Conservapedia - User contributions [en]

Talk:Hispanic

2009-04-24T01:52:33Z

LarryWilliams: Created page with '==White people== What??? 45% of Hispanic Americans are white people? This is a ridiculous statement.'

==White people==
What??? 45% of Hispanic Americans are white people? This is a ridiculous statement.

Talk:Spanish language

2009-04-24T01:51:09Z

LarryWilliams:

This article could use some work... What all should an article on a language include? Grammar structure? Past, present, future tenses? Pronouns? I'll start working on this tomorrow, if I get a chance. [[User:GodlessLiberal|GodlessLiberal]] 16:12, 15 April 2007 (EDT)

== Arabic influences on Spanish ==

For anyone wanting to expand on the Arabic influences on Spanish, a reference - http://www2.ignatius.edu/faculty/turner/arabicspanish.htm --[[User:Mtur|Mtur]] 23:32, 19 April 2007 (EDT)

==Claims about "complexity"==

"It is more difficult for native Spanish speakers to learn English than it is for native English speakers to learn Spanish, due to the complexity and inconsistency of English grammar compared to Spanish grammar."

^This statement needs to be substantiated by references from peer-reviewed linguistics research or removed. I vote to remove it until it can be supported. [[User:nireboi99|nireboi99]]

I agree; I vote also to remove the sentence. Ease of learning a language is a completely personal thing, plus I consider this to be very vague Anglocentrism, because it suggests that English is more complex, and therefore more sophisticated.

Official English

2009-04-24T01:44:23Z

LarryWilliams:

'''Official English''' refers to proposals to designate the [[English language]] the official language of the [[United States]]. The United States currently does not have an official language although English is the ''de facto'' common language in the U.S. Proposals to designate English as the official language have come about because of the threat a perceived "common culture and language" posed by [[multilingualism]] and [[multiculturalism]], even though the United States has been a mixture of peoples and cultures throughout its history.

The correct name of the movement is Official English. The term, "English-only" is used by opponents of the movement and left-wing academics to denigrate the Official English movement. "English-only" is factually incorrect, because the goal of the movement is to make English the official language for government functions in the United States, not to ban the private use and study of foreign languages. [http://www.proenglish.org/notenglishonly.html An essay on the ProEnglish website explains the distinction] between "Official English" and "English-only", and why Official English is the proper term.

In the United States the three main groups promoting Official English are U.S. English, ProEnglish, and the smaller group English First.

==External links==
* [http://www.englishfirst.org/ English First]
* [http://www.proenglish.org/ ProEnglish - English Language Advocates]
* [http://www.us-english.org/inc/ U.S. English, Inc.]

[[Category:Languages]]
[[Category:United States Politics]]

YouTube

2009-04-24T01:26:26Z

LarryWilliams:

'''YouTube''' is a popular [[Internet]] site that allows users to share videos. The "YouTube Generation" was named ''[[Time magazine|Time]]'' magazine's ''[[Person of the Year]]'' for 2006.<ref>http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1569514,00.html</ref>
In October 2006, Youtube was purchased by [[Google]] Inc.
Controversy arose after people such as [[Michelle Malkin]] claimed that it censored [[conservative]] content, <ref>http://michellemalkin.com/2006/10/04/banned-on-youtube-3/</ref>. This led the creation of [[QubeTV]], similar to the creation of Conservapedia by people who believed [[Wikipedia]] to be [[liberal]], and the Christian alternative, [[GodTube]], which has now re-named itself<ref>[http://mashable.com/2009/03/10/tangle/ GodTube is Born Again as MySpace-Like Tangle] Mashable</ref> "[http://www.tangle.com/ Tangle]".

On July 23, 2007, YouTube hosted an interactive debate between the [[Democratic]] candidates in the [[2008 Presidential Election]], in which YouTube users submitted videos of themselves asking questions. A similar debate involving the [[Republican]] candidates occurred on November 28. This led to controversy, as they used a question submitted by [[Keith Kerr]], who has ties to [[Hillary Clinton]]'s campaign.<ref>http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=23698</ref>

On August 6, 2007, a group of music publishing companies announced a [[lawsuit]] against YouTube for its hosting of [[copyright]]ed content without providing proper compensation to the copyright holders when the videos containing the content were viewed.<ref>http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070806/ap_on_hi_te/youtube_music_publishers;_ylt=AmjdpxJDZVebD_Qp.hhWImKs0NUE</ref>

Much of Youtube is vehemently anti-conservative. Over 60% of Christian videos with more than 5,000 views are rated at 2.5 stars or lower. Liberal videos, however, while often being made by single users and not by funded religious groups, are usually rated at least 4 stars. Christian comments on most videos are frequently debunked by atheists. <ref>http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=52405</ref> In order to combat this vicious slander, Conservapedia has started [http://www.youtube.com/user/conservapediavideos its own YouTube channel].

== See Also ==
* [[2008 YouTube presidential debates]]

== References ==
<references/>

[[category:Information technology]]
[[Category:Websites]]

Sigmund Freud

2009-04-24T01:17:48Z

LarryWilliams: changed in first paragraph from "amoral atheists" to "field of psychology". There is no denying Freud's influence on the field, no matter how immoral he was- he's influenced more than only atheists.

[[Image:freud-thumb.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Freud in his laboratory]]
'''Sigmund Freud''' (1856–1939) was the founder of [[psychoanalysis]], an [[atheist]] and [[pseudoscientist]]. Despite the scientific rejection of most if not all of his theory, Freud remains powerfully influential in the field of psychology.

Jewish by birth, in 1938 he left fled Vienna and persecution by the [[Nazi]]s to North [[London]], [[England]], where he lived until his death in 1939.
{{cquote|Freud did more than perhaps any other man to insidiously conflate atheism with science, religion with mysticism, more than LaPlace, Darwin, or even Marx... While groundbreaking, his theories set back psychoanalysis for more than half a century.<ref>Gregory Zilboorg, ''Freud and Religion: a Restatement of an Old Controversy,'' 118. Statement written in the 1950s; Freud's psychoanalysis continues to be applied to the detriment of patients.</ref>}}

== Anti-religious works ==
Freud wrote two works disdainful of religion, ''Moses and Monotheism,'' and ''The Future of an Illusion.'' He concurred with [[Marx]] in regarding religion as the result of ignorance. For this reason, his work continues to be invoked by atheist elitist doctors who wish to treat [[faith]] as a mental illness.<ref>Gregory Zilboorg, ''Freud and Religion: a Restatement of an Old Controversy,'' 49.</ref> Along with Marx, he is seen as a founder of the modern [[atheist agenda|atheist political program]].

== Theories ==
Freud is best known for his theories of the [[unconscious mind]], especially involving the mechanism of [[repression]]; his symbolic interpretation of dreams; his redefinition of sexual desire as mobile and directed towards a wide variety of objects; and his therapeutic technique, especially his understanding of [[transference]] in the therapeutic relationship and the symbolic interpretation of dreams as sources of insight into [[unconscious desire]]s. <ref> [http://www.amazon.com/Unconscious-Before-Freud-Lancelot-Whyte/dp/0312828705 See also The Unconscious Before Freud, by Lancelot Law Whyte, 1979]</ref>

Freud proposed that the human [[psyche]] consists of three parts -- [[ego]], [[super-ego]], and [[id]] -- and that [[defense mechanism]]s are an attempt by the mind to resolve conflicts between the super-ego and the id. According to Freud's personality theory, the id represents the innate animal-like drives and instincts of the human being, consisting primarily of sexual and aggressive impulses. The super-ego consists of the learned rules and norms of the human being in their environment, derived from sources such as parental values, societal expectations, and religious teachings. When the id introduces impulses into the consciousness that are in conflict with the "rules" of the super-ego, anxiety can arise. For example, if one feels sexually attracted to the spouse of a family member, the super-ego promptly springs to action to remind us that these impulses are entirely unacceptable and offensive. The conflict between the id and the super-ego is thus born and the ego must resolve it or experience great anxiety.

== Pseudoscience ==
Freud's theories are viewed by some as unscientific because they lack [[falsifiability]], as pointed out by [[Karl Popper]].<ref>Popper, Karl R.: [http://www.stephenjaygould.org/ctrl/popper_falsification.html 'Science as Falsification'], ''Conjectures and Refutations: The Growth of Scientific Knowledge'' (London, 1963) </ref> No one has ever been able to do any experiment that showed any merit to any of Freud's work. Freud lied about his own subjects to make it appear that his psychoanalysis had some benefit.<ref>"The verdict has been uniformly negative: Freud as a scientist, metapsychologist, and diagnostician of society emerges as a quack. This view has not greatly perturbed true believers." [http://human-nature.com/freud/tallis.html]</ref>

While Freud's theories have not withstood empirical testing, his therapeutic methods continue to have a lasting importance in psychotherapy. As recently as 1987 approximately 75% of practicing therapists relied on Freud's psychoanalytic ideas in therapy. (Pope, K.S., Tabachnick, B. & Keith-Spiegel, P. (1987). Ethics of practice: The beliefs and behaviors of psychologists as therapists. ''American Psychologist, 42,'' 993-1006). Among the techniques instituted by Freud that are still in use today are talk therapy (simply talking through problems), free association (allowing the client to say whatever comes to mind), and transference (promoting an emotional relationship between the therapist and client in order to aid in the healing process).

Much of Freud's psychosexual theories and his tripartite model have failed any empirical investigation. Psychoanalysis as a [[clinical psychology | clinical]] method has in many cases been shown to be as effective as other talk therapies,<ref>[http://ask.metafilter.com/99906/Different-types-of-therapy Different types of therapy]</ref>
but this is not likely to reflect the accuracy or inaccuracy of the underlying theories, but rather the positive effect of talking about one's problems.

Sigmund Freud died of maxillary [[cancer]] at the age of 82.

==World War II==
In order to prevent [[Nazis]] from banning psychoanalysis as "Jewish science", Sigmund Freud thought he needed a non-Jewish spokesperson for the psychoanalysis movement. He choose [[Carl Jung]], an early supporter who later diverged from Freud's [[psychiatric]] theories.

== References ==
<references/>

[[Category:psychologists|Freud, Sigmund]]
[[category:atheists]]

Al Franken

2009-04-24T01:14:17Z

LarryWilliams: removed "rather vulgar" from the beginning of the second paragraph... if we want to provide an unbiased alternative to liberapedia, then we can't use obvious opinion words like this.

[[Image:Frank en Minnesota.jpg|right|thumb|Al Franken, while campaigning in Minnesota]]
'''Al Franken''' is a [[radical]] [[liberal]] [[Democrat]] from [[Minnesota]] who appears to have won the 2008 election to the U.S. Senate, although he cannot be seated until the Minnesota courts settle the last remaining appeals.

His career was as a satirist, comedian, and former radio host for the [[Air America]] network. Franken has worked as a comedy writer and performer on the television program ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' and was the star and screenwriter of the motion picture ''Stuart Saves His Family''.
==Style==
Franken is known for his anti-conservative views (he has called them "nasty, hateful people" <ref>[http://www.randomhouse.com/doubleday/doasisay/quiz.pdf Random House.com]</ref>) and his coarse humor. He once quipped to the Harvard Crimson, "I dislike homosexuals. I was glad when that [Harvard] homosexual got killed." <ref>http://www.gaypatriot.net/2007/01/18/al-frankens-anti-gay-past/</ref><ref>http://lloydletta.blogspot.com/2007/01/al-franken-jokes-about-murder-of-gay.html</ref><ref>http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=112149</ref> In his book ''Lying Liars'', Franken wrote that a "Methodist minister had had his head up his %#@" in a dispute about the Bible<ref>"Do you know what God’s punishment is for liars?" [the minister] asked me ... "God’s punishment for liars is that they believe their own lies." The minister was referring to 2 Thess 2:10-12 which says substantially that. Franken acknowledged his mistake in the paperback version</ref>

At one point his radio show was going to be called "The Liberal Show,"<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/21/magazine/21FRANKEN.html?pagewanted=8&ei=5007&en=5c47bbc5c11b11f2&ex=1395205200&partner=USERLAND ''Al Franken, Seriously''] [[New York Times]] Magazine</ref> but upon debut, it was known as "The O'Franken Factor," a name Franken chose to parody [[Bill O'Reilly]] and taunt him into a lawsuit, getting his show free publicity<ref>[http://www.kgw.com/business/stories/kgw_033004_biz_progressive_radio.d7edf1d8.html Al Franken's liberal radio network comes to Portland.</ref> When the lawsuit failed to materialize, the show was renamed "The Al Franken Show."
==2008 election==
Franken ran for a [[Senate]] seat in [[Minnesota]] in the 2008 election. Franken's rudeness, vulgarity, and coarse style led critics to ask about whether he alienated himself from the important undecided swing voters<ref>http://www.startribune.com/587/story/1083904.html Star Tribune retrieved 6 April, 2007</ref><ref>[http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/06/06/frankens-senate-race-haunted-by-1995-rape-joke-on-snl-set/ Franken’s Senate Race Haunted by 1995 Rape Joke on ‘SNL’ Set]</ref>. Franken was under fire for an interview he did in Playboy magazine that was considered by many to be unbecoming for a senatorial candidate<ref>http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/franken_playboy/2008/05/29/100040.html?s=al&promo_code=635B-1; http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/Washington_Post_franken/2008/06/18/105702.html</ref>

The election was very close, with multiple recounts and appeals. On January 5, 2009, the Minnesota election board declared Franken the winner by a razor-thin 225 votes. Coleman filed a lawsuit, which by state law must be resolved before Franken can be seated. <ref>http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090105/ap_on_el_se/minnesota_senate</ref>

==Controversial Statements==
On Franken's website there is the admonition ''"Anybody who deliberately propagandizes with lies should be held up to scorn and ridicule"''<ref>http://lyingliar.com/index.htm</ref>. Throughout his books he has held himself to "impossibly high standards" to tell the truth about those he has written about. Author Alan Skorski researched two of Franken's books (''Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot'' and ''Lies and and the Lying Liars who Tell Them'') and found an extensive pattern of lies, misstatements, factual inaccuracies, among them:
*Accusing Ann Coulter of "lying with footnotes" by "citing a source and misrepresenting what it says"; throughout his book Skorski states that Franken has done exactly that on numerous occasions (Skorski, pg. xiii)
*Accusing President George W. Bush of treason
*The collision between Bush foreign policy advisor Richard Armitage and news reporter Helen Thomas, which Franken had claimed broke both her hip and jaw (''Lying Liars'', pg 218), but which Thomas herself said never happened (Skorski, pg 208). After this came to light, Franken later added a footnote in the paperback version of the book saying, "The Helen Thomas thing is a joke."<ref>Franken, ''Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them'', page 227 of the paperback</ref>
*Franken stated he is "often compared to Rush Limbaugh" when on the air, despite the fact that by the time he left his Air America show to run for the U.S. Senate, his radio network was reduced to just over 40 market stations as a result of severely-low ratings and ultimately bankruptcy. Limbaugh, by comparison, plays on more than 600 stations with an average daily listening audience of 22 million (Skorski, pg 303).
*Franken claimed on his radio show (June 1, 2005) that Rush Limbaugh made up a quotation supposedly said by Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, which claimed Ginsburg said "replacing 'Mother's Day' and 'Father's Day' with a 'Parent's Day' should be considered...". Skorski did a Google check on Ginsburg and discovered a May 20, 2005 column from the ''National Review'' titled "Bench Warmers, Putting Judicial Nominees in Perspective, Part III"; this column cited a September, 1974 article written by Ginsburg which advocated for the creation of a "Parent's Day" to replace both Mother's and Father's Days.
*Franken claimed John Murphy of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce was lying when took a pro-CAFTA (Central American Free Trade Agreement) position on PBS's ''Lehrer Report'' (July 27, 2005) stating "we've seen unemployment fall to 5.0 percent today, which is lower than it's been in decades." <ref>http://www.bls.gov/cps/prev_yrs.htm</ref>. Skorski demonstrated that Franken took the unemployment figures under the Clinton Administration by the month (rather than by the year as the Bureau of Labor Statistics does) and willfully distorted them to make it appear that it was Murphy who was lying (Skorski, pg. 77-78).

== Tax Issues ==

During his 2008 campaign, it was discovered that Franken had not paid state taxes in 17 states he earned money over the last four years. Franken blamed it on his accountant saying "This all really comes from one mistake, which is him not understanding that I was supposed to pay state taxes in these other states." Franken says he will pay those states now, plus interest and penalties for a total of $70,000. <ref>[http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2008/05/01/accountants/ Accountants: Franken's tax problems should have been caught] Minnesota Public Radio, May 2, 2008</ref> As of March, 2009, Franken had failed to supply proof that the arrears in taxes had been paid.

== Playboy Article ==

In 2000, Al Franken's comments appeared in a ''Playboy'' article titled "Porn-O-Rama!" He was quoted as saying that the internet is a great tool for learning and that his 12 year old son was able to do a report on bestiality for a sixth-grade assignment.

== Books by Franken ==
*''I'm Good Enough, I'm Smart Enough, and Doggone It, People Like Me!'' (Dell Books, 1992) (in character as Stuart Smalley)
*''Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot'' (Delacorte Press, 1996) (a satirical book of personal attacks on [[Rush Limbaugh]] as well as other conservatives.)
*''Why Not Me?'' (Delacorte Press, 1999) (a parody-journal kept through the fictional "Franken for President" campaign)
*''Oh, the Things I know! A Guide to Success, or Failing That, Happiness'' (Plume Books, 2003)
*''[[Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them|Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right]]'' (Dutton Books, 2003) (targets conservative commentators and the media, particularly [[Ann Coulter]], [[Bill O'Reilly]], [[Sean Hannity]] as well as Fox News)
*''The Truth (with jokes)'' (Dutton Books, 2005) (Franken's view on how [[George W. Bush]] beat [[John Kerry]] in the 2004 Election with what Al Franken calls the "Fears, Smears, and Queers strategy")

==References==
*Skorski, Alan. ''Pants On Fire: How Al Franken Lies, Smears, and Deceives,'' Cumberland House Publishing, Nashville, Tennessee (2005)
*[http://www.frankenlies.com/ Website devoted to exposing Franken's lies from his two books, ''The Truth'' and ''Lies and the Lying Liars'']
<references/>

==Links==
*[http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0291253/ Al Franken] at the Internet Movie Database
*[http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1142525 Al Franken] at National Public Radio
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHg5SJYRHA0] Al Franken engaging in highly unbecoming behavior

{{Liberalism}}
{{DEFAULTSORT: Franken, Al}}
[[Category:Democratic Party]]
[[Category:Authors]]
[[category:Broadcasters]]
[[Category:Liberal Activists]]