Conservapedia - User contributions [en]

History of Japan

2011-10-28T16:48:08Z

SandaL: /* notes */

The '''history of Japan''', the rich, powerful island nation off the coast of China and Korea, is typically divided into three stages: the period of interaction with China and East Asia; a period of isolation; and the opening-up of the country to the world. For contemporary Japan see: [[Japan]].

==Early Japan==

The mythology of ancient Japan is contained within the Kojiki (Records of Ancient Matters) which records the creation myth of Japan and its lineage of Emperors to the Sun [[Goddess]] Amaratsu. Large portions of this book are Chinese mythology and the distinction of what is truly Japanese and what is Chinese is continually questioned.

In the myth of Japan's creation the two gods Isanagi and Isanami swirled the primordial soup below the bridge of heaven with a rod and when retrieving the rod the drops of liquid that formed and dropped created the first islands of Japan.

===Archaeology===
===Korean and Chinese influence===
Throughout history, Japan has gotten many influences from [[Korea]] and [[China]]. They have been modified to fit Japanese needs, in most aspects. Some include chopsticks, the Chinese writing system and Chinese-style poetry. Buddhism also arrived in Japan via Korea.

===Nara and Heian===
In early Japan, every emperor moved the capital to a place of his own choosing. The first permanent capital was established by [[Empress Gemmei]] at Heijokyo, present-day [[Nara]], in 710. When the influence of nearby Bhuddist monasteries on the capital became too large, the capital was moved and a new capital established in Heiankyo, modern [[Kyoto]], in 794. Heiankyo remained the seat of government until the end of the [[Heian Period]] in 1185 when court authority had given way to the feudal rule of warrior clans and the rise of the [[Shogun]]ate established at [[Kamakura]] by Minamoto no Yoritomo. The emperor and remnants of the court nobility continued to reside in Kyoto until the 19th century, but without any political power.

===The Fujiwara clan===
The Fujiwara clan was the most powerful family of court nobility throughout much of the Nara and Heian periods. They monopolized the position of Regent and issued edicts in the emperors' name. This system removed so much power from the emperors that by the 11th century the emperors preferred to resign and wield power as retired emperors.

===Development of Buddhism===
[[Buddhism]] had been introduced to Japan from Korea in the sixth century, but its influence was small until it was embraced by [[Emperor Shomu]] in the first half of the 8th century. Shomu's daughter who twice ruled as empress (Empress Koken and Empress Shotoken, respectively) continued to increase Buddhism's influence. At the same time, Buddhist concepts began to be associated with older elements of [[Shinto]].

==Feudal Era==
[[Kyoto]] served as Japan's imperial capital for more than a thousand years (794-1868) and in the 21st century is still one of Japan's leading cultural centers.

[[File:Kyoto1.jpg|thumb|230px]]

===Vassalage and of great military houses===
===Kamakura Military Government===
[[File:Murakami Yoshiteru.jpg|thumb|left|Murakami Yoshiteru statue.]]

{{Clear}}

===The Ashikaga clan===
===Civil War and Unification===

==The Tokugawa Era, 1600-1868==
In 1603, the [[Tokugawa Shogunate]] (military dictatorship) ushered in a long period of isolation from foreign influence in order to secure its power. For 250 years this policy enabled Japan to enjoy stability and a flowering of its indigenous culture. [[Image:16th century East Asia.png|thumb|310px]]
===Christian missions===
===Social structure===
Japanese society had an elaborate social structure, in which everyone knew their place and level of prestige. At the top were the emperor and the court nobility, invincible in prestige but weak in power. Next came the "bushi" of shogun, daimyo and layers of feudal lords whose rank was indicated by their closeness to the Tokugawa. They had power. The "daimyo" comprised about 250 local lords of local "han" with annual outputs of 50,000 or more bushels of rice. The upper strata was much given to elaborate and expensive rituals, including elegant architecture, landscaped gardens, nō drama, patronage of the arts, and the tea ceremony.

Then came the 400,000 warriors, called "samurai", in numerous grades and degrees. A few upper samurai were eligible for high office; most were foot soldiers (ashigaru) with minor duties. The samurai were affiliated with senior lords in a well-established chain of command. The shogun had 17,000 samurai retainers; the daimyo each had hundreds. Most lived in modest homes near their lord's headquarters, and lived off of hereditary rights and stipends. Together these high status groups comprised Japan's ruling class making up about 6% of the total population.

Lower orders divided into two main segments--the peasants--80% of the population--whose high prestige as producers was undercut by their burden as the chief source of taxes. They were illiterate and lived in villages controlled by appointed officials who kept the peace and collected taxes.

Near the bottom of the prestige scale--but much higher up in terms of income and life style--were the merchants and artisans of the towns and cities. They had no political power, and even rich merchants found it difficult to rise in the world in a society in which place and standing were fixed at birth. Finally came the entertainers, prostitutes, day laborers and servants, and the thieves, beggars and hereditary outcasts.<ref> Totman (2000) 225-30</ref>

===Economy===
The Tokugawa era brought peace, and that brought prosperity to a nation of 31 million, 80% of them rice farmers. Rice production increased steadily, but population remained stable. Rice paddies grew from 1.6 million chō in 1600 to 3 million by 1720.<ref> One chō, or chobu, equals 2.45 acres.</ref> Improved technology helped farmers control the all-important flow of water to their paddies. The daimyo's operated several hundred castle towns, which became loci of domestic trade. Large-scale rice markets developed, centered on Edo and Osaka. Merchants invented credit instruments to transfer money, and currency came into common use. In the cities and towns, guilds of merchants and artisans met the growing demand for goods and services.<ref> Totman (2000) ch 11</ref>

The merchants benefited enormously, especially those with official patronage. The samurai, forbidden to engage in farming or business but allowed to borrow money, borrowed too much. The bakufu and daimyos raised taxes on farmers, but did not tax business, so they too fell into debt. By 1750 rising taxes incited peasant unrest and even revolt. The nation had to deal somehow with samurai impoverishment and treasury deficits. The financial troubles of the samurai undermined their loyalties to the system, and the empty treasury threaten the whole system of government. One solution was reactionary--with prohibitions on spending for luxuries. Other solutions were modernizing, with the goal of increasing agrarian productivity. The eighth Tokugawa shogun, Yoshimune (in office 1716-1745) had considerable success, though much of his work had to be done again between 1787 and 1793 by the shogun's chief councilor Matsudaira Sadanobu (1759-1829). Others shoguns debased the coinage to pay debts, which caused inflation.

By 1800 the commercialization of the economy grew rapidly, bringing more and more remote villages into the national economy. Rich farmers appeared who switched from rice to high-profit commercial crops and engaged in local money-lending, trade, and small-scale manufacturing. Some wealthy merchants sought higher social status by using money to marry into the samurai class.

A few domains, notably Chōsū and Satsuma, used innovative methods to restore their finances, but most sunk further into debt. The financial crisis provoked a reactionary solution near the end of the "Tempo era" (1830-1843) promulgated by the chief counselor Mizuno Tadakuni. He raised taxes, denounced luxuries and tried to impede the growth of business; he failed and it appeared to many that the continued existence of the entire Tokugawa system was in jeopardy.<ref>McClain (2002) pp 128-29 </ref>

===Edo/Tokyo ===
[[Image:Edo period architecture.jpg|thumb|290px|left|View of a Kabuki Theater, 1770.]]
Edo (Tokyo) had been a small settlement for 400 years but began to grow rapidly after 1603 when Shogun [[Ieyasu]] built a fortified city as the administrative center of the new [[Tokugawa]] Shogunate. Edo resembled the capital cities of Europe with military, political, and economic functions. The Tokugawa political system rested on both feudal and bureaucratic controls, so that Edo lacked a unitary administration. The typical urban social order was composed of samurai, unskilled workers and servants, artisans, and businessmen. The artisans and businessmen were organized in officially sanctioned guilds; their numbers grew rapidly as Tokyo grew and became a national trading center. Businessmen were excluded from government office, and in response they they created their own subculture of entertainment, making Edo a cultural as well as a political and economic center. With the Meiji Restoration, Tokyo's political, economic, and cultural functions simply continued as the new capital of imperial Japan.
{{Clear}}

===Three cultures===
Three distinct cultural traditions operated during the Tokugawa era, having little to do with each other. In the villages the peasants had their own rituals and localistic traditions. In the high society of the imperial court, daimyos and samurai, Chinese cultural influence was paramount, especially in the areas of ethics and political ideals. Neo-Confucianism became the approved philosophy, and was taught in official schools; Confucian norms regarding personal duty and family honor became deeply implanted in elite thought. Equally pervasive was the Chinese influence in painting, decorative arts and history, economics, and natural science. One exception came in religion, where there was a revival of [[Shinto]], which had originated in Japan. Motoori Norinaga (1730-1801) freed Shinto from centuries of Buddhist accretions and gave a new emphasis to the myth of imperial divine descent, which later became a political tool for imperialist conquest until it was destroyed in 1945.

The third cultural level was the popular art of the low-status artisans, merchants and entertainers, especially in Edo and other cities. It revolved around "ukiyo", the floating world of the city pleasure quarters and theaters that was officially off-limits to samurai. Its actors and courtesans were favorite subjects of the woodblock color prints that reached high levels of technical and artistic achievement in the 18th century. They also appeared in the novels and short stories of popular prose writers of the age like Ihara Saikaku (1642-1693). The theater itself, both in the puppet drama and the newer kabuki, as written by the greatest dramatist, Chikamatsu Monzaemon (1653-1724), relied on the clash between duty and inclination in the context of revenge and love.

==The Meiji Era: 1868-1912==
Following the [[Treaty of Kanagawa]] with the United States in 1854, Japan opened its ports and began to intensively modernise and industrialise. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, Japan became a regional power that was able to defeat the forces of both China and [[Russia]]. It occupied [[Korea]], [[Formosa]] ([[Taiwan]]), and southern [[Sakhalin Island]].
====Revolt====
[[Image:Perry.jpg|frame|right|American Commodore [[Matthew Perry]] forced Japan to open its ports in 1853]]
The rule of the Shoguns came to an end in the middle of the 19th century during a brief but bloody period of conflict known as the [[Meiji Restoration]], which was triggered in part by American Commodore [[Matthew Perry]]'s 1853 naval expedition to Japan. During the Restoration a large number of young [[samurai]] from minor families, tired of the government's mishandling of the country and feeling that if action was not taken Japan would be dominated by western countries, initiated an armed revolt to restore imperial rule. Most samurai from the more powerful families sided with the Shogun, fearing that the minor families would replace them if the revolt was successful. Nonetheless, the shogunate was done away with in 1867 and the imperial period began. The capital was moved to [[Edo]], which was renamed [[Tokyo]]; by the early twenty-first century, it had become the center of the world's largest urban conglomeration. In 1898, the last of the "unequal treaties" with Western powers was removed, signaling Japan's new status among the nations of the world. In a few decades, by creating modern social, educational, economic, military, and industrial systems, the Emperor Meiji's "controlled revolution" had transformed a feudal and isolated state into a world power.

====Imperialism====
The phrase "imperial period" refers to Japan competing with European powers and the [[United States]] for colonies and influence during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The high point of Japanese prestige was the [[Russo-Japanese War]] of 1904-5, in which Japan became the principal power in [[Manchuria]] and consolidated its control of [[Korea]] and over the southern portion of [[Sakhalin]] Island and Taiwan. In [[World War I]] Japan fought over a limited number of German-controlled pacific colonies as part of the Anglo-Japanese alliance, gaining control of [[Qingdao]] (Tsingtao), a German-controlled colony in China, as well as several German-controlled Pacific Islands, the most significant being [[Truk]] lagoon.
==Economy and empire; war and defeat: 1912-1950==

[[Hirohito]] was the '''Showa''' Emperor 1926-89 after serving as regent since 1921.

===1930s===
In 1931 Japan occupied [[Manchuria]] ("Dongbei"), setting up the puppet state of [[Manchukuo]]. In 1933, Japan resigned from the League of Nations. By 1936, during the reign of Emperor [[Hirohito]], the Japanese Empire adopted the catch-phrase "Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere".

In 1937 Japan launched a full-scale invasion of China, seizing most of the coastline and population centers. The U.S. undertook large scale military and economic aid to China and demanded Japanese withdrawal. Instead of withdrawing Japan took over French Indochina in 1940-41; the U.S., Britain and the Netherlands cut off oil imports in 1941, which accounted for over 90% of Japan's oil supply. Desultory negotiations with the US led nowhere. Japan attacked U.S. forces at [[Pearl Harbor]] in December 1941, triggering America's entry into [[World War II]].

The increasingly powerful Japanese armed forces, came to dominate Japanese politics, assassinating politicians whom they deemed insufficiently devoted to the Emperor and nation. For the next nine years, the military leadership installed its own members (such as [[Hideki Tojo]], chief Japanese strategist of [[World War II]]) or, occasionally, civilians who were completely identified with their agenda, as prime minister. In 1937 Japan's joined the "anti-Comintern pact" with Nazi Germany, leading to (exaggerated) American fears of a close relationship. In fact Germany and Japan remained distant until the latter part of the wwar. Thus Germany refused to give Japan blueprints for advanced weapons or synthetic oil.

===World War II===
[[File:Japan42.jpg|thumb|Japan's Empire in 1942|320px]]

In a blitzkrieg operation Japan rapidly expanded at sea and land, capturing Singapore and the Philippines in early 1942, and threatening India and Australia. Meanwhile fighting in China itself largely came to standstill, and Japan remained on neutral terms with the Soviet Union. The U.S. Navy stopped Japanese expansion at two great naval battles in 1942, the [[Battle of the Coral Sea]] and the [[Battle of Midway]]. Japanese overextension resulted in defeat in the [[Guadalcanal Campaign]]. Japanese sea power was destroyed by the U.S. Navy in 1944 at the [[Battle of the Philippine Sea]] and the [[Battle of Leyte Gulf]]. The U.S. industrial economy was ten times larger than Japan's, and was manifest in warplanes and warships as two main thrusts approached Japan, one through the central Pacific and one through the Philippines.

Systematic destruction of Japan's industrial centers began in early 1945 with the [[B-29]] raids. The Emperor refused to surrender until shocked by two atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and Soviet entry into the war in August 1945.

On the conventional and atomic bombings see [[Bombing of Japan]]
[[File:Abomb45.jpg|thumb|170px]]

Total Japanese military fatalities between 1937 and 1945 were 2.1 million; most came in the last year of the war. Starvation or malnutrition-related illness accounted for roughly 80 percent of Japanese military deaths in the Philippines, and 50 percent of military fatalities in China. The aerial bombing of a total of 65 Japanese cities appears to have taken a minimum of 400,000 and possibly closer to 600,000 civilian lives (over 100,000 in Tokyo alone, over 200,000 in Hiroshima and Nagasaki combined, and 80,000-150,000 civilian deaths in the battle of Okinawa). Civilian death among settlers who died attempting to return to Japan from Manchuria in the winter of 1945 were probably around 100,000.<ref> John Dower, "Lessons from Iwo Jima," ''Perspectives'' (Sept 2007) 45#6 pp 54-56 at [http://www.historians.org/perspectives/issues/2007/0709/index.cfm]</ref>

===U.S. occupation===
* See [[Shigeru Yoshida]]
[[File:Surrender of Japan - USS Missouri.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Surrender of Japan - USS Missouri.]]
After its defeat in World War II, Japan was occupied by the U.S. until 1951, and recovered from the effects of the war to become an economic power, staunch American ally and a democracy. While Emperor Hirohito was allowed to retain his throne as a symbol of national unity, actual power rests in networks of powerful politicians, bureaucrats, and business executives.

Japan was stripped of its overseas possessions and retained only the home islands and Okinawa. Manchukuo was dissolved, and Manchuria was returned to China; Japan renounced all claims to Formosa; Korea was occupied and divided by the U.S. and the Soviet Union; and the U.S. became the sole administering authority of the Ryukyu, Bonin, and Volcano Islands. The Soviets rehgained southern Sakhalin and took over the Kurile islands. Japan vehemently rejects Soviet control of the Kuriles, and tension over the issue continues high into the 21st century.

Japan was placed under the nominal international control of the Allies, and in actuality was ruled by one person, through the Supreme Commander, Gen. [[Douglas MacArthur]]. U.S. objectives were to ensure that Japan would become a peaceful nation and to establish democratic self-government supported by the freely expressed will of the people. Political, economic, and social reforms were introduced, such as a freely elected Japanese Diet (legislature) and universal adult suffrage. The country's new constitution took effect in May 1947. The United States and 45 other Allied nations signed the Treaty of Peace with Japan in September 1951 and Japan regained full sovereignty in April 1952. The 1972 reversion of Okinawa completed the U.S. return of control of these islands to Japan.

[[Shigeru Yoshida]] (1878-1967) played the central role as prime minister between 1946 and 1954 (with one interruption). His goal was rapid rebuilding Japan and cooperation with the American Occupation. He led Japan to adopt the “Yoshida Doctrine”, based on three tenets: economic growth as the primary national objective, no involvement in international political-strategic issues, and the provision of military bases to the United States. The Yoshida Doctrine proved immensely successful.

==Economic miracle: 1950-1990==
==Economic stagnation: 1990-2009==

The economy experienced a major slowdown starting in the 1990s following three decades of unprecedented growth, but Japan still remains a major economic power, both in Asia and globally.

When the worldwide [[Recession of 2008]] hit, it first appeared Japan would hold up better than other industrial countries. However exports of cars and electronics has plunged, leading to a dramatic 12% drop in GDP.

== Earthquake and Tsunami in 2011 ==
[[File:Japan quake sendai.jpg|left|200px]]
A massive 8.9-magnitude earthquake and several powerful aftershocks struck the eastern coast of Japan on March 11, 2011 (12:46 a.m. in Washington), triggering a [[tsunami]] that devastated the coastline north of [[Tokyo]] with waves up to 10 meters (33 ft.) high. The earthquake epicenter was in the western Pacific Ocean, 130 kilometers east of [[Sendai]], [[Honshu]] island. The earthquake occurred along the subduction zone between two tectonic plates.
[[File:Japan radiation 2011.jpg|right|140px|Japanese radiation, 2011.]]
The Japan Meteorological Agency said the earthquake was the strongest in the country's history; <ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2011/03/11/ST2011031100651.html?sid=ST2011031100651 Japan Quake - Tsunami] </ref> the death toll is expected to top 10,000 people; Prime Minister Naoto Kan called it the nation's worst crisis since World War II. <ref>http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2011-03-13-japan-earthquake_N.htm </ref>.

The [[earthquake]] has caused three nuclear power plant cooling systems to fail and those affected reactors. Thousands of residents were evacuated. <ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/world/2011/03/11/japan-issues-emergency-nuke-plant-leak Radiation Levels Surge Outside Two Nuclear Plants in Japan.]</ref>

After the earthquake and tsunami, entire towns in Japan are impossible to reach. But search and rescue teams are fanning out in what will be a lengthy, complex endeavor.
{{Clear}}

[[File:Japanese elderly woman Rikuzentakata Iwate Prefecture.jpg|thumb|center|500px|Braving in snow, an elderly woman carries water bottles on her bicycle in Rikuzentakata, Iwate Prefecture, five days after an [[earthquake]] and a [[tsunami]] devastated northeastern coastal towns in Japan.]] <ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/massive-rescue-cleanup-efforts-underway-in-japan/2011/03/12/AB2d0aS_gallery.html?hpid=z4#photo=2 Massive rescue, cleanup efforts underway in Japan.]</ref>
{{Clear}}

==See also==
* [[Osaka]]
* [[Tokyo]]

==Basic Further reading==
* Allinson, Gary D. ''The Columbia Guide to Modern Japanese History.'' (1999). 259 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Columbia-Guide-Modern-Japanese-History/dp/0231111444/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190394878&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Allinson, Gary D. ''Japan's Postwar History.'' (2nd ed 2004). 208 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Japans-Postwar-History-Second-Allinson/dp/0801489121/ref=sr_1_3/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190394878&sr=1-3 excerpt and text search]
* Beasley, W. G. ''The Modern History of Japan'' (1963) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=10327723 online edition]
* Clement, Ernest Wilson. ''A Short History of Japan'' (1915), 190pp [http://books.google.com/books?id=mOoTAAAAIAAJ&dq=intitle:History+intitle:Japan&num=30&as_brr=1 online edition]
* Cullen, L. M. ''A History of Japan, 1582-1941: Internal and External Worlds'' (2003) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=106045491 online edition]
* Edgerton, Robert B. ''Warriors of the Rising Sun: A History of the Japanese Military.'' (1999). 384 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Warriors-Rising-Sun-Japanese-Military/dp/0813336007/ref=sr_1_3/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190395075&sr=1-3 excerpt and text search]
* Gordon, Andrew. ''A Modern History of Japan: From Tokugawa Times to the Present'' (2003) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=103548936 online edition]; also [http://www.amazon.com/Modern-History-Japan-Tokugawa-Present/dp/0195110617/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190394957&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Hall John W. ''Japan: From Prehistory to Modern Times.'' 1970.
* Hane, Mikiso. ''Modern Japan: A Historical Survey'' (2nd ed 1992), 474pp [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=57239340 online edition]
* Huffman, James L., ed. ''Modern Japan: An Encyclopedia of History, Culture, and Nationalism.'' (1998). 316 pp.
* Hunter Janet. ''Concise Dictionary of Modern Japanese History.'' 1984.
* Jansen, Marius B. ''The Making of Modern Japan'' (2002) [http://www.amazon.com/Making-Modern-Japan-Marius-Jansen/dp/0674009916/ref=pd_bbs_5/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1188272252&sr=8-5 excerpts and search online]
* McClain, James L. ''Japan: A Modern History.'' (2001). 512 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Japan-History-James-L-McClain/dp/039397720X/ref=sr_1_8/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190394709&sr=1-8 excerpt and text search]
* Perez, Louis G. ''The History of Japan'' (1998) 244pp [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=93932879 online edition]
* Perkins, Dorothy. ''Encyclopedia of Japan: Japanese History and Culture, from Abacus to Zori.'' (1991). 410 pp.
* Reischauer, Edwin O. ''Japan: The Story of a Nation.'' 1990.
* Stockwin, J. A. A. ''Dictionary of the Modern Politics of Japan.'' (2003). 291pp [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=107546295# online edition]
* Tipton, Elise. ''Modern Japan: A Social and Political History'' (2002) [http://www.amazon.com/Modern-Japan-Political-Institute-Routledge/dp/0415185378/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1205827181&sr=8-4 excerpt and text search]
* Totman, Conrad. ''A History of Japan.'' (2nd ed. 2000). 620 pp.; stress on environment [http://www.amazon.com/History-Japan-Blackwell-World/dp/1405123591/ref=sr_1_21/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1188272498&sr=8-21 online excerpts and search]
==Advanced Bibliography==
===Surveys and reference===
* Allinson, Gary D. ''The Columbia Guide to Modern Japanese History.'' (1999). 259 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Columbia-Guide-Modern-Japanese-History/dp/0231111444/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190394878&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Beasley, W. G. ''The Modern History of Japan'' (1963) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=10327723 online edition]
* Clement, Ernest Wilson. ''A Short History of Japan'' (1915), 190pp [http://books.google.com/books?id=mOoTAAAAIAAJ&dq=intitle:History+intitle:Japan&num=30&as_brr=1 online edition]
* Cullen, L. M. ''A History of Japan, 1582-1941: Internal and External Worlds'' (2003) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=106045491 online edition]
* Edgerton, Robert B. ''Warriors of the Rising Sun: A History of the Japanese Military.'' (1999). 384 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Warriors-Rising-Sun-Japanese-Military/dp/0813336007/ref=sr_1_3/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190395075&sr=1-3 excerpt and text search]
* Goedertier Joseph M. ''A. Dictionary of Japanese History.'' 1968.
* Gordon, Andrew. ''A Modern History of Japan: From Tokugawa Times to the Present'' (2003) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=103548936 online edition]; also [http://www.amazon.com/Modern-History-Japan-Tokugawa-Present/dp/0195110617/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190394957&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Hall John W. ''Japan: From Prehistory to Modern Times.'' 1970.
* Hane, Mikiso. ''Modern Japan: A Historical Survey'' (2nd ed. 1992), 474pp [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=57239340 online edition]
* Huffman, James L., ed. ''Modern Japan: An Encyclopedia of History, Culture, and Nationalism.'' (1998). 316 pp.
* Hunter Janet. ''Concise Dictionary of Modern Japanese History.'' 1984.
* Jansen, Marius B. ''The Making of Modern Japan'' (2002) [http://www.amazon.com/Making-Modern-Japan-Marius-Jansen/dp/0674009916/ref=pd_bbs_5/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1188272252&sr=8-5 excerpts and search online]
* McClain, James L. ''Japan: A Modern History.'' (2001). 512 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Japan-History-James-L-McClain/dp/039397720X/ref=sr_1_8/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190394709&sr=1-8 excerpt and text search]
* Mosk, Carl. ''Japanese Industrial History: Technology, Urbanization, and Economic Growth.'' M. E. Sharpe, 2001. 293 pp.
* Najita, Tetsuo. ''Japan: The Intellectual Foundations of Modern Japanese Politics'' (1980), 200 year interpretation [http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0226568032/ref=sib_dp_pt/103-4827826-5463040#reader-link excerpt and text search]
* Perez, Louis G. ''The History of Japan'' (1998) 244pp [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=93932879 online edition]
* Perkins, Dorothy. ''Encyclopedia of Japan: Japanese History and Culture, from Abacus to Zori.'' (1991). 410 pp.
* Reischauer, Edwin O. ''Japan: The Story of a Nation.'' 1990.
* Reischauer, Edwin O., and Albert M. Craig. ''Japan, Tradition and Transformation'' 1978.
* Sims, Richard. ''Japanese Political History since the Meiji Renovation, 1868-2000.'' (2001). 395 pp.
* Stockwin, J. A. A. ''Dictionary of the Modern Politics of Japan.'' (2003). 291pp [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=107546295# online edition]
* Tipton, Elise. ''Modern Japan: A Social and Political History'' (2002) [http://www.amazon.com/Modern-Japan-Political-Institute-Routledge/dp/0415185378/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1205827181&sr=8-4 excerpt and text search]
* Totman, Conrad. ''A History of Japan.'' (2nd ed. 2000). 620 pp.; stress on environment [http://www.amazon.com/History-Japan-Blackwell-World/dp/1405123591/ref=sr_1_21/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1188272498&sr=8-21 online excerpts and search]
* Totman, Conrad. ''Early Modern Japan'' (1995) [http://www.amazon.com/Early-Modern-Japan-Conrad-Totman/dp/0520203569/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1212928849&sr=1-2 excerpt and text search]
* Umesao, Tadao. ''An Ecological View of History: Japanese Civilization in the World Context.'' Melbourne: Trans Pacific Press, 2003. 208 pp.
* Van Sant, John, Peter Mauch, and Yoneyuki Sugita. ''Historical Dictionary of United States-Japanese Relations'' (2007) 344 pp. [http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=23063 online review]

===to 1860===
* Hall, John W. ed. ''Cambridge History of Japan, Vol. IV, Early Modern Japan.'' (1991). 831pp
* Hane, Mikiso. ''Premodern Japan: A Historical Survey'' (1991)
* Hayami, Akira; Saito, Osamu; and Toby, Ronald P., eds. ''The Economic History of Japan, 1600-1990. Vol. 1: Emergence of Economic Society in Japan, 1600-1859.'' (2004). 420 pp.
* Jansen, Marius B., ed. ''The Cambridge History of Japan. Vol. 5: The Nineteenth Century.'' (1989). 828 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0521484057/ref=sib_dp_pt/103-4827826-5463040#reader-link excerpt and text search]
* Sansom, Sir George B. ''A History of Japan,'' 3 vols. 1963, in dense, sophisticated prose [http://www.amazon.com/History-Japan-1334-George-Sansom/dp/0804705232/ref=pd_bbs_sr_6/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1188272252&sr=8-6 excerpts and search vol 1 to 1334], [http://www.amazon.com/History-Japan-1334-1615-George-Sansom/dp/0804705259/ref=pd_bbs_10/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1188272252&sr=8-10 excerpts and search vol 2 to 1615] [http://www.amazon.com/History-Japan-1615-1867-George-Sansom/dp/0804705275/ref=pd_bbs_11/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1188272252&sr=8-11 excerpts and search vol 3 to 1867]
* Totman, Conrad. "Tokugawa Peasants: Win, Lose, or Draw?" ''Monumenta Nipponica'', Vol. 41, No. 4. (Winter, 1986), pp. 457-476. in English; [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0027-0741%28198624%2941%3A4%3C457%3ATPWLOD%3E2.0.CO%3B2-K in JSTOR]
* Wilson, George M. ''Patriots and Redeemers in Japan: Motives in the Meiji Restoration.'' (1992). 201 pp.
* Yamamura Kozo, ed. ''Cambridge History of Japan, Vol. III. Medieval Japan.'' (1990).
* Yamamura, Kozo. "Toward a Reexamination of the Economic History of Tokugawa Japan, 1600-1867." ''Journal of Economic History'' 1973 33(3): 509-546. Issn: 0022-0507 Fulltext: [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0022-0507(197309)33%3A3%3C509%3ATAROTE%3E2.0.CO%3B2-D in Jstor]

===1860 to 1945===
* Cohen, Jerome B. ''Japan's Economy in War and Reconstruction'' (1949) 545 pp. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=97828044 online edition]
* Dower, John W. ''War without Mercy: Race and Power in the Pacific War.'' Pantheon, 1986. 398 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/War-Without-Mercy-Power-Pacific/dp/0394751728/ref=sr_1_6/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190395020&sr=1-6 excerpt and text search]
* Duus, Peter, ed. ''The Cambridge History of Japan: Vol. 6: The Twentieth Century.'' (1989). 866 pp.
* Ericson, Steven J. ''The Sound of the Whistle: Railroads and the State in Meiji Japan.'' (1996). 506 pp.
* Iriye, Akira. ''Power and Culture: The Japanese-American War, 1941-1945'' (1981),
* Jansen, Marius B. and Rozman, Gilbert, eds. ''Japan in Transition, from Tokugawa to Meiji.'' (1986). 485 pp. modernization models
* Keene, Donald. ''Emperor of Japan: Meiji and His World , 1852-1912.'' (2002). 928 pp.
* LaFeber, Walter. ''The Clash: A History of U.S.-Japan Relations.'' (1997). 544 pp.
* Sims, Richard. ''Japanese Political History since the Meiji Renovation, 1868-2000.'' Palgrave, 2001. 395 pp.
* Sugihara, Kaoru. ''Japan, China, and the Growth of the Asian International Economy, 1850-1949 - Vol. 1'' (2005) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=110053108 online edition]

====Occupation: 1945-1952====
[[Image:Yoshida2.jpg|thumb|290px]]
* Buckley, Roger. ''Occupation Diplomacy: Britain, the United States and Japan, 1945-1952.'' (1982). 294 pp.
* Cohen, Jerome B. ''Japan's Economy in War and Reconstruction'' (1949) 545 pp. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=97828044 online edition]
* Cohen, Theodore. ''Remaking Japan: The American Occupation as New Deal.'' (1987). 526 pp.
* Dower, John W. ''Empire and Aftermath: Yoshida Shigeru and the Japanese Experience, 1878-1954'' (1988), the major scholarly study [http://www.amazon.com/Empire-Aftermath-Experience-1878-1954-Monographs/dp/0674251261/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1239037339&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Dower, John W. ''Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II.'' (1999). 688 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Embracing-Defeat-Japan-Wake-World/dp/0393320278/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190395020&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Eldridge, Robert. ''The Origins of the Bilateral Okinawa Problem: Okinawa in Postwar US-Japan Relations, 1945-1952'' (2001) [http://www.amazon.com/Origins-Bilateral-Okinawa-Problem-Relations/dp/0815339488/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1205828639&sr=8-4 excerpt and text search]
* Finn, Richard B. ''Winners in Peace: MacArthur, Yoshida, and Postwar Japan.'' (1992). 413 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Winners-Peace-MacArthur-Yoshida-Postwar/dp/0520202139/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1205828562&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Hane, Mikiso. ''Eastern Phoenix: Japan since 1945'' (1996)
* Harvey, Robert. ''American Shogun: General MacArthur, Emperor Hirohito, and the Drama of Modern Japan.'' (2006). 480 pp.
* Hellegers, Dale M. ''We, the Japanese People: World War II and the Origins of the Japanese Constitution.'' (2 vol. 2002). 826 pp.
* Hewes Jr., Laurence I. ''Japan -- Land and Men: An Account of the Japanese Land Reform Program, 1945-51'' 154 pgs. (1955) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=55646740 online edition]
* Hirano, Kyoko. ''Mr. Smith Goes to Tokyo: The Japanese Cinema under the American Occupation, 1945-1952.'' (1992). 400 pp.
* Koseki, Shoichi. ''The Birth of Japan's Postwar Constitution.'' (1997). 257 pp [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=82298292 online edition]
* Koshiro, Yukiko. ''Trans-Pacific Racisms and the U.S. Occupation of Japan.'' (1999). 295 pp.
* Molasky, Michael S. ''The American Occupation of Japan and Okinawa: Literature and Memory.'' (1999). 244 pp.
* Moore, Ray A. and Robinson, Donald L. ''Partners for Democracy: Crafting the New Japanese State under MacArthur.'' (2002). 409 pp.
* Orbaugh, Sharalyn. ''Japanese Fiction of the Allied Occupation: Vision, Embodiment, Identity.'' (2007). 515 pp.
* Sandler, Mark, ed. ''The Confusion Era: Art and Culture in Japan during the Allied Occupation, 1945-52.'' (1998). 112 pp.
* Schonberger, Howard B. ''Aftermath of War: Americans and the Remaking of Japan, 1945-1952'' (1989)
* Schaller, Michael. ''The American Occupation of Japan: The Origins of the Cold War in Asia'' (1987) [http://www.amazon.com/American-Occupation-Japan-Origins-Cold/dp/0195051904/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1205828760&sr=8-2 excerpt and text searcj]
* Shibata, Masako. ''Japan and Germany under the US Occupation: A Comparative Analysis of Post-War Education Reform.'' (2005). 212 pp.
* Sodei, Rinjiro. ''Dear General MacArthur: Letters from the Japanese during the American Occupation.'' (2001). 308 pp., primary sources
* Takemae, Eiji. ''Inside GHQ: The Allied Occupation of Japan and Its Legacy.'' (2002). 800 pp.
* VanStaaveren, Jacob. ''An American in Japan, 1945-1948: A Civilian View of the Occupation.'' (1995). 286 pp. primary course
* Ward, Robert E. and Yoshikazu, Sakamoto. ''Democratizing Japan: The Allied Occupation.'' (1987). 456 pp.
* Williams, Justin, Sr. ''Japan's Political Revolution Under MacArthur: A Participant's Account.'' (1979). 317 pp. primary source
* Yoshida, Shigeru. ''The Yoshida Memoirs: The Story of Japan in Crisis'' 1961, primary source [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=34588784 online edition]

===Since 1952===
* Allinson, Gary D. ''Japan's Postwar History.'' (2nd ed 2004). 208 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Japans-Postwar-History-Second-Allinson/dp/0801489121/ref=sr_1_3/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190394878&sr=1-3 excerpt and text search]
* Duus, Peter, ed. ''The Cambridge History of Japan: Vol. 6: The Twentieth Century.'' (1989). 866 pp.
* Hane, Mikiso. ''Eastern Phoenix: Japan since 1945'' (1996) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=9049214 online edition]
* LaFeber, Walter. ''The Clash: A History of U.S.-Japan Relations.'' (1997). 544 pp.
* Ohtsu, Makoto. ''Inside Japanese Business: A Narrative History, 1960-2000.'' (2002). 459 pp.
[http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=96705936 online edition]
* Sims, Richard. ''Japanese Political History since the Meiji Renovation, 1868-2000.'' Palgrave, 2001. 395 pp.
* Sugihara, Kaoru. ''Japan, China, and the Growth of the Asian International Economy, 1850-1949 - Vol. 1'' (2005) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=110053108 online edition]
* Sumiya, Mikio, ed. ''A History of Japanese Trade and Industry Policy.'' (2000). 662 pp.

===Cultural history===
* Dumoulin, Heinrich. ''Zen Buddhism: A History. Vol. 2. Japan.'' (1989). 509 pp.
* Duus, Peter, ed. ''The Japanese Discovery of America: A Brief History with Documents.'' (1997). 226 pp.
* Earhart, H. Byron. ''Japanese Religion: Unity and Diversity'' (1974).
* Guttmann, Allen and Thompson, Lee. ''Japanese Sports: A History.'' (2001). 368 pp.
* Harootunian, Harry. ''History's Disquiet: Modernity, Cultural Practice, and the Question of Everyday Life.'' (2000). 182 pp.
* Keene, Donald. ''Japanese Literature: An Introduction for Western Readers'' (1955)
* Morris, Ivan. ''The World of the Shining Prince: Court Life in Ancient Japan'' (1964)
* Kitagawa Joseph M. ''Religion in Japanese History.'' 1966.
* Kuitert, Wybe. ''Themes in the History of Japanese Garden Art'' (2002). 283 pp.
* Leiter, Samuel L. ''A Kabuki Reader: History and Performance.'' (2002). 430 pp.
* Mason, Penelope. ''History of Japanese Art.'' (1993). 431 pp.
* Morris-Suzuki, Tessa. ''A History of Japanese Economic Thought'' (1991) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=108793096 online edition]
* Munsterberg, Hugo. ''The Arts of Japan: An Illustrated History'' (1957)
* Roberts, Laurance P. A. ''Dictionary of Japanese Artists.'' Tokyo: 1976.
* Sansom, Sir George B. ''Japan, A Short Cultural History.'' 1978. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=23172776 online edition]
* Siever, Sharon ''Flowers in Salt: The Beginning of Feminine Consciousness in Modern Japan'' (1983)
* Standish, Isolde. ''A New History of Japanese Cinema: A Century of Narrative Film.'' (2005). 452 pp.
* Wakabayashi, Bob Tadashi. ''Modern Japanese Thought.'' (1998). 403 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Modern-Japanese-Thought-Bob-Wakabayashi/dp/0521588103/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1205827181&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]

===Historiography===
* Allinson, Gary D. ''The Columbia Guide to Modern Japanese History.'' (1999). 259 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Columbia-Guide-Modern-Japanese-History/dp/0231111444/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190394878&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Beasley W. G., and E. G. Pulleyblank, eds. ''Historians of China and Japan.'' 1961. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=96362768 online edition]
* Hardacre, Helen and Kern, Adam L., eds. ''New Directions in the Study of Meiji Japan.'' (1997). 782 pp.

===Primary sources===
* Cook, Haruko Taya and Cook, Theodore F. eds. ''Japan at War: An Oral History.'' (1992). 504 pp., World War II homefront [http://www.amazon.com/Japan-at-War-Oral-History/dp/1565840399/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1205827662&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Huffman, James L. ed. ''Modern Japan: A History in Documents'' (2004)
* Tsunoda, Ryusaku, W. T. de Bary, and Donald Keene, eds. ''Sources of Japanese Tradition.'' 1958.
* Yoshida, Shigeru. ''The Yoshida Memoirs: The Story of Japan in Crisis'' 1961, on Occupation, 1945-51 [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=34588784 online edition]

====notes====
{{reflist|2}}

[[Category:Japanese History]]
[[Category:Japan]]
[[category:Asian History]]
[[Category:Fascist States]]

Socialist International

2011-10-28T16:45:21Z

SandaL:

[[File:Socialist International logo.png|right|100px]]
The '''Socialist International''' is the worldwide organization of social democratic, [[socialist]] and labor parties. It currently brings together 170 political parties and organizations from all continents.
<br /><br /><br />

== History ==
The Socialist International, whose origins go back to the early international organizations of the labor movement, has existed in its present form since 1951, when it was re-established at the Frankfurt Congress. Since then it has been increasingly active and grown considerably in membership, more than doubling the number of its members in recent years. Labor, social democratic and socialist parties are now a major political force in several countries around the world, with numerous member parties of the International leading governments or representing the main opposition force. Over 60 member parties of the International, in over 55 different countries and territories, are currently in government.

== Disreputable membership ==
While the Socialist International claims to support "the strengthening of democracy"<ref name="SI">[http://www.socialistinternational.org/about.cfm Socialist Internatioanl’s website]</ref>, many of its member parties stand at the head of dictatorial regimes or have done so in the past, while other member parties support terrorism and engage in other shameful actions. The following<ref>A full list of the SI membership can be seen on their [http://www.socialistinternational.org/viewArticle.cfm?ArticlePageID=931 website].</ref> are among the International’s more disreputable members:
*MPLA – The ruling party in [[Angola]]. A report by [[Freedom House]] described their regime as undemocratic, corrupt and prone to committing human right violations.<ref>[http://www.freedomhouse.org/inc/content/pubs/fiw/inc_country_detail.cfm?year=2006&country=6909&pf Freedom in the World - Angola]</ref> While the party no longer identifies with marxism<ref name="BBC">[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13037271 Angola profile - BBC]</ref>, it still maintains cordial ties with the tyrannical regime in Cuba.<ref>[http://allafrica.com/stories/200607270772.html MPLA Official Exalts Cuba´s Support To Angolan Cause] - allafrica.com</ref> The MPLA regime has also been implicated by the UN in “crimes of genocide” in the Democratic Republic of Congo.<ref name="BBC" />
*New Democratic Party – A Canadian party that had a crucial role in giving female serial killer [[Karla Homolka]] a lenient sentence rather than life in prison.<ref>[http://www.canadiancrc.com/Karla_Homolka_plea_bargain_folly.aspx The Politics behind the Karla Homolka Plea-Bargain</Ref> While Homolka was proven beyond a doubt to have been actively involved in the rape and murder of three young girls (one of whom was her sister), she was sentenced to only 12 years.<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,161505,00.html Notorious Sex Killer Karla Homolka Freed]</ref>
*Socialist Party of Chile – The party of Salvador Allende.
*[[Meretz]] – An Israeli party which supports terrorism and has ties with the Cuban regime (for more details see the relevant Conservapedia article on this party).
*Progressive Socialist Party – A Lebanese party which is allied with Hezbollah and Syria.<ref>[http://articles.cnn.com/2011-01-21/world/lebanon.politics_1_lebanese-president-michel-suleiman-hezbollah-128-seat-parliament?_s=PM:WORLD Lebanese Druze leader support Hezbollah]</ref>
*FRELIMO – The ruling party in Mozambique. Formerly Marxist<ref name="BBC2">[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13890720 Mozambique profile - BBC]</ref>, it still retains cordial ties with Cuba.<ref>[http://www.cadenagramonte.cu/english/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2962:cuban-vp-receives-frelimo-general-secretary&catid=2:cuba&Itemid=14 Cuban VP Receives FRELIMO General Secretary]</ref> The party’s victory in the 2009 is believed to have been achieved through electoral fraud.<ref name="BBC2" />
*SWAPO – Namibia's ruling party, which has ties with Cuban regime.<ref>[http://allafrica.com/stories/200301080424.html Swapo, Cuba's Communist Party Sign Co-Operation Agreement]</ref>
*FSLN – The party headed by [[Nicaragua]]’s president [[Daniel Ortega]]. Known for its alliance with Cuba, Iran<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6261721.stm Iran and Nicaragua vow close ties - BBC]</ref> and Venezuela<ref>[http://blog.american.com/2011/06/ortegas-nicaragua-to-chavez-please-dont-die-please/ Nicaragua and Venezuela’s Well-Oiled Relationship - The American Enterprise Institute]</ref>. It is currently engaged in a tireless effort to abolish Nicaragua’s democracy through electoral fraud and [[judicial activism]]. <ref>[http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2011/10/nicaraguas-presidential-elections-how-daniel-ortega-could-shame-democracy Nicaragua’s Presidential Elections: How Daniel Ortega Could Shame Democracy - The American Heritage Foundation]</ref>
*[[Fatah]] – A Palestinian terrorist organization<ref>[http://www.usnews.com/usnews/opinion/articles/051031/31edit.htm Abbas Must Act]</ref> dedicated to bringing an end to the state of Israel.<ref>[http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/5361#.TqlsXnL4JJE Abbas Means to Destroy Israel – Arutz Sheva]</ref>
In addition to that, current president of the Socialist International George Papandreou<ref name="SI" /> has come out in support of terrorist [[Yasir Arafat]] in the past and said that his death was “a great loss for the Palestinian people”.<ref>[http://www.papandreou.gr/papandreou/content/Document.aspx?d=6&rd=7739474&f=1358&rf=1280827695&m=4389&rm=21879770&l=1 George Papandreou’s website]</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== See also ==
*[[Carol Browner]]

[[Category: Political Parties]]
[[Category: Liberalism]]
[[Category: Communism]]
{{Liberalism}}

Christian Democratic Union

2011-10-28T16:43:10Z

SandaL:

The '''Christian Democratic Union of Germany''' (Christlich-Demokratische Union Deutschlands, '''CDU''') is a political party in [[Germany]]. It is a centrist party, and in 2005-2009 shared powed in a grand coalition with its major opposition, the Social Democrats, or [[SPD]]. [[File:Merkel.jpg|thumb|290px| Chancellor [[Angela Merkel]] leads the party]] The CDU is always in partnership with the '''Christian Social Union''', its more conservative sister party in [[Bavaria]]. When adding the mandates of both the CDU and CSU, who caucus together at the national level, they form the largest parliamentary group at the national level. Both parties are also in control of a majority of governments at the state level, with 11 out of 16 heads of state governments hailing from one of them.

The September 2009 elections were a major win for the conservative forces led by CDU Chancellor [[Angela Merkel]], breaking a stalemate and opening the way for more conservative economic policies. Previously since an indecisive election in 2005 the Christian Democrats (CDU) (on the center-right) formed a "grand coalition" with the Social Democrats (SPD) (on the center-left). Now Merkel and her CDU will form a coalition with the libertarian, pro-business Free Democrats (FDP). Left in the cold will be the SPD, the Greens, and the ex-Communists who remain strong in the former East Germany under the name "Left party". Merkel is now expected to move forward on tax cuts, reform of the tax code, reduction of bureaucracy and a possible extension of the time that nuclear power plants can continue to operate.
[[File:Germ-vote-2009.jpg|300px|thumb|Exit polls from Sept. 2009 election won by the conservative coalition CDU and FDP]]

==History==
The party was founded in post-war Germany by centrist and conservative Christian politicians who wanted to overcome the divisions among democratic Christians politicians in pre-war Germany, which was perceived as one of the reasons of the deadlock in politics during the [[Weimar Republic]]. Before 1934 Germany was about 1/3 Catholic. West Germany was now about evenly split between Catholics and Protestants. The CDU (and its sister party the CSU in Bavaria) regularly won about 60% of the catholic vote, and 35-40% of the Protestants. To control a majority in the Bundestag (national parliament) it formed coalitions usually with the small Free Democrats (FDP), a conservative/libertarian party favired by big business and professionals.

Leading figures in the post-war era were [[Konrad Adenauer]] and [[Ludwig Erhard]]. Adenauer became the first Chancellor in West Germany, and who was seeking firm military and economic integration of West Germany with western Europe and the US. Ludwig Erhard was the first Minister of Economy, renowned for his advocacy and implementation of [[social market economy]], and is considered the father of the German [[Wirtschaftswunder]], the economic boom in the 50s and 60s. These two political concepts, social market economy and integration in the West, have become the two main ideological pillars of the Christian Democratic Union.

It should be noted that under Merkel's leadership, the party has moved more to the political center in recent years. Voters in Germany haven't approved of this new course: although the CDU managed to emerge as the strongest party in both the 2005 and 2009 elections, winning Merkel the chancellorship, their share of the vote was only 35,2% and 33,8%<ref>http://www.bundeswahlleiter.de/de/bundestagswahlen/ Official results of the 2005 and 2009 federal elections (in German) </ref>, respectively. When running more to the right, as has happened under the leadership of Bavarians Franz Josef Strauss in 1980 or Edmund Stoiber in 2002, the party performed much stronger: in 1980, Strauss almost managed to win an absolute majority; in 2002, Stoiber obtained the best results the CDU has enjoyed in the current five-party-environment. Both candidates only missed the chancellorship because the left-wing social democrats could assemble majority coalitions with smaller centrist parties.

==Party Structure==
===Regional Party Groups===
The party has regional party groups, the federal group (''Bundesverband'', there is only one), the state group(s) (''Landesverbände'', singular: ''Landesverband''), the county group(s) (''Kreisverbände'', singular: ''Kreisverband'') and the local group(s) (''Ortsverbände'', singular: ''Ortsverband''). All local groups in a county (''Kreis'' or ''Landkreis'') are part of the county group, all county groups in a german (federal) state (''Land'' or ''Bundesland'') are part of the state group and all state groups form the federal group.

===Federal Leadership===
The present chairwoman (of the federal party group) is German [[chancellor]] [[Angela Merkel]], vice-chairman are [[Roland Koch]] ([[Minister-President]] of the federal state of [[Hesse]]), [[Jürgen Rüttgers]] (former Minister-President of state of [[North Rhine-Westphalia]], now member of the German federal government), [[Annette Schavan]] (member of the German federal government) and [[Christian Wulff]] (Minister-President of the federal state of [[Lower Saxony]]). [[Ronald Pofalla]]

===Think Tank===
The federal party group holds a think tank called [[Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung]] (''Konrad Adenauer Foundation''), named after first chancellor of post-[[World War II]] Germany [[Konrad Adenauer]]. The state party groups have similar foundations.

==Bavaria==
There's a special relationship between the CDU and the [[Christian Social Union of Bavaria]] (CSU). The CSU is legally a party of its own, but cooperates closely with the CDU. The CSU only acts in the state of [[Bavaria]] and the CDU in the other states. The CSU is independent and has its own political structure and party platform, which differs in some positions from the CDU's one, so that the CSU can be considered more conservative. The most prominent politician of the CSU was [[Franz-Josef Strauss]].

The CDU has special organizations for demographic groups (youth, women, older/retired citizens, etc.).

==Famous Party Members==
*[[Konrad Adenauer]], first chancellor of the [[Germany|Federal Republic of Germany]]
*[[Helmut Kohl]], former chancellor of Germany
*[[Angela Merkel]], present chancellor of Germany, present chairwoman of the CDU

===External Links===
*[http://www.cdu.de Website of the CDU]
*[http://www.csu.de/partei/index.htm Website of the CSU]
==References==
{{reflist|2}}

[[Category:Political Parties]]
[[Category:Germany]]
[[Category:German History]]

SPD

2011-10-28T16:40:45Z

SandaL:

The '''Social Democratic Party''' or '''SPD''' is a socialist party in Germany. From 2005 to 2009 it formed a "grand coalition government" (a coalition between the two largest parties) with the rival [[CDU]]. In the German elections in 2009, the SPD suffered a historical loss of 9,2 % of the vote, reaching only 23 % in total. This gave the CDU (which reached 33,8% combined with its sister-party CSU) the possibility to form a conservative coalition with the 'Liberal Democratic Party of Germany', the [[FDP]]. This was considered a 'dream marriage', as opposed to the 'shotgun marriage'-coalition with the SPD.

Current leader of the SPD is Sigmar Gabriel, succeeding Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who had been vice chancellor and minister of foreign affairs during the grand coalition.

==History==
===Cold War===
The SPD approached the problems of German reunification and the establishment of a European Defense Community (EDC) on the assumption of the possibility of peaceful coexistence between the USSR and the Western powers. The SPD objected to the EDC, preferring to find an answer to the problem of security through the UN. According to the SPD, the EDC would give the Soviet Union an excuse for blocking German reunification. The SPD feared that the policies of [[Robert Schuman]] in France and of Germany's [[Konrad Adenauer]] would result in the domination of Europe by Catholics and conservatives, and therefore the SPD sided with Pierre Mendès-France, the French premier, on the question of Western military integration, while continuing to give priority to German reunification.

[[Category:Political Parties]]
[[Category:German History]]
[[Category:Germany]]
[[Category:Socialism]]

Green Party

2011-10-28T16:35:42Z

SandaL:

The '''Green Party''' is a [[political party]] in the [[United States]] which places a strong emphasis on [[environmentalism]]. It supports many [[liberal]] social policies, as well as advocating moving politics to the [[grassroots]] and community level. It also supports [[national debt|debt reduction]], a conservative principle, though it generally supports doing this by raising taxes on the upper income brackets and cutting military spending.

There are other Green parties throughout the world, though most, if not all act independently of each other.

The Green Party's nominee for [[POTUS|President]] in 1996 and 2000 was [[Ralph Nader]], but not in 2004 or 2008, when Nader ran as an independent, nor in 1992 when Nader ran as a [[write-in candidate]] in the [[New Hampshire]] Democratic primary. In 2008, the Green Party nominee was ultraliberal former Congresswoman [[Cynthia McKinney]] of [[Georgia]].

==External Links==
*[http://www.gp.org/ Official Party Website]
*[http://www.gp.org/tenkey.shtml Ten Key Values of the Green Party]

[[category:United States Political Parties]]
[[Category:Environmentalism]]
[[Category:Communism]]

Jacques Derrida

2011-10-28T16:15:37Z

SandaL:

'''Jacques Derrida''' (July 15, 1930 – October 9, 2004) was a [[France|French]] philosopher who advocated secularist philosophy commonly associated with [[postmodernism]]. Derrida was a [[Marxism|Marxist]]. He has been critized by both atheists and Christians for a bad style.

[[Category: Philosophers]]

Talk:Essay: 10 reasons why American atheism will see a significant decline

2011-10-28T16:07:08Z

SandaL:

==Campaign==

When does the Question Evolution campaign actually start? I'd like to get involved with it in the UK when it begins. --[[User:MandyC|MandyC]] 09:17, 28 October 2011 (EDT)
::Contact the UK office of [[Creation Ministries International]] about the campaign in the UK which is currently a campaign in the UK. How many adherents of Christianity were there in the beginning? Two thousand years of Christian increase![http://users.adam.com.au/bstett/BChristianIncrease12.htm] (see also: [[Global Christianity]]). American atheists, get ready to be cut by at least 50% in the United States (see: [[Essay: Will American atheism be cut by at least 50%?|Will American atheism be cut by at least 50%?]] and [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbmAn3M8r0I My challenge to atheists and evolutionists] ). [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 09:43, 28 October 2011 (EDT)
:::So it's already started in the UK? Do you know if they've actually done anything yet? I haven't seen anything in the media about it. --[[User:MandyC|MandyC]] 10:51, 28 October 2011 (EDT)
::::There must be a reason why you aren't contacting CMI-UK? What is it? I would think they would be your best source of information. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 10:53, 28 October 2011 (EDT)
:::::I would have thought so too, but I spoke to them ten minutes ago and the staff in their office don't know of any events they've organised or are planning.--[[User:MandyC|MandyC]] 11:03, 28 October 2011 (EDT)
::::::Call me an unwarranted skeptic of your claim, but I don't believe you. I don't believe CMI-UK is turning away eager volunteers. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 11:22, 28 October 2011 (EDT)
:::::::Volunteers for what? They don't have any events planned. Call and ask them yourself if you don't believe me. --[[User:MandyC|MandyC]] 11:32, 28 October 2011 (EDT)
::::::::I don't appreciate being mocked like that. I asked you for advice on the campaign, you suggested I contact them, I did and now you're posting stupid pictures as a reply to my comments? --[[User:MandyC|MandyC]] 11:59, 28 October 2011 (EDT)

== One thing you need to clarify ==

You keep referring to the "leadership" of the atheist movement. What you haven't clarified is how many atheists consider themselves a part of this movement, and are followers of men like Dawkins and Myers, and how many atheists are ''not'' involved with any organized group, and are unaffected by anything it does. I have a feeling there are many more who fall outside of any organization, and who don't give much thought to God or religion or even their own lack of belief, or outright disbelief. --[[User:SharonW|SharonW]] 10:14, 28 October 2011 (EDT)
:::I have never claimed the atheist movement has strong leadership. In fact, it could be argued that I have argued the opposite (for example, [[Atheism and cowardice]]). Plus, I wrote this article: [[Atheist factions]]. Nevertheless, your "herding cats" comment is a valid point. [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 10:43, 28 October 2011 (EDT)
::::::SharonW, thanks. I added this sentence: "In addition, there is a lot of disharmony in the atheist movement (see: [[Atheist factions]] and [[Essay: Atheism: A house divided and in global decline|Atheism: A house divided and in global decline]])". [[User:Conservative|Conservative]] 10:47, 28 October 2011 (EDT)

==Answer==
Yes. The Question Evolution! campaign will be successfull in operating the cancer of atheism out of America. I think the economic breakdown we have experienced since Obama is in office will drive people to believe. Not only did the communist/nihilist bankers that infiltrated our economy fail at getting what they want, but also they also gave us, American Christian, the gunpowder for the execution of these traitors. But I don't think the rest of the world can be safed. Sadly, when the time has come America has to step back from the world and try to save as many real Christians as possible. Quite possibly we have to make room for them by throwing parasitic traitors out. --[[User:SandaL|SandaL]] 12:07, 28 October 2011 (EDT)