(compiled from World Book™ Millennium Encyclopedia. IBM. 1999. All rights reserved.)

Biographies (in the order of the Units)

1. Niccolo Machiavelli [nIkql'o "mxkIq'velI] (1469-1527), Italian political theorist whose book The Prince (1513) describes the achievement and maintenance of power by a determined ruler indifferent to moral considerations.

Italian historian, statesman, and political philosopher, whose amoral but influential writings on statecraft have turned his name into a synonym for cunning and duplicity. Born in Florence, Machiavelli entered government service as a clerk and rose to prominence when the Florentine Republic was proclaimed in 1498. He was secretary of the ten-man council that conducted the diplomatic negotiations and supervised the military operations of the republic.

He became acquainted with many of the Italian rulers and was able to study their political tactics. From 1503 to 1506 Machiavelli reorganized the military defense of the republic of Florence.

In 1512, when the republic was dissolved, he was deprived of office and briefly imprisoned. After his release he retired to his estate near Florence, where he wrote his most important works. In his most famous work, The Prince (1532), he describes the method by which a prince can acquire and maintain political power. This study is based on Machiavelli's belief that a ruler is not bound by traditional ethical norms. In his view, a prince should be concerned only with power and be bound only by rules that would lead to success in political actions. Machiavellianism, as a term, has been used to describe the principles of power politics, and the type of person who uses those principles in political or personal life is frequently described as a Machiavellian.

2. Thomas Hobbes ['tPmqs hPbz] (1588-1679), English political philosopher who wrote Leviathan (1651), which outlined his philosophy that human beings are fundamentally selfish.

English philosopher and political theorist, one of the first modern Western thinkers to provide a secular justification for the political state. Regarded as an important early influence on the philosophical doctrine of utilitarianism, Hobbes also laid the foundations of modern sociology by applying mechanistic principles to explain human motivation and social organization .

Born in Malmesbury, Hobbes studied at the University of Oxford. He became a tutor and traveled in France and Italy. In 1637 he returned to England and published his Little Treatise, outlining his theory of motion. When his book The Elements of Law, Natural and Politic was circulated in 1640, he fled to Paris, fearing his arrest.

In 1642 Hobbes finished On Citizenship, a statement of his theory of government. His best-known work, Leviathan; or, The Matter, Form, and Power of a Commonwealth Ecclesiastical and Civil (1651), is a forceful exposition of his doctrine of sovereignty. Hobbes held that people are fearful and predatory and must submit to the absolute supremacy of the state, in both secular and religious matters, in order to live by reason and gain lasting preservation. He also proposed that human actions are caused by material phenomena and people are motivated by appetite or aversion. In 1666 the English House of Commons included Leviathan among books to be investigated on charges of atheistic tendencies, causing Hobbes to burn many of his papers and delay publication of several works.

3. Dante Alighieri ['dxntq q'lIgIqri] (1265-1321), Italian poet whose masterpiece, The Divine Comedy (completed 1321), details his visionary progress through Hell and Purgatory, escorted by Virgil, and through Heaven, guided by his lifelong idealized love Beatrice. Italian poet, and one of the supreme figures of world literature, who was admired for his spiritual vision and for his intellectual accomplishment.

Early Years

Dante was born in Florence, and the most significant event of his youth, according to his own account, was his meeting in 1274 with Beatrice, the woman whom he loved, and whom he exalted in his later works. Little is known about Dante's education, although his works reveal a knowledge that encompassed nearly all the learning of his age.

La Vita Nuova

Dante's first important literary work, La vita nuova, (The New Life) was written not long after Beatrice died. Combining verse and prose, it narrates the course of Dante's love for Beatrice and his ultimate resolve to write a work that would be a worthy monument to her.

Dante's Political Life

Active in the turbulent political life of Florence, Dante was elected one of the six priors, or magistrates, of Florence, a post he held for only two months. The rivalry between two factions within the Guelph Party of Florence became intense, and one of the factions, in 1302, banned Dante from Florence for two years and fined him heavily. Failing to make payment, he was condemned to death should he ever return to Florence. Dante spent his exile partly in Verona and partly in other northern Italian cities.

Last Years

In 1316 the city of Florence invited Dante to return, but the terms offered him were those generally reserved for pardoned criminals. Dante rejected the invitation, maintaining that he would never return unless he were accorded full dignity and honor. He continued to live in exile, spending his last years in Ravenna.

The Divine Comedy

Dante's epic masterpiece, La divinia commedia (The Divine Comedy), was probably begun about 1307 and was completed shortly before his death. The work is an allegorical narrative in verse of the poet's imaginary journey through hell, purgatory, and heaven. It is divided into three sections named the Inferno (Hell), the Purgatorio (Purgatory), and the Paradiso (Paradise). In each of these three realms the poet meets with mythological, historical, and contemporary characters, each of whom symbolizes a particular fault or virtue, either religious or political. Dante is guided through hell and purgatory by the Roman poet Virgil, who is, to Dante, the symbol of reason. The woman Dante loved, Beatrice, whom he regards as a manifestation and an instrument of divine will, guides him through paradise. Dante intended the poem for his contemporaries and wrote it in Italian rather than Latin.

Influence and Inspiration

In the centuries following the invention of printing, almost 400 Italian editions of The Divine Comedy were published. Editions have appeared illustrated by Italian masters Sandro Botticelli and Michelangelo, English artist William Blake, and French illustrator Gustave Doré. It has been translated into more than 25 languages. The work of modern poets throughout the world has been inspired by Dante, especially that of Ezra Pound, T. S. Eliot, Gabriele D'Annunzio, and Paul Claudel.

4. Montesquieu ["mPntes'kju:] , Baron de la Brede et de

Montesquieu.Title of Charles de Secondat, (1689-1755), French philosopher,writer and jurist, born in the Château of la Brède. An outstanding figure of the early French Enlightenment, he wrote the influential Parisian Letters (1721), a veiled attack on the monarchy and the ancien régime, and The Spirit of the Laws (1748), a discourse on government. Montesquieu first became prominent as a writer with Persian Letters (1721), in which he satirized contemporary French politics, social conditions, ecclesiastical matters, and literature. The book was one of the earliest works of the movement known as the Enlightenment, which, by criticizing French institutions under the monarchy, helped bring about the French Revolution (1789-1799). Montesquieu was elected to the French Academy in 1728. His masterpiece was The Spirit of Laws (1748), in which he examined the three main types of government (republic, monarchy, and despotism) and held that governmental powers should be separated to guarantee individual freedom.

5. Jean Bodin [dZi:n 'bPdqn] (1530–1596), French social and political philosopher. A lawyer, he was dismayed=(наляканий) by the chaos resulting from conflict between Roman Catholics and Huguenots ['hju:gqnqVts] and argued in his most important work, Six Books of the Republic (1576), that the well-ordered state required religious toleration and a fully sovereign monarch. His exposition of the principles of stable government was widely influential. Its influence can be seen in the theories of sovereignty developed by Thomas Hobbes and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. His writings made a major theoretical contribution to the rise of the modern nation-state. In 1580 he published De la démonomanie des sorciers/On the Fiendishness of Sorcerers, a guide for judges in witchcraft trials.Note! fiendish ['fi:ndIS] диявольський, лиходійський, жорстокий.

6. Johannes Althusius ["dZqV'xnIs xl'TjuzIqs] (1557 – 1638), the German jurist, who publishes Politica methodice digesta/A Digest of Political Method in 1603. A grammar of politics, it lays the foundation for much subsequent political theory. АЛЬТУЗІЙ Іван (1557, Діденгаузен, Вестфалія - 1638, Емден) – нім. філософ права. З 1586 професор Херборнського ун-ту; с 1604 – адвокат. Розвивав вчення про те, що люди можуть об'єднуватися в залежності від спонукань і потреб, результатом чого може бути договір. Народ – це "тіло, що представляє собою співжиття індивідів" (лат. corpus symbioticum); він має всі суверенні права також і по відношенню до уряду, що залежить від його волі; уряд, за Альтузієм, повинен здійснювати в першу чергу адміністративну діяльність в державі, яка становить "універсальнє суспільне об'єднання" (лат. universalis publica consociatio), поряд з яким, однак, існує та здійснює свої життєво необхідні права сім'я, муніципалітет, провінція та ін. Задача політика – здійснення природнього етичного закону та волі божої. Головна робота – "Politica", 1603.

7. Hugo Grotius ['hju:gqV 'groVSi"qs] (1583-1645).Originally Huig de Groot. Dutch jurist, politician, and theologian whose major work, Of the Law of War and Peace (1625), is considered the first comprehensive treatise on international law. Humanist, and statesman, whose legal writings laid the foundation for modern international law.

Grotius was born in Delft. His first published work on international law, The Free Sea (1609), challenged the right of any nation to claim part of the open sea as exclusively its own. Such a claim, Grotius argued, was against natural law and the basic law of humanity. In On the Law of War and Peace (1625) he argued that war violates natural law and can be condoned only if it is for a righteous cause and conciliation has failed. Earlier, Grotius's efforts to moderate a bitter doctrinal dispute among Dutch Calvinists had embroiled him in a political clash between his province of Holland and the rest of the Dutch Republic and its orthodox majority. He was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1619 but escaped to Paris in 1621. Grotius became Sweden's ambassador to Paris in 1634 and served in that post until 1644.

8. Richard Hooker ['rItSqd 'hVkq] (1554 -1600), English writer and theologian. His Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity (1594) was central to the formation of Anglican theology; born in Exeter. As a clergyman in the Church of England, he is noted for his Of the Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity (8 volumes). The immediate purpose of Hooker's work was to demonstrate the advantages of the episcopal form of organization of the Church of England over the presbyterian form used by its opponents.

9. John Milton [dZPn 'mIlt(q)n] (1608-1674), English poet and scholar who is best known for the epic poem Paradise Lost (1667), an account of humanity's fall from grace. His verse was a powerful influence on succeeding English poets, and whose prose was devoted to the defense of civil and religious liberty. Milton is often considered the greatest English poet after William Shakespeare. Life Milton was born in London and attended Christ's College, University of Cambridge. From 1632 to 1638 he lived in his father's country home, reading the Latin and Greek classics and ecclesiastical and political history. From 1638 to 1639 he toured France and Italy, and on his return to England, he settled in London and began writing a series of social, religious, and political tracts. Milton supported the parliamentary cause in the English Civil War (1642-1649), and in 1649 he was appointed foreign secretary by the government of the Commonwealth.

He became totally blind about 1652 and thereafter carried on his literary and government work helped by assistants. After the Restoration of King Charles II in 1660, Milton was briefly imprisoned for his support of Parliament. Works Milton's career as a writer can be divided into three periods. The first, from 1625 to 1640, was the period of such early works as the sonnet "On Shakespeare" (1630), "L'Allegro" and "Il Penseroso" (both probably 1631), and the elegy Lycidas (1637). His second period, from 1640 to 1660, was devoted chiefly to the writing of numerous social, political, and religious tracts, the most famous of which is Areopagitica (1644), an impassioned plea for freedom of the press.

He also wrote pamphlets to justify the execution of King Charles I. During the third period of Milton's career, from 1660 to 1674, he completed his epic poem Paradise Lost (1667) and wrote the companion epic Paradise Regained (1671) and the poetic drama Samson Agonistes (1671). Paradise Lost, in which Milton recounts the story of the fall of Adam in a context of cosmic drama, is considered Milton's masterpiece and one of the greatest poems in world literature.

10. James Harrington [dZeImz 'hxrINtqn] (1611–1677), English political philosopher. His Commonwealth of Oceana (1656) described a utopian society in which political power rested with the landed gentry. He advocated a written constitution and limitations on the amount of land one individual could hold. His ideas foreshadowed doctrines of the American and French revolutions. In 1656 he publishes Commonwealth of Oceana, which argues in favor of a system of republicanism on the lines of the Venetian oligarchy. In 1658 -The Prerogative of Popular Government. In 1660 - Political Discourses.

11. Abraham Lincoln ['eIbrqhxm 'lINkqn] (1809-1865), The 16th President of the United States (1861-1865), who led the Union during the Civil War and emancipated slaves in the South (1863). He was assassinated shortly after the end of the war by John Wilkes Booth.

A humane, far-sighted statesman, he became a legend and a folk hero after his death. In his effort to preserve the Union during the American Civil War (1861-1865), Lincoln assumed more power than any preceding president. His actions had a lasting influence on American political institutions, most importantly in setting the precedent of vigorous executive action in time of national emergency. Early Life Lincoln was born in a log cabin near what is now Hodgenville, Kentucky. In 1816 his family moved to Indiana, which at that time was a heavily forested wilderness. Lincoln had less than one full year of formal education in his entire life, but he was taught at home and at an early age could read, write, and do simple arithmetic. In 1830 the Lincoln family settled west of what is now Decatur, Illinois. Lincoln worked as a laborer on farms and on flatboats, and as a store clerk in New Salem, a small community near Springfield, Illinois. He soon became one of New Salem's most popular citizens. Early Political Career In 1832 Lincoln decided to run for a seat in the Illinois House of Representatives as a member of the Whig Party. He was defeated in the election. A short time later he was appointed postmaster of New Salem. In 1834 Lincoln again ran for representative to the Illinois legislature. By then he was known throughout the county. He won and served a total of eight years. Meanwhile, he continued his study of law, and in 1836 he became a licensed attorney. In 1842 he married Mary Todd. As a frontier lawyer, Lincoln traveled a great deal. For three months each spring and fall, lawyers and judges of the Springfield courts held court at different rural county seats, resolving local cases. Because of his storytelling abilities and skill as a lawyer, Lincoln was popular on the circuit. In 1846 Lincoln was elected U.S. representative for the Seventh Congressional District of Illinois. The extension of slavery into new U.S. territories was an important question during Lincoln's term in Congress. He supported the Wilmot Proviso, which proposed that slavery in the United States be prohibited in any territory acquired during the Mexican War (1846-1848). Lincoln wanted to run for a second term in Congress, but it was traditional that the Whig candidate from his district serve only one term. He returned to Springfield to practice law, soon becoming one of the most respected lawyers in the state. Lincoln was losing interest in politics when, in 1854, Congress passed the Kansas-Nebraska Act, which repealed the old dividing line between free and slave states as set by the Missouri Compromise of 1820. Illinois senator Stephen A. Douglas, the author of the Kansas-Nebraska Act, came to Springfield to defend the newly enacted law in October 1854. The next night Lincoln spoke, attacking the act. In 1855 Lincoln was the Whig candidate for the U.S. Senate. Senators were then elected by the state legislatures, and when Lincoln realized that he could not win, he threw his support to an anti-Douglas Democrat, Lyman Trumbull, who was elected. In 1856 Lincoln publicly identified himself as a Republican Party member and delivered the main address at the Republican state convention. Agitation over the slavery issue increased in 1856 and 1857.

In the Dred Scott case the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that Congress could not prohibit slavery in the territories. In Kansas proslavery and antislavery partisans engaged in a bloody civil war for control of the territorial government. In 1858 Senator Douglas came up for reelection. The Republican Party nominated Lincoln to oppose him. The two engaged in a series of face-to-face debates on the morality of slavery. The debates captivated Illinois. Although the Republicans won a majority of the popular votes, the Democratic legislature reelected Douglas. The Lincoln-Douglas debates brought Lincoln national recognition.

In 1860 the Republican national convention met in Chicago to nominate a presidential candidate. Only Lincoln was acceptable to all factions of the party, and he won the nomination. The convention chose Senator Hannibal Hamlin of Maine as the vice-presidential candidate. The party's policies included a moderate antislavery position designed to appease the South: Slavery was not to be extended, but it would not be abolished where it existed. Also included were a high tariff (tax on imports) to appeal to the industrial North, and the promise of free land for settlers to satisfy the West. The Democrats split into a Northern faction, which nominated Douglas for president, and a Southern faction, which nominated John C. Breckinridge of Kentucky. A fourth party, the Constitutional Union Party, nominated John Bell of Tennessee. With the Democratic Party split, Lincoln was easily elected.

President of the United States Even before election day, Southern militants had threatened to secede from the Union if Lincoln were elected. By February, South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas had seceded. These states joined together to form the Confederate States of America, also known as the Confederacy. On March 4, 1861, Lincoln was sworn in as president. His inaugural address aimed at allaying Southern fears, although he flatly rejected the right of any state to secede from the Union. When the Confederacy demanded the evacuation of Fort Sumter, located at the entrance to the harbor of Charleston, South Carolina, Lincoln decided to send supplies to the fort by sea.

On April 12, 1861, Confederate guns opened fire on Fort Sumter. Two days later the fort surrendered. Lincoln asked loyal states to provide 75,000 militia. Lincoln's call for arms caused Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Arkansas to join the Confederacy. The states on the border between the North and the South–Kentucky, Missouri, and Maryland–remained in the Union. Lincoln also ordered a blockade of Confederate ports, expanded the regular army beyond its legal limit, directed government expenditures in advance of congressional appropriations, and suspended the legal right of habeas corpus (the constitutional guarantee that a person could not be imprisoned indefinitely without being charged with some specific crime).

The North expected a brief struggle and an easy victory. In July the federal Army of the Potomac was defeated in Virginia in the first Battle of Bull Run. The North then realized that it faced a long, hard war. Lincoln placed Major General George B. McClellan in command of the Army of the Potomac. McClellan soon restored the army's morale and whipped it into a superb fighting force.

In September 1862, the Union won a minor victory at the Battle of Antietam in Maryland. Lincoln chose this opportunity to issue his Emancipation Proclamation, which announced that on January 1, 1863, all slaves residing in rebellious states would "be then, thenceforward, and forever free..."With this advance warning, Lincoln gave the rebellious states an opportunity to rejoin the Union with slavery intact. Because Lincoln only had the power to free the slaves as a necessity of war, the proclamation did not affect border states in the Union or areas in the rebellious states under federal control. For these states, Lincoln encouraged voluntary, compensated emancipation. The Emancipation Proclamation isolated the Confederacy from potential allies in Europe. France and Britain had threatened to recognize the Confederate government and give it aid. Freeing the slaves brought the people of these countries and their governments over to the Northern side because the North represented the cause of freedom.

When McClellan refused to take the offensive after Antietam, Lincoln replaced him with a series of commanders who proved unqualified for the task. When Confederate general Robert E. Lee turned his army north to invade Pennsylvania, Lincoln appointed Major General George G. Meade to lead Union forces. The two armies met at the Battle of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania in early July 1863. On July 5 Lee retreated, his army badly beaten. That same day Lincoln received word that General Ulysses S. Grant had captured Vicksburg, Mississippi, the key Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi River. In March 1864 Lincoln promoted Grant to commander in chief of all Union armies. Grant's overall strategy was bold. Instead of going after key Southern cities, he decided to attack principal Southern armies.

Despite its military successes, the Union was faced with the problem of raising huge sums of money to fight the war. New federal taxes were levied, and the tariff was raised. The federal government also began printing paper money. The 1863 National Banking Act made it easier to sell government bonds. The act also provided for a system of federally chartered, privately owned national banks that could issue notes backed by government bonds. On November 19, 1863, Lincoln was called upon to deliver remarks at a ceremony dedicating a military cemetery at the Gettysburg battle site. After a two-hour speech by distinguished orator Edward Everett, Lincoln spoke briefly, rededicating the war effort to the principles of democracy. The speech is called the Gettysburg Address.

Lincoln gave frequent consideration to the reconstruction of the rebel states and their restoration to the Union. Whenever Union armies gained control in a rebellious area, he encouraged the local people to form a government loyal to the Union, asking only that the new government outlaw slavery and that the number of those voting for the new government be at least 10 percent of those who had voted in the 1860 presidential election. Congressional leaders also had a plan of reconstruction, but it was designed to punish the South and to make it subservient to the Republican Party of the North. As the 1864 presidential elections approached, Democrats and radical Republicans were dissatisfied with Lincoln's policies. But the moderate Republicans remained faithful to their leader. Lincoln was again nominated for president, with Andrew Johnson of Tennessee receiving the vice-presidential nomination. The Democrats nominated General McClellan. In the spring and summer of 1864, Lincoln did not think he would win the election. In September the political and military situation took a turn for the better, and Lincoln easily won reelection.

Second Term as President At his second inaugural, on the threshold of Union victory, Lincoln made a speech that spoke only of peace and of ending the nation's sectional differences. In early April the Union Army took Petersburg and Richmond. On April 9, 1865, Lee surrendered his army to Grant at Appomattox Court House, in Virginia. The war was all but over. On April 14, 1865, Lincoln and his wife attended a performance of a comic melodrama, Our American Cousin, at Ford's Theatre in Washington. At about 10:30 PM John Wilkes Booth, an actor with pro-Southern sympathies, made his way into the box, put a pistol to Lincoln's head, and fired once. Booth escaped, but he was killed while resisting arrest 12 days later. After the shooting, the president was taken to a lodging house across the street, where he died the next morning.

12. Cardinal Richelieu ['kQ:d(q)nql rJSqlu] (1585-1642) Duc de. Title of Armand Jean du Plessis. French prelate and politician. As chief minister of Louis XIII he worked to strengthen the authority of the monarchy and directed France during the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648). In 1624 Louis XIII chose that man as his first minister. He was the effective ruler of France for the next 18 years.

Richelieu eliminated rivals to royal power by breaking the power of the nobility and creating new administrative districts. He contained threats from abroad by encouraging the development of the French Navy and a merchant fleet, chartering foreign-trade companies, and supporting colonial expansion. However, inflation, mounting taxes, and, after 1635, the devastation of the Thirty Years' War (in which France, Sweden, and the Netherlands were eventually victorious over the Roman Catholic Habsburgs) reduced the French peasantry to new depths of misery.

His Career and Life He gained the favor of the king's mother, MARIE DE' MEDICI, and was made secretary of state (1616), cardinal (1622), and chief minister (1624). In 1630 Marie conspired against Richelieu, but the king had her exiled. Richelieu then enjoyed full control of the government until his death. Domestically, he centralized royal authority by destroying the political power of the HUGUENOTS with the capture of La Rochelle (1628) and the Peace of Alais (1629).

Conspiracies by the nobles were rigorously suppressed. In foreign affairs, he rejected Marie de' Medici's pro- HAPSBURG policy, and in 1635 France openly entered the THIRTY YEARS WAR against the Hapsburgs. In France the war led to heavy taxation and caused dissatisfaction with his rule. Richelieu encouraged trade and the arts; he was the founder of the learned society known as the French Academy.

13. John Foster Dulles [dZPn 'fPstq 'dAlqs] (1888-1959), American diplomat and politician who as U.S. secretary of state (1953-1959) pursued a policy of opposition to the U.S.S.R. largely through military and economic aid to American allies.He is remembered as an uncompromising foe [fqV](ворог) of Communism. He was born in Washington, D.C. Dulles was appointed to negotiate the United States peace treaty with Japan in 1951; two years later he became secretary of state in the Cabinet of President Dwight D. Eisenhower.

A staunch anti-Communist, Dulles was active in promoting the establishment of the European Defense Community as a barrier to possible Soviet aggression in the West. He also initiated the formation of the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization, or SEATO (1954), and the Baghdād Pact, or Central Treaty Organization (1955), which were designed to contain Soviet and Chinese power in Asia.

Dulles made controversial threats of "massive nuclear retaliation" against Communist aggression and declared that the United States must be prepared to "go to the brink" of war to attain its objectives. His brother, Allen Welsh Dulles, 1893–1969, was director (1953–61) of the CIA.

14. Henry Alfred Kissinger ['henrI 'xlfrId 'kIsiNGq] (b.1923), served as secretary of state from 1973 to 1977. He was appointed by President Richard M. Nixon and kept the post after Gerald R. Ford became President in 1974. Kissinger also served as assistant to the President for national security affairs from 1969 to 1975. He was the most influential foreign policy adviser of both Presidents. Between 1969 and 1973, Kissinger conducted secret negotiations with North Vietnamese diplomats in an effort to end the Vietnam War. The negotiations led to a cease-fire agreement signed in January 1973 by the United States, North Vietnam, South Vietnam, and the Viet Cong. Kissinger and Le Duc Tho, the chief North Vietnamese negotiator, won the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize for negotiating the cease-fire. But fighting went on until the war ended in 1975.

Kissinger carried out other missions for Nixon. In 1971, he went to China to arrange Nixon's 1972 visit. He went to Moscow in 1972 to prepare Nixon's meeting with Soviet leaders. In 1974, Kissinger helped arrange agreements to separate the fighting forces of Israel from those of Egypt and Syria. These nations were involved in the 1973 Arab-Israeli War. In 1983, President Ronald Reagan named Kissinger head of a federal commission to develop U.S. policy on Central America.

Kissinger was born in Furth, Germany. His family came to the United States in 1938 to escape Nazi persecution of Jews. Kissinger served in the U.S. Army during World War II. He became a U.S. citizen in 1943. Kissinger earned three degrees at Harvard University, and taught courses there on international relations. His writings on foreign policy include Nuclear Weapons and Foreign Policy (1957). Kissinger has published two volumes of memoirs, White House Years (1979) and Years of Upheaval (зрушень) (1982). Diplomacy (1994) deals with notable statesmen since the 1600's.

Important Note ! All other biographies are available in

Lyalko s.V. "General Philosophy Overview",Kyiv, 2001.

Contributors: 1) Michael P. Sullivan, Ph.D., Prof. of Political Science, Univ. of Arizona. 2) David S. Broder, M.A., National Political Correspondent, Washington Post; Winner of Pulitzer Prize in Commentary, 1973. 3) Robert L. Cord, Ph.D., Matthews Distinguished Univ. Prof. and Prof. of Political Science, Northeastern Univ.

Some Notions Used In Political Science.

Government and Political Terms

(In alphabetical order)["xlfq'betIk(q)l]:

Abdication ["xbdI'keIS(q)n] is giving up the right to rule. Abdication, relinquishment of office by a sovereign or other ruler. In modern times, sovereigns have abdicated for many different reasons. Queen Christina of Sweden relinquished her crown in 1654 because she was weary of the cares of office. Ill health caused the abdication of Holy Roman emperor Charles V in 1558. Napoleon I was forced to abdicate by allied foreign powers, both in 1814 and, after his return, in 1815. Insurrections often have forced abdications, including those of Richard II of England (1399), Mary, Queen of Scots (1567), Charles X of France (1830), and Nicholas II of Russia (1917).The defeat of the Central Powers in World War I (1914-1918) resulted in a number of abdications, including those of William II of Germany and Charles I of Austria-Hungary. Several more abdications occurred before the onset of World War II in 1939. King Edward VIII of Britain (later duke of Windsor) abdicated in 1936 because the government opposed his marriage plans. In 1940, during World War II, Germany forced King Carol II of Romania to abdicate. King Michael of Romania abdicated in 1947 under the pressure of Romanian Communists. King Faruk I of Egypt had to abdicate in 1952 after a military coup d'etat. Queen Juliana of the Netherlands abdicated in 1980 at the age of 71.

Absolutism ['xbsqlu:tIz(q)m], political system in which total power is vested in a single individual or group of rulers. Absolutism claims unlimited power for rulers as contrasted with the constitutional limitations placed on heads of state in democratic governments. Modern absolutism began with the emergence of European nation-states toward the end of the 1400s. It flourished for more than 200 years. A series of revolutions gradually brought power to parliamentary governments. Other forms of absolutism arose in the 1900s, such as National Socialism in Germany.

Affirmative Action [q'fE:mqtIv 'xkS(q)n], policies used in the United States to increase opportunities for minorities by favoring them in hiring and promotion, college admissions, and the awarding of government contracts. Generally, affirmative action has been undertaken by governments, businesses, or educational institutions to remedy the effects of past discrimination against a group. Until the mid-1960s legal barriers prevented blacks and other racial minorities in the United States from entering many jobs and educational institutions. Many universities would not admit women, and employers often would not hire them. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited discrimination in public accommodations and employment and laid the groundwork for the subsequent development of affirmative action. The term affirmative action was first used by President Lyndon B. Johnson in a 1965 executive order that declared that federal contractors should "take affirmative action" to ensure that job applicants and employees "are treated without regard to their race, color, religion, sex, or national origin". President Richard Nixon was the first to implement federal policies designed to guarantee minority hiring.

The scope and limitations of affirmative action policy have been defined through a series of legislative initiatives and by decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States. To avoid discrimination lawsuits, in the early 1970s public and private employers began to adopt hiring policies designed to recruit more minorities. In later cases the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of affirmative action, but placed some restrictions on its implementation. Although sharply divided on the issue, the court has struck down a number of affirmative action programs as unfair or too broad in their application. Conservative justices appointed to the court in the 1980s and 1990s have attempted to limit the scope of affirmative action. Congress responded to a number of conservative Supreme Court rulings by passing the Civil Rights Act of 1991, which strengthened antidiscrimination laws. From its beginnings affirmative action has been highly controversial. Critics charge that affirmative action policies violate the principal that all individuals are equal under the law. Advocates of affirmative action respond that effective remedies must exist to aid groups that have suffered from discrimination. In the 1990s affirmative action has been a highly charged legal and political issue. With legislatures, courts, and the public divided over the issue, the status of affirmative action remains uncertain.

African National Congress (ANC) ['xfrIkqn 'nxS(q)nql 'kPngres], South African political organization that won the country's first democratic elections in which the black majority could vote. In 1994 the ANC became South Africa's ruling party under the leadership of Nelson Mandela, who was elected the nation's first black president. The ANC was founded in 1912 as a nonviolent civil rights organization promoting the interests of black Africans. In 1940 ANC president Alfred B. Xuma began recruiting younger, more outspoken members, including Mandela, Oliver Tambo, and Walter Sisulu. ANC membership greatly increased in the 1950s after South Africa's white-minority government implemented apartheid, a policy of rigid racial segregation. In 1960 the government banned all black political organizations, including the ANC, which began a campaign of sabotage against the government in 1961. During the unrest of the next several years, Mandela and Sisulu were sentenced to life in prison. For the next 30 years the ANC operated as an underground organization. In 1990 the government released Mandela from prison and lifted its ban on the ANC, which evolved into a political party.

Amendment [q'mendmqnt] is a change made in a law, a constitution, or a legislative bill. Amendment, in legislation, the alteration of an existing statute. The Congress of the United States has no power to alter the Constitution of the United States but does have the power to repeal and alter laws. The method of amending the Constitution is described in Article V of that document. In parliamentary procedure an amendment may be added to a motion or bill. In the law of pleading and practice, an amendment corrects an error or defect in a pleading or judicial proceeding.

Amnesty ['xmnqstI] means forgiveness granted by a government.

Anarchism ['xnqkIz(q)m] is a belief that every form of government regulation is wrong and that public governments should be destroyed. Anarchism, political theory that opposes all forms of government. Anarchists believe that the highest attainment of humanity is the freedom of individuals to express themselves, unhindered by any form of external repression or control. One limitation on such freedom, however, is the ban against injuring other human beings. If any human being attempts to injure others, individuals have the right to organize against that person, although only by voluntary cooperation and not under governmental organization.The 19th-century French writer Pierre Joseph Proudhon is regarded as the father of philosophic anarchism, which repudiates violent methods and contends that society will evolve gradually toward anarchic organization. Anarchists who reject Proudhon's theories maintain that the trend of human development is toward achievement by cooperation, and that social cooperation can never be wholly voluntary. Another school, relying on organized action and even terrorist deeds grew out of socialism and appeared toward the end of the 19th century. Since that time socialism and anarchism have diverged sharply. Anarchism declined steadily as both a political philosophy and an organized movement between 1925 and 1950.

Appropriation [q"prqVprI'eIS(q)n], legislative action authorizing the expenditure of public funds for some designated purpose. Through the power to allocate funds, a legislature can influence the course of government. For example, by relying on this "power of the purse," the British Parliament was gradually able to wrest control of the government from the monarch. Although legislatures retain control over appropriations, executive officials are generally granted discretion over expenditure, which can result in sharp clashes between the legislative and executive branches. The Constitution of the United States provides that "no money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in consequence of appropriations made by law." The Congress of the United States relies on a two-step appropriation process: authorization of programs as recommended by legislative committees, followed by the financing of those programs by measures approved upon recommendation of the appropriations committees.

Aristocracy ["xrI'stPkrqsI] is a form of government controlled by a few people, usually wealthy members of the nobility. Aristocracy, form of government in which sovereign power is vested in a small number of citizens, as opposed to monarchy, in which the supreme authority is vested in one person, and democracy, in which authority is exercised by the entire body of citizens or their representatives. Athens, before the Persian wars of the 400s BC, and Sparta, during practically its entire history, were aristocracies, as was Rome during the Republic (6th century to 1st century BC). In England the government from 1714 through the 1800s, although parliamentary in form, was an aristocracy, since the monarch and Parliament were under the control of a few families.

Authoritarianism [O:"TPrI'te(q)rIqnIzm] is a form of government in which the governing power is used without the consent of the governed. It is undemocratic, but it is generally not so extreme as totalitarianism.

Authority [O:'TPrItI] is the right and duty to make decisions, and the power to enforce them.

Autocracy [O:'tPkrqsI] is rule by one person who has complete control of all branches of the government.

Autonomy [O:'tPnqmI] means self-government and usually refers to a political unit that is not completely independent. Each state of the United States has some autonomy.

Balance of Power, doctrine of international relations maintaining that aggressive tendencies on the part of a state or an alliance of states can be discouraged by the formation of another alliance of equal or greater strength. Thus, in a system where one party is more powerful than any other single party, peace may be preserved by an alliance of the weaker parties. This doctrine was first clearly enunciated in the 1500s by Italian historian and statesman Francesco Guicciardini, who observed in his History of Italy that the goal of Florentine policy was to prevent the domination of the peninsula by any single Italian state.

In the 1500s and early 1600s the struggle to retain the balance of power in Europe focused on avoiding dominance first by the Habsburg dynasty and later by King Louis XIV of France, who eventually provoked an alliance involving most of the rest of Europe. During the American Revolution (1775-1783) Great Britain was challenged by an alliance of France, the Netherlands, Spain, and the rebelling American colonies. Revolutionary France and French Emperor Napoleon I forced the states of Europe into a series of alliances that took 20 years to restore a balance of power.

German Unification and Italian Unification led to a realignment of powers in the late 1800s and early 1900s that ultimately resulted in World War I (1914-1918). The alliance of Germany, Italy, and Japan was broken during World War II (1939-1945) by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), Britain, the United States, and a host of other nations. The development of nuclear arsenals in the 1950s and 1960s led to a condition known as the balance of terror, in which the decisive deterrent to war between the United States and the USSR was the enormous destruction a nuclear conflict could wreak on both sides.

Ballot, in modern usage, sheet of paper used in voting, usually in an electoral system that allows the voter to make choices secretly. The term also designates voting by means of a mechanical device. The ballot method protects voters from coercion and reprisal. Wherever the practice of deciding questions by free vote has prevailed, some form of secret voting has always been found necessary.

In ancient Greece members of high courts voted secretly and legislation enacted in Rome in 139 BC established a system of secret voting. Colored balls were used as ballots during the Middle Ages (5th century to 15th century). Each voter received two balls–one white, indicating acceptance, and the other black, indicating rejection–and deposited them secretly in appropriate receptacles. With the development of modern democracy the practice of voting secretly in legislative assemblies responsible to the people was generally abandoned. In Great Britain the Ballot Act of 1872 provided for secret voting in parliamentary elections. Similar legislation had been previously adopted in France (1852) and Italy (1859).

Following the American Revolution (1775-1783), the secret ballot was adopted in most of the United States. Development of the political party system resulted in abuses of the ballot system during the first half of the 1800s. In the late 1800s states gradually adopted a system that included the preparation, printing, and distribution of the ballot by government agencies; the use of a ballot listing the names and party designations of all candidates for all offices; and secret voting under government supervision.

By 1967 most states had adopted the office-column type of listing, in which the names are arranged under the office sought, with the party label appearing after the name. Some states, counties, and cities provide ballots with space for write-in votes for candidates not listed. Various methods have been devised for the nomination of candidates to ensure that only the names of authorized office seekers appear on the ballot. Many states and localities require the filing of a petition signed by a certain minimum number of registered voters before the name can appear on the ballot. Mechanical voting devices began to be adopted in parts of the United States after 1892.

Bicameral System [baI'kxm(q)rql], legislative system in which the power of making law is vested in two chambers, or houses, both of which must approve a bill before it becomes law. In general, members of the upper house represent states or other political subdivisions rather than the people directly, and usually serve for longer terms than the members of the lower house. The lower house is generally composed of members selected on the basis of population, each member representing an equal number of citizens.

Bill, proposed law placed before a legislative body for examination, debate, and enactment. Once enacted, a bill becomes a law. In the United States government, a bill must be introduced by a member of the Congress of the United States. It is then assigned to a committee, where it is reviewed. A bill approved by committee is generally debated on the floor. If the bill receives a favorable majority vote, it is sent to the other house of Congress, where a similar procedure takes place. The president may approve or veto the bill. A veto ['vi:tqV] may be overridden(скасовано) by a two-thirds majority vote in both houses.

Bill of Rights is a document that describes the basic liberties of the people and forbids the government to violate those rights. The U.S. Bill of Rights consists of the first 10 amendments to the Constitution.

Bipartisanship, in the United States, the attempt of political leaders to obtain maximum unity from members of both parties on matters of foreign policy. It is generally considered desirable to have some measure of cooperation between the Democratic and Republican parties on international programs. To achieve this, the president consults with both parties before acting on major global problems. An important provision of bipartisanship is that neither party attempts to take advantage of diplomatic problems or defeats.

Bolshevism ['bPlSqvIz(q)m], Communist doctrine based on the theories of German revolutionary Karl Marx as formulated by Russian revolutionary Vladimir Lenin. These theories were outlined at the second congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labor Party of 1903.

The congress crystallized into two factions, the more radical faction being led by Lenin. He advocated a unified party of active, professional revolutionary members, willing to use any means to establish a Communist society. His opponents proposed to admit all who declared general sympathy with the aims of the party. After the congress elected Lenin to the party leadership, his faction became known as Bolshevik (from the Russian word for "majority"), and the opposition became known as Menshevik (from the Russian word for "minority"). In subsequent years the Mensheviks emphasized reform, especially the establishment of constitutional government. When a parliament, called the Duma, was created in 1905, the Bolsheviks preferred either to boycott it or to use it as a forum for agitation, whereas the Mensheviks hoped to use it to build opposition to the tsar.

After 1912 the two parties competed for the leadership of the anticzarist revolution. In 1917 a revolution broke out, resulting in the tsar's abdication and the introduction of parliamentary government. The Bolsheviks overthrew the parliamentary government later that year, and eventually decreed themselves the sole political organization in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).

Bureaucracy ["bjV(q)'rPkrqsI] is the system of officials who carry out the functions of a government. Synonyms: red tape, officialdom, beadledom . Bureaucracy, personnel and administrative structure of an organization. Business, labor, religious, educational, and governmental systems depend on a large workforce arranged in a hierarchy to carry out specialized tasks based on internal rules and procedures. The term is used mostly in referring to government administration. The United States federal bureaucracy is the result of almost two centuries of adjustments and compromises.

During the early days executives were recruited mainly from an educated class interested in a long-term career in government. Beginning in the 1820 jobs began to be allocated to political supporters of the party in power. The Pendleton Act of 1883 created a competitive civil service, dedicated to professionalism and nonpartisanship. In the 20th century the civil service was criticized for being insufficiently responsive to the Congress of the United States and the president. In 1978 Congress passed the Civil Service Reform Act, bringing the civil service under closer control of the president.

Cabinet ['kxb(I)nIt] is a group of advisers, including the heads of major government departments and other high officials.Cabinet (government), name applied to the collective body of advisers to the executive head of a parliamentary government. The composition and functions of the Cabinet vary in different countries.

The Cabinet originated early in the 15th century as a council advising the king of England. In the 18th century, when the center of governmental power shifted from the monarch to the British Parliament, the Cabinet became the council of the most important minister in the government, the prime minister. Since about 1780 most British Cabinet ministers also have been department heads. In the United States the Cabinet consists of the president's advisers, each of whom is a department head. The cabinets of Latin America usually follow the U.S. model, whereas most European countries and Canada have adopted the British model.

The principal characteristics of European cabinets are the responsibility of the cabinet to the legislature and the identification of the cabinet with the government. The cabinet is formed by the prime minister, and together they administer the country as long as they have the confidence of the legislature. A cabinet of the British type typically consists of members of the party that has a decisive majority in the legislature, although cabinets are sometimes formed by parties that together control a majority. In the British government, Cabinet members are members of Parliament, usually of the same political party as the prime minister.

The Cabinet of the U.S. government consists of the administrative heads of the executive departments of the federal government. Cabinet members are appointed by the president with the approval of the United States Senate and may be removed by the president either at will or as a result of censure or impeachment by the Congress of the United States. The cabinet as a governmental institution is not provided for in the Constitution of the United States. It developed as an advisory body out of the president's need for consultation on matters of federal policy and on problems of administration. Unlike their counterparts in other countries, Cabinet officers have no direct legislative function. In 1886 Congress enacted legislation establishing the order of succession of Cabinet officers to the presidency. The secretary of state headed the list. In 1947 Congress modified the act of 1886, placing the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the president pro tempore of the Senate, in that order, before any Cabinet members.

Capitalism is an economic system in which individuals or private businesses own most of a nation's means of producing goods and services. Capitalism, economic system in which firms carry on the production and exchange of goods and services through a complex network of prices and markets. Capitalism has certain key characteristics. First, basic production facilities–land and capital–are privately owned. Second, economic activity is organized and coordinated through the interaction of buyers and sellers (or producers) in markets. Third, owners of land and capital as well as the workers they employ are free to pursue their own self-interests in seeking maximum gain from the use of their resources and labor in production. Consumers are free to spend their incomes in ways that they believe will yield the greatest satisfaction. This principle reflects the idea that under capitalism, producers will be forced by competition to use their resources in ways that will best satisfy the wants of consumers. Fourth, a minimum of government supervision is required; if competition is present, economic activity will be self-regulating.

Beginnings of Modern Capitalism

Two 18th-century developments paved the way for the emergence of modern capitalism. The first was the appearance of the economists called physiocrats in France after 1750. Physiocracy is the term applied to a school of economic thought that suggested the existence of a natural order in economics, one that does not require direction from the state for people to be prosperous. According to the physiocrats, productive activities such as agriculture, fishing, and mining produce a surplus or net product. Other activities, such as manufacturing, do not produce new wealth but simply transform or circulate the output of the productive class.

The second development was the thought of British philosopher Adam Smith. He also tried to show the existence of an economic order that would function most efficiently if the state played a limited role, but unlike the physiocrats he did not believe that industry was unproductive. Rather, Smith saw in the division of labor and the extension of markets almost limitless possibilities for society to expand its wealth through manufacture and trade.

The Rise of Industrialization

The ideas of Smith and the physiocrats provided the ideological and intellectual background for the Industrial Revolution—the material side of the sweeping transformations in society and the world that characterized the 19th century. The industrialization process introduced mechanical power to replace human and animal power in the production of goods and services. Production became more specialized and concentrated in larger units, called factories. The application of mechanical power to production helped increase worker efficiency, which made goods abundant and cheap.

However, the development of industrial capitalism had serious human costs. The early days of the Industrial Revolution were marred by appalling conditions for large numbers of workers, especially in England. Abusive child labor, long working hours, and dangerous and unhealthy workplaces were common. These conditions led German political philosopher Karl Marx to produce his massive indictment of the capitalistic system, Das Kapital (3 volumes, 1867-1894). Marx's work struck at the fundamental principle of capitalism–private ownership of the means of production. Marx believed that land and capital should be owned by society as a whole and that the products of the system should be distributed according to need.

In the late 19th century, especially in the United States, the modern corporation began to emerge as the dominant form of business organization, and capitalism became the dominant economic system. The tendency toward corporate control of manufacturing led to many attempts to create combines, monopolies, or trusts that could control an entire industry. Eventually, the public outcry against such practices was great enough in the United States to lead the Congress of the United States to pass antitrust legislation. This legislation attempted to make the pursuit of monopoly by business illegal, trying to enforce at least a bare minimum of competition in industry and commerce.

20Th-Century Capitalism

For most of the 20th century, capitalism has been buffeted by wars, revolution, and economic depressions. However, capitalist systems demonstrated remarkable abilities for survival and adaptability to change, including the use of government intervention to soften the impact of boom and bust cycles, periods of expansion and prosperity followed by economic depression and increased unemployment. World War I (1914-1918) brought revolution and a Marxist-based Communism to Russia. The war also spawned the Nazi system in Germany (see National Socialism), a mixture of capitalism and state socialism, brought together in a regime whose violence and expansionism eventually pushed the world into another major conflict, World War II (1939-1945). After the war, Communist economic systems took hold in China and Eastern Europe.

The Western capitalist nations enjoyed economic growth and rising standards of living, although inflation and unemployment continued to be intermittent problems. As the Cold War came to an end in the 1980s, the former Soviet-bloc nations turned to capitalism (with mixed success at first). China was the only major power to retain a Marxist regime. Many of the developing nations, strongly influenced by Marxist ideas in the early postcolonial period, turned to a modified form of capitalism in their search for answers to economic problems.

Census ['sensqs], term primarily referring to the official and periodical counting of the people of a country or section of a country; also, the printed record of such a counting. In actual usage the term is applied to the collection of information on population, housing, business enterprises, and governmental agencies.

History

The earliest known censuses were conducted for purposes of levying taxes or for military conscription. The Romans were the first to count their empire's inhabitants at regular intervals. With the dominance of feudalism in the Middle Ages (5th century to 15th century), information on taxation and personnel for military conscription became unnecessary. Not until the 17th century did a nation again attempt an accurate count of its population. The first true census in modern times began in 1665 in the colony of New France (France's North American empire). During the 1800s and the first half of the 1900s, the practice of census-taking spread throughout the world.

The United States Census

The first census in the United States began in 1790. Seventeen U.S. marshals solicited answers to six questions: the name of the head of the household, the number of free white males 16 years of age and older, the number of free white males under 16 years of age, the number of free white females, the number of other free persons, and the number of slaves. For the next 50 years, the census questions remained basically unchanged. In 1840 the government expanded the scope of census information and by 1860 six separate census questionnaires posed 142 different questions. With the invention in the 1880s of the punch-card system of tabulation, vast quantities of data could be processed quickly. In 1902 the Congress of the United States established the Bureau of the Census as a permanent organization. The New Deal programs of the 1930s and the subsequent wartime emergency made unprecedented demands for accurate, up-to-date information on the population. The Census Bureau developed sampling techniques to provide a wide range of information on a regular and continuing basis. In 1951 the first computer for nonmilitary use began tabulating data from the 1950 census.

The Census Today

Response to the census is required by law. The information is kept strictly confidential. Data collected from individuals can be used for statistical purposes only, not for taxation, investigation, or regulation. In addition to operations mandated by law, the Census Bureau consults extensively with the users of its statistics. Advisory committees discuss methods of handling census materials so that the statistics are appropriate for most data users.

Census data directly influence decisions on matters of national and local importance such as education, employment, transportation, military-personnel potential, business cycles, health-care needs, parks, natural resources, energy, and international relations. State and local governments use census information for drawing legislative and other district boundaries. Because many public programs are funded according to population, and because congressional representation is based on the number of residents, state and local authorities are particularly concerned with obtaining an accurate count.

The 21st Decennial Census of Population and Housing officially began on April 1, 1990. A temporary workforce of approximately 300,000 people was hired to check the returned forms, visit households from which forms had not been returned, and perform many clerical tasks. Tabulation of the data yielded more than 300,000 pages of statistics, which were made available to the public.

Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), agency of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, created in 1947 together with the National Security Council. The CIA is a permanent peacetime intelligence agency, responsible for keeping the government informed of foreign actions affecting national interests and coordinating national intelligence activities. Its director is appointed by the president with the approval of the United States Senate.

The CIA attempts to recruit agents who can obtain vital information without detection. Intelligence reports are reviewed by analysts who produce daily, weekly, or monthly bulletins. The CIA is also responsible for counterespionage activities (see Espionage). Covert political operations have ranged from subsidizing friendly foreign politicians, parties, or pressure groups, to providing assistance through paramilitary operations.

In 1975 the CIA came under extensive congressional and White House examination. Investigators found that the agency had engaged in "unlawful" domestic spying activities and had been implicated in assassination attempts abroad. Permanent congressional committees were established to oversee CIA operations. By 1986, however, the agency was involved in a controversy concerning the secret sale of weapons to Iran and the disbursement of funds from the sale to the rebels (known as the contras) fighting the government of Nicaragua.

In the 1990s the CIA was rocked by a number of scandals. In 1994 Aldrich Ames, a career counterintelligence officer, was convicted of selling secrets to the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) and sentenced to life imprisonment. In 1995 it was revealed that two men in Guatemala–an American innkeeper and a leftist Guatemalan guerrilla–had been murdered on the orders of a Guatemalan colonel who was a paid agent of the CIA. An investigation revealed that the CIA had known that one of its agents was responsible for the murders.

Checks and Balances are limitations on the powers of any branch of government. Checks and balances are created by giving each branch some powers that offset those of the other branches.

Citizen, individual member of a political society or state. In the republics of antiquity, the term citizen signified not merely a resident of a town but a free, governing member of the state. Greek citizens had the right to participate in both the legislative and judicial functions of their political community. In ancient Rome two classes of citizens were recognized: The first possessed the rights of citizenship; the second possessed these rights and the additional right to hold state office. In the United States the word citizen is used in its broadest sense. An individual may be at once a citizen of the United States and of the state in which he or she resides. However, the citizen owes first and highest allegiance to the federal government. A citizen of the United States may be native-born or naturalized. A naturalized citizen was originally a subject of a foreign state but has become a citizen of the United States (see Naturalization). A person may also hold dual citizenship, meaning that two different nations officially recognize that person as a citizen. This occurs most commonly when a child is born in one country and the parents hold citizenship in another.

City Planning, unified development of cities and their environs. For most of its history, city planning dealt primarily with the regulation of land use and the physical arrangement of city structures, as guided by architectural, engineering, and land-development criteria. In the mid-1900s it broadened to include the guidance of the physical, economic, and social environment of a community. City planning is conducted by governments on all levels and by private groups.

History of City Planning

Archaeological excavations of ancient cities reveal evidence of some deliberate planning: the arrangement of housing in regular, rectangular patterns and the prominent location of civic and religious buildings along main thoroughfares. The emphasis on planning broadened during the Greek and Roman eras. Religious and civic citadels were oriented so as to give a sense of aesthetic balance; streets were arranged in a grid pattern; and housing was integrated with cultural, commercial, and defense facilities. After the fall of the Roman Empire, cities declined in population and importance. From the 400s to 1400s towns were usually planned around castles, churches, and monasteries, with informal street arrangements.

The emulation of Greco-Roman classicism during the Renaissance revived city-planning efforts. Renaissance planning stressed wide, regular streets forming concentric circles around a central point, with other streets radiating out like spokes of a wheel. These themes of Renaissance planning surfaced in the colonial cities of the Americas in the 1500s and 1600s. The ideals of public grandeur and radial, circumferential streets continued in the 1800s. During this century of the Industrial Revolution, the few design standards that were introduced often neglected basic physical and aesthetic considerations. By the end of the 1800s the growth of major cities led to serious overcrowding, with a host of associated problems.

The United States and Britain responded similarly to the need to improve the living conditions in cities. Their initial action was to regulate the sanitary conditions and density of tenement housing. A movement then arose for a more comprehensive, long-term approach. Important steps were taken in the early 1900s to formalize and legalize city planning. In 1909 American architect Daniel Burnham published his Plan of Chicago, a comprehensive design that integrated transportation systems, parks, streets, and other facilities. In the United States during the 1920s local planning increased significantly. Greater acceptance of city planning resulted from the rapid growth of cities during the 1920s and the ensuing pressures on transportation facilities and public services. During the Great Depression of the 1930s, regional and national governments intervened more forcefully in city planning to foster economic development in depressed regions. The extensive physical rebuilding of European cities following World War II (1939-1945) lent new urgency to city planning. In the 1950s and 1960s British development of new towns received new emphasis. In the United States efforts were focused on designing vast new suburban housing subdivisions and providing for their transportation needs. The redevelopment of older central cities was also a major concern. The interstate highway network of expressways, begun in the early 1950s, influenced the shape of all metropolitan areas.

Modern City Planning

In its modern form, city planning is an ongoing process that concerns not only physical design but also social, economic, and political policy issues. City planning requires more than a narrow specialist who can develop and implement a physical plan. The basic city-planning document is a comprehensive plan that is adopted and maintained with regular revisions. The plan receives its day-to-day expression in zoning ordinances, subdivision regulations, and building and housing codes that establish standards of land use and quality of construction. The comprehensive plan served as a guide to making daily development decisions in terms of their long-range consequences.

Land is allocated and private activities are coordinated with public facilities by means of zoning ordinances and subdivision regulations. A zoning ordinance governs how the land may be used and the size, type, and number of structures that may be built on the land. Construction on previously undeveloped land is controlled by subdivision regulations and by site-plan review. Building and housing codes govern the quality and safety of new buildings, as well as subsequent maintenance.

Contemporary city planning also addresses many long-range social and economic issues, including economic development and redevelopment. Economic development plans involve job training and create jobs, establish new industry and business, help existing enterprises to flourish, rehabilitate what is salvageable, and redevelop what cannot be saved. Capital projects–such as road improvements, street lighting, public parking facilities, and purchase of land for open spaces–must be considered and prioritized. In declining areas, economic redevelopment is of prime concern. City planners must understand that regional, interregional, national, and international economic forces affect a city. Their plans must reflect the interests and priorities of the people and businesses of the city, and the programs that are implemented must help the city survive and maintain the quality of life that these groups desire.

Civil Rights are the freedoms that people may have as members of a community, particularly a nation. In most countries, law and custom guarantee civil rights.

Civil Service includes most civilian government employees who are appointed rather than elected.

Colonialism is a term that refers to the rule of a group of people by a foreign power.

Commonwealth, body of people in a politically organized community that is independent or semi-independent, and in which the government functions by the common consent of the people. The United States and its separate, semiautonomous states are commonwealths. In addition, the term is applied in a general sense to an association of persons having a common interest. It is also applied to Australia and the Bahamas and to the association of countries known as the Commonwealth of Nations.

Common Law is the body of rules found in the written records of judges' decisions. It is law made by courts, rather than by legislatures.

Communist Parties, political organizations designed to establish and maintain a Communist system, theoretically dominated by the working class and generally patterned on the party established in Russia after the Russian Revolution of 1917. Most Communist parties have been totalitarian and monolithic in both spirit and practice (see Totalitarianism). In the 1980s more than one-fourth of the world's population lived under Communist rule. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, however, political and economic upheavals led to the collapse of numerous Communist regimes and severely weakened the power and influence of Communist parties throughout the world.

The ussr and Eastern Europe

In 1903 the Bolshevik (majority) faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labor Party, headed by Vladimir Lenin, split from the Menshevik (minority) faction to form a separate party. In 1917 the Bolsheviks seized control of the Russian revolutionary movement and founded the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). The name Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) was adopted in 1952. The general secretary of the CPSU, the party's highest official, wielded political power in the USSR. The party permeated all facets of Soviet economic, political, military, and cultural life. Until the end of the 1980s, the CPSU was the leader of the international Communist movement. As the 1990s began, economic and political upheavals in Eastern Europe and the USSR forced the CPSU to give up its leading role. By the end of 1991 the USSR had dissolved and its Communist remnant was in disarray (безладдя, невпорядкованість).

The drastic decline of the CPSU followed the collapse of many Eastern European Communist parties, which had been linked to the CPSU. The Communist parties of Eastern Europe had their origins in the period from 1891 to 1921. They assumed power in the late 1940s following the occupation of Eastern Europe by the Soviet Army. Every Communist government in Eastern Europe surrendered its monopoly on political power between 1989 and 1991.

China

Unlike the Communist organizations of Eastern Europe and the USSR, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) was able to stem the tide of democratic protest in the late 1980s. Since the establishment of the People's Republic in 1949, it has been the country's only legal party. The Chinese and Soviet parties were once closely allied, but during the 1960s they became bitter rivals. The CCP's influence in the international Communist movement declined after the death of its longtime chairman, Mao Zedong (Mao Tse-tung), in 1976. Because of the political instability that followed Mao's death, the CCP sought to lessen the power of individual leaders by making the National People's Congress the leading body of the CCP.

Western Europe

The Communist parties of Western Europe were established between 1918 and 1923, following the Russian Revolution. They have since enjoyed differing degrees of political power in their respective countries. Since the early 1960s the French Communist Party has forged electoral alliances with non-Communist parties of the Left and the Center. Although it has never won a majority, it was the largest of all French parties by the late 1970s. The French Communist Party joined with those of Italy and Spain during the 1970s in advocating a more liberal, pluralistic form of communism (Eurocommunism). The Italian Communist Party appeared as a major force in Italian politics in 1944. At the local level the party has held power in many municipalities since the late 1940s. Seeking to redefine its program for the 1990s, the Italian Communist Party took a new name, the Democratic Party of the Left, and emphasized social democracy, women's rights, and environmental issues.

The Western Hemisphere

The Communist Party of the United States of America (CPUSA) is descended from the Communist Labor Party and the Communist Party, both founded in 1919. The membership of the CPUSA is concentrated in a few industrial states and is believed to be largely middle-aged or older. Communist parties in the western hemisphere, except for those of Cuba and Nicaragua, are generally small and sometimes illegal. Their significance stems from their support of leftist coalitions and, on occasion, guerrilla activities. The Cuban party is the only ruling Communist party in the western hemisphere. It depended on the Soviet Union for financial support, and during the 1970s and 1980s acted in fulfillment of CPSU policies by providing military assistance to "national liberation movements" abroad.

Communism is a form of government, an economic system, a revolutionary movement, and a philosophy. Communism calls for government control of economic activity and for government ownership of factories, machines, and other means of production. Communism, concept or system of society in which the major resources and means of production are owned by the community rather than by individuals. Theoretically, communist societies provide for equal sharing of all work, according to ability, and all benefits, according to need. As a concept of an ideal society, communism is derived from ancient sources. In the early 1800s the idea of a communist society was a response to modern capitalism by the poor and the dislocated. Later, the term was reserved for the philosophy advanced by German revolutionary theorists Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in their Communist Manifesto.

In their writings, Marx and Engels described human history as the attempt to control nature in order to improve the human condition. In the development of human productive forces, social institutions were created that introduced exploitation, domination, and other evils. Engels and Marx believed that the capitalist system would also destroy itself, culminating in a revolution in which the poor would rebel against their oppressors, do away with private ownership, and eliminate inequalities and coercive government. Marx and Engels expected this would happen in the most highly industrialized nations. However, communists have come to power in nations that lacked the preconditions Marx and Engels considered essential.

The first of these countries was Russia, which became known as the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) following the Russian Revolution (1917). When the Communist Party emerged victorious, it was faced with the need to modernize the Soviet economy and transform the country into a major military power. The Soviet leadership was ruthless in marshaling human and material resources for these tasks. The resulting system has been labeled totalitarianism or Stalinism, after Joseph Stalin, the leader who controlled the USSR for more than a quarter of a century. Stalinism scarcely resembled the communist utopia that Marx and Engels had envisioned. Three decades after Stalin's death, the USSR remained a society administered in authoritarian fashion by a managerial bureaucracy.

To the West, the Soviet Communist government appeared as a threat, and from the beginning attempts were made to destroy it by force. In its endangered position, the Communist regime tried to establish workable relations with other countries. Between 1945 and 1975 the number of countries under Communist rule increased greatly, partly because of the way the victorious powers in World War II had divided the world, and partly because revolutionary Communist movements were gaining strength in the Third World. By the early 1980s the USSR had become the world's second-ranking industrial power. However, it soon became apparent that Soviet Communism was in crisis. By the end of 1991 rapid political change had led to the collapse of Communist governments in Eastern Europe, the USSR, and elsewhere.

Confederation, union of sovereign states, each of which may act independently. It is distinguished from a federation, in which individual states are subordinate to the central government. Confederations existed in ancient times, notably the Delian League, formed under Athenian leadership in the 400s BC. In modern times the term applies to formerly independent states joined in a single political unit. During the American Revolution (1775-1783) the former colonies set up a confederation that later formed a federation under the Constitution of the United States. The southern states that seceded in 1861 formed themselves into a confederation. Several short-lived European confederations appeared in the 1800s, including the North German Confederation of 1866 to 1870.

Congress of the United States, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. In conjunction with the executive and judicial branches, Congress exercises the sovereign power of the people of the United States. Congress has only such functions and authority as are expressly conferred or implied by the Constitution of the United States. Among these are the power to tax, to borrow money on the credit of the United States, to regulate commerce with foreign nations and between states, to coin money, to establish post offices, to declare war, to form armies, and to make laws necessary for the execution of its own powers and those of the government of the United States. Constitutional limitations on the powers of Congress generally prohibit the abridgment or destruction of fundamental rights.

Two general and important restrictions are the presidential veto and the invalidation of legislation as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States. If vetoed by the president, a bill cannot become law unless passed a second time and by a two-thirds majority of each house. Only the Senate may confirm presidential appointments, give consent to treaties, and try impeachments. However, impeachment may be initiated only by the House of Representatives. Only the House may initiate revenue bills.

The term of a Congress extends from each odd-numbered year to the next odd-numbered year; the First Congress convened in 1789. The houses of Congress meet separately in the Capitol in Washington, D.C., but convene in joint session for communications from the president or addresses by foreign dignitaries. Most sessions are open to the public. Each house makes its own rules of procedure and may punish or expel members for just cause. Both houses use a system of committees to consider and prepare legislation. Committees are composed of members of the majority and minority political parties in proportion to their strength. Members of the majority party chair the committees. A majority and a minority leader in each house, chosen by their respective party members, are influential in scheduling and shaping legislation.

The Senate is composed of two senators from each state, elected for six-year terms. Since 1959 the Senate has had 100 members. The terms of one-third of the members of the Senate expire every two years. Since 1913, when the 17th Amendment went into effect, senators have been elected by popular vote. A senator must be at least 30 years of age, a U.S. citizen for at least nine years, and a resident of the state in which he or she is elected. Each senator has one vote. The presiding officer of the Senate is the U.S. vice president, who may vote only in the event of a tie. In the absence of the vice president, the Senate is presided over by a president pro tempore.

The entire membership of the House of Representatives is renewed every second year. Representatives are elected by popular vote. The Constitution provides that each state have at least one representative and that the other representatives be apportioned among the states, based on a decennial census. At present the size of the House is fixed at 435 members, elected on the basis of one representative for about 500,000 inhabitants.

Members of the House generally represent congressional districts established by the states. A representative must be at least 25 years of age, a U.S. citizen for at least seven years, and a resident of the state in which he or she is elected, but not necessarily a resident of the congressional district that he or she represents. Each representative has one vote. The presiding officer of the House of Representatives is the Speaker of the House, who is elected by the House. The Speaker appoints all select committees and may vote, but generally does so only to break a tie.

Conservatism is a political belief in making changes in line with proven values of the past. Most American conservatives, for example, want to hold public governments strictly within the limits of their powers as set forth in the Constitution. Conservatism, general state of mind that is averse to rapid change and innovation and strives for balance and order, while avoiding extremes. Originally conservatism arose as a reaction against the Age of Enlightenment. Conservatives advocated belief in faith over reason, tradition over free inquiry, hierarchy over equality, collective values over individualism, and divine or natural law over secular law. Conservatism emphasizes the merits of the status quo and endorses the prevailing distribution of power, wealth, and social standing. Political conservative thought, however, has reconciled itself with constitutional democracy and individual rights as well as with prudent and orderly social and economic change.

Conservatism received its classic formulation in the works of British statesman Edmund Burke, who viewed society as an organic whole, with individuals performing various roles and functions: A natural elite provides leadership in a community held together by customs and traditions. Burke rejected the principles of equality, popular representation, and majority rule. He advocated order, balance, and cooperation in society; restraints on government; and the supremacy of law. After the mid-1800s gradual extension of voting rights, social legislation, and better cooperation between the poor and the rich became part of conservatism in Britain. In the 1900s the Conservative Party accepted economic controls by the state, broadened the state's social responsibility in some areas, and endorsed the tenets of the welfare state. Only after 1979 did the Conservative Party begin to reconsider these practices.

European conservatives, until the end of the 1800s, rejected democratic principles and opted for monarchies or for authoritarian government. A dominant conservative doctrine in many European countries has been corporatism, which advocates a close collaboration between employers and workers under the direction of the state. Corporatism remains a major influence on conservatism in Europe and in Latin America. For most of the 1980s, conservative parties held power in both Britain and West Germany. In France a Gaullist movement has been influential since 1958. In other European countries conservative forces are caught between left-wing and authoritarian movements.

Unlike the trend in England and the European continent, the main currents of American political thought converged throughout the 1800s into a broad consensus that incorporated economic individualism and constitutional democracy with powerful restraints on the government. With the Great Depression of the 1930s and the New Deal introduced by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933, American conservatism became a distinct political movement. The conservatives disapproved of the New Deal and restated the fundamental premises of a free-market economy. Conservatives gradually made important inroads among Republicans and even among Democrats. This led to the defeat of many liberal senators and representatives in the 1980 election.

Constitution is the written or unwritten collection of rules and principles followed by governments. Constitution, in politics, fundamental system of law, written or unwritten, of a sovereign state, established or accepted as a guide for governing the state. A constitution fixes the limits and defines the relations of the legislative, judicial, and executive powers of the state, thus setting up the basis for government. It also provides guarantees of certain rights to the people. The United States has a written constitution, while the United Kingdom has an unwritten constitution.

Coup d'état, ['ku:deI'tQ:] seizure of an existing government by a small group. This overthrow is sometimes accompanied by violence. A coup d'état involves relatively few members of the population, and these few frequently are military officers. For many years the coup d'état has been used in Latin America. This pattern now seems to be appearing in some African nations.

Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, manifesto adopted in 1789 by the National Assembly of France that formed the preamble to the new constitution of 1791. The declaration enumerated a number of rights with which "all men" were held to be endowed and nullified the divine right of kings, which was the former basis of French government.

The enumerated rights included participation in the making of laws; equality of all before the law; equitable taxation; protection against loss of property through arbitrary action by the state; freedom of religion, speech, and the press; and protection against arbitrary arrest and punishment. The declaration served as a model for most of the declarations of political and civil rights adopted by European states in the 19th century.

Democracy means rule by the people. It may refer to a form of government, or to a way of life. Democracy, political system in which the people of a country rule through any form of government they choose to establish. In modern democracies, supreme authority is usually exercised by popularly elected representatives. The representatives may be replaced by the electorate according to the legal procedures of recall and referendum, and they are in principle responsible to the electorate.

The city-states of ancient Greece and of Rome during the early years of the Republic were direct democracies, in which all citizens could vote in assemblies. Some European cities carried on the democratic tradition during the Middle Ages (5th century to 15th century). Concepts of equal political and social rights were further defined during the Renaissance (14th century to 17th century), when the development of humanism was fostered, and later during the Reformation (16th century), in the struggle for religious freedom.

Beginning with the first popular rebellion against monarchy in England (1642), political and revolutionary action against autocratic European governments resulted in the establishment of democratic governments. This change was fostered largely by political philosophers, notably French philosophers Montesquieu and Jean Jacques Rousseau, and American statesmen Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. By the end of the 19th century, every major Western European monarchy had adopted a constitution giving considerable political power to the people. The British Parliament became a model for representative legislatures in Europe and around the world.

Later, democratic institutions in the United States served as a model for many nations. The major features of modern democracy include individual freedom, equality before the law, and universal suffrage (voting rights) and education. By the mid-20th century nearly every independent country in the world had a government that–in form if not in practice–embodied some of the principles of democracy.

Despotism is a form of government in which the ruler has unlimited power over the people. Despot, absolute ruler, unrestricted by any legal or constitutional process. In modern usage, the word carries connotations of cruel and oppressive policies, but in the original Greek usage it meant the master of a household, and denoted merely the possessor of unlimited power. In the Byzantine Empire, the term was a title of honor applied to the emperor.

Dictator is any ruler whose power is not limited by law or by the acts of any official body, such as a legislature. Dictator, title of a magistrate in ancient Rome, appointed by the Senate in times of emergency. The dictator held office usually for six months, and served as chief magistrate of the state. According to the Roman orator Cicero, the office was created to cope with civil disturbances. In the last years of the Republic, Roman politicians occasionally assumed the office with powers not permitted by law. Julius Caesar became dictator for life in 45 BC. In modern times, those who have assumed sole power over the state have been called dictators. Notable dictators include Francisco Franco, Benito Mussolini, Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Juan Perуn, Manuel Antonio Noriega, and Saddam Hussein.

Diplomacy, practices and institutions by which nations conduct their relations with one another.

History of Diplomacy

The first civilization to develop an orderly system of diplomacy was ancient Greece. Ambassadors were sent from city to city to deliver messages, to transfer gifts, and to plead the cases of their own people before the rulers of other city-states. As the Roman Empire expanded, its diplomacy served the purposes of conquest and annexation.

Modern diplomacy had its origins during the Italian Renaissance. Although Renaissance diplomacy was especially vicious and amoral, the Italian city-states developed a number of institutions and practices that still exist, including a system of permanent ambassadors, the creation of foreign offices, and a system of protocol, privileges, and immunities for diplomats. The concept of extraterritoriality was established, by which an embassy in any state was subject only to the laws of its own country. With the rise of nation-states in 17th-century Europe, the concept of national interest developed, replacing personal interests as the basis of diplomatic objectives. At the same time, diplomats sought to maintain the balance of power among the most powerful nations. The European system of diplomacy was upset when Napoleon attempted to conquer Europe in the early 19th century. The system was restored after Napoleon's defeat, and no major wars occurred for the next 100 years.

The carnage of World War I (1914-1918) brought the European system of diplomacy into disrepute. United States President Woodrow Wilson proposed a "new diplomacy" that did away with the practice of the balance of power, the pursuit of national interests, and secret agreements and treaties. Many of Wilson's ideas were incorporated into the 1919 Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations. After the United States returned to a policy of isolationism, however, the European states reverted to their former practices. During World War II (1939-1945), U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt and British prime minister Winston Churchill worked on a postwar international order that conformed to the old European system. International politics since then has adhered closely to the European model.

Departments of Foreign Affairs

Government agencies that deal with foreign affairs are usually called the ministry or department of foreign or external affairs. In the United States, foreign affairs is handled by the Department of State. Such a department is headed by the foreign secretary (or, in the United States, by the secretary of state). In democracies, the foreign secretary is always appointed by the nation's leader. The secretary advises the head of state on matters of foreign policy. At times, the foreign secretary is also directly involved in negotiations with other nations. Bureaus for major geographic areas are broken down into smaller divisions and, ultimately, into "country desks." Desk officers are career diplomats who specialize in various aspects of the country to which they are assigned. Functional divisions deal with issues that do not fall under the domain of any one country.

Foreign Missions

The embassy abroad, or foreign mission, is headed by an ambassador assisted by a career diplomat who serves as deputy or first secretary. The deputy secretary oversees and coordinates the work of the staff and assumes the responsibilities of the mission whenever the ambassador is away or incapacitated. Staffed largely by foreign service officers, most missions contain sections for political affairs, economic affairs, information and cultural affairs, consular affairs, and administrative matters. A mission also usually includes a number of attachйs from other government departments. The varied activities of a diplomatic mission range from negotiation and reporting on events to meeting with foreign students and issuing visas. Most nations staff their foreign services with career civil servants who are selected on the basis of competitive examinations. About 10,000 people are in the U.S. Foreign Service. While many nations appoint distinguished citizens who are not career officers to serve as ambassadors, most ambassadors are career diplomats.

Diplomatic Conventions

Detailed and universally accepted conventions exist concerning most of the formal ways in which countries interact. The modes and conventions of diplomacy are highly stylized, allowing diplomats to deal with important issues in a calm and unemotional manner. The privileges and immunities of diplomats are highly developed and accepted by all nations. The premises of missions are inviolable, and free communication between the mission and the host government must be permitted. Diplomatic agents and their staffs are not liable to any form of arrest; diplomats are immune from criminal laws and, in most cases, from civil and administrative jurisdiction as well.

They are exempt from all direct taxes in the host state. In the event of war, the host state must enable diplomats from belligerent nations to leave the country. Very important negotiations are increasingly being undertaken by specially selected envoys or foreign ministers and by heads of state. Resident diplomats, however, still do almost all the day-to-day negotiating and interacting with leaders of other states. Latin was the language of diplomacy until the 17th century, when it was increasingly replaced by French.

World War I marked the rise of English as a second language of diplomacy. After World War II, the framers of the United Nations sought to create a five-language system, including French, English, Russian, Spanish, and Chinese.

Divine Right of Kings, doctrine that sovereigns are representatives of God and derive their right to rule directly from God. According to the doctrine, a ruler's power is not subject to secular limitation; the ruler is responsible only to God. In the 17th century the doctrine was supported by the English Royalists against the Parliamentarians, who maintained that the exercise of political power springs from the will of the people. The doctrine of divine right, epitomized by the reign of King Louis XIV of France from 1643 to 1715, was one of the elements that led to the French Revolution (1789-1799).

Downing Street, street in the West End of London. The official residence of the British prime minister, where cabinet meetings are often held, is located at No. 10. Also on Downing Street are the residence of the chancellor of the Exchequer and the Foreign Office. The term Downing Street is often used to mean the British government.

Due Process of Law consists of the legal steps that must be taken whenever a person is charged with breaking the law. Every American citizen is guaranteed due process by the U.S. Constitution.

Election, procedure that allows members of an organization or community to choose representatives who will hold positions of authority within it. Elections select the leaders of local, state, and national governments. They allow the public to make choices about government action and promote accountability among those in power.

In the United States elections are held at regular intervals. National presidential elections take place every four years. Congressional elections occur every two years. Elections for state and local office usually coincide with national elections. The responsibility for organizing elections rests largely with state and local governments.

Voting Rights

Native-born or naturalized U.S. citizens over the age of 18, with the exception of convicted felons, possess the right to vote. During the early years of the nation's history, legislatures in the United States generally restricted voting to white men over the age of 21. In 1870 the 15th Amendment of the Constitution of the United States secured the right of blacks to vote throughout the nation. However, Southern states continued to deny blacks voting rights until the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s brought about the enactment of the 1965 federal Voting Rights Act. The women's suffrage movement culminated in 1920 in the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote. In 1971 the 26th Amendment lowered the voting age from 21 to 18.

Voter Participation

Compared to voter participation rates in other democracies, participation in American elections is low. Slightly more than 50 percent of those eligible participate in national presidential elections. In European nations, voter turnout consistently exceeds 80 percent. Participation rates have dropped severely among poorer and less educated citizens. Voting rates are nearly twice as high among the wealthiest fifth of the population as they are among the poorest fifth.

Voter Registration

In the United States, eligible voters must register with state election boards before they may vote. Registration requirements have decreased in most states since the 1960s. An eligible individual may now register to vote by mailing a postcard to the state election board. The 1993 federal "Motor-Voter" Act required states to make such postcards available in motor vehicle, public assistance, and military recruitment offices.

Electoral Systems

"Majority systems" require that a victorious candidate receive more than 50 percent of the vote. Under a "plurality system", winning candidates need only receive more votes than any opponent. Systems of "proportional representation" award legislative seats to competing political parties in rough proportion to their percentage of the popular votes cast. European nations commonly use this electoral system.

Virtually all national elections in the United States use the plurality system, although the majority system survives in some elections. In general, proportional representation works to the advantage of smaller or weaker groups in society, while plurality and majority rules tend to help larger and more powerful forces. Proportional representation tends to boost participation and increase the number of competitive political parties.

Types of Elections

In most nations, political party leaders select candidates for office in a general election. The United States is one of the few nations to hold primary elections prior to the general election campaign in which voters select the party's candidates for office.

Some states also provide for referendum voting, a process that allows citizens to vote directly on proposed laws. Although it involves voting, the referendum is not an election. The election is an institution of representative government, while the referendum is an institution of direct democracy.

Redistricting

State legislatures redraw the boundaries of congressional districts every ten years, in response to population changes. The purpose is to ensure that congressional seats are fairly apportioned among the citizens of a state. However, some legislators manipulate the boundaries of electoral districts to influence electoral outcomes. This process is often called gerrymandering. In the past, one common purpose of gerrymandering was to reduce the electoral strength of racial minorities in congressional districts. See Gerrymander.

Electoral Reform, elimination of undemocratic, dishonest, and corrupt practices in the conduct of public elections. Reform is usually effected by statutory enactments that extend voting rights to certain categories of citizens, revise procedures for selecting candidates and arranging elections, and outlaw corrupt practices employed to influence the outcome of elections.

Early Electoral Reform in the United States

A federal law enacted in 1925 ordered political committees to file with the House of Representatives sworn statements identifying all contributors of $100 or more, all persons receiving $10 or more from the moneys collected by the committees, and the purposes for which the disbursements were made. Candidates for the Congress of the United States were required to submit itemized accounts of contributions made to their campaign expenses. Limits were placed on the amounts candidates were allowed to expend in campaigning. In 1939 Congress passed the Hatch Act, which prohibits certain types of political activity on the part of federal employees.

Voting Rights

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 suspended voter qualification devices that were often used to prevent blacks from voting. It also required federal review to prevent racial discrimination by new state voting laws and made interference with voting rights a criminal offense. In 1964 the 24th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States prohibited poll taxes as a qualification for voting in federal elections. The 26th Amendment, ratified in 1971, lowered the voting age to 18.

Later amendments to the Voting Rights Act added bilingual requirements in some counties, banned the use of literacy requirements, and allowed voters who are illiterate, blind, or disabled to be assisted in the voting booth by a person of their own choice. U.S. citizens residing abroad were granted the right to vote in federal elections by absentee ballot in 1975, and voting accessibility for the elderly was guaranteed in 1984.

Reapportionment and Redistricting

A major concern of supporters of electoral reform has been the establishment of election districts that are nearly equal in population. In districts that are unequal, a disproportionate power has often been given to a small number of voters. In 1962 the Supreme Court of the United States declared this kind of disproportionate representation violates the Constitution. In 1985 the court ruled unconstitutional the manipulation of election district lines to give one political party an advantage over the others.

Campaign Financing

The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 placed strict limits on contributions and on the amount that can be spent on media advertising. It required periodic disclosures of all contributions and disbursements on behalf of candidates. It also provided for the partial federal financing of presidential primary campaigns and the full federal financing of presidential campaigns in the general election.

Embargo, [Im'bQ:gqV] edict, decree, or order, usually issued by a government, prohibiting the departure of merchant ships from ports under its control, or prohibiting them from carrying certain types of goods out of the country. An embargo may be levied on both domestic and foreign vessels.

Embargoes on foreign ships were formerly levied principally to prevent the spread of information about developments in the country declaring the embargo or in reprisal for an injury committed by another government. Both reasons lost their force, and embargoes on foreign ships declined in importance, chiefly as a result of extraordinary developments in communications in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Embargoes on domestic ships, sometimes called civil embargoes, have been levied because of an existing or anticipated shortage in a vital commodity within a country and for reasons of international policy.

Emperor, ['emp(q)rq] title, derived from the Latin imperator, which was originally applied generally to any magistrate of ancient Rome vested with power to command and to enforce the laws of the state. Later, the term came to be used specifically by Roman troops for a victorious general. When Julius Caesar adopted the title, imperator for the first time denoted a sovereign ruler, rather than merely a victorious commander. Throughout history various rulers have adopted the title of emperor, which generally refers to a ruler of wide territories and peoples.

Espionage, ['espIqnQ:Z] secret collection of information, or intelligence, that commonly relates to governmental foreign and defense policy. Espionage, or spying, proceeds against the attempts of counterespionage (or counterintelligence) agencies to protect the secrecy of the information desired. Espionage involves the recruiting of agents in foreign nations; efforts to encourage the disloyalty of those possessing significant information; and audio surveillance, as well as the use of photographic, sensing, and detection devices.

In the United States, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is the main agency for gathering secret information that may bear on national security. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has primary responsibility for counterespionage activities within the United States. The CIA is responsible for counterespionage outside the country. Many governments maintain some kind of intelligence capability. All nations have laws against espionage, but most sponsor spies in other lands.

The Gathering of Intelligence

Many developed nations maintain intelligence organizations with programs for recruiting new agents. Agents generally come from universities, the armed services and police forces, and the underground world of espionage, which produces an assortment of persons with relevant experience. Counterintelligence staffs are always skeptical of defectors, as they may be double agents (spies who pretend to be defecting but in reality maintain their original loyalty). The "agent-in-place" is a person who remains in a position of trust with access to secret information but who has been recruited by a foreign intelligence service; such a spy is known as a mole.

The world's intelligence programs follow three distinct organizational patterns: the American, the totalitarian, and the British (parliamentary) systems. In the United States the CIA sits at the corner of an elaborate complex of separate intelligence organizations, each of which has a specific role and area of operations. This model influenced countries where the United States was dominant following World War II (1939-1945), such as West Germany and Japan.

The totalitarian system is highly centralized. In the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), the KGB (secret police) was responsible for foreign intelligence gathering, counterespionage, and recruiting foreign agents. Several Communist nations still follow the KGB model.

In the British intelligence model, a confederation of agencies is coordinated by a Cabinet subcommittee and accountable to the Cabinet and prime minister. The intelligence services of France, Italy, and Israel follow this general pattern of organization.

History of Espionage

Intelligence was haphazardly organized until the rise of nationalism in the 18th century. Political espionage is thought to have first been used systematically during the French Revolution (1789). Under the direction of Joseph Fouché;, duc d'Otrante, a network of police and spies uncovered conspiracies to seize power. Not until the late-19th century, however, were permanent intelligence bureaus created.

Most nations entered World War I (1914-1918) with inadequate espionage staffs, and the war was fought frequently on the basis of poor intelligence. World War II (1939-1945) was the great stimulus to intelligence services worldwide. Some of the major battles of the war were actually intelligence battles. Japan's surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 was a major intelligence failure for the Americans, stimulating the postwar growth of a massive intelligence apparatus in the United States.

In the mid-1970s the Vietnam War, Watergate, and the policies of détente caused many Americans to question the role of the CIA. Disclosures of intelligence agency abuses and failures were followed by investigations that resulted in new guidelines for secret operations and a new structure for executive and legislative supervision.

Implications of Modern Technology

Intelligence is now aided by an accelerating technology of communications and a variety of computing and measuring devices. Satellites are used for aerial photography, telephones can be tapped without wires, and photographs can be produced in the dark. In some foreign embassies, confidential discussions take place in plastic bubbles encasing secure rooms.

Espionage in Politics and Industry

Secret information is also employed to make decisions in politics and industry. Political parties have always been interested in the strategic plans of their opponents and in any information that might discredit them. Most large corporate enterprises employ industrial espionage, which uses many of the tools of government intelligence work.

Executive is the branch of government that oversees the carrying out of laws. The U.S. Constitution separates the work of government into three branches: legislative, judicial, and executive. Although power is shared, Congress has most legislative duties, the courts have most judicial duties, and the President is the chief executive.

Fascism ['fxSIz(q)m] is a strongly nationalistic movement favoring government control of economic and social activity but private ownership of property.

Fascism, 20th-century form of totalitarian dictatorship that sought to create a viable society by strict regimentation of national and individual lives; conflicting interests would be adjusted by total subordination to the service of the state and unquestioning loyalty to its leader (see Totalitarianism). Fascism emphasized nationalism, but its appeal was international. It flourished between 1919 and 1945 in several countries, mainly Italy, Germany, Spain, and Japan.

Origins

Among the factors contributing to the rise of Fascism in Europe were the economic dislocation following World War I (1914-1918), the threat of Communism arising from the Russian Revolution of 1917, and the Great Depression of the 1930s. In 1914 Benito Mussolini, the founder of Fascism in Italy, called on Italy to enter World War I. Influenced by the ideas of French writer Georges Sorel and German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, he glorified "action" and "vitality" and denounced antiwar Communists. After the war, Mussolini's oratorical powers and the support of conservative interests that wanted to stop the spread of leftist movements helped him rise to power.

Italy Under Fascism

In 1922 Mussolini seized control of the Italian government and established a dictatorship. Roman Catholicism was named the state religion. Labor unions were abolished, strikes were forbidden, and political opponents were silenced. Mussolini gave free rein to big business and reduced workers' wages. By 1930 the wages of Italian workers were the lowest in Western Europe. Despite the land hunger of the peasantry, Mussolini did nothing to divide the country's large estates.

Ignoring the increased poverty of the Italian people, Mussolini launched a campaign to increase the birth rate. Women were encouraged to bear as many babies as possible, and all education regarding birth control was banned. This campaign was intended to demonstrate national "virility" and provide future personnel for the Italian armed forces. By 1936 foreign conquest had become Mussolini's final solution to Italy's economic problems. The philosophy of Italian Fascism heralded military values and the virtues of war.

Fascism Elsewhere

Fascism in other countries differed from the Italian variety in certain respects. In Germany under National Socialism, it was more racist; in Romania, it was allied with the Orthodox church rather than the Roman Catholic church. Fascism in Japan was closely akin to that of Germany: Like their German counterparts, Japanese Fascists launched a fanatical drive for military conquest.

Generally Fascism flourished in countries that were economically backward or marked by strong authoritarian political traditions. However, Fascism also made headway in France, one of Europe's most established democracies. Many prominent intellectuals and university students in both France and England were attracted to Fascist ideals during the 1920s and 1930s.

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), agency of the United States Department of Justice, and principal federal investigative agency. Its functions include the investigation of espionage, sabotage, organized crime, drug trafficking, terrorism, and white-collar crime.

Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the FBI has 58 field offices. It also maintains an Identification Division, the FBI Laboratory, a training program for FBI agents, the FBI National Academy, and a project called Uniform Crime Reporting.

Jurisdiction

FBI jurisdiction extends to more than 180 matters, including bank robbery, extortion, kidnapping, antitrust violations, and drug enforcement activities. The FBI investigates infringement of civil rights committed in violation of federal law.

The Office of Personnel Management has primary responsibility for conducting applicant investigations for the federal government. However, when the president so directs or when data indicate possible disloyalty, the FBI conducts the applicant investigation. The FBI is the national clearinghouse for data relating to internal security.

Activities

The Identification Division has on file the largest collection of fingerprints in the world. As a result, the FBI serves as a national center for criminal identification data and identification data on missing persons. The FBI Laboratory employs specialists trained in many branches of science and in scientific methods of crime detection. They examine and analyze specimens of evidence. The training program educates FBI agents in the techniques of scientific investigation and crime detection. The National Academy trains police instructors and administrators. The FBI also serves as a national center for crime statistics and issues the Uniform Crime Reports Bulletin to law enforcement officials.

Federal Government, or federalism, form of government whereby political power is divided between a central or national authority and smaller, locally autonomous units such as provinces or states. A federal government, or federation, is usually formed through the political union of two or more formerly independent states under one sovereign government that does not arrogate the individual powers of those states. In a federal nation, the central government has full sovereignty in external affairs and is preeminent with respect to internal administration within its allotted powers.

A federation is distinguished from a confederation, which is an alliance of autonomous countries for the purpose of joint action or cooperation on specific matters. It is also distinguished from a so-called unitary system, in which the central government holds the principal power over administrative units that are virtually agencies of the central government. Britain has a unitary system of parliamentary government.

After some experience as a confederation, the United States adopted the federal form of government in 1789. The Constitution of the United States has served as a model of federal government for many countries.

Federalism is a union of two or more sovereign political units, such as states or provinces, under a single government of limited powers.

Filibustering ['fIlI"bAstqrIN] is a method sometimes used by lawmakers to block or delay passage of a proposed bill. One legislator, or a group of legislators, makes long speeches or demands unnecessary roll calls to use up time and keep the bill from coming to a vote.

Geopolitics, term used to designate the determining influence of the environment (including geographical features, social and cultural forces, and economic resources) on the politics of a nation. A sovereign state occupies a particular territory with physical features that partly determine viable forms of economic, social, political, and military organization. Geopolitics also considers the geographical location of a state in relation to that of other states, each possessing unique geopolitical qualities.

Geopolitics became important in Germany during the period of National Socialism, providing a rationale to justify that nation's territorial expansion. Many scholars have looked to geopolitics to understand the structure of power relations between states. To explain the rivalry between the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), geopolitical theorists have looked for the roots of foreign policy imperatives in the domestic conditions of each country.

Gerrymander, ['dZerImxndq] (передвиборчі махінації) = apportionment of electoral districts in such a way as to give the political party in power an advantage in elections. Gerrymandering is usually accomplished by spreading out the favored party's electorate in order for it to win by a light majority in many districts. This device often produces electoral districts of curious shapes. The term gerrymander originated in 1812, when Republican governor Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts signed a bill giving his party such an advantage. One electoral district was shaped so fantastically that it was compared to a salamander, and from that the term gerrymander was coined. In 1985 the Supreme Court of the United States ruled unconstitutional the manipulation of electoral district lines so as to give any party an advantage over others.

Government, political organization comprising individuals and institutions authorized to formulate public policies and conduct affairs of state. Governments are empowered to establish and regulate the interrelationships of people within specific communities, the relations of people with the community as a whole, and the dealings of the community with other political entities. Government applies in this sense both to the governments of national states and to the governments of subdivisions of national states.

Classifications

Governments are classified in many ways. One classification is that which distinguishes monarchic from republican governments. Modern scholars have tended to stress the characteristics that distinguish democratic governments from dictatorships. In classifying democratic nations, parliamentary governments are often distinguished from presidential ones. Another classification makes a distinction among unitary, federal, and confederated governments.

History

The ancient despotic empires of Egypt, Sumer, Assyria, Persia, and Macedonia were followed by the rise of Greek city-states, the first self-governing communities. Greek philosopher Aristotle distinguished three categories of government: monarchy, government by a single individual; aristocracy, government by a few; and democracy, government by many. Ancient Rome introduced the principle that constitutional law, establishing the sovereignty of the state, is superior to ordinary law.

After the fall of Rome, the Holy Roman Empire kept alive the Roman concept of a universal dominion during the Middle Ages (5th century to 15th century), retarding the development of national governments in Europe. However, the struggle of feudal barons to limit the power of their monarchs contributed to the development of representative government. The emergence of national governments in the 16th century is attributed to the great expansion in trade and manufacturing that made the creation of large political units necessary.

The modern nation-state was originally almost entirely dynastic and autocratic. However, in time, the middle class began to demand constitutional and representative government. In England, the Glorious Revolution in 1688 restricted the power of the monarch and established the preeminence of Parliament. This tendency culminated in the American Revolution (1775) and the French Revolution (1789), marking the rise of modern democratic government.

In the 19th century and part of the 20th century, the political base of government broadened through the extension of voting rights and other reforms. In addition, the concept developed that government should administer public and social services. Other developments of the 20th century included the appearance of totalitarian governments in a number of countries.

Great Seal of the United States, official seal of the United States government. It is two-sided, with an obverse and a reverse. Its design was adopted by the Congress of the Confederation in 1782. The seal now appears on a variety of documents, including presidential proclamations.

On the obverse of the seal is an American eagle with wings spread. On its breast the eagle bears a shield with 13 vertical red and white stripes surmounted by a horizontal stripe of blue. In its beak is a scroll inscribed with the Latin motto Epluribus unum ("From many, one"). A cluster of 13 five-pointed stars appears above the eagle.

A pyramid is the central figure of the reverse side. The base of the pyramid is inscribed with the date 1776 in Roman numerals. At the zenith of the pyramid appears the all-seeing eye of Divine Providence. The mottos Annuit coeptis ("He has smiled on our undertakings") and Novus ordo seclorum ("New order of the ages") are inscribed on this side.

Habeas Corpus ["heIbIqs'kO:pqs] лат. юр. розпорядження про притягнення арештованого до суду (особливо для розгляду питання щодо законності його арешту; тж. writ of habeas corpus)

Habeas Corpus Act – Хабеас Корпус (англійський закон 1679 г. про недоторканість особистості) refers usually to a writ(ордер) of habeas corpus, an order by a judge requiring the police to bring an arrested person into court. The court then decides if there is good reason to hold the prisoner.

Impeachment is an official charge by a legislative body accusing a government official of being unworthy of office. Impeachment, in the United States and the United Kingdom, proceeding by a legislature for the removal from office of a public official charged with misconduct in office. Impeachment comprises both the act of formulating the accusation and the resulting trial of the charges. The Constitution of the United States gives explicit directions for conducting impeachments.

The House of Representatives conducts the impeachment before the Senate, which serves as a court to try the official. The vice president presides over the impeachment, except in the case of an impeachment of the president, when the chief justice of the United States presides. A two-thirds majority vote of the senators present at an impeachment trial is necessary to secure conviction.In 1868 President Andrew Johnson was impeached on charges of defying the authority of Congress and of violating a federal law. Johnson was acquitted.

In 1974 President Richard M. Nixon was charged with obstructing justice, abusing his constitutional authority, and failing to obey the committee's subpoenas. Nixon resigned and the House took no further action. Impeachment procedure for states is modeled on that of the federal Constitution and has been infrequently invoked.

Imperialism [Im'pI(q)rIqlIz(q)m] is the policy or action by which one country controls another country or territory.

Initiative and Referendum are actions that allow voters a certain amount of direct control over lawmaking. Through the initiative, the voters can introduce a law. Through the referendum, a proposed law is put up to the voters for approval or disapproval.

Isolationism, ["aIsq'leIS(q)nIz(q)m] former United States foreign policy advocating the avoidance of alliances with other nations in order to maintain freedom of action in world affairs.

Origins

The U.S. policy on isolationism had its roots in the American Revolution (1775-1783). Early leaders endorsed commercial treaties and trade expansion, but they warned against long-term political and military commitments. For most of the 19th century, Americans developed the continent without interference and viewed isolationism as a fixed principle.

The World Wars

These conditions began to change by the early 1900s. The rise of Germany and Japan challenged the established order in Europe and the Far East. During World War I (1914-1918) the traditional policy of isolationism in the United States was discontinued when the country entered the conflict in 1917. Following the war, many Americans became committed to world law and collective security, but the Congress of the United States passed strict neutrality legislation between 1935 and 1937. After the outbreak of World War II (1939-1945) isolationists lost ground to those who favored sending aid to the Allied powers. The debate ended when the United States entered the war following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.

Postwar Policies

American postwar policy was initially based on international cooperation and collective security through the United Nations (UN). Increasing confrontation with the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), however, caused changes in U.S. foreign policy. American policymakers sought to contain Soviet expansion and Communist influence through economic and military aid, but eventually committed troops to active engagement during the Korean War (1950-1953) and the Vietnam War (1959-1975).

Judiciary is the branch of government made up of courts and judges.

Law is a set of rules that public governments make and enforce.

Left Wing is a group of people and parties holding radical views. Many left wing groups support socialist or Communist views.

Legislature is the lawmaking branch of a government.

Legislature, branch of government empowered to make, change, and repeal its laws and to levy and regulate its taxes. Most modern legislatures are representative–composed of many members who are chosen directly or indirectly by popular vote.

Nearly all modern governments have bicameral, or two-house, legislatures. The so-called lower house is elected generally on a basis of direct representation, while the upper house is elected generally on a basis of indirect representation or direct representation limited to certain groups. The traditional theoretical justification for an upper house is that it restrains the effects of impulsive or excessive fluctuations of public opinion.

Various legislatures throughout the world are known by different names, such as Congress, Parliament, Knesset, Diet, and Assembly. Most are limited in their powers by the constitution or organic law of the government of which they are a part.

Legitimacy is the widespread acceptance of the authority of a public government.

Liberalism is a political philosophy that favors rapid social change as a means of correcting economic and social inequality. Liberalism, attitude, philosophy, or movement concerned with the development of personal freedom and social progress. Liberalism eventually became identified with movements to change the social order through democracy. In domestic politics, liberals have opposed restraints that prevent the individual from rising out of a low social status; barriers such as censorship that limit free expression; and arbitrary power exercised by the state. In international politics, liberals have opposed the domination of foreign policy by militarists and the exploitation of native colonial peoples. In economics, liberals have attacked monopolies and mercantilist state policies that subject the economy to state control.

Humanism

In postmedieval Europe, liberalism was perhaps first expressed in humanism, which redirected thinking from the consideration of a divine world order to the conditions and potentialities of people. As social transformation continued, the objectives and concerns of liberalism changed. It retained a humanist social philosophy that sought to enlarge personal, social, political, and economic opportunities by removing obstacles to individual choice.

Modern Liberalism

During the 17th century, political thinkers began to debate liberal ideas concerning voting rights, parliamentary rule, government responsibilities, and freedom of conscience. In 1644 English poet and prose writer John Milton wrote Areopagitica, advocating freedom of thought and expression. English philosopher Thomas Hobbes argued that the sole test of government was its effectiveness and stressed individual equality. English philosopher John Locke argued for popular sovereignty, the right of rebellion against oppression, and toleration of religious minorities. According to Locke and his followers, the state exists to serve its citizens and to guarantee their life, liberty, and property under a constitution. American statesman Thomas Jefferson echoed Locke's ideas when he wrote the Declaration of Independence.

In France, Locke's philosophy was adopted by the leaders of the French Enlightenment. French philosopher Voltaire insisted that the state should be supreme over the church and demanded universal religious toleration, abolition of censorship, and a strong state acting only against obstructions of social progress and individual liberty.

Liberalism in Transition

By the middle of the 19th century, liberal thought had acquired powerful advocates in Europe and in the United States. Europeans considered the United States an exemplar of liberalism because of its popular culture, emphasis on equality, and wide suffrage. However, most 19th-century liberals feared mass participation in politics, believing that the so-called lower classes were indifferent to freedom and hostile to the expression of diversity. As suffrage expanded, many liberals became concerned with preserving the individual values that they identified with an aristocratic social and political order.

Economics

Economic liberals opposed mercantilist restrictions on economic activity and favored unhampered private enterprise. As industrial capitalism developed in the 19th century, economic liberalism continued to be characterized by a negative attitude toward state authority. The working classes began to suspect that liberalism protected the interests of powerful economic groups, particularly manufacturers, and turned to the political liberalism that was more concerned with their needs–that of the socialist and labor parties. So-called positive liberals, however, advocated positive state action to prevent economic monopoly, abolish poverty, and secure people against the disabilities of sickness, unemployment, and old age.

20Th-Century United States

In the United States, positive liberalism expanded as programs, movements, and laws provided sanctions for government intervention in the economy. Legislation provided for old-age and survivors insurance, unemployment insurance, federal control of various financial interests, minimum wages, supervision of agricultural production, and the right of labor unions to organize and bargain collectively.

Libertarianism, ["lIbq'te(q)rIqnIzm] political philosophy emphasizing the rights of the individual. The doctrine of libertarianism stresses the right to self-ownership and the right to private ownership of material resources and property. Advocates oppose any form of taxation and favor a laissez-faire economic system. The Libertarian Party was founded in the United States in 1972.

Lobbying, practice of attempting to influence legislation. Lobbying is performed by agents, called lobbyists, of a particular interested group, known as the lobby. Guaranteed by the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, lobbying has become an accepted fact of American political life. Lobbyists may represent such varied interests as agriculture, transportation, professions such as medicine and law, or such groups as women voters or conservationists.

Local Government, agency organized to provide administrative, fiscal, and other services to the people who reside within its territorial boundaries. It is the level of government most directly accountable to the public. In the United States, local governmental units consist of five major types: county, town and township, municipality, special district, and school district.

Organized county governments exist in nearly every U.S. state. Counties have a local authority, most often called the county board of commissioners or board of supervisors, which levies taxes and performs various administrative, legislative, and judicial functions.

Townships exist in a number of U.S. states. In New England, the town meeting, or primary assembly of voters, convenes annually to elect officers, make appropriations, and enact laws. Municipal or city governments are usually patterned after one of three plans: the mayor-council plan, the council-manager plan, and the commission plan.Special districts provide services such as sewerage, parks and recreation, fire protection, hospitals, and libraries. School districts are special districts concerned with the administration and operation of public schools.

Medicare and Medicaid, programs of medical care for the aged and the needy, respectively, in the United States. Medicare and Medicaid are under the direction of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Medicare is the popular name for a federal health insurance program for people 65 years of age and over. Benefits include a basic hospital-insurance plan and a voluntary medical-insurance program. Medicare costs are met by Social Security contributions, monthly premiums from participants, and general revenues. Medicare also serves people under the age of 65 with certain disabilities.

Medicaid, a federal-state program, is usually operated by state welfare or health departments. Medicaid furnishes at least five basic services to needy people: inpatient hospital care, outpatient hospital care, physicians' services, nursing-home services for adults, and laboratory and X-ray services. Each state decides who is eligible for Medicaid benefits and what services will be included.

Monarchy ['mPnqkI] is a form of government in which a ruler, such as an emperor, king, or queen, holds power, either actually or ceremonially, for life. Monarchy, form of government in which one person has the hereditary right to rule as head of state during his or her lifetime; the term monarchy is also applied to the state so governed.

Throughout history many monarchs have wielded absolute power. By the Middle Ages (5th century to 15th century) the monarchical system of government had spread across Europe, and by the 15th and 16th centuries absolute monarchs ruled many European countries. Abuses of power, as well as growing dissatisfaction among the bourgeoisie, helped bring about the end of many absolute monarchies. Revolutions in England in the 17th century and France in the 18th century were major landmarks in limiting absolute power.

During the 19th century parliamentary authority grew as royal power diminished. Many Western monarchies ceased to exist after World War I (1914-1918). Some constitutional monarchies still survive, primarily as symbols of national unity.

Municipal Government, [mju:'nIsIp(q)l] in the United States, public corporation chartered by a state legislature to provide and supervise the governmental services and activities of an urban subdivision in that state. The first urban centers in the American colonies were patterned after the English boroughs, which were usually governed by elected aldermen and councilmen, and by an appointed mayor and a recorder. The New England townspeople preferred the town meeting, which they considered more democratic. Four major forms of government—weak-mayor-council, strong-mayor-council, commission plan, and council-manager plan—evolved from town meetings. These forms include an elected body of representatives, called a council, commission, or board. Members of the council are elected either by voters within a particular boundary, called a district, ward, or precinct, or by the voters at large.

The most common form of municipal government in the United States is the strong-mayor-council plan. Under this plan the mayor, elected by the voters at large, has considerable appointive and removal powers, a strong veto power, almost complete control of administrative department heads, and full responsibility for the city budget. The council is restricted mainly to lawmaking functions. Under the weak-mayor-council plan, the mayor usually has limited appointive and veto powers and little control over the city administration. The council has both legislative and executive powers, including the authority to appoint and supervise administrative department heads. Under the commission form of municipal government, each of the popularly elected commissioners is responsible for a single, different phase of the local administration. In the council-manager plan, a popularly elected council is responsible for making laws. It also selects and employs a city manager to manage the day-to-day affairs of the city and direct its administrative agencies.

Most of the revenue for local governments comes from property taxes. Other sources of income are user fees, dividends from investments, special assessments, sale of property, and federal grants. In addition to education, some services normally provided by the municipality are public safety, health services, sewage collection and treatment, transportation systems, and park and recreation facilities.

Nationalism is a people's sense of belonging together as a nation.

Nationalism, movement in which the nation-state is regarded as the most important force for the realization of social, economic, and cultural aspirations of a people. Nationalism is characterized principally by a feeling of community among a people, based on common descent, language, and religion.

The beginnings of modern nationalism can be traced back to the disintegration of cultural unity and the social order in Europe at the end of the Middle Ages (5th century to 15th century). The breakup of feudalism, the prevailing social and economic system, was accompanied by the development of larger communities, wider social interrelations, and dynasties that fostered feelings of nationality. During the Reformation (16th century), the adoption of either Catholicism or Protestantism as a national religion became an added force for national cohesion.

The French Revolution (1789-1799) was the turning point in the history of nationalism in Europe. As a result of the revolution, loyalty to the king was replaced by loyalty to the fatherland. In 1789 France achieved a truly representative system of government under the new National Assembly. Regional divisions were abolished, and France became a uniform and united national territory with common laws and institutions.

The Revolution of 1848 in central Europe marked the awakening of various peoples to national consciousness. Both Germans and Italians began movements for the creation of nation-states. After much political agitation and several wars, an Italian kingdom was created in 1861 and a German empire in 1871. The events in Europe between 1878 and 1918 were shaped by the nationalist aspirations of these peoples and their desire to form nation-states independent of the empires of which they had been part.

As a result of World War I (1914-1918), the rule of the dynasties in Turkey, Russia, Austria, and Germany was ended, and a number of new nation-states arose in central and eastern Europe. The inflammation of nationalist passions during and after the war led to the rise of fascism and National Socialism. Another far-reaching effect of the war was the rise of nationalism in Asia and Africa. Asian nationalism was inspired by Japan, the first Far Eastern country to transform itself into a modern nation. In the 1920s the Turks defeated the Western allies and modernized their state in the spirit of nationalism. During the same period the leader of the Indian National Congress, Mohandas Gandhi, deeply stirred the aspirations of the Indian people for national independence. In China the leader of the Nationalist People's Party, Sun Yat-sen, inspired a successful national revolution.

World War II (1939-1945) hastened the penetration of nationalism into colonial countries. Colonial powers, economically weakened by the war and influenced by political liberalism, willingly granted independence to their colonies. In the postwar period nationalist movements resulted in many new nation-states, including Israel, Morocco, Tunisia, Libya, the Sudan, Ghana, the United Arab Republic (Egypt and Syria), and Iraq. In the 1960s and 1970s many formerly British, French, or Belgian colonies in Africa became independent. During the 1990s competing Jewish, Arab, and Palestinian nationalist aspirations continued to generate political instability in the Middle East. In Eastern Europe the decline of Communist rule unleashed separatist forces that contributed to the dissolution of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), Yugoslavia, and Czechoslovakia.

National Health Insurance, government-operated system of insurance that provides financial benefits and medical services to persons disabled by sickness or accident. Systems of national health insurance frequently are coordinated with other national programs of social insurance, such as pension programs, programs of unemployment insurance, and workers' compensation. National health insurance systems are found in many countries, particularly in Europe.

In the United States, health insurance has traditionally been provided by private enterprise on a voluntary basis. National health insurance bills were introduced in the Congress of the United States in the 1930s, 1940s, and in 1993, but they were not enacted. The Social Security Amendments of 1965, however, created a governmental health insurance program known as Medicare, which is intended primarily for the aged.

The first country to provide health insurance on a national scale was Germany in 1883. Various types of national health insurance were adopted by other European countries. After World War II (1939-1945), the growth of national systems of health insurance in Europe was extensive. Britain's system of national health insurance is one of the most comprehensive systems in operation.

Neutrality, [nju:'trxlItI] legal status of a state that adheres to a policy of nonengagement during war. The rules covering wartime relations between a neutral and a belligerent were formulated largely in response to the limited conflicts of the 18th and 19th centuries.

Rules of Neutrality

Although neutrals and belligerents often disagree regarding their interpretation, the rules of neutrality are based on the assumptions that a neutral state will show impartiality to all belligerents, and that belligerents will respect the sovereignty of neutral states. Throughout a war, neutral states continue diplomatic intercourse with all belligerent states. A neutral state may not give armed assistance to any belligerent, or lend money, or permit its territory to become a base for hostile operations. It is expected to confine belligerent troops and aircraft that enter its jurisdiction.

Neutral governments may not protect their citizens from the penalties of committing unneutral acts. Belligerents have the right to stop and search neutral vessels and to capture them if there is evidence that they are carrying contraband to the enemy, breaking a blockade, or engaging in unneutral service. A belligerent may also proclaim a blockade of enemy ports and may capture neutral ships that are trying to leave or enter blockaded ports.

Alternatives to Neutrality

The breakdown of neutrality that marked World War I (1914-1918) and World War II (1939-1945) reflected changes in the nature of warfare and the growing economic interdependence of nations throughout the world. Economic targets were as important as military targets, warfare covered entire nations, and weapons became increasingly destructive and difficult to control. At the same time the flow of trade from neutral nations became vitally important to the survival of most of the belligerent nations. The development of nuclear weapons, moreover, made neutrality increasingly impractical.

After the mid-1900s the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) both showed an awareness of the need to prevent a nuclear war by mutual deterrence and to seek ways to limit the production and possession of highly destructive weapons. In areas where these nations or their allies developed conflicting interests, they sometimes agreed in principle to accords guaranteeing the neutrality of such areas.

Nonaligned Nations, ["nPnq'laInd] association of countries that, during the Cold War period, had no formal commitment to either of the power blocs led by the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). The group's origins can be traced to the division of the world into Communist and capitalist blocs after World War II (1939-1945) and the subsequent demise of colonialism. The group included countries that had freed themselves from foreign domination and rejected renewed ties to any big power. The nonaligned nations saw themselves as a buffer between rival military alliances. The dissolution of the USSR in 1991 forced the nations to redefine their role in a world where rivalry between two superpowers was no longer a factor.

Oligarchy ['PlIgQ:kI] is a form of government in which a small group of people holds the ruling power. Oligarchy, in political philosophy, form of government in which the supreme power is vested in a few persons. Political writers of ancient Greece used the term to designate the debased form of an aristocracy, or government by the best citizens. In an oligarchy, the government is controlled by a faction that acts in its own interests.

Open Door Policy, term that refers to the principle of equal trading rights in China at the end of the 19th century. It is also used to describe policies of equal trading rights in other countries. In the late 1800s the major European powers had obtained control of important areas of China. In 1899 and 1900 the United States negotiated the open door agreement with Japan and several European nations, guaranteeing equal trade with all parts of the Chinese Empire and preservation of Chinese territorial integrity.

Pacifism, ['pxsIfIz(q)m] opposition to war and other violence, expressed either in an organized political movement or as an individual ideology. Absolute pacifists are against all wars and violence; relative pacifists are selective of the wars and violence they oppose.

Absolute pacifism assumes that its adherents will be able to maintain moral courage when faced with aggression and that their opponents will be influenced by a constant return of good for bad. Such pacifism has never been entirely successful, however. A contemporary proponent of absolute pacifism usually claims the status of conscientious objector when faced with military service.

Some pacifists urge moral persuasion and passive resistance to achieve their goals. Many believe that peace can be maintained only by a readiness to use force in certain circumstances. One approach permits armed defense against attack, but not assistance to other nations being attacked. Proponents of collective security urge a defensive collaboration of peace-loving nations against violators of the peace.

The first peace society was organized in New York in 1815. Another society was organized in Massachusetts later that year, and both were incorporated into the American Peace Society founded in 1828. Other peace societies were established in Europe, and American linguist Elihu Burritt founded the League of Universal Brotherhood in 1848. Many new groups were organized toward the end of the 19th century, including the International Workingmen's Association and the International Peace Bureau.

Following World War I (1914-1918) many pacifists hoped the newly formed League of Nations would achieve collective security. This organization was loosely constructed, however, and provided no effective means of preventing war. After World War II (1939-1945) the United Nations (UN) was established, with a more elaborate machinery for keeping the peace. The greatest impetus to pacifism in modern times has been the development and use of nuclear weapons. Faced with the possibility of total nuclear war, pacifists throughout the world joined in working for a ban against the production of nuclear weapons, an end to testing nuclear weapons, and the disarmament of nations already possessing them.

Parliament, British, legislature of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It consists of the Crown, the House of Lords, and the House of Commons, but in common usage it refers only to the Lords and Commons. No statute may become law or be altered or repealed, nor may taxes be levied, without Parliament's consent. Cabinet members, including the prime minister, are members of one house or the other and are responsible to the House of Commons. The House of Lords is the highest court of appeal in Britain's judicial system.

Commons and Lords

The House of Commons has 651 elected members. Elections are set by the prime minister but must be held at least every five years. Because of the strict party discipline, important decisions are often made in less formal meetings of the cabinet and party caucus.

The House of Lords, with about 1200 members, is made up of the bishops of the Church of England and the hereditary and life peers, all of whom are appointed by the Crown. Its power is limited to delaying money bills for 30 days and other bills for one year. As a court of appeal, its deliberations are limited to those peers with judicial experience.

History

Parliament was initially an event, not an institution. Representatives from towns were officially summoned for the first time in 1265. In the 14th century Parliament split into two houses, gained control over statutes and taxation, and presided over the abdications of Edward II and Richard II. Under the Stuart kings, cooperation between Parliament and the Crown changed to conflict. This was highlighted in 1649 by the overthrow and execution of Charles I, and in 1688 and 1689 by the English Revolution, which established parliamentary sovereignty. In the 19th century the House of Commons became democratic, as the Great Reform Bill of 1832 gave voting rights to the middle class for the first time. Later acts broadened the electorate and created equal electoral districts. The Parliament Act of 1911 weakened the House of Lords.

Parliamentary System of government consists of a legislature (parliament) and a Cabinet. A prime minister or premier heads the Cabinet, which is chosen from the parliament and stays in office as long as it is supported by a majority of the representatives.

Partnership for Peace (PFP), program established in 1994 to strengthen relations between the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), an alliance of 16 Western nations, and the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. In July 1991 the Warsaw Pact, a defense alliance between the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) and its Eastern European satellites, dissolved. Several Eastern European states then requested membership in NATO, which responded by creating the North Atlantic Cooperation Council (NACC) in December.

The PFP was created within the framework of NACC to allow those countries to develop a closer relationship with NATO. PFP participants may eventually become full NATO members. Participants promise to respect existing borders and settle disputes peacefully. They also pledge to share defense and security information with NATO, maintain democratic control of their military, and be ready to participate in peacekeeping operations.

Passport, document of nationality and identity, used for purposes of identification and protection when traveling abroad, usually granted only to persons who are nationals of the issuing country. It is also a formal permit authorizing the holder to leave and return to the nation of which he or she is a subject. The practice of granting passports developed from the right of nations to withhold from foreigners the privilege of transit through their territory. In the United States, passports are issued only by the Department of State, and no distinction is made between native-born and naturalized citizens. A passport for the head of a family may cover children under 13 years old if they are traveling together. A U.S. passport is issued for a period of ten years and may be renewed upon expiration.

Peacekeeping, nonbelligerent use of military force to assist warring parties in reaching a settlement. Traditional peacekeeping missions try to maintain peace while the parties negotiate. Historically, peacekeeping is a relatively new practice that has usually been organized under the United Nations (UN). The UN has three qualifications for peacekeeping missions: consent of the disputants, support from the international community, and the deployment of impartial forces. The peacekeeping forces are lightly armed for self-defense.

The UN's first peacekeeping effort was sending observers to the Middle East in 1948 to supervise the truce negotiated after the Arab attack on Israel earlier that year. Over the years the UN has undertaken numerous other peacekeeping missions. In conducting these missions, it has confronted several problems: the financial strain of the missions, the tendency for operations to stagnate while the underlying dispute drags on, and the UN's lack of enforcement power (if the disputants do not respect UN decisions, it cannot require compliance).

Plebiscite ['plebIs(a)It] is a vote of the people. The term has come to mean the vote of the people of a certain place to choose the nation that will govern them. Plebiscite, vote by the electorate of a nation, region, or locality on a specific question. Since the time of the French Revolution (1789-1799), plebiscites have been used to determine the wishes of an electorate with regard to the question of sovereignty. Plebiscites were used as democratic instruments after the resurgence of nationalistic sentiments in Europe in 1848. They played a prominent role, for example, in the independence and unification of Italy. In 1905 an important plebiscite resulted in the separation of Norway from Sweden. More recently, plebiscites have been used by African peoples on the issue of national sovereignty.

Political Party is an organized group of people who control or seek to control a government. Political Parties, organizations that mobilize voters on behalf of a common set of interests, concerns, and goals. They formulate political and policy agendas, select candidates, conduct election campaigns, and monitor the work of their elected representatives. Political parties link citizens and the government, providing a way for people to have a voice in their government.

Party Systems

There are three types of party systems: (1) multiparty systems, (2) two-party systems, and (3) one-party systems. Multiparty systems are the most common party system. Parliamentary governments based on proportional representation often develop multiparty systems. In this type of government, the number of legislative seats held by any party depends on the proportion of votes they received in the most recent election. Advocates of multiparty systems believe they permit all points of view to be represented in government.

In a two-party system, government power shifts between two dominant parties. Two-party systems most frequently develop when an election requires a candidate to gain only a simple plurality vote—that is, the winner gets the most votes but not necessarily a majority. Advocates of two-party systems believe they limit the dangers of excessive fragmentation and government stalemate. Opponents believe that eventually the two parties tend to resemble each other and eliminate too many viewpoints from the political process.

In a single-party system one party nominates selected candidates, and there is no competition for elected offices. Voters simply vote "yes" or "no" for the designated candidate. Single-party systems have characterized Communist Party governments and other authoritarian regimes.

Organization and Structure of Political Parties

In democracies with competitive party systems, political parties pressure governments to respond to the needs and interests of the population. In more authoritarian governments, parties offer a structure for directing and conditioning the behavior of individual citizens. Political parties use different strategies for recruiting supporters. So-called externally mobilized parties develop around leaders who lack power within an existing government. These leaders compensate by gathering support from rebellious groups in society.

The social-democratic, Socialist, Communist, and Fascist parties in Europe were established through external mobilization. So-called internally mobilized parties develop under a defensive strategy of countermobilization by influential government insiders. Internally mobilized parties seek to neutralize the organizational efforts of another party or to gain that party's cooperation in the pursuit of goals that require a broad foundation of support.

History of Political Parties

Political parties evolved through the struggle of contending groups to control the government. An early model of the modern party system developed in Britain in the 18th century, shaped around the efforts of the Whig and Tory parties to control government jobs and political influence. A party system also developed in the United States in the late 1700s and early 1800s, pitting members of the Federalist Party against members of the Democratic-Republican Party.

During the 19th century political parties grew dramatically in size as voting rights were extended to adult male citizens throughout Europe and the United States. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, political machines offered urban Americans an array of services, ranging from housing, food, and jobs to legal assistance and language instruction. In return, they asked for votes.

The influence of primary elections, the mass media, and lobbyists for special interests has gradually weakened party ties to the candidates and the voters. Public attention now focuses on the personalities and ideologies of candidates, rather than the benefits that the party as an organization can offer party loyalists. Candidate organizations have taken over more of the work of campaigning. The political parties continue to provide expert assistance with polling, fundraising, and advertising efforts of candidates. They also help to coordinate the campaigns of party members and organize statewide and national conventions.

Political Campaign, organized effort by a political party or candidate for public office to attract voter support in an election. Candidates organize a network of volunteer and professional campaign workers, establish a fund-raising apparatus to finance expenses, and develop media and advertising strategies to communicate an image and a message.

Modern political campaigning includes four basic elements: professional public relations, polling, direct mail, and the broadcast media. Hired campaign consultants typically direct modern political campaigns. They conduct public opinion polls, produce television commercials, organize direct-mail campaigns, and develop the issues and advertising messages used by the candidate. Polling data help candidates and their staffs to select issues, assess strengths and weaknesses of the candidate and of the opposition, and measure voter responsiveness to campaign appeals. Direct-mail campaigns include distributing pamphlets, letters, and brochures describing the candidate's views and appealing for funds.

Broadcast media provide perhaps the most powerful means for candidates to increase their public exposure. The televised spot advertisement attempts to establish candidate name identification, create a favorable image of the candidate and a negative image of the opponent, link the candidate with desirable groups, and communicate the candidate's stands on selected issues. Televised debates between opposing candidates enable the contenders to reach millions of viewers and can increase the visibility of lesser-known candidates.

During the 1990s presidential campaigns introduced four new media settings for candidates: the talk show interview, the electronic town hall meeting, the infomercial, and the Internet website. Television and radio talk shows enable candidates to address a vast audience without the presence of journalists or commentators who might criticize or question them. The televised town meeting format allows candidates to interact directly with ordinary citizens, while simultaneously reaching viewers across the nation. The infomercial is a lengthy televised broadcast, presenting the candidate's views in a manner similar to a news program. Candidates also design elaborate sites on the Internet that offer detailed information about their experience and qualifications, their political views, and the progress of their campaigns.

Historically, political parties representing the aspirations of working-class voters gained an edge in campaigns through their ability to mobilize and organize large masses of people. However, the weakening of party organizations and the move toward technology-intensive campaigns have shifted the balance of power from working-class voters to those with more money. These campaigns emphasize the impact of money in politics and help those politicians who speak for wealthier constituents.

Presidential System of government consists of separate legislative and executive branches. A president, who is elected for a fixed term, heads the executive branch.

Prime Minister or Premier ['premIq], highest ranking minister of a country, and in practice often the chief executive, even though the nation's constitution might provide for a king or a president as head of state. The prime minister is usually the chief formulator of governmental policy. The office is particularly associated with the parliamentary system of government and is commonly held by the leader of the majority party or coalition of parties. The prime minister is assisted by a cabinet and is responsible to the legislature.

Proportional Representation, electoral system designed to produce legislative bodies in which the number of seats held by any group or party is proportional to the number of votes cast for members of that group. The purpose of proportional representation has been to reduce the power of a dominant political party and to provide minority groups with a degree of representation that has been denied them previously. Modern systems of proportional representation probably originated during the French Revolution (1789-1799), and the principle was favored by the 19th century British philosopher John Stuart Mill. The technique was first used in Denmark in 1855, and subsequently in other European countries. By 1920, some form of proportional representation was being used by almost all the countries of continental Europe. Since then, the practices of proportional representation have been modified and refined and are used by most European democracies for legislative, as well as local, elections. The principles of proportional representation were used in some United States cities during the early 20th century, but were abandoned.

Public Opinion, attitudes, perspectives, and preferences of a population toward events, circumstances, and issues of mutual interest. Public opinion can be shaped by relatively permanent circumstances–for example, race, religion, geographical location, economic status, and educational level–or by temporary factors, including current events, the opinions of influential or authoritative persons, the effect of the mass communications media, and public relations campaigns. Public opinion is usually measured by a sample survey or a public opinion poll.

Uses

Hundreds of public opinion polling firms operate around the world. In business, polls are used to test consumers' preferences and to discover what it is about a product that gives it appeal. Response to commercial polls aids in planning marketing and advertising strategies. In politics, polls are used to obtain information about voters' attitudes toward issues and candidates, to put forward candidates with winning potential, and to plan campaigns. Polling organizations have also been successful in predicting the outcome of elections. Governments use opinion polls to learn what people think about many issues. In addition, government agencies use polling methodology to determine unemployment rates, crime rates, and other social and economic indicators. Academic research, particularly in the social sciences, also makes wide use of polls.

Methods and Techniques

Public opinion polling involves procedures to draw a representative sample of the population under study. When proper techniques of random sampling are used and the sample is large enough, the results obtained are likely to be very close to the results one would get if the entire population were surveyed.

Ideally, questions should be short, clear, direct, and easily understood. Factors that can affect the respondent's answer include wording or phrasing; the order in which questions are asked; the interviewer's tone; and age, sex, class, or racial differences between the respondent and the interviewer. Once the opinion data have been gathered, the analyst must seek to find meaning in the results, keeping in mind the problems of sampling variability, question-wording biases, and interviewer effects. The results are tabulated and analyzed using various statistical techniques to determine patterns.

Criticisms of the Research

Criticisms of public opinion research come from a variety of sources. Many people simply are not convinced that a small sample of the population viably represents the whole. Other criticisms deal with sample procedures that, for reasons of economy or expediency, sometimes use outdated population data or make compromises with rigorous statistical requirements. Additionally, interpretation of the data may be casual and superficial, presenting the raw data without deep and careful analysis.

Public Relations = PR, management function that creates, develops, and carries out policies and programs to influence public opinion or public reaction about an idea, a product, or an organization. The field of public relations includes advertising, publicity, promotional activities, and press contact. Public relations also coexists in business with marketing and merchandising to create the climate in which all selling functions occur.

In industry, public relations personnel inform management of changes in the opinions of various groups of people, such as employees, stockholders, customers, suppliers, dealers, and government. These professionals counsel management regarding the impact of actions on the behavior of the target audiences. Once an organizational decision has been made, the public relations person communicates this information to the public.

Public relations activities are a major part of the political process in the United States and other nations. Politicians, government agencies, officials seeking policy support, and foreign governments seeking aid and allies all use public relations specialists. People and businesses in the entertainment industry also use public relations services to increase their business or enhance their image. Other public relations clients are educational, social service, and charitable institutions, trade unions, religious groups, and professional societies.

The successful public relations specialist is skilled in communication arts and persuasion. The work involves functions including the following: (1) programming–that is, analyzing problems and opportunities, defining goals, determining the public to be reached, and recommending and planning activities; (2) writing and editing press releases, speeches, stockholder reports, product information, and employee publications; (3) placing information in the most advantageous way; (4) organizing special events; (5) scheduling meetings and delivering speeches; (6) providing research and evaluation; and (7) managing resources by planning, budgeting, and training staff.

Radicals, members of a movement that advocates extreme change of political and social institutions. The word was first used in the political sense by British statesman Charles James Fox, when he asked for universal manhood suffrage, and it afterward indicated those in support of parliamentary reform. The British Radicals proposed the removal of all political and social restraints on economic relations, believing that individuals are free to the extent that their commercial life is unrestricted.

Today, the term radical usually is used to indicate extreme liberalism, and reactionary is the term used to indicate extreme conservatism. The labels, left and right, respectively, have been attached to these viewpoints. Communism is an example of radical, leftist extremism, and fascism exemplifies the extreme rightist views.

Radicalism ['rxdIkqlIz(q)m] is a political philosophy that emphasizes the need to find and eliminate the basic injustices of society.

Recall, method of removing elected officials from office before the end of their terms. In the United States approximately 1000 cities and 11 states utilize this method to remove officials who have proved unsatisfactory to their constituencies. In order that a recall election may be instituted, a petition, signed by a specified proportion of the qualified voters, must be filed with the appropriate officials who then, after verifying the signatures, order an election.

Refugee, ["refjV'dZi:] person who has fled or been expelled from his or her country of origin because of natural catastrophe, war or military occupation, or fear of religious, racial, or political persecution.

History

Throughout recorded history, oppression and disaster have caused people to flee their homelands. In biblical times, the enslaved Israelites fled Egypt. In the 15th century, the Moors and Jews were expelled from Spain. In the 17th century the Puritans, seeking religious freedom, settled in what became the United States. Political exiles left central and southern Europe during the upheavals of the mid-19th century. After World War I (1914-1918), people were displaced in large numbers from Asia Minor, the Russian Empire, and the Balkans. During World War II (1939-1945), an estimated 7 million Jews and others threatened by the Nazis fled their homelands.

After World War II, refugees fled Communist countries of Eastern Europe, Tibet, and China. Dutch nationals left Indonesia during the struggles for Indonesian independence. Arabs and Jews were displaced following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. More recently, refugee problems have developed in Vietnam, from the Vietnam War (1959-1975); Afghanistan, from the Soviet occupation (1979-1989); and Rwanda, from the ethnic fighting of the mid-1990s.

International Aid

Until the early 20th century, refugees, who depended for survival on aid from private groups, lacked both legal rights and protection. Since the end of World War I, international organizations have been created to protect and assist refugees. Currently, legal protection and material assistance are provided to refugees by the United Nations Office of High Commissioner for Refugees, or UNHCR, established in 1951 to resettle the refugees remaining after World War II. The international government refugee agencies work closely with national and international agencies such as the International Rescue Committee, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Council of Voluntary Agencies, and the U.S. Committee on Refugees. Two United Nations (UN) documents, the 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, specify the rights and duties of refugees, including the rights to work, education, and access to courts of law. Because the causes of political and economic upheaval remain in operation in the developing nations of Africa, Asia, and Latin America, the large-scale movement of refugees is bound to continue and even to intensify as the world's population continues to increase.

Republic [rI'pAblIk] is a form of government in which the citizens elect representatives to manage the government. Republic, form of state based on the concept that sovereignty resides in the people, who delegate the power to rule to elected representatives and officials. In the theoretical republican state, republic and democracy may be identical. However, historical republics have never conformed to a theoretical model, and the term republic is freely used by dictatorships, one-party states, and democracies alike.

Republican Theories

In his Republic, Greek philosopher Plato presented an ideal state, made up of a commercial class, a spirited class of administrators and soldiers, and the guardians or philosopher-kings, who make laws. Because Plato entrusted a carefully selected few with the responsibility of maintaining a harmonious state, republicanism is often associated with goals established by a small segment of the community presumed to have special insight into what defines the common good.

In his Politics, Greek philosopher Aristotle provided a concept of republicanism that prevails in most of the Western world. Aristotle categorized governments on the basis of who rules: the one, the few, or the many. He then distinguished between good and perverted forms of government, the main difference being whether rulers governed for the good of the state or in their own interests. Aristotle believed that democracies would experience instability because the poor would seek economic and social equality that would stifle individual initiative and enterprise. In contrast, the polity (good form of rule by the many) would have a middle class capable of justly buffering conflicts between the rich and the poor.

James Madison, often called the father of the United States Constitution, defined a republic in terms similar to those of Aristotle's polity. He believed republics were systems of government that permitted control by the people over those who govern. Madison emphasized the election of representatives by the people; he believed that these representatives would be less likely to sacrifice the public good than would the majority of the people.

Republics in History

Some scholars regard the ancient confederation of Hebrew tribes in Palestine from the 15th century BC until about 1020 BC as an embryonic republic. Early republics include many Greek city-states after the early 8th century BC, Carthage for more than 300 years, and Rome for more than 500 years. Later republics include Iceland, which established a republic in AD 930 that lasted for more than 300 years; the medieval commercial city-states of northern Italy; and the Commonwealth (1649-1660) of England, Scotland, and Ireland under Oliver Cromwell.

Modern republicanism began with the American Revolution of 1776 and the French Revolution of 1789. The establishment of the United States as a federal republic with a government consisting of three coordinate branches, each independent of the others, created a precedent that was widely imitated throughout the western hemisphere and elsewhere.

Revolution, ["revq'lu:S(q)n] forcible, pervasive, and often violent change of a social or political order. Revolution is the most extreme political option of a dissenting group, a course taken generally when more moderate attempts to achieve reform have failed. Modern societies owe much to past uprisings against repressive governments. On the other hand, revolutions have often replaced one evil with another, sometimes leading to opposing counterrevolutions.

A revolution is distinguished from a coup d'état ['ku:deI'tQ:], which is a sudden seizure of state power by a small faction that does not necessarily change the social system, and a revolt or rebellion, which may be either a failed attempt at revolution or a violent expression of grievances. See American Revolution; English Revolution; French Revolution; Russian Revolution.

Right Wing is a group of people and parties holding conservative or reactionary views.

Secret Police, special police force organized by autocratic or totalitarian regimes. Early modern examples were the intelligence services organized by Joseph Fouchй for Napoleon I and by Prince Klemens von Metternich in Austria after 1819. The first truly modern model, adding judiciary and executive powers, was the Okhrana in tsarist Russia, established in 1825. The Okhrana has had numerous successors in the 20th century, including the KGB of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the OVRA of Fascist Italy, and the Gestapo of Nazi Germany. These forces rely heavily on torture for investigative purposes and detention for isolating prisoners.

Separation of Powers, ["sepq'reIS(q)nqv'paVqz] (юр. розділення влади (розмежування законодавчої, виконавчої та судової влади) concept of government in the United States whereby power is divided among the executive, judicial, and legislative branches.

Socialism ['sqVS(q)lIz(q)m] is an economic system and also a way of life. Socialists believe that a country's principal means of production should be owned or controlled by public governments or by cooperatives.

Socialization ["sqVSqlaI'zeIS(q)n] is the process of learning or being taught the standards of a group or society.

Social Security, ["sqVS(q)lsI'kjV(q)rItI] (соціальний захист) public programs designed to provide income and services to individuals in the event of retirement, sickness, disability, death, or unemployment. In the United States the term social security refers to the programs established under the Social Security Act, originally enacted in 1935. The Social Security Act consists of 20 titles or subjects, including Old-Age, Survivors', and Disability Insurance; Medicare; Supplemental Security Income; Unemployment Compensation; Aid to Families with Dependent Children; and Medicaid.

Retirement, Disability, Death, and Medicare Benefits

Old-Age, Survivors', and Disability Insurance (OASDI); Medicare hospital insurance; and Medicare Supplementary Medical Insurance (SMI) are separately financed segments of the social security program. The OASDI program provides benefits for the aged, for the disabled, and for survivors of deceased workers. The cash benefits for OASDI are financed by earmarked payroll taxes, as is the hospital insurance portion of Medicare, for the most part. The SMI part of Medicare, which applies to physicians' services, is financed in part by uniform monthly contributions from aged and disabled people enrolled in the program and in part by general federal revenues.

In 1996 some 124 million people contributed to social security funds and about 43 million people drew monthly social security cash benefits. The law specifies certain minimum and maximum monthly benefits. Cash benefits are annually indexed to the increase in the cost of living as it is gauged in the consumer price index.

Unemployment Compensation

The U.S. unemployment compensation program and the employment service programs form a federal-state cooperative system. The Federal Unemployment Tax Act levied a tax on the payroll of employers. State financing and benefit laws vary widely. In general, unemployment benefits are intended to replace about half of an average worker's wages, up to a maximum. All states pay benefits to some unemployed people for 26 weeks. During periods of heavy unemployment, federal law authorizes extended benefits, which are financed in part by federal employer taxes. See Also Unemployment Insurance.

Other Programs

The Social Security Act provides money to states to help pay costs of programs for Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) and of Medicaid for those who cannot afford the costs of medical care. Medicaid and AFDC programs are administered by the states. Under the Supplemental Security Income program (SSI), the federal government provides payments to needy aged, blind, and disabled individuals. The federal government also provides money to the states for maternal and child health, crippled children's services, child welfare services, and various social services.

Sovereignty ['sPvrIntI] is the supreme power of a country over its own affairs. Sovereignty, autonomous, absolute political and military power embodied in a ruler or governmental body. In international relations, a sovereign state is equal to other states, with the power to govern its own territory and to declare war. In terms of the authority a nation exercises over its own citizens, sovereignty stands in direct opposition to political expression. In modern democracies, therefore, the exercise of sovereignty is restricted to times when the state's survival is at stake, as in wartime.

State, in political science, generally a group of people inhabiting a specific territory and living according to a common legal and political authority; a body politic or nation. In this definition, the term state includes government; in another usage, the two terms are synonymous. The modern nation-state, which consists of a group of people with the same or similar nationality inhabiting a definite territory, emerged by a gradual process extending over centuries.

Strategy, ['strxtIdZI] art of employing all elements of a nation or nations to accomplish the objectives of a nation or an alliance in peace or war; also the art of military command in combat. Strategy involves the use and close integration of economic, political, cultural, social, moral, spiritual, and psychological power.

Suffrage, ['sAfrIdZ] (право голосу, виборче право) right or privilege of voting. Suffrage is a political institution that dates from the city-states of ancient Greece and from ancient Rome. However, the idea that people under a government should have a voice in selecting their political leaders did not gain substantial support until the 17th and 18th centuries, when philosophers argued that self-government is a natural right of every person and that governments derive their powers from the consent of the governed. This idea has not entirely superseded the competing view that suffrage is a political privilege, subject to qualifications. Although modern governments have generally liberalized the qualifications for suffrage, literacy is often a requirement, and in many countries persons convicted of serious crimes are deprived of voting rights. There are also several countries in which women may not vote.

The Constitution of the United States originally specified that each state would determine the qualifications for its voters. However, amendments to the Constitution have prohibited states from denying suffrage to any citizen based on race or sex or requiring the payment of a poll tax as a condition for voting.

Syndicalism, ['sIndIk(q)lIz(q)m] revolutionary trade unionist movement advocating control of government and industry by trade unions. Syndicalism envisions a stateless society in which production is administered by a federation of industrial unions and associations of nonindustrial workers. Syndicalist doctrines were formulated in the 1860s by German revolutionist Karl Marx and further developed by Russian revolutionist Mikhail Aleksandrovich Bakunin. True syndicalism, however, originated in France in the late 1870s. It was strongly influenced by the writings of French anarchist Pierre Joseph Proudhon and French social philosopher Georges Sorel. Syndicalism achieved its greatest impact in the years before World War I (1914-1918), when a related movement called guild socialism had some impact in England and the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) formed a comparable program in the United States. Syndicalism declined after World War I, except in Spain, where the Confederaciуn Nacional de Trabajo (National Confederation of Labor) achieved a membership of 1 million workers.

Technocracy, [tek'nPkrqsI] theoretical system of government and management based on principles devised by scientists and professional technicians and also administered by them. The technocratic movement started in the United States after World War I and was based on the belief that the advent of science and technology had made the traditional economic system obsolete. It offered instead a political system based on scientific and physical laws and an economic system based on units of "productive energy."

Territory ['terIt(q)rI], partially self-governing section of the United States that has not been granted statehood. The territories are the District of Columbia, the Samoa Islands, and Guam. Puerto Rico, now a commonwealth, was a U.S. territory until 1952. The states of Alaska and Hawaii were territories until 1959. The territories are not regularly represented in the U.S. Congress but are allowed to send a delegate, who is given a seat in the House of Representatives with a right to take part in debates but not to vote.

Terrorism, use of violence, or the threat of violence, to create a climate of fear in a given population. Terrorist violence targets ethnic or religious groups, governments, political parties, corporations, and media enterprises. Organizations that engage in acts of terror are almost always small in size and limited in resources. Through the publicity and fear generated by their violence, they seek to effect political change on a local or international scale.

Terrorist acts date from as early as the 1st century, when the Zealots, a Jewish religious sect, fought against Roman occupation of what is now Israel. In the 12th century in Iran, the Assassins, a group of Ismailis (Shiite Muslims), conducted terrorist acts against religious and political leaders of Sunni Islam. Beginning in the 19th century terrorist movements acquired a more political and revolutionary–rather than religious–orientation.

In the latter half of the 20th century terrorist acts multiplied, facilitated by technological advances in transportation, communications, microelectronics, and explosives. The conflict between Arab nations and Israel following World War II (1939-1945) produced waves of terrorism in the Middle East. In the 1970s and 1980s organized terror spilled into Western Europe and other parts of the world, as supporters of Palestinian resistance to Israel carried their war abroad and domestic conflicts gave birth to terrorist organizations in countries such as West Germany (now part of the Federal Republic of Germany), Italy, and Japan. In the United States, terrorism has chiefly consisted of attacks by isolated individuals who violently oppose state and corporate power.

Theocracy, [TI'PkrqsI] constitution, or polity, of a country in which God is regarded as the sole sovereign and the laws of the realm are seen as divine commands. By extension a theocracy is a country in which control is in the hands of the clergy.

Third World, ["TE:d' wE:ld] general designation of economically developing nations. The term arose during the Cold War, when the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) appeared to lead two power blocs of nations that dominated world politics. Within this bipolar model, the Third World consisted of economically and technologically less developed countries that were not committed to either bloc. The countries of the Third World are located in Latin America, Africa, and Asia.

Political instability and precarious economic conditions are widespread in the Third World. The countries concerned generally prefer to create their own institutions based on indigenous traditions, needs, and aspirations. The Third World is divided by race, religion, culture, and geography, as well as frequently opposite interests. It generally sees world politics in terms of a global struggle between rich and poor countries. Some nations, such as those of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), have found ways to assert their economic importance as sources of raw materials indispensable to advanced societies.

Totalitarianism [tqV"txlI'te(q)rIqnIz(q)m] is a form of government in which the state claims control of all the activities of the people. Totalitarianism, system of government and ideology in which all social, political, economic, intellectual, cultural, and spiritual activities are subordinated to the purposes of the ruler of a state. Totalitarianism is a form of autocracy (rule by a single person with unlimited power) peculiar to the 20th century. Under a totalitarian dictator, each individual in the society is responsible to another in a position of higher authority–with the single exception of the dictator, who is answerable to no one. All nongovernmental social groupings are organized to serve the purposes of the state. Among the features of totalitarian dictatorships are a monopoly of mass communications, a secret-police apparatus, a monopoly of all effective weapons, and a centrally controlled economy.

The ruling party controls all newspaper, magazine, and book publishing, as well as radio and television broadcasting, theater productions, and motion pictures. All writers, actors, composers, and poets are licensed by the government and usually are required to belong to the ruling party. The secret police terrorizes the populace through institutions and devices such as concentration camps, predetermined trials, and public confessions. Totalitarian dictatorships provide no legal means of effecting a change of government.

Tyranny ['tIrqnI] is a term used throughout history to describe various forms of government by rulers who have unrestricted power.

United Nations (UN), international organization of nation-states based on the sovereign equality of its members. Members are pledged to settle international disputes by peaceful means, to refrain from the threat or use of force, to assist the UN in actions ordered under the charter, to refrain from assisting any country against which such UN action is being taken, and to act according to the charter's principles.

Origins

The United Nations is the successor to the League of Nations, the international organization formed after World War I (1914-1918). The first commitment to establish a new international organization was made in the Atlantic Charter in 1941. The principles of the Atlantic Charter were more widely accepted in the Declaration by United Nations, signed on January 1, 1942, by representatives of 26 Allied nations that were fighting against the Axis powers during World War II. In a 1943 conference in Moscow, representatives of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), Britain, China, and the United States signed a declaration in which they recognized the need to establish a general international organization.

In the fall of 1944 representatives of the four powers met in Washington, D.C. to work out proposals for an international organization. They agreed on a draft charter that specified its purposes, structure, and methods of operation, but they could not agree on a method of voting in the proposed Security Council. The voting issue was settled at the Yalta Conference in the USSR in February 1945, when American president Franklin Delano Roosevelt, British prime minister Winston Churchill, and Soviet premier Joseph Stalin met for the last of their wartime conferences.

Delegates from 50 nations met in San Francisco later in 1945, for what was officially known as the United Nations Conference on International Organization. They completed and approved a charter consisting of 111 articles. The charter became effective on October 24, 1945, after ratification by a majority of the signatories.

In December 1945 the Congress of the United States invited the UN to establish its headquarters in the United States. In 1946 the UN moved to a temporary location in Lake Success, New York, and later that year purchased a site bordering the East River in New York City. The complex, completed in mid-1952, includes the General Assembly Hall, the Secretariat Building, the Conference Building, and the Dag Hammarskjцld Library.

Under the charter, UN membership is open to all peaceful states that accept the obligations of the organization. The 50 nations that attended the San Francisco conference, with the addition of Poland, became founding members of the United Nations. China initially was represented by a delegation from the Nationalist government on Taiwan, but in 1971 the General Assembly voted to seat the delegation from the People's Republic of China instead.

New members are admitted by a two-thirds vote of the General Assembly on the recommendation of the Security Council. Since 1945 membership has more than tripled, mainly with the admission of many new African and Asian countries that had been European colonies. As of 1995, the UN had 185 members.

Organization

The UN charter established six principal organs: the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship Council, the International Court of Justice, and the Secretariat.

All member states are represented in the General Assembly, which is the main deliberative body of the UN. The General Assembly meets annually in regular sessions and in special sessions at the request of a majority of its members or of the Security Council. The assembly has no enforcement authority; its resolutions are recommendations to member states. The charter permits the assembly to establish agencies and programs to carry out its recommendations. Among the most important of these agencies are the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). In 1993 the office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights was created, heading the Center for Human Rights in Geneva.

The UN's operating costs are met by contributions from member states, although special programs such as UNICEF and the UNDP are usually financed through voluntary contributions. Most members pay less than 1 percent of the budget, and only 14 countries contribute more than 1 percent. The largest contributors are the United States (25 per cent) and Japan (14 per cent). Russia, Germany, France, Britain, Italy, Spain, and Canada contribute more than 2 percent.

The Security Council, which is in continuous session, is the UN's central organ for maintaining peace. The council has 15 members, of which 5–China, France, the United Kingdom, Russia, and the United States–have been accorded permanent seats. Non-permanent members serve nonconsecutive two-year terms, with five new members elected by the General Assembly every year. Decisions of the council require nine votes on procedural matters, but any one of the five permanent members can veto a more substantive issue. The Security Council is responsible for matters of peace and security. It encourages disputing nations to settle their differences through peaceful means, including negotiations, mediation, conciliation, arbitration, and judicial settlement. The council may, however, enforce its recommendations, either by nonmilitary means, such as economic or diplomatic sanctions, or by the use of military force. Such action is subject to the concurring votes of the five permanent council members, and thus emphasizes the significance of the great-power veto.

The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), which meets annually, coordinates the economic and social activities of the UN. ECOSOC recommends action on topics such as medicine, education, economics, and social needs. ECOSOC also establishes specialized agencies such as the World Health Organization (WHO); the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO); the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO); and the International Labor Organization (ILO).

The Trusteeship Council, originally responsible for supervising 11 territories placed under international trust at the end of World War II, is currently inactive because all of the original trust territories and dependencies have gained full sovereignty or have become part of a larger state.

The International Court of Justice, situated in The Hague, the Netherlands, is the judicial body of the UN. The court hears cases referred to it by UN members, who retain the right to decide whether they will accept the court's ruling as binding.

The Secretariat carries out the programs and the administrative tasks of the UN. The body is headed by the secretary general, who is appointed by the General Assembly on the recommendation of the Security Council. The secretary general acts as the UN spokesperson and can present situations that threaten peace to the Security Council.

The un and Trade and Development

Economic and social activities now constitute the most extensive part of the UN's work. ECOSOC serves as a forum for discussions of economic and social problems and for coordination of the UN programs and those of the specialized agencies. Information services support both ECOSOC and the General Assembly, providing standing bodies of ECOSOC such as the Statistical, Population, and Human Rights commissions.

These economic activities also must be seen as part of the entire United Nations System. The financial institutions–the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD; part of the World Bank group)–are responsible for making loans to member states. The IMF permits UN members to support the value of their currencies by covering temporary deficits in their balance of payments. The World Bank helps to finance long-range development projects.

UN development programs are part of a much wider network of assistance that also includes regional and nationally organized programs. At the same time, developing countries must supply most of the capital, through savings and foreign earnings, for their economic growth. Therefore, development assistance has been increasingly related to general conditions in the world economy–especially those conditions under which developing nations engage in foreign trade.

The un and World Peace

Shortly after World War II and the establishment of the UN, political cooperation among the major powers broke down, and the world entered into the period of the Cold War. As the interests of the United States and the USSR clashed, the ability of the United Nations to maintain peace was limited. Some of these limitations were lifted in 1991 when the USSR broke apart and Russia took over its permanent seat on the Security Council. Despite limitations, the Security Council was able to bring about the settlement of disputes in situations in which the interests of the permanent members, especially the United States and the USSR, converged.

Since the early 1950s the UN role in maintaining peace and security around the world has expanded. UN-sponsored forces have been especially active in areas where decolonization has led to instability. In many cases, the withdrawal of the former colonial power left a political vacuum, and a struggle for domination ensued. In response, the UN developed the strategy of deploying peacekeeping forces to separate antagonists, providing time and opportunity for negotiation, and to keep local conflicts from spreading over an entire region. UN peacekeeping forces have been active in numerous conflicts, including those in Korea, the Middle East, Africa, Cyprus, Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), South Africa, and the former Yugoslavia. In 1988 the peacekeeping forces were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

The Role of the un

During the period of superpower rivalry, along with its peacekeeping operations, the UN also established several committees on disarmament and was involved in negotiating treaties to ban nuclear weapons in outer space and the development of biological weapons. The International Atomic Energy Agency has helped to control the proliferation of nuclear weapons by inspecting nuclear installations to monitor their use. The United Nations has played a wider role in the transition to statehood in a few critical regions. It has been a major forum through which newly independent states have begun to participate in international relations. Many global problems have been considered in a series of special UN-sponsored conferences, including the World Conference of the International Women's Year (1975), the Conference on Human Settlements, or Habitat (1976), the Conference on Desertification (1977), the World Summit for Children (1990), the International Conference on Population and Development (1994), and the World Summit on Social Development (1995).

The United Nations is not a world government; rather, it is an instrument through which nations can cooperate to solve their mutual problems. Whether they do cooperate and use the UN creatively depends on how both their governments and their peoples view relations with others and how they envision their place in the future of humankind.

Veto, ['vi:tqV] executive power to abrogate or kill a measure that has been passed by a legislative body. Under the Constitution of the United States, a two-thirds majority vote in both houses of the Congress of the United States is needed to override the president's veto. In the case of a so-called pocket veto, a bill fails to become law when the president does not sign it and Congress adjourns within ten days after submitting it to the president. The governors of most U.S. states have veto powers. The monarch of the United Kingdom has veto power, but it has not been exercised since 1708. In the Security Council of the United Nations, each of the five permanent members has veto power over substantive matters.

Welfare, public assistance programs that provide at least a minimum amount of economic security to people whose incomes are insufficient to maintain an adequate standard of living. These programs generally include such benefits as financial aid to individuals, subsidized medical care, and stamps that are used to purchase food.

Welfare State ["welfeq'steIt] (політ. "держава загального добробуту") (із системою соціального забезпечення, безкоштовного навчання и т. п.) is a term sometimes applied to a country in which the government assumes major responsibility for the social welfare of the people.

Woman Suffrage, ['sAfrIdZ] right of women to share on equal terms with men the political privileges afforded by representative government and, more specifically, to vote and hold public office. Organized woman-suffrage movements emerged only after suffrage had been won by large groups of the male population following the democratic revolutions of the 18th and 19th centuries. See Women's Rights.

American Suffrage Movement

In colonial America women were not granted the right to vote. However, because in most colonies land ownership determined the right to vote, women whose families owned property could sometimes vote. The framers of the Constitution of the United States reserved decisions about voting qualifications for the states. By the early 19th century most states had dropped the property qualification and extended voting rights to all adult men.

During the first half of the 19th century American suffragists worked mainly through the abolitionist and temperance movements. However, antifeminist prejudices within these movements led suffragists to create a separate movement dedicated to women's rights. Early leaders in the movement were feminists Lucretia [lH'krJSq] Coffin Mott, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, and Lucy Stone.

In 1848 the first women's rights convention met in Seneca Falls, New York. The convention adopted a Declaration of Sentiments, patterned after the American Declaration of Independence. Many U.S. citizens responded to the convention with ridicule and anger. Suffragist leaders were often subjected to physical violence.

After the American Civil War (1861-1865), many male abolitionists argued that suffragist claims should be deferred so as not to impede the campaign to gain voting rights for male ex-slaves. To many suffragists, postponement was unacceptable, and in 1869 feminist leaders created independent organizations to fight for woman suffrage.

In 1890 suffragists formed the National American Woman Suffrage Association. The association's work helped achieve suffrage in several states in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In 1920 the Congress of the United States approved the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, granting women the right to vote.

British Suffrage Movement

The pioneer figure of British feminism was the writer Mary Wollstonecraft, author of A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792). During the 1830s and 1840s British suffragism was supported by the Chartists, who fought for a sweeping program of human rights. Later, some liberal legislators favored woman suffrage, among them John Stuart Mill. In 1897 the National Union of Woman Suffrage Societies was formed. A faction of this group, led by the feminist Emmeline Pankhurst, established the militant Women's Social and Political Union in 1903. The union's tactics included boycotting, bombing, and picketing. In 1913 a suffragist publicized her cause by deliberately hurling herself to her death under the hooves of horses racing at Epsom Downs.

In 1918 the British Parliament gave voting rights to all female householders, householders' wives, and female university graduates over 30 years of age. In 1928 Parliament lowered the voting age of women to 21.

Suffrage in Other Countries

Most other nations have enacted woman-suffrage legislation. By the 1980s women could vote virtually everywhere in the world, except for a few Muslim countries. Women who attained national leadership posts include prime ministers Golda Meir (Israel), Indira Gandhi (India), and Benazir Bhutto (Pakistan) and President Corazon Aquino of the Philippines.

Zionism, ['zaIqnIz(q)m] movement to unite the Jews [dZu:z] of the Diaspora and settle them in Palestine; it arose in the late 19th century and culminated in the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948. The movement's name is derived from Zion, the hill on which the Temple of Jerusalem was located.

In the 1700s the Haskalah (Hebrew for ‘enlightenment’) movement marked the beginning of a trend away from traditional religious orthodoxy and toward Jewish assimilation into European society. The achievement of political equality by European Jewry began in revolutionary France in 1791 and spread over most of Europe during the next several decades. Political emancipation proved to be a false dawn, however. In the second half of the 1800s anti-Semitic parties emerged in Germany and Austria-Hungary. In Russia, pogroms (anti-Jewish riots) spread across the country. Large numbers of Russian Jews migrated to the West, primarily to the United States. A smaller number went to Palestine, which was then under Turkish rule.

In 1896 Theodor ["TIq'dO:] Herzl, a Hungarian-Jewish journalist, published a book called The Jewish State, in which he analyzed the causes of anti-Semitism and proposed its cure, the creation of a Jewish state. In 1897 Herzl organized the first Zionist Congress in Basel, Switzerland. The congress formulated a program defining Zionism's goal as the creation ‘for the Jewish people of a home in Palestine secured by public law.’ The congress worked to establish branches in every country with a substantial Jewish population. Herzl made unsuccessful efforts to acquire land and financial backing for the new state.

During World War I (1914-1918), the British wooed the Zionists in order to secure strategic control over Palestine and to gain the support of world Jewry for the Allied cause. The Balfour Declaration of 1917 approved the establishment in Palestine of a ‘national home for the Jewish people.’ After the war, Zionism faced a setback when Russian Jewry (the traditional source of Zionist migration) was sealed off by the government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). In addition, a dispute arose between the leader of American Zionism, Supreme Court justice Louis Brandeis, and Russian-born chemist Dr. Chaim [haIm] Weizmann, the man credited with obtaining the Balfour Declaration. Weizmann's ‘synthetic [sIn'TetIk] Zionism,’ which advocated both political struggle and colonization, won out over Brandeis's pragmatic approach, which concentrated on colonization without reference to future nationhood.

During the British mandate over Palestine ['pxlIstaIn] (1920-1948), the number of Jewish settlers in Palestine grew from 50,000 to 600,000, most of whom were refugees of Nazi persecution in Europe. Coexistence between Jews and the Arabs of Palestine became an increasingly intractable problem. Recurrent riots in the 1920s culminated in full-scale rebellion from 1936 to 1939. In 1939, on the eve of World War II, the British government changed its Palestine policy in an effort to appease the Arab world. It terminated Britain's commitment to Zionism, provided for the establishment of a Palestinian state within ten years, and limited additional entry into Palestine by Jews.

In 1942 Zionist leaders demanded that a Jewish state be created in western Palestine. The Holocaust ['hPlqkO:st] (systematic murder of European Jews by the Nazis ['nQ:tsIz]) convinced Western Jewry of the need for a Jewish state. In 1944 Zionist guerrillas began an armed revolt against British rule in Palestine. In 1948 the British mandate ended, and the Jews declared the independence of the new state of Israel. Relations between the new state and the Zionists proved problematic, however. Israel's first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, insisted that Zionist leaders who chose to remain outside of Israel would have no say in Israel's policy decisions. During the 1970s a great deal of Zionist activity focused on Soviet Jews, who were finally allowed to emigrate in restricted numbers. A massive wave of immigration by Soviet Jews to Israel began in the late 1980s.

Zionism has been repeatedly denounced by Arab nations and their supporters as a ‘tool of imperialism.’ Zionists have emphasized that the movement has never rejected Arab self-determination. Zionism today is based on the support of two principles: the autonomy and safety of the state of Israel and the right of any Jew to settle there.

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