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Politics (from Ancient Greek πολιτικά (politiká) 'affairs of the cities') is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies politics and government is referred to as political science.
It may be used positively in the context of a "political solution" which is compromising and non-violent, or descriptively as "the art or science of government", but also often carries a negative connotation. The concept has been defined in various ways, and different approaches have fundamentally differing views on whether it should be used extensively or in a limited way, empirically or normatively, and on whether conflict or co-operation is more essential to it.
A variety of methods are deployed in politics, which include promoting one's own political views among people, negotiation with other political subjects, making laws, and exercising internal and external force, including warfare against adversaries. Politics is exercised on a wide range of social levels, from clans and tribes of traditional societies, through modern local governments, companies and institutions up to sovereign states, to the international level.
In modern nation states, people often form political parties to represent their ideas. Members of a party often agree to take the same position on many issues and agree to support the same changes to law and the same leaders. An election is usually a competition between different parties.
A political system is a framework which defines acceptable political methods within a society. The history of political thought can be traced back to early antiquity, with seminal works such as Plato's Republic, Aristotle's Politics, Confucius's political manuscripts and Chanakya's Arthashastra. (Full article...)
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The Power of Nightmares is a BBC documentary film series, written and produced by Adam Curtis. The series consists of three one-hour films, consisting mostly of a montage of archive footage with Curtis's narration, which were first broadcast in the United Kingdom in late 2004 and have been subsequently aired in multiple countries and shown in several film festivals, including the 2005 Cannes Film Festival. The films compare the rise of the American Neo-Conservative movement and the radical Islamist movement, making comparisons on their origins and noting strong similarities between the two. More controversially, it argues that the threat of radical Islamism as a massive, sinister organised force of destruction, specifically in the form of al-Qaeda, is in fact a myth perpetrated by politicians in many countries—and particularly American Neo-Conservatives—in an attempt to unite and inspire their people following the failure of earlier, more utopian ideologies. The Power of Nightmares has been praised by film critics in both Britain and the United States. Its message and content have also been the subject of various critiques and criticisms from conservatives and progressives.
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Aletta Jacobs (1854–1929) was a Dutch physician and women's suffrage activist. Jacobs strove throughout her life to change laws that limited women's access to equality, starting in 1883 with an unsuccessful court challenge and eventually achieving success on 18 September 1919, with the signing of a suffrage bill into law. In addition to her suffrage work she led campaigns aimed at deregulating prostitution, improving women's working conditions, and promoting peace.
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Dobroslav Jevđević (1895–1962) was a Bosnian Serb politician and self-appointed Chetnik commander in the Herzegovina region of Yugoslavia during the Second World War. He was a member of the inter–war Chetnik Association and the Organisation of Yugoslav Nationalists party in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, a Yugoslav National Party member of the National Assembly, and a leader of the opposition during King Alexander's dictatorship. Following the invasion of Yugoslavia by the Axis in April 1941, he became a Chetnik leader in Herzegovina and joined the Chetnik movement of Draža Mihailović, although he often operated independently from Mihailović. Jevđević collaborated with the Italians and later the Germans in actions against the Yugoslav Partisans. During a joint Italian-Chetnik Operation Alfa, Jevđević's Chetniks, along with other Chetnik forces, were responsible for killing between 500 and 1,700 Bosnian Muslim and Catholic civilians in the Prozor region in October 1942. His force also participated in one of the largest Axis anti-Partisan operations of the war, Case White, in the winter of 1943. In the spring of 1945, he fled to Italy where he resided until his death.
Did you know (auto-generated) -
- ... that artist Tove Jansson based the children's book character Snufkin on a political philosopher whom she had dated?
- ... that Philipp Tanzer has been an army medic, artist, firefighter, hairdresser, massage therapist, festival organiser, political candidate and gay porn star?
- ... that a year after becoming the first woman president of the Canadian Political Science Association, Caroline Andrew moderated the first Canadian leaders' debate on women's issues?
- ... that Patricia Grace did not intend for her novel Potiki, about the impact of land development on an indigenous community, to be seen as political?
- ... that Prawoto Mangkusasmito did not complete law school before the Japanese invaded because he was too busy with student and political organizations?
- ... that Peter Merseburger refused to host a 1974 edition of German political TV magazine Panorama after a report by Alice Schwarzer on an abortion was cancelled by authorities?
More did you know...
- ...that Republican National Committee official Rob Bickhart wrote a PowerPoint presentation for a meeting of Republican fundraisers which depicted Nancy Pelosi as Cruella de Vil?
- ...that following its 1994 national convention, the Progress Party of Norway lost its deputy leader and the four MPs Christiansen, Hillgaar, Wetterstad and Bråthen?
- ...that Democrat Mayor Thomas G. Dunn, national co-chairman of Democrats for Nixon, was "read out of the party" for his support of Republican President Richard Nixon's 1972 re-election bid?
- ...that Matt Taibbi's book Griftopia has been described as a "necessary ... corrective" to the assertion that bubbles are an inevitable part of the market economy?
- ...that in the book Net.wars, author Wendy M. Grossman attributes Internet conflict in the 1990s to culture shock from an influx of users?
- ...that former California Assembly Republican Leader and California Republican Party Chair Robert W. Naylor was editor of The Stanford Daily while he was a student at Stanford University?
- ...that co-founder of the Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association Mohammed al-Bejadi spent most of 2011 in prison?
- ...that when the Tennessee Center for Policy Research, a "free-market think tank," criticized Al Gore's energy use, CNN mistakenly called the organization an environmental group?
In this month
- June 28, 2004 - Canadian federal elections occur; the Liberal party loses its absolute majority.
News and Current events
- August 11: 4 local government areas in New South Wales, Australia locked down after COVID-19 case
- August 11: Australia: AstraZeneca vaccine access expanded by Victorian government
- August 1: Australia: Victorian lockdown lifted
- July 29: Tunisia's president dismisses prime minister, suspends parliament
- July 25: Australia: Wikinews interviews Reg Kidd, mayor of the City of Orange, about COVID-19 lockdown and local government
- July 23: South Australia enters week-long lockdown to contain COVID-19 Delta variant spread
- July 21: Technological University Dublin senior lecturer Dr Lorcan Sirr speaks to Wikinews on housing market in Ireland
- July 21: Three rural councils in New South Wales, Australia enter 7-day lockdown
- July 21: Australia: Victoria lockdown extended by a week with 85 active cases recorded
- July 15: California governor signs new state budget, eligible Californians to get stimulus payments
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