Conservapedia - User contributions [en]

Democratic Socialism

2007-11-01T21:16:24Z

Kucinichforlife:

Democratic Socialism is a political ideology that combines [[democracy]], [[civil liberties]], and [[socialism]]. It is an ideology that is in opposition to most of mainstream America which considers [[socialism]] synonomous with [[dictatorship]] and [[capitalism]] synanomous with [[democracy]] but this is not how democratic socialists view the world. [[Capitalism]] can sometimes be associated with brutal [[dictatorship]]s; the Somoza dynasty in [[Nicaragua]], the Karimov regime in [[Uzbekistan]], and the brutal reign of [[Chile]]an [[dictator]] [[Augusto Pinochet]] (who was installed in a US-backed military coup) are all example of brutal capitalist tyrannies. Capitalism can be associated with democracy and dictatorship much the same way socialism can. Democratic socialists are not as ideologically rigid as [[Marxist]]s and other Communists and will usually allow private enterprise to exist but will strictly regulate it. Some Democratic Socialist countries in the [[First World]] include the Scandinavian countries and [[France]]. Emerging socialist democracies in the [[Third World]] include [[Venezuela]] and [[Bolivia]] (although the former and sometimes the latter are considered dictatorships by many in the [[America]]n Mainstream, it is not known whether this is because of [[human rights abuses]] or just an ideological disagreement).
[[Category: Politics]]

Juche

2007-11-01T21:14:34Z

Kucinichforlife:

'''Final Fantasy VII''' is a best selling RPG for the Sony Playstation. Despite being a best seller the game is filled with highly offensive material. For one it features a hockey team named the AVALANCHE who are also a terrorist group. They blow up a coal power plant but justify it by saying they are helping the environment. The game is also filled with profanity especially from Cid and Barrett (who bears a strong resemblence to Mr. T). The game was also critcized harshly because of the sexual liasons of the main character Cloud Strife. He has relations with three girls in the course of the game including a 16 year old Japenese girl named Yuffie.
==Characters==
===Cloud===
The main protagonist of the game. Once a member of the US marines, now heads an eco-terrorist group called Avalanche
===Barrett (aka Mr. T)===
An African-American man who is second in command in Avalanche to Cloud. Has an adopted white daughter named Marlene. Shows love and affection to her, one of the few redeeming qualities of this highly offensive game.
===Tifa===
Cloud's gf from his childhood. Flashbacks show Tifa and Cloud engaging in sexual acts as early as age 12. This part of the game as been highly criticized
===Aeris===
Another one of Cloud's love interests. Cloud steals Aeris' virginity. To be fair though, Cloud does show genuine affection towards her and becomes extremely upset when she is brutally murdered by Sephiroth.
===Cid Jefferson===
Owner of the Jefferson Airplane, an aircraft you can use to fly all over the world. Joins your group after he is offered a night with Yuffie and a 12 pack of Blue.
===Vince the Pince===
A mysterious man who has been locked in the Shinra mansion in Nibelheim for 30 years. He has been crygenically frozen so he still resembes a 27 year old man. Shoots people with his Colt 45.
===Cait Sith===
A puppett controlled by a 40 year old virgin who works in an office in Midgar. Turns out to be a mole for Shinra but later joins the cause of AVALANCHE
===Yuffie Kisagari===
An attractive Japenese teenager. She has a passionate affair with Cloud Strife and also has relations with Cid (she only slept with Cid so the crew would get access to the Jefferson Airplane). She was kidnapped and molested by Don Corleone in Tokyo but was rescued before Corleone could have intercourse with her.]
===Red CXIX===
Cloud's pet dog. A loyal companion with a gentle temperment, Red is probably the most moral individual in the game (sad to say because he is not even human). He shows affection to all he meets especially children.
===Sephiroth===
A highly dangerous psychopath with superhuman strength. He is also a leader of a dangerous cult known as Jenova's Witnesses. He is the main antagonist of the game and brutally murders Aeris in the Canadian Rockies.
==Criticisms==
Although from a commercial standpoint Final Fantasy VII was highly successful, it has been criticized by a variety of both liberal and conservative groups including Christian groups, women's groups, and minority groups.
===Christian Criticisms===
Although the game does not mock Christianity or make any references to God or Jesus, the game does violate Christian values. On one hand, Cloud does show genuine affection to his friends and lovers and Barrett is shown to have a good relationship to his daughter but the game is fraught with moral relativism. The protagonists of the game are eco-terrorists who although their cause may be noble, their methods are brutal and repugnant and their actions kill innocent civilians. Although their renounce terror later in the game, this does not excuse their actions. Also sex is trivalized in the game. Instead of being the ultimate act of intimacy between a man and his wife; Cloud has relations with three unmarried young women, one of whom is still a teenager. Although the acts were depicted as consensual, this does not send a good message to young impressionable children and teens.
===Women's Rights Group Criticisms===
Ironically, many women's rights groups share some of the same complaints as Christian groups. Despite often being at odds with each other, feminists and Christians find some common ground in their opposition to this game. Women's groups find the way sex is trivalized to be highly offensive as well as the fact that the girls in the game are sometimes treated as sex objects by the other characters. The fact that a 16 year old is depicted in sexual acts with an older man (Cloud is 21 years old) has also been harshly criticized.
===Minority Rights Group Criticisms===
Both Japanese and African-American groups have been highly outraged by the stereotypical portrayal of Japenase and African American characters. Barrett is depicted as loud, hot-headed and prone to violence, reinforcing the stereotype of black gang members. Yuffie is portrayed as a nymphomaniac which perpetuates the stereotype that Japanese women are merely the playthings of Western men.

Democratic Socialism

2007-11-01T20:59:27Z

Kucinichforlife:

Neoliberalism

2007-11-01T20:57:58Z

Kucinichforlife:

'''Neoliberalism''' is a new form of extreme, unregulated [[capitalism]] that was laid out in [[Adam Smith]]'s famous capitalist manifesto, ''The Wealth of Nations'', soon after the [[Industrial Revolution]]. Neoliberals believe regulation should not be an impediment to manufacturing or commerce, and that high tariffs can be harmful. These ideas were ''liberal'' in the sense of advocating loose controls. In neoliberalism, profits are sought by lowering costs through improvements in the productive powers of labor. There should be reduced costly and unnecessary government regulation without sacrificing environmental protection and job safety.

However, opponents of neoliberalism argue that unregulated [[market]]s can allow unfair advantages to large, well established corporations who can monopolize the market. They also argue that rampant privitization can take away essential services from the poor such as [[healthcare]], education, and access to utilities. These are services that they would be unable to afford under normal conditions. Also with less government regulation, opponents argue that there is no incentive for companies to engage in environmental regulation or to pay a decent wage to its workers. Good wages and environment protection cost money and it would not be in a company's interest to engage in these practices if it did not have too. Leftists and some Centrists blame neoliberalism for contributing to [[poverty]] worldwide and for causing many jobs in America to be outsourced to third world countries. Even some social conservatives such as [[Pat Buchanan]] are critical of extreme capitalism/neoliberalism.

[[Category:Economics]]
[[Category:Politics]]