===
The [[Loyalists]] of the [[American Revolution]] were mostly political conservatives, some of whom produced political discourse of a high order, including lawyer [[Joseph Galloway]] and governor-historian [[Thomas Hutchinson]]. However when the crisis came, they stood with the Crown as it tried to destroy American political liberties. After the war, the great majority remained in the U.S. and became citizens, but some leaders emigrated to other places in the British Empire. [[Samuel Seabury]] was a Loyalist who stayed and as the first American bishop played a major role in shaping the [[Episcopal]] religion, a stronghold of conservative social values. While the Loyalist political tradition died out totally it the U.S., it survives in Canadian conservatism.

===Founding Fathers===
The [[Founding Fathers]] created the single most important set of political ideas in American history, known as [[Republicanism]], which all groups, liberal and conservative alike, have drawn from. Two parties were named "Republican"-- the one founded in 1794 by [[Thomas Jefferson]] and [[James Madison]] (it disappeared in the 1820s), and the modern GOP founded in 1854.

During the [[First Party System]] (1790s-1820s) the [[Federalist Party]], led by [[Alexander Hamilton]], developed an important variation of republicanism that can be considered conservative. Rejecting [[monarchy]] and [[aristocracy]], they emphasized civic virtue as the core American value. The Federalists spoke for the propertied interests and the upper classes of the cities. They envisioned a modernizing land of banks and factories, with a strong army and navy. [[George Washington]] was their great hero.

On many issues American conservatism also derives from the republicanism of [[Thomas Jefferson]] and his followers, especially [[John Randolph of Roanoke]] and his "Old Republicans" or "[[Quids]]." They idealized the [[yeoman]] farmer as the epitome of civic virtue, warned that banking and industry led to [[corruption]], that is to the illegitimate use of government power for private ends. Jefferson himself was a vehement opponent of what today is called "[[judicial activism]]".
<ref>[http://etext.virginia.edu/jefferson/quotations/jeff1030.htm]</ref> The Jeffersonians stressed small government.

===Ante-Bellum: Calhoun and Webster===
During the [[Second Party System]] (1830-54) the [[Whig Party]] attracted most conservatives, such as [[Daniel Webster]] of New England. [[Daniel Webster]] and other leaders of the [[Whig Party]], called it the conservative party in the late 1830s.<ref>The word was originally used in the [[French Revolution]]. The British used it after 1839 to describe a major party. The first American usage is by Whigs who called themselves "Conservatives" in the late 1830s. Hans Sperber and Travis Trittschuh, ''American Political terms: An Historical Dictionary'' (1962) 94-97.</ref> [[John C. Calhoun]], a Democrat, articulated a sophisticated conservatism in his writings. [[Richard Hofstadter]] (1948) called him "The [[Karl Marx|Marx]] of the Master Class." Calhoun argued that a conservative minority should be able to limit the power of a "majority dictatorship" because tradition represents the wisdom of past generations. (This argument echoes one made by [[Edmund Burke]], the founder of British conservatism, in ''Reflections on the Revolution in France'' (1790)). Calhoun is considered the father of the idea of minority rights, a position adopted by liberals in the 1960s in dealing with [[Civil Rights]].

The conservatism of the antebellum period is contested territory; conservatives of the 21st century disagree over what comprises their heritage. Thus [[William J. Bennett]] (2006), a prominent conservative leader, warns conservatives to NOT honor Calhoun, [[Know-Nothings]], [[Copperheads (politics)|Copperheads]] and 20th century [[isolationist]]s.

===Lincoln to Cleveland===
Since 1865 the [[Republican Party]] has identified itself with President [[Abraham Lincoln]], who was the ideological heir of the [[Whig Party|Whigs]] and of both [[Thomas Jefferson|Jefferson]] and [[Alexander Hamilton|Hamilton]]. As the [[Gettysburg Address]] shows, Lincoln cast himself as a second Jefferson bringing a second birth of freedom to the nation that had been born 86 years before in Jefferson's [[Declaration of Independence|Declaration]]. The [[Copperheads (politics)|Copperheads]] of the [[American Civil War|Civil War]] reflected a [[reactionary]] opposition to modernity of the sort repudiated by modern conservatives. A few libertarians have adopted a neo-Copperhead position, arguing Lincoln was a dictator who created an all-powerful government.

In the late 19th century the [[Bourbon Democrat]]s, led by President [[Grover Cleveland]], preached against corruption, high taxes (protective [[tariff]]s), and [[imperialism]], and supported the [[gold standard]] and business interests. They were overthrown by [[William Jennings Bryan]] in 1896, who moved the mainstream of the [[Democratic Party]] permanently to the left.

The 1896 presidential election was the first with a conservative versus liberal theme in the way in which these terms are now understood. Republican [[William McKinley]] won using the pro-business slogan "[[sound money]] and protection," while Bryan's anti-bank populism had a lasting effect on economic policies of the Democratic Party.

[[William Graham Sumner]], [[Yale University|Yale]] professor (1872-1910) and polymath, vigorously promoted a libertarian conservative ethic. After dallying with [[Social Darwinism]] under the influence of [[Herbert Spencer]], he rejected [[evolution]] in his later works, and strongly opposed imperialism. He opposed monopoly and [[paternalism]] in theory as a threat to equality, democracy and middle class values, but was vague on what to do about it.<ref>Curtis, Bruce. "William Graham Sumner 'On the Concentration of Wealth.'" Journal of American History 1969 55(4): 823-832.</ref>

===Early 20th century===
In the [[Progressive Era]] (1890s-1932), regulation of industry expanded as conservatives led by Senator [[Nelson Aldrich]] of [[Rhode Island]] were put on the defensive. However, Aldrich's proposal for a strong national banking system was enacted as the [[Federal Reserve System]] in 1913. [[Theodore Roosevelt]], the dominant personality of the era, was both liberal and conservative by turns. As a liberal he took a tough [[Regulation|regulatory]] approach toward businesses and [[trust]]s, and (post-presidency) fought for social insurance for the elderly. As a conservative he led the fight to make the country a major naval power, and demanded entry into [[World War I]] to stop what he saw as the [[German Empire|German]] attacks on civilization. [[William Howard Taft]] promoted a strong federal judiciary that would overrule excessive legislation. Taft defeated Roosevelt on that issue in 1912, forcing Roosevelt out of the GOP and turning it to the right for decades. As president, Taft remade the [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] with five appointments; he himself presided as chief justice in 1921-30, the only former president ever to do so.

Pro-business Republicans returned to dominance in 1920 with the election of President [[Warren G. Harding]]. The presidency of [[Calvin Coolidge]] (1923-29) was a high water mark for conservatism, both politically and intellectually. Classic writing of the period includes ''Democracy and Leadership'' (1924) by Irving Babbitt and [[H.L. Mencken]]'s magazine ''American Mercury'' (1924-33). The [[Efficiency Movement]] attracted many conservatives such as [[Herbert Hoover]] with its pro-business, pro-engineer approach to solving social and economic problems. In the 1920s many American conservatives generally maintained anti-foreign attitudes and, as usual, were disinclined toward changes to the healthy economic climate of the age.

During the [[Great Depression]], other conservatives participated in the taxpayers' revolt at the local level. From 1930 to 1933, Americans formed as many as 3,000 taxpayers' leagues to protest high [[property tax]]es. These groups endorsed measures to limit and rollback taxes, lowered penalties on tax delinquents, and cuts in government spending. A few also called for illegal resistance (or tax strikes). The best known of these was led by the Association of Real Estate Taxpayers in [[Chicago]] which, at its height, had 30,000 dues-paying members.

An important intellectual movement, calling itself [[Southern Agrarians]] and based in Nashville, brought together like-minded novelists, poets and historians who argued that modern values undermined the traditions of American [[Republicanism]] and civic virtue.

The Depression brought [[liberal]]s to power under President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] (1933). Indeed the term "liberal" now came to mean a supporter of the [[New Deal]] and Roosevelt's powerful [[New Deal Coalition]]. In 1934 [[Al Smith]] and pro-business Democrats formed the [[American Liberty League]] to fight the new liberalism, but failed to stop Roosevelt's shifting the Democratic party to the left. In 1936 the Republicans rejected Hoover and tried the more liberal [[Alf Landon]], who carried only [[Maine]] and [[Vermont]]. When Roosevelt tried to pack the Supreme Court in 1937 the conservatives finally cooperated across party lines and defeated it with help from Vice President [[John Nance Garner]]. Roosevelt unsuccessfully tried to purge the conservative Democrats in the 1938 election. The conservatives in Congress then formed a bipartisan informal [[Conservative Coalition]] of Republicans and southern Democrats. It largely controlled Congress from 1937 to 1964. Its most prominent leaders were Senator [[Robert Taft]], a Republican of [[Ohio]], and Senator [[Richard Russell]], Democrat of [[Georgia]].
[[Image:Gop-plank.JPG|thumb|275px|1936 cartoon shows GOP building its platform from the conservative planks abandoned by the Democrats]]

In the United States, the [[Old Right]], also called the Old Guard, was a group of [[libertarianism|libertarian]], free-market anti-interventionists, originally associated with Midwestern Republicans and Southern Democrats. The Republicans (but not the southern Democrats) were [[isolationist]]s in 1939-41, (see [[America First]]), and later opposed [[NATO]] and U.S. military intervention in the [[Korean War]].

===Later 20th century: Goldwater, Buckley, the Dixiecrats===
By 1950, [[American liberalism]] was so dominant intellectually that liberal critic [[Lionel Trilling]] could dismiss contemporary conservatism as "irritable mental gestures which seek to resemble ideas." <ref>Lapham 2004</ref> But just as Trilling was writing a revival was underway. In the 1950s, principles for a conservative political movement were hashed out in books like [[Russell Kirk]]'s ''The Conservative Mind'' (1953) and in the highly influential new magazine ''[[National Review]]'', founded by [[William F. Buckley]] in 1955.

Whereas Taft's [[Old Right]] had been [[isolationist]] the new conservatism favored American intervention overseas to oppose [[communism]]. It looked to the [[Founding Fathers]] for historical inspiration as opposed to [[John C. Calhoun|Calhoun]] and the antebellum South.

The success of the [[Civil Rights movement]] came in the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]] and the [[Voting Rights Act]] of 1965. Most conservatives supported both, but [[Barry Goldwater]] opposed them. Until then southern whites (both liberal and conservative) had been locked into the Democratic party. That lock was now broken and southern conservatives started voting for Republican candidates for president in 1964-68, and by the 1990s they were also voting for GOP candidates for state and local office. The southern blacks now began to vote in large numbers, and they became Democrats, moving that party in the south to the left. By 2000, for the first time, all southern states had a conservative GOP and a liberal Democratic party. The region favored the GOP heavily in presidential elections, but split in state contests. In 2008, however, the [[Barack Hussein Obama|Obama]] campaign broke into the solid Republican South, carrying [[Florida]], [[Virginia]] and [[North Carolina]].

Goldwater, a charismatic figure whose intense opposition to all [[New Deal]] programs angered liberals, was defeated in a landslide in 1964. Goldwater faded and his supporters regrouped under new leadership, especially that of [[Ronald Reagan]] in [[California]], and regained strength nationally in the 1966 elections. Conservatives voted for [[Richard Nixon]] in 1968, who narrowly defeated the New Deal champion [[Hubert Humphrey]], and southern demagogue [[George Wallace]]. Nixon had come to terms with both the Goldwater wing of the party and the still-influential Rockefeller Republicans (Republicans from the [[Northeast]] who supported many New Deal programs).

===Nixon, Reagan, and Bush===

The Republican administrations of President [[Richard Nixon]] in the [[1970s]] were characterized more by their emphasis on ''[[realpolitik]]'', [[détente]], and economic policies such as [[wage and price controls]], than by their adherence to conservative rhetoric and more liberal actions.

In the eight years of [[Ronald Reagan]]'s presidency 1981-89 the American conservative movement achieved ascendancy. In 1980 the GOP took control of the Senate for the first time since 1954, and [[conservative principles]] dominated Reagan's economic and foreign policies, with [[supply side economics]] as well as a strict opposition to [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] [[Communism]]. Reagan promised to cut [[welfare]] spending but failed to do so. He did cut taxes, but raised [[military spending]] and created large [[federal deficit]]s that turned out working to our advantage, because at that time, deficits didn't matter. It should be known that the Republicans also [[Balanced budget|balanced]] the [[budget]] in the late 1990s.

An icon of the American conservative movement, Reagan is credited by his supporters with transforming American politics, galvanizing the Republican Party, uniting a coalition of economic conservatives who supported his supply side economic policies, known as "[[Reaganomics]]," foreign policy conservatives who favored his success in stopping and rolling back Communism, and social conservatives who identified with Reagan's conservative religious and social ideals.

==Reactions to Obama==
"Forty percent of Americans now self-identify as conservatives — double the amount of self-professed liberals — largely because independents are beginning to take sides." [http://www.ashbrook.org/publicat/onprin/winter11/spalding.html]

Compare [[Progressive liberalism]].

==Conservatives in Australia==

Australia was once more conservative than England but sweeping [[gun control]] laws pushed the nation leftward toward greater dependency on government in the last decade. In 2009, opposition to government control based on alleged [[global warming]] galvanized conservatives there and they led the [[Liberal Party of Australia]] to a repudiation of an emissions trading scheme.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/national/shock-result-as-abbott-wins-liberal-leadership-by-one-vote--ets-dead-20091201-k1uz.html</ref> Conservatives also support smaller political parties such as the [[Family First Party]].

==Conservatives in Britain==

In the [[United Kingdom]], the [[Conservative Party]] is the major partner in the governing coalition. The party's current leader, [[David Cameron]],<ref>[http://www.conservatives.com Conservative party UK]</ref> has been [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]] of the UK since May 2010.

Up until the mid-19th century, the forerunners of the Conservatives were known as [[Tory|Tories]], and the name has persisted as a common nickname both for the political party and those believed to be in agreement with it. Since the mid-to-late 1970s, British conservatives have been defined by an advocacy of [[laissez-faire]] economics, privatization and lower taxation. In recent years the Conservative Party has moved away from the social conservatism which once characterized it, and the current party policy includes, for example, support for [[abortion]] on demand, gay [[civil partnership]], the [[Kyoto Treaty]] and to oppose [[capital punishment]] (although it should be noted that such policies have little support among the party's grassroots membership) <ref>John Charmley, ''A History of Conservative Politics Since 1830'', (2nd ed. 2008) </ref>

[[Margaret Thatcher]] revolutionized the British conservatives much like Reagan revolutionized American conservatives. During her tenure as Prime Minister, she cut taxes, trimmed back at government waste, and exercised a strong national defense abroad (including the [[Falklands War]] of 1982).

Levels of prayer and worship are much lower in [[England]] and [[Wales]] than in the U.S., and religious issues thereby play less of a role in public discourse. However, religious issues remain a significant factor in [[Northern Ireland]] and in 2008 religious issues were significant during a special election in [[Scotland]].

In common with conservatives in many other countries, British Conservatives tend towards a patriotic rather than internationalist outlook, and are traditionally skeptical of the [[European Union]].

The broadcast media (dominated by the [[BBC]]) is almost exclusively [[liberal]] in tone. The print media is different with pro-Conservative newspapers like the ''[[Daily Mail]]'', ''[[Daily Express]]'' and ''[[Daily Telegraph]]'' selling more copies than their rivals.<ref>[http://www.mediauk.com/the_knowledge/i.muk/An_introduction_to_newspapers_in_the_UK Media UK; Introduction to newspapers in the UK]</ref>

== Conservatism and the French Revolution ==

Conservatism in France and the continent generally arose in the after 1790 as a response to the radicalism of the [[French Revolution]].

== Benefits of Conservatism ==

Several facets of conservatism function in unison to make it an effective and powerful philosophy. Conservatism emphasizes personal freedom, independence, and initiative; this allows the [[best of the public]] to rise to their natural level of achievement. Conservatives recognize that [[big government]] fosters dependency and stifles individual achievement--and thus, weakens society as a whole.

At the same time, conservatives also recognize that with individual freedom comes [[individual responsibility]]. In the absence of a hand-holding [[nanny state]], it is imperative that each individual take responsibility for his own actions, and exercise his rights and freedoms wisely and with discretion. Thus, [[social conservatism]] is also critical to a successful society, as it emphasizes the importance of [[morality]], duty, and responsibility to one's self and fellow men.

== Also See ==
*[[Conservative resources]]
*[[Previous Breaking News/Conservatives|Articles about '''Conservatives''' from previous "Breaking News"]]
*[[More News/Conservatives|Articles about '''Conservatives''' from "More News"]]
*[[Conservative Links]]
*[[Essay:Fair and balanced is not part of the Conservative platform]]
*[[Conservative politicians]]
*[[Liberal]]
*[[Larry McDonald]]

==Further reading==
* Critchlow, Donald T. ''The Conservative Ascendancy: How the GOP Right Made Political History'' (2007)
* Filler, Louis. ''Dictionary of American Conservatism The First Complete Guide to Issues, People, Organizations and Events'' (1987), useful older encyclopedia
* Frank, Thomas. ''What's the Matter with Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the Heart of America'' (2005), a liberal perspective [http://www.amazon.com/Whats-Matter-Kansas-Conservatives-America/dp/080507774X/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193685789&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Frohnen, Bruce et al eds. ''American Conservatism: An Encyclopedia'' (2006), the most detailed reference
* Judis, John B. ''William F. Buckley, Jr.: Patron Saint of the Conservatives'' (1988) [http://www.amazon.com/William-F-Buckley-Jr-Conservatives/dp/0743217977/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1207759425&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Kirk, Russell. ''The Conservative Mind''. (7th ed. 2001). highly influential conservative history of ideas [http://www.historyebook.org/ online at ACLS e-books]
* Link, William A. ''Righteous warrior: Jesse Helms and the rise of modern conservatism'' (2008) 643 pages
* Micklethwait, John, and Adrian Wooldridge. ''The Right Nation,'' (2004) influential survey [http://www.amazon.com/Right-Nation-Conservative-Power-America/dp/B000F71124/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1205919226&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Micklethwait, John, and Adrian Wooldridge. ''God Is Back: How the Global Revival of Faith Is Changing the World'' (2009)
* Nash, George. ''The Conservative Intellectual Movement in America Since 1945'' (2006), excellent scholarly history. [http://www.amazon.com/Conservative-Intellectual-Movement-America-Since/dp/1933859121/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1241925238&sr=1-2 excerpt and text search]
*Pemberton, William E. ''Exit with Honor: The Life and Presidency of Ronald Reagan'' (1998) [http://www.questia.com/library/book/exit-with-honor-the-life-and-presidency-of-ronald-reagan-by-william-e-pemberton.jsp online edition]
*Perlstein, Rick. ''Before the Storm: Barry Goldwater and the Unmaking of the American Consensus'' (2004) on 1964 [http://www.amazon.com/Before-Storm-Goldwater-Unmaking-Consensus/dp/0809028581/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193684721&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
*Perlstein, Rick. ''Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America'' (2008) [http://www.amazon.com/Nixonland-Rise-President-Fracturing-America/dp/074324303X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1241924189&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Schneider, Gregory L. ed. ''Conservatism in America Since 1930: A Reader'' (2003)
*Schoenwald; Jonathan . ''A Time for Choosing: The Rise of Modern American Conservatism'' (2002) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=104931191 online edition] also [http://www.historyebook.org/ online at ACLS e-books]
* Schweizer, Peter, and Wynton C. Hall, eds. ''Landmark Speeches of the American Conservative Movement'' (2007) [http://www.amazon.com/Landmark-Speeches-American-Conservative-Movement/dp/1585445983/ref=sr_1_4/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193685365&sr=1-4 excerpt and text search]

== References ==
{{reflist|2}}

==External Links==
*[http://www.aim.org/wls/category/conservatives/ What Liberals Say - Category: Conservatives], [[Accuracy In Media]]
*[http://www.youtube.com/user/rescueKAL007#p/a/FD3DE4F0642C350C/0/1c8v-kgLvhM Pat Buchanan's "Crossfire" interview with [[Larry McDonald]] 3 months before downing of [[KAL 007]], Ron Paul intro]

[[Category:Conservative]]
[[Category:Taxation]]
[[Category:American History]]
[[Category:Reagan Era]]
[[Category:1960s]]
[[Category:New Deal]]

*[http://www.conservativedirectory.com Directory of Conservative Websites - Category: Conservatives], [[Politics]]

[[Category:Conservative]]
{{Conservatism}}

Cold War

2012-02-16T02:21:34Z

EquisDulks:

The '''Cold War''' was a period of suspicion and distrust between the US and its alliances and the Soviet Union and its more or less puppet allies, and was started by [[Josef Stalin]].<ref> [http://cnsnews.com/commentary/article/59591 CNSNews.com - U.S. Honors Stalin on Hallowed Ground – Will Saddam Hussein Be Next?
] </ref> It persisted due to the natural enmity between communism and most other forms of government and the incompatible goals the two sides held.

The Cold War was marked by a nuclear [[arms race]] between the two super-powers, and the unchecked [[proliferation]] of [[nuclear weapons]] was a cause for concern in many quarters. The Cold War also was marked by high levels of [[espionage]].

Although there was no direct fighting between the superpowers, each country was involved in medium-scale proxy wars, most notably in [[Vietnam]], [[Korea]] and [[Afghanistan]]. The most tense moment between the two main powers came in October 1962 during the [[Cuban Missile Crisis]], which ended without escalation into warfare.

The Cold War lead to the development of the First-World (United States and its allies) Second-World (Soviet Union and its allies) and Third-World (countries not allied with either superpower and with no nuclear program) system of classifying countries. "Third-World" is the only term in this system still commonly used today, and it typically denotes an unindustrialized or still industrializing country.

It was a political, economic and psychological conflict, together with regional hot wars, between the [[United States]], [[NATO]] and other allies, and the [[USSR]], [[China]] and their allies between 1947 and 1989. After 1960, China split with the Soviet Union and set up its own alliances as part of its Cold War with the U.S and it's attempt to overtake the USSR as leader of the communist movement. <ref> [https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/csi-publications/csi-studies/studies/winter98_99/art05.html] </ref>

The tension during the Cold War fluctuated, with the super powers going through periods of heightened conflict and also periods of improved relations. It ended on November 11, 1989, with the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet overseas empire. History closed the books on the Soviet Union itself on December 25, 1991. It was replaced by 15 smaller countries, especially [[Russia]], which all rejected Communism and the Cold War.
==Causes==
The success of the wartime alliance with Britain, China and the Soviet Union led Americans to reject the isolationism of the interwar years. Victory in 1945 and the demobilization of the world’s armies and navies brought a general sense of confidence that the wartime alliance would continue and form the leadership of the new [[United Nations]], Hopefully the UN would provide the basis for international law and the solution of all serious problems, but it never lived up to expectations. Instead by 1947 the wartime alliance collapsed; The basic reason being an incompatibility in the two systems that each sought to remold the world too, either in American terms of democracy, liberal government, and capitalism, or else the Soviet goals of dictatorship of the Communist party as the mechanism to destroy capitalism. In immediate terms the issue was the independence of Poland, Czechoslovakia and other central European countries that had been taken over first by the Nazis, and after 1945 by the Soviet army.

[[Harry S. Truman]] had no knowledge or interest in foreign policy before becoming president in April 1945, and depended on the State Department for foreign policy advice. In 1946, George Kennan, an American diplomat wrote the ''Long Telegram'', in which argued for the necessity of [[Containment|containing]] the Soviet Union. His cable resonated with President [[Harry Truman]]'s administration and Truman shifted from FDR's détente to [[containment]] as soon as [[Dean Acheson]] convinced him the Soviet Union was a long-term threat to American interests. They viewed communism as a secular, millennial religion that informed the Kremlin's worldview and actions and made it the chief threat to American security, liberty, and world peace. They rejected the moral equivalence of democratic and Communist governments and concluded that until the regime in Moscow changed only American and Allied strength could curb the Soviets.

Following Acheson's advice, Truman in 1947 announced the [[Truman Doctrine]] of containing Communist expansion by furnishing military and economic American aid to Europe and Asia, and particularly to Greece and Turkey. He followed up with the [[Marshall Plan]], which was enacted into law as the European Recovery Program (ERP) and pumped $12.4 into the European economy, forcing the breakdown of old barriers and encouraging modernization along American lines. The State Department later promoted the Point Four program of "foreign aid" (grants with no repayment) to underdeveloped or "[[Third World]]" countries. In general. the money went to corrupt local officials and little moderization took place. The main success stories came in [[Taiwan]] and [[South Korea]].

====Containment====
In 1947 Truman, a Democrat, convinced the Republican-controlled Congress to support the [[Truman Doctrine]] by sending massive aid to the small country of Greece, threatened by a Communist takeover. The rest of Europe was still in economic ruin, which Washington feared would help the spread of Communism, so the [[Marshall Plan]] was proposed to help restore the European economies. When Stalin engineered a Communist takeover of democratic Czechoslovakia in early 1948, and forbade his satellites to accept Marshall plan moneys, Americans realized that Winston Churchill’s warnings about an “iron curtain” had come true.

The strategy of isolationism had failed by 1941; the strategy of détente(or friendship) with Communism had failed by 1948. Some argued for a strategy of direct confrontation or "[[Rollback]]"—but this was considered too dangerous, especially when the Soviets tested their first nuclear weapon in 1950.

Washington decided on a strategy of containment, as embodied in the the [[North Atlantic Treaty Organization]] ('''NATO''') military alliance set up in 1949. The [[NSC-68]] was a secret 1950 plan adopted at the highest levels of the American government to set the overall strategy, and a further step was taken in 1951 with the establishment of the Mutual Security Agency to coordinate U.S. economic, technical and military aid abroad.

The basic goal of containment was to prevent further Communist expansion, hoping that the internal weaknesses of the Soviet system would soon lead to its collapse. The problem with containment was that it meant fighting wars against Communist expansion, especially in Korea in 1950-53, and in Vietnam 1963-73; and had the basic flaw that the enemy could choose the time and place of movement, while America and its allies had to defend everywhere at all times. In 1949 [[Mao Zedong]] and his Communists won the civil war in China which would make the objective of containment even more unobtainable(as seen in the Chinese intervention in korea).

===Korean War: 1950-1953===
The [[Korean War]] began at the end of June 1950 when North Korea, a Communist country, invaded South Korea, which was not under explicit American protection. Without consulting Congress Truman ordered General [[Douglas MacArthur]] to use all American forces to resist the invasion. Truman then received approval from the United Nations, which the Soviets were boycotting. UN forces managed to cling to a toehold in Korea, as the North Koreans outran their supply system. A counterattack at Inchon destroyed the invasion army, and the UN forces captured most of North Korea on their way to the Yalu River, Korea's northern border with China. Truman defined the war goal as [[rollback]] of Communism and reunification of the country under UN auspices.

In late 1950 China intervened unexpectedly, driving the UN forces all the way back to South Korea. The fighting stabilized close to the original 38th parallel that had divided North and South. MacArthur wanted to continue the rollback strategy but Truman had decided on a new policy of containment, allowing North Korea to persist. Truman's dismissal of MacArthur in April 1951 sparked a vehement debate on American Far Eastern policy, as Truman was blamed for a high-cost stalemate with 37,000 Americans killed and over 100,000 wounded.

==Conflicts==

===Major Cold War Fronts===
====Strategic====
* [[Central Intelligence Agency]], chief US spy agency
* [[Containment]], stopping the expansion of Communism
* [[Détente]], trade and friendly relations with Soviets
* [[Rollback]], destruction of Communism
* [[NSC-68]], key planning document for Cold War 1950
* [[Space Race]], [[Sputnik]] 1957
* [[INF Treaty]]
* [[Nonalignment]]
* [[Strategic Defense Initiative]]

====In Europe====
* [[Truman Doctrine]], 1947
* [[History of Poland]]
* [[Berlin Airlift]], 1948-49
* [[Marshall Plan]], 1948-51
* [[NATO]], 1949- present
* [[Tito]]
* [[Berlin Wall]] 1961-89

====In Asia====
* [[Korean War]] (1950-53)
* [[Vietnam War]] (1965-75)
* [[Domino theory]]
* [[Soviet-Afghan War]], (1978-92)
* [[CENTO]]

====Third World====
* [[Peace Corps]], 1961-present
* [[Cuban Revolution]]
* [[Cuban Missile Crisis]]
* [[Nicaraguan Revolution]], [[Contras]]
* [[Salvadorian Civil War]]
* [[Angolan Civil War]]

===The Shootdown of Korean Airlines Flight 007===

Considered by many as the second or third most critical single incident of the Cold War, after the [[Cuban Missile Crisis]] of 1962 and [[Able Archer 83]], the shooting down of [[Korean Airlines Flight 007]], including 269 passengers and crew (among which was Georgia Congressman, [[Larry McDonald]]), on Sept. 1, 1983 signal an escalation in tension during the "Second Cold War."

==Breakup of the Soviet Union and Wars End==

The Western democracies, under the leadership of the United States under President [[Ronald Reagan]] won the Cold War with a policy that rejected detente and containment and instead relied on [[Rollback]]. An important element of this victory was Reagan's decision to commit to increased military spending, such as the "[[Strategic Defense Initiative|Star Wars]]" program. Reagan's decisions to intervene in Afghanistan while pursuing an arms race exacerbated structural weaknesses in the Soviet economy and pushed the USSR into an early decline.

In 1985, [[Mikhail Gorbachev]] become General Secretary of the Communist Party.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/11/newsid_2538000/2538327.stm Gorbachev Becomes Soviet Leader], ''BBC'', 11 March, 1985.</ref> Recognizing the systemic problems faced by Soviet society, he attempted the twin reform programs of [[Glasnost]] (openness) and [[Perestroika]] (restructuring). Combined with the disaster at Chernobyl and losses in the war in Afghanistan, the effects of Gorbachev's reforms quickly spun out of control. Glasnost allowed media attention to focus on problems which had long been buried by the state's propaganda regime, causing widespread dissatisfaction among Soviet citizens. In 1989, a wave of constituent republics began to seek autonomy from the Soviet Union. Most attempts at succession (with the exception of Lithuania) were met with no Soviet resistance.

==Further reading==

The Cold War is well documented by political scientists and historians--especially since 1991 when archives were opened in ex-Communist countries. Following are selected major scholarly books and articles in English, and some major memoirs.

for a much longer guide see [[Cold War Bibliography]]

* Bacevich, Andrew J., ed. ''The Long War: A New History of U.S. National Security Policy Since World War II'' (2007) [http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0231131585/ref=sib_dp_bod_ex?ie=UTF8&p=S00D#reader-link excerpt and text search]
* Ball, S. J. ''The Cold War: An International History, 1947–1991'' (1998), British perspective; short summary; [http://www.questia.com/library/book/the-cold-war-an-international-history-1947-1991-by-s-j-ball.jsp online edition]
* Boyle Peter G. ''American-Soviet Relations: From the Russian Revolution to the Fall of Communism.'' (1993).
* Brzezinski, Zbigniew. ''The Grand Failure: The Birth and Death of Communism in the Twentieth Century'' (1989)
* Crockatt Richard. ''The Fifty Years War: The United States and the Soviet Union in World Politics, 1941-1991.'' (1995), popular. [http://www.amazon.com/Fifty-Years-War-United-Politics/dp/0415135540/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193967506&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Friedman, Norman. ''The Fifty Year War: Conflict and Strategy in the Cold War''. (2000) [http://www.amazon.com/Fifty-Year-War-Conflict-Strategy-Cold/dp/1591142873/ref=sr_1_2/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193967539&sr=8-2 excerpt and text search]
* Gaddis, John Lewis, ''The Cold War. A New History'', 2005. [http://www.amazon.com/Cold-War-New-History/dp/B000GUJH8A/ref=pd_sxp_grid_i_0_0/103-4827826-5463040 excerpt and text search]
* Gaddis, John Lewis. ''Russia, the Soviet Union and the United States. An Interpretative History'' 2nd ed. (1990)
* Gaddis, John Lewis. ''Long Peace: Inquiries into the History of the Cold War'' (1987) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=100560159 online edition]
* Kegley Jr., Charles W. ed., ''The Long Postwar Peace.'' 1991
* Kort, Michael. ''The Columbia Guide to the Cold War'' (1998) [http://www.amazon.com/Columbia-Guide-Cold-War/dp/0231107730/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193967647&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* LaFeber, Walter. ''America, Russia, and the Cold War, 1945–1992'' 9th ed. (2002) [http://www.amazon.com/America-Russia-Cold-1945-2002-Updated/dp/0072849037/ref=pd_sxp_grid_i_2_1/103-4827826-5463040 excerpt and text search], liberal
* Leffler, Melvyn P. ''For the Soul of Mankind: The United States, the Soviet Union, and the Cold War'' (2007) [http://www.amazon.com/Soul-Mankind-United-States-Soviet/dp/0809097176/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1191567573&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search], liberal
* Lundestad, Geir. ''East, West, North, South: Major Developments in International Politics since 1945'' (1999). [http://www.amazon.com/East-West-North-South-International/dp/1412907489/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193964045&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* McCauley, Martin. ''Russia, America and the Cold War: 1949-1991'' (2nd ed. 2008); short textbook [http://www.amazon.com/Russia-America-Cold-War-1949-1991/dp/1405874309/ref=sr_1_24?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1252833741&sr=1-24 excerpt and text search]
* Mann, James. ''The Rebellion of Ronald Reagan: A History of the End of the Cold War'' (2009) [http://www.amazon.com/Rebellion-Ronald-Reagan-History-Cold/dp/0670020540/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1252833311&sr=1-8 excerpt and text search]
* Paterson, Thomas G. ''On Every Front: The Making and Unmaking of the Cold War.'' 1992. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=98945969&oplinknum=8 online edition]; [http://www.amazon.com/Every-Front-Making-Unmaking-Cold/dp/0393030601/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193967604&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]; liberal
* Pietrusza, David ''1948: Harry Truman's Improbable Victory and the Year that Changed America'', New York: Union Square Press, 2011.
* Powaski, Ronald E. ''The Cold War: The United States and the Soviet Union, 1917–1991'' (1998) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=78888203 online edition]
* Westad, Odd Arne ''The Global Cold War: Third World Interventions and the Making of our Times'' (2006) [http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/052170314X/ref=sib_dp_pt/103-4827826-5463040#reader-link excerpt and text search]
* Zubok, Vladislav M. ''A Failed Empire: The Soviet Union in the Cold War from Stalin to Gorbachev'' (2007) [http://www.amazon.com/Failed-Empire-Soviet-Gorbachev-History/dp/0807859583/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1252833311&sr=1-3 excerpt and text search]

==External Links==
*[http://home.att.net/~rw.rynerson/index2.htm Berlin 1969 - midpoint of the Cold War]

== See Also==
*[[Joseph McCarthy]]
*[[Iron Curtain]]
*[[Containment]]
* [[Rollback]]
*[[The Soviet/ U.S naval confrontation]]: incidences during 1983 [[KAL 007]] search
*[[The Soviet's Deception of the Location of KAL 007's Water Landing]]

== References ==
<references/>

[[category:wars]]
[[category:Cold War]]
[[Category:Communism]]
[[Category:United States History]]
[[category:Military History]]
[[category:diplomacy]]
[[Category:Soviet Union]]
[[Category:Russian History]]
[[Category:European History]]
[[Category:Chinese History]]

Public schools in the United States

2012-02-16T02:16:09Z

EquisDulks: /* So-called "character education" */

''For Public schools in the UK, see [[Education in the United Kingdom]]''

[[File:800px-Warning signs at CHS.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Because of violence, vandalism, and other undesirable elements, this public school has a glaring sign warning of the on-campus surveillance cameras at its parking lot entrance.]]
[[Public schools]] in the [[United States]] have become predominantly [[liberal]] and [[atheistic]]<ref>[http://www.exodusmandate.org/art_exodus_from_public_schools_gets_helping_hand.htm Exodus from "public schools" gets a helping hand], Exodus Mandate, Sept 15, 1998</ref><ref>For example, "in 2005, officials at East Brunswick High School adopted a policy prohibiting representatives of the school district from participating in student-initiated prayer." [http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=61806]</ref><ref>From 2004 to 2006, a [[public school]] banned [[Bible]] study by children ... ''during recess''. A teacher complained about the use of the Bible and the principal then censored the study activity, according to a sworn statement by a teacher told to stop it. Principal "Summa, having learned of a complaint by a teacher and of the students' Bible study, told fourth-grade teacher Virginia Larue to nix the group's recess meeting. ... Larue later told one of Luke's Bible study colleagues the group could no longer meet at recess."[http://knoxnews.com/news/2008/jan/03/recess-bible-study-spurs-lawsuit/]</ref><ref>[[Atheists]] routinely impose their views on [[public schools]], though liberals deny it. For example, a court prohibited a moment of silence in [[Illinois]] "Township High School District 214 after atheist activist Rob Sherman challenged" it.[http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-moment_of_silence_bothmay30,0,7722271.story]</ref>
government institutions that employ 3 million people and spend $411.5 billion annually at a cost of $10,770 per student.<ref>[http://www.edreform.com/index.cfm?fuseAction=section&pSectionID=15&cSectionID=97 Statistics about education]</ref> Spoken [[prayer]], the [[Ten Commandments]], and sharing of [[faith]] are expressly forbidden in public schools' classrooms during school hours, and teaching of [[morality]] is implicitly disfavored.<ref>''See, e.g.'', ''[[Stone v. Graham]]'' (1980) (excluding Ten Commandments from public school).</ref><ref>A public school banned [[Bible]] study by children ... ''during recess''. A teacher complained about the use of the Bible and the principal then censored the study activity, according to a sworn statement by a teacher told to stop it. [http://knoxnews.com/news/2008/jan/03/recess-bible-study-spurs-lawsuit/]</ref> [[Homosexual Agenda|Homosexual indoctrination]] is common as early as elementary school in more [[liberal]] states.<ref>http://www.massresistance.org/media/video/brainwashing.html</ref> The failures of underperforming public schools are paradigm of [[socialism]], along with [[landfills]] and the [[Canada|Canadian]] healthcare system.

The following are characteristics of US public schools:

*30% of public school students fail to graduate from [[high school]],<ref name="graduate">"Only 70% of all students in public high schools graduate, and only 32% of all students leave high school qualified to attend four-year colleges."[http://www.manhattan-institute.org/html/ewp_03.htm]</ref> and more than 40% of minorities fail to graduate;<ref>"Only 71 percent of kids graduate from high school within four years, and for minorities the numbers are even worse -- 58 percent for Hispanics and 55 percent for African Americans," [Bill Gates] wrote. "If the decline in childhood deaths [in developing countries] is one of the most positive statistics ever, these are some of the most negative."[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/29/AR2009032901353.html?wpisrc=newsletter]</ref> the real drop-out rate may be 50%.<ref>http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/47272207.html</ref>
*Nearly 70% of students leave high school unqualified to attend four-year college, and many are unable to hold a steady job.<ref name="graduate"/>
*A 2007 study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse found that 77% of students between eighth and 12th grade had used illicit drugs.<ref>According to Monitoring the Future, a study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, illicit drug use is up among students between eighth and 12th grade. In 1991, 62 percent had used illicit drugs. In 2007, the number jumped to 77 percent. [http://www.battlecreekenquirer.com/article/20081207/NEWS08/812070305/1002]</ref> Fatal overdoses are common but underreported.<ref>Fatal overdoses are common, although often underreported.[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B01E5DB123EF932A25750C0A9629C8B63 Reporting of a heroin overdose by 16-year-old [[public school]] student was an exception to the underreporting].</ref> Public schools are required to present [[Drug education|drug "education"]] to kids.
*More than 60% of public school teenagers (in one regional study) watch more than 3 hours of television a day, compared with a national average of 35%<ref>http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2008/dec/01/memphis-youth-make-progress-on-risky-behavior/ (study of Memphis students)</ref>
*About half of the viable pregnancies among girls attending public school end in [[abortion|abortions]] and about half end in birth. Public schools "[[Sex education|educate]]" kids about sex.<ref>"There is zero shame [to [[teenage pregnancy]]]," the school nurse observed.[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/12/AR2008121203507.html]</ref>
*"About 160,000 students miss school daily because they [[fear]] being [[Bully|bullied]]," and students viciously fight each other and post videos of it on [[YouTube|Youtube.com]].<ref>One victim is now "being [[homeschooled]] at state expense."[http://starbulletin.com/2008/05/18/news/story01.html]</ref>
*20% of students had been dangerously "[[binge drinking]]" in the previous 30 days, and 50% of seniors regularly drink illegally, according to a 2007 study of Ottawa County, Michigan.<ref>The Grand Rapids Press The Grand Rapids Press: Ottawa County confronts teen drinking, By Greg Chandler, December 04, 2008[http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2008/12/ottawa_county_confronts_teen_d.html]</ref><ref name="Oregon">http://www.mlive.com/chronicle/news/index.ssf/2008/12/ottawa_co_youth_survey_surpris.html</ref>
*10-20% of students become [[Addiction|addicted]] to [[cigarettes]]<ref name="Oregon"/><ref>http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2008/dec/01/memphis-youth-make-progress-on-risky-behavior/</ref>
*35% of students are overweight<ref name="health">http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2008/nov/29/students-health-needs-attention/</ref>
*Health screening of public schools in Memphis, Tennessee, found that nearly 10% of students have mental health problems<ref name="health"/>.
*More than 10% of public high schools have a [[Homosexual Agenda|pro-homosexual]] student club
*The majority of public school students are completely ignorant about the [[Bible]], even as [[Bible history|history]] and literature
*California public schools, largest in the nation, now rank at the bottom in academic achievement.<ref>[http://www.newsmax.com/us/us_california_broken_schools/2009/06/21/227552.html High-Spending California School System Collapsing] AP, June 21, 2009</ref>

==History==

In 1647, [[Massachusetts]] [[Puritans]] enacted the second law, after Scotland in 1616,<ref>The Social, Economic & Political Reasons for the Decline of Gaelic in Scotland [http://www.scottishhistory.com/articles/highlands/gaelic/gaelic_page1.html]</ref> establishing universal public [[school]]s in the English-speaking world to block the attempts by "ould deluder Satan to keepe men from the whole knowledge of the Scriptures".<ref>''Family Encyclopedia of American History'' (Reader's Digest 1975)</ref> Each settlement larger than 50 families was required to pay a [[teacher|schoolmaster]] to teach reading, writing and religious doctrine to the [[children]] in the community. Beginning in 1670, Massachusetts provided [[taxation|tax]] funding for school maintenance. This model was then copied throughout the colonies, and even throughout the world.

Many children did not attend public school for the first two centuries. It was not until 1852 that Massachusetts became the first state to require attendance by students aged 6 through 16, and it was not until 1918 that all states had [[compulsory attendance]] laws. High schools did not generally exist until after the [[Civil War]], and the first American [[kindergarten]] didn't exist until 1856 in Watertown, Wisconsin.

==Views on morals==

===So-called "character education"===

In response to the perception that public schools have stopped teaching morality, many state education departments (including that of Texas) have or are in the process of developing "morality" that avoid good and evil, right and wrong, and instead present under the heading of "character" education.<ref>[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3971/is_199910/ai_n8866284]</ref> The lack of appreciation for right and wrong can surprise outsiders, and even school principals. When one public school student was charged with [[felony]] [[computer crime]] for altering the grades of 20 students, the principal said, we "want to teach them what's right and wrong, and it's tough for some kids to catch on to the idea that changing grades is the wrong thing to do."<ref>http://cw2.trb.com/news/kwgn-student-grade-felony,0,7871401.story</ref> The impact of the removal of morality from the [[public school]] curriculum (which is also used in private schools) is that "more than one in three boys (35 percent) and one-fourth of the girls (26 percent) — a total of 30 percent overall — admitted stealing from a store within the past year."<ref>http://charactercounts.org/programs/reportcard/index.html</ref>

=== Prayer ===

:''See also: [[Classroom prayer]]''

The White House announced the release of Revised Religious Guidelines for America's Public Schools on May 29, 1998. Within this announcement, President [[Bill Clinton|Clinton]] stated, "Nothing in the [[First Amendment]] converts our public schools into religion-free zones, or requires all religious expression to be left behind at the school house door." --President Clinton, July 12, 1998<ref>http://www.ed.gov/PressReleases/05-1998/wh-0530.html</ref>

In 2003, the Education Department released the following guidelines that clarified and added requirements to Public Schools to ensure the religious rights of students.<ref>http://www.freedomforum.org/templates/document.asp?documentID=17550</ref>
<blockquote>
Schools that don’t allow students to pray outside the classroom or that prohibit teachers from holding religious meetings among themselves could lose federal money, the Education Department said late last week. 
 
The guidance reflects the [[George W. Bush|Bush]] administration’s push to ensure that schools give teachers and students as much freedom to pray as the courts have allowed. 
The department makes clear that teachers cannot pray with students or attempt to shape their religious views.
The instructions, released by the department on Feb. 7, broadly follow the same direction given by the Clinton administration and the courts. Prayer is generally allowed provided it happens outside the class and is initiated by students, not by school officials. 
 
The department, however, also offered some significant additions, including more details on such contentious matters as moments of silence and prayer in student assemblies. And for the first time, federal funds are tied to compliance with the guidelines. The burden is on schools to prove compliance through a yearly report.
</blockquote>

===Teaching the Bible in Public Schools ===
The [[National Council on Bible Curriculum in Public Schools]]<ref>http://www.bibleinschools.net/</ref> (NCBCPS) provides a program for teaching the Bible in public schools. Currently, the NCBCPS's Bible curriculum has been voted into 462 school districts (over 1,900 high schools) in 38 states. Over 210,000 students have already taken this course nationwide, on the high school campus, during school hours, for credit.

==Educational outcomes==

===Declining literacy ===
Since the rapid expansion and liberalization of public schools after [[World War II]], students' [[literacy]] levels have dropped significantly. While the average 14-year-old had a vocabulary of 25,000 words in 1945, the equivalent student in 2000 had a vocabulary of only 10,000 words, a severe disadvantage in an increasingly textual world.<ref>''Utne Reader'' (July-August 2000), 28-9.</ref>

===Liberal bias in textbooks===
:''See also: [[Textbook bias]]''

[[Textbook]]s (K-12) have been systematically analyzed in a study funded by the U.S. government. The 1986 findings were that massive, systematic [[liberal bias]] exists, resulting in several information blackouts in four key areas of modern American life—[[marriage]], [[religion]], [[politics]], and [[business]]. While an actual conspiracy was then ruled out, the cause was found to be a "a very widespread [[secular]] and [[liberal]] mindset" pervading "the leadership in the world of education [and textbook publishing]"<ref> ''Censorship: Evidence of Bias in Our Children's textbooks'', [[Paul C. Vitz]], Servant Books, 1986, ISBN 0-89283-305-X</ref>.

Professor Larry Schwikart, of the [[University of Dayton]], wrote a book about biased textbooks. False claims common in those texts included that the [[Founding Fathers]] wanted a "wall of [[Separation of church and state|separation" between church and state]], that "[[Abraham Lincoln|Lincoln]] issued the [[Emancipation Proclamation]] only because he needed [[Black Soldiers in the Civil War|black soldiers]]", and that "[[Mikhail Gorbachev]], not [[Ronald Reagan]], was responsible for ending the [[Cold War]]". <ref>http://www.emailwire.com/release/20086-Controversial-Historian-on-the-Price-of-Business-Show.html</ref>

===Non-Dismissal of Tenured Teachers===
Due to the strength of the nation's teachers' [[Labor union|union]], it is nearly impossible to fire a bad performing teacher with [[tenure]]. The process can take years and involves countless steps to even attempt. The union claims that the protections are needed against arbitrary and malicious lawsuits.

The New York public schools system has approximately 700 teachers accused of insubordination to sexual misconduct. They remain in seclusion from the classroom but are paid full salaries until their cases are heard, sometimes from months to years later. All because their union contract makes it extremely difficult to fire them. <ref>[http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/us_rubber_rooms/2009/06/22/227959.html 700 NYC Teachers Paid to Do Nothing] AP, June 22, 2009</ref>

[[File:Pathtodismissal.JPG|center|thumb|800px| Flow chart for firing teachers in the nations second largest [[school district]], Los Angeles Unified School district]]

==Graduates==
=== Before 1962 ===
Given that public schools educate about 90% of [[Americans]], it is astounding how few prominent Americans attended public school after the banning of school prayer in 1962. Here is an impressive list of prominent Americans who attended public schools ''before'' the banning of prayer.

*[[Ronald Reagan]]<ref>http://www.dixonil.com/reagan/reagan2.htm</ref> graduated from Dixon High School, Illinois
*[[Dwight D. Eisenhower]]<ref>http://www.eisenhower.archives.gov/press_releases/2007/PR07_11_August_02_2007_Eisenhower_Co_Sponsor_Little_Rock.pdf</ref> attended Abilene High School in Abilene, Kansas
*[[Richard M. Nixon]]<ref>http://www.nndb.com/edu/836/000068632/</ref> attended Fullerton and Whittier High Schools, California
*[[Gerald Ford]]<ref>http://www.visitgrandrapids.org/ford-facts.php</ref> attended Grand Rapids South High School, Michigan
*[[Lyndon B. Johnson]]<ref>http://www.nndb.com/people/062/000023990/</ref> attended Johnson City High School, Texas
*[[Harry S Truman]]<ref>http://www.nps.gov/nr/twhp/wwwlps/lessons/103truman/103visual1.htm</ref> attended Independence High School, Missouri
*[[H. Ross Perot]]<ref>http://www.famoustexans.com/rossperot.htm</ref> attended public schools and Texarkana Junior College, Texas
*[[Richard Cheney]]<ref>http://www.nndb.com/people/598/000022532/</ref> graduated from Natrona County High School in Casper, Wyoming.
*[[Colin Powell]] graduated from Morris High School, NY in 1954 and received his B.A. in geology from the City College of New York in 1958 <ref>http://gale.cengage.com/free_resources/bhm/bio/powell_c.htm</ref>
*[[Billy Graham]] graduated from Sharon High School, NC in May 1936<ref>http://online-bibleconcordance.com/Ministers/BillyGraham.aspx</ref>
*[[Michael Medved]] graduated from Palisades High School, CA <ref>michaelmedved.townhall.com/About.aspx</ref>
*[[The Wright Brothers]] attended public schools in Richmond, India and Dayton OH but did not graduate <ref>http://www.kyrene.org/schools/brisas/sunda/inventor/wright/index.html</ref>
*[[Roy Jay Glauber]], Nobel laureate, graduated from Bronx High School of Science, Bronx, NY in 1941. <ref>http://www.nndb.com/people/738/000138324/</ref>
*[[Frederick Reines]], Nobel laureate, attended Union Hill High School, NJ, during the late 1930's. <ref>http://www.nndb.com/people/052/000099752/</ref>
*[[Oliver North]], US Army Officer, political commentator, graduated from Ockawamick High School in 1961. <ref>http://libraryoflibrary.com/E_n_c_p_d_Ollie_North.html</ref>

=== After 1962 ===
Here is a mostly unimpressive list of people who attended public school ''after'' prayer was banned in 1962:

*[[Brad Pitt]], actor, graduated from Kickapoo High School in Springfield, Missouri, 1981; dropped out of college.<ref>http://www.rolemodel.net/brad_pitt.cfm
</ref>
*[[Tom Cruise]], actor, attended several public high schools including Glen Ridge High School, New Jersey during the 1970's. <ref>http://www.nndb.com/people/791/000022725/
</ref>
*[[John Sununu]], former one-term Senator from [[New Hampshire]], graduated from Salem High School in the 1970's;<ref>http://www.sununu.senate.gov/biography.html</ref> claiming to be [[pro-life]], Sununu arranged for the nomination of [[David Souter]] to the [[U.S. Supreme Court]], where he then repeatedly voted on the side of [[abortion]]
*[[John Edwards]], indicted in 2011 on allegations arising from his affair with a mistress, was a former one-term Senator from [[North Carolina]] and two-time unsuccessful candidate for nomination for president, attended public school in Robbins, N.C. during the 1960's.<ref>http://www.pbs.org/newshour/vote2004/primaries/edwards_bio.html</ref>
*[[Spike Lee]], producer, actor, graduated from John Dewey High School, Brooklyn, NY.<ref>http://movies.nytimes.com/person/99175/Spike-Lee/biography</ref>
*[[Laura Bush]] attended James Bowie Elementary School, San Jacinto Junior High School, and Midland Lee High School in Midland, Texas (Graduated 1964); came out in support of [[gay marriage]] and [[abortion]] in 2010.<ref>http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/laura-bush-supports-gay-marriage-abortion/story?id=10629213</ref>
*[[William J. Clinton]]<ref>http://www.hotsprings.org/things_to_do/historic_hotsprings/presidents_hometown.asp</ref> graduated from Hot Springs High School in Arkansas in 1964, and became the only president impeached in the 20th century.
*Anthony Weiner, a congressman who resigned in disgrace in 2011 after first denying but then confirming an indecent use of [[Twitter]], graduated from a public high school in [[Brooklyn]].
*[[Steve Jobs]], founder of [[Apple Inc.]], graduated from Homestead High School in Cupertino, CA in 1972; his colleague, [[Steve Wozniak]], graduated from the same high school in 1968.
*[[Eminem]], a [[liberal]] [[rapper]], repeatedly failed 9th grade in public school and ultimately dropped out.
*[[Alan Colmes]], a liberal news commentator, attended public school in [[New York City]].
*[[Sarah Palin]], vice presidential candidate on the [[Republican Party]] ticket in 2008 and favorite of some [[Tea Party]] groups, went to [[Wasilla High School]] and graduated in 1982 and then attended 5 different colleges before becoming more [[conservative]] later in life.<ref>http://outhouserag.typepad.com/outhouserag/2008/09/sarah-palin-198.html</ref>
*[[Rick Perry]], [[Texas]] governor, infringed on [[parental rights]] by requiring young girls to receive an HPV vaccine.

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==See Also==

*[[Public school culture]]
*[[Teacher Pay]]
*[[Atheism and public schools]]
*[[Parental rights]] (focusing on the rights of parents to control the education, upbringing and disclipline of their children)
*[[Education in the United Kingdom]]

[[category:Schools]]
[[category:United States History]]
{{Liberalism}}

==External Links==
*[http://beforeitsnews.com/story/1610/466/Dumb_As_A_Rock:_You_Will_Be_Absolutely_Amazed_At_The_Things_That_U.S._High_School_Students_Do_Not_Know.html Dumb As A Rock: You Will Be Absolutely Amazed At The Things That U.S. High School Students Do Not Know]

Bolshevik

2012-02-16T02:10:19Z

EquisDulks:

The '''Bolsheviks''' were a [[communist]] political faction and party in the [[Russian Empire]] that eventually successfully overthrew the [[Kerensky Provisional Government]] in the 1917 Russian [[October Revolution]] under the leadership of [[Vladimir Lenin]].

The Bolsheviks arose from a 1903 factional schism in the Russian Social Democratic Labor Party, resulting in disagreement between Lenin and Julius Martov about the future of the party. Those who followed Lenin soon declared themselves the Bolsheviks (derived from the Russian word ''Bolshevista'', meaning ''majority'') while Martov's followers were termed [[Mensheviks]] (derived from ''Menshevista'', ''minority''). In 1912, the Bolsheviks split entirely from the Mensheviks, forming their own political party, which became the driving force behind the 1917 [[Russian Revolution|revolution]]. Despite their name, the Bolsheviks were a much smaller and less influential party than the Mensheviks until the second half of 1917.

[[Joseph Stalin]] systematically executed most of the surviving Bolsheviks in 1937.

[[category:Political Parties]]
[[Category:Communism]]
[[Category:Russia]]
[[Category:Soviet Union]]

Theodore Roosevelt

2012-02-16T01:46:55Z

EquisDulks: /* Conservation */

{{President
|image=Theodore roosevelt.jpg
|seq=26
|term_start=September 14, 1901
|term_end=March 4, 1909<ref>http://home.comcast.net/~sharonday7/Presidents/AP060301.htm</ref>
|party=Republican
|vp=None
|vp_dates=1901-1905
|2vp=Charles W. Fairbanks
|2vp_dates=1905-1909
|previous=William McKinley
|next=William Howard Taft
|office2=vice
|seq2=25
|term_start2=March 4, 1901
|term_end2=September 14, 1901
|pres2=William McKinley
|previous2=Garret Hobart
|next2=Charles W. Fairbanks
|birth_date=October 27, 1858
|birth_place=New York, New York
|death_date=January 6, 1919
|death_place=Oyster Bay, New York
|spouse=Alice Hathaway Lee
|spouse2=Edith Kermit Carow
|religion=Dutch Reformed
}}
'''Theodore Roosevelt''' was the 26th [[President of the United States of America]], 1901-1909, leader of the [[Republican party]], and (in 1912-16) the Progressive Party. Roosevelt is best known for his remarkable personality and commitment to democratic process. He was strongly committed to law and order, active leadership, civic duty, and individual self-responsibility, and was more concerned with the process of change than its direction.

A strong and vigorous man both personally and in politics, it was through Roosevelt that the world identified America with cowboy values of courage, initiative, and hardiness while it watched TR expand American influence in world affairs.

Roosevelt enlarged the presidency because he made it a "bully pulpit" for national uplift and inspiration. He preached as much as he politicked. He felt responsible for the well-being and morals of the whole country. He set an example of how a large, strenuous life could be led, and he invited others to renew their energies and apply them to public causes. TR strongly endorsed motherhood and criticized women who had careers while neglecting motherhood <ref> See "Theodore Roosevelt on Motherhood and the Welfare of the State," ''Population and Development Review,'' Vol. 13, No. 1 (Mar., 1987), pp. 141-147 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1972126 online]</ref>.

In the contest between [[Conservation and environmentalism]], Roosevelt supported the conservation and optimum use of natural resources, and opposed the environmentalists of the day, such as [[John Muir]].

==Family==
The Roosevelts could trace their family to Claes Martenssen van Rosenvelt, an immigrant from Zealand, Holland ([[Netherlands]]) who came to America in 1649, settling in New Amsterdam ([[New York City]]). Theodore was born on October 27, 1858, the second child of a very successful New York businessman, Theodore Roosevelt, Sr., and his wife Martha Bulloch, a Southern belle from Georgia. His early childhood was marked by frequent illness and asthma, of which his father spent many an evening bundling up "Tedie" - as young Theodore was often called - and taking him out for carriage rides in the fresh air. By age 10 his father would have enough of the possibility of his son growing into an unhealthy weakling, and forced on him a regimen of weights and daily physical exercise.

===Education===
TR was home schooled by tutors and his parents. He was solid in geography (thanks to his careful observations on all his travels) and very well read in history, strong in biology, French and German, but deficient in mathematics, Latin and Greek. He became one of the outstanding naturalists of the era, specializing in very careful study of birds.<ref> Brands (2001) p. 49–50</ref> He attended [[Harvard]] College, graduating in 1880 "magna cum laude". He lived very well--his annual $4000 allowance was higher than the president of the college--the days of equalitarian houses were decades in the future. His father's sudden death in 1878 was a stunning blow; Roosevelt redoubled his efforts.<ref> His inheritance was worth $8000 a year, about triple what the average doctor or lawyer earned.</ref> In academics he did well in science, philosophy and rhetoric courses, as well as German; but fared poorly in Latin and Greek. Harvard did not have majors, but he took all the advanced biology he could. Classmates considered him an odd bird--he kept snakes in his room and knew all about them. He also dressed in the latest fashions and kept his own horse and buggy. A crack shot, he brought his friends along on hunting parties to the north woods. The perfect gentleman, he was invited into the best clubs.

Roosevelt had amazing powers of concentration. He had a photographic memory and developed a life-long habit of devouring books, memorizing every detail. He was an unusually eloquent conversationalist who, throughout his life, sought out the company of the smartest men and women. He could multitask in extraordinary fashion, dictating letters to one secretary and memoranda to another, while browsing through a new book. During his adulthood, a visitor would get a not-so-subtle hint that Roosevelt was losing interest in the conversation when he would pick up a book and begin looking at it now and then as the conversation continued.

===First marriage===
[[Image:Alice Lee.gif|thumb|left|Mrs. Alice Roosevelt]]

Roosevelt married Alice Lee of Boston in 1880. on February 14, 1884, Roosevelt's young wife died after giving birth to the couple's first child. Only a few hours earlier, his mother, Martha Bulloch Roosevelt had died in the same house. After the double funeral and the christening of his new baby daughter, Alice, on February 17, 1884, the bereaved husband wrote:''
:::::::''For joy or for sorrow my life has now been lived out.''

He never again ever mentioned Alice Lee.
{{Clear}}

==Early career==
Given a chance to run for the state legislature in a "silk stocking" (rich) district in Manhattan, he astonished his upscale friends by dropping out of Columbia Law School, and was elected. His goal, he explained, was to join the "ruling class" not merely watch it passively.

Young Roosevelt was a Republican reformer in the legislature, writing more bills than anyone. Already a major player in state politics, he attended the Republican National Convention in 1884 and fought alongside the [[Mugwump]] reformers; they lost to the Stalwart faction that nominated [[James G. Blaine]]. Refusing to join other Mugwumps in supporting Democrat [[Grover Cleveland]], the Democratic nominee, he stayed loyal to the GOP.<ref>Edward Kohn, "Crossing the Rubicon: Theodore Roosevelt, Henry Cabot Lodge, and the 1884 Republican National Convention." ''Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era'' 2006 5(1): 18-45. Issn: 1537-7814 </ref>

TR held many offices. He was on the federal Civil Service Commission, then headed the New York City Police Department. After campaigning vigorously for [[William McKinley]] in the momentous 1896 presidential election, he became Assistant Secretary of the Navy, the #2 position. TR loved ships and had written solid naval history; his goal was to modernize the Navy, bringing it up to world class standards.

==War with Spain, 1898, and Medal of Honor==
When the battleship ''Maine'' was blown up in Manila harbor on February 15, 1898, Roosevelt, immediately resigned as Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and worked with Colonel [[Leonard Wood]] to recruit a volunteer cavalry regiment composed of TR's Ivy League friends and western cowboys for the [[Spanish-American War|coming war against Spain]]. Hundreds answered his invitation to join in this grand endeavor, and, after brief training, the "Rough Riders" arrived in Cuba. On July 1, 1898, Roosevelt seized the initiative and led his men on the celebrated charge of San Juan Hill where 89 of the 490 who followed were killed. Nevertheless, the press and Roosevelt made this the most important battle of the campaign. The "splendid little war" (as termed by John Hay, State Ambassador to England<ref>Frank Freidel, ''The Splendid Little War'', (Boston: Little, Brown and Co. 1958)</ref>) was soon over and TR returned to a hero's welcome in New York City.

After the battles in Cuba, malaria, yellow fever and typhoid became an issue for the troops. Roosevelt, not constrained by a military career, complained to both the White House and the press about the need for the troops to return home for better care. This, coupled with a bias against volunteers, is most likely the reason that when Roosevelt was nominated for the Congressional [[Medal of Honor]] for his bravery during the battle at San Juan Hill, the nomination was not approved.<ref name="medal">[http://www.theodoreroosevelt.org/life/medalofhonor.htm Roosevelt Medal of Honor]</ref>

President [[Bill Clinton]] posthumously bestowed the Medal of Honor to Roosevelt on January 16, 2001, saying,
<blockquote>
...TR was a larger-than-life figure who gave our nation a larger-than-life vision of our place in the world. Part of that vision was formed on San Juan Hill. His Rough Riders were made up of all kinds of Americans from all walks of life. They were considered unpolished and undisciplined, but they were true citizen soldiers. By taking San Juan Hill, eventually they forced the enemy fleet into the Battle of Santiago Bay, where it was routed. This led to the Spanish surrender and opened the era of America as a global power.<ref name="medal"/>
</blockquote>

Roosevelt and his eldest son, Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt Jr., are one of only two father/son pairs to earn the Medal of Honor. Roosevelt Jr. posthumously received his for actions on the beaches of Normandy on D-Day during [[World War II]]. Roosevelt is the first and only president to receive the Medal of Honor.

==Governor of New York==
A few weeks after his return Roosevelt was elected governor of New York as a Republican in 1898. As governor of New York, Theodore Roosevelt promoted greater accountability and efficiency in government by ending patronage handouts, supporting an effective civil service system, and forcing the Republican machine to hold fair elections.

==Vice President, 1900==
Senator Tom Platt and other party bosses distrusted him, and they forced his nomination as vice president on [[William McKinley]] in 1900. Roosevelt demonstrated his amazing energy by his campaign work. Nationally TR covered 21,209 miles by train. In Nebraska alone, some 300,000 men, women and children turned out for his 673 speeches at 40 cities and towns as he covered 1,500 miles in the state. His arguments for McKinley prosperity and America's role in the Philippines were accepted wholeheartedly or dismissed scornfully by his audiences. The GOP ticket carried Nebraska, the home state of Democratic nominee [[William Jennings Bryan]], by 7,000 votes.

Once in office, TR had little to do.

==President==
When President McKinley was fatally shot by an [[anarchist]] in 1901, Roosevelt automatically became President, and was reelected against a challenge by the Democratic candidate Alton B. Parker in [[United States presidential election, 1904|1904]].
[[Image:Tr2006.jpg|thumb|290px|''Time'' July 3, 2006]]

Roosevelt redefined the modern presidency by drawing attention to the office through his dynamic personality, thus creating a 'public obsession' over his executive actions and attracting a permanent public eye toward the presidency that endowed it with new power.

===Domestic policy===
Roosevelt was the chief leader of the [[Progressive Era|Progressive movement in politics]]--which in 21st century terms includes both liberal and conservative values. He tried to move the dominant Republican Party into the Progressive camp. He distrusted wealthy businessmen and dissolved 40 monopolistic corporations as a "trust buster." He did not disagree with trusts and capitalism in principle but was only against their corrupt, illegal practices. His "[[Square Deal]]" promised a fair shake for both the average citizen, including regulation of railroad rates and pure foods and drugs, and the businessmen. As an outdoorsman, he promoted the conservation movement, emphasizing efficient use of natural resources.

In his last two years in office (1907-1908), Roosevelt moved left, attacking big business and suggesting the courts were biased against labor unions.
====Pure food and drugs====
Widespread outrage followed publication in 1906 of [[Upton Sinclair]]'s novel, ''The Jungle,'' which detailed the horrible conditions in Chicago’s packinghouses. Roosevelt sent sociologists and social workers to investigate the meat-packing industry in Chicago. Their report to the president was 'revolting,' but since Roosevelt feared the impact on ranchers and European meat importers, he withheld the report from publication. Sinclair was so upset that he provided specific information to newspapers. Roosevelt then had the commissioners put their report in writing, and sent it to Congress. This led to a hearing before Congress; witnesses were asked about seeing a dead hog slide partway into a men's privy. Although Sinclair was a Socialist and his main interest was in the stockyard workers, not consumers, the turmoil over tainted meat helped move Congress to enact the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906. The act itself had been drawn up by experts in the Department of Agriculture, and remains in effect in the 21st century.<ref> James Harvey Young, "The Pig That Fell into the Privy: Upton Sinclair's 'The Jungle' and the Meat Inspection Amendments of 1906." ''Bulletin of the History of Medicine'' 1985 59(4): 467-480 </ref>

====Coal strike====
The [[Coal strike of 1902]] was a strike by the [[United Mine Workers of America]] in the anthracite coal fields of eastern Pennsylvania. The strike threatened to shut down the winter fuel supply to all major cities.<ref> Most homes and apartments were heated with anthracite or "hard" coal because it had higher heat value and less smoke than "soft" or bituminous coal.</ref> Roosevelt jumped in, and personally negotiated with the mine leaders and financiers. Acting as a neutral party, he set up a fact-finding commission that suspended the strike. The strike never resumed, as the miners received more pay for fewer hours; the owners got a higher price for coal but did not recognize the union as a bargaining agent. It was the first labor episode in which the federal government intervened as a neutral arbitrator and it made Roosevelt's reputation as a peacemaker.
[[Image:Coal-TR.JPG|thumb|300px|left|TR teaches the childish coal barons a lesson; 1902 editorial cartoon]]
====Railroad regulation====
Roosevelt worked closely with Congress to pass important laws (the 1903 Elkins Act and the 1906 Hepburn Act), that regulated railroad rates for the benefit of shippers and consumers, while injuring the railroads (which were assumed to be so rich that they could always pay). The new laws retarded the growth of the South, which the railroads could no longer afford to subsidize.<ref> Albro Martin, "The Troubled Subject of Railroad Regulation in the Gilded Age - a Reappraisal." ''Journal of American History'' 1974 61(2): 339-371 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1903953 in JSTOR]</ref>
====Antitrust====
Roosevelt expressed an antitrust image within a pro business framework. Critics who have measured Roosevelt's success by the number of antitrust suits he brought or won miss the essentially rhetorical purposes of his involvement with corporate America. His primary emphasis involved the promotion of the proper attitude in corporate leaders and the general public regarding the role of big business in American society. This Roosevelt did in two ways. First, he argued metaphorically for the necessity of corporations and the restraint of muckraking journalists. Second, along with employing metaphors to chastise big business, Roosevelt assumed the role of moral guardian and preached to corporate leaders to adhere to an ethical standard in business. For Roosevelt, corporate America could be effectively regulated only by its leaders' sense of morality and spirit of public service.<ref> Dorsey, Leroy G., "Theodore Roosevelt and Corporate America, 1901-1909: a Reexamination," ''Presidential Studies Quarterly'' 1995 25(4): 725-739 </ref>

===Moving left===
[[File:TR-Farewell.jpg|thumb|320px|TR moves left in his 1908 Farewell Address]]
Roosevelt moved left in 1907-08, criticizing the courts, promoting labor unions, and attacking big business. The Republican leadership in Congress ignored his radical proposals, and waited for his successor--Taft--to take over the White House.
===Foreign Policy===
Roosevelt's administration was marked by an active approach to foreign policy. He followed four basic principles: 1) promoting broadly defined American interests worldwide, 2) building American military and naval power and control over strategic points (especially the Panama canal and its approaches), 3) cooperation with the British, and 4) there was a social contract between the nation's citizens and its government, such that civilized nations had a right of intervention in cases in which such a contract had been broken. His foreign policy was well suited for the challenges of the world; he anticipated later attitudes and developments well into the 20th century and even the 21st century, as exemplified by [[John McCain]] in 2008.<ref> M. Patrick Cullinane, "Invoking Teddy: the Inspiration of John Mccain's Foreign Policy." ''Diplomacy & Statecraft'' 2008 19(4): 767-786 </ref> He combined a credible realist and internationalist approach with great attention to detail and full appreciation of the importance of diplomatic finesse.

====Civilization and modernization====
Roosevelt saw it as the duty of more developed ("civilized") nations to help the underdeveloped ("uncivilized") world move forward. In [[Cuba]], the [[Philippines]], [[Puerto Rico]], and the [[Panama Canal Zone]], he used the Army's medical service, under [[Walter Reed]] and [[William C. Gorgas]], to eliminate the [[yellow fever]] menace and install a new regime of public health. He used the army to build up the infrastructure of the new possessions, building railways, telegraph and telephone lines, and upgrading roads and port facilities.
====Army and Navy====
Roosevelt and his Secretary of War [[Elihu Root]] modernized the Army by creating a general staff system and structuring the military away from small frontier forts to modern combat roles.

[[File:Tr-militarist-1904World.jpg|thumb|350px| The ''New York World'' newspaper, mouthpiece of liberal Democrats, blasts TR as a dangerous militaristic dictator in 1904]]

Roosevelt, convinced that American military preparedness hinged on the nation's ability to develop and exploit new technologies, worked to make the technology of the army and navy as modern as possible. Among other things, he took an active interest in the army's consideration of the role of the machine gun and the airplane and in the navy's development of both the submarine and a new and more powerful type of battleship.<ref>Matthew M. Oyos, "Theodore Roosevelt and the Implements of War." ''Journal of Military History'' 1996 60(4): 631-655 25p </ref>

By identifying and working with two talented junior officers in the Navy Department, Albert Lenoir Key and [[William S. Sims]], Roosevelt assembled an ad hoc staff on naval policy. This staff funneled technical information to Roosevelt that allowed him to dominate policy discussions with Congress and the senior Navy staff. The President annoyed his admirals by micromanaging their responsibilities and ignoring the chain of command.<ref>Peri E. Arnold, "Policy Leadership in the Progressive Presidency: the Case of Theodore Roosevelt's Naval Policy and His Search for Strategic Resources". ''Studies in American Political Development'' 1996 10(2): 333-359 </ref>

Roosevelt dramatically increased the size of the navy, forming the new warships into a "Great White Fleet" for display purposes and sending it on a world tour in 1907. This display was designed as a show of force to impress the Japanese, and even more to motivate Americans to support naval power and be aware of the new role in the Pacific. Yet, the ships were almost forced to return because of the inadequacy of American ports in the Pacific.<ref>James R. Reckner, "The Rebirth of the Fleet." ''Naval History'' 2007 21(6): 16-25 online at [[EBSCO]]; Edward S Miller,''War Plan Orange'' (1991) </ref>

====Britain====
Typical of his eagerness for closer cooperation with London was Washington's support for Britain in the [[Boer War]], despite public opinion that favored the underdog Boers. the British reciprocated, so that in settling the boundary dispute between Canada (controlled by Britain) and Alaska, the British sold out the Canadians to gain American favor--a stunning shock to the Canadians.
====Mediator====
Balance of power considerations shaped Roosevelt's role as the successful mediator who ended the 1904-05 war between Russia and Japan. Japan had clearly won, but was not allowed to grab too much, thus allowing Russia to keep a certain power base in the region. Roosevelt justified his actions as consistent with American interests and American values. Moral principles in politics and diplomacy, Roosevelt claimed, help make clear the inescapable tension between ideals and reality. The moral problem persists, he thought, because diplomacy involves choices often obscured by faulty perception, controlled by national interests, and complicated by multiple purposes and goals.<ref>Greg Russell, "Theodore Roosevelt's Diplomacy and the Quest for Great Power Equilibrium in Asia." ''Presidential Studies Quarterly'' 2008 38(3): 433-455 </ref>

At the time Japan was consolidating its colonial rule over Korea. Roosevelt supported Japan because he viewed Korea as an backward nation fit to be a protectorate of Japan, which he hoped would protect American economic interests in Manchuria, where Japan was largely in control.<ref> Ki-jung Kim, "Theodore Roosevelt's Image of the World and United States Foreign Policy Toward Korea, 1901-1905." ''Korea Journal'' 1995 35(4): 39-53 1</ref>

====Roosevelt Corollary ====
The '''Roosevelt Corollary''' to the [[Monroe Doctrine]] was a substantial expansion in 1904. Roosevelt asserted the right of the United States to intervene to stabilize the economic affairs of small nations in the Caribbean and Central America if they were unable to pay their international debts and were at risk of intervention by European powers. The new policy primarily prevented intervention by Britain and Germany, which loaned money to the countries that did not repay. The catalyst of the new policy was Germany's aggressiveness in the Venezuela affair of 1902-03. The intervention took the form of takeover of the customs collection, and disbursement of the funds to the debtors and claimants. The policy was unpopular abroad.<ref>Serge Ricard, "The Roosevelt Corollary." ''Presidential Studies Quarterly'' 2006 36(1): 17-26. Issn: 0360-4918, online </ref>

Mitchener and Weidenmier (2006) show the economic benefits to the small countries. The average debt price for countries under the US "sphere of influence" rose by 74% in response to the pronouncement and actions to make it credible. That is, their bonds rose 74% because buyers now believed they would be repaid. The increase in financial stability reduced internal conflict because political factions could not count on winning control of the national treasury if they won a civil war. The program spurred export growth and better fiscal management, but debt settlements were driven primarily by gunboat diplomacy.<ref>Kris James Mitchener and Marc Weidenmier, "Empire, Public Goods, and the Roosevelt Corollary." ''Journal of Economic History'' 2005 65(3): 658-692. Issn: 0022-0507; online</ref>

<blockquote>
''“Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far.”'' The phrase was initially used by Roosevelt to explain his relations with domestic political leaders; later the phrase was associated with him and came to refer particularly to his foreign policy with Latin America. <ref> [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/65006/Big-Stick-Policy Big Stick Policy.] </ref>
</blockquote>

====Panama Canal====
[[Image:Panam2.JPG|thumb|350px|Roosevelt builds the canal—and shovels dirt on Bogota, the capital of Colombia]]
Roosevelt felt that the Panama Canal was his most important and historically significant international achievement.

Inspired by [[Alfred Thayer Mahan]]'s extraordinarily influential book ''The Influence of Sea Power upon History'' (1890), Roosevelt believed that American security and geopolitical power could be secured only through naval supremacy. This was particularly important in the Caribbean because of its proximity to the United States, European interest in the area, and its status as a critical juncture of trade routes. Roosevelt was able to maintain US dominance of the Caribbean without resorting to major military action.<ref> James R. Holmes, "Roosevelt's Pursuit of a Temperate Caribbean Policy." ''Naval History'' 2006 20(4): 48-53 in [[EBSCO]]</ref>

In particular, Roosevelt understood the strategic significance of the [[Panama Canal]], which opened up the Pacific Coast and Asia to cheap shipping, and made it possible for the Navy to move rapidly between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

A central issue was which route the canal would take; across Nicaragua and Costa Rica or through the Panama region of Columbia. Intense lobbying resulted in the Congressional decision to follow the Panama route. However, the Colombian Senate rejected the terms of the American Hay-Herran Treaty (1903) and tried to extort more money from the Americans. Roosevelt rejected Colombia's devious strategy and blocked Colombia from suppressing an insurrection in Panama against Colombia. With the success of the revolution, the United States initiated a treaty with the now independent Panama and began construction of the canal, which was completed in 1914.<ref> David McCullough, ''The Path Between the Seas: The Creation of the Panama Canal, 1870-1914'' (1978) [http://www.amazon.com/Path-Between-Seas-Creation-1870-1914/dp/0671244094/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1250828638&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]</ref>

==Break with Taft==
When Roosevelt's term was up he decided not to run again but chose Secretary of War [[William Howard Taft]] as his successor.

Long-term disputes inside the GOP, especially regarding tariffs, and the tension between Eastern industry and Midwest agriculture, pulled the party apart. Whle Roosevelt was in Africa and Europe, his friends grew alarmed that Taft was betraying the progressive cause by collaborating with reactionaries in the GOP. TR finally broke with Taft in 1910 but was outmaneuvered by Taft, who won the GOP nomination in 1912. Roosevelt walked out of the convention and the party, running as an independent on his own "Progressive" ticket, nicknamed the "Bull Moose Party". Roosevelt was shot before giving in a speech in Milwaukee. The bullet lodged in a copy of the speech stuffed into his breast pocket, saving his life. He gave the speech anyway that day, beginning the speech with the famous line, "I don't know whether you fully understand that I have just been shot; but it takes more than that to kill a Bull Moose."

[[Dale Carnegie]] wrote, "{{tr-taft}}".

Both he and Taft lost to Democrat [[Woodrow Wilson]] in the [[United States presidential election, 1912|election of 1912]]. The Taft conservatives, however, kept control of the GOP.

==Exploration==

After leaving office, Roosevelt took a trip along the [[Amazon River]] and wrote a book about his experience, ''Through the Brazilian Wilderness''. While in [[South America]], Roosevelt contracted [[malaria]] and nearly died. At one point, he requested that his expedition leave him behind. His son, Kermit, helped nurse him back to help, and Theodore credited Kermit with saving his life.
==Conservation==
More than any president before or since, Roosevelt insisted that conservation of natural resources be high on the agenda. As a world-class hunter and explorer, he mobilized support among American hunters, fishermen and outdoorsmen. he promoted both the national park system and the national forest system.

[[File:TR-Conservation.jpg|thumb|320px|Roosevelt was a leader in Conservation, fighting to end the waste of natural resources]]

In the early 20th century there were three main positions. The laissez-faire position held that owners of private property--including lumber and mining companies, should be allowed to do anything they wished for their property. The conservationists, led by Roosevelt and his ally [[Gifford Pinchot]], said that was too wasteful and inefficient. In any case, they noted, most of the natural resources in the western states were already owned by the federal government. The best course of action, they argued, was a long-term plan devised by national experts to maximize the long-term economic benefits of natural resources. The third position, led by the Sierra Club, held that nature was almost sacred, and that man was an intruder. It allowed for limited tourism (such as hiking), but opposed automobiles in national parks. It strenuously opposed timber cutting on most public lands, and vehemently denounced the dams that Roosevelt supported for water supplies, electricity and flood control. Especially controversial was the Hetch Hetchy dam in Yosemite National park, which Roosevelt approved, and which supplies the water supply of San Francisco. To this day the Sierra Club and its allies want to dynamite Hetch Hetchy and restore it to nature.

==Race and Ethnicity==
Roosevelt was keenly sensitive to the issues surrounding race and ethnicity, particularly the heated debated on immigration restriction. He considered himself Dutch, not Anglo-Saxon . He welcomed the vitality of new immigration, while holding that America's first responsibility was to its literate, native-born, working poor. In balancing these competitive goals, the president backed legislation that limited the immigration of poverty- and disease-stricken people regardless of ethnicity. He blocked harsh anti-Japanese efforts in California, but negotiated an informal agreement whereby Japan would no longer send immigrants. During World War I he attacked certain "[[Hyphenated American|hyphenated Americans]]," especially German-Americans and Irish-Americans, saying they put loyalties to their homeland above American interests.<ref> The German-Americans did not support Germany, but did want the U.S. to remain neutral. The Irish Catholics were so hostile to Britain that they did not want the U.S. to support it.</ref>
===Historian of the frontier===
In ''The Winning of the West,'' a four-volume history of westward expansion, Roosevelt developed the thesis that the western experience shaped and created a new ethnic group or people (what he called a "race"), the true American people. His ideas helped shape the popular culture, especially since his own cowboy persona exemplified all the strengths of the new people. Meanwhile, Professor [[Frederick Jackson Turner]] developed his famous [[Frontier Thesis]], based in part on Roosevelt’s ideas. Turner’s views came to dominate professional historiography and shaped the teaching of history for a century–and is still influential in the 21st century. Roosevelt and Turner shared the view that the frontier was the most significant force in America's cultural and political development, but Turner stressed the complex social and political processes simulated by the frontier, while Roosevelt emphasized that national growth and progress came from the West. Turner envisioned political problems that could befall America if cheap land resources were exhausted. Roosevelt saw a new, highly capable cohort of ruling elites growing out of the conquest of the frontier and leading America to new frontiers.<ref> Richard Slotkin, "Theodore Roosevelt's Frontier Hypothesis," ''European Contributions to American Studies'' 1989 16: 44-71 </ref>

==Patriotism==
Roosevelt once declared:<ref>Theodore Roosevelt, "The Children of the Crucible," 14 Annals of America 1916-1928, 129, at 130 (1968).</ref>

:''We must have but one flag. We must also have but one language. That must be the language of the Declaration of Independence, of Washington’s Farewell address, of Lincoln’s Gettysburg speech and second inaugural. We cannot tolerate any attempt to oppose or supplant the language and culture that has come down to us from the builders of this Republic.''

In the last year of his life Roosevelt was quoted in the [[Kansas City Star]] newspaper about the need for truth in regards to the Presidency:

:''The President is merely the most important among a large number of public servants. He should be supported or opposed exactly to the degree which is warranted by his good conduct or bad conduct, his efficiency or inefficiency in rendering loyal, able, and disinterested service to the Nation as a whole. Therefore it is absolutely necessary that there should be full liberty to tell the truth about his acts, and this means that it is exactly necessary to blame him when he does wrong as to praise him when he does right. Any other attitude in an American citizen is both base and servile. To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we are to stand by the president, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public. Nothing but the truth should be spoken about him or any one else. But it is even more important to tell the truth, pleasant or unpleasant, about him than about any one else.''
==Turn to the left==
About 1907, Roosevelt turned more to the left in domestic policy, and in his 1912 campaign he called for movement toward what would later be called a "welfare state." His move to the left annoyed conservatives and fueled the split in the GOP that exploded in 1912, with TR on the losing side. His nationalism and his chivalry predisposed him toward an enlarged protective state, along with his admiration for what the British were doing at the time.<ref> [[David Lloyd George]] and [[Winston Churchill]], key leaders of the British [[Liberal Party]], started the welfare state in Britain, 1908-11, with unemployment insurance and old age pensions; American conservatives accepted these policies by the 1950s..</ref> Roosevelt preached the manly protection of the family and a state led by manly men who insisted on protecting all women and children. TR believed that "the ruin of motherhood and childhood by the merciless exploitation of the labor of women and children is a crime of capital importance." His solution was to support labor's right to bargain collectively and to denounce employers who mistreated women and child workers.<ref>Kathleen Dalton, ''Theodore Roosevelt: A Strenuous Life'' (2004) </ref>

==Conservative or liberal?==
Metaphorically, there were 15 different Roosevelts; conservatives admire 10 of them, liberals admire 10, with some overlap. Conservatives are more apt to admire his patriotism, masculinity and military achievements, his stress on national greatness, his buildup of the nation's military forces, his resolution of the [[Coal strike of 1902|1902 Coal Strike]] without forcing business to recognize the unions, his attacks on hyphenated Americans (people with divided loyalty in wartime), and his bold histories of the frontier. Liberals are more likely to admire his trust-busting and hostility to big business, his promotion of liberal programs in 1907-8 and 1912, and his break with the GOP in 1912 when he denounced it as too conservative. [[Ronald Reagan]] noted in 1972, "I admire 'Teddy' greatly and quote him often."<ref> Text in Ronald Reagan [http://books.google.com/books?id=ZrRc_ABenS8C&pg=PP1&dq=inauthor:ronald+inauthor:reagan&lr=&num=30&as_brr=0&as_pt=ALLTYPES#PPA266,M1 ''Reagan: A Life in Letters'' (2004) p 266]</ref>

Conservation was always high on TR's agenda. His optimal use policy has largely been adopted by conservatives and businessmen, while the Sierra Club and related groups reject Roosevelt's policies.

Everyone admires his amazingly dynamic style and willingness to confront the issues of the day by bringing everyone to the negotiating table, his settlement of the war between Japan and Russia (which led to Roosevelt's winning the Nobel peace prize), and his building of the Panama Canal (though liberals complain he was too rough with Colombia).

== Sidelights ==
===Life in the White House===
Roosevelt relished the presidency and seemed to be everywhere at once. He took Cabinet members and friends on long, fast-paced hikes, boxed in the state rooms of the White House, romped with his children, and read voraciously. In 1904, he was permanently blinded in his left eye during one of his boxing bouts, but this injury was kept from the public at the time.<ref>Brands, (1997) 565</ref> His many enthusiastic interests and limitless energy led one ambassador to wryly explain, "You must always remember that the President is about six."<ref>Cecil Spring Rice, ''The Letters and Friendships of Sir Cecil Spring-Rice,'' (1929) p 437</ref>

Roosevelt's oldest daughter, Alice Roosevelt, was a controversial character with a tart tongue and a spirit of adventure. When friends asked if he could rein in his elder daughter, Roosevelt said, "I can be President of the United States, or I can attend to Alice." In turn, Alice said of him that he always wanted to be "the bride at every wedding and the corpse at every funeral."<ref> Carol Felsenthal, ''Princess Alice: The Life and Times of Alice Roosevelt Longsworth'' (1988) pp. 60, 105</ref>

Roosevelt rebuilt the White House building, adding a new West Wing to free up the second floor rooms in the residence that formerly housed the president's staff. To this day, "west Wing" signifies the presidential staff. He and Edith also had the entire house renovated and restored to the [[federal style]], tearing out the Victorian furnishings and details (including Tiffany windows) that had been installed over the previous three decades.

===Teddy Bear===
The Teddy Bear is named for Theodore Roosevelt. After it was reported that Roosevelt had refused to shoot a bear on a hunting expedition a toy shop owner placed a sign next to a toy bear in his shop window announcing that this was "Teddy's Bear". The name stuck.

===Spelling reform===

[[File:TRSpelling.jpg|thumb|390px|Roosevelt shoots holes in the dictionary as the ghosts of Chaucer, Shakespeare and Dr Johnson moan.]]

During his presidency, Roosevelt failed in efforts to simplify the spelling of common words. He (and other spelling reformers) wanted to replace "dropped" and "chased" with "dropt" and "chast", and replace "through" with "thru" and "thoroughly" with "thoroly." He tried to force government to adopt the system, sending an order to the Public Printer to use the system in all public documents. The reform annoyed the public, forcing him to rescind the order. Roosevelt told his friend, literary critic Brander Matthews, one of the chief advocates of the reform, "I could not by fighting have kept the new spelling in, and it was evidently worse than useless to go into an undignified contest when I was beaten. Do you know that the one word as to which I thought the new spelling was wrong — thru — was more responsible than anything else for our discomfiture?" Next summer Roosevelt was watching a naval review when a launch marked "Pres Bot" chugged ostentatiously by. The President waved and laughed with delight.<ref>Pringle 465-7; Brands 555ff</ref>

===Football reform===
Both Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson took an intense interest in the controversy over the reform of college football to make the game more efficient and less brutal. In the 1890s and early 1900s, football faced widespread harsh criticism over injuries and the exaggerated role of athletics in college life. Roosevelt and Wilson, loyal followers of Harvard and Princeton, had defended football in the 1890s. In the fall of 1905, however, Roosevelt called a conference of football experts at the White House to discuss brutality and unsportsmanlike conduct. Thereafter, Roosevelt worked behind the scenes to bring about sufficient reform to preserve football and insure that it would continue to be played at Harvard. In the years 1909-10, when college football again faced an injury crisis, Woodrow Wilson, president of Princeton University worked with the presidents at Harvard and Yale to make reasonable reforms. Both Roosevelt's and Wilson's approaches were consistent with their strategies for national political change. In the years that followed the reforms on the gridiron, football evolved rapidly into the 'attractive' game that Wilson had advocated and a far less brutal game than the unruly spectacle that Roosevelt had tried to control.<ref> John S. Watterson, "Political Football: Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson and the Gridiron Reform Movement." ''Presidential Studies Quarterly'' 1995 25(3): 555-564 </ref>

==Religion and character==
In a speech in 1911 Roosevelt said the King James Version was "the book to which our people owe infinitely the greater part of their store of ethics, infinitely the greater part of their knowledge of how to apply that store to the needs of our every-day life." The former president was characteristically dramatic:
:"No other book of any kind ever written in English—perhaps no other book ever written in any other tongue—has ever so affected the whole life of a people as this authorized version of the Scriptures has affected the life of the English-speaking peoples."

Roosevelt could base his conclusions less on ''specific'' Christian reasoning than on broad humanitarian appeal. He urged his auditors to study the Bible, not necessarily "as an inspired book," but as an essential volume for every person "who seeks after a high and useful life."<ref>Mark Noll, "'The Most Democratic Book in the World'" ''Christian History & Biography'' 2008 (99): 26-29 in [[EBSCO]]</ref>

Paradoxically however, Roosevelt was not sworn in on a Bible. He remains the only president in history not to do so.<ref>[http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/pihtml/pinotable.html Library of Congress Presidential Inauguration Precedents and Notable Events]</ref>

Like his Roosevelt ancestors, Roosevelt was a member of the Dutch Reformed Church. In Oyster Bay there was no Reformed church, and so from 1887 onward he went to Christ Church (Episcopal) with his wife Edith and the children, where he took part in the service, loudly singing the hymns. In Albany and Washington Roosevelt attended a Dutch Reformed church.

Unlike many presidents, Roosevelt was an enthusiastic churchmen. Biographer George Grant writes,
<blockquote>
He grew up in the church, raised his children in the church, and remained in the church into his dying day... His reasoning was simple and straightforward: man was made for covenant.

Roosevelt's personal experience with the Church was a happy one—and he grew great strength from it. As he confessed to his friends, "after a week of wrestling with perplexing problems, it does so rest my soul to come to the House of the Lord and to sing—and to mean it—Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty.

[Roosevelt] refrained from hunting, fishing, playing games, or transacting any sort of business on Sunday.<ref>[http://www.theodoreroosevelt.org/life/Religion.htm THE RELIGION of THEODORE ROOSEVELT] Relative little has been written on Roosevelt 's religion, although a book, ''ROOSEVELT'S RELIGION'' by Christian Reisner, [http://books.google.com/books?id=-rVEAAAAIAAJ&dq=ROOSEVELT%27S+RELIGION+by+Christian+Reisner&printsec=frontcover&source=bl&ots=NaRpPqwPWv&sig=v-mVzmOukGfPAKjq6jZgfo4q3aM&hl=en&ei=x8-CSpiCOsaltgfD_rjMCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1 George Grant, "The courage and character of Theodore Roosevelt. A hero among leaders."], pp. 170,71</ref>
</blockquote>
Roosevelt provided ''Nine Reasons Why a Man Should Go to Church'',<ref>http://www.theodoreroosevelt.org/life/Church9reasons.htm</ref> such as

:''In this actual world, a churchless community, a community where men have abandoned and scoffed at or ignored their religious needs, is a community on the rapid down grade.''

:''He will listen to and take part in reading some beautiful passages from the Bible. And if he is not familiar with the Bible he has suffered a loss.''

:''He may not hear a good sermon at church. He will hear a sermon by a good man who, with his wife, is engaged all of the week in making hard lives a little easier.''

:''I advocate a man's joining in church work for the sake of showing his faith by his works.''

Various other quotes<ref>''The Works of Theodore Roosevelt - National Edition'', H-BAR Enterprises</ref><ref>http://thinkexist.com/quotation/a_thorough_knowledge_of_the_bible_is_worth_more/164715.html</ref><ref>http://www.answers.com/topic/theodore-roosevelt</ref> help express Roosevelt's character and values.

:''A thorough knowledge of the Bible is worth more than a college education.''

:''To educate a man in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society.''

:''There is not in all America a more dangerous trait than the deification of mere smartness unaccompanied by any sense of moral responsibility.''<ref>Abilene, KS, May 2, 1903</ref>

:''A man who has never gone to school may steal from a freight car; but if he has a university education, he may steal the whole railroad.''

:''Alone of human beings the good and wise mother stands on a plane of equal honor with the bravest soldier; for she has gladly gone down to the brink of the chasm of darkness to bring back the children in whose hands rests the future of the years.''<ref>The Great Adventure, 1918</ref>

:''The one thing I want to leave my children is an honorable name."<ref>Chicago, IL, April 10, 1899</ref>

:''It is better to be faithful than famous.''

:''There are good men and bad men of all nationalities, creeds and colors; and if this world of ours is ever to become what we hope some day it may become, it must be by the general recognition that the man's heart and soul, the man's worth and actions, determine his standing.''<ref>Letter, Oyster Bay, NY, September 1, 1903</ref>

:''I have a perfect horror of words that are not backed up by deeds.''<ref>Oyster Bay, NY, July 7, 1915</ref>

:''Men can never escape being governed. Either they must govern themselves or they must submit to being governed by others.''<ref>Jamestown, VA, April 26, 1907</ref>

:''A vote is like a rifle: its usefulness depends upon the character of the user.''<ref>An Autobiography, 1913</ref>

:''This country has nothing to fear from the crooked man who fails. We put him in jail. It is the crooked man who succeeds who is a threat to this country.''<ref>Memphis, TN, October 25, 1905</ref>

:''No man can lead a public career really worth leading, no man can act with rugged independence in serious crises, nor strike at great abuses, nor afford to make powerful and unscrupulous foes, if he is himself vulnerable in his private character.''<ref>An Autobiography, 1913</ref>

:''Criticism is necessary and useful; it is often indispensable; but it can never take the place of action, or be even a poor substitute for it. The function of the mere critic is of very subordinate usefulness. It is the doer of deeds who actually counts in the battle for life, and not the man who looks on and says how the fight ought to be fought, without himself sharing the stress and the danger.(1894)''

:''I have never in my life envied a human being who led an easy life; I have envied a great many people who led difficult lives and led them well.''<ref>Des Moines, Iowa, November 4, 1910</ref>

:''The first requisite of a good citizen in this republic of ours is that he shall be able and willing to pull his weight.''

:''There is not a man of us who does not at times need a helping hand to be stretched out to him, and then shame upon him who will not stretch out the helping hand to his brother.''<ref>Pasadena, CA, May 8, 1903</ref>

:''Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.''

:''It is hard to fail, but it is worse never to have tried to succeed.''<ref>Chicago, IL, April 10, 1899</ref>

:''The only man who makes no mistakes is the man who never does anything.''

:''...any nation which in its youth lives only for the day, reaps without sowing, and consumes without husbanding, must expect the penalty of the prodigal whose labor could with difficulty find him the bare means of life.''<ref>Arbor Day - A Message to the School-Children of the United States" April 15, 1907</ref>

:''Conservation means development as much as it does protection. I recognize the right and duty of this generation to develop and use the natural resources of our land; but I do not recognize the right to waste them, or to rob, by wasteful use, the generations that come after us.''"<ref>The New Nationalism" speech, Osawatomie, Kansas, August 31, 1910</ref>

:''Is America a weakling, to shrink from the work of the great world powers? No! The young giant of the West stands on a continent and clasps the crest of an ocean in either hand. Our nation, glorious in youth and strength, looks into the future with eager eyes and rejoices as a strong man to run a race.''<ref>Letter to John Hay, American Ambassador to the Court of St. James, London, Written in Washington, DC, June 7, 1897</ref>

:''Now to you men, who, in your turn, have come together to spend and be spent in the endless crusade against wrong, to you who face the future resolute and confident, to you who strive in a spirit of brotherhood for the betterment of our Nation, to you who gird yourselves for this great new fight in the never-ending warfare for the good of humankind, I say in closing what in that speech I said in closing: We stand at Armageddon, and we battle for the Lord''<ref>A Confession of Faith, delivered in Chicago, Illinois, 6 August 1912</ref>

:''No abounding of material prosperity shall avail us if our spiritual senses atrophy. The foes of our own household shall prevail against us unless there be in our people an inner life which finds its outer expression in a morality like that preached by the seers and prophets of God when the grandeur that was Greece and the glory that was Rome still lay in the future.'' <ref>Theodore Roosevelt, The Foes of Our Own Household, New York, 1917, p.132</ref>

:''Every thinking man, when he thinks, realizes that the teachings of the Bible are so interwoven and entwined with our whole social and civic life that it would be literally impossible to figure what life would be like if these standards were removed. We would lose almost all the standards by which we now judge both public and private morals.'' <ref>James Willis, The Letters and Speeches of Theodore Roosevelt, 1937, p.86</ref>

:''There are those who believe that a new modernity demands a new morality. What they fail to consider is the harsh reality that there is no such thing as a new morality. There is only one morality. All else is immorality. There is only true Christian ethics over against which stands the whole of paganism. If we are to fulfill our destiny as a people, then we must return to the old morality, the sole morality. And if we are to do that the church must prepare us for the task.'' <ref>David Johnson, Theodore Roosevelt: American Monarch, 1981, p.91</ref>

:

== External links ==

*[http://faithandfreedom.us/documents/20thcentury/bigstick.htm "Big Stick" Policy.] Faith & Freedom Network.

==Bibliography==
===Surveys===
* Buenker, John D. and Joseph Buenker, eds. ''Encyclopedia of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era.'' (3 vol 2005), 1280pp; articles on all the major people, events and causes of TR’s era
* Mowry, George. ''The Era of Theodore Roosevelt and the Birth of Modern America, 1900–1912.'' (1954) general survey of era

===Biographies===
* Brands, H.W. ''T.R.: The Last Romantic'' (1998), scholarly biography [http://www.questia.com/read/98669157?title=T.R.%3a%20The%20Last%20Romantic online edition]
* Chessman, G. Wallace. ''Theodore Roosevelt and the Politics of Power,'' (1969), short biography by scholar
* Cooper, John Milton ''The Warrior and the Priest: Woodrow Wilson and Theodore Roosevelt.'' (1983), well-written a dual scholarly biography [http://www.amazon.com/Warrior-Priest-Woodrow-Theodore-Roosevelt/dp/0674947517/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1220396273&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Dalton, Kathleen. ''Theodore Roosevelt: A Strenuous Life.'' (2002), full scholarly biography that stresses his late crusade for social welfare [http://www.amazon.com/Theodore-Roosevelt-Strenuous-Kathleen-Dalton/dp/0679767339/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1250752111&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Harbaugh, William Henry. ''The Life and Times of Theodore Roosevelt.'' (1963), full scholarly biography; good on politics
* Keller, Morton, ed., ''Theodore Roosevelt: A Profile'' (1967) excerpts from TR and from historians.
* McCullough, David. ''Mornings on Horseback, The Story of an Extraordinary Family. a Vanished Way of Life, and the Unique Child Who Became Theodore Roosevelt.'' (2001) popular biography to 1884 [http://www.amazon.com/Mornings-Horseback-Extraordinary-Vanished-Roosevelt/dp/0671447548/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1250752478&sr=1-3 excerpt and text search]
* Morris, Edmund. ''The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt'', to 1901 (1979); vol 2: ''Theodore Rex'' 1901–1909. (2001); Pulitzer prize for Volume 1. Biography; unusually well-written and well-researched [http://www.amazon.com/Theodore-Roosevelt-Modern-Library-Paperbacks/dp/0375756787/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1250752478&sr=1-4 vol 1 excerpt and text search]
* O'Toole, Patricia. ''When Trumpets Call: Theodore Roosevelt after the White House.'' (2005). 494 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/When-Trumpets-Call-Theodore-Roosevelt/dp/0684864789/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1250752668&sr=1-16 excerpt and text search]
* Pringle, Henry F. ''Theodore Roosevelt'' (1932; 2nd ed. 1956), full scholarly biography [http://www.questia.com/read/270595?title=Theodore%20Roosevelt%3a%20A%20Biography online 1st edition]
* Putnam, Carleton ''Theodore Roosevelt: A Biography, Volume I: The Formative Years'' (1958), only volume published, to age 28; written by prominent conservative

===Scholarly studies ===
* Barsness,John A. "Theodore Roosevelt as Cowboy: The Virginian as Jacksonian Man." ''American Quarterly,'' Vol. 21, No. 3 (Autumn, 1969), pp. 609-619 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/2711937 in JSTOR]
* Blum, John Morton ''The Republican Roosevelt.'' (1954). Influential essays that examine how TR did politics
* Brinkley, Douglas. ''The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America'' (2009), best coverage of TR and conservation [http://www.amazon.com/Wilderness-Warrior-Theodore-Roosevelt-Crusade/dp/0060565284/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1250752478&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Burton, David H. ''Taft, Roosevelt, and the Limits of Friendship,'' (2005) [http://www.questia.com/read/112015842?title=Taft%2c%20Roosevelt%2c%20and%20the%20Limits%20of%20Friendship online edition]
* Chace, James. ''1912: Wilson, Roosevelt, Taft, and Debs - The Election That Changed the Country.'' (2004). 323 pp; popular account [http://www.amazon.com/1912-Roosevelt-Debs-Election-Changed/dp/0743273559/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1220396215&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Cutright, Paul Russell. ''Theodore Roosevelt: The Making of a Conservationist'' (1985)
* Dorsey, Leroy G., and Rachel M. Harlow, "'We Want Americans Pure and Simple': Theodore Roosevelt and the Myth of Americanism," ''Rhetoric & Public Affairs,'' Volume 6, Number 1, Spring 2003, pp. 55-78 [http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/rhetoric_and_public_affairs/v006/6.1dorsey.html in Project Muse]
* Ellsworth, Clayton S. "Theodore Roosevelt's Country Life Commission." ''Agricultural History'', Vol. 34, No. 4 (Oct., 1960), pp. 155-172 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/3741109 in JSTOR]
* Dyer, Thomas G. ''Theodore Roosevelt and the Idea of Race'' (1980)
* Fehn, Bruce. "Theodore Roosevelt and American Masculinity." ''Magazine of History'' (2005) 19(2): 52–59. Issn: 0882-228x Fulltext online at Ebsco. Provides a lesson plan on TR as the historical figure who most exemplifies the quality of masculinity.
* Friedenberg, Robert V. ''Theodore Roosevelt and the Rhetoric of Militant Decency'' (1990) [http://www.questia.com/read/71082317?title=Theodore%20Roosevelt%20and%20the%20Rhetoric%20of%20Militant%20Decency online edition]
* Gerstle, Gary. "Theodore Roosevelt and the Divided Character of American Nationalism," ''The Journal of American History,'' Vol. 86, No. 3, (Dec., 1999), pp. 1280-1307 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/2568615 in JSTOR]
* Gosnell, Harold F. ''Boss Platt and His New York Machine: A Study of the Political Leadership of Thomas C. Platt, Theodore Roosevelt, and Others'' (1924) [http://www.questia.com/read/9489049?title=Boss%20Platt%20and%20His%20New%20York%20Machine%3a%20A%20Study%20of%20the%20Political%20Leadership%20of%20Thomas%20C.%20Platt%2c%20Theodore%20Roosevelt%2c%20and%20Others online edition]
* Gould, Lewis L. ''The Presidency of Theodore Roosevelt.'' (1991), standard history of his domestic and foreign policy as president
** Gatewood, Willard B. "The Presidency of Theodore Roosevelt. by Lewis L. Gould" ''Reviews in American History,'' Vol. 20, No. 4 (Dec., 1992), pp. 512-517 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/2702868 in JSTOR]
* Havig, Alan. "Presidential Images, History, and Homage: Memorializing Theodore Roosevelt, 1919-1967 ". ''American Quarterly,'' Vol. 30, No. 4 (Autumn, 1978), pp. 514-532 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/2712298 IN jstor]
* Johnson, Arthur M. "Theodore Roosevelt and the Bureau of Corporations". ''The Mississippi Valley Historical Review,'' Vol. 45, No. 4 (Mar., 1959), pp. 571-590 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1888711 in JSTOR]
* Millard, Candice. ''River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey''. (2005), exploring the Amazon
* Mowry, George E. ''Theodore Roosevelt and the Progressive Movement''. (2001) focus on 1912
* Mowry, George E. "Theodore Roosevelt and the Election of 1910," ''The Mississippi Valley Historical Review,'' Vol. 25, No. 4 (Mar., 1939), pp. 523-534 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1892499 in JSTOR]
* Oyos, Matthew M. "Theodore Roosevelt, Congress, and the Military: U.S. Civil-Military Relations in the Early Twentieth Century," ''Presidential Studies Quarterly,'' Vol. 30, 2000 [http://www.questia.com/read/5001752826?title=Theodore%20Roosevelt%2c%20Congress%2c%20and%20the%20Military%3a%20U.S.%20Civil-Military%20Relations%20in%20the%20Early%20Twentieth%20Century online edition]
* Powell, Jim. ''Bully Boy: The Truth About Theodore Roosevelt's Legacy'' (2006). Denounces TR policies from libertarian perspective; poorly researched
* Rhodes, James Ford. ''The McKinley and Roosevelt Administrations, 1897-1909'' (1922) [http://www.questia.com/read/6404794?title=The%20McKinley%20and%20Roosevelt%20Administrations%2c%201897-1909 online edition]
* Scheiner, Seth M. "President Theodore Roosevelt and the Negro, 1901-1908," ''The Journal of Negro History,'' Vol. 47, No. 3 (Jul., 1962), pp. 169-182 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/2716500 in JSTOR]
* Slotkin, Richard. "Nostalgia and Progress: Theodore Roosevelt's Myth of the Frontier," ''American Quarterly,'' Vol. 33, No. 5, (Winter, 1981), pp. 608-637 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/2712805 in JSTOR]
* Testi, Arnaldo. "The Gender of Reform Politics: Theodore Roosevelt and the Culture of Masculinity," ''The Journal of American History,'' Vol. 81, No. 4 (Mar., 1995), pp. 1509-1533 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/2081647 in JSTOR]
* Watts, Sarah. ''Rough Rider in the White House: Theodore Roosevelt and the Politics of Desire.'' (2003). 289 pp.

===Foreign and military affairs===
* Beale Howard K. ''Theodore Roosevelt and the Rise of America to World Power.'' (1956). standard history of his foreign policy
* Buchanan, Russell. "Theodore Roosevelt and American Neutrality, 1914-1917," ''The American Historical Review,'' Vol. 43, No. 4 (Jul., 1938), pp. 775-790 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1842528 in JSTOR]
* Burton, David H. "Theodore Roosevelt: Confident Imperialist" ''The Review of Politics,'' Vol. 23, No. 3 (Jul., 1961), pp. 356-377 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1405440 in JSTOR]
* Burton, David H. "Theodore Roosevelt's Social Darwinism and Views on Imperialism," ''Journal of the History of Ideas,'' Vol. 26, No. 1 (Jan. - Mar., 1965), pp. 103-118 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/2708402 in JSTOR]
* Collin, Richard H. "Symbiosis Versus Hegemony: New Directions in the Foreign Relations Historiography of Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft." ''Diplomatic History'' 1995 19(3): 473-497 online in [[EBSCO]]
* Gould, Lewis L. ''The Presidency of Theodore Roosevelt.'' (1991), standard history of his domestic and foreign policy as president
* Holmes, James R. ''Theodore Roosevelt and World Order: Police Power in International Relations.'' 2006. 328 pp. case studies of intervention in the Philippines, Cuba, Venezuela, Panama, Santo Domingo, and Morocco
* Marks III, Frederick W. ''Velvet on Iron: The Diplomacy of Theodore Roosevelt'' (1979)
* McCullough, David. ''The Path between the Seas: The Creation of the Panama Canal, 1870–1914'' (1977).
* Neu, Charles E. "Theodore Roosevelt and American Involvement in the Far East, 1901-1909," ''The Pacific Historical Review,'' Vol. 35, No. 4 (Nov., 1966), pp. 433-449 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/3636977 in JSTOR]
* Oyos, Matthew M. "Theodore Roosevelt and the Implements of War," ''The Journal of Military History,'' Vol. 60, No. 4 (Oct., 1996), pp. 631-655 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/2944659 in JSTOR]
* Ricard, Serge. "The Roosevelt Corollary." ''Presidential Studies Quarterly'' 2006 36(1): 17–26. Issn: 0360-4918 [http://www.questia.com/read/5017146446?title=The%20Roosevelt%20Corollary online edition]
* Stillson, Albert C. "Military Policy Without Political Guidance: Theodore Roosevelt's Navy," ''Military Affairs,'' Vol. 25, No. 1 (Spring, 1961), pp. 18-31 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1984220 in JSTOR]
* Tilchin, William N. and Neu, Charles E., ed. ''Artists of Power: Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, and Their Enduring Impact on U.S. Foreign Policy.'' Praeger, 2006. 196 pp. [http://www.questia.com/read/113233998?title=Artists%20of%20Power%3a%20%20Theodore%20Roosevelt%2c%20Woodrow%20Wilson%2c%20and%20Their%20Enduring%20Impact%20on%20U.S.%20Foreign%20Policy online edition]
* Tilchin, William N. ''Theodore Roosevelt and the British Empire: A Study in Presidential Statecraft'' (1997)

===Primary sources===
* Auchincloss, Louis, ed. ''Theodore Roosevelt, The Rough Riders and an Autobiography'' (Library of America, 2004) ISBN 978-1-93108265-5; ''Theodore Roosevelt, Letters and Speeches'' (Library of America, 2004) ISBN 978-1-93108266-2
* Brands, H.W. ed. ''The Selected Letters of Theodore Roosevelt.'' (2001)
* Butt, Archie. ''The Letters of Archie Butt, Personal Aide to President Roosevelt,'' (1924) [http://www.questia.com/read/6560284?title=The%20Letters%20of%20Archie%20Butt%2c%20Personal%20Aide%20to%20President%20Roosevelt online edition]
* Gould, Lewis L., ed. ''Bull Moose on the Stump: The 1912 Campaign Speeches of Theodore Roosevelt.'' (2008). 256 pages,
* Harbaugh, William ed. ''The Writings Of Theodore Roosevelt'' (1967). A one-volume selection of Roosevelt's speeches and essays.
* Hart, Albert Bushnell and Herbert Ronald Ferleger, eds. ''Theodore Roosevelt Cyclopedia'' (1941), Roosevelt's opinions on many issues; online version at [http://www.theodoreroosevelt.org/]
* Morison, Elting E., John Morton Blum, and [[Alfred D. Chandler, Jr.]], eds., ''The Letters of Theodore Roosevelt'', 8 vols. (1951–1954). Very large, annotated edition of letters from TR.
* Roosevelt, Theodore. [http://www.bartleby.com/55/ ''Theodore Roosevelt: An Autobiography ''(1910)]''. online at Bartleby.com.
* Roosevelt, Theodore. ''The Works of Theodore Roosevelt'' (National edition, 20 vol. 1926); 18,000 pages containing most of TR's speeches, books and essays, but not his letters; a CD-ROM edition is available; some of TR's books are available online through [http://www.bartleby.com/people/RsvltT.html Project Bartleby]
* [http://www.gutenberg.org/browse/authors/r#a729 Theodore Roosevelt books and speeches on Project Gutenberg]
* Roosevelt, Theodore. "Theodore Roosevelt on Motherhood and the Welfare of the State," ''Population and Development Review,'' Vol. 13, No. 1 (Mar., 1987), pp. 141-147 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1972126 in JSTOR]
* Shaw, Albert, ed. ''A Cartoon History of Roosevelt's Career'' (1910) [http://books.google.com/books?id=QEIOAAAAIAAJ full text and cartoons online]

== Notes ==
<references/>

{{USPresidents}}
{{USVicePresidents}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roosevelt, Theodore}}
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Leon Trotsky

2012-02-16T01:43:39Z

EquisDulks: /* American influence */

[[Image:Trockiy2.jpg|right|thumb|Leon Trotsky]]

'''Leon Trotsky''' ([[Russian language|Russian]]: Лeв Давидович Трóцкий) , born '''Lev Davidovich Bronstein''' (Russian: Лeв Давидович Бронштéйн) (1879-1940), pronounced (traht'-skee) was a leader with [[Lenin]] in the Bolshevik (Communist) [[October Revolution]] in Russia in 1917. A charismatic orator, systematic organizer and brilliant theorist, Trotsky was primarily an intellectual whose writings greatly influenced leftist movements worldwide. An energetic organizer he planned the successful Petrograd uprising in November 1917, created the Red Army, and played the central role in winning the civil war (1918-20). Trotsky's independence and aloofness made him a poor backstage negotiator and he was easily outmaneuvered by Stalin, who controlled the party apparatus, After Lenin's disability in 1923, Trotsky lost power to [[Stalin]]. Forced into exile, he denounced the Soviet regime as an impure form of Communism; Stalin had him assassinated in Mexico in 1940.

Trotsky made many blunders and exaggerations, including losing his nerve when Germany invaded Russia in 1918; taking the credit due the generals for the Red victory in the civil war; claiming to be the father of the New Economic Policy of the 1920s; claiming to be on good terms with Lenin in the 1920s; displaying profound naivety in dealing with Stalin in 1924; and his [[wishful thinking]] that Stalinism was on the verge of collapse in the 1930s.

"Death came early to him, explains his leading biographer, "because he fought for a cause that was more destructive than he ever imagined."<ref>Service (2009)</ref>
==Career==
Trotsky, was the son of a prosperous and reportedly non-religious Jewish farmer in the Ukraine. Well educated and rebellious, he became a professional revolutionary as a teenager. He was arrested in 1898 and was later exiled to Siberia, where he joined the Social Democratic party. In 1902 he escaped abroad, met Lenin.

In 1903, while Lenin headed the Bolsheviks, Trotsky joined the rival Mensheviks. Mensheviks did not believe trying to ignite a revolution, expecting that it would happen when the people were ready. By contrast the Bolsheviks who believed that the people needed to be led. From 1904 until 1917 Trotsky had a stormy relationship with Lenin, accusing Lenin of wanting to become a dictator. But the two of them resolved their differences in 1917, and after that point Trotsky was totally loyal to Lenin.

Trotsky was the most powerful orator in the Bolshevik party, and due to his numerous spells in jail and his active role in the failed 1905 revolution he was much more famous than Lenin was to ordinary Russians. He was the actual organizer behind the [[October Revolution]], as Lenin was still in exile and so unable to participate.

==Civil War==
Trotsky also helped build the [[Red Army]] that defeated the White Russian Army in the subsequent Civil War in Russia, despite having no military experience of any kind.

==Power struggle==
Lenin was always primarily a politician; politics absorbed his waking hours. The conflict between Trotsky and Lenin led to the subsequent struggle between Trotsky and [[Stalin]] in Lenin's last months. Multiple rivalries within the Bolshevik Party emerged because history did not unfold as predicted by theory; the Communist revolution did not spread into a worldwide spontaneous uprising of the working people. Lenin accused Stalin of Russian chauvinism when he proposed the incorporation of different nationalities into a unitary Soviet state. But Lenin was disabled by a stroke in 1923 before he could remove Stalin, and Stalin proved the master politician.

When Lenin died in 1924, a lengthy power struggle began between Trotsky and Stalin. Trotsky took the view that socialism in the Soviet Union must await a revolution in western Europe and even worldwide. Stalin wanted power immediately and offered a rival ideology, ''Socialism in one country''. To fend off accusations of becoming the new 'Napoleon', he gave up his command of the Red Army.

The struggle for power in the Soviet Union during Lenin's last illness in 1923 was not based merely on a clash of personalities but involved fundamental issues concerning the future political and economic development of the Soviet Union. Trotsky's desire to lessen Party control over the administration while centralizing the economy and giving priority to heavy industry, as well as his doubts about reforms of government proposed by Lenin, made him isolated on the Politburo. Trotsky did not carry out Lenin's wishes toward Stalin and the "Georgians" because he agreed with Stalin's ideas on the nationality question and centralization, but he was outmaneuvered by Stalin's strengthening of the powers of the Secretariat, which contradicted Trotsky's ideas on freeing administration from direct political control.

Trotsky was a quick-witted combatant and ruthless foe; he was an articulate intellectual, but he lacked humanism or normal human qualities such as empthy, respect for the sacred, loyalty to his friends, or indeed, loyalty to anything except his theory of how should happen, but never did. His theory suffered from lack of nuance, and from Trotsky's inability to adjust it to account for the uncertainties and human dimensions of actual history.

==Exile==
Stalin expelled Trotsky from the Bolshevik party in 1927 and exiled him from Russia in 1929. Trotsky's constant goal was to gain control of world Communist leadership and implement more radical programs. To this end, he advocated youth rebellion, [[women's liberation|feminism]], [[Black Power]], guerrilla warfare, free abortions, "free love" and the homosexual agenda (Stalin banned sodomy in 1934). Trotsky formed a loose organization of German followers in 1930 but failed either to defeat or take control of the German Communist Party. Indeed, his supporters nearly everywhere were outmaneuvered and defeated by the Soviet Communists, and lingered in numerous countries as a far-left party with little influence, with the exception of Sri Lanka where the Trotskyite "Lanka Sama Samaja Party" dominated the Marxist left for decades, and Vietnam where the Trotskyites were very popular in the Saigon area in the 30's and 40's until they were massacred by the Stalinites under [[Ho Chi Minh]]. Intellectuals who joined Trotsky's movement were put off by Trotsky's dogmatism and his intolerance of the least deviation from his ideas.

After getting kicked out of Turkey and France, Trotsky settled in Mexico in 1937, where he was welcomed by the atheistic, anti-American government of [[Lazaro Cardenas]]. While in Mexico, Trotsky continued to write angry essays about the Soviet Government, alleging that it had betrayed the revolution. The Soviets responded by organizing several assassination attempts. The first attempt, in 24 May 1940, was a home invasion by 30 Communists armed with guns and bombs, but they somehow failed to kill Trotsky and his wife. Then on August 20, 1940 Spanish communist Ramón Mercader, acting on orders from Stalin, successfully murdered Trotsky in his Mexico City home, using an ice axe while his back was turned.

==Permanent revolution==
Trotsky's most influential idea was the notion of permanent revolution. Drawing on the experiences of the 1905 Russian Revolution, Trotsky maintained that revolution would spread worldwide after the international proletariat's aid to the Russian workers, who in turn would "export" the revolution abroad. By contrast Stalin rejected Trotsky’s theory and presented his own thesis on socialism in one country (Russia) in 1926. Trotsky asserted that the unification of developed and backward countries in the worldwide operations of capitalism created a combination of separate and uneven stages of development in backward countries like Russia, permitting the Russian proletariat the capability of carrying out a revolution but at the same time requiring the permanent extension of revolution in time and space until the extinction of class distinctions.
==American influence==
American Trotskyists were political activists in the 1930s who follows the teachings of Trotsky and opposed Stalin's version. All of them broke with Trotsky, and many became conservatives, such as [[Max Eastman]], [[James Burnham]] and [[Seymour Martin Lipset]].

[[Paleoconservatives]], who dislike [[Neoconservatism]] intensely, have argued that it emerged from Trotskyist theories, especially the notion of permanent revolution. There are four fundamental flaws in the paleoconservatives' attack: most of the neoconservatives were never Trotskyists; none of them ever subscribed to the right-wing Socialism of Max Shachtman; the assertion that neoconservatives subscribe to "inverted Trotskyism" is misleading; and neoconservatives advocate democratic globalism, not permanent revolution.<ref>William F. King, "Neoconservatives and 'Trotskyism'" ''American Communist History'' 2004 3(2): 247-266 online at [[EBSCO]]</ref>

==Historiography==
Western commentators on Trotsky generally fall into four categories, aside from orthodox Trotskyists, who have generally been concerned with preserving his ideas rather than developing them. First, the pro-Soviets oppose him and his ideas, especially on the issue of socialism in one country. The second group, described as sympathetic critics, has examined Trotsky's stands and while generally in agreement, has commonly found his views mistaken on three points in particular: his conversion to Leninism, his failure to move against Stalin in 1923, and his characterization of Stalinism as a workers' state. A third group of commentators has viewed Trotsky skeptically, an unlikely alternative to Stalin. The realist group, in contrast, faults Trotsky for failure to realize the true nature of events after 1917. After glasnost in the 1980s Trotsky was rehabilitated in Russia as an important leader and some of his writings have been published.<ref> Michael Cox, "Trotsky and his Interpreters; Or, Will the Real Leon Trotsky Please Stand Up?" ''Russian Review'' 1992 51(1): 84-102. </ref>

==Religion==
One of Trotsky's famous quotes (which also sums up the [[Atheism]] in the Communist Movement) was : "Religions are illogical primitive ignorance. There is nothing as ridiculous and tragic as a religious government."

==Further reading==
* Alexander, Robert J. ''International Trotskyism, 1929-1985: A Documented Analysis of the Movement'' (1991), 1128pp [http://www.questia.com/read/27804413?title=International%20Trotskyism%2c%201929-1985%3a%20A%20Documented%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Movement online edition]
* Brotherstone, Terry , et al eds. ''The Trotsky Reappraisal'' (1992) [http://www.questia.com/read/59387717?title=The%20Trotsky%20Reappraisal online edition], 19 short essays by scholars
* Daniels, Robert V. ''Trotsky, Stalin and Socialism.'' (1991). 208 pp.
* Deutscher, isaac. ''Trotsky'' (3v, 1954-63), by a far-left admirer of Trotsky
* Garza, Hedda. ''Leon Trotsky'' (1986) short survey
* Kolakowski, Leszek. ''Main Current of Marxism'' (1978), 3:183-219, on Trotsky in 1930s
* Molyneux, John. ''Leon Trotsky's Theory of Revolution.'' (1981). 238 pp.
* Pomper, Philip. ''Lenin, Trotsky, and Stalin: The Intelligentsia and Power.'' (1990). 446 pp.
* Renton, Dave. ''Trotsky'' (2004) [http://www.amazon.com/Trotsky-Life-Times-Dave-Renton/dp/1904341624/ref=sr_1_34?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1245111487&sr=1-34 excerpt and text search]
* Service, Robert. ''Trotsky: A Biography'' (2009), 600pp; by a leading historian; the best biography
* Thatcher, Ian D. ''Trotsky'' (2002) [http://www.amazon.com/Trotsky-Routledge-Historical-Biographies-Thatcher/dp/0415232503/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1245111296&sr=1-14 excerpt and text search]; also [http://www.questia.com/read/108142763?title=Trotsky full text online]
* Volkogonov, Dmitri. ''Trotsky: The Eternal Revolutionary.'' (1996). 560 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Trotsky-Eternal-Revolutionary-Dmitri-Volkogonov/dp/1416576649/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1245111189&sr=1-8 excerpt and text search], very hostile
===Primary sources===
* Trotsky, Leon. ''The Basic Writings of Trotsky'' ed. by Irving Howe, (1963), [http://www.questia.com/read/58369460?title=The%20Basic%20Writings%20of%20Trotsky online edition]
* Trotsky, Leon. ''The Age of Permanent Revolution: A Trotsky Anthology'' ed. by Isaac Deutscher (1970)
* [http://www.questia.com/library/leon-trotsky.jsp online books and chapters on Trotsky and by him]

== See also ==
*[[Trotskyism]]
*[[Great purge]]
*[[Diego Rivera]]
*[[Elizabeth Zarubina]]
*[[Floyd Miller]]
*[[Gregory Rabinovich]]
*[[Sylvia Callen]]
*[[Jack Soble]]

====references====
<references/>

{{DEFAULTSORT:Trotsky, Leon}}
[[Category:Russian History]]
[[Category:Soviet Union]]
[[Category:Communists]]
[[Category:Marxism]]
[[Category:Trotskyite]]

Conservapedia:Sockpuppet

2012-02-16T01:41:07Z

EquisDulks:

A '''sockpuppet''' (usually called a "sock") is an account on an [[Internet]] site that belongs to an already established user, often unbeknownst to other members of that site. Most commonly, sockpuppets are used to circumvent the blocking of an already established account or to exploit features of a website usually only accessible once (i.e. something that can only be given out once per account).

Editors are dissuaded from running sockpuppets and is cause for [[Conservapedia:Blocking policy|blocking]]. Some Administrators may use Sockpuppets occassionally or Single Purpose Accounts.

There is a subcategory of sockpuppetry called meatpuppetry, where a user recruits other real users to make accounts, possibly in order to sway opinion in discussions, or, particularly, in ballots. While this can be just as disruptive as sockpuppetry, it is harder to detect.

==See also==
*[[Conservapedia:Checkuser]]

[[Category:Conservapedia Policy]]

Karl Marx

2012-02-16T01:39:13Z

EquisDulks: /* Views on Religion */

{{Sociology}}
[[Image:KarlMarx.jpg|right|frame|Karl Marx]]
'''Karl Marx''' (1818-1883) was the most influential of all socialist thinkers and the creator of a system of thought called [[Marxism]]. He helped organize the international socialist movement. His ideas motivated radical political activists who joined his call to overthrow capitalism. Marxism argued that all events in history are caused by economic forces, especially class conflict between owners and workers. Marx depicted the inevitable evolution from [[feudalism]] to [[capitalism]] (which happened, he argued, during the [[French Revolution]]), to [[socialism]], which was about to happen as soon as the workers got organized. Many intellectuals accepted Marx's "scientific" analysis and prediction. In recent decades there has been little interest in Marx among economists or historians, who nearly unanimously conclude his analysis was faulty and his predictions were wrong, but there is much more among critics of literature, especially in university English departments.
==Personal Life==
Karl Heinrich Marx was born into a happy, wealthy middle-class home in the Rhineland city of Trier, in Germany. On both sides of his family, he came from a long line of Jewish rabbis; but his father Heinrich Marx (1782-1838), an intellectual and highly respected lawyer, had his family converted to Lutheranism in 1824 when young Marx was six. Intellectually and culturally, Marx was Protestant, not Jewish. Marx received a good classical education; at age 17, he spent a year in the University of Bonn's law faculty and soaked up its cultural romanticism. At age 18 he became engaged to aristocratic Jenny von Westphalen (1814-1881), daughter of Baron von Westphalen, a prominent member of Trier society, granddaughter of a famous general, and also descended from Scottish nobility. She interested Marx in romantic literature and in the socialist Saint-Simonian movement.
===Intellectual roots===
In 1836 Marx transferred to the University of Berlin, at the time the foremost scholarly center in the world. He abandoned his superficial romanticism and came under the influence of the philosophy of the recently deceased [[G. W. F. Hegel]]. which dominated German thought. Lectures were less important than long conversations with Young Hegelian intellectuals, notably Bruno Bauer; they sought to use Hegelianism to battle the German religious, political, and philosophical status quo. After completing his doctoral thesis (which dealt with the atomic theories of Democritus and Epicurus), Marx at first hoped to obtain teaching post. When Bauer was dismissed for unorthodoxy in 1842, Marx turned to journalism and began writing for the ''Rheinische Zeitung,'' an opposition daily backed by liberal Rhenish industrialists. He soon became its editor, but the paper was closed by the authorities in May 1843, following an expose by Marx of the miserable poverty of farm workers in the Moselle vinyards, a piece of work that led him, as his friend [[Friedrich Engels]] later said, "from pure politics to economic relationships and so to socialism."

[[Ludwig Feuerbach]] (1804-72) in his 1841 book ''The Essence of Christianity'' strongly influenced Marx, who responded with "Contribution to the Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Law. Introduction (1843-44), which includes his famous line that "religion is the opium of the masses." Marx wanted freedom ''from'' religion, claiming there would no longer be a need for it once socialism succeeded.

In 1843, Marx married Jenny von Westphalen and composed a lengthy manuscript definitely rejecting Hegel's apologia for contemporary German politics. Unemployable in Germany, Marx decided to emigrate to Paris.
===Paris and Brussels===
In Paris Marx discovered a hothouse of innumerable socialist sects. A proposed journal collapsed, and he plunged into a program of exhasutive readfing in politics, history and economics. In 1844 Marx composed a series of treatises known as the "Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts" or "Paris Manuscripts," in which he finally espoused "communism". He began a lifelong friendship and collaboration with
[[Friedrich Engels]], whose father was a partner in a cotton firm in the English city of Manchester. Engels supplied Marx with a practical knowledge of the daily workings of capitalism, as well as generous cash subsidies and the one firm intellectual friendship that lasted until death.

On expulsion from Paris in the autumn of 1844, Marx settled (for the next three years) in Brussels, renewing his study of economics. He visited England, with Engels as his guide, and in London met the leaders of the League of the Just, a semiclandestine club of emigre German artisans. In Brussels Marx founded a network of correspondence committees to keep German,
French, and English communists and socialists informed about each other's ideas and activities and to introduce some theoretical unity into the movement.

He devoured the works of economists [[Adam Smith]], [[David Ricardo]], the comte de [[Saint-Simon]], and many others. He rejected the individualistic radicalism of [[Pierre Joseph Proudhon]] and attacked him in ''The Poverty of Philosophy'' (1847), an early attempt to systematize his own thought.

By 1847 the League of the Just was conscious of a need for a more firm theoretical foundation. Marx and Engels were approached and proved eager to help. During two long congresses in London, Marx's ideas were accepted in principle by the organization, now renamed the Communist League, and Marx was commissioned to set them down in writing.

==Communist Manifesto==
The classic "Communist Manifesto" by Marx and Engles called for the working classes to rise in rebellion. Eric Hobsbawm has argued there was a "triumphal march" of capitalism after the European revolutions of 1848-49, which proves that Marx and Engels were completely wrong in their prognosis of the rapid intensification of [[class conflict]] and the destruction of capitalism. From 1848-49 onward the European bourgeoisie implemented successfully various reforms that insured their hegemony and confounded the prognosis of the "Manifesto".

===Revolution of 1848===
Just as soon as the "Communist Manifesto" appeared, the middle classes and intellwectuals of Europe rose in rebellion. The first of the revolutions of 1848, broke out in Paris. Marx rushed back to Paris at the invitation of the liberal provisional government that had replaced the government of King Louis Philippe. By March 1848, the revolution had reached Prussia, and in Berlin King Frederick William IV had
been compelled to grant an elected parliament, a free press, and the convening of an assembly to draw up a new constitution. Marx hurried to Cologne (part of Prussia), and resumed his journalistic activities, concentrating his energies on a new paper, the "Neue Rheinische Zeitungvineyards," which under his editorship favored an alliance between the German workers' movement and the more progressive elements of the middle class. By autumn, 1848, the revolution had been defeated in France and in the Austrian
Empire. Marx still favored such an alliance and refused to support separate working-class candidates in elections. Not until April 1849, a month before the final collapse of the revolution in Germany, did he change tactics and advocate separate working-class political action. But it was far too late. Marx returned
once again to Paris, expecting the revolution to succeed there; it did not and he was expelled in July 1849. Marx returned to London to begin his long exile.
===London===
The early years in London were characterized by grinding poverty, due quite as much to Marx's inability to manage his finances as to their inadequacy. Three of his six children died. Three of his daughters reached maturity, as did an illegitimate son borne by the Marx family servant, a son whose true parentage remained a secret until after Engels' death. In 1856 a small legacy enabled Marx to move into a more adequate house, but what he conceived to be the necessity of keeping up appearances soon renewed
his financial difficulties. Not until 1864 did the death of his mother and a legacy from an old Communist comrade, bring him substantial relief. But as Marx's pecuniary worries receded, his health deteriorated; he was plagued by boils from head to foot. Despite these difficulties, Marx enjoyed a very warm home life. He loved to play with his children, and the week regularly culminated with a Sunday picnic accompanied by singing and recitations from Shakespeare.

Marx rejoined the Communist League and resumed his journalistic activities. But the study of economics had convinced him that "a new revolution is possible only in consequence of a new
crisis," an economic crisis.

==Marx's views==
===Russia===
Initially, Marx's attitudes were marked by Russophobia, pronounced anti-Pan-Slavism, and assessments of Russia as an outpost of European reaction and counterrevolution, and even as the head of a conspiracy to block the world revolution. With time, however, Marx came to consider Russia as the country in which the outbreak of the revolution was most likely. In his research for successive volumes of Capital, he read Russian theoretical works by, among others, Vasili Bervi-Flerovski and A. I. Koshelev. Marx's attitudes to the anticipated peasant revolution in Russia remained ambivalent; to a certain degree he feared its occurrence, suspecting that it could take on an "Asiatic" hue.<ref>Ewa Borowska, "Marx and Russia," ''Studies in East European Thought'' 2002 54(1-2): 87-103. ISSN: 0925-9392
Fulltext: [[Ebsco]] </ref>
===Civil society===
Hungarian scholar László Tüto has argued that Marx believed that the bourgeois revolutions meant the worldwide historical liberation of the individual from the hierarchies of traditional societies. However, this liberation carried its own price. On the one hand, civil society and the state separated from each other in the bourgeois system, and as a result the individual became intrinsically split into a private person and a citizen of a state, two forms of existence that became opposed to each other. On the other hand, the economic freedom of private persons as members of civil society could only survive in the service of the spontaneous mechanisms of the market, that is, if people made themselves the tools of the tangible powers of the economy: goods, money, and capital. After the decline of freely competitive capitalism (into monopoly capitalism) this economic freedom was pushed into the background because of the property hierarchies. Freely competitive capitalism was characterized by the basic tendency of revolutionizing the means of production, and Marx concluded that the continuation of this tendency could only be ensured by going beyond the capitalist system to a socialist environment for civil society.
===Dictatorship of the proletariat===
The "dictatorship of the proletariat" was introduced by Marx and Engels, and later used by [[V. I. Lenin]] and [[Joseph Stalin]] to justify their totalitarian rule. They controlled the Communist party in the Soviet Union in the name of the proletariat (which had no voice.) Marx and Engels believed in the need for such a dictatorship during the transition to communism following the takeover by the proletariat. They envisaged some undefined form of absolute sovereignty of the people in a radical democratic state based on universal and equal suffrage. Supposedly the dictatorship would allow the proletariat to abolish bureaucracy and private ownership of the means of production, using force and repressive or dictatorial methods to overcome the inevitable resistance by the bourgeoisie. Lenin, however, saw the concept in terms of a dictatorship exercised not by a democratically chosen majority but by a [[Revolutionary Vanguard|vanguard minority revolutionary party]]; he eventually accepted the need for a state bureaucracy, and his more extreme opposition to the bourgeoisie led him to favor their exclusion and disenfranchisement to the benefit of the urban working class.
===Alienation===
Marx's theory of alienation was often employed to criticize religious, political, and economic divisions. However, the fact that it was basically about individuals and could only with great difficulty be applied to society made it a misleading tool when used in sociology.
===Globalization===
The ''Communist Manifesto'' was expressed in terms the 21st century calls globalization. It argued that it was the "historic mission" of the capitalist bourgeoisie to establish markets throughout the world and that four lessons could be drawn from this fact: members of the proletariat do not share the same nationality as the bourgeoisie, the proletarian "globalization" will in fact supercede that of the bourgeoisie, exploitation and class warfare will destroy the national barriers between members of the proletariat, and the proletariat has a duty to overthrow the ruling classes in each nation.

==Theories==
Marx saw "primitive" socialist thought as a fundamentally moral movement with no base in practical science. Marx's solution was to create an analysis of society on his principle of dialectical materialism.
===Dialectic===
The [[dialectic]]al method which was employed by Marx was developed by German philosopher [[Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel]]. Though concepts of dialectics had existed in philosophical theory since [[Plato]], Hegel systematized the idea more thoroughly than any previous thinker. For Hegel, reality is a reflection of the unfolding of Absolute Spirit, roughly meaning knowledge. Thus Hegel saw the contradictions of Enlightenment philosophy (such as between subject and object, mind and nature, etc) as phases in the development of Absolute spirit. These contradictions would be resolved dialectically through the progress of Absolute Spirit.

Marx argued that Hegel's dialectic was upside down. Instead of being based in human knowledge, the dialectical contradictions were based in human social reality. For Marx, the contradiction between subject and object in philosophy was a reflection of the actual contradiction between workers and employers under capitalism. The difference between the ideal spirit and reality translates into Marx's view that man had become [[alienation|alienated]] from his true nature. Man had been created different from animals: he is creative, this is essential to his nature. However, in modern days, man is just automatically producing: he works to earn his wage, but has no tie to the product of his labor at all. This is the alienation from his true nature.

===Means of production===
The necessity for material sustenance gives rise to an imperfect [[means of production]], which changes as the internal contradictions of [[thesis and antithesis]] work themselves out. A key feature of Marx's theory was his contention that [[competition]] for resources splits society into mutually antagonistic classes ("The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of [[class struggle]]s.") whilst the operation of the dialectic serves to continually reduce the numbers of classes until, in the [[Industrial Age]], society was almost wholly split between "[[bourgeoisie]]" and "[[proletariat]]".
===Capitalism===
[[Capitalism]], according to Marx, is just one system in a long series of [[economic systems]] in the world. He held that a so-called "[[capitalist society]]" had strong internal contradictions. In the development of capitalism, [[capital]] would be increasingly concentrated in the hands of a few people. <ref>See his "Law of the Centralization of Capital".</ref> The difference in income between the poorest and richest would always increase. Through economic crises, the poor laborers could be inflamed to believe that the system would always be disadvantageous to them.

''Das Kapital'' (''Capital'') seeks to explain that the "bourgeoisie" make [[profit]]s by [[exploitation]] of the "proletariat." The exploitation arises when the value of the goods produced by workers is much more than the wages paid, thus creating "[[surplus value]]" over and above the value of the wages advanced. Marx sought to agitate class envy by alleging that the competition amongst the bourgeoisie forced them to exploit their workers as much as possible. If an individual bourgeois refused to continue the "exploitation" he would soon be forced into [[bankruptcy]] or be taken over by someone who would. The result is persistent low wages among the proletariat who, eventually, would rebel and replace the existing capitalist system with a [[socialist]]/communist system.
===Socialism===
It's important to note, however, that Marx never argued in any sustained fashion that socialism was inevitable: he knew there are too many factors in history to make a prediction possible. He did not have a clear idea about what the next stage after capitalism would be. The increasing concentration, he thought, would facilitate a [[communist]] system. In that system, however, man also would have to eliminate his "alienation." One possibility, which Marx imagined, was complete mechanization of production, so that any man could do any job<ref>Marx, K. Foundations of the Critique of Political Economy, [[Berlin]]</ref>.
In the ''Communist Manifesto'', Marx went into greater detail about how this [[revolution]] would unfold. As well as proposing an economic system, Marx also advocated [[education]] for all including women and the lower classes who at the time were without any education.

==Critique of Marxists==
[[Mikhail Bakunin]] observed how rather than discussion of issues, the tried and tested method of [[leftism]] and [[Marxism]] was spread through the art of [[character assassination]], <ref>Guy A. Aldred, ''Bakunin'', Strickland Press, [[Glasgow]], (1940). </ref> close associates of Marx were adept in the art of
{{Cquote|cowardly, odious and perfidious insinuations. They seldom make open accusation, but they insinuate, saying they "have heard - it is said - it may not be true, but', and then they hurl the most abominable calumnies in your face.}}

===Views on Religion===
Marx's view on [[religion]] is mostly based on [[Ludwig Feuerbach's]] ideas<ref>Feuerbachexhaustivereadingsemi-clandestineémigréEngelsintellectuals, L. ''The Essence of Christianity'', New York, supersede1957</ref>, and his feelings toward the subject are not entirely clear. Marx is considered very controversial in religious circles for his statement, "Religion...is the opiate of the masses," yet he also stated that religion is "the heart of a heartless world." This was written in his 1843 work "A Contribution to the [http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1843/critique-hpr/intro.htm Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Right]" and expresses Marx's belief that religion offers a false palliative to assuage the suffering of "the oppressed." During the Russian Revolution, the Russian Communist Party was highly critical of religion (likely seeing it as a threat to their Marxist agenda) and, after taking over, sought to destroy all forms of it.

===Anti-semitism===
Karl Marx is often labeled an [[Anti-Semitism|anti-Semite]] or a "self-hating Jew" for statements such as, "Money is the [[jealous god]] of [[Israel]], in face of which no other god may exist", "The god of the Jews has become secularized and has become the [[god of the world]]. The [[bill of exchange]] is the real god of the Jew. His god is only an illusory bill of exchange", and "What is the worldly religion of the Jew? Huckstering. What is his worldly God? Money."

It should be noted, that Marx was raised in the German Protestant culture, not in the Jewish culture of his ancestors. Furthermore, Marx's metaphorical use of Judaism and money was standard for intellectuals of his time, including Jews. Moses Hess, for example, self-consciously Jewish and proto-Zionist, used language almost exactly similar to Marx's in his "On the Money System." The equation of Judaism with money was standard for Marx's period, even by Jews.<ref>[http://www.marxists.org/archive/draper/1977/kmtr1/app1.htm]</ref>

Anti-semitism did become a major force in Germany in the late 19th century, but all the leaders of that movement rejected Marx.

== Academy Marx versus Public Marx ==

Marx in the academy and Marx in the public sphere are two different figures. It is an axiom within the academy that Marx in the public sphere is a vulgar misappropriation; even Marx once commented, "I am not a Marxist", referring to the treatment of his theory amongst his own contemporaries; this largely displays, at least, the freedom of interpretation intrinsic within Marx and the volatility of his content.

This misappropriation is likely largely a result of Marx's own Communist Manifesto and its popularity within post-war socialist activism in the US. The Communist Manifesto is only a drop in an ocean of Marx's work and theory, and not even the most relevant one. The complexity of Marx's work has actually enabled some contemporary theorists to find his work as a support of capitalism, while others interpret it as a trenchant critique of capitalism; and in fact it is both. Marx is actually very clear that capitalism is the most powerful mode of production available. What is debated is whether resistance to capitalism is intrinsic to itself, and whether the entire world marches inevitably towards capitalism.

Regardless of Marx's nuances and the usefulness of his theory for all perspectives of inquiry, even conservative ones, he continues to be misappropriated in the public. This is noticeable in the mildly anecdotal evidence that to even mention Marx is virtual political suicide. The academy refers to this phenomenon as the anti-intellectualism of the American public.

== See also ==

*[[Baldomero Ortoneda]]
*[[Max Weber]]
==Bibliography==
* Avineri, Shlomo. ''The Social and Political Thought of Karl Marx'' (1970) [http://www.amazon.com/Political-Thought-Cambridge-Studies-Politics/dp/0521096197/ref=sr_1_21/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192887351&sr=8-21 excerpt and text search]
* Berlin, Isaiah. ''Karl Marx: His Life and Environment'' (1963) [http://www.questia.com/read/53992776?title=Karl%20Marx%3a%20His%20Life%20and%20Environment online edition], excellent overview by leading non-Marxist scholar
* Carver, Terrel, ed. ''The Cambridge Companion to Marx.'' 1992. 357 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Cambridge-Companion-Marx-Companions-Philosophy/dp/0521366259/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192896360&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search], streee on philosophy
* Cohen, Gerald Allen, and G. A. Cohen. ''Karl Marx's Theory of History'' (2000) [http://www.amazon.com/Marxs-Theory-History-Gerald-Allen/dp/0691070687/ref=sr_1_42/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192887474&sr=8-42 excerpt and text search]
* Elster, Jon. ''Making Sense of Marx.'' 1985. 556 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Making-Studies-Marxism-Social-Theory/dp/0521297052/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192896566&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Elster, Jon. ''An Introduction to Karl Marx'' (1986) [http://www.amazon.com/Introduction-Karl-Marx-Jon-Elster/dp/052133831X/ref=sr_1_3/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192896566&sr=1-3 excerpt and text search]
* Hobsbawm, Eric J., ed. ''Marxism in Marx's Day.'' 1982. 349 pp.
* Kolakowski, Leszek. ''Main Currents of Marxism: The Founders, the Golden Age, the Breakdown.'' (3 vol. 1981, 2005). 1504 pp. covers Marx and all the Marxists [http://www.amazon.com/Main-Currents-Marxism-Founders-Breakdown/dp/0393060543/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192896392&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search], by a leading conservative scholar; strong emphasis on philosophy
* McLellan, David. ''Karl Marx: A Biography'' (4th ed. 2006)
* Mehring, Franz. ''Marx: The Story of His Life'' (1918) [http://www.questia.com/read/3077782 online edition] [http://www.marxists.org/archive/mehring/1918/marx/index.htm another online edition]
* Oakley, Allen. ''Marx's Critique of Political Economy: Intellectual Sources and Evolution.'' Vol. 1: 1844-1860. Vol. 2: 1861 to 1863. (1984-85). 266pp, 342 pp.
* Rader, Melvin Miller. ''Marx's Interpretation of History.'' 1979. 242 pp.
* White, James D. ''Karl Marx and the Intellectual Origins of Dialectical Materialism.'' 1996. 416 pp.

===Primary sources===
* ''The Portable Karl Marx'' edited by Eugene Kamenka (1983) [http://www.amazon.com/Portable-Karl-Marx-Viking-Library/dp/014015096X/ref=sr_1_3/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192887156&sr=8-3 excerpt and text search]
* Marx, Karl. ''Karl Marx: The Essential Writings'' (1986) ed. by Frederic L. Bender [http://www.questia.com/read/94876762?title=Karl%20Marx%3a%20The%20Essential%20Writings online edition]
* Marx, Karl, and Friedrich Engels. ''The Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844 and the Communist Manifesto'' (1988) [http://www.amazon.com/Philosophic-Manuscripts-Communist-Manifesto-Philosophy/dp/087975446X/ref=sr_1_14/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192887156&sr=8-14 excerpt and text search]
* Marx, Karl, and Friedrich Engels. ''The Communist Manifesto'' (1848) [http://www.amazon.com/Communist-Manifesto-Penguin-Classics/dp/0140447571/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192887156&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Marx, Karl. ''Karl Marx: The Essential Writings'' ed by Frederic L. Bender. (2nd ed. 1986) 516 pgs. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=94876758 online edition]
* Marx, Karl. ''Grundrisse: Foundations of the Critique of Political Economy'' ed. by Martin Nicolaus (1993) [http://www.amazon.com/Grundrisse-Foundations-Critique-Political-Classics/dp/0140445757/ref=sr_1_38/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192887474&sr=8-38 excerpt and text search]
* Marx, Karl. ''Capital: A Critique of Political Economy'' (1906), 865pp [http://books.google.com/books?id=IpJC7HNskeYC&dq=inauthor:karl+inauthor:marx&num=30&as_brr=1 online ediition]

==References==
<references/>

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marx, Karl}}

[[Category:German Politics]]
[[Category:Communists]]
[[Category:Sociologists]]
[[Category:Atheists]]
[[Category:German Philosophers]]
[[Category:Marxism]]

Karl Marx

2012-02-16T01:38:56Z

EquisDulks: /* Views on Religion */

{{Sociology}}
[[Image:KarlMarx.jpg|right|frame|Karl Marx]]
'''Karl Marx''' (1818-1883) was the most influential of all socialist thinkers and the creator of a system of thought called [[Marxism]]. He helped organize the international socialist movement. His ideas motivated radical political activists who joined his call to overthrow capitalism. Marxism argued that all events in history are caused by economic forces, especially class conflict between owners and workers. Marx depicted the inevitable evolution from [[feudalism]] to [[capitalism]] (which happened, he argued, during the [[French Revolution]]), to [[socialism]], which was about to happen as soon as the workers got organized. Many intellectuals accepted Marx's "scientific" analysis and prediction. In recent decades there has been little interest in Marx among economists or historians, who nearly unanimously conclude his analysis was faulty and his predictions were wrong, but there is much more among critics of literature, especially in university English departments.
==Personal Life==
Karl Heinrich Marx was born into a happy, wealthy middle-class home in the Rhineland city of Trier, in Germany. On both sides of his family, he came from a long line of Jewish rabbis; but his father Heinrich Marx (1782-1838), an intellectual and highly respected lawyer, had his family converted to Lutheranism in 1824 when young Marx was six. Intellectually and culturally, Marx was Protestant, not Jewish. Marx received a good classical education; at age 17, he spent a year in the University of Bonn's law faculty and soaked up its cultural romanticism. At age 18 he became engaged to aristocratic Jenny von Westphalen (1814-1881), daughter of Baron von Westphalen, a prominent member of Trier society, granddaughter of a famous general, and also descended from Scottish nobility. She interested Marx in romantic literature and in the socialist Saint-Simonian movement.
===Intellectual roots===
In 1836 Marx transferred to the University of Berlin, at the time the foremost scholarly center in the world. He abandoned his superficial romanticism and came under the influence of the philosophy of the recently deceased [[G. W. F. Hegel]]. which dominated German thought. Lectures were less important than long conversations with Young Hegelian intellectuals, notably Bruno Bauer; they sought to use Hegelianism to battle the German religious, political, and philosophical status quo. After completing his doctoral thesis (which dealt with the atomic theories of Democritus and Epicurus), Marx at first hoped to obtain teaching post. When Bauer was dismissed for unorthodoxy in 1842, Marx turned to journalism and began writing for the ''Rheinische Zeitung,'' an opposition daily backed by liberal Rhenish industrialists. He soon became its editor, but the paper was closed by the authorities in May 1843, following an expose by Marx of the miserable poverty of farm workers in the Moselle vinyards, a piece of work that led him, as his friend [[Friedrich Engels]] later said, "from pure politics to economic relationships and so to socialism."

[[Ludwig Feuerbach]] (1804-72) in his 1841 book ''The Essence of Christianity'' strongly influenced Marx, who responded with "Contribution to the Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Law. Introduction (1843-44), which includes his famous line that "religion is the opium of the masses." Marx wanted freedom ''from'' religion, claiming there would no longer be a need for it once socialism succeeded.

In 1843, Marx married Jenny von Westphalen and composed a lengthy manuscript definitely rejecting Hegel's apologia for contemporary German politics. Unemployable in Germany, Marx decided to emigrate to Paris.
===Paris and Brussels===
In Paris Marx discovered a hothouse of innumerable socialist sects. A proposed journal collapsed, and he plunged into a program of exhasutive readfing in politics, history and economics. In 1844 Marx composed a series of treatises known as the "Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts" or "Paris Manuscripts," in which he finally espoused "communism". He began a lifelong friendship and collaboration with
[[Friedrich Engels]], whose father was a partner in a cotton firm in the English city of Manchester. Engels supplied Marx with a practical knowledge of the daily workings of capitalism, as well as generous cash subsidies and the one firm intellectual friendship that lasted until death.

On expulsion from Paris in the autumn of 1844, Marx settled (for the next three years) in Brussels, renewing his study of economics. He visited England, with Engels as his guide, and in London met the leaders of the League of the Just, a semiclandestine club of emigre German artisans. In Brussels Marx founded a network of correspondence committees to keep German,
French, and English communists and socialists informed about each other's ideas and activities and to introduce some theoretical unity into the movement.

He devoured the works of economists [[Adam Smith]], [[David Ricardo]], the comte de [[Saint-Simon]], and many others. He rejected the individualistic radicalism of [[Pierre Joseph Proudhon]] and attacked him in ''The Poverty of Philosophy'' (1847), an early attempt to systematize his own thought.

By 1847 the League of the Just was conscious of a need for a more firm theoretical foundation. Marx and Engels were approached and proved eager to help. During two long congresses in London, Marx's ideas were accepted in principle by the organization, now renamed the Communist League, and Marx was commissioned to set them down in writing.

==Communist Manifesto==
The classic "Communist Manifesto" by Marx and Engles called for the working classes to rise in rebellion. Eric Hobsbawm has argued there was a "triumphal march" of capitalism after the European revolutions of 1848-49, which proves that Marx and Engels were completely wrong in their prognosis of the rapid intensification of [[class conflict]] and the destruction of capitalism. From 1848-49 onward the European bourgeoisie implemented successfully various reforms that insured their hegemony and confounded the prognosis of the "Manifesto".

===Revolution of 1848===
Just as soon as the "Communist Manifesto" appeared, the middle classes and intellwectuals of Europe rose in rebellion. The first of the revolutions of 1848, broke out in Paris. Marx rushed back to Paris at the invitation of the liberal provisional government that had replaced the government of King Louis Philippe. By March 1848, the revolution had reached Prussia, and in Berlin King Frederick William IV had
been compelled to grant an elected parliament, a free press, and the convening of an assembly to draw up a new constitution. Marx hurried to Cologne (part of Prussia), and resumed his journalistic activities, concentrating his energies on a new paper, the "Neue Rheinische Zeitungvineyards," which under his editorship favored an alliance between the German workers' movement and the more progressive elements of the middle class. By autumn, 1848, the revolution had been defeated in France and in the Austrian
Empire. Marx still favored such an alliance and refused to support separate working-class candidates in elections. Not until April 1849, a month before the final collapse of the revolution in Germany, did he change tactics and advocate separate working-class political action. But it was far too late. Marx returned
once again to Paris, expecting the revolution to succeed there; it did not and he was expelled in July 1849. Marx returned to London to begin his long exile.
===London===
The early years in London were characterized by grinding poverty, due quite as much to Marx's inability to manage his finances as to their inadequacy. Three of his six children died. Three of his daughters reached maturity, as did an illegitimate son borne by the Marx family servant, a son whose true parentage remained a secret until after Engels' death. In 1856 a small legacy enabled Marx to move into a more adequate house, but what he conceived to be the necessity of keeping up appearances soon renewed
his financial difficulties. Not until 1864 did the death of his mother and a legacy from an old Communist comrade, bring him substantial relief. But as Marx's pecuniary worries receded, his health deteriorated; he was plagued by boils from head to foot. Despite these difficulties, Marx enjoyed a very warm home life. He loved to play with his children, and the week regularly culminated with a Sunday picnic accompanied by singing and recitations from Shakespeare.

Marx rejoined the Communist League and resumed his journalistic activities. But the study of economics had convinced him that "a new revolution is possible only in consequence of a new
crisis," an economic crisis.

==Marx's views==
===Russia===
Initially, Marx's attitudes were marked by Russophobia, pronounced anti-Pan-Slavism, and assessments of Russia as an outpost of European reaction and counterrevolution, and even as the head of a conspiracy to block the world revolution. With time, however, Marx came to consider Russia as the country in which the outbreak of the revolution was most likely. In his research for successive volumes of Capital, he read Russian theoretical works by, among others, Vasili Bervi-Flerovski and A. I. Koshelev. Marx's attitudes to the anticipated peasant revolution in Russia remained ambivalent; to a certain degree he feared its occurrence, suspecting that it could take on an "Asiatic" hue.<ref>Ewa Borowska, "Marx and Russia," ''Studies in East European Thought'' 2002 54(1-2): 87-103. ISSN: 0925-9392
Fulltext: [[Ebsco]] </ref>
===Civil society===
Hungarian scholar László Tüto has argued that Marx believed that the bourgeois revolutions meant the worldwide historical liberation of the individual from the hierarchies of traditional societies. However, this liberation carried its own price. On the one hand, civil society and the state separated from each other in the bourgeois system, and as a result the individual became intrinsically split into a private person and a citizen of a state, two forms of existence that became opposed to each other. On the other hand, the economic freedom of private persons as members of civil society could only survive in the service of the spontaneous mechanisms of the market, that is, if people made themselves the tools of the tangible powers of the economy: goods, money, and capital. After the decline of freely competitive capitalism (into monopoly capitalism) this economic freedom was pushed into the background because of the property hierarchies. Freely competitive capitalism was characterized by the basic tendency of revolutionizing the means of production, and Marx concluded that the continuation of this tendency could only be ensured by going beyond the capitalist system to a socialist environment for civil society.
===Dictatorship of the proletariat===
The "dictatorship of the proletariat" was introduced by Marx and Engels, and later used by [[V. I. Lenin]] and [[Joseph Stalin]] to justify their totalitarian rule. They controlled the Communist party in the Soviet Union in the name of the proletariat (which had no voice.) Marx and Engels believed in the need for such a dictatorship during the transition to communism following the takeover by the proletariat. They envisaged some undefined form of absolute sovereignty of the people in a radical democratic state based on universal and equal suffrage. Supposedly the dictatorship would allow the proletariat to abolish bureaucracy and private ownership of the means of production, using force and repressive or dictatorial methods to overcome the inevitable resistance by the bourgeoisie. Lenin, however, saw the concept in terms of a dictatorship exercised not by a democratically chosen majority but by a [[Revolutionary Vanguard|vanguard minority revolutionary party]]; he eventually accepted the need for a state bureaucracy, and his more extreme opposition to the bourgeoisie led him to favor their exclusion and disenfranchisement to the benefit of the urban working class.
===Alienation===
Marx's theory of alienation was often employed to criticize religious, political, and economic divisions. However, the fact that it was basically about individuals and could only with great difficulty be applied to society made it a misleading tool when used in sociology.
===Globalization===
The ''Communist Manifesto'' was expressed in terms the 21st century calls globalization. It argued that it was the "historic mission" of the capitalist bourgeoisie to establish markets throughout the world and that four lessons could be drawn from this fact: members of the proletariat do not share the same nationality as the bourgeoisie, the proletarian "globalization" will in fact supercede that of the bourgeoisie, exploitation and class warfare will destroy the national barriers between members of the proletariat, and the proletariat has a duty to overthrow the ruling classes in each nation.

==Theories==
Marx saw "primitive" socialist thought as a fundamentally moral movement with no base in practical science. Marx's solution was to create an analysis of society on his principle of dialectical materialism.
===Dialectic===
The [[dialectic]]al method which was employed by Marx was developed by German philosopher [[Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel]]. Though concepts of dialectics had existed in philosophical theory since [[Plato]], Hegel systematized the idea more thoroughly than any previous thinker. For Hegel, reality is a reflection of the unfolding of Absolute Spirit, roughly meaning knowledge. Thus Hegel saw the contradictions of Enlightenment philosophy (such as between subject and object, mind and nature, etc) as phases in the development of Absolute spirit. These contradictions would be resolved dialectically through the progress of Absolute Spirit.

Marx argued that Hegel's dialectic was upside down. Instead of being based in human knowledge, the dialectical contradictions were based in human social reality. For Marx, the contradiction between subject and object in philosophy was a reflection of the actual contradiction between workers and employers under capitalism. The difference between the ideal spirit and reality translates into Marx's view that man had become [[alienation|alienated]] from his true nature. Man had been created different from animals: he is creative, this is essential to his nature. However, in modern days, man is just automatically producing: he works to earn his wage, but has no tie to the product of his labor at all. This is the alienation from his true nature.

===Means of production===
The necessity for material sustenance gives rise to an imperfect [[means of production]], which changes as the internal contradictions of [[thesis and antithesis]] work themselves out. A key feature of Marx's theory was his contention that [[competition]] for resources splits society into mutually antagonistic classes ("The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of [[class struggle]]s.") whilst the operation of the dialectic serves to continually reduce the numbers of classes until, in the [[Industrial Age]], society was almost wholly split between "[[bourgeoisie]]" and "[[proletariat]]".
===Capitalism===
[[Capitalism]], according to Marx, is just one system in a long series of [[economic systems]] in the world. He held that a so-called "[[capitalist society]]" had strong internal contradictions. In the development of capitalism, [[capital]] would be increasingly concentrated in the hands of a few people. <ref>See his "Law of the Centralization of Capital".</ref> The difference in income between the poorest and richest would always increase. Through economic crises, the poor laborers could be inflamed to believe that the system would always be disadvantageous to them.

''Das Kapital'' (''Capital'') seeks to explain that the "bourgeoisie" make [[profit]]s by [[exploitation]] of the "proletariat." The exploitation arises when the value of the goods produced by workers is much more than the wages paid, thus creating "[[surplus value]]" over and above the value of the wages advanced. Marx sought to agitate class envy by alleging that the competition amongst the bourgeoisie forced them to exploit their workers as much as possible. If an individual bourgeois refused to continue the "exploitation" he would soon be forced into [[bankruptcy]] or be taken over by someone who would. The result is persistent low wages among the proletariat who, eventually, would rebel and replace the existing capitalist system with a [[socialist]]/communist system.
===Socialism===
It's important to note, however, that Marx never argued in any sustained fashion that socialism was inevitable: he knew there are too many factors in history to make a prediction possible. He did not have a clear idea about what the next stage after capitalism would be. The increasing concentration, he thought, would facilitate a [[communist]] system. In that system, however, man also would have to eliminate his "alienation." One possibility, which Marx imagined, was complete mechanization of production, so that any man could do any job<ref>Marx, K. Foundations of the Critique of Political Economy, [[Berlin]]</ref>.
In the ''Communist Manifesto'', Marx went into greater detail about how this [[revolution]] would unfold. As well as proposing an economic system, Marx also advocated [[education]] for all including women and the lower classes who at the time were without any education.

==Critique of Marxists==
[[Mikhail Bakunin]] observed how rather than discussion of issues, the tried and tested method of [[leftism]] and [[Marxism]] was spread through the art of [[character assassination]], <ref>Guy A. Aldred, ''Bakunin'', Strickland Press, [[Glasgow]], (1940). </ref> close associates of Marx were adept in the art of
{{Cquote|cowardly, odious and perfidious insinuations. They seldom make open accusation, but they insinuate, saying they "have heard - it is said - it may not be true, but', and then they hurl the most abominable calumnies in your face.}}

===Views on Religion===
Marx' view on [[religion]] is mostly based on [[Ludwig Feuerbach's]] ideas<ref>Feuerbachexhaustivereadingsemi-clandestineémigréEngelsintellectuals, L. ''The Essence of Christianity'', New York, supersede1957</ref>, and his feelings toward the subject are not entirely clear. Marx is considered very controversial in religious circles for his statement, "Religion...is the opiate of the masses," yet he also stated that religion is "the heart of a heartless world." This was written in his 1843 work "A Contribution to the [http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1843/critique-hpr/intro.htm Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Right]" and expresses Marx's belief that religion offers a false palliative to assuage the suffering of "the oppressed." During the Russian Revolution, the Russian Communist Party was highly critical of religion (likely seeing it as a threat to their Marxist agenda) and, after taking over, sought to destroy all forms of it.

===Anti-semitism===
Karl Marx is often labeled an [[Anti-Semitism|anti-Semite]] or a "self-hating Jew" for statements such as, "Money is the [[jealous god]] of [[Israel]], in face of which no other god may exist", "The god of the Jews has become secularized and has become the [[god of the world]]. The [[bill of exchange]] is the real god of the Jew. His god is only an illusory bill of exchange", and "What is the worldly religion of the Jew? Huckstering. What is his worldly God? Money."

It should be noted, that Marx was raised in the German Protestant culture, not in the Jewish culture of his ancestors. Furthermore, Marx's metaphorical use of Judaism and money was standard for intellectuals of his time, including Jews. Moses Hess, for example, self-consciously Jewish and proto-Zionist, used language almost exactly similar to Marx's in his "On the Money System." The equation of Judaism with money was standard for Marx's period, even by Jews.<ref>[http://www.marxists.org/archive/draper/1977/kmtr1/app1.htm]</ref>

Anti-semitism did become a major force in Germany in the late 19th century, but all the leaders of that movement rejected Marx.

== Academy Marx versus Public Marx ==

Marx in the academy and Marx in the public sphere are two different figures. It is an axiom within the academy that Marx in the public sphere is a vulgar misappropriation; even Marx once commented, "I am not a Marxist", referring to the treatment of his theory amongst his own contemporaries; this largely displays, at least, the freedom of interpretation intrinsic within Marx and the volatility of his content.

This misappropriation is likely largely a result of Marx's own Communist Manifesto and its popularity within post-war socialist activism in the US. The Communist Manifesto is only a drop in an ocean of Marx's work and theory, and not even the most relevant one. The complexity of Marx's work has actually enabled some contemporary theorists to find his work as a support of capitalism, while others interpret it as a trenchant critique of capitalism; and in fact it is both. Marx is actually very clear that capitalism is the most powerful mode of production available. What is debated is whether resistance to capitalism is intrinsic to itself, and whether the entire world marches inevitably towards capitalism.

Regardless of Marx's nuances and the usefulness of his theory for all perspectives of inquiry, even conservative ones, he continues to be misappropriated in the public. This is noticeable in the mildly anecdotal evidence that to even mention Marx is virtual political suicide. The academy refers to this phenomenon as the anti-intellectualism of the American public.

== See also ==

*[[Baldomero Ortoneda]]
*[[Max Weber]]
==Bibliography==
* Avineri, Shlomo. ''The Social and Political Thought of Karl Marx'' (1970) [http://www.amazon.com/Political-Thought-Cambridge-Studies-Politics/dp/0521096197/ref=sr_1_21/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192887351&sr=8-21 excerpt and text search]
* Berlin, Isaiah. ''Karl Marx: His Life and Environment'' (1963) [http://www.questia.com/read/53992776?title=Karl%20Marx%3a%20His%20Life%20and%20Environment online edition], excellent overview by leading non-Marxist scholar
* Carver, Terrel, ed. ''The Cambridge Companion to Marx.'' 1992. 357 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Cambridge-Companion-Marx-Companions-Philosophy/dp/0521366259/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192896360&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search], streee on philosophy
* Cohen, Gerald Allen, and G. A. Cohen. ''Karl Marx's Theory of History'' (2000) [http://www.amazon.com/Marxs-Theory-History-Gerald-Allen/dp/0691070687/ref=sr_1_42/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192887474&sr=8-42 excerpt and text search]
* Elster, Jon. ''Making Sense of Marx.'' 1985. 556 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Making-Studies-Marxism-Social-Theory/dp/0521297052/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192896566&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Elster, Jon. ''An Introduction to Karl Marx'' (1986) [http://www.amazon.com/Introduction-Karl-Marx-Jon-Elster/dp/052133831X/ref=sr_1_3/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192896566&sr=1-3 excerpt and text search]
* Hobsbawm, Eric J., ed. ''Marxism in Marx's Day.'' 1982. 349 pp.
* Kolakowski, Leszek. ''Main Currents of Marxism: The Founders, the Golden Age, the Breakdown.'' (3 vol. 1981, 2005). 1504 pp. covers Marx and all the Marxists [http://www.amazon.com/Main-Currents-Marxism-Founders-Breakdown/dp/0393060543/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192896392&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search], by a leading conservative scholar; strong emphasis on philosophy
* McLellan, David. ''Karl Marx: A Biography'' (4th ed. 2006)
* Mehring, Franz. ''Marx: The Story of His Life'' (1918) [http://www.questia.com/read/3077782 online edition] [http://www.marxists.org/archive/mehring/1918/marx/index.htm another online edition]
* Oakley, Allen. ''Marx's Critique of Political Economy: Intellectual Sources and Evolution.'' Vol. 1: 1844-1860. Vol. 2: 1861 to 1863. (1984-85). 266pp, 342 pp.
* Rader, Melvin Miller. ''Marx's Interpretation of History.'' 1979. 242 pp.
* White, James D. ''Karl Marx and the Intellectual Origins of Dialectical Materialism.'' 1996. 416 pp.

===Primary sources===
* ''The Portable Karl Marx'' edited by Eugene Kamenka (1983) [http://www.amazon.com/Portable-Karl-Marx-Viking-Library/dp/014015096X/ref=sr_1_3/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192887156&sr=8-3 excerpt and text search]
* Marx, Karl. ''Karl Marx: The Essential Writings'' (1986) ed. by Frederic L. Bender [http://www.questia.com/read/94876762?title=Karl%20Marx%3a%20The%20Essential%20Writings online edition]
* Marx, Karl, and Friedrich Engels. ''The Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844 and the Communist Manifesto'' (1988) [http://www.amazon.com/Philosophic-Manuscripts-Communist-Manifesto-Philosophy/dp/087975446X/ref=sr_1_14/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192887156&sr=8-14 excerpt and text search]
* Marx, Karl, and Friedrich Engels. ''The Communist Manifesto'' (1848) [http://www.amazon.com/Communist-Manifesto-Penguin-Classics/dp/0140447571/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192887156&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Marx, Karl. ''Karl Marx: The Essential Writings'' ed by Frederic L. Bender. (2nd ed. 1986) 516 pgs. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=94876758 online edition]
* Marx, Karl. ''Grundrisse: Foundations of the Critique of Political Economy'' ed. by Martin Nicolaus (1993) [http://www.amazon.com/Grundrisse-Foundations-Critique-Political-Classics/dp/0140445757/ref=sr_1_38/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192887474&sr=8-38 excerpt and text search]
* Marx, Karl. ''Capital: A Critique of Political Economy'' (1906), 865pp [http://books.google.com/books?id=IpJC7HNskeYC&dq=inauthor:karl+inauthor:marx&num=30&as_brr=1 online ediition]

==References==
<references/>

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marx, Karl}}

[[Category:German Politics]]
[[Category:Communists]]
[[Category:Sociologists]]
[[Category:Atheists]]
[[Category:German Philosophers]]
[[Category:Marxism]]

Conservative

2012-02-16T01:28:42Z

EquisDulks: /* US Voters */

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A '''conservative''' is someone who adheres to principles of personal [[responsibility]], moral values, and [[limited government]], agreeing with [[George Washington]]'s [[Farewell Address]] that "[[religion]] and [[morality]] are indispensable supports" to political prosperity.<ref>[http://usinfo.state.gov/usa/infousa/facts/democrac/49.htm United States Department of State] George Washington, farewell address, 1796</ref><ref>[[Merriam-Webster]]'s Online Dictionary has the following definition of conservative: "tending or disposed to maintain existing views, conditions, or institutions : TRADITIONAL"[http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/conservative] Therefore, a conservative Christian would be one that tends to adhere to the morally sound doctrines of the early Christianity and [[Judeo-Christian]] values.</ref>

Former President [[Ronald Reagan]] said, "The basis of conservatism is a desire for less government interference or less centralized authority or more individual freedom."<ref>http://www.reason.com/news/show/29318.html</ref>
[[Image:Aaag.jpg|thumb|Ronald Reagan, the 40th President of the United States, is the epitome of American conservatism.]]

The ''sine qua non'' of a conservative is someone who rises above his personal self-interest and promotes moral and economic values beneficial to all. Alternatively, a conservative is willing to learn and advocate the insights of [[economics]] and the morality of the [[Bible]] for the benefit of all, recognizing that the Bible is the most [[logic]]al book ever written. Specifically, conservatives seek or support:

* [[Limited government]] and balanced budgets
* [[Capitalism]] and [[free market|free markets]]
* [[Classroom prayer]]
* Respect for human life and prohibition of [[abortion]]
* The [[death penalty]] for heinous murders proven beyond reasonable doubt
* [[Abstinence]] education
* Traditional [[marriage]], not [[same-sex marriage]]
* [[Family values]], including traditional relationships and division of labor within the household
* Respect for differences between men and women, boys and girls
* Laws against [[pornography]]
* The [[Second Amendment]] right to keep and bear arms
* Economic allocative efficiency (as opposed to popular equity)
* Parental control of education ([[parental rights]])
* Private medical care and retirement plans
* Canceling failed social support programs
* No [[world government]]
* Enforcement of current laws regarding [[immigration]]
* Respect for our military ... past and present
* Rejection of [[junk science]] such as [[evolution]] and [[global warming]]
* Minimal Taxation
* [[Federalism]] (Separation of powers among the National, State and Local governments)
* Favoring [[states' rights]] over federal power, while accepting the Constitutional role of the federal government
* A strong national defense
* An [[Originalism|Originalist]] interpretation of the [[United States Constitution|Constitution]]

__TOC__ 
==Hall of Fame==
Conservative scholar Clinton Rossiter<ref> Rossiter, "The Giants of American Conservatism," ''American Heritage'' 1955 6(6): 56-59, 94-96, online in [[EBSCO]]</ref> names [[Alexander Hamilton]], [[John Adams]], [[John Marshall]], [[Daniel Webster]], [[John C. Calhoun]], [[Elihu Root]], and [[Theodore Roosevelt]] to the "Conservative's Hall of Fame,"'' with John Adams as the greatest of American conservatives.

===Presidents===
Periodically a conservative has been elected president of the United States. The most prominent conservative presidents include:
*[[George Washington]] (1789-1797)
*[[James Monroe]] (1817-1825)
*[[Grover Cleveland]] (1885-1889, 1893-1897)
*[[Warren G. Harding]] (1921-1923)
*[[Calvin Coolidge]] (1923-1929)
*[[Ronald Reagan]] (1981-1989)
*[[George W. Bush]] (2001-2009) (with respect to taxes and Supreme Court nominations)

The most prominent conservative Congresses have been:

*The 80th Congress (elected in 1946)
*The 104th Congress (elected in 1994)

===Movement===
[[Movement conservatives]] are those who accept the logic of conservatism across-the-board, and stand up for its powerful principles despite [[liberal]] ridicule. Movement conservative activists include:
*[[Phyllis Schlafly]], opposed [[ERA]]
*[[Larry McDonald]], Congressman, on board [[KAL 007]] when shot down by the Soviets near [[Moneron Island]].
*[[Jesse Helms]], Senator, specialist in foreign policy
*[[Pat Buchanan]], commentator
*[[Jerry Falwell]], religion
*[[Michele Bachmann]], congresswoman
*[[Ann Coulter]], columnist
*[[Rush Limbaugh]], radio
*[[Michelle Malkin]], commentator
*[[Glenn Beck]], commentator

===Key leaders===
*[[Barry Goldwater]] - 1964 Republican candidate, lost to liberal Democrat [[Lyndon Johnson]] but revived the conservative movement inside the GOP
*[[Russell Kirk]] - Theorist & intellectual
*[[Irving Kristol|Irving]] and [[William Kristol]] - Notable [[neoconservatives]]
*[[Margaret Thatcher]] - British prime minister between 1979 and 1990, held views similar to Reagan's
*[[Milton Friedman]] - Chicago-school [[libertarian]] [[economist]], influential during Reagan administration; leader of the [[Chicago School of Economics]]

==US Voters==
In America, most conservatives support the [[Republican Party]], but not exclusively so. In the 2008 election, 35% of the voters identified themselves as conservatives. Of them, 78% voted for [[John McCain]] and 20% for [[Barack Hussein Obama]], with the 20% accounting for Obama's margin of victory. Only 22% of the voters were liberal; they favored Obama 89%-10%. In the middle were 44% who called themselves moderates. They split for Obama by 60%-39%. (Minor candidates won 2% of the vote.)<ref> See [http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/results/polls/#USP00p1 Presidential 2008 Exit Poll]</ref>
[[File:Conservative-republican-brain.jpg|thumb|350px]]
===Religious differences between political conservatives and political liberals===
The Barna poll conducted in November 2008 shows significant differences between the 32% of Americans who called themselves as “mostly conservative” on social and political matters; and the 17% who called themselves “mostly liberal” on social and political matters. The others --50%--were moderates with positions somewhere in-between.<ref> See [http://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/13-culture/258-survey-shows-how-liberals-and-conservatives-differ-on-matters-of-faith on line results] </ref>

Some findings:
Political liberals are less than half as likely as political conservatives to firmly believe that the Bible is totally accurate in all of the principles it teaches (27% versus 63%, respectively); to strongly believe that [[Satan]] is real (17% versus 36%); and to firmly contend that they have a personal responsibility to share their religious beliefs with others (23% versus 48%).

[Note: "Liberal" and "conservative" in this survey are based on politics]

Liberals are also far less likely than conservatives to strongly believe each of the following:
*their religious faith is very important in their life (54% of liberals vs. 82% of conservatives);
*a person cannot earn their way into [[Heaven]] by doing good deeds or being a good person (23% vs. 37%);
*their faith is becoming an increasingly important moral guide in their life (38% vs. 70%);
*the church they currently attend is very important in helping them find direction and fulfillment in life (37% vs. 62%);
*their primary purpose in life is to love God with all their heart, mind, strength and soul (43% vs. 76%);

political conservatives were more likely than liberals to:
*read the Bible, other than at church events, during the past week (57% vs. 33%, respectively)
*attend a religious service during the past week (62% vs. 35%)
*[[pray]] to God, other than at a religious service, during the past week (91% vs. 76%)
*share their religious beliefs with others, during the past year (56% vs. 39%, among the born again Christians interviewed from each segment)
*have ever participated in a short-term missions trip, either within the U.S. or in another country (12% vs. 6%)

*2% of conservatives and 11% of liberals were [[atheist]] or [[agnostic]]
*15% of conservatives and 2% of liberals were [[Evangelical Christians|Christian evangelicals]]
*conservatives were twice as likely as liberals to be categorized as [[born again]], based on their theological views about salvation (63% vs. 32%)
*According to one statistic, 21% of conservatives were associated with the [[Roman Catholic Church]], compared to 30% among the liberals, though the issues of abortion, marriage and the [[Obama]] Administration's attempt to force Catholic schools to provide free health care including abortion and contraception have caused many Catholics to move to the right.

== Barack Obama and American Conservatism Backlash ==
In October of 2009, Niles Gardiner reported in the [[Britain|British]] newspaper ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'':
{{cquote|This week’s striking [[Gallup]] poll on political ideology is further confirmation that the United States is in essence a conservative nation, which has ironically become even more conservative under [[Barack Obama]]. According to Gallup, 40 percent of Americans describe their political views as conservative, 36 percent as moderate and 20 percent as liberal. This is the first time conservatives have outnumbered moderates in America since 2004.<ref>http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/nilegardiner/100014891/barack-obama-has-failed-to-defeat-conservatism-in-america/</ref>}}

== Conservative news organizations ==
:''See also: [[Conservative news organizations]] and [[Conservative media]]''
Some of the more notable news organizations which tend to be more conservative are [[WorldNetDaily]] and [[NewsMax]]. [[Fox News]], though often called conservative, tends to be more [[neoconservative]] than [[conservative]].

== Conservative magazines and blogs ==
:''See also: [[Conservative media]]''
Well known conservative magazines in the United States include ''[[National Review]]'', ''[[Policy Review]]'', ''[[The Weekly Standard]]'' and others.

Some notable [[Conservative blogs|conservative political blogs]] include the [[Heritage Foundation]]'s Policy Weblog, ''[[Human Events]]'', [[Michelle Malkin]], Newsbusters, Townhall.com and others.

== Neoconservatives ==

American commentators who ally themselves with the conservative movement but reject its religious or moral underpinnings are generally known as [[neoconservatives]].<ref>Jonah Goldberg, [http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=ZWMxNWNiNDJkY2JmNTExY2E1MzdkYWU3MWU1MTBiOGU= "What Is a 'Conservative'?"], [[National Review|National Review Online]], 11 May 2005</ref>

In the United States, conservatives are generally characterized by the following beliefs:

# Support of [[limited government]].
# A preference for freedom of opportunity over equality of result.
# [[Patriotism]], [[nationalism]], and support of a strong defense.
# Support of the institution of [[marriage]].
# Emphasis on social values, like [[prayer]] and [[pro-life]] principles.

In contrast, neoconservatives generally support [[Big government|bigger government]] and [[globalism]], and tend to downplay the significance of social values.

== Paleoconservatives ==

[[Paleoconservatives]] are conservatives who are more focused on social issues and American sovereignty, and are suspicious of both big government and big business. They also lean against foreign interventionalism. Neoconservatives criticize this with the pejorative term of "[[isolationism]]," as they believe in promoting [[democracy]] worldwide, even where different religious or value systems are incompatible with democracy-induced changes in control.

Among paleoconservatives was Democratic Congressman from Georgia, [[Larry McDonald]]. He was also second Chairman of the [[John Birch Society]], and President of Western Goals. McDonald was aboard [[Korean Airlines Flight 007]] when it was shot down by the [[Soviet Union|Soviets]] near [[Moneron Island]] in 1983.

==Fiscal Conservatism vs. Social Conservatism==

''For further details on the two related philosophies, see [[Fiscal conservatism]] and [[Social conservatism]]''

Recently, a division has been created between fiscal conservatism and social conservatism. Fiscal conservatism centers around a low and [[Balanced budget|balanced]] government [[budget]], and generally is opposed to programs such as [[Social Security]] and [[Medicare]]. Its primary goal is to reduce government spending significantly. Social Conservatism, on the other hand, focuses on the moral issues of conservatism. A social conservative will oppose [[same-sex marriage]], [[abortion]], and the teaching of [[evolution]] in schools. The majority of Conservatives (including most of the [[Republican Party]]) fall into both categories, however some fall into one or the other, but not both. Notably, [[Libertarians]] are strong fiscal conservatives but are not socially conservative. For instance, the [[Libertarian Party]] Platform <ref>[http://www.lp.org/platform]</ref> expresses support for the fiscally conservative principles of ending publicly funded [[welfare]] and [[healthcare]] programs as well as reducing government spending overall significantly. However, it also expresses support for [[same-sex marriage]] (with some libertarians leaning towards the ultimate goal of total [[marriage privatization]]) as well as maintaining the legal status of abortion.

Some Republicans and [[Democratic Party|Democrats]] also fit one category but not the other. Former [[New Mexico]] governor [[Gary Johnson]], who is seeking the Republican presidential nomination in 2012, was deemed "the most fiscally conservative governor" while he was in office (and probably earned that honor given all the spending cuts he made) but at the same time, he supports [[marriage privatization]] and [[abortion]] (though he believes ''[[Roe v. Wade]]'' should be overturned on Constitutional grounds). Also, several Democrats have expressed opposition to same-sex marriage and/or abortion, but still support liberal fiscal programs such as Social Security. They would be the opposite of Johnson - socially conservative but fiscally liberal.

== Personal conservatism ==
Because Conservatives often have strong political views, there can be a tendency to see conservatism as a purely political ideology. However, there is also a strong personal side to conservatism - being a conservative is as much about applying conservative values to one's everyday life as it is about campaigning and voting for conservative candidates. In general, conservatives can be characterized by a strong sense of personal [[morality]], a willingness to observe their culture's traditions and customs, and a desire to be respectable and to show due respect to other members of the community.
==History of American conservatism==
===Textbook problems===
:''See also: [[Textbook bias]]''
College-level teaching about conservatism has been distorted by a "liberal state paradigm"--that is, [[textbook]]s usually interpret recent American history in terms of the origins and successes of political liberalism--especially the [[New Deal]], the [[welfare state]], [[labor union]]s, and [[Civil Rights Movement|Civil Rights]] for blacks and [[equality]] for women. Conservative politics is usually defined as a reaction: as a [[free market]] reply to the growth of [[big government]]; as an expression of outrage against declining support for tradition and Christian morality. Where the violent Wobblies ([[Industrial Workers of the World|IWW]]) and illegal sit down strikes of the 1930s are seen as heroic, exposing [[Communist]] subversion by [[Joe McCarthy]] is denounced as the nadir of political morality.<ref> See Leonard Moore, "Approaching Conservatism," ''OAH Magazine of History,'' 17 (January 2003) [http://www.oah.org/pubs/magazine/conservatism/moore.html online edition]</ref>

===Loyalists===
The [[Loyalists]] of the [[American Revolution]] were mostly political conservatives, some of whom produced political discourse of a high order, including lawyer [[Joseph Galloway]] and governor-historian [[Thomas Hutchinson]]. However when the crisis came, they stood with the Crown as it tried to destroy American political liberties. After the war, the great majority remained in the U.S. and became citizens, but some leaders emigrated to other places in the British Empire. [[Samuel Seabury]] was a Loyalist who stayed and as the first American bishop played a major role in shaping the [[Episcopal]] religion, a stronghold of conservative social values. While the Loyalist political tradition died out totally it the U.S., it survives in Canadian conservatism.

===Founding Fathers===
The [[Founding Fathers]] created the single most important set of political ideas in American history, known as [[Republicanism]], which all groups, liberal and conservative alike, have drawn from. Two parties were named "Republican"-- the one founded in 1794 by [[Thomas Jefferson]] and [[James Madison]] (it disappeared in the 1820s), and the modern GOP founded in 1854.

During the [[First Party System]] (1790s-1820s) the [[Federalist Party]], led by [[Alexander Hamilton]], developed an important variation of republicanism that can be considered conservative. Rejecting [[monarchy]] and [[aristocracy]], they emphasized civic virtue as the core American value. The Federalists spoke for the propertied interests and the upper classes of the cities. They envisioned a modernizing land of banks and factories, with a strong army and navy. [[George Washington]] was their great hero.

On many issues American conservatism also derives from the republicanism of [[Thomas Jefferson]] and his followers, especially [[John Randolph of Roanoke]] and his "Old Republicans" or "[[Quids]]." They idealized the [[yeoman]] farmer as the epitome of civic virtue, warned that banking and industry led to [[corruption]], that is to the illegitimate use of government power for private ends. Jefferson himself was a vehement opponent of what today is called "[[judicial activism]]".
<ref>[http://etext.virginia.edu/jefferson/quotations/jeff1030.htm]</ref> The Jeffersonians stressed small government.

===Ante-Bellum: Calhoun and Webster===
During the [[Second Party System]] (1830-54) the [[Whig Party]] attracted most conservatives, such as [[Daniel Webster]] of New England. [[Daniel Webster]] and other leaders of the [[Whig Party]], called it the conservative party in the late 1830s.<ref>The word was originally used in the [[French Revolution]]. The British used it after 1839 to describe a major party. The first American usage is by Whigs who called themselves "Conservatives" in the late 1830s. Hans Sperber and Travis Trittschuh, ''American Political terms: An Historical Dictionary'' (1962) 94-97.</ref> [[John C. Calhoun]], a Democrat, articulated a sophisticated conservatism in his writings. [[Richard Hofstadter]] (1948) called him "The [[Karl Marx|Marx]] of the Master Class." Calhoun argued that a conservative minority should be able to limit the power of a "majority dictatorship" because tradition represents the wisdom of past generations. (This argument echoes one made by [[Edmund Burke]], the founder of British conservatism, in ''Reflections on the Revolution in France'' (1790)). Calhoun is considered the father of the idea of minority rights, a position adopted by liberals in the 1960s in dealing with [[Civil Rights]].

The conservatism of the antebellum period is contested territory; conservatives of the 21st century disagree over what comprises their heritage. Thus [[William J. Bennett]] (2006), a prominent conservative leader, warns conservatives to NOT honor Calhoun, [[Know-Nothings]], [[Copperheads (politics)|Copperheads]] and 20th century [[isolationist]]s.

===Lincoln to Cleveland===
Since 1865 the [[Republican Party]] has identified itself with President [[Abraham Lincoln]], who was the ideological heir of the [[Whig Party|Whigs]] and of both [[Thomas Jefferson|Jefferson]] and [[Alexander Hamilton|Hamilton]]. As the [[Gettysburg Address]] shows, Lincoln cast himself as a second Jefferson bringing a second birth of freedom to the nation that had been born 86 years before in Jefferson's [[Declaration of Independence|Declaration]]. The [[Copperheads (politics)|Copperheads]] of the [[American Civil War|Civil War]] reflected a [[reactionary]] opposition to modernity of the sort repudiated by modern conservatives. A few libertarians have adopted a neo-Copperhead position, arguing Lincoln was a dictator who created an all-powerful government.

In the late 19th century the [[Bourbon Democrat]]s, led by President [[Grover Cleveland]], preached against corruption, high taxes (protective [[tariff]]s), and [[imperialism]], and supported the [[gold standard]] and business interests. They were overthrown by [[William Jennings Bryan]] in 1896, who moved the mainstream of the [[Democratic Party]] permanently to the left.

The 1896 presidential election was the first with a conservative versus liberal theme in the way in which these terms are now understood. Republican [[William McKinley]] won using the pro-business slogan "[[sound money]] and protection," while Bryan's anti-bank populism had a lasting effect on economic policies of the Democratic Party.

[[William Graham Sumner]], [[Yale University|Yale]] professor (1872-1910) and polymath, vigorously promoted a libertarian conservative ethic. After dallying with [[Social Darwinism]] under the influence of [[Herbert Spencer]], he rejected [[evolution]] in his later works, and strongly opposed imperialism. He opposed monopoly and [[paternalism]] in theory as a threat to equality, democracy and middle class values, but was vague on what to do about it.<ref>Curtis, Bruce. "William Graham Sumner 'On the Concentration of Wealth.'" Journal of American History 1969 55(4): 823-832.</ref>

===Early 20th century===
In the [[Progressive Era]] (1890s-1932), regulation of industry expanded as conservatives led by Senator [[Nelson Aldrich]] of [[Rhode Island]] were put on the defensive. However, Aldrich's proposal for a strong national banking system was enacted as the [[Federal Reserve System]] in 1913. [[Theodore Roosevelt]], the dominant personality of the era, was both liberal and conservative by turns. As a liberal he took a tough [[Regulation|regulatory]] approach toward businesses and [[trust]]s, and (post-presidency) fought for social insurance for the elderly. As a conservative he led the fight to make the country a major naval power, and demanded entry into [[World War I]] to stop what he saw as the [[German Empire|German]] attacks on civilization. [[William Howard Taft]] promoted a strong federal judiciary that would overrule excessive legislation. Taft defeated Roosevelt on that issue in 1912, forcing Roosevelt out of the GOP and turning it to the right for decades. As president, Taft remade the [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] with five appointments; he himself presided as chief justice in 1921-30, the only former president ever to do so.

Pro-business Republicans returned to dominance in 1920 with the election of President [[Warren G. Harding]]. The presidency of [[Calvin Coolidge]] (1923-29) was a high water mark for conservatism, both politically and intellectually. Classic writing of the period includes ''Democracy and Leadership'' (1924) by Irving Babbitt and [[H.L. Mencken]]'s magazine ''American Mercury'' (1924-33). The [[Efficiency Movement]] attracted many conservatives such as [[Herbert Hoover]] with its pro-business, pro-engineer approach to solving social and economic problems. In the 1920s many American conservatives generally maintained anti-foreign attitudes and, as usual, were disinclined toward changes to the healthy economic climate of the age.

During the [[Great Depression]], other conservatives participated in the taxpayers' revolt at the local level. From 1930 to 1933, Americans formed as many as 3,000 taxpayers' leagues to protest high [[property tax]]es. These groups endorsed measures to limit and rollback taxes, lowered penalties on tax delinquents, and cuts in government spending. A few also called for illegal resistance (or tax strikes). The best known of these was led by the Association of Real Estate Taxpayers in [[Chicago]] which, at its height, had 30,000 dues-paying members.

An important intellectual movement, calling itself [[Southern Agrarians]] and based in Nashville, brought together like-minded novelists, poets and historians who argued that modern values undermined the traditions of American [[Republicanism]] and civic virtue.

The Depression brought [[liberal]]s to power under President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] (1933). Indeed the term "liberal" now came to mean a supporter of the [[New Deal]] and Roosevelt's powerful [[New Deal Coalition]]. In 1934 [[Al Smith]] and pro-business Democrats formed the [[American Liberty League]] to fight the new liberalism, but failed to stop Roosevelt's shifting the Democratic party to the left. In 1936 the Republicans rejected Hoover and tried the more liberal [[Alf Landon]], who carried only [[Maine]] and [[Vermont]]. When Roosevelt tried to pack the Supreme Court in 1937 the conservatives finally cooperated across party lines and defeated it with help from Vice President [[John Nance Garner]]. Roosevelt unsuccessfully tried to purge the conservative Democrats in the 1938 election. The conservatives in Congress then formed a bipartisan informal [[Conservative Coalition]] of Republicans and southern Democrats. It largely controlled Congress from 1937 to 1964. Its most prominent leaders were Senator [[Robert Taft]], a Republican of [[Ohio]], and Senator [[Richard Russell]], Democrat of [[Georgia]].
[[Image:Gop-plank.JPG|thumb|275px|1936 cartoon shows GOP building its platform from the conservative planks abandoned by the Democrats]]

In the United States, the [[Old Right]], also called the Old Guard, was a group of [[libertarianism|libertarian]], free-market anti-interventionists, originally associated with Midwestern Republicans and Southern Democrats. The Republicans (but not the southern Democrats) were [[isolationist]]s in 1939-41, (see [[America First]]), and later opposed [[NATO]] and U.S. military intervention in the [[Korean War]].

===Later 20th century: Goldwater, Buckley, the Dixiecrats===
By 1950, [[American liberalism]] was so dominant intellectually that liberal critic [[Lionel Trilling]] could dismiss contemporary conservatism as "irritable mental gestures which seek to resemble ideas." <ref>Lapham 2004</ref> But just as Trilling was writing a revival was underway. In the 1950s, principles for a conservative political movement were hashed out in books like [[Russell Kirk]]'s ''The Conservative Mind'' (1953) and in the highly influential new magazine ''[[National Review]]'', founded by [[William F. Buckley]] in 1955.

Whereas Taft's [[Old Right]] had been [[isolationist]] the new conservatism favored American intervention overseas to oppose [[communism]]. It looked to the [[Founding Fathers]] for historical inspiration as opposed to [[John C. Calhoun|Calhoun]] and the antebellum South.

The success of the [[Civil Rights movement]] came in the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]] and the [[Voting Rights Act]] of 1965. Most conservatives supported both, but [[Barry Goldwater]] opposed them. Until then southern whites (both liberal and conservative) had been locked into the Democratic party. That lock was now broken and southern conservatives started voting for Republican candidates for president in 1964-68, and by the 1990s they were also voting for GOP candidates for state and local office. The southern blacks now began to vote in large numbers, and they became Democrats, moving that party in the south to the left. By 2000, for the first time, all southern states had a conservative GOP and a liberal Democratic party. The region favored the GOP heavily in presidential elections, but split in state contests. In 2008, however, the [[Barack Hussein Obama|Obama]] campaign broke into the solid Republican South, carrying [[Florida]], [[Virginia]] and [[North Carolina]].

Goldwater, a charismatic figure whose intense opposition to all [[New Deal]] programs angered liberals, was defeated in a landslide in 1964. Goldwater faded and his supporters regrouped under new leadership, especially that of [[Ronald Reagan]] in [[California]], and regained strength nationally in the 1966 elections. Conservatives voted for [[Richard Nixon]] in 1968, who narrowly defeated the New Deal champion [[Hubert Humphrey]], and southern demagogue [[George Wallace]]. Nixon had come to terms with both the Goldwater wing of the party and the still-influential Rockefeller Republicans (Republicans from the [[Northeast]] who supported many New Deal programs).

===Nixon, Reagan, and Bush===

The Republican administrations of President [[Richard Nixon]] in the [[1970s]] were characterized more by their emphasis on ''[[realpolitik]]'', [[détente]], and economic policies such as [[wage and price controls]], than by their adherence to conservative rhetoric and more liberal actions.

In the eight years of [[Ronald Reagan]]'s presidency 1981-89 the American conservative movement achieved ascendancy. In 1980 the GOP took control of the Senate for the first time since 1954, and [[conservative principles]] dominated Reagan's economic and foreign policies, with [[supply side economics]] as well as a strict opposition to [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] [[Communism]]. Reagan promised to cut [[welfare]] spending but failed to do so. He did cut taxes, but raised [[military spending]] and created large [[federal deficit]]s that turned out working to our advantage, because at that time, deficits didn't matter. It should be known that the Republicans also [[Balanced budget|balanced]] the [[budget]] in the late 1990s.

An icon of the American conservative movement, Reagan is credited by his supporters with transforming American politics, galvanizing the Republican Party, uniting a coalition of economic conservatives who supported his supply side economic policies, known as "[[Reaganomics]]," foreign policy conservatives who favored his success in stopping and rolling back Communism, and social conservatives who identified with Reagan's conservative religious and social ideals.

==Reactions to Obama==
"Forty percent of Americans now self-identify as conservatives — double the amount of self-professed liberals — largely because independents are beginning to take sides." [http://www.ashbrook.org/publicat/onprin/winter11/spalding.html]

Compare [[Progressive liberalism]].

==Conservatives in Australia==

Australia was once more conservative than England but sweeping [[gun control]] laws pushed the nation leftward toward greater dependency on government in the last decade. In 2009, opposition to government control based on alleged [[global warming]] galvanized conservatives there and they led the [[Liberal Party of Australia]] to a repudiation of an emissions trading scheme.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/national/shock-result-as-abbott-wins-liberal-leadership-by-one-vote--ets-dead-20091201-k1uz.html</ref> Conservatives also support smaller political parties such as the [[Family First Party]].

==Conservatives in Britain==

In the [[United Kingdom]], the [[Conservative Party]] is the major partner in the governing coalition. The party's current leader, [[David Cameron]],<ref>[http://www.conservatives.com Conservative party UK]</ref> has been [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]] of the UK since May 2010.

Up until the mid-19th century, the forerunners of the Conservatives were known as [[Tory|Tories]], and the name has persisted as a common nickname both for the political party and those believed to be in agreement with it. Since the mid-to-late 1970s, British conservatives have been defined by an advocacy of [[laissez-faire]] economics, privatization and lower taxation. In recent years the Conservative Party has moved away from the social conservatism which once characterized it, and the current party policy includes, for example, support for [[abortion]] on demand, gay [[civil partnership]], the [[Kyoto Treaty]] and to oppose [[capital punishment]] (although it should be noted that such policies have little support among the party's grassroots membership) <ref>John Charmley, ''A History of Conservative Politics Since 1830'', (2nd ed. 2008) </ref>

[[Margaret Thatcher]] revolutionized the British conservatives much like Reagan revolutionized American conservatives. During her tenure as Prime Minister, she cut taxes, trimmed back at government waste, and exercised a strong national defense abroad (including the [[Falklands War]] of 1982).

Levels of prayer and worship are much lower in [[England]] and [[Wales]] than in the U.S., and religious issues thereby play less of a role in public discourse. However, religious issues remain a significant factor in [[Northern Ireland]] and in 2008 religious issues were significant during a special election in [[Scotland]].

In common with conservatives in many other countries, British Conservatives tend towards a patriotic rather than internationalist outlook, and are traditionally skeptical of the [[European Union]].

The broadcast media (dominated by the [[BBC]]) is almost exclusively [[liberal]] in tone. The print media is different with pro-Conservative newspapers like the ''[[Daily Mail]]'', ''[[Daily Express]]'' and ''[[Daily Telegraph]]'' selling more copies than their rivals.<ref>[http://www.mediauk.com/the_knowledge/i.muk/An_introduction_to_newspapers_in_the_UK Media UK; Introduction to newspapers in the UK]</ref>

== Conservatism and the French Revolution ==

Conservatism in France and the continent generally arose in the after 1790 as a response to the radicalism of the [[French Revolution]].

== Benefits of Conservatism ==

Several facets of conservatism function in unison to make it an effective and powerful philosophy. Conservatism emphasizes personal freedom, independence, and initiative; this allows the [[best of the public]] to rise to their natural level of achievement. Conservatives recognize that [[big government]] fosters dependency and stifles individual achievement--and thus, weakens society as a whole.

At the same time, conservatives also recognize that with individual freedom comes [[individual responsibility]]. In the absence of a hand-holding [[nanny state]], it is imperative that each individual take responsibility for his own actions, and exercise his rights and freedoms wisely and with discretion. Thus, [[social conservatism]] is also critical to a successful society, as it emphasizes the importance of [[morality]], duty, and responsibility to one's self and fellow men.

== Also See ==
*[[Conservative resources]]
*[[Previous Breaking News/Conservatives|Articles about '''Conservatives''' from previous "Breaking News"]]
*[[More News/Conservatives|Articles about '''Conservatives''' from "More News"]]
*[[Conservative Links]]
*[[Essay:Fair and balanced is not part of the Conservative platform]]
*[[Conservative politicians]]
*[[Liberal]]
*[[Larry McDonald]]

==Further reading==
* Critchlow, Donald T. ''The Conservative Ascendancy: How the GOP Right Made Political History'' (2007)
* Filler, Louis. ''Dictionary of American Conservatism The First Complete Guide to Issues, People, Organizations and Events'' (1987), useful older encyclopedia
* Frank, Thomas. ''What's the Matter with Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the Heart of America'' (2005), a liberal perspective [http://www.amazon.com/Whats-Matter-Kansas-Conservatives-America/dp/080507774X/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193685789&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Frohnen, Bruce et al eds. ''American Conservatism: An Encyclopedia'' (2006), the most detailed reference
* Judis, John B. ''William F. Buckley, Jr.: Patron Saint of the Conservatives'' (1988) [http://www.amazon.com/William-F-Buckley-Jr-Conservatives/dp/0743217977/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1207759425&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Kirk, Russell. ''The Conservative Mind''. (7th ed. 2001). highly influential conservative history of ideas [http://www.historyebook.org/ online at ACLS e-books]
* Link, William A. ''Righteous warrior: Jesse Helms and the rise of modern conservatism'' (2008) 643 pages
* Micklethwait, John, and Adrian Wooldridge. ''The Right Nation,'' (2004) influential survey [http://www.amazon.com/Right-Nation-Conservative-Power-America/dp/B000F71124/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1205919226&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Micklethwait, John, and Adrian Wooldridge. ''God Is Back: How the Global Revival of Faith Is Changing the World'' (2009)
* Nash, George. ''The Conservative Intellectual Movement in America Since 1945'' (2006), excellent scholarly history. [http://www.amazon.com/Conservative-Intellectual-Movement-America-Since/dp/1933859121/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1241925238&sr=1-2 excerpt and text search]
*Pemberton, William E. ''Exit with Honor: The Life and Presidency of Ronald Reagan'' (1998) [http://www.questia.com/library/book/exit-with-honor-the-life-and-presidency-of-ronald-reagan-by-william-e-pemberton.jsp online edition]
*Perlstein, Rick. ''Before the Storm: Barry Goldwater and the Unmaking of the American Consensus'' (2004) on 1964 [http://www.amazon.com/Before-Storm-Goldwater-Unmaking-Consensus/dp/0809028581/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193684721&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
*Perlstein, Rick. ''Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America'' (2008) [http://www.amazon.com/Nixonland-Rise-President-Fracturing-America/dp/074324303X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1241924189&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Schneider, Gregory L. ed. ''Conservatism in America Since 1930: A Reader'' (2003)
*Schoenwald; Jonathan . ''A Time for Choosing: The Rise of Modern American Conservatism'' (2002) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=104931191 online edition] also [http://www.historyebook.org/ online at ACLS e-books]
* Schweizer, Peter, and Wynton C. Hall, eds. ''Landmark Speeches of the American Conservative Movement'' (2007) [http://www.amazon.com/Landmark-Speeches-American-Conservative-Movement/dp/1585445983/ref=sr_1_4/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193685365&sr=1-4 excerpt and text search]

== References ==
{{reflist|2}}

==External Links==
*[http://www.aim.org/wls/category/conservatives/ What Liberals Say - Category: Conservatives], [[Accuracy In Media]]
*[http://www.youtube.com/user/rescueKAL007#p/a/FD3DE4F0642C350C/0/1c8v-kgLvhM Pat Buchanan's "Crossfire" interview with [[Larry McDonald]] 3 months before downing of [[KAL 007]], Ron Paul intro]

[[Category:Conservative]]
[[Category:Taxation]]
[[Category:American History]]
[[Category:Reagan Era]]
[[Category:1960s]]
[[Category:New Deal]]

*[http://www.conservativedirectory.com Directory of Conservative Websites - Category: Conservatives], [[Politics]]

[[Category:Conservative]]
{{Conservatism}}

Forrest Gump

2012-02-16T01:22:30Z

EquisDulks: Created page with "'''Forrest Gump''' is a 1994 American movie starring Tom Hanks. The movie chronicles the life of a man named Forrest Gump, played by Hanks, who is born with special needs bo..."

'''Forrest Gump''' is a 1994 American movie starring [[Tom Hanks]]. The movie chronicles the life of a man named Forrest Gump, played by Hanks, who is born with special needs both physical and mental but eventually accomplishes great things. Given the historic events occuring in the movie, it is likely that Forrest's character was born in the late 1940's.

There is some debate as to whether the movie is conservative or liberal.

Arguments for the movie being liberal:
*The movie's main protagonist is played by [[Tom Hanks]].
*In one scene, Forrest speaks at an anti-Vietnam War rally (though it's completely unclear to viewer as to what he said or even whether his message was pro-war and anti-war).
*It is heavily implied that Forrest's mother slept with the local public school's principal (Forrest's father is never present and what happened to him is never made clear) in exchange for Forrest's admission.

Arguments for the movie being conservative:
*Forrest is motivated by loyalty, chivalry and a desire to help others.
*Jenny, whom Forrest loves, eventually realizes that her excessively liberal lifestyle has gotten her nowhere.
*Forrest is deeply faithful, once using his faith to comfort a troubled friend, and expresses concern that no one in China (that he knows of) attends church.
*Forrest has an extraordinary work ethic and continues his job mowing lawns even after receiving letter from his business partner, which states that he has successfully invested their money and that they will never have to work for money again.
*Forrest expresses firm belief in miracles and is touched with a miracle himself in the movie's famous "Run Forrest, run!" scene in which Forrest's leg braces break and Forrest discovers that he is able to run without them.

Conservative

2012-02-16T01:00:13Z

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A '''conservative''' is someone who adheres to principles of personal [[responsibility]], moral values, and [[limited government]], agreeing with [[George Washington]]'s [[Farewell Address]] that "[[religion]] and [[morality]] are indispensable supports" to political prosperity.<ref>[http://usinfo.state.gov/usa/infousa/facts/democrac/49.htm United States Department of State] George Washington, farewell address, 1796</ref><ref>[[Merriam-Webster]]'s Online Dictionary has the following definition of conservative: "tending or disposed to maintain existing views, conditions, or institutions : TRADITIONAL"[http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/conservative] Therefore, a conservative Christian would be one that tends to adhere to the morally sound doctrines of the early Christianity and [[Judeo-Christian]] values.</ref>

Former President [[Ronald Reagan]] said, "The basis of conservatism is a desire for less government interference or less centralized authority or more individual freedom."<ref>http://www.reason.com/news/show/29318.html</ref>
[[Image:Aaag.jpg|thumb|Ronald Reagan, the 40th President of the United States, is the epitome of American conservatism.]]

The term "Conservative Communist" is often used to describe a [[Communist]] who agrees, at least in part, with the policies of [[Stalin]] and [[Mao]].

The ''sine qua non'' of a conservative is someone who rises above his personal self-interest and promotes moral and economic values beneficial to all. Alternatively, a conservative is willing to learn and advocate the insights of [[economics]] and the morality of the [[Bible]] for the benefit of all, recognizing that the Bible is the most [[logic]]al book ever written. Specifically, conservatives seek or support:

* [[Limited government]] and balanced budgets
* [[Capitalism]] and [[free market|free markets]]
* [[Classroom prayer]]
* Prohibition of [[abortion]] and respect for human life
* The [[death penalty]] for heinous murders proven beyond reasonable doubt
* [[Abstinence]] education
* Traditional [[marriage]], not [[same-sex marriage]]
* [[Family values]], including traditional relationships and division of labor within the household
* Respect for differences between men and women, boys and girls
* Laws against [[pornography]]
* The [[Second Amendment]] right to keep and bear arms
* Economic allocative efficiency (as opposed to popular equity)
* Parental control of education ([[parental rights]])
* Private medical care and retirement plans
* Canceling failed social support programs
* No [[world government]]
* Enforcement of current laws regarding [[immigration]]
* Respect for our military ... past and present
* Rejection of [[junk science]] such as [[evolution]] and [[global warming]]
* Minimal Taxation
* [[Federalism]] (Separation of powers among the National, State and Local governments)
* Favoring [[states' rights]] over federal power, while accepting the Constitutional role of the federal government
* A strong national defense
* An [[Originalism|Originalist]] interpretation of the [[United States Constitution|Constitution]]

__TOC__ 
==Hall of Fame==
Conservative scholar Clinton Rossiter<ref> Rossiter, "The Giants of American Conservatism," ''American Heritage'' 1955 6(6): 56-59, 94-96, online in [[EBSCO]]</ref> names [[Alexander Hamilton]], [[John Adams]], [[John Marshall]], [[Daniel Webster]], [[John C. Calhoun]], [[Elihu Root]], and [[Theodore Roosevelt]] to the "Conservative's Hall of Fame,"'' with John Adams as the greatest of American conservatives.

===Presidents===
Periodically a conservative has been elected president of the United States. The most prominent conservative presidents include:
*[[George Washington]] (1789-1797)
*[[James Monroe]] (1817-1825)
*[[Grover Cleveland]] (1885-1889, 1893-1897)
*[[Warren G. Harding]] (1921-1923)
*[[Calvin Coolidge]] (1923-1929)
*[[Ronald Reagan]] (1981-1989)
*[[George W. Bush]] (2001-2009) (with respect to taxes and Supreme Court nominations)

The most prominent conservative Congresses have been:

*The 80th Congress (elected in 1946)
*The 104th Congress (elected in 1994)

===Movement===
[[Movement conservatives]] are those who accept the logic of conservatism across-the-board, and stand up for its powerful principles despite [[liberal]] ridicule. Movement conservative activists include:
*[[Phyllis Schlafly]], opposed [[ERA]]
*[[Larry McDonald]], Congressman, on board [[KAL 007]] when shot down by the Soviets near [[Moneron Island]].
*[[Jesse Helms]], Senator, specialist in foreign policy
*[[Pat Buchanan]], commentator
*[[Jerry Falwell]], religion
*[[Michele Bachmann]], congresswoman
*[[Ann Coulter]], columnist
*[[Rush Limbaugh]], radio
*[[Michelle Malkin]], commentator
*[[Glenn Beck]], commentator

===Key leaders===
*[[Barry Goldwater]] - 1964 Republican candidate, lost to liberal Democrat [[Lyndon Johnson]] but revived the conservative movement inside the GOP
*[[Russell Kirk]] - Theorist & intellectual
*[[Irving Kristol|Irving]] and [[William Kristol]] - Notable [[neoconservatives]]
*[[Margaret Thatcher]] - British prime minister between 1979 and 1990, held views similar to Reagan's
*[[Milton Friedman]] - Chicago-school [[libertarian]] [[economist]], influential during Reagan administration; leader of the [[Chicago School of Economics]]

==US Voters==
In America, most conservatives support the [[Republican Party]], but not exclusively so. In the 2008 election, 35% of the voters identified themselves as conservatives. Of them, 78% voted for [[John McCain]] and 20% for [[Barack Hussein Obama]], with the 20% accounting for Obama's margin of victory. Only 22% of the voters were liberal; they favored Obama 89%-10%. In the middle were 44% who called themselves moderates. They split for Obama by 60%-39%. (Minor candidates won 2% of the vote.)<ref> See [http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/results/polls/#USP00p1 Presidential 2008 Exit Poll]</ref>
[[File:Conservative-republican-brain.jpg|thumb|350px]]
===Religious differences between political conservatives and political liberals===
The Barna poll conducted in November 2008 shows significant differences between the 32% of Americans who called themselves as “mostly conservative” on social and political matters; and the 17% who called themselves “mostly liberal” on social and political matters. The others --50%--were moderates with positions somewhere in-between.<ref> See [http://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/13-culture/258-survey-shows-how-liberals-and-conservatives-differ-on-matters-of-faith on line results] </ref>

Some findings:
Political liberals are less than half as likely as political conservatives to firmly believe that the Bible is totally accurate in all of the principles it teaches (27% versus 63%, respectively); to strongly believe that [[Satan]] is real (17% versus 36%); and to firmly contend that they have a personal responsibility to share their religious beliefs with others (23% versus 48%).

[Note: "Liberal" and "conservative" in this survey are based on politics]

Liberals are also far less likely than conservatives to strongly believe each of the following:
*their religious faith is very important in their life (54% of liberals vs. 82% of conservatives);
*a person cannot earn their way into [[Heaven]] by doing good deeds or being a good person (23% vs. 37%);
*their faith is becoming an increasingly important moral guide in their life (38% vs. 70%);
*the church they currently attend is very important in helping them find direction and fulfillment in life (37% vs. 62%);
*their primary purpose in life is to love God with all their heart, mind, strength and soul (43% vs. 76%);

political conservatives were more likely than liberals to:
*read the Bible, other than at church events, during the past week (57% vs. 33%, respectively)
*attend a religious service during the past week (62% vs. 35%)
*[[pray]] to God, other than at a religious service, during the past week (91% vs. 76%)
*share their religious beliefs with others, during the past year (56% vs. 39%, among the born again Christians interviewed from each segment)
*have ever participated in a short-term missions trip, either within the U.S. or in another country (12% vs. 6%)

*2% of conservatives and 11% of liberals were [[atheist]] or [[agnostic]]
*15% of conservatives and 2% of liberals were [[Evangelical Christians|Christian evangelicals]]
*conservatives were twice as likely as liberals to be categorized as [[born again]], based on their theological views about salvation (63% vs. 32%)
*21% of conservatives were associated with the [[Roman Catholic Church]], compared to 30% among the liberals.

== Barack Obama and American Conservatism Backlash ==
In October of 2009, Niles Gardiner reported in the [[Britain|British]] newspaper ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'':
{{cquote|This week’s striking [[Gallup]] poll on political ideology is further confirmation that the United States is in essence a conservative nation, which has ironically become even more conservative under [[Barack Obama]]. According to Gallup, 40 percent of Americans describe their political views as conservative, 36 percent as moderate and 20 percent as liberal. This is the first time conservatives have outnumbered moderates in America since 2004.<ref>http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/nilegardiner/100014891/barack-obama-has-failed-to-defeat-conservatism-in-america/</ref>}}

== Conservative news organizations ==
:''See also: [[Conservative news organizations]] and [[Conservative media]]''
Some of the more notable news organizations which tend to be more conservative are [[WorldNetDaily]] and [[NewsMax]]. [[Fox News]], though often called conservative, tends to be more [[neoconservative]] than [[conservative]].

== Conservative magazines and blogs ==
:''See also: [[Conservative media]]''
Well known conservative magazines in the United States include ''[[National Review]]'', ''[[Policy Review]]'', ''[[The Weekly Standard]]'' and others.

Some notable [[Conservative blogs|conservative political blogs]] include the [[Heritage Foundation]]'s Policy Weblog, ''[[Human Events]]'', [[Michelle Malkin]], Newsbusters, Townhall.com and others.

== Neoconservatives ==

American commentators who ally themselves with the conservative movement but reject its religious or moral underpinnings are generally known as [[neoconservatives]].<ref>Jonah Goldberg, [http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=ZWMxNWNiNDJkY2JmNTExY2E1MzdkYWU3MWU1MTBiOGU= "What Is a 'Conservative'?"], [[National Review|National Review Online]], 11 May 2005</ref>

In the United States, conservatives are generally characterized by the following beliefs:

# Support of [[limited government]].
# A preference for freedom of opportunity over equality of result.
# [[Patriotism]], [[nationalism]], and support of a strong defense.
# Support of the institution of [[marriage]].
# Emphasis on social values, like [[prayer]] and [[pro-life]] principles.

In contrast, neoconservatives generally support [[Big government|bigger government]] and [[globalism]], and tend to downplay the significance of social values.

== Paleoconservatives ==

[[Paleoconservatives]] are conservatives who are more focused on social issues and American sovereignty, and are suspicious of both big government and big business. They also lean against foreign interventionalism. Neoconservatives criticize this with the pejorative term of "[[isolationism]]," as they believe in promoting [[democracy]] worldwide, even where different religious or value systems are incompatible with democracy-induced changes in control.

Among paleoconservatives was Democratic Congressman from Georgia, [[Larry McDonald]]. He was also second Chairman of the [[John Birch Society]], and President of Western Goals. McDonald was aboard [[Korean Airlines Flight 007]] when it was shot down by the [[Soviet Union|Soviets]] near [[Moneron Island]] in 1983.

==Fiscal Conservatism vs. Social Conservatism==

''For further details on the two related philosophies, see [[Fiscal conservatism]] and [[Social conservatism]]''

Recently, a division has been created between fiscal conservatism and social conservatism. Fiscal conservatism centers around a low and [[Balanced budget|balanced]] government [[budget]], and generally is opposed to programs such as [[Social Security]] and [[Medicare]]. Its primary goal is to reduce government spending significantly. Social Conservatism, on the other hand, focuses on the moral issues of conservatism. A social conservative will oppose [[same-sex marriage]], [[abortion]], and the teaching of [[evolution]] in schools. The majority of Conservatives (including most of the [[Republican Party]]) fall into both categories, however some fall into one or the other, but not both. Notably, [[Libertarians]] are strong fiscal conservatives but are not socially conservative. For instance, the [[Libertarian Party]] Platform <ref>[http://www.lp.org/platform]</ref> expresses support for the fiscally conservative principles of ending publicly funded [[welfare]] and [[healthcare]] programs as well as reducing government spending overall significantly. However, it also expresses support for [[same-sex marriage]] (with some libertarians leaning towards the ultimate goal of total [[marriage privatization]]) as well as maintaining the legal status of abortion.

Some Republicans and [[Democratic Party|Democrats]] also fit one category but not the other. Former [[New Mexico]] governor [[Gary Johnson]], who is seeking the Republican presidential nomination in 2012, was deemed "the most fiscally conservative governor" while he was in office (and probably earned that honor given all the spending cuts he made) but at the same time, he supports [[marriage privatization]] and [[abortion]] (though he believes ''[[Roe v. Wade]]'' should be overturned on Constitutional grounds). Also, several Democrats have expressed opposition to same-sex marriage and/or abortion, but still support liberal fiscal programs such as Social Security. They would be the opposite of Johnson - socially conservative but fiscally liberal.

== Personal conservatism ==
Because Conservatives often have strong political views, there can be a tendency to see conservatism as a purely political ideology. However, there is also a strong personal side to conservatism - being a conservative is as much about applying conservative values to one's everyday life as it is about campaigning and voting for conservative candidates. In general, conservatives can be characterized by a strong sense of personal [[morality]], a willingness to observe their culture's traditions and customs, and a desire to be respectable and to show due respect to other members of the community.
==History of American conservatism==
===Textbook problems===
:''See also: [[Textbook bias]]''
College-level teaching about conservatism has been distorted by a "liberal state paradigm"--that is, [[textbook]]s usually interpret recent American history in terms of the origins and successes of political liberalism--especially the [[New Deal]], the [[welfare state]], [[labor union]]s, and [[Civil Rights Movement|Civil Rights]] for blacks and [[equality]] for women. Conservative politics is usually defined as a reaction: as a [[free market]] reply to the growth of [[big government]]; as an expression of outrage against declining support for tradition and Christian morality. Where the violent Wobblies ([[Industrial Workers of the World|IWW]]) and illegal sit down strikes of the 1930s are seen as heroic, exposing [[Communist]] subversion by [[Joe McCarthy]] is denounced as the nadir of political morality.<ref> See Leonard Moore, "Approaching Conservatism," ''OAH Magazine of History,'' 17 (January 2003) [http://www.oah.org/pubs/magazine/conservatism/moore.html online edition]</ref>

===Loyalists===
The [[Loyalists]] of the [[American Revolution]] were mostly political conservatives, some of whom produced political discourse of a high order, including lawyer [[Joseph Galloway]] and governor-historian [[Thomas Hutchinson]]. However when the crisis came, they stood with the Crown as it tried to destroy American political liberties. After the war, the great majority remained in the U.S. and became citizens, but some leaders emigrated to other places in the British Empire. [[Samuel Seabury]] was a Loyalist who stayed and as the first American bishop played a major role in shaping the [[Episcopal]] religion, a stronghold of conservative social values. While the Loyalist political tradition died out totally it the U.S., it survives in Canadian conservatism.

===Founding Fathers===
The [[Founding Fathers]] created the single most important set of political ideas in American history, known as [[Republicanism]], which all groups, liberal and conservative alike, have drawn from. Two parties were named "Republican"-- the one founded in 1794 by [[Thomas Jefferson]] and [[James Madison]] (it disappeared in the 1820s), and the modern GOP founded in 1854.

During the [[First Party System]] (1790s-1820s) the [[Federalist Party]], led by [[Alexander Hamilton]], developed an important variation of republicanism that can be considered conservative. Rejecting [[monarchy]] and [[aristocracy]], they emphasized civic virtue as the core American value. The Federalists spoke for the propertied interests and the upper classes of the cities. They envisioned a modernizing land of banks and factories, with a strong army and navy. [[George Washington]] was their great hero.

On many issues American conservatism also derives from the republicanism of [[Thomas Jefferson]] and his followers, especially [[John Randolph of Roanoke]] and his "Old Republicans" or "[[Quids]]." They idealized the [[yeoman]] farmer as the epitome of civic virtue, warned that banking and industry led to [[corruption]], that is to the illegitimate use of government power for private ends. Jefferson himself was a vehement opponent of what today is called "[[judicial activism]]".
<ref>[http://etext.virginia.edu/jefferson/quotations/jeff1030.htm]</ref> The Jeffersonians stressed small government.

===Ante-Bellum: Calhoun and Webster===
During the [[Second Party System]] (1830-54) the [[Whig Party]] attracted most conservatives, such as [[Daniel Webster]] of New England. [[Daniel Webster]] and other leaders of the [[Whig Party]], called it the conservative party in the late 1830s.<ref>The word was originally used in the [[French Revolution]]. The British used it after 1839 to describe a major party. The first American usage is by Whigs who called themselves "Conservatives" in the late 1830s. Hans Sperber and Travis Trittschuh, ''American Political terms: An Historical Dictionary'' (1962) 94-97.</ref> [[John C. Calhoun]], a Democrat, articulated a sophisticated conservatism in his writings. [[Richard Hofstadter]] (1948) called him "The [[Karl Marx|Marx]] of the Master Class." Calhoun argued that a conservative minority should be able to limit the power of a "majority dictatorship" because tradition represents the wisdom of past generations. (This argument echoes one made by [[Edmund Burke]], the founder of British conservatism, in ''Reflections on the Revolution in France'' (1790)). Calhoun is considered the father of the idea of minority rights, a position adopted by liberals in the 1960s in dealing with [[Civil Rights]].

The conservatism of the antebellum period is contested territory; conservatives of the 21st century disagree over what comprises their heritage. Thus [[William J. Bennett]] (2006), a prominent conservative leader, warns conservatives to NOT honor Calhoun, [[Know-Nothings]], [[Copperheads (politics)|Copperheads]] and 20th century [[isolationist]]s.

===Lincoln to Cleveland===
Since 1865 the [[Republican Party]] has identified itself with President [[Abraham Lincoln]], who was the ideological heir of the [[Whig Party|Whigs]] and of both [[Thomas Jefferson|Jefferson]] and [[Alexander Hamilton|Hamilton]]. As the [[Gettysburg Address]] shows, Lincoln cast himself as a second Jefferson bringing a second birth of freedom to the nation that had been born 86 years before in Jefferson's [[Declaration of Independence|Declaration]]. The [[Copperheads (politics)|Copperheads]] of the [[American Civil War|Civil War]] reflected a [[reactionary]] opposition to modernity of the sort repudiated by modern conservatives. A few libertarians have adopted a neo-Copperhead position, arguing Lincoln was a dictator who created an all-powerful government.

In the late 19th century the [[Bourbon Democrat]]s, led by President [[Grover Cleveland]], preached against corruption, high taxes (protective [[tariff]]s), and [[imperialism]], and supported the [[gold standard]] and business interests. They were overthrown by [[William Jennings Bryan]] in 1896, who moved the mainstream of the [[Democratic Party]] permanently to the left.

The 1896 presidential election was the first with a conservative versus liberal theme in the way in which these terms are now understood. Republican [[William McKinley]] won using the pro-business slogan "[[sound money]] and protection," while Bryan's anti-bank populism had a lasting effect on economic policies of the Democratic Party.

[[William Graham Sumner]], [[Yale University|Yale]] professor (1872-1910) and polymath, vigorously promoted a libertarian conservative ethic. After dallying with [[Social Darwinism]] under the influence of [[Herbert Spencer]], he rejected [[evolution]] in his later works, and strongly opposed imperialism. He opposed monopoly and [[paternalism]] in theory as a threat to equality, democracy and middle class values, but was vague on what to do about it.<ref>Curtis, Bruce. "William Graham Sumner 'On the Concentration of Wealth.'" Journal of American History 1969 55(4): 823-832.</ref>

===Early 20th century===
In the [[Progressive Era]] (1890s-1932), regulation of industry expanded as conservatives led by Senator [[Nelson Aldrich]] of [[Rhode Island]] were put on the defensive. However, Aldrich's proposal for a strong national banking system was enacted as the [[Federal Reserve System]] in 1913. [[Theodore Roosevelt]], the dominant personality of the era, was both liberal and conservative by turns. As a liberal he took a tough [[Regulation|regulatory]] approach toward businesses and [[trust]]s, and (post-presidency) fought for social insurance for the elderly. As a conservative he led the fight to make the country a major naval power, and demanded entry into [[World War I]] to stop what he saw as the [[German Empire|German]] attacks on civilization. [[William Howard Taft]] promoted a strong federal judiciary that would overrule excessive legislation. Taft defeated Roosevelt on that issue in 1912, forcing Roosevelt out of the GOP and turning it to the right for decades. As president, Taft remade the [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] with five appointments; he himself presided as chief justice in 1921-30, the only former president ever to do so.

Pro-business Republicans returned to dominance in 1920 with the election of President [[Warren G. Harding]]. The presidency of [[Calvin Coolidge]] (1923-29) was a high water mark for conservatism, both politically and intellectually. Classic writing of the period includes ''Democracy and Leadership'' (1924) by Irving Babbitt and [[H.L. Mencken]]'s magazine ''American Mercury'' (1924-33). The [[Efficiency Movement]] attracted many conservatives such as [[Herbert Hoover]] with its pro-business, pro-engineer approach to solving social and economic problems. In the 1920s many American conservatives generally maintained anti-foreign attitudes and, as usual, were disinclined toward changes to the healthy economic climate of the age.

During the [[Great Depression]], other conservatives participated in the taxpayers' revolt at the local level. From 1930 to 1933, Americans formed as many as 3,000 taxpayers' leagues to protest high [[property tax]]es. These groups endorsed measures to limit and rollback taxes, lowered penalties on tax delinquents, and cuts in government spending. A few also called for illegal resistance (or tax strikes). The best known of these was led by the Association of Real Estate Taxpayers in [[Chicago]] which, at its height, had 30,000 dues-paying members.

An important intellectual movement, calling itself [[Southern Agrarians]] and based in Nashville, brought together like-minded novelists, poets and historians who argued that modern values undermined the traditions of American [[Republicanism]] and civic virtue.

The Depression brought [[liberal]]s to power under President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] (1933). Indeed the term "liberal" now came to mean a supporter of the [[New Deal]] and Roosevelt's powerful [[New Deal Coalition]]. In 1934 [[Al Smith]] and pro-business Democrats formed the [[American Liberty League]] to fight the new liberalism, but failed to stop Roosevelt's shifting the Democratic party to the left. In 1936 the Republicans rejected Hoover and tried the more liberal [[Alf Landon]], who carried only [[Maine]] and [[Vermont]]. When Roosevelt tried to pack the Supreme Court in 1937 the conservatives finally cooperated across party lines and defeated it with help from Vice President [[John Nance Garner]]. Roosevelt unsuccessfully tried to purge the conservative Democrats in the 1938 election. The conservatives in Congress then formed a bipartisan informal [[Conservative Coalition]] of Republicans and southern Democrats. It largely controlled Congress from 1937 to 1964. Its most prominent leaders were Senator [[Robert Taft]], a Republican of [[Ohio]], and Senator [[Richard Russell]], Democrat of [[Georgia]].
[[Image:Gop-plank.JPG|thumb|275px|1936 cartoon shows GOP building its platform from the conservative planks abandoned by the Democrats]]

In the United States, the [[Old Right]], also called the Old Guard, was a group of [[libertarianism|libertarian]], free-market anti-interventionists, originally associated with Midwestern Republicans and Southern Democrats. The Republicans (but not the southern Democrats) were [[isolationist]]s in 1939-41, (see [[America First]]), and later opposed [[NATO]] and U.S. military intervention in the [[Korean War]].

===Later 20th century: Goldwater, Buckley, the Dixiecrats===
By 1950, [[American liberalism]] was so dominant intellectually that liberal critic [[Lionel Trilling]] could dismiss contemporary conservatism as "irritable mental gestures which seek to resemble ideas." <ref>Lapham 2004</ref> But just as Trilling was writing a revival was underway. In the 1950s, principles for a conservative political movement were hashed out in books like [[Russell Kirk]]'s ''The Conservative Mind'' (1953) and in the highly influential new magazine ''[[National Review]]'', founded by [[William F. Buckley]] in 1955.

Whereas Taft's [[Old Right]] had been [[isolationist]] the new conservatism favored American intervention overseas to oppose [[communism]]. It looked to the [[Founding Fathers]] for historical inspiration as opposed to [[John C. Calhoun|Calhoun]] and the antebellum South.

The success of the [[Civil Rights movement]] came in the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]] and the [[Voting Rights Act]] of 1965. Most conservatives supported both, but [[Barry Goldwater]] opposed them. Until then southern whites (both liberal and conservative) had been locked into the Democratic party. That lock was now broken and southern conservatives started voting for Republican candidates for president in 1964-68, and by the 1990s they were also voting for GOP candidates for state and local office. The southern blacks now began to vote in large numbers, and they became Democrats, moving that party in the south to the left. By 2000, for the first time, all southern states had a conservative GOP and a liberal Democratic party. The region favored the GOP heavily in presidential elections, but split in state contests. In 2008, however, the [[Barack Hussein Obama|Obama]] campaign broke into the solid Republican South, carrying [[Florida]], [[Virginia]] and [[North Carolina]].

Goldwater, a charismatic figure whose intense opposition to all [[New Deal]] programs angered liberals, was defeated in a landslide in 1964. Goldwater faded and his supporters regrouped under new leadership, especially that of [[Ronald Reagan]] in [[California]], and regained strength nationally in the 1966 elections. Conservatives voted for [[Richard Nixon]] in 1968, who narrowly defeated the New Deal champion [[Hubert Humphrey]], and southern demagogue [[George Wallace]]. Nixon had come to terms with both the Goldwater wing of the party and the still-influential Rockefeller Republicans (Republicans from the [[Northeast]] who supported many New Deal programs).

===Nixon, Reagan, and Bush===

The Republican administrations of President [[Richard Nixon]] in the [[1970s]] were characterized more by their emphasis on ''[[realpolitik]]'', [[détente]], and economic policies such as [[wage and price controls]], than by their adherence to conservative rhetoric and more liberal actions.

In the eight years of [[Ronald Reagan]]'s presidency 1981-89 the American conservative movement achieved ascendancy. In 1980 the GOP took control of the Senate for the first time since 1954, and [[conservative principles]] dominated Reagan's economic and foreign policies, with [[supply side economics]] as well as a strict opposition to [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] [[Communism]]. Reagan promised to cut [[welfare]] spending but failed to do so. He did cut taxes, but raised [[military spending]] and created large [[federal deficit]]s that turned out working to our advantage, because at that time, deficits didn't matter. It should be known that the Republicans also [[Balanced budget|balanced]] the [[budget]] in the late 1990s.

An icon of the American conservative movement, Reagan is credited by his supporters with transforming American politics, galvanizing the Republican Party, uniting a coalition of economic conservatives who supported his supply side economic policies, known as "[[Reaganomics]]," foreign policy conservatives who favored his success in stopping and rolling back Communism, and social conservatives who identified with Reagan's conservative religious and social ideals.

==Reactions to Obama==
"Forty percent of Americans now self-identify as conservatives — double the amount of self-professed liberals — largely because independents are beginning to take sides." [http://www.ashbrook.org/publicat/onprin/winter11/spalding.html]

Compare [[Progressive liberalism]].

==Conservatives in Australia==

Australia was once more conservative than England but sweeping [[gun control]] laws pushed the nation leftward toward greater dependency on government in the last decade. In 2009, opposition to government control based on alleged [[global warming]] galvanized conservatives there and they led the [[Liberal Party of Australia]] to a repudiation of an emissions trading scheme.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/national/shock-result-as-abbott-wins-liberal-leadership-by-one-vote--ets-dead-20091201-k1uz.html</ref> Conservatives also support smaller political parties such as the [[Family First Party]].

==Conservatives in Britain==

In the [[United Kingdom]], the [[Conservative Party]] is the major partner in the governing coalition. The party's current leader, [[David Cameron]],<ref>[http://www.conservatives.com Conservative party UK]</ref> has been [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]] of the UK since May 2010.

Up until the mid-19th century, the forerunners of the Conservatives were known as [[Tory|Tories]], and the name has persisted as a common nickname both for the political party and those believed to be in agreement with it. Since the mid-to-late 1970s, British conservatives have been defined by an advocacy of [[laissez-faire]] economics, privatization and lower taxation. In recent years the Conservative Party has moved away from the social conservatism which once characterized it, and the current party policy includes, for example, support for [[abortion]] on demand, gay [[civil partnership]], the [[Kyoto Treaty]] and to oppose [[capital punishment]] (although it should be noted that such policies have little support among the party's grassroots membership) <ref>John Charmley, ''A History of Conservative Politics Since 1830'', (2nd ed. 2008) </ref>

[[Margaret Thatcher]] revolutionized the British conservatives much like Reagan revolutionized American conservatives. During her tenure as Prime Minister, she cut taxes, trimmed back at government waste, and exercised a strong national defense abroad (including the [[Falklands War]] of 1982).

Levels of prayer and worship are much lower in [[England]] and [[Wales]] than in the U.S., and religious issues thereby play less of a role in public discourse. However, religious issues remain a significant factor in [[Northern Ireland]] and in 2008 religious issues were significant during a special election in [[Scotland]].

In common with conservatives in many other countries, British Conservatives tend towards a patriotic rather than internationalist outlook, and are traditionally skeptical of the [[European Union]].

The broadcast media (dominated by the [[BBC]]) is almost exclusively [[liberal]] in tone. The print media is different with pro-Conservative newspapers like the ''[[Daily Mail]]'', ''[[Daily Express]]'' and ''[[Daily Telegraph]]'' selling more copies than their rivals.<ref>[http://www.mediauk.com/the_knowledge/i.muk/An_introduction_to_newspapers_in_the_UK Media UK; Introduction to newspapers in the UK]</ref>

== Conservatism and the French Revolution ==

Conservatism in France and the continent generally arose in the after 1790 as a response to the radicalism of the [[French Revolution]].

== Benefits of Conservatism ==

Several facets of conservatism function in unison to make it an effective and powerful philosophy. Conservatism emphasizes personal freedom, independence, and initiative; this allows the [[best of the public]] to rise to their natural level of achievement. Conservatives recognize that [[big government]] fosters dependency and stifles individual achievement--and thus, weakens society as a whole.

At the same time, conservatives also recognize that with individual freedom comes [[individual responsibility]]. In the absence of a hand-holding [[nanny state]], it is imperative that each individual take responsibility for his own actions, and exercise his rights and freedoms wisely and with discretion. Thus, [[social conservatism]] is also critical to a successful society, as it emphasizes the importance of [[morality]], duty, and responsibility to one's self and fellow men.

== Also See ==
*[[Conservative resources]]
*[[Previous Breaking News/Conservatives|Articles about '''Conservatives''' from previous "Breaking News"]]
*[[More News/Conservatives|Articles about '''Conservatives''' from "More News"]]
*[[Conservative Links]]
*[[Essay:Fair and balanced is not part of the Conservative platform]]
*[[Conservative politicians]]
*[[Liberal]]
*[[Larry McDonald]]

==Further reading==
* Critchlow, Donald T. ''The Conservative Ascendancy: How the GOP Right Made Political History'' (2007)
* Filler, Louis. ''Dictionary of American Conservatism The First Complete Guide to Issues, People, Organizations and Events'' (1987), useful older encyclopedia
* Frank, Thomas. ''What's the Matter with Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the Heart of America'' (2005), a liberal perspective [http://www.amazon.com/Whats-Matter-Kansas-Conservatives-America/dp/080507774X/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193685789&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Frohnen, Bruce et al eds. ''American Conservatism: An Encyclopedia'' (2006), the most detailed reference
* Judis, John B. ''William F. Buckley, Jr.: Patron Saint of the Conservatives'' (1988) [http://www.amazon.com/William-F-Buckley-Jr-Conservatives/dp/0743217977/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1207759425&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Kirk, Russell. ''The Conservative Mind''. (7th ed. 2001). highly influential conservative history of ideas [http://www.historyebook.org/ online at ACLS e-books]
* Link, William A. ''Righteous warrior: Jesse Helms and the rise of modern conservatism'' (2008) 643 pages
* Micklethwait, John, and Adrian Wooldridge. ''The Right Nation,'' (2004) influential survey [http://www.amazon.com/Right-Nation-Conservative-Power-America/dp/B000F71124/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1205919226&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Micklethwait, John, and Adrian Wooldridge. ''God Is Back: How the Global Revival of Faith Is Changing the World'' (2009)
* Nash, George. ''The Conservative Intellectual Movement in America Since 1945'' (2006), excellent scholarly history. [http://www.amazon.com/Conservative-Intellectual-Movement-America-Since/dp/1933859121/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1241925238&sr=1-2 excerpt and text search]
*Pemberton, William E. ''Exit with Honor: The Life and Presidency of Ronald Reagan'' (1998) [http://www.questia.com/library/book/exit-with-honor-the-life-and-presidency-of-ronald-reagan-by-william-e-pemberton.jsp online edition]
*Perlstein, Rick. ''Before the Storm: Barry Goldwater and the Unmaking of the American Consensus'' (2004) on 1964 [http://www.amazon.com/Before-Storm-Goldwater-Unmaking-Consensus/dp/0809028581/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193684721&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
*Perlstein, Rick. ''Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America'' (2008) [http://www.amazon.com/Nixonland-Rise-President-Fracturing-America/dp/074324303X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1241924189&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Schneider, Gregory L. ed. ''Conservatism in America Since 1930: A Reader'' (2003)
*Schoenwald; Jonathan . ''A Time for Choosing: The Rise of Modern American Conservatism'' (2002) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=104931191 online edition] also [http://www.historyebook.org/ online at ACLS e-books]
* Schweizer, Peter, and Wynton C. Hall, eds. ''Landmark Speeches of the American Conservative Movement'' (2007) [http://www.amazon.com/Landmark-Speeches-American-Conservative-Movement/dp/1585445983/ref=sr_1_4/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193685365&sr=1-4 excerpt and text search]

== References ==
{{reflist|2}}

==External Links==
*[http://www.aim.org/wls/category/conservatives/ What Liberals Say - Category: Conservatives], [[Accuracy In Media]]
*[http://www.youtube.com/user/rescueKAL007#p/a/FD3DE4F0642C350C/0/1c8v-kgLvhM Pat Buchanan's "Crossfire" interview with [[Larry McDonald]] 3 months before downing of [[KAL 007]], Ron Paul intro]

[[Category:Conservative]]
[[Category:Taxation]]
[[Category:American History]]
[[Category:Reagan Era]]
[[Category:1960s]]
[[Category:New Deal]]

*[http://www.conservativedirectory.com Directory of Conservative Websites - Category: Conservatives], [[Politics]]

[[Category:Conservative]]
{{Conservatism}}

Progressive taxation

2012-02-14T01:43:21Z

EquisDulks:

'''Progressive taxation''' is a typically [[Liberal]] [[tax]] policy (though it deserves note that [[Adam Smith]], an early proponent of laissez-faire economy, suggested that small amounts of progressive taxation could be beneficial to society) whereby the rich are taxed more heavily than the poor. They are placed into ''progressively higher'' [[tax brackets]]. The name is a technical economic term and has nothing to do with causing progress.

==See Also==
*[[Flat tax]]
*[[Regressive tax]]

[[Category:Finance]]
[[category:Taxation]]

Rick Santorum

2012-02-14T00:55:27Z

EquisDulks: /* Personal Life */

[[Image:Rick Santorum.jpg|right|thumb|Rick Santorum]]
'''Richard John "Rick" Santorum''' (Winchester, Virginia, May 10, 1958) is an American lawyer and politician. He is member of the Republican Party. Santorum served as [[United States]] [[Senator]] from [[Pennsylvania]] from January, 1995 through January, 2007. During that time, Santorum was known for his [[conservative]] political views, but he would endorse and aggressively campaign for [[pro-abortion]] candidates against [[pro-life]] opponents. In the [[Presidential Election 2012]], Santorum senselessly remained the race presumably as a [[stalking horse]] for [[Mitt Romney]], who has a [[pro-abortion]] record.

In 2000, he was elected by his peers to the position of Senate Republican Conference Chairman.

<blockquote>
Santorum was an author and floor manager of the landmark "Welfare Reform Act" which passed in 1996 that has empowered millions of Americans to leave the welfare rolls and enter the workforce. Senator Santorum wrote and championed legislation that outlawed the heinous procedure known as "Partial Birth Abortion" as well as the "Born Alive Infants Protection Act", the "Unborn Victims of Violence Act", and the "Combating Autism Act" because he believes each and every individual has value and the most vulnerable in our society need to be protected. Senator Santorum fought to maintain fiscal sanity in Washington before it was in fashion, fighting for a balanced budget and a line item veto. <ref> [http://www.ricksantorum.com/why-rick Why Rick?]</ref>
</blockquote>

A [[cult]]-like movement among [[liberals]], and particularly [[homosexual]] activists, vilified Santorum for his forthright and truthful statements. In the Senate, Santorum stood for traditional values, and fought for [[traditional marriage]]. His "[[Santorum Amendment]]" to the No Child Left Behind Act sought (albeit unsuccessfully) to stop public schools from presenting the [[theory of evolution]] in a dogmatic way.

In 2006 [[Bob Casey, Jr.]], the [[liberal]] son of a popular former Pennsylvania governor who had been [[pro-life]], defeated Santorum as part of a [[Democratic]] sweep in that election. Casey subsequently endorsed pro-[[abortion]] [[Barack Obama]] for president in 2008.

Santorum is currently a candidate for the [[Presidential Election 2012|2012 Presidential Election]].
==Liberal Obsession with Santorum==

[[Liberals]] have become obsessed with Santorum, particularly after he stood up for traditional marriage and drew an analogy between support for [[homosexual marriage]] and other illegal forms of marriage and conduct. Rather than dispute the analogy, liberals were quick to [[liberal tricks|feign offense]]. They argue that because the other kinds of conduct are so universally repulsive, pointing out the parallels with [[homosexual act]]s and homosexual marriage unduly disparages homosexuals. But they know the ugly truth -- that homosexuality is just one step away on the slippery slope towards many other disgustingly immoral proclivities. They can only resort to [[liberal namecalling]] and personal attacks; it's gotten so pathetic that now they're dedicated to slandering his name by equating it with fecal matter, knowing full well they can't refute any of his arguments.

==Dan Savage==
Homosexual advice columnist [[Dan Savage]] instigated a campaign on [[Google]] to associate Santorum's name with vile slang. By enlisting the help of readers of his column, mostly college students experimenting with sexual deviancy, he redirected legitimate searches for Santorum's name to a slanderous website he created, urging people to spread the candidate's name as a vile Internet meme. That children are often the first to absorb new Internet content was apparently of no concern to the gay rights activist, who also encouraged writers to his newspaper column to address him as "Dear Faggot."<ref>http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/SavageLove?oid=340</ref>

==2012 Presidential Race==

On June 6, 2011<ref>http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/06/us-usa-campaign-santorum-idUSTRE7551YL20110606</ref>, Santorum announced his intention to run for the Republican Party nomination in the US Presidential election of 2012.<ref>http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0511/55772.html</ref>

<blockquote>
In the [[Iowa]] caucuses, January, 3, 2012, Santorum and [[Mitt Romney]] Fight to a Draw. In the first Republican contest of the season, the two candidates were separated by only a sliver of votes, offering Rick Santorum a chance to emerge as the alternative to Mitt Romney. <ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/04/us/politics/santorum-and-romney-fight-to-a-draw.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all Romney Wins Iowa Caucus by 8 Vote] </ref>
</blockquote>
==Personal Life==
Rick Santorum and his wife Karen are the parents of seven children: Elizabeth, John, Daniel, Sarah Maria, Peter, Patrick and Isabella. Isabella was born in 2008 with a rare genetic disorder known as Trisomy 18. Most children born with this disorder die in infancy, and only about 10 percent survive to their first birthday.<ref name="santorum">[http://www.ncregister.com/site/article%20/presidential-hopefuls-rick-santorum1/ Presidential Hopefuls: Rick Santorum, Catholic Former Senator Lives Out His Devotion to the Sanctity of Life] Hayes, Charlotte, National Catholic Register, January 9, 2012, retrieved January 15, 2012</ref>

In keeping with his conservative, pro life stance, Santorum counts as his eighth child Gabriel, who sadly lost his life in 1996 due to an infection contracted in the womb. When given the choice between taking an antibiotic, which would Gabriel to come out violently prematurely and almost certainly die, or to continue the pregnancy which would put herself at great personal risk, Rick Santorum's wife chose to take the antibiotic. The baby was born five months prematurely, and died two hours later in the hospital. According to an article in the ''National Catholic Register'', the Santorums "took their child home briefly so that their other children could meet their brother." Santorum stated, "We wanted them to know that there was a baby and that his life was precious and that baby in the womb was real,"<ref name="santorum"/>

The Santorum family's struggle with the sadness of the loss of their son, and their decision to mourn the baby as a human being, served as an inspiration to other families struggling with the pain of losing a child. On the other hand, the criticism Santorum received from pro abortion journalists, such as liberal "gotcha reporter" Alan Colmes,<ref>www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=48506</ref> who accused Santorum of "playing" with his dead child's body, has been fierce. Public sentiment, however, is firmly in Santorum's column.<ref>http://www.nationalreview.com/media-blog/286998/alan-colmes-apologizes-rick-santorum-greg-pollowitz</ref>

==References==
<references/>

{{DEFAULTSORT: Santorum, Rick}}
[[Category:Former United States Senators]]
[[Category:Republican Party]]
[[Category:Conservatives]]
[[Category:2012 Presidential Candidates]]
[[Category:Catholic Politicians]]

Animal Farm

2012-02-14T00:50:20Z

EquisDulks: /* Characters */

[[Image:Animalfarm2.jpg|right|thumb]]
'''''Animal Farm''''' (1946) is an anti-[[Stalin]]ist "fairy story" by [[George Orwell]]. The story is a [[Satire|satirical]] [[allegory]] of the [[Russian Revolution]],<ref>"the various episodes are taken from the actual history of the Russian Revolution" [http://www.netcharles.com/orwell/articles/ukrainian-af-pref.htm Preface to the Ukrainian Edition of Animal Farm (written by Orwell)]</ref> particularly directed against [[Joseph Stalin|Stalin's]] Russia. The story's concept of "animalism" is used by Orwell to portray a generic view of [[socialism]], similar to that first expounded by [[Karl Marx]] (''Old Major''), who Orwell believed was naive in thinking that his philosophy would actually work. Orwell, although agreeing with the overall concept of equality through socialism,{{fact}} was critical of Marx because he didn't take into account the greed and jealousy which would eventually undermine the entire philosophy.<ref>"Orwell believed that although socialism is good as an ideal, it can never be successfully adopted due to uncontrollable sins of human nature." </ref> This idea was shown through ''Napoleon'' and the other pigs, who, through persuasion and force became the dominant authority on the farm. When Napoleon outlaws the "Beasts of England" anthem, he is demonstrating the ruthlessness of a state in which the initial ideal of socialism as a way to ensure equality among animals has been heavily distorted into a force of oppression. Many of the characters of Animal Farm are representative of real life characters or organizations involved in the Russian Revolution and are listed below.<ref>[http://barney.gonzaga.edu/~sbennet3/mead/lessonplans/animalfarm.htm Animal Farm - Comparison of characters to the Russian Revolution]</ref>

==Characters==

'''Old Major''': ([[Karl Marx]] and [[V.I. Lenin]]) A pig, and the leader of the animals before the revolution. He dies of old age before the revolt begins.

'''Boxer''': (The [[proletariat]]) A very strong horse whose attitude is very simplistic and uncaring, simply determining that, regardless of what leader on the farm say or do, he will make things come out right by working ever harder.

'''The sheep''': (Another aspect of the proletariat) They unquestioningly accept and parrot the leadership's [[propaganda]] and shout down dissenters.

'''Mollie''': (The [[czarist]] aristocracy) A female horse who is vain and shallow. Her low intelligence is seen in whatever she does, and she is easily led astray by flattery. However, some analysts of the story have expressed admiration for her as being one of the few non-pigs and non-humans in Animal Farm who takes control of her own life.

'''Snowball''': ([[Leon Trotsky]]) A pig who struggled with Napoleon for power. Possibly the most intelligent animal on the farm, he envisioned the windmill and much of the governance structure of the farm. Though he is often seen as a protagonistic "good guy," it is hinted at throughout the story prior to his exile that his motives, though not necessarily malicious, are less than saint-like.

'''Napoleon''': ([[Joseph Stalin]]) Another pig whose lust for power will stop at nothing. While taking a stand against Snowball's ideas every time they come up, Napoleon rarely presents any of his own.

'''Squealer''': ([[Propaganda]] newspaper [[Pravda]]) A porker who manages to convince, using lies, everyone on the farm to accept whatever Napoleon declares.

'''Farmer Jones''': ([[Tsar]] [[Nicholas II]]) The owner of Manor Farm before the animals revolt. A drunkard, but not a bad farmer, Jones was often negligent in caring for the animals.

'''Farmer Frederick''': ([[Adolf Hitler]]) The owner of the neighboring Pinchfield farm.

'''Farmer Pilkington''': ([[Winston Churchill]]) The owner of the neighboring Foxwood farm.

'''Mr. Whymper''': ([[George Bernard Shaw]]) The 'face' of Animal Farm to the outside world. The pigs successfully convince him that conditions in Animal Farm are much better than they are.

'''Moses''': (Religion in general)<ref>"Moses represents Orwell's view of the Church. To Orwell, the Church is just used as a tool by dictatorships to keep the working class of people hopeful and productive." [http://www.netcharles.com/orwell/articles/col-afcp.htm Animal Farm Character Profiles]</ref> Farmer Jones's pet raven, whom the other animals resent because he does no work. He preaches about a wondrous land called Sugarcandy Mountain, where the animals will supposedly go when they die. The pigs try to convince the other animals that Moses is lying, but once they see his usefulness to them, they tolerate him.

==Animal Farm in film==

The book was made into an animated cartoon.

The book's idea of a false utopia was bitingly portrayed in "[[Toy Story 3]]", with a [[day care center]] substituting for the farm setting. "This isn't a family," one toy shouts. "It's a prison!" <ref>[http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-klavan-toy-story-3-20101102,0,6568516.story]</ref>

==Online version==
The text is now in the [[Public domain]], and may be found at the [http://orwell.ru/library/novels/Animal_Farm/ Orwell library].

==References==
<references/>

==Further reading==
* Rodden, John. "Appreciating Animal Farm in the New Millennium," ''Modern Age'' Volume 45, Number 1; Winter 2003 [http://www.mmisi.org/ma/45_01/rodden.pdf online edition]

==Links==
* [http://www.netcharles.com/orwell/articles/col-paf.htm George Orwell and the Politics of Animal Farm] - Paul Eissen

[[category:Novels]]
[[Category:Socialism]]
[[Category:Anti-communist books]]