Conservapedia - User contributions [en]

Axis Powers

2008-04-30T22:47:38Z

Gilliam:

{{merge|Axis Powers}}

There were three major '''Axis''' countries in World War II: [[Germany]], [[Italy]], and [[Japan]]. [[Germany]] and [[Italy]] started the war when Germany made invasions into eastern [[Europe]]. Italy invaded North Africa, having a strategic place in the world for making an African conquest. Japan invaded [[China]] and most of the south [[Asian]] countries. This stirred the world in many different moods. Then on December 7, 1941, the [[Japanese]] launched one of the most damaging ambushes of all time on the [[United States of America]]; forcing a sleeping giant to awake. The Americans lost about 3,000 sailors in the [[Attack on Pearl Harbor]]. The minor Axis powers were [[Hungary]], [[Romania]], [[Slovakia]], [[Bulgaria]],[[Yugoslavia]], and [[Croatia]].

The term was a reference to a 1936 speech by Mussolini, celebrating a treaty with Germany, in which he said:
:This Rome-Berlin protocol is an axis around which all European states, animated by a desire for peace, may collaborate.<ref>Cortesi, Arnaldo (1936), "Mussolini Urges Paris and London to Enter Accord," ''The New York Times,'' November 2, 1936, p. 1</ref>
Subsequently newspapers began to use the phrase "Rome-Berlin axis," and later "Rome-Berlin-Tokyo axis," or "Axis" for short.

==George W. Bush's "Axis of Evil"==
In a speech on January 29, 2002, George W. Bush referred to Iraq, Iran, and North Korea an "axis of evil," using, as the New York Times noted, "a word once used to describe the alliance of Germany, Italy, and Japan during World War II."<ref>Sanger, David E (2002), "Bush, Focussing on Terrorism, says Secure U.S. is Top Priority"; ''The New York Times,'' January 30, 2002, p. A1</ref> However, Iraq, Iran and North Korea were not allies; in fact at the time of his speech Iraq and Iran's governments were bitter opponents.

Europeans objected to the speech as having a combative tone, and felt that Bush was issuing military threats to the three nations ne named.<ref>Daley, Suzanne (200), "The Allies," January 31, 2002, p. A12</ref>. Bush aides insisted, however, that Bush "was not suggesting imminent military activity" against any of the countries.<ref>Sanger, David E. "Bush Aides Say Tough Tone Put Foes on Notice" January 31, 2002, p. A1</ref>

==References==
<references/>
[[Category:World War II]]

War criminal

2008-04-30T22:42:29Z

Gilliam: Redirecting to War crimes

#redirect[[War crimes]]

War crime

2008-04-30T22:42:05Z

Gilliam: Redirecting to War crimes

#redirect[[War crimes]]

Karl Dönitz

2008-04-30T22:41:22Z

Gilliam: dab

[[Image:Karl Dönitz.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Karl Dönitz]]
Grand Admiral '''Karl Dönitz''' was commander of the [[U-boat]] fleet of the Kriegsmarine (German Navy) during the [[Second World War]]. Dönitz also served as a U-Boat captain during the [[First World War]].
==President==
Upon the death of [[Hitler]] and [[Joseph Goebbels|Goebbels]], Dönitz was appointed [[President]]<ref>http://www.flottenbasis.de/marine_kurier/ausgabe012005/achterstich1.html</ref><ref>http://lexikon.meyers.de/meyers/Bundespr%C3%A4sident</ref>. Dönitz immediately opened up negotiations with the [[Allied Powers]] to offer Germany's unconditional surrender <ref>http://www.br-online.de/wissen-bildung/thema/kriegsenden/09-kapitulation.xml</ref>. On May 7, the British and US governments accepted a surrender authorized by Dönitz <ref>http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/stories/11/a3530611.shtml</ref>. The decision was controversial, as the the [[Big Three]] [[Allied Powers]] had agreed not to accept any separate peace terms. Dönitz was subsequently arrested and tried as a [[war criminal]] <ref>http://www.br-online.de/wissen-bildung/thema/kriegsenden/09-kapitulation.xml</ref>.

==Trial==
Dönitz was placed on trial in [[Nuremberg Trials|Nürnberg]] where he was sentenced to ten years imprisonment for war crimes, largely related to his policy of unrestricted submarine warfare. A part of his defense at the trial was that the US had also waged unrestricted submarine warfare from day one of their involvement.
==Release==
After his release he lived a quiet life writing a small number of books. His most famous being his memoir '''10 Jahre, 20 Tage'''. '''10 Years and 20 days'''; an allusion to his 10 years as a Kriegsmarine officer and his 20 days as the nominal head of the German state.

==References==

<References/>

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dönitz, Karl}}

[[Category: World War II Commanders]]

Outback Steakhouse

2008-04-30T03:38:04Z

Gilliam: sp

'''Outback Steakhouse''' is a chain of restaurants with an Australian theme, often found in large cities. Its most famous food is [[bloomin' onion]].

[[category:Restaurants]]

P.T. Barnum

2008-04-30T03:36:51Z

Gilliam:

[[Image:Hd7547.jpg|right|thumb|Phineas Taylor Barnum by Mathew Brady, c.1860]]
Phineas Taylor (P.T.) Barnum (1810-1891) was the owner and promoter of the "Greatest Show on Earth," an entertaining traveling [[circus]]. Financial support from [[J.P. Morgan]] and [[Cornelius Vanderbilt]] enabled Barnum to take his circus around the country.

Barnum sold millions of tickets in his lifetime, attracting visitors to see elephant "Jumbo" and General [[Tom Thumb]], who stood only 25 inches tall. He included both President [[Abraham Lincoln]] and [[Queen Victoria]] as fans.

Barnum said, "Most persons, on the whole, are humbugged by believing too little, than by believing too much." <ref>http://www.amerisearch.net/index.php?date=2004-04-07&view=View</ref>

== References ==

<references/>

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barnum, Phineas}}

[[Category:Business People]]

Duke Nukem 3D

2008-04-27T03:47:54Z

Gilliam:

'''Duke Nukem 3D''' ([[ESRB]] ratings: M) is a controversial first-person shooter [[video game]] that contains adult material such as [[violence]], [[pornography]] and [[Profanity|foul language]]. The player controls Duke Nukem, a reckless man who fights a horde of invading [[alien]]s across [[urban]] settings, [[desert]]s, [[canyon]]s, [[military]] bases or even [[space station]]s.

The game was banned in [[Brazil]] following a shotting incident reminiscent of the events occurring early in the game.

==See Also==
*[[Video game controversy]]

[[Category:Video Games]]

Subway

2008-04-27T03:32:43Z

Gilliam: sp

A '''Subway''' is the North American term for a rapid transit system that runs underground for much or all of its route. Outside North America, they may be known as an underground, metro, or mass transit railway. Subways require large populations to run efficiently and run at a "grade separation" from other vehicles and run frequently. This means that they exist in the largest cities.

The first subway was opened in [[London]] in 1863, (where it is called the "[[Underground]]") although many more major cities now have subways systems. The [[Boston]] subway opened in 1901 and the [[New_York_City|New York]] subway first opened in 1904.

==List of cities with subways==
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:left"
|+
'''Subways of the World'''
|-
! City !! System Name
|-
|[[Beijing]], [[China]] || Beijing Metro
|-
|[[Berlin]], [[Germany]] || U-Bahn
|-
|[[Boston]], [[United States]]|| Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (or "T")
|-
|[[Budapest]], [[Hungary]] || Budapest Metro
|-
|[[Chicago]], [[United States]]|| Chicago "L"
|-
|[[Edmonton]], [[Canada]]|| Light Rail Transit (LRT)
|-
|[[Glasgow]], [[United Kingdom]]|| Glasgow Subway
|-
|[[Hong Kong]], [[China]]|| 地铁 Mass Transit Railway (MTR)
|-
|[[London]], [[United Kingdom]]|| [[London Underground|Underground (official)]] Tube (colloquial)
|-
|[[Montreal]], [[Canada]]|| Metro de Montréal
|-
|[[New York City]], [[United States]]|| Subway
|-
|[[Washington DC]], [[United States]]|| [[Metrorail]]
|-
|[[Paris]], [[France]] || Métropolitain (abbreviated Métro)
|-
|[[Philadelphia]], [[United States]]||SEPTA
|-
|[[San Francisco]] Bay Area, [[United States]]|| [[Bay Area Rapid Transit]] (BART)
|-
|[[Shenzhen]], [[China]] || 深圳地铁 Shenzhen Metro
|-
| [[Shanghai]], [[China]] || Shanghai Metro
|-
|[[Singapore]] || Mass Rapid Transit (MRT)
|-
|[[Toronto]], [[Canada]] || Toronto Transit Commission (TTC)
|-

[[Category: Rail transport]]

Declaratory Act

2008-04-27T03:30:56Z

Gilliam: sp

The '''Declaratory Act''' (March 18, 1766) was an act made by the [[British]] [[Parliament]] that stated that Britain had supreme control over the [[American Colonies]]. It was made directly after Parliament had repealed the [[Stamp Act]]. This act angered the colonists, and was one of the several reasons the colonists declared [[war]] on [[Britain]].

'':"The King's majesty … had, hath, and of right ought to have, full power to make laws and statutes of sufficient force and validity to bind the colonies and people of America, subjects of the crown of Great Britain, in all cases whatsoever."'' From the Declaratory Act.

== External links ==

*[http://www.constitution.org/bcp/decl_act.htm THE DECLARATORY ACT]
*[http://www.bookrags.com/Declaratory_Act on The Declaratory Act] Issued by British Parliament.

[[Category:History]]
[[Category:Law]]
[[Category:United States]]

Anti-Semitism

2008-04-27T03:28:05Z

Gilliam: /* WWII to the Gulf War */ redlink

[[Image:Aldershot Cemetery.jpg|right|thumb|Community Security Trust. Nov. 2004: The Aldershot Cemetery.]]
'''Anti-Semitism''' (or '''antisemitism''') is [[discrimination]], [[Hate|hatred]], or unfounded criticism of [[Jews]], Jewish culture, or the state of [[Israel]].

==Origins of Anti-Semitism==
The first [[Christian]]s were [[Jews]], as [[Jesus Christ]] was. The story of Jesus was remembered and retold in the synagogues. Splits appeared very soon after the death of Jesus between the Pharisees and the Revisionist Jews. The Gospel of John was written quite soon after he and other revisionist Jews were barred from the synagogue by the Orthodox party. The references to Jews in the Gospel according to St John does not refer to Jews as a whole, but to the Pharisees. However, this was not well understood by later readers, and once the early generations of Jews had died out John's gospel was often used to justify acts of anti-Semitism.

==Early Anti-Semitism==
One of the oldest instances of anti-Semitic claims was made in the first century AD by Apion who claimed Jews sacrificed Greeks in their temple in a ritual known as a blood libel. Christianity later brought this up again in England in 1144, after William of Norwich was found murdered. William was called a martyr and created a second wave of anti-semitism, this time in Europe. It was mostly popularized with the story of Little Saint Hugh of Lincoln, and was even present in the Canterbury Tales. This continued on for many centuries until modern times. This "[[blood libel]]" accusation has survived the centuries and is today seen in Muslim anti-Semitic propaganda.

In the Middle Ages, misplaced blame on Jews for the death of [[Jesus Christ]], despite the fact that Jesus Himself was obviously Jewish, and that He had been executed under [[Roman]] law, led to Christian antipathy against Jews in parts of [[Europe]]. This also led to rumors that Jews "desecrated the host" (tortured communion bread as per the [[Catholic]] doctrine of transubstination, and that they "poisoned the wells", leading to the [[Black Death]].

Anti-semitism was rife in Europe well into the twentieth century. Anti-Semitic references were common in the popular literature of both the 19th and early 20th centuries. It became more "scientific", and often connected with psuedo-scientific racial theories. Well known 19th-century anti-Semites include Houston Stewart Chamberlain, [[Karl Marx]], and [[Richard Wagner]]. In [[Russia]], [[pogroms]] (mass slaughter) were carried out against the Jews. When [[Adolf Hitler]] needed a scapegoat on which to blame the inflationary problems of [[Germany]], he built on a bedrock of anti-Semitism that was already there. The consequence was the [[Holocaust]], called by Hitler the [[Final Solution]] to the 'Jewish problem'.

==WWII to the Gulf War==
[[Henry Ford]] was an outspoken anti-semite who used his newspaper, ''The Dearborn Independent'', to reprint the false ''[[The Protocols of the Elders of Zion]]''. He was an admirer of [[Adolf Hitler]] and strongly opposed U.S. entry into the Second World War.<ref>Power, Ignorance, and Anti-Semitism:
Henry Ford and His War on Jews http://history.hanover.edu/hhr/99/hhr99_2.html</ref> Aviator Charles Lindberg has also been accused of being an anti-semite. He also opposed U.S. entry into the war, though implied that if we did enter, it should be on the side of Germany.<ref>Asimov, Issac ''Isaac Asimov's Book of Facts''. New York: Random House, 1977.</ref>

Republican President [[Richard Nixon]] unfairly earned a reputation as an anti-Semite after recordings of informal conversations laden with racial slurs and invective known as the [[Watergate Tapes]] were made public. These informal comments about Jewish control of the media and calling [[Robert Vesco]] "a cheap kike" among other comments suggested to Nixon critics that his views were informed by a mistrust of Jewish culture. <ref>http://hnn.us/articles/657.html</ref> Nixon defenders refute claims that he was an anti-semite because of his support of [[Israel]] during the [[Yom Kippur War]] and his many Jewish friends and associates such as [[Henry Kissinger]], [[Herb Stein]] and others. <ref>http://www.slate.com/id/1003783/ </ref>

In 1984 [[Democratic]] Presidential candidate [[Jesse Jackson]] is said to have uttered anti-Semitic comments to reporter for the ''Washington Post'' when discussing the state of African-American and Jewish relations, which had been a key [[New Deal]] coalition for half a century. Jackson is reported to have referred to Jews as "Hymie's", and to New York City as "Hymietown". Jackson is alleged to have apologized for the incident. <ref>[http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=187440 Jesse and the Jews], Michael W. Hirschorn, ''The Harvard Crimson'', March 05, 1984.</ref>

==Modern anti-Semitism==

During the [[Gulf War]] of 1991 anti-Semites alleged the United States was being used to fight Israel's wars.<ref>[http://newint.org/features/2004/10/01/conspiracism/ ''Zog ate my brains''], [[Chip Berlet]], New Internationalist, October 2004.</ref>

The U.S. State Department ''Report on Global Anti-Semitism'' in 2005 said this about the current state of anti-Semitism worldwide:

:Beginning in 2000, verbal attacks directed against Jews increased while incidents of vandalism... surged. Physical assaults including beatings, stabbings and other violence against Jews in Europe increased markedly, in a number of cases resulting in serious injury and even death. Also troubling is a bias that spills over into anti-Semitism in some of the [[leftist|left-of-center]] press and among some intellectuals.

:The United States is frequently included as a target of such attacks, which often assert that U.S. foreign policy is made in Israel or that Jews control the media and financial markets in the United States and the rest of the world. ...Similarly, allegations that Jews were behind the 9/11 attacks were widely disseminated. <ref>[http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/40258.htm Report on Global Anti-Semitism], U.S. Department of State Report to the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on International Relations, Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, January 5, 2005. </ref>

In the United States, [[Democratic Party|Democratic]] Senator [[Ernest Hollings]] was recently ostracized for public criticism of the Bush Administration <ref>[http://web.archive.org/web/20040506-20051231re_/http://hollings.senate.gov/~hollings/opinion/2004506A17.html Bush's failed Mideast policy is creating more terrorism], U.S. Senator Ernest F. Hollings, Charleston Post and Courier, 6 May 2004.</ref> considered to be anti-Semitic. <ref>[http://www.adl.org/PresRele/ASUS_12/4496_12.htm Anti-Semitism: USA, ADL Urges Senator Hollings to Disavow Statements on Jews and the Iraq War], ADL Press Release, New York, 14 May 2004. </ref> On March 3, 2003 Rep. [[James Moran]] (D-Va.) said, "If it were not for the strong support of the Jewish community for this war with Iraq, we would not be doing this". <ref>[http://judaism.about.com/library/2_antisemitism/bl_moran_iraq.htm Are Jews Behind the War on Iraq?] A Case of Classical Anti-Semitism. </ref> Moran has since made further anti-semitic comments. <ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/16/AR2005061601570.html Democrats Play House To Rally Against the War], Dana Milbank, ''Washington Post'', June 17, 2005.</ref> <ref>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/14/AR2007091402171.html</ref>
Some supporters of the anti-[[Iraq War]] movement have been accused of anti-Semitism, including a group known as ANSWER-[[Act Now to Stop War and End Racism]], one of the first organizations formed to protest the policies of the Bush administration after 9/11. <ref>[http://www.forward.com/articles/the-%E2%80%98answer%E2%80%99-question-poses-difficult-choices/ "The 'Answer' Question Poses Difficult Choices for Liberals"] by Gal Beckerman, ''The Forward'', September 30, 2005. </ref> <ref>[http://web.archive.org/web/20041019075845/http://www.tikkun.org/magazine/index.cfm/action/tikkun/issue/tik0305/article/030512a.html Authoritarianism and Anti-Semitism in the Anti-War Movement?]. ''Tikkun'', May/June 2003. Link is to page on the Internet Archive, archived Oct 19, 2004.</ref>

Liberal activist [[Cindy Sheehan]], though she found popular support among [[leftist]]s and the mainstream media, was condemned for her outspoken anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. <ref>[http://www.davidduke.com/index.php?p=350 Why Cindy Sheehan is Right!], David Duke, 8/14/2005.</ref> Sheehan traveled to [[Venezuela]] <ref>[http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/40258.htm Report on Global Anti-Semitism] U. S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, January 5, 2005. </ref> to appear with Venezuelan dictator, [[Hugo Chavez]] to denounce U.S. foreign policy which she blames as responsible for the death of her son.

Former [[President of the United States|U.S. president]] [[Jimmy Carter]] has recently come under much criticism for his anti-Semitic writings and anti-Semitic comments. In his book, "Palestine Peace Not Apartheid", Carter endorsed Islamic terrorism against Israel as a tactic to achieve political ends. The sentiment was widely criticized by people across the political spectrum. In early 2007, it was revealed that Carter once complained there were "too many Jews" on the U.S. government's Holocaust Memorial Council. The council's former executive director, Monroe Freedman, also revealed that a noted Holocaust scholar who was a Presbyterian Christian was rejected from the council's board by Carter because the scholar's name "sounded too Jewish." <ref>http://www.worldnetdaily.com/staticarticles/article53954.html</ref>

While the contempory American left's hatred for Jews and Jewish traditions has been documented, others who were on the right have been ostracized by conservative commentators. William F. Buckley, Jr., founder and publisher of the ''National Review'' said of [[Reform Party]] presidential candidate and former Nixon speechwriter [[Patrick Buchanan]], "I find it impossible to defend Pat Buchanan against the charge that what he did and said during the period under examination amounted to anti-Semitism…" refering to comments Buchanan made regarding the U.S. involvement in the first [[Gulf War]] which lead to military action against [[Saddam Hussein]] and [[Iraq]]. <ref>[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1282/is_n24_v43/ai_11810753 In search of anti-semitism], William F. Buckley, Jr., ''National Review'', Dec 30, 1991.</ref>

The number of anti-Semitic incidents in Britain increased by 34 percent in 2006. <ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,290187,00.html Increase in Anti-Semitic Violence Troubles Jews in Britain] by Donald Snyder, Fox News, July 20, 2007</ref>

[[Swastika]]s have been carved into several cornfields in the United States. A 130-foot-square swastika was carved into a field in July 1998. A bigger 600-by-600 foot version of the [[National Socialist German Workers Party|Nazi]] symbol was found in a nearby cornfield almost a year later. In September 2007, a giant swastika covering several acres was discovered. <ref>
[http://www.nj.com/printer/printer.ssf?/base/news-8/1190695524193000.xml&coll=1 Police helicopter finds swastika cut into a Mercer County cornfield] The Star-Ledger, September 25, 2007</ref>

==See also==
*[[Wandering Jew]]
*[[Blood libel|Blood Libel]]

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

[[Category:culture]]
[[Category:Judaism]]

Anti-Semitism

2008-04-27T03:26:57Z

Gilliam: /* Early Anti-Semitism */ dab

[[Image:Aldershot Cemetery.jpg|right|thumb|Community Security Trust. Nov. 2004: The Aldershot Cemetery.]]
'''Anti-Semitism''' (or '''antisemitism''') is [[discrimination]], [[Hate|hatred]], or unfounded criticism of [[Jews]], Jewish culture, or the state of [[Israel]].

==Origins of Anti-Semitism==
The first [[Christian]]s were [[Jews]], as [[Jesus Christ]] was. The story of Jesus was remembered and retold in the synagogues. Splits appeared very soon after the death of Jesus between the Pharisees and the Revisionist Jews. The Gospel of John was written quite soon after he and other revisionist Jews were barred from the synagogue by the Orthodox party. The references to Jews in the Gospel according to St John does not refer to Jews as a whole, but to the Pharisees. However, this was not well understood by later readers, and once the early generations of Jews had died out John's gospel was often used to justify acts of anti-Semitism.

==Early Anti-Semitism==
One of the oldest instances of anti-Semitic claims was made in the first century AD by Apion who claimed Jews sacrificed Greeks in their temple in a ritual known as a blood libel. Christianity later brought this up again in England in 1144, after William of Norwich was found murdered. William was called a martyr and created a second wave of anti-semitism, this time in Europe. It was mostly popularized with the story of Little Saint Hugh of Lincoln, and was even present in the Canterbury Tales. This continued on for many centuries until modern times. This "[[blood libel]]" accusation has survived the centuries and is today seen in Muslim anti-Semitic propaganda.

In the Middle Ages, misplaced blame on Jews for the death of [[Jesus Christ]], despite the fact that Jesus Himself was obviously Jewish, and that He had been executed under [[Roman]] law, led to Christian antipathy against Jews in parts of [[Europe]]. This also led to rumors that Jews "desecrated the host" (tortured communion bread as per the [[Catholic]] doctrine of transubstination, and that they "poisoned the wells", leading to the [[Black Death]].

Anti-semitism was rife in Europe well into the twentieth century. Anti-Semitic references were common in the popular literature of both the 19th and early 20th centuries. It became more "scientific", and often connected with psuedo-scientific racial theories. Well known 19th-century anti-Semites include Houston Stewart Chamberlain, [[Karl Marx]], and [[Richard Wagner]]. In [[Russia]], [[pogroms]] (mass slaughter) were carried out against the Jews. When [[Adolf Hitler]] needed a scapegoat on which to blame the inflationary problems of [[Germany]], he built on a bedrock of anti-Semitism that was already there. The consequence was the [[Holocaust]], called by Hitler the [[Final Solution]] to the 'Jewish problem'.

==WWII to the Gulf War==
[[Henry Ford]] was an outspoken anti-semite who used his newspaper, ''The Dearborn Independent'', to reprint the false ''[[Protocols of the Elders of Zion]]''. He was an admirer of [[Adolf Hitler]] and strongly opposed U.S. entry into the Second World War.<ref>Power, Ignorance, and Anti-Semitism:
Henry Ford and His War on Jews http://history.hanover.edu/hhr/99/hhr99_2.html</ref> Aviator Charles Lindberg has also been accused of being an anti-semite. He also opposed U.S. entry into the war, though implied that if we did enter, it should be on the side of Germany.<ref>Asimov, Issac ''Isaac Asimov's Book of Facts''. New York: Random House, 1977.</ref>

Republican President [[Richard Nixon]] unfairly earned a reputation as an anti-Semite after recordings of informal conversations laden with racial slurs and invective known as the [[Watergate Tapes]] were made public. These informal comments about Jewish control of the media and calling [[Robert Vesco]] "a cheap kike" among other comments suggested to Nixon critics that his views were informed by a mistrust of Jewish culture. <ref>http://hnn.us/articles/657.html</ref> Nixon defenders refute claims that he was an anti-semite because of his support of [[Israel]] during the [[Yom Kippur War]] and his many Jewish friends and associates such as [[Henry Kissinger]], [[Herb Stein]] and others. <ref>http://www.slate.com/id/1003783/ </ref>

In 1984 [[Democratic]] Presidential candidate [[Jesse Jackson]] is said to have uttered anti-Semitic comments to reporter for the ''Washington Post'' when discussing the state of African-American and Jewish relations, which had been a key [[New Deal]] coalition for half a century. Jackson is reported to have referred to Jews as "Hymie's", and to New York City as "Hymietown". Jackson is alleged to have apologized for the incident. <ref>[http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=187440 Jesse and the Jews], Michael W. Hirschorn, ''The Harvard Crimson'', March 05, 1984.</ref>

==Modern anti-Semitism==

During the [[Gulf War]] of 1991 anti-Semites alleged the United States was being used to fight Israel's wars.<ref>[http://newint.org/features/2004/10/01/conspiracism/ ''Zog ate my brains''], [[Chip Berlet]], New Internationalist, October 2004.</ref>

The U.S. State Department ''Report on Global Anti-Semitism'' in 2005 said this about the current state of anti-Semitism worldwide:

:Beginning in 2000, verbal attacks directed against Jews increased while incidents of vandalism... surged. Physical assaults including beatings, stabbings and other violence against Jews in Europe increased markedly, in a number of cases resulting in serious injury and even death. Also troubling is a bias that spills over into anti-Semitism in some of the [[leftist|left-of-center]] press and among some intellectuals.

:The United States is frequently included as a target of such attacks, which often assert that U.S. foreign policy is made in Israel or that Jews control the media and financial markets in the United States and the rest of the world. ...Similarly, allegations that Jews were behind the 9/11 attacks were widely disseminated. <ref>[http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/40258.htm Report on Global Anti-Semitism], U.S. Department of State Report to the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on International Relations, Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, January 5, 2005. </ref>

In the United States, [[Democratic Party|Democratic]] Senator [[Ernest Hollings]] was recently ostracized for public criticism of the Bush Administration <ref>[http://web.archive.org/web/20040506-20051231re_/http://hollings.senate.gov/~hollings/opinion/2004506A17.html Bush's failed Mideast policy is creating more terrorism], U.S. Senator Ernest F. Hollings, Charleston Post and Courier, 6 May 2004.</ref> considered to be anti-Semitic. <ref>[http://www.adl.org/PresRele/ASUS_12/4496_12.htm Anti-Semitism: USA, ADL Urges Senator Hollings to Disavow Statements on Jews and the Iraq War], ADL Press Release, New York, 14 May 2004. </ref> On March 3, 2003 Rep. [[James Moran]] (D-Va.) said, "If it were not for the strong support of the Jewish community for this war with Iraq, we would not be doing this". <ref>[http://judaism.about.com/library/2_antisemitism/bl_moran_iraq.htm Are Jews Behind the War on Iraq?] A Case of Classical Anti-Semitism. </ref> Moran has since made further anti-semitic comments. <ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/16/AR2005061601570.html Democrats Play House To Rally Against the War], Dana Milbank, ''Washington Post'', June 17, 2005.</ref> <ref>http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/14/AR2007091402171.html</ref>
Some supporters of the anti-[[Iraq War]] movement have been accused of anti-Semitism, including a group known as ANSWER-[[Act Now to Stop War and End Racism]], one of the first organizations formed to protest the policies of the Bush administration after 9/11. <ref>[http://www.forward.com/articles/the-%E2%80%98answer%E2%80%99-question-poses-difficult-choices/ "The 'Answer' Question Poses Difficult Choices for Liberals"] by Gal Beckerman, ''The Forward'', September 30, 2005. </ref> <ref>[http://web.archive.org/web/20041019075845/http://www.tikkun.org/magazine/index.cfm/action/tikkun/issue/tik0305/article/030512a.html Authoritarianism and Anti-Semitism in the Anti-War Movement?]. ''Tikkun'', May/June 2003. Link is to page on the Internet Archive, archived Oct 19, 2004.</ref>

Liberal activist [[Cindy Sheehan]], though she found popular support among [[leftist]]s and the mainstream media, was condemned for her outspoken anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. <ref>[http://www.davidduke.com/index.php?p=350 Why Cindy Sheehan is Right!], David Duke, 8/14/2005.</ref> Sheehan traveled to [[Venezuela]] <ref>[http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/40258.htm Report on Global Anti-Semitism] U. S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, January 5, 2005. </ref> to appear with Venezuelan dictator, [[Hugo Chavez]] to denounce U.S. foreign policy which she blames as responsible for the death of her son.

Former [[President of the United States|U.S. president]] [[Jimmy Carter]] has recently come under much criticism for his anti-Semitic writings and anti-Semitic comments. In his book, "Palestine Peace Not Apartheid", Carter endorsed Islamic terrorism against Israel as a tactic to achieve political ends. The sentiment was widely criticized by people across the political spectrum. In early 2007, it was revealed that Carter once complained there were "too many Jews" on the U.S. government's Holocaust Memorial Council. The council's former executive director, Monroe Freedman, also revealed that a noted Holocaust scholar who was a Presbyterian Christian was rejected from the council's board by Carter because the scholar's name "sounded too Jewish." <ref>http://www.worldnetdaily.com/staticarticles/article53954.html</ref>

While the contempory American left's hatred for Jews and Jewish traditions has been documented, others who were on the right have been ostracized by conservative commentators. William F. Buckley, Jr., founder and publisher of the ''National Review'' said of [[Reform Party]] presidential candidate and former Nixon speechwriter [[Patrick Buchanan]], "I find it impossible to defend Pat Buchanan against the charge that what he did and said during the period under examination amounted to anti-Semitism…" refering to comments Buchanan made regarding the U.S. involvement in the first [[Gulf War]] which lead to military action against [[Saddam Hussein]] and [[Iraq]]. <ref>[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1282/is_n24_v43/ai_11810753 In search of anti-semitism], William F. Buckley, Jr., ''National Review'', Dec 30, 1991.</ref>

The number of anti-Semitic incidents in Britain increased by 34 percent in 2006. <ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,290187,00.html Increase in Anti-Semitic Violence Troubles Jews in Britain] by Donald Snyder, Fox News, July 20, 2007</ref>

[[Swastika]]s have been carved into several cornfields in the United States. A 130-foot-square swastika was carved into a field in July 1998. A bigger 600-by-600 foot version of the [[National Socialist German Workers Party|Nazi]] symbol was found in a nearby cornfield almost a year later. In September 2007, a giant swastika covering several acres was discovered. <ref>
[http://www.nj.com/printer/printer.ssf?/base/news-8/1190695524193000.xml&coll=1 Police helicopter finds swastika cut into a Mercer County cornfield] The Star-Ledger, September 25, 2007</ref>

==See also==
*[[Wandering Jew]]
*[[Blood libel|Blood Libel]]

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

[[Category:culture]]
[[Category:Judaism]]

Plasmid

2008-04-27T03:21:16Z

Gilliam:

A plasmid is an independent, circular, self-replicating [[DNA]] molecule that carries only a few genes. [http://lifesciences.asu.edu/resources/mamajis/plasmids/plasmids.html] Plasmids often contain genes for anti-biotic resistance and are used often in biological transformation experiments as a check to see if the implanted genes worked (if the cell is resistant to a particular anti-biotic that has a resistance gene on the plasmid with the gene of interest the cells will live in the environment with the anti-biotic; eliminating any cells who did not accept the plasmid)

[[category:genetics]]

Waterborne diseases

2008-04-27T03:17:05Z

Gilliam: sp

'''Waterborne diseases''' are those in which [[bacteria]] survive in, and are transmitted through, water; always a serious threat in areas with an untreated [[water]] supply.

[[category:environment]]

Steppe

2008-04-27T03:12:49Z

Gilliam: s[

[[Image:mongolianSteppe.jpeg|250px|thumb|Grassland steppe of eastern Mongolia near the border with Russia and China. (Photo credit: D. Prosser, USGS)

]]
A '''steppe''' is a vast, semi-arid, flat, treeless, short grass plain, similar to a [[prairie]]. Its most prominant location on earth is the [[Great Steppe]], covering roughly 5,000 square miles, covering most of central [[Asia]], from [[Mongolia]] into [[Ukraine]].

[[category:geography]]

National Republican Senatorial Committee

2008-04-26T02:44:36Z

Gilliam: dab

The''' National Republican Senatorial Committee''' (NRSC) is a political committee established by [[Republican]] members of the [[United States Senate]] to help Republican candidates develop the campaign resources they need for 2008 to re-gain the majority in the United States Senate. The current chairman is [[Nevada]] Senator [[John Ensign]].

==History==

The committee was established in 1916, in response to the ratification of the [[Seventeenth Amendment]] to the [[U.S. Constitution|constitution]] which provided for the direct election of [[Senators]]. The committee was reorganized and renamed to its current name in 1948.

==Chairmen==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Years
! Name
! State
|-
|2007-2008
|[[John Ensign]]
|[[Nevada]]
|-
|2005-2006
|[[Elizabeth Dole]]
|[[North Carolina]]
|-
|2003-2004
|[[George Allen]]
|[[Virginia]]
|-
|2001-2002
|[[Bill Frist]]
|[[Tennessee]]
|-
|1997-2000
|[[Donald Nickles]]
|[[Oklahoma]]
|-
|1987-1988
|[[Rudolph Boschwitz]]
|[[Minnesota]]
|-
|1985-1986
|[[Henry Heinz]]
|[[Pennsylvania]]
|-
|1983-1984
|[[Richard Lugar]]
|[[Indiana]]
|-
|1981-1982
|[[Robert Packwood]]
|[[Oregon]]
|-
|1971-1972
|[[Peter Dominick]]
|[[Colorado]]
|-
|1973-1974
|[[William Brock]]
|[[Tennessee]]
|-
|1975-1976
|[[Theodore Stevens]]
|[[Alaska]]
|-
|1977-1978
|[[Robert Packwood]]
|[[Oregon]]
|-
|1979-1980
|[[Henry Hienz]]
|[[Pennsylvania]]
|-
|1969-1970
|[[John Tower]]
|[[Texas]]
|-
|1961-1962
|[[Barry Goldwater]]
|[[Arizona]]
|-
|1967-1968
|[[George Murphy]]
|[[California]]
|-
|1963-1966
|[[Thurston Morton]]
|[[Kentucky]]
|-
|1959-1960
|[[Andrew Schoeppel]]
|[[Kansas]]
|-
|1957-1958
|[[Everett Dirken]]
|[[Illinois]]
|-
|1951-1952
|[[Ralph Brewster]]
|[[Main]]
|-
|1955-1956
|[[Barry Goldwater]]
|[[Arizona]]
|-
|1953-1954
|[[Everett Dirksen]]
|[[Illinois]]
|-
|1949-1950
|[[Styles Bridges]]
|[[New Hampshire]]
|-
|}
==External links==
[http://www.nrsc.org/ official website]

[[category:politics]]

Aryan

2008-04-26T02:17:02Z

Gilliam: Redirecting to Aryans

#redirect[[Aryans]]

Binge drinking

2008-04-26T02:10:42Z

Gilliam: dab

'''Binge drinking''' is the habit of many people of indulging in bouts of heavy drinking, often with friends or associates, and is associated with a wide spectrum of social ills including sexual [[promiscuity]], [[violence]], [[vandalism]], [[alcoholism]] and long term [[liver]] disease. The causes of binge drinking have been much debated, and include societal and family breakdown, increased availability of alcohol through extended licensing hours, the falling price of alcohol (in relative terms), the production and marketing of [[alcopops]] aimed at young people, and the development of [[vertical drinking]] establishments aimed at the young and with few attractions for an older clientèle who might encourage restraint.

==See Also==
*[[Alcohol abuse]]
*[[Alcoholism]]

[[category:Alcohol]]

User:Gilliam

2008-04-26T02:01:05Z

Gilliam:

Gilliam ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Gilliam]) is a WP administrator, CP skeptic.

==Don't get me started==
*About the facist or tyrannical and indefinite blocking of sensitive articles
*Facetious teasing of those groups (i.e. liberals) whose beliefs are apparently not shared with this "community"
*Xenophobic culture that dismisses foreign culture and scientific fact

User:Gilliam

2008-04-26T01:32:54Z

Gilliam: New page: Gilliam ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Gilliam]) is a WP administrator, CP skeptic. ==Don't get me started== *About the facist or tyrannical and indefinite blocking of sensitive ar...

Gilliam ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Gilliam]) is a WP administrator, CP skeptic.

==Don't get me started==
*About the facist or tyrannical and indefinite blocking of sensitive articles
*Facetious teasing of those groups (i.e. liberals) whose beliefs with are apparently not shared with this "community"
*Xenophobic culture that dismisses foreign culture and scientific fact

Childbirth

2008-04-26T01:23:44Z

Gilliam: Redirecting to Birth

#redirect[[Birth]]

L. Ron Hubbard

2008-04-25T19:54:57Z

Gilliam:

{{Stub}}

'''L. Ron Hubbard''' (1911 -1986) was the founder of the [[Scientology|Church of Scientology]] and a fiction and non-fiction author.<ref>http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~dst/Library/Shelf/la90/la90-0.html</ref>

== External Link ==
[http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~dst/Library/Shelf/la90/la90-1a1.html The Mind Behind the Religion - Los Angelos Times]

==References==
<references/>

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hubbard, L}}
[[Category: Authors]]

Martin Niemoeller

2008-04-25T19:51:37Z

Gilliam: cat

{{quotebox|In [[Germany]], the [[Nazi]]s first came for the [[Communist]]s, and I did not speak up, because I was not a Communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak up, because I was not a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak up, because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics, and I did not speak up, because I was not a Catholic. Then they came for me... and by that time, there was no one to speak up for anyone. - Martin Niemoeller, Pastor, German Evangelical (Lutheran) Church [http://www.hrweb.org/intro.html]}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Niemoeller, Martin}}
[[Category:Holocaust]]
[[Category:Ministers]]
[[Category:World War II]]
[[category:quotes]]

Eden

2008-04-25T19:40:34Z

Gilliam: Redirecting to Garden of Eden

#redirect[[Garden of Eden]]

Women

2008-04-25T19:39:28Z

Gilliam: /* Women in history */ dab

'''Women''' are the female of the human species, with the biological role of bearing offspring ([[pregnancy]] and [[childbirth]]). In preparation for this role, women's breasts begin to grow at puberty, forming the most obvious physical difference between women and men other than the reproductive organs. Other differences include a layer of subcutaneous fat under the skin which hides the underlying musculature, and a wider pelvis to facilitate carrying the [[baby]] and allowing it to be born. Women also have a greater proportion of fine vellus hair over certain areas of their skin (such as their face and legs) than the coarse terminal hair which appears on men. {{fact}}

Men have typically two times more upper body strength than women, and around 50% more leg strength. <ref>College women have 50 to 60 percent of the arm and shoulder strength and 70 percent of the leg strength of their male counterparts. [http://www.humankinetics.com/products/showexcerpt.cfm?excerpt_id=4171 Human Kinetics] </ref> Women have slightly longer average lifespans than men, which results in women overtaking men in population by middle age despite a 1.05:1 boy to girl ratio at birth in the United States. This rate varies among countries. {{fact}}

== Women in history ==

Compared to men, relatively few women have had impact on history as leaders in diverse fields, but a small number of women have had enormous impact. They include [[Ferdinand and Isabella|Isabella of Spain]], [[Joan of Arc]], [[Margaret Thatcher]], [[Elizabeth I]], [[Boudicca]], [[Catherine the Great]], [[Cleopatra]], [[Marie Curie]], [[Benazir Bhutto]], [[Golda Meir]], [[Indira Gandhi]], [[Lucretia Mott]], [[Susan B. Anthony]], [[Aung San Suu Kyi]], and [[Mother Theresa]].

== Women in the Bible ==

=== Genesis ===
The Bible says that women, like men, were created by God on the 6th day of [[Creation]], as told in The Book of [[Genesis]]:
{{Bible quote|So God created man in his [own] image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.|book=Genesis|chap=1|verses=27|version=KJV}}
{{Bible quote|But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female.|book=Mark|chap=10|verses=6|version=KJV}}
[[Genesis]] further elaborates that [[God]] took a [[rib cage|rib]] from [[Adam]], the first man, and from it created [[Eve]], the first woman, as a helper for [[Adam]] when the [[animal]]s, which had been created for that purpose, proved unsuitable:
{{Bible quote|And the LORD God said, [It is] not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought [them] unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that [was] the name thereof. And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him. And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.|book=Genesis|chap=2|verses=18-22|version=KJV}}
According to some biblical literalists, Eve caused sin and suffering to come into the world when she convinced Adam to eat from The Tree of Knowledge, an act directly forbidden by God Himself. As punishment for this, God declared that women shall experience great pain in childbirth.<ref>Genesis 3:16</ref>

=== New Testament statements on the role of women ===
Saint Paul also has much to say on the status of women in society, most memorably that women should submit to their husbands just as the church submits to Christ.
<ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=ephesians%205:22-24&version=9 Ephesians 5:22-24 ]</ref>
<ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=I%20Corinthians%2011:8-9;&version=9; I Corinthians 11:8-9]</ref>
<ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=I%20Corinthians%2011:4-7;&version=9; I Corinthians 11:4-7]</ref>
<ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=I%20Corinthians%2014:34-35;&version=9; I Corinthians 14:34-35]</ref>

The [[New Testament]] contains several instructions regarding the role of women:
# Women are to dress modestly and not wear "broided hair, or [[gold]], or [[pearl]]s, or costly array."<ref>1 Timothy 2:9</ref><ref>Peter 3:2-6</ref>
# Women may learn in silence, but may not be permitted to teach men<ref>1 Timothy 2:11-12</ref>. Some interpretations limit this rule to the teaching of doctrine.
# Women are not permitted to speak in church.<ref>1 Corinthians 14:34-37></ref>
# Women are to be subservient to and follow the instructions of their husbands.<ref>Ephesians 5:22-24</ref><ref>Colossians 3:18</ref><ref>Titus 2:4-5</ref><ref>1 Peter 3:1-7</ref>
# Women "shall be saved in childbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety."<ref>I Timothy 2:15</ref>

These viewpoints are not widely accepted in secular, first-world nations, although many believers still adhere to them. However, Christians do not always agree on how literal or universal these directives are intended to be. For example, dressing modestly is interpreted by some [[Anabaptist]]s to mean that women should only wear black or dull colors and that dresses should cover the entire arms and legs, whereas most non-Anabaptist Christians consider the directive to modesty as simply meaning that garments should not be wrongly provocative. The directive that women should not speak in church is regarded by some as being literal for all situations, but due to other New Testament passages which indicate that women were allowed to publicly testify in the early church<ref>1 Corinthians 11:5></ref>, the most common Christian interpretation{{fact}} of 1 Corinthians 14:34-35 is that women in the Corinthian church were in the habit of conversing casually and gossiping during the church service, and that the apostle Paul was telling them not to do that. However, that interpretation is at odds with the following Scripture passage:

{{Bible quote|Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression. Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety.|book=1Timothy|chap=2|verses=11-15|version=KJV}}

Another interpretation sees the silence of women being limited to the immediate context of the passage, namely the authoritative judgement of prophecy.

{{Bible quote|Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the other judge.|book=1Corinthiana|chap=14|verses=29|version=KJV}}

=== Old Testament statements on women ===

The [[Old Testament]] law states that if a man sells his daughter into slavery there are specific conditions protecting her status.<ref>Exodus 21:7-11</ref>

==References==
<references />

== Related Topics ==
*[[Men]]
*[[Egalitarian]] and [[complementarian]] theology
[[Category: Human Beings]]

Bicycle

2008-04-25T19:37:55Z

Gilliam: cat

[[Image:Bicycle.jpg|right|thumb|300px]]

A '''bicycle''' is a human-powered, two-wheeled conveyance that serves as a popular means of transportation in many nations, and a form of recreation virtually world-wide.

The first recorded "two-wheeler" was the "draisine" designed in 18th century Germany by Baron Karl von Drais, possibly for use in traveling his estate to collect rents from his tenants. Decades later, Scottish blacksmith Kirkpatrick MacMillan added a pedal and chain drive mechanism to create the most credible prototype of the modern bicycle. Subsequent improvements included Englishman J.K. Starley's now-familiar diamond-shaped frame, Dunlop's pneumatic tire, multiple-gear options, and increasingly sophisticated brakes. The basic design of bicycles was relatively unchanged through the first half of the 20th century, but many subtypes of bicycles have subsequently evolved, including the [[racing bike]], [[road bike]] and [[mountain bike]], to suit the needs of specific cyclists.

The bicycle has been called the most efficient means of transport yet devised, with over 90 percent of the cyclist's energy effectively applied to turning the wheels

[[Category:Sports]]
[[Category:Technology]]
[[Category:Transportation]]

Slavery

2008-04-25T19:20:13Z

Gilliam: /* "Slavery" in the Bible */ sp

'''Slavery''' is involuntary servitude to another person or persons, such that the person(s) held in bondage is/are considered to be property. It reduces a person to the status of [[chattel]] who can be owned by another person. The selling price of a slave varied from less than that of horse to as many as a dozen horses.<ref>[http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/socialstudies/projects/jvc/unit/econ/msstatemsg.html Indentured Servants and Slave Prices] (forum post)</ref>
The master controls and commands the slave, either through property-like ownership of the slave or by right to command him.

Slavery is best known to Americans as a peculiar institution of the Southern states before the US Civil War, although it is found in some  [[civilization]]s. Slavery still exists today in many parts of the world including China, Islamic countries, parts of Africa and some Latin American countries. In particular, even today, people are enslaved in the [[Sudan]].
Slave owners in the Southern states cited Ephesians 6:5, “slaves, obey your masters” in arguments for the Christian endorsement of slavery. Another Bible verse states that thieves should be sold into slavery.<ref>Exodus 22:3 "He should make a full restitution; and if he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft.</ref> Under the [[Mosaic Law]], slaves could be kept for six years. <ref>Exodus 21:1-4 "If thou buy a Hebrew servant, six years he shall serve; and in the seventh he shall go out free for nothing."</ref> (See [[#"Slavery"_in_the_Bible|"Slavery" in the Bible]], below.)

The slavery system diminished a person to the point where they would be regarded as a thing or an object to be owned. Christian [[abolitionists]] disagreed with this valuation, and advanced an interpretation of the Bible which presented human value in terms of God's parental love for all people as His children (see [[human rights]]).

Slavery is mentioned in a number of places in the [[Bible]], although this often referred to indentured servitude, and Biblical injunctions existed granting certain rights and prohibitions, such as the right of the slave to go free after a certain amount of time or the prohibition against the master of putting a slave's eye out{{fact}}.

== Ancient History ==
[[Image:Ruslavery.jpg|right|thumb|350px|Painting of a slave market in early medieval Eastern Europe.]]
Slavery has existed at least since ancient [[Greece]] and ancient [[Egypt]], where, according to the Bible, Hebrews were slaves. The primary slave market in ancient Greece was on an island in the Aegean sea known as "Delos". From there slaves were traded and used throughout the Greek city-states. In [[Ancient Greece|ancient Athens]] about 30% of the population consisted of slaves.<ref>[http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_1741501460_4/Ancient_Greece.html Ancient Greece]</ref>

Often prisoners of wars in ancient history were used as slaves, particularly during the [[Roman Empire]]. Probably over 25% of the population was enslaved in the Roman Empire.<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/romans/slavery_01.shtml BBC - History - Resisting Slavery in Ancient Rome]</ref> [[Christianity]] helped lessen the harshness by which Romans treated slaves; however, later Christian nations like Spain, England, and the Netherlands would continue in the use of slaves. According to the [[Domesday Book]] census in 1086, 10% of England's population was enslaved.<ref>[http://www.domesdaybook.net/helpfiles/hs2970.htm Domesday Book Slave]</ref> Slavery in [[Poland]] was forbidden in the 15th century; in [[Lithuania]], slavery was formally abolished in 1588; they were replaced by the second enserfment. Slavery remained a major institution in [[Russia]] until the 1723, when the [[Peter the Great]] converted the household slaves into house serfs. Russian agricultural slaves were formally converted into serfs earlier in 1679.<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/blackhistory/article-24160 Welcome to Encyclopædia Britannica's Guide to Black History]</ref>

Slavery was also pervasive among [[Arabs]] into the twentieth century. As recently as the 1950s, [[Saudi Arabia]] had an estimated 450 000 slaves, 20% of the population.<ref>[http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/slavery.htm Slavery in Islam]</ref><ref>[http://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/apr07/page18.html £400 for a Slave]</ref> It is estimated that as many as 200,000 people had been taken into slavery in Sudan during the Second Sudanese Civil War.<ref>[http://www.iabolish.org/slavery_today/in_depth/sudan-genocide.html War and Genocide in Sudan]</ref><ref>[http://journalism.nyu.edu/pubzone/livewire/archived/the_lost_children_of_sudan/ The Lost Children of Sudan]</ref> In [[Mauritania]] it is estimated that up to 600,000 men, women and children, or 20% of the population, are currently enslaved, many of them used as bonded labour.<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/specials/1458_abolition/page4.shtml The Abolition season on BBC World Service]</ref> Slavery in Mauritania was finally criminalized in August 2007.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6938032.stm Mauritanian MPs pass slavery law]</ref> In [[Niger]], slavery is also a current phenomenon; a Nigerien study has found that more than 800,000 people, or almost 8% of the population, are slaves.<ref>[http://abcnews.go.com/International/Story?id=813618&page=1 The Shackles of Slavery in Niger]</ref><ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4250709.stm Born to be a slave in Niger]</ref>

==Recent History==
[[Image:Canadaslavery.jpg|right|200px]]
In 1455, a "papal bull" (formal letter by the [[pope]]) justified a "right" of Christian nations to enslave any non-Christian in the name of exploration. The [[Spain|Spanish]] had already been enslaving [[South America|South American]] natives on a limited basis, but with the rise of sugar plantations the need for a larger slave force arose. Millions of [[Africa|African]] slaves were brought by the Spanish and [[Portugal|Portuguese]] to [[Mexico]], [[Peru]], the [[Caribbean]] and [[Brazil]]. The growth of sugar—which had first been introduced to [[Europe]] when the [[Muslims]] ruled Spain—was exploding in popularity throughout the entire western world. Soon [[France]], the [[Netherlands]] and [[Great Britain]] were also establishing profitable [[sugar]] plantations in the new world. The plantation system began in Brazil, where rich white [[plantation]] owners were the highest rung in the social hierarchy and black slaves were at the bottom. Obviously life on a sugar plantation was very hard work for a slave.

Slavery was widespread within Africa itself, and the richest in Africa were not those owning the most land, but those who owned the most slaves. In the Sahara Desert, slaves worked in caravans and were used in gold and salt mining. Slaves were usually prisoners of war from other areas of Africa, or debtors, or enemies or the [[king]], but many women outside of those three categories were also enslaved in African societies. Polygamy—the practice of having more than one wife—was common in Africa, as was the existence of harems, from which African women were often sold to join Arabian or Middle Eastern harems.

The trading of slaves with other countries was encouraged in Africa, and was considered an important component of the African economy. Slave trade across the Atlantic (the Trans-Atlantic slave trade) became a booming business for Europeans and Africans alike, by which African rulers sold their people to Europeans for goods such as iron, alcohol, tobacco and most importantly, guns. Trans-Atlantic trade led to the degrading use of "chattel" slaves, whereby the slaves were treated purely as property of the owner. The slaves served as sailors, skilled craftsmen or farmers. The journey across the Atlantic, known as the Middle Passage, led to the death of 10-20% of the African slaves. But an even higher percentage lost their lives in the journey from their homes in Africa to the African coast, where they were to board the slave ships.

The Trans-Atlantic slave trade was one component in a system of routes known as the "Triangular Trade" between South America, New England, and the West Coast of Africa. The three main items that were exchanged were sugar, rum and slaves. European goods, mainly guns, were used to buy slaves from Africa. The slaves were then shipped to the Americas. Then, from America, sugar, rum and tobacco were brought back to Europe, completing the "triangle" of trade. Slavery is one of the less noble aspects of American history.

Between 1530 and 1780, Europeans including Britons and even some Americans were frequently taken captive and enslaved by privateers from the [[Barbary States]]. Estimates of so-called "white slavery" vary from as little as 50,000 to in the millions <ref>http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/whtslav.htm</ref>. Generally Europeans enslaved by the [[corsairs]] were usually poorer sea merchants and city dwellers whose families were unable to pay the ransom necessary to free them. Often the [[Pasha]] would purchase the female captives into his harem. Many were forced to "go turk" or convert to "mohammadism" in order to stay with their children who were raised as Muslims. Occasionally slaves would convert in order to escape harsher labors such as tending the oars in the corsairs <ref>http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/empire_seapower/white_slaves_print.html</ref>.

For a long time, until the early 18th century, the Crimean Khanate maintained a massive slave trade with the [[Ottoman Empire]] and the Middle East. Kefe was one of the best known and significant trading ports and slave markets. In a process called "harvesting of the steppe" Crimean Tatars enslaved many [[Slavs|Slavic]] peasants.

In Senegambia, between 1300 and 1900, close to one-third of the population was enslaved. In early [[Islamic]] states of the western Sudan, including Ghana (750-1076), Mali (1235–1645), Segou (1712–1861), and Songhai (1275-1591), about a third of the population were slaves. In [[Sierra Leone]] in the 19th century about half of the population consisted of slaves. In the 19th century at least half the population was enslaved among the Duala of the Cameroon, the [[Igbo]] and other peoples of the lower Niger, the [[Kingdom of Kongo|Kongo]], and the Kasanje kingdom and Chokwe of [[Angola]]. Among the Ashanti and Yoruba a third of the population consisted of slaves. The population of the Kanem was about a third-slave. It was perhaps 40% in Bornu (1396–1893). Between 1750 and 1900 from one- to two-thirds of the entire population of the Fulani jihad states consisted of slaves. The population of the Sokoto caliphate formed by Hausas in the northern [[Nigeria]] and Cameroon was half-slave in the 19th century. It is estimated that up to 90% of the population of [[Arab]]-Swahili Zanzibar was enslaved. Roughly half the population of [[Madagascar]] was enslaved.<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/blackhistory/article-24157 Welcome to Encyclopædia Britannica's Guide to Black History]</ref>

The Anti-Slavery Society estimated that there were 2 million slaves in the early 1930s [[Ethiopia]], out of an estimated population of between 8 and 16 million.<ref>[http://www.yale.edu/glc/events/cbss/Miers.pdf Twentieth Century Solutions of the Abolition of Slavery]</ref> Slavery continued in Ethiopia until the brief Second Italo-Abyssinian War in October 1935, when was abolished by order of the Italian occupying forces.<ref>[http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=6443 CJO - Abstract - Trading in slaves in Ethiopia, 1897–1938]</ref> In response to pressure by Western Allies of World War II Ethiopia officially abolished slavery and serfdom after regaining its independence in 1942. On August 26, 1942 [[Haile Selassie]] issued a proclamation outlawing slavery.<ref>[http://www.globalmarch.org/resourcecentre/world/ethiopia.pdf Ethiopia]</ref><ref>[http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/2691/COS2.html Chronology of slavery]</ref>

According to Sir Henry Bartle Frere (who sat on the Viceroy's Council), there were an estimated 8,000,000 or 9,000,000 slaves in India in 1841. In Malabar, about 15% of the population were slaves. Slavery was abolished in both [[Hindu]] and Muslim India by the Indian Slavery Act V. of 1843. Provisions of the Indian Penal Code of 1861 effectively abolished slavery in India by making the enslavement of human beings a criminal offense.<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/ebc/article-24160 Slavery :: Britannica Concise Encyclopedia]</ref><ref>[http://www.britannica.com/blackhistory/article-24156 Historical survey > Slave-owning societies]</ref><ref>[http://www.wluml.org/english/pubs/pdf/occpaper/OCP-07.pdf Islamic Law and the Colonial Encounter in British India]</ref>

Indigenous slaves existed in [[Korea]]. Slavery was officially abolished with the Gabo Reform of 1894. During the Joseon Dynasty (1392–1910) about 30% to 40% of the Korean population consisted of slaves. Slavery was hereditary, as well as a form of legal punishment. There was a slave class with both government and privately owned slaves, and the government occasionally gave slaves to citizens of higher rank. Privately owned slaves could be inherited as personal property. During poor harvests and [[famine]], many peasants would voluntarily become slaves in order to survive. In the case of private slaves they could buy their freedom.<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/eb/topic-693609/history-of-Korea Korea, history pre-1945:slavery -- Encyclopaedia Britannica]</ref><ref>[http://www.geog.buffalo.edu/~geobl/main/lectures/l17.html The Choson Era: Late Traditional Korea]</ref><ref>[http://ideas.repec.org/p/snu/ioerwp/no26.html Korean Nobi]</ref>

==Prominent American Abolitionists==
*[[Harriet Tubman]], Underground Railroad. (1820 - 1913) <ref>http://www.heritageny.gov/Railroad/urny.cfm</ref> Well known associate of the Underground Railroad. Acted as a spy and lead raids to assist others in gaining their freedom.
*[[Frederick Douglass]], orator, writer and publisher. (1817 - 1875) <ref>http://www.nndb.com/people/447/000048303/</ref> Respected leader of the abolitionist movement, consummate freedom seeker, orator and publisher.
*[[Ralph Waldo Emerson]], unitarian minister and freethinker. (1803-1882) <ref>http://www25.uua.org/uuhs/duub/articles/ralphwaldoemerson.html </ref> Expressed visceral public disapproval of the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850. Exhorted people to "do the duty of the hour", and support abolition.
*[[William Lloyd Garrison]], anti-slavery editor of the Liberator (1805 - 1879) <ref>http://www.nndb.com/people/966/000049819/</ref> Founded the Liberator with partner Isaac Knapp in 1831.
*[[Elizur Wright]], abolitionist, freethinker. (1804-1885) <ref> http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/people/A0852788.html</ref> Became involved in the abolitionist movement while attending Yale university. Eventually worked as a secretary with the American Anti-Slavery Society in 1833 and assumed the editorship of the Massachusetts Abolitionist in 1839.
*[[John Stuart Mill]], philosopher, essayist. (1806 - 1879) <ref>http://www.nndb.com/people/147/000030057/</ref> Wrote numerous essays on abolition during the American Civil War. Asserted the war was being fought to abolish slavery, an unpopular political opinion at the time.

==End of European and American Slavery==

The end of slavery in Europe was not to come until the beginning of the 1800s, when abolitionists such as [[William Wilberforce]] and [[John Wesley]] began speaking out against the evils of the system.<ref>[http://www.brycchancarey.com/abolition/wilberforce.htm William Wilberforce (1759-1833)]</ref> Wilberforce was supported in his efforts by [[John Newton]], a slave trader who became a Christian and then opposed the slave trade. The slave trade was abolished in the [[British Empire]] in 1807, however slavery was not abolished in the Empire until 1832.

The British ban on the slave trade enforced by the British navy did undermine the slave trade globally.<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/devon/content/articles/2007/03/20/abolition_navy_feature.shtml Sailing against slavery. By Jo Loosemore] BBC</ref> This led to the United States banning the slave trade in the early 1800s. However, slavery itself was not abolished until decades later in 1865 when the U.S. government passed the [[13th Amendment]], after the secessionist Confederacy sought to defend its right to retain slaves and failed, and in [[South America]] when it was ended in Brazil in 1888.

=="Slavery" in the Bible ==
[[Image:Boulanger Gustave Clarence Rudolphe The Slave Market.jpg|right|thumb|350px|Boulanger Gustave Clarence Rudolphe's painting ''The Slave Market'']]
"Slavery" is also referenced, permitted and regulated in the Bible. The Hebrew word ''ebed'' is translated as "slave" or "servant", but the concept is not the same as the modern understanding of "slave". It included "persons in subordinate positions"<ref name="ctt">[http://www.christian-thinktank.com/qnoslave.html Does God condone slavery in the Bible?] (Christian ThinkTank)</ref> Therefore "all the subjects of Israel and Judah are called '''slaves''' of their '''kings'''".<ref name="ctt" />

Even where slaves are treated as property, the Bible teaches that all property belongs to God, with mankind responsible for looking after it for Him.

Some biblical passages mentioning slavery are:

* "We also know that law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, ... for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine..." {{bible ref|1_Timothy|1|9-10}}

* "A father can sell a daughter into slavery to pay a debt. A daughter sold into slavery is not released at the end of six years as is an ordinary male slave." -- Exodus 21:7-11

* "And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which is not of thy seed. He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant." -- Genesis 17:12-13, showing that slaves were considered subject to the Old Covenant.

* "A slave owner is to be punished if he strikes his slave and the slave dies shortly thereafter. If the slave lives a day or two and then dies, the slave owner is not to be punished. A slave is the same as money to his owner." -- Exodus 21:20-21

* "If thou buy an Hebrew servant, six years he shall serve: and in the seventh he shall go out free for nothing. If he came in by himself, he shall go out by himself: if he were married, then his wife shall go out with him. If his master have given him a wife, and she have born him sons or daughters; the wife and her children shall be her master's, and he shall go out by himself. And if the servant shall plainly say, I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free: Then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul; and he shall serve him for ever." -- Exodus 21:2-6. Hebrews may be slaves for a maximum of seven years, then must be freed. Any children produced during the period of slavery shall however remain the property of his owner.

* "Both thy bondmen, and thy bondmaids, which thou shalt have, shall be of the heathen that are round about you; of them shall ye buy bondmen and bondmaids. Moreover of the children of the strangers that do sojourn among you, of them shall ye buy, and of their families that are with you, which they begat in your land: and they shall be your possession. And ye shall take them as an inheritance for your children after you, to inherit them for a possession; they shall be your bondmen for ever: but over your brethren the children of Israel, ye shall not rule one over another with rigour." -- Leviticus 25:44-46 (Leviticus 25 contains more detailed rules regarding who may or may not be enslaved)

* "And all the people that were left of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, which were not of the children of Israel, Their children that were left after them in the land, whom the children of Israel also were not able utterly to destroy, upon those did Solomon levy a tribute of bondservice (slavery) unto this day. But of the children of Israel did Solomon make no bondmen: but they were men of war, and his servants, and his princes, and his captains, and rulers of his chariots, and his horsemen." -- I Kings 9:20-22

* "Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called. Art thou called being a servant (slave)? care not for it: but if thou mayest be made free, use it rather." -- I Corinthians 7:20-21

* "Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward." -- 1 Peter 2:18

* "Let as many servants (slaves) as are under the yoke count their own masters worthy of all honour, that the name of God and his doctrine be not blasphemed. And they that have believing masters, let them not despise them, because they are brethren; but rather do them service, because they are faithful and beloved, partakers of the benefit. These things teach and exhort." -- I Timothy 6:1-2

* The book of Philemon is a record of Paul sending a slave back to his master "no longer as a slave but more than a slave-- a beloved brother." (Philemon 1: 16)

The Old Testament alone, prior to New Testament considerations, broadly prohibits the permanent enslavement of the native inhabitants of Israel but permits the enslavement of immigrants and the occupants of other countries. Depending on the precise circumstances, ethnicity, nationality and any enslaved relatives of a slave, some must be freed after a specified time, while others remain slaves for life. While Exodus 21:20-21 (quoted above) permits corporal punishment of a slave, violence that results in the slave's death is not permitted.

==References==
<references/>

==External links==
*[http://www.pogledi.co.yu/english/78.php Islam and Slavery:The Concealed Truth], Excerpts from a Lecture by Srdja Trifkovic, Xavier University of Louisiana, New Orleans, November 14, 2003.

[[Category:History]]
[[Category:Economics]]
[[Category:Sociology]]

Tsarina Alexandra

2008-04-25T19:02:51Z

Gilliam:

'''Tsarina Alexandra''' was the wife of [[Czar Nicholas II]]. She lived from June 6, 1872 to July 16, 1918.

When [[World War I]] broke out, Nicholas moved to the front lines and left Alexandra in charge of [[Russia]]. Alexandra was distracted from ruling the country, however, when her son, Alexis developed a [[hemophilia]]. The only one who was able to help Alexis was a peasant-turned-monk named [[Rasputin]]. Alexandra increasingly relied on Rasputin, who took advantage of her trust by granting postitions to his friends and causing everyone to fear him. Alexandra's misrule set the stage for the collapse of the imperial government in the [[March Revolution]].

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alexandra, Tsarina}}

[[category:Russian People]]
[[Category:Women]]

Morphine

2008-04-25T04:00:18Z

Gilliam:

== Morphine ==

'''Morphine''' is a [[drug|narcotic]] extracted from the poppy flower. It is closely related to [[Heroin]] and is as addictive and dangerous when used for non medicinal purposes.
Morphine is widely prescribed for the treatment of extreme pain. It usually injected into the vein but can be found in tablet form. It is extremely powerful and useful for many things in medicine.

==References==
<http://www.drugs.com/morphine.html/>

[[Category:Illegal substances]]
[[Category:Medicine]]

Ellen DeGeneres

2008-04-21T23:23:59Z

Gilliam:

'''Ellen DeGeneres''' is an American actress, stand-up comedian, and host of the syndicated talk show ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''. She first reached success with her own sitcom called ''These Friends of Mine'', later renamed ''Ellen'' (1994-98).
The ABC show had difficulty finding a formula to bring in a large audience, having frequent cast changes. While not a ratings hit, it did do well enough to be renewed for 4 seasons.

Ellen made her [[homosexuality]] public on ''The [[Oprah Winfrey]] Show'' in February 1997, surprising few people. The resulting media attention highlighting this event (including being put on the front cover of [[Time magazine]]) caused a stir. Subsequently her character on the sitcom literally came out of the closet in April of that same year; admitting she was gay to her therapist (portrayed by Oprah Winfrey). After a great deal of media attention highlighting the outing episode, entitled "The Puppy Episode," the showing was the highest-rated episode of the sitcom. But the bounce proved to be short lived. The show became a constant weekly refrain of lesbian themes and viewers stopped watching rather quickly. Even Chastity Bono, the media director of GLAAD, a homosexual group, criticized the show for going over the top on the gay issue.<ref>http://www.planetout.com/entertainment/news/?sernum=544</ref> After the ratings rapidly declined, the show was canceled.

DeGeneres later returned to the stand-up comedy circuit. She had another stab at a sitcom on network television in 2001, ''The Ellen Show''. By this time DeGeneres diversified away from a constant gay theme, but the show failed to catch on with viewers and was canceled in its first season. She would later re-establish herself as a successful talk show host starting in 2003 with ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''. Her talk show is still on the air. In 2007 she hosted the 79th [[Academy Awards]].

==References==

<References/>

{{DEFAULTSORT:DeGeneres, Ellen}}

[[Category:Talk Show Hosts]]
[[Category:Actresses]]
[[Category:Comedians]]

Jerry Springer

2008-04-21T23:23:08Z

Gilliam: cat

'''Jerry Springer''' (born February 13th, 1944, in [[London]], [[United Kingdom]]) is a popular American talk show host that hosts the ''Jerry Springer Show'' since 1991. Much of the show is staged for entertainment purposes and will usually degrade into a pushing and shouting match.

Before becoming a talk show host, Springer was active in politics in [[Cincinnati]], [[Ohio]], and first became a city council member in 1971. A prostitution scandal in 1974 unsaddled him only briefly and the city council elected him as mayor for one year in 1977-78.

<blockquote>"I would never watch my show. I'm not interested in it." - Jerry Springer<ref>http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001761/bio</ref></blockquote>

Springer had a radio program on the Air America network in 2005-06 and in the fall of 2006 competed on ABC's ''Dancing with the Stars''. He currently hosts the popular ''America's Got Talent''.
==References==

<References/>

==Links==

[http://www.slate.com/id/1857/ Slate Article]

{{DEFAULTSORT: Springer, Jerry}}

[[category:Entertainers]]
[[Category:Talk Show Hosts]]

Alan Turing

2008-04-21T23:18:52Z

Gilliam: cat

[[Image:Ture.jpg|right|thumb]]
'''Alan Turing''' (1912 - 1954) was a British mathematician considered to be the founder of modern [[computer]] science and [[cryptography]].<ref>Http://www.turing.org.uk/bio</ref>

In the 1930s Turing proposed the concept of a "Universal [[Turing Machine]]". Turing had, first, proposed that the operations needed to calculate any formula could be broken down into a base set of instructions (or primitive recursive functions) that could in principle be followed by a machine: the "Turing Machine". Once fully formalized the calculations needed to derive the instructions themselves were capable of being run by a Turing Machine. The looped [[logic]] allowed the conception of a Turing Machine that could create its own instruction and, in principle, run a huge variety of calculations. Turing then used the concept of Universal Turing Machine to prove the undecidability of the [[halting problem]].

During [[World War II]] Turing was assigned to the codebreaking unit at Bletchley Park, where he worked on the decoding of the German's [[Enigma machine]]. Turing and his colleagues played a significant role in the Allied victory in WW2, allowing Allied forces access to German communication networks throughout much of the war.

In his 1950 paper "Computing Machinery and Intelligence" (Mind 49: 433-460) Turing proposed a test (apparently heavily influenced by [[Logical Positivism]]) for establishing whether a computer could think.

Turing was arrested in 1952 for [[homosexuality|homosexual acts]] and subsequently lost his security clearance. He was allowed to stay out of prison by agreeing to be injected with female hormones (which would supposedly decrease his sex drive). He later confided to a friend that the hormones caused him to grow breasts.<ref>''Oddballs and Eccentrics''. Shaw, Karl. Edison, New Jersey: Castle Books, 2004</ref> This may have contributed to his suicide by [[cyanide]] poisoning in 1954.<ref>http://www.turing.org.uk/turing/index.html</ref>
==References==

Online biography: http://www.turing.org.uk/bio/

Computing Machinery and Intelligence: http://cogprints.org/499/00/turing.html

''Oddballs and Eccentrics''. Shaw, Karl. Edison, New Jersey: Castle Books, 2004.

<references/>

{{DEFAULTSORT:Turing, Alan}}
[[Category:Mathematicians]]
[[Category:Homosexuals]]

2008-04-18T23:20:51Z

Gilliam: sp

A '''molotov cocktail''' (also called a petrol bomb) is a simple firebomb made by pouring flammable liquid (usually [[gasoline]]) into a glass bottle and stuffing an old rag in the top, then lighting the rag and throwing it at a target. It then explodes in a large ball of fire.

Because of its simplicity and the availability of the materials necessary, as well as being virtually impossible to detect or neutralize, it is very popular among rioters and insurgents.

[[Category:Weapons]]