Conservapedia - User contributions [en]

Talk:Essay: Social Effects of the Theory of Evolution

2008-09-14T00:08:18Z

Reeperbahn:

==Article or Essay?==

This is a great essay. However, it's not an encyclopedia article. [[User:Stryker|Stryker]] 11:25, 3 July 2007 (EDT)
:What on Earth are you talking about? This is a great conservative encyclopedia article. Secular humanist suppression of the truth doesn't hold water here on CP. [[User:PerMoberg|PerMoberg]] 19:10, 18 August 2007 (EDT)

== This is a great article ==

Keep up the good work. [[User:DaiseyCutter|DaiseyCutter]] 17:00, 18 August 2007 (EDT)

== No, it is certainly NOT a great article... ==
Saying that the "theory" of evolution is why people like Hitler and Stalin exist or have existed is absolute trash and intellectually faulty.[[User:Jros83|Jros83]] 20:53, 7 September 2008 (EDT)
: Agreed - it's a very poor article indeed. If you believe the theory of evolution is wrong because it influenced Hitler, then you MUST believe that Christianity is wrong because it influenced Pope Innocent III (and various other, extremely unpleasant, so-called religious leaders).
:By the way, Stalin didn't believe in Darwinian evolution. That was precisely the problem with Trofim [[Lysenko]], who persuaded Stalin that Soviet plant breeding should be based on the pre-Darwinian idea of inheritance of acquired characteristics - with disastrous results.[[User:KennyMac|KennyMac]] 18:59, 11 September 2008 (EDT)
::::KennyMac, thank you for your strawman. The article never states that macroevolution never happened because it influenced Hitler and Stalin. The article merely states that it influenced Hitler and Stalin in a negative way. Secondly, Christianity may have influenced Pope Innocent III, but the question is how did it influence him? Is there anything in Christ's teaching that influenced that Pope in a negative way? If so, and I don't believe it is so, you have certainly failed to mention it. Of course, perhaps if the Pope in question was not influenced by Christianity he would have been a far worse individual in terms of his actions. I say that as a Protestant who is not exactly enamored with many of the acts of the Pope in question. Certainly Stalin and Hitler were individuals who were at the bottom of the barrel in terms of their deeds.[[User:Conservative|conservative]] 20:57, 11 September 2008 (EDT)

== Flawed Logic ==
Following the arguments made within this article, all articles focusing on Christianity should be lined with pictures and references to those who have appropriated the tenets of Christianity for evil and despicable ends. There shouldn't be a shortage. [[User:Reeperbahn|Reeperbahn]] 20:06, 13 September 2008 (EDT)

Talk:Abortion facts

2008-05-26T00:54:14Z

Reeperbahn:

== Citation for "murder" ==
Since asking for a citation on the page is a bannable offense, I'll ask for it here. Can we have a source conclusively showing that abortion is in fact murder, the crime of unlawfully taking a human's life with prior intent? [[User:Barikada|Barikada]] 01:35, 24 January 2008 (EST)
: I'm not sure what you would define as "conclusively showing".
: Also, despite the link to [[murder]] and that article defining it as ''unlawful'' killing, "murder" can also be defined as the taking of an ''innocent'' human life (as distinct from, for example, executing a criminal). By that definition, it doesn't have to be shown that abortion is illegal to classify it as murder.
: In any case, in some places abortion is illegal, so that would make it murder even by the "unlawfal killing" definition.
: [[User:Philip J. Rayment|Philip J. Rayment]] 04:35, 24 January 2008 (EST)

::Abortion is not always a crime. --[[User:Joaquín Martínez]], [[User talk:Joaquín Martínez|talk]] 09:30, 24 January 2008 (EST)

:::Who said murder == crime? SW[[User:StephenW|♠]]·[[User_talk:StephenW|♥]]·[[Special:Contributions/StephenW|♣]] 09:37, 24 January 2008 (EST)
:::: As I indicated above, our article on [[murder]] does. [[User:Philip J. Rayment|Philip J. Rayment]] 14:58, 24 January 2008 (EST)
::I don't think I understand what you all were debating about, but I tried to help. Forgive me if it didn't help that much... oops, I didn't see that one of his links was to a [[liberal]] site. Sorry!-[[User:MexMax|MexMax]] 09:48, 24 January 2008 (EST)

:::Wouldn't the [[conservapedia:guidelines|attribution guidelines]] tell us to say "conservatives believe that abortion is murder", in the same way we say "evolutionists believe the earth is 4.59Gy old?". People can disagree with the line "abortion is murder", so by definition it is opinion and shouldn't be in a factual encyclopedia; nobody can disagree with "conservatives believe that abortion is murder", and it is therefore a fact, and encyclopedia-worthy. [[User:HelpJazz|Help]][[User talk:HelpJazz|Jazz]] 11:25, 24 January 2008 (EST)

:::: In most of the cases it is truth but not always. --[[User:Joaquín Martínez]], [[User talk:Joaquín Martínez|talk]] 13:22, 24 January 2008 (EST)

::::Yeah, I'd be cool with that. Less so about use of the term "Evolutionist", but that's another argument for another day. [[User:Barikada|Barikada]] 15:38, 24 January 2008 (EST)

Before concluding that abortion is in fact murder, one must define life. This is of course a common issue when discussing abortion, and I'm sure you are familiar with it. For some the answer is simple: when sexual reproduction has successfully taken place and pregnancy initiated, life is present. There is a problem with this definition, however. Does a collection of stem cells really have feelings? It certainly has no consciousness, and no nervous system, which means that it cannot think or use any sense perception. It has, in other words no experience of life, and therefore it is not alive. A teratoma is also a collection of stem cells present in a human body, but I have never heard of anyone considering a teratoma to be alive. So, administrators of conservapedia, how do you define life? If you cannot give a plausible definition I strongly suggest the removal of the definition of abortion as a cause of death. -[[User:SeanWalter|SeanWalter]] 20:37 18 March 2007 (SE)
:If you can prove that what's being aborted is not a human baby, then we'll remove it. [[User:Karajou|Karajou]] 15:48, 18 March 2008 (EDT)
:: In a sense, that is what he just did. However, his reasoning is dependent on his assumption that life is defined by the thing having an "experience of life". What he hasn't done is explain why that should be the defining factor. [[User:Philip J. Rayment|Philip J. Rayment]] 21:50, 18 March 2008 (EDT)

== Ten arguments ==

I'm not sure that the recent addition of a list of ten arguments is all that encyclopaedic, and some of the reasons themselves are a bit shaky. The first part of No. 5 doesn't even make sense to me. Nos. 1 and 2, as worded, make no distinction between abortion and capital punishment, a self-defence killing, etc. They are poorly worded. For No. 3, I don't think it's fair to say that adoption achieves the ''same'' result, although ''similar'' might be okay. [[User:Philip J. Rayment|Philip J. Rayment]] 23:02, 30 March 2008 (EDT)

== Problems with most of "ten reasons against abortion" ==

*1-2: Both these reasons accept the statement "humanity begins at conception" as an undisputed fact. Because it is disputed, you must prove it before using it.
*3: Just because adoption works, abortion is not necessarily bad, what if a woman simply did not want to go through childbirth?
*4: Even if abortion does have some negative health effects, it does not mean it should be illegal. We allow alcohol despite negative health effects.
*6: This is an opinion, not a fact.
*7: Women already ''can'' have control over their bodies through birth control and abstinence.
*8: Many Americans oppose the Iraq War. Does that make funding it with tax dollars immoral?
[[User:Blinkadyblink|Blinkadyblink]][[User talk:Blinkadyblink|RAGE]] 23:24, 30 March 2008 (EDT)

== Problem with bias in cited material ==
The cited websites for this article have an unfair bias towards one side of this issue, i.e., the sources are written from a viewpoint that is not conducive for fair and even consideration of the overall topic of Abortion Facts. Specifically, I have a problem with the trend for these sources to adhere to a conservative, Christian viewpoint, one which has its own bias towards abortion in general. This skews the article's objectivity, and I think that this article should be re-written, or at the very least, re-cited to include sources which provide a more comprehensive, even view of abortion and any topics that deal with abortion. [[User:Reeperbahn|Reeperbahn]]

Marquis de Sade

2008-02-09T03:22:16Z

Reeperbahn:

Donatien Alphonse François, '''Marquis de Sade''' (1740-1814) was an infamous French [[aristocrat]] and [[author]]. The mental disorder known as [[Sadism]], whose sufferers derive pleasure from the pain of others, is named after him.

His books featured [[murder]], [[torture]], [[blasphemy]] and grotesquely perverse sex scenes; they remain banned in many countries to the present day.

His most notorious book, The [[120 Days of Sodom]] was written by de Sade while he was imprisoned in the [[Bastille]]. The last years of his life were spent in an [[insane asylum]], though this may have been to avoid his mother-in-law, who, scandalised by his behaviour, had obtained a royal order for his arrest and indefinite detention; this has been dramatised in the play [[Marat/Sade]].

His works are obscene to a degree that was unparalleled in modern literature until the relaxation of obscenity laws which occurred during the [[sexual revolution]] of the 1950s and 1960s.
Books by Pauline Reage and [[Anne Rice]] reintroduced sado-masochistic pornography to the literary world with the cachet that smut can be well-written, literate and acceptable for sale in ordinary bookstores.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sade, Marquis de}}

[[Category:Authors]]
[[Category:French People]]

Marcel Duchamp

2008-02-09T03:18:04Z

Reeperbahn: Removed uncited material

A chessplayer, a trickster, and an artist, '''Marcel Duchamp''' created works of art that slyly debased traditional [[painting]] and sculpture.

[[Category: Modern artists]]

Talk:John Stuart Mill

2008-02-08T23:31:06Z

Reeperbahn: New page: <big>Atheistic way?</big> ---- Could someone please elaborate on how Mill was homeschooled "in an atheistic way"? It doesn't seem to contribute to the article in any way.

<big>Atheistic way?</big>

----
Could someone please elaborate on how Mill was homeschooled "in an atheistic way"? It doesn't seem to contribute to the article in any way.

Libertarianism

2008-02-08T23:28:33Z

Reeperbahn: added Mill to list of notables

'''Libertarianism''' is a [[Political Philosophy|political philosophy]] emphasizing ''liberty'' and ''property''. A libertarian believes in minimizing or entirely eliminating government interventionism in all aspects of life; including economic, personal and in foreign policy matters. The [[French]] [[term]] of ''[[Laissez faire|Laissez-Faire]]'', or ''let us do'', is a term that describes some aspects of the libertarian belief. <ref>"Libertarians are neither. Unlike liberals or conservatives, Libertarians advocate a high degree of both personal and economic liberty. For example, Libertarians advocate freedom in economic matters, so we're in favor of lowering taxes, slashing bureaucratic regulation of business, and charitable -- rather than government -- welfare. But Libertarians are also socially tolerant. We won't demand laws or restrictions on other people who we may not agree because of personal actions or lifestyles.
Think of us as a group of people with a "live and let live" mentality and a balanced checkbook." [http://www.lp.org/article_85.shtml] </ref>
== Libertarian Philosophy ==
Libertarians in America tend to be [[liberal]] on social issues but [[conservative]] on economic issues. Libertarians generally support the legalization of drugs, prostitution, [[same-sex marriage]] and [[abortion]]. They oppose restrictions on [[pornography]]. However, they also oppose [[universal health care]], [[taxes]] and the [[welfare state]]. They are strong supports of [[school choice]], and oppose continuing the [[public school]] system. Some libertarians support [[school vouchers]], while others are skeptical due to the issue of government influence over [[private education]].

Libertarians support an expansive view of liberty as the proper basis for organizing civil society.<ref>Libertarianism is closely related to liberalism, if this word is interpreted according to its original meaning of '[[classical liberal|classical liberalism]]'.</ref> They tend to define liberty as the freedom to do whatever one wishes up to the point that one's behavior begins to interfere with another's person or property through coercive means. At the point of interference, each party would become subject to certain principled rules for adjudicating disputes, generally accepting that one who has demonstrated a proven lack of respect for the rights of others should be subject to sanctions, including possible constraints on their freedom. They believe that liberty is the right of every individual.

Libertarians generally defend the ideal of freedom from the perspective of how little one is constrained by authority, i.e., how much one is allowed to do (also referred to as negative liberty). This ideal is distinguished from a view of freedom focused on how much one is able to do (also called positive liberty).

== Libertarian Factions ==

Libertarians tend to use the word "libertarian" (small "l") to refer to the philosophy, and "Libertarian" (capital "L") to refer to the party. Thus, more libertarians exist than members of the [[Libertarian Party]]. Two general factions exist in the libertarian movement. The first are those libertarians who apply the principles of right to person and property to an absolute. They believe that no person, group, or government is above the right to violate these two things. They thus believe that government itself is illegitimate because it violates person and property. These libertarians subscribe to [[anarcho-capitalism]], as first named by [[Murray N. Rothbard]]. They believe that law and security can be handled by private means in the free market. The other faction believes in a very limited government. They are often referred to as [[minarchists]]. Libertarian minarchists want the state to only enforce law and order but generally nothing else. [[Ayn Rand]] was a minarchist.

Libertarians tend to view liberalism as a philosophy advocating less government interference in private morality and more government control of business, and view conservatism as a philosophy advocating more government interference in private morality and less government control of business, while they view libertarianism as advocating less government control in all areas. However, there have been fusionist attempts to mix libertarianism and with social conservatism. This is noted in particular by [[paleolibertarians]]. They believe that social conservatism is a natural entity in a free society, but do not believe that it can be enforced by state interventionism.

== Libertarian Thought in America ==

While there are libertarian factions within the [[Democratic]] and [[Republican]] [[parties]], neither party is particularly well aligned with libertarian thought. While the Republican Party sometimes adopts libertarian-sounding rhetoric of small government in economic affairs, many libertarians see it as being a force that has increased government interventionism in these affairs. Libertarians generally, for example, are opposed to the [[USA PATRIOT Act]], which they believe increases government power and removes protections on the liberty and privacy of the public. Most conservatives, on the other hand, view it as a necessary government program and believe security to be more important than personal liberty and privacy. Libertarians point out that such a view contradicts those of the founding fathers, such as Benjamin Franklin, who summarized it most eloquently, "Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." Libertarians are also generally opposed to the [[Iraq War]], unlike the majority of conservatives.

While all libertarians agree in general on the principles of the desirability of maximizing individual liberty and avoiding excessive government interference with the operation of the free market, individual libertarians have opinions that differ wildly within these general principles.

The libertarian movement generally praises the [[United States Constitution]], regarding it as the proper scope of the national government. They believe that the Democratic and Republican parties have overstepped constitutional limits. Anarcho-capitalist libertarians, on the other hand, view the implementation of the constitution as the very reason the national government is the size it is today.

== Notable Libertarians ==
[[Image:Alexis de tocqueville.jpg|right|thumb|Alexis de Tocqueville]]
The Christian libertarian Lord Acton referred to the philosopher and theologian [[Thomas Aquinas]] as "the first Whig" or classical liberal. Other libertarian-oriented historic figures would include [[Adam Smith]], [[Thomas Jefferson]], [[Alexis de Tocqueville]], [[John Stuart Mill]], Thomas Paine, [[John Locke]], [[Patrick Henry]], George Mason, [[Carl Menger]], [[C.S. Lewis]], [[Ludwig von Mises]], [[James Madison]], H. L. Mencken, Rose Wilder Lane, Albert Jay Nock, [[Frédéric Bastiat]], [[Herbert Spencer]], Richard Cobden, [[Henry David Thoreau]], and [[Hugo Grotius]].

*[[Ron Paul]], 1988 Libertarian Party and 2008 Republican Party presidential candidate.
*The psychiatrist Thomas Szasz, opponent of the therapeutic state and compulsory mental institutionalization.
*Nobel Laureate economists [[Milton Friedman]], [[F.A. Hayek]], [[Ronald Coase]], Gary Becker, James Buchanan, [[George Stigler]], and Vernon Smith.
*The novelist [[Ayn Rand]] advocated a philosophy of ''Objectivism'', embodying some libertarian thought, although differing from libertarianism in many ways. Some of her novels, such as ''Atlas Shrugged'', have become icons of some people in the libertarian movement, while others find her materialism and atheism incompatible with moral ethics and natural rights and law.
*[[Robert LeFevre]], significant in promoting libertarian philosophy in the 1950s and 1960s before it was a well-defined movement, with his "Freedom School" seminars on political and economic philosophy.
*[[Karl Hess]], speechwriter for [[Barry Goldwater]] credited with penning Goldwater's famous 1964 statement "Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice". Hess later became a major figure in the Libertarian Party.
*[[Murray N. Rothbard]] was nicknamed "Mr. Libertarian." He brought to life the anarcho-capitalist movement. Rothbard was an economist of the [[Austrian School]].
*[[Samuel Edward Konkin III]], a significant figure in 1970s libertarianism, whose influence waned considerably after the rise of the Libertarian Party as he opposed political parties and voting as being against libertarian principles. He proposed instead a purely marketplace-based route to a free society, such as [[tax resistance]] and doing business "off the books".
*[[Robert A. Heinlein]], science fiction author, whose 1966 novel ''The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress'' was an influence on the movement.
*[[L. Neil Smith]], [[J. Neil Schulman]], and [[Brad Linaweaver]], science fiction writers.
*Several popular financial writers including [[Harry Browne]] and [[Howard J. Ruff]]. Browne would later run for President, twice, on the Libertarian Party ticket. Ruff declared his political philosophy as libertarian but as a socially conservative [[Mormon]] made an exception on issues like abortion and prostitution, where he disagreed with the libertarian view.
*[[Penn and Teller]], stage magicians turned libertarian evangelicals preaching atheism and promoting libertarian philosophies, including controversial positions such as legalization of prostitution and drugs in their Showtime series, which sports a name that cannot for reasons of good taste be expressed here.
*The Canadian rock band [[Rush]], which has been together since 1968, often explores libertarian themes in their lyrics.
*Humorist Dave Barry, actor/comedian Drew Carey, actor Denis Leary, former MTV VJ Lisa "Kennedy" Montgomery, actor Kurt Russell, investigative reporter [[John Stossel]], and the late rocker Frank Zappa have all referred to themselves as being aligned with or openly supporting the Libertarian Party.
*Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the creators of [[South Park]], proclaimed that they are libertarians. While South Park often offend conservative positions like religion, are vulgar, and support evolution they also make fun of liberals positions such as political correctness and environmentalism. <ref>[http://www.reason.com/news/show/116787.html] Parker and Stone, Reason Magazine</ref>. The phrases "South Park Conservative" (the name of a book) and "South Park Republican" are used to describe the followers of these beliefs.
*[[Ed Clark]], the Libertarian Party's 1980 nominee for President. Clark obtained the highest popular vote percentage to date for a Libertarian candidate.

== External links ==
* [http://www.faqs.org/faqs/libertarian/faq/ Libertarian FAQ]
* [http://dmoz.org/Society/Politics/Liberalism/Libertarianism/ Open Directory libertarian links ]
* [http://chelm.freeyellow.com/black_index.html Black Libertarians]
* [http://libertarianwiki.org/Main_Page Libertarian Wiki]
* [http://www.l4l.org/ Libertarians for Life]
* [http://www.independent.org/ The Independent Institute]
* [http://www.mises.org/ Ludwig von Mises Institute]
* [http://www.fee.org/ Foundation for Economic Education]

== See also ==
* [[Democratic Freedom Caucus]]
* [[Republican Liberty Caucus]]

== References ==
<references/>
[[Category:Politics]]

Bill Clinton

2008-02-08T22:17:11Z

Reeperbahn: Removed content that cited opinion as fact

{{President
|image=billclinton.jpg
|seq=42
|term_start=January 20, 1993
|term_end=January 20, 2001
|party=Democratic
|vp=Al Gore
|previous=George H. W. Bush
|next=George W. Bush
|birth_date=August 19, 1946
|birth_place=Hope, Arkansas
|death_date=
|death_place=
|spouse=[[Hillary Rodham Clinton]]
|spouse2=
|religion=[[Baptist]]
}}
'''William Jefferson''' "Bill" '''Clinton''' '''(August 19, 1946 - present)''' served two terms as the 42nd [[President of the United States of America]] from 1993-2000, following [[George H. W. Bush]] and preceding [[George W. Bush]].

== Early Life ==

Clinton was born William Jefferson Blythe III on August 19, 1946 in Hope, [[Arkansas]]. His father, William Jefferson Blythe Jr. died in a car accident while his mother was pregnant with him. Clinton's mother later married Roger Clinton, and the four year-old William was given his stepfather's name.<ref>http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/bc42.html</ref>

Clinton was active in high school, participating in various student government organizations as well as playing the saxophone. Roger Clinton, however, made Bill's family life unpleasant by repeatedly abusing Clinton's mother and her children. Bill Clinton would eventually stand up to his stepfather in high school, forcing his stepfather to stop beating his mother and kicking him out of the house.<ref>http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=50652</ref> After Roger Clinton underwent alcohol rehabilitation, he would eventually rejoin the family.

Clinton attended [[Georgetown University]], then [[Oxford University]] after receiving a prestigious [[Rhodes Scholarship]]. He also then earned a Juris Doctorate from [[Yale University]] in 1973. At Yale he met [[Hillary Clinton|Hillary Rodham]], whom he would later marry.<ref>http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/bc42.html</ref>

== Early Political Career ==

After returning to live in Arkansas, Clinton was elected [[Attorney General]] of Arkansas in 1976. Two years later, he was elected Governor of Arkansas, becoming the youngest governor in the country at 32 years-old. Though defeated in 1980, Clinton won back the governorship in 1982 and held it until becoming President in 1992.

In December 1989 a three-judge district federal court held Bill Clinton's state-wide legislative reapportionment plan violated Section 2 of the [[Voting Rights Act|Voting Rights Act of 1965]], 42 U.S.C. 1973. 1990 the [[Supreme Court]] of the United States found in the case of ''[[Clinton vs Jeffers]]'' <ref>Findings of the Supreme Court of the United States in [http://www.usdoj.gov/osg/briefs/1990/sg900402.txt Clinton vs Jeffers] No. 90-394 (1990) on appeal 730 F. Supp. 196, 198-201 (ED Ark. 1989) (three-judge court), aff'd, No. 89-2008 (Jan. 7, 1991).</ref> the former Arkansas Governor and [[Democratic]] president had violated the Voting Rights Act. The Justices findings were,

{{Cquote|Bill Clinton does not dispute here -- that "violations of the [[Fourteenth amendment|fourteenth]] or [[fifteenth amendment]] justifying equitable relief have occurred in Arkansas."

In May 1990, the district court turned to those claims, holding that "the State of Arkansas has committed a number of constitutional violations of the voting rights of black citizens." J.S. App. A5. In particular, the court determined that the "State has systematically and deliberately enacted new majority-vote requirements for municipal offices, in an effort to frustrate black political success in elections traditionally requiring only a plurality to win." In 1990...Devotion to majority rule for local offices lay dormant as long as the plurality system produced white office-holders. But whenever black candidates used this system successfully -- and victory by a plurality has been virtually their only chance of success in at-large elections in majority-white cities – the response was swift and certain. Laws were passed in an attempt to close off this avenue of black political victory.}}

The court therefore concluded that

{{Cquote|This series of laws represents a systematic and deliberate attempt to reduce black political opportunity. Such an attempt is plainly unconstitutional. It replaces a system in which blacks could and did succeed, with one in which they almost certainly cannot. The inference of [[bigotry|racial motivation]] is inescapable.}}

===Early Scandals===
Clinton was known to have been involved in several scandals while Governor of Arkansas. He used Arkansas state policemen to arrange for him to meet women outside of marriage.

His close personal business partnerships with James and Susan McDougall in a failed Savings and Loan business venture lead to investigation of the [[Whitewater]] affair. Several of the people involved with the sale of land prior to the Clinton presidency were indicted, but prosecutors were never able to charge the Clintons with a crime because Susan McDougall would not cooperate with investigators. Clinton later pardoned Susan McDougall for her role in the Whitewater affair.{{fact}}

== Presidency==
[[Image:Somalia.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Poster to end the "[[racist]] occupation of Somalia"; eighteen US soldiers were killed and some of their bodies were dragged through the streets.<ref>[http://www.netnomad.com/fineman.html The Oil Factor in Somalia]: Four American [[Big Oil|Petroleum Giants]] had Agreements with the Arfican Nation before its Civil War began. They could reap big rewards if peace is restored. By Mark Fineman, ''Times Mirror Company'', January 18, 1993.</ref>]]
Clinton won in the [[United States presidential election of 1992]] with 43% of the popular vote versus President [[George H. W. Bush]]'s 37%, capitalizing on public discontent with a weak economy and public displeasure with Bush's proposed tax increases, and Ross Perot, a third candidate.

In his first two years in office, 1993 through 1994, popular outcry against Clinton's [[radical]] health-care "reform" scheme led to failure of the plan. The collapse of Soviet Bloc only a few years earlier made [[socialism]] unpopular and was accreditted with the widespread disillussionment with the proposal. The approach consisted of appointing an [[economic planning|planning committee]] with secret members to reshape this important sector of the economy.{{fact}} The [[Association of American Physicians and Surgeons]] successfully sued to force disclosure of the committee financing, expenses and membership. The program ultimately became so unpopular after two years the Democratically controlled Congress shielded its members records by never bringing it to floor for a vote.

In 1994, voters expressed their high disapproval of several decades of Democratic control of Congress by giving a victory to Republicans. This event was tagged the "Republican Revolution," and began a series of showdowns with the Republican-led Congress.{{fact}} These showdowns were epitomized by the budget conflict with then-Speaker of the House [[Newt Gingrich]] in 1995. Gingrich refused to pass Clinton's budget proposal, and the latter threatened to shut down the government as Reagan had done in the 1980s. Clinton did not back down, however, and eventually had his budget passed.<ref>http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/commentprint082800d.html</ref> This showdown backfired for the Republicans, as it reinvigorated Clinton's flagging approval ratings.<ref>http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/92/Clinton_approval_rating.JPG</ref>

In 1994 a [[Pentagon]] researcher in the Clinton Administration requested funding to develop a non-lethal "love bomb" that would chemically alter the state of mind of [[enemy combatant]]s and make them want to have sex with each other rather than fight.<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,281217,00.html Air Force Considered Gay 'Love Bomb' Against Enemies], ''Fox'', June 12, 2007.</ref>

In late 1995, President Clinton dispatched some 20,000 U.S. troops to [[Bosnia]].

==1996==

Clinton was reelected in the [[United States presidential election of 1996]] and carried 49.2% of the popular vote against Republican candidate ([[Robert Dole | Bob Dole]]), who won 41%, and "populist" candidate, [[H. Ross Perot]], who won 8%. During Clinton's second term, together with the Republican-controlled Congress, he produced record federal budget surpluses reaching $236 billion by the year 2000, and representing a net federal budget gain of $526 billion.<ref>[http://www.uuforum.org/deficit.htm Congressional Budget Office figures]</ref>

He spent much of the remainder of his presidency combating scandals. A special prosecutor's report was not released until well into Clinton's second term, and brought documented evidence of Clinton giving false testimony in the Paula Jones civil lawsuit while President which resulted in his impeachment and disbarment from the legal profession.{{fact}} The main charge was that he had committed perjury in a civil suit. The perjured testimony directly related to an attempt to defraud the plaintiff of damages. The Senate failed to make clear what constitutes high crimes and misdemeanors.<ref>[http://www.australianpolitics.com/usa/clinton/trial/statements/lieberman.shtml Statement by Senator Joseph Lieberman (D-Connecticut)], Congressional Record for Friday, February 12, 1999.</ref>

In 1998 the [[Good Friday Agreement]] was signed between Northern Ireland's Nationalist and Unionist parties and the British and Irish governments. Clinton took part in brokering the deal, phoning the participants in negotiations, at Senator Mitchel's behest, and hosted Unionist and Nationalist leaders at the White House.<ref>[http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1998/04/10/nclinton.ireland.api/]</ref>

===al-Qaeda bombing===

During Clinton's presidency the [[terrorist]] group [[al-Qaeda]] conducted the first World Trade Center bombing in 1993, simultaneous bombings of the US embassies in [[Kenya]] and [[Tanzania]] in 1998, and the attack on the [[USS Cole]] in 2000. Terrorist leader [[Osama bin Laden]]<ref>[http://www.bannerofliberty.com/OS8-98MQC/8-24-1998.1.html Did Bill Clinton Smooth the Way for Bin Laden to Become the World's Most Successful Terrorist?], Mary Mostert, Original Sources, August 24, 1998.</ref> issued two public [[fatwa]]s declaring War on America.<ref>[http://www.kimsoft.com/2001/binladenwar.htm Bin Laden's Declaration of War], 1998.</ref> In the 1998 fatwa <ref>Bernard Lewis, [http://www.msu.edu/course/iss/325/stein/read-325-3.htm#Lewis License to Kill], Foreign Affairs, November/December 1998.</ref> bin Laden told ''[[Jihad|jihadist]]s'' worldwide,
{{Cquote|Clinton appeared in front of the whole world threatening and promising revenge, but these threats were merely a preparation for withdrawal. You have been disgraced by [[Allah]] and you withdrew; the extent of your impotence and weaknesses became very clear. It was a pleasure for the "heart" of every Muslim and a remedy to the "chests" of believing nations to see you defeated in the three Islamic cities of Beirut, [[Aden]] and [[Mogadishu]].<ref>[http://www.cooperativeresearch.org/context.jsp?item=a1097mohamedinterview&scale=0#a1097mohamedinterview October 1997: [[Ali Mohamed]] Tells FBI He Helped Al-Qaeda Kill US Soldiers, But FBI Takes No Action]</ref>}}

Bin Laden told ''ABC News'' at the time, "We do not have to differentiate between military or civilian. As far as we are concerned, they are all targets." <ref>The 9-11 Commission Report, [http://www.gpoaccess.gov/911/pdf/sec2.pdf2. The Foundation of the New Terrorism], Official Government Edition, GPO, 2004.</ref>
===Cruise missiles to manipulate opinion polls===
Suspicions often arose during Clinton's tenure about the timing of [[cruise missile]] attacks to manipulate public sympathy at crucial points when his approval ratings sagged. On several occasions <ref>[http://article.nationalreview.com/print/?q=NzhjODk1ODg4M2NiODU4Yzc3YWE1OTA1MDNmYWQ5M2Y= The Facts About Clinton and Terrorism], Byron York, ''National Review Online'', September 11, 2006. </ref> generally when the approval ratings dipped to 47%, surprise cruise missile attacks<ref>[http://www.fas.org/news/iraq/1998/12/21/wwwh8d21.html Airstrikes Against Iraq: 'What Happens Now?'], U.S. Information Agency ''Daily Digest'', December 21, 1998.</ref> were launched which resulted in a 10 point gain in the public opinion polls. Nick Gillespie of ''Reason'' remarked,
{{Cquote|Consider, for instance, the relative lack of scrutiny accorded the August 20 cruise missile attacks on Afghanistan and [[Sudan]] … immediately after the bombing, polls showed that close to half of all Americans thought the missile strikes were meant to divert attention from the president's sex life… the Sudanese bombing suggests something else as well: If and when the public's and the media's attention shifts from the president's sex life to wider-ranging inquiries about how he makes deadly serious policy decisions…"<ref>[http://www.reason.com/news/show/30827.html Bombs Away - Troubling questions about the U.S. attack on Sudan], ''Reason'', December 1998.</ref>}}

Clinton also signed into law the [[Violence Against Women Act]], which opened the federal courts to claims of domestic disputes between men and women, which had always been handled under state rather than federal law. Portions regarding civil rights remedies were later found unconstitutional by the Supreme Court.

Bill Clinton's Chief of Staff was John Podesta between 1998-2001.

Clinton left office with an approval rating of 65%, the highest of any modern president, and remains the only modern president to leave office with a higher approval rating than he had when he took office.<ref>[http://uspolitics.about.com/od/polls/l/bl_historical_approval.htm Presidential Approval Ratings]</ref>

===Impeachment===

On Aug. 17, 1998, after relentless media attention, leaks, and news of Lewinsky's upcoming testimony, Clinton made history by becoming the first U.S. president to testify in front of a grand jury in an investigation of his own possibly criminal conduct. In an address to the nation, he admitted to having misled the public and a Federal Court over keys elements of testimony. [[Kenneth Starr]], a special prosecutor appointed to investigate the case, was instructed to pursue the matter.

In the second term Clinton was accused of perjury in connection to the Paula Jones sexual harassment lawsuit. Clinton adviser and close confidant [[George Stephanopoulos]] said publicly that there would be a "scorched-earth policy" if Clinton were impeached.<ref>[http://www.alamo-girl.com/02742.htm Insight Magazine], J Michael Waller, 6/19/00.</ref> Clinton previously had decried the "politics of personal destruction."<ref>[http://www.jewishworldreview.com/weekly/standard072299.asp Bill Clinton, Historian], Peter Wehner, Jewish World Review July 22, 1999.</ref>

During the impeachment trial, pornographer [[Larry Flynt]], an old friend of Clinton advisers [[James Carville]] and [[Strobe Talbott]], publicly offered a $1 million reward for any information about the personal lives of members of Congress that could be used for the purposes of blackmail. Although a majority of 55 Senators voted to convict, a minority of 45 Senators gained his acquittal, a two thirds majority being necessary to remove him from office.

[[David Gergen]], former White House Communications Director for both Presidents Reagan and Clinton, summarized the sentiments of many regarding the President's conduct:
{{Cquote|The deep and searing violation took place when he not only lied to the country, but co-opted his friends and lied to them....when you have gone over the line, you won't bring others into it...You don't foul the nest."<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/special/clinton/stories/quinn110298.htm In Washington, That Letdown Feeling], By Sally Quinn, ''The Washington Post'', November 2, 1998, Page E01</ref>}}

Clinton lost his law license in Arkansas because he had committed perjury before a Federal judge.

It was during this scandal that Clinton famously stated: "It depends on what the meaning of the word 'is' is".<ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/september/21/newsid_2525000/2525339.stm</ref>

===Terrorist pardons===

On August 11, 1999, President Clinton offered clemency to members of the [[Armed Forces of National Liberation]] (FALN) [[terrorist]] group. <ref>[http://rpc.senate.gov/_files/92199CoddlingTerrorists.pdf U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee] testimony available at http://www.senate.gov/~judiciary/wl91599.htm, ''The Tampa Tribune'', S.J.Res. 33 (passed 95-2).</ref> On January 24, 1975 the FALN bombed Fraunces Tavern in Manhattan killing four people. Over a six-year period, the group claimed responsibility for more than 100 bombings that took six lives and injured some 130 people.<ref>[http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/puertorico/sep4.htm Clinton Pardons Terror], ''New York Post'', August 13, 1999. rtetrieve from http://www.latinamericanstudies.org September 14, 2007.</ref>

== Legacy ==

Clinton has spent much of time since leaving office working for charitable causes such as support and fund-raising for the victims of AIDS and the Asian tsunami. In the case of the Indian Ocean tsunami, he teamed with former president [[George H.W. Bush]] to raise money for relief efforts.

Bill Clinton's wife, [[Hillary_Rodham_Clinton|Hillary Clinton]], was elected Senator to New York in 2000. She was reelected in 2006. While his wife is now seeking financial donations for the [[2008_Presidential_Election#Declared_Democratic_Party_Candidates|Democratic presidential nomination in 2008]] may face a felony conviction that carries with it a five year sentence, according to WorldNetDaily, for receiving $1.9 million to her Senate Campaign in illegal donations,<ref>[http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=55320 'Smoking gun' tape indicts Hillary] Art Moore, WorldNetDaily.com, April 21, 2007.</ref> Bill Clinton has refused to make known the identities of financial donors to his Presidential library.<ref>[http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2007/09/clinton-libary-.html Clinton Library Donors Remain Secret], [[ABC News]], September 27, 2007.</ref>

==Involvement in Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign==

Clinton has been criticized by both liberals and conservatives for his actions in his wife's presidential campaign. [[Time Magazine]], hardly a conservative source, referred to him as "his wife's attack dog". <ref>http://media.www.tuftsdaily.com/media/storage/paper856/news/2008/01/28/OpEd/Editorial.On.The.Campaign.Trail.Bill.Clinton.Should.Keep.His.Mouth.Shut-3171498.shtml</ref> Some accused him of racism for comparing [[Barack Obama]] to [[Jesse Jackson]] when Bill Clinton commented on the campaign trail in [[South Carolina]] in 2008: "Jesse Jackson won South Carolina in '84 and '88. Jackson ran a good campaign. And Obama ran a good campaign here." <ref>http://www.rightwingnews.com/mt331/2008/01/jesse_jackson_barack_obama_wha.php</ref> Time Magazine further editorialized that he had broken his strong bond with the African-American community in the process of campaigning. <ref>Time Magazine, February 4, 2008</ref>

==See also==
*[[Institute for Policy Studies]]
*[[Gay Bomb]]

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

==External link==

*[http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=625 No evidence of genocide or ethnic cleansing in Kosovo], by Rollie Keith, Global Research, July 2, 2005.
*[http://www.zmag.org/crisescurevts/germandocs.htm Internal Documents from Germany's Foreign Office Regarding Pre-Bombardment Genocide in Kosovo].

{{USPresidents}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clinton, Bill}}
[[Category:Presidents of the United States]]

Radiohead

2008-02-08T02:10:28Z

Reeperbahn: /* Albums */

'''Radiohead''' is a band from the [[United Kingdom]] that is very influential in [[music]], and was especially so during the 1990s.
They have had six albums, five EPs and one live album.
Singer/guitarist/pianist [[Thom Yorke]] has had one solo album.

== Early Years ==

The band was formed in high school by Thom Yorke and bassist Colin Greenwood. Drummer Phil Selway was added shortly after forming as was guitarist Ed O' Brien. Greenwood's younger brother Jonny would tag along to band practices at their mother's request and after begging to become a member numerous times, he was added as a harmonica player. He soon moved to keyboards and eventually lead guitar.

== Albums ==

* Drill [EP] (1992)
* Pablo Honey (1993)
* My Iron Lung EP (1994)
* The Bends (1995)
* OK Computer (1997)
* No Surprises/Running From Demons [EP] (1997)
* Airbag/How Am I Driving [EP] (1998)
* Kid A (2000)
* Amnesiac (2001)
* I Might Be Wrong: Live Recordings (2001)
* Hail To The Thief (2003)
* COM LAG [EP] (2003)
* In Rainbows (2007)
[[Category:Bands]]

Doctor Strangelove, Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb

2008-02-08T02:07:51Z

Reeperbahn: Removed unnecessary opinion on uses of the atom bomb

'''''Doctor Strangelove, Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb''''' is a movie from the early 1960s that was a parody on the hawkish advocates of use of the [[atomic bomb]] against the United States' military enemies. It was a successful comedy that continues to have a cult following to this day among those who follow politics.

The film was directed by noted [[liberal]] Stanley Kubrick, whose other films have dealt with inappropriate sexuality (''Lolita'' and ''Eyes Wide Shut''), the supposed [[Theory of Evolution|evolution]] of man (''2001: A Space Odyssey''), and a liberal view of the military (''Full Metal Jacket''). Like ''Full Metal Jacket'', ''Dr. Strangelove'' is used as a tool to mock the military and portray the buildup of nuclear weapons as foolish.

[[category:movies]]
[[category:Cold War]]

Avant-garde

2008-02-08T00:00:00Z

Reeperbahn:

[[Image:The Love of Zero, 35mm film Robert Florey1928.jpg|thumb|right|''The Love of Zero'' (1927) film by [[Robert Florey]]]]
'''Avant-garde''' (pronounced {{IPA|/ɑvɑ̃ gɑʁd/}}) in [[French language|French]] means "front guard", "advance guard", or "vanguard".<ref name="dictref">{{Cite web|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=avant-garde|title=Avant-garde definitions|accessdate=2007-03-14|publisher=Lexico Publishing Group, LLC|work=Dictionary.com}}</ref> The term is commonly used in French, English, and German to refer to people or works that are [[experiment]]al or innovative, particularly with respect to [[art]], [[culture]], and [[politics]].

Avant-garde represents a pushing of the boundaries of what is accepted as the [[Norm (sociology)|norm]] or the [[status quo]], primarily in the cultural realm. The notion of the existence of the avant-garde is considered by some to be a hallmark of [[modernism]], as distinct from [[postmodernism]]. Postmodernism posits that the age of the constant pushing of boundaries is no longer with us and that avant-garde has little to no applicability in the age of [[Postmodern art]].
==Working definition==

The vanguard, a small troop of highly skilled [[soldier]]s, explores the [[terrain]] ahead of a large advancing army and plots a course for the army to follow. This concept is applied to the work done by small collectives of [[intellectuals]] and [[artist]]s as they open pathways through new cultural or political terrain for society to follow.

The origin of the application of this [[French language|French]] term to art is still debated. Some fix it on [[May 17]], [[1863]], the opening of the [[Salon des Refusés]] in Paris, organized by painters whose work was rejected for the annual [[Paris Salon]] of officially sanctioned academic art. Salons des Refusés were held in 1863, 1874, 1875, and 1886.

The term also refers to the promotion of radical social reforms, the aims of its various movements presented in public declarations called [[manifestos]]. It was this meaning evoked by the [[Saint Simonian]] [[Olinde Rodrigues]] in his essay "L'artiste, le savant et l'industriel" (“The artist, the scientist and the industrialist”, 1825) which contains the first recorded use of "avant-garde" in its now-customary sense: there, Rodrigues calls on artists to "serve as [the people's] avant-garde," insisting that "the power of the arts is indeed the most immediate and fastest way" to social, political, and economic reform.<ref>{{cite book|author=Calinescu, Matei|title=The Five Faces of Modernity: Modernism, Avant-Garde, Decadence, Kitsch, Postmodernism|publisher=Duke University Press|year=1987}}</ref> Over time, avant-garde became associated with movements concerned with ''[[art for art's sake]]'', focusing primarily on expanding the frontiers of [[aesthetic]] experience, rather than with wider social reform.

[[Avant-garde jazz]] is a more recent application of the term, dating back to the late 1950s.

[[Image:Duchamp Fountaine.jpg|thumb|''[[Fountain (Duchamp)|Fountain]]'' by [[Marcel Duchamp]], 1917, photograph by [[Alfred Stieglitz]]]]

For instance, whereas [[Marcel Duchamp]]'s ''[[Fountain (Duchamp)|fountain]]'' (a urinal), which he declared a piece of art, may have been avant-garde at the time but is no longer given the title today as the body of work has already been created; it is no longer innovative. Avant-garde is therefore [[temporal]] and relates to the process of art's unfolding in time. Duchamp's work retains its distinction as avant-garde even today, because it marks a historical point in the advancement of the conception of art, relative to the period in which it surfaced. Similarly, "avant-garde" can be applied to the forerunners of any new movements.

==Theorizing the avant-garde==

Several writers have attempted to map the parameters of avant-garde activity with limited success. One of the most useful and respected analysis of vanguardism as a cultural phenomenon remains the Italian essayist [[Renato Poggioli|Renato Poggioli's]] 1962 book ''Teoria dell'arte d'avanguardia'' (''The Theory of the Avant-Garde''). Surveying the historical, social, psychological and philosophical aspects of vanguardism, Poggioli reaches beyond individual instances of art, poetry and music to show that vanguardists may be seen as sharing certain ideals or values which are manifested in the non-conformist lifestyles they adopted, vanguard culture being shown to be a variety or subcategory of [[Bohemianism]].<ref>{{cite book|author=Poggioli, Renato|title=The Theory of the Avant-Garde|publisher=Harvard University Press|year=1968|id=ISBN 0-674-88216-4}}</ref>

Reflecting on [[Charles Baudelaire|Charles Baudelaire's]] complaint that 'the man of letters is the enemy of the world' and [[Stéphane Mallarmé|Stéphane Mallarmé's]] distress over the isolation of the creator in "this society that will not let him live", Poggioli identifies that beyond their non-conformist postures. Avant-gardes have historically existed in a state of mutual antagonism towards both the public and tradition. As pioneers, avant-gardes have shunned popularity, seeing those who are popular as producing complacent or compromised work. This is also why avant-gardists have abhorred fashion, judging it to deal in stereotypes, falsehoods and insincere sentiments. Their iconoclasm has witnessed avant-gardes take positions against current trends; but as pioneers they will also adopt a strong ‘down-with-the-past’ attitude. Vanguardists are committed new ideals, seeing traditions, institutions and orthodoxies as outmoded prisons of convention.

Taken together, these traits mean that avant-gardes are often estranged from society. This has taken several forms, as some creators were [[social alienation|socially alienated]]. It has been common for avant-gardes to declare their opposition to the [[bourgeoisie]] class in particular. Their antagonism towards accepted values and approaches has also meant that historically their audience has tended to be the [[Intelligentsia|intelligentsia]]. Poggioli further tries to classify avant-gardes according to four conceptual dispositions: [[Nihilism]], [[Agonism]], [[Futurism (art)|Futurism]], and [[Decadence]].

Other authors have attempted to both clarify and rxtend Poggioli's study. The German literary critic [[Peter Bürger]]'s ''Theory of the Avant-Garde'' (1974) looks at the Establishment's embrace of socially critical works of art and suggests that in complicity with capitalism, "art as an institution neutralizes the polotical content of the individual work."<ref>{{cite book|author=Bürger, Peter|title=Theorie der Avantgarde|publisher=Suhrkamp Verlag|year=1974}} English translation (University of Minnesota Press) 1984: 90. </ref> While the title of Bürger's essay is an explicit reference to Poggioli's, he makes several useful additions to the latter's groundbreaking study, such as the distinction between "historical" ([[Futurism]], [[Dada]], [[Surrealism]]) and "neo" avant-garde ([[Abstract Expressionism]], [[Pop Art]], [[Nouveau Réalisme]], [[Fluxus]], etc.).

Bürger's essay also greatly influenced the work of contemporary American art historians such as [[Benjamin H. D. Buchloh]], while older critics like Bürger continue to view the postwar neo-avant-garde as the empty recycling of forms and strategies from the first two decades of the twentieth century, others like [[Clement Greenberg]] view it, more positively, as a new articulation of the specific conditions of cultural production in the postwar period. Buchloh, in the collection of essays ''Neo-avantgarde and Culture Industry'' (2001) critically argues for a dialectical approach to these positions.<ref>{{cite book|author=Buchloh, Benjamin|title=Neoavantgarde and Culture Industry|publisher=MIT Press|year=2001}}</ref> In the postmodern period, [[Jean-Francois Lyotard]] and [[Griselda Pollock]]<ref>Fred Orton & Griselda Pollock, ''Avant-Gardes and Partisans Reviewed'', Manchester University, 1996. ISBN 0-7190-4399-9</ref> have re-articulated the Avant-Garde in art.

== Avant-garde and mainstream society ==

The concept of avant-garde refers exclusively to marginalised artists, writers, composers and thinkers whose work is not only opposed to mainstream commercial values, but often has an abrasive social or political edge. Many writers, critics and theorists made assertions about vanguard culture during the formative years of modernism, although the initial definitive statement on the avant-garde was the essay ''[[Avant-Garde and Kitsch]]'' <ref>[http://www.sharecom.ca/greenberg/kitsch.html ''Avant-Garde and Kitsch''] written by the New York art critic [[Clement Greenberg]] and published in the journal ''[[Partisan Review]]'' in 1939.</ref> As the essay’s title suggests, [[Clement Greenberg]] conclusively showed not only that vanguard culture has historically been opposed to ‘high’ or ‘mainstream culture’, but that it also has rejected the artificially synthesized [[mass culture]] that has been produced by industrialization – the pervasive commercial culture of [[popular music]], [[Soap Opera]] dramas, [[Pulp fiction (genre)|pulp fiction]], [[magazine]]-illustration, and [[B movie]]s. Each of these media is a direct product of Capitalism – they are all now substantial industries – and as such they are driven by the same profit-fixated motives of other sectors of manufacturing, not the ideals of true art. For Greenberg, these forms were therefore ''[[kitsch]]'': they were phony, faked or mechanical culture, which often pretended to be more than they were by using formal devices stolen from advanced or vanguard culture. For instance, during the 1930s the advertising industry was quick to take visual mannerisms from [[surrealism]], but this does not mean that 1930s advertising photographs are truly surreal. It was a matter of style without substance. In this sense Greenberg was at pains to distance true avant-garde creativity from the market-driven fashion change and superficial stylistic innovation that are sometimes used to claim privileged status for these manufactured forms of the new [[consumer culture]].

[[Image:Adornohorkhab1.png|frame|[[Max Horkheimer]] (front left), [[Theodor Adorno]] (front right), and [[Jürgen Habermas]] in the background, right, in 1965 at [[Heidelberg]], [[Germany]]]]
A similar view was likewise argued by assorted members of the [[Frankfurt School]], including [[Theodor Adorno]] and [[Max Horkheimer]] in their essay ''[[Dialectic of Enlightenment|The Culture Industry: Enlightenment as Mass-Deception]]'' (1944), and also [[Walter Benjamin]] in his highly influential ''[[The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction|The Work of Art in the Age of Technical Reproduction]]'' (1936) <ref>[http://bid.berkeley.edu/bidclass/readings/benjamin.html ''The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction''] by Walter Benjamin</ref>. Where Greenberg used the [[German language|German]] word [[Kitsch|''kitsch'']] to describe the antithesis of avant-garde culture, members of the Frankfurt School coined the term [[mass culture]] to indicate that this bogus culture is constantly being manufactured by a newly emerged [[Culture industry]] (comprising commercial publishing houses, the movie industry, the record industry, the electronic media). They also pointed out that the rise of this industry meant that artistic excellence was displaced by sales figures as a measure of worth: a novel, for example, was judged meritorious solely on whether it was a best-seller, music succumbed to ratings charts and the blunt commercial logic of the Gold disc. In this way the autonomous artistic merit so dear to the vanguardist was abandoned and sales increasingly became the measure, and justification, of everything. Consumer culture now ruled.

Despite the central arguments of Greenberg, Adorno and others, the term ‘avant-garde’ has been appropriated and misapplied by various sectors of the culture industry since the 1960s, chiefly as a marketing tool to publicise popular music and commercial cinema. It is now common to describe successful rock musicians and celebrated film-makers as avant-garde, the very word having been stripped of its proper meaning. Noting this important conceptual shift, major contemporary theorists such as [[Matei Calinescu]] in ''Five Faces of Modernity: Modernism, Avant-garde, Decadence, Kitsch, Postmodernism'' (1987), and [[Hans Bertens]] in ''The Idea of the Postmodern: A History'' (1995), have suggested that this is a sign our culture has entered a new [[post-modern]] age, when the former [[modernist]] ways of thinking and behaving have been rendered redundant.

Nevertheless the most incisive critique of the vanguardism against the views of mainstream society was offered by the New York critic [[Harold Rosenberg]] in the late 1960s.<ref>{{cite book|author=Rosenberg, Harold|title='D.M.Z. Vanguardism' in The De-Definition of Art|publisher=Chicago University Press|year=1972|id=ISBN 0-226-72673-8}}</ref> Trying to strike a balance between the insights of Renato Poggioli and the claims of Clement Greenberg, Rosenberg suggested that from the mid-1960s onward progressive culture ceased to fulfill its former adversarial role. Since then it has been flanked by what he called 'avant-garde ghosts' to the one side, and a changing mass culture on the other, both of which it interacts with to varying degrees. This has seen culture become, in his words, ‘a profession one of whose aspects is the pretense of overthrowing it.’

==Examples==

Avant-garde in music refers to an extreme form of [[musical improvisation]] in which little or no regard is given by [[solo (music)|solo]]ists to any underlying [[chord structure]] or [[rhythm]], such as [[free jazz]] and some forms of [[noise music]]. It can often refer to any form of [[experimental music]], even those working within the traditional structures. An extreme example here is [[4'33"]] by [[John Cage]], in which no instrument is ''played'' in the traditional sense, yet the audience still leaves with the tangible experience that something ''happened'' within a performance. Since the experience of this particular work is unique to every audience, it might be argued that this piece is perennially avant-garde.

By some assessments, avant-garde art includes [[street art]], for example [[graffiti]] and any other movement which pushes forward the accepted boundaries. It has even moved into building construction projects, one example of which is the proposed [[Louisville Museum Plaza|Museum Plaza]] project in [[Louisville, Kentucky]]. Featuring a radical design overlooking the [[Ohio River]], this three-tower project will include a diagonal elevator and a 22nd floor public park.

[[Musique Concrète]] (meaning ''concrete music'' in French), is a style of avant-garde music that relies on natural environmental sounds and other non-inherently-musical noises to create music. Pieces that have used ''Musique concrète'' include ''Étude aux chemins de fer'' (1948) by [[Pierre Schaeffer]], [[Revolution 9]] by [[The Beatles]] (1968), [[1983... (A Merman I Should Turn to Be)]] by [[Jimi Hendrix]] and [[Several Species of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving with a Pict]] by [[Pink Floyd]] (1969) and was most popular in the late Sixties and early Seventies, but has been used since.

==Avant-garde art movements==
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}
*[[Abstract expressionism]]
*[[Angry Penguins|Angry Penguins (Australian modernists)]]
*[[Asemic writing]]
*[[Avant Garde Metal]]
*[[Bauhaus]]
*[[Cinema pur]]
*[[COBRA (avant-garde movement)|COBRA]]
*[[Conceptual art]]
*[[Constructivism (art)|Constructivism]]
*[[Cubism]]
*[[Dada]]
*[[De Stijl]]
*[[Dogme 95]]
*[[Electronic art music]]
*[[Epic theater|Epic Theatre]]
*[[Expressionism]]
*[[Fauvism]]
*[[Fluxus]]
*[[Free Jazz]]
*[[Futurism (art)|Futurism]]
*[[Impressionism]]
{{col-2}}
*[[Incoherents]]
*[[Lettrisme]]
*[[Lyrical Abstraction]]
*[[Mail art]]
*[[Minimal art|Minimal Art (Minimalism)]]
*[[Musique Concrète]]
*[[Neo-Dada]]
*[[Neoism]]
*[[Neoteric|Neoteroi]]
*[[Neue Slowenische Kunst]]
*[[Noise Music]]
*[[No Wave]]
*[[Pop art]]
*[[Postminimalism]]
*[[Primitivism]]
*[[Progressive Rock]]
*[[Situationist International]]
*[[Social realism]]
*[[Space music]]
*[[Suprematism]]
*[[Surrealism]]
*[[Symbolism (arts)|Symbolism]]
*[[Theatre of Cruelty]]
{{col-end}}