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Fermion

In particle physics, a fermion is a particle that follows Fermi–Dirac statistics. Fermions have a half-odd-integer spin (spin $1⁄2$, spin $3⁄2$, etc.) and obey the Pauli exclusion principle. These particles include all quarks and leptons and all composite particles made of an odd number of these, such as all baryons and many atoms and nuclei. Fermions differ from bosons, which obey Bose–Einstein statistics.

Some fermions are elementary particles (such as electrons), and some are composite particles (such as protons). For example, according to the spin-statistics theorem in relativistic quantum field theory, particles with integer spin are bosons. In contrast, particles with half-integer spin are fermions.

In addition to the spin characteristic, fermions have another specific property: they possess conserved baryon or lepton quantum numbers. Therefore, what is usually referred to as the spin-statistics relation is, in fact, a spin statistics-quantum number relation.

As a consequence of the Pauli exclusion principle, only one fermion can occupy a particular quantum state at a given time. Suppose multiple fermions have the same spatial probability distribution. Then, at least one property of each fermion, such as its spin, must be different. Fermions are usually associated with matter, whereas bosons are generally force carrier particles. However, in the current state of particle physics, the distinction between the two concepts is unclear. Weakly interacting fermions can also display bosonic behavior under extreme conditions. For example, at low temperatures, fermions show superfluidity for uncharged particles and superconductivity for charged particles.

Composite fermions, such as protons and neutrons, are the key building blocks of everyday matter.

English theoretical physicist Paul Dirac coined the name fermion from the surname of Italian physicist Enrico Fermi.

Elementary fermions
The Standard Model recognizes two types of elementary fermions: quarks and leptons. In all, the model distinguishes 24 different fermions. There are six quarks (up, down, strange, charm, bottom and top), and six leptons (electron, electron neutrino, muon, muon neutrino, tauon and tauon neutrino), along with the corresponding antiparticle of each of these.

Mathematically, there are many varieties of fermions, with the three most common types being: Most Standard Model fermions are believed to be Dirac fermions, although it is unknown at this time whether the neutrinos are Dirac or Majorana fermions (or both). Dirac fermions can be treated as a combination of two Weyl fermions. In July 2015, Weyl fermions have been experimentally realized in Weyl semimetals.
 * Weyl fermions (massless),
 * Dirac fermions (massive), and
 * Majorana fermions (each its own antiparticle).

Composite fermions
Composite particles (such as hadrons, nuclei, and atoms) can be bosons or fermions depending on their constituents. More precisely, because of the relation between spin and statistics, a particle containing an odd number of fermions is itself a fermion. It will have half-integer spin.

Examples include the following:
 * A baryon, such as the proton or neutron, contains three fermionic quarks.
 * The nucleus of a carbon-13 atom contains six protons and seven neutrons.
 * The atom helium-3 (3He) consists of two protons, one neutron, and two electrons. The deuterium atom consists of one proton, one neutron, and one electron.

The number of bosons within a composite particle made up of simple particles bound with a potential has no effect on whether it is a boson or a fermion.

Fermionic or bosonic behavior of a composite particle (or system) is only seen at large (compared to size of the system) distances. At proximity, where spatial structure begins to be important, a composite particle (or system) behaves according to its constituent makeup.

Fermions can exhibit bosonic behavior when they become loosely bound in pairs. This is the origin of superconductivity and the superfluidity of helium-3: in superconducting materials, electrons interact through the exchange of phonons, forming Cooper pairs, while in helium-3, Cooper pairs are formed via spin fluctuations.

The quasiparticles of the fractional quantum Hall effect are also known as composite fermions; they consist of electrons with an even number of quantized vortices attached to them.

title: Fermion


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Fred Savage

Frederick Aaron Savage (born July 9, 1976) is an American actor and director. He is best known for his role as Kevin Arnold in the American television series The Wonder Years (1988–1993). He has earned several awards and nominations, such as People's Choice Awards and Young Artist Awards. He is also known for playing the Grandson in The Princess Bride, and voiced the title protagonist in Oswald. Savage has worked as a director, and in 2005 later starred in the television sitcom Crumbs. Savage returned to acting in the television series The Grinder, as well as the Netflix series Friends from College.

Early life and education
Savage was born in Chicago, to Joanne and Lewis Savage, who was an industrial real estate broker and consultant. Savage grew up in Glencoe, Illinois, before moving to California. His younger brother is actor Ben Savage and his younger sister is actress/musician Kala Savage. His grandparents were Jewish immigrants from Poland, Ukraine, Germany and Latvia. He was raised as a Reform Jew.

Savage was educated at Brentwood School, a private co-educational day school in Brentwood, in the Westside area of Los Angeles County in California. He graduated from Stanford University in 1999, with a bachelor's degree in English and as a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.

Acting
Savage's first screen performance was in the television show Morningstar/Eveningstar, at the age of nine. He then appeared onscreen in The Boy Who Could Fly, Dinosaurs!, and several television shows, including The Twilight Zone and Crime Story before gaining national attention as the grandson in the 1987 film The Princess Bride opposite Peter Falk.

In 1988, Savage appeared as Kevin Arnold on The Wonder Years, the role for which he is best known, and for which he received two Golden Globe nominations and two Emmy nominations for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. At the age of thirteen, he was the youngest actor ever to receive these honors. He remained on the show until it ended in 1993. During this period, he appeared in several films, most notably Vice Versa (1988), and also starred in Little Monsters. After The Wonder Years ended, Savage returned to high school at age 17, and later attended Stanford. His first television role after high school was the NBC sitcom Working, which Savage starred in for its two-season run. Savage also had a series of guest and supporting roles in the late 1990s and the 2000s such as on the show Boy Meets World, (which starred his younger brother Ben Savage), Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, The Legend of Prince Valiant, and the film Austin Powers in Goldmember as The Mole.

Savage has lent his voice to several animated projects, including Family Guy, Kim Possible, Justice League Unlimited, Oswald, and Holidaze: The Christmas That Almost Didn't Happen. His two lead roles since The Wonder Years were on the short-lived sitcoms Working and Crumbs. He ranked at #27 on VH1's 100 Greatest Kid Stars.

In July 2008, Savage guest-starred in the web series The Rascal on Crackle.

In 2015, Savage returned to acting with the Fox series The Grinder. Producer Nick Stoller approached Savage about playing the role of Stewart on The Grinder. Savage was uninterested at first, but agreed to meet with the producers of the series because his children attended school with Stoller's children. Savage eventually agreed to take on the role. The Grinder was canceled by Fox on May 16, 2016.

In 2017, he joined the cast of the Netflix series Friends from College as Max Adler, a gay literary agent.

Directing and producing
In 1999, Savage began his directing career in which he helmed episodes of over a dozen television series. Savage's first directing credit was on the short-lived NBC sitcom Working which also starred Savage. Following Working, Savage began observing production on the Disney Channel show Even Stevens to further learn the craft of directing. Savage also learned by shadowing Amy Sherman-Palladino, Todd Holland, and James Burrows.

His credits include Zoey 101, Drake & Josh, Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide and Big Time Rush for Nickelodeon, as well as That's So Raven, Hannah Montana, and Wizards of Waverly Place for Disney Channel. Additionally, Savage has directed for prime-time network sitcoms including Modern Family and 2 Broke Girls.

Besides directing several episodes, Savage co-produced the Disney Channel Original Series Phil of the Future. In 2007, he was nominated for a Directors Guild award for the Phil episode "Not-So-Great-Great Grandpa".

Savage has served as a producer for several episodes of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Friends with Benefits, Party Down, Phil of the Future, The Crazy Ones, and Happy Endings.

In 2007, he made his feature film directing debut with the film Daddy Day Camp for which he was nominated worst director for the Golden Raspberry Awards.

Misconduct allegations
In 1993, Savage, then 16, and his Wonder Years co-star Jason Hervey were accused of sexual harassment in a lawsuit filed by the show's former costume designer. Monique Long alleged the young actors "verbally and physically harassed her daily," with her complaints over their behavior ignored by the show's staff. The lawsuit was settled out of court.

In March 2018, a costume designer on The Grinder accused Savage of assault and intimidation and filed a complaint in Los Angeles Superior Court alleging crimes including assault, battery, and gender discrimination. Savage denied the allegations. Fox later stated that an investigation cleared the actor of any wrongdoing.

On May 6, 2022, Savage was fired as executive producer and director of The Wonder Years reboot after an investigation into alleged inappropriate conduct. While Savage stated that 'some of the claims were untrue', he also stated that he was going to work on changing any perceived negative behavior.

Personal life
Savage married his childhood friend Jennifer Lynn Stone on August 7, 2004. They have three children.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Fred Savage


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Futurians

The Futurians were a group of science fiction fans, many of whom became editors and writers as well. The Futurians were based in New York City and were a major force in the development of science fiction writing and science fiction fandom in the years 1937–1945.

Origins of the group
As described in Isaac Asimov's 1979 autobiography In Memory Yet Green, the Futurians spun off from the Greater New York Science Fiction Club (headed by Sam Moskowitz, later an influential sci-fi editor and historian) over ideological differences, with the Futurians wishing to take a more overtly Marxist political stance. Other sources indicate that Donald A. Wollheim was pushing for a more left-wing direction with a goal of leading fandom toward a political ideal, all of which Moskowitz resisted. As a result, Wollheim broke off from the Greater New York group and founded the Futurians in September, 1938. The fans following Moskowitz reorganized into the Queens Science Fiction Club.

Frederik Pohl, in his autobiography The Way the Future Was, said that the origin of the Futurians lay with the Science Fiction League founded by Hugo Gernsback in 1934, the local New York City chapter of which was called the "Brooklyn Science Fiction League," headed by G. G. Clark.

Wollheim, John Michel, and Robert A. W. Lowndes were also members of the Brooklyn Science Fiction League. Along with Pohl, the four started calling themselves the "Quadrumvirate". Pohl, commenting about that time, said "we four marched from Brooklyn to the sea, leaving a wide scar of burned out clubs behind us. We changed clubs the way Detroit changes tailfins, every year had a new one, and last year's was junk".

There were several club names during that period, before finally settling on the Futurians. In 1935 there was the East New York Science Fiction League, later the Independent League for Science Fiction. In 1936 came the International Cosmos Science Club, which also involved Will Sykora. Pohl then says that "on reflection 'Cosmos' seemed to take in a bit more territory than was justified, so we changed it to the International Scientific Association (it wasn't International either, but then it also wasn't scientific)". It was then renamed the New York Branch-International Scientific Association.

In 1937, after a falling-out with Will Sykora and others, the "Quadrumvirate" went on to found the Futurians. Sykora then founded the Queens Science Fiction League with Sam Moskowitz and James V. Taurasi. Later, the Queens Science Fiction League changed into New Fandom. Pohl said the New Fandom and the Futurians were "Addicted to Feuds", that "No CIA nor KGB ever wrestled so valiantly for the soul of an emerging nation as New Fandom and the Futurians did for science fiction".

Most of the group's members also had professional ambitions within science fiction and related fields, and collectively were very effective at achieving this goal, as the roster of members suggests. At one point in the earliest 1940s, approximately half of all the pulp sci-fi and fantasy magazines in the U.S. were being edited by Futurians: Frederik Pohl at the Popular Publications offshoot Fictioneers, Inc. (Astonishing Stories and Super-Science Stories); Robert Lowndes at Columbia Publications, most notably with Science Fiction and Future Fiction (though through the decade to come, Lowndes's responsibilities would expand to other types of fiction magazine in the chain), and Donald Wollheim at the very marginal Albing Publications with the short-lived, micro-budgeted Cosmic Stories and Stirring Science Stories (Wollheim soon moved on to Avon Books; Doë "Leslie Perri" Baumgardt also worked on a romance fiction title for Albing). Most of these projects had small editorial budgets, and relied in part, or occasionally entirely, on contributions from fellow Futurians for their contents.

Political tendencies
At the time the Futurians were formed, Donald Wollheim was strongly attracted by communism and believed that followers of science fiction "should actively work for the realization of the scientific world-state as the only genuine justification for their activities and existence". It was to this end that Wollheim formed the Futurians, and many of its members were in some degree interested in the political applications of science fiction. Members of the Futurians, including Wollheim, Michel, Lowndes, and Cohen briefly became interested in Technocracy, a utopian movement led by Howard Scott, and attended a study course, although they later dismissed Scott as a "crackpot".

Hence the group included supporters of Trotskyism, like Judith Merril and others who would have been deemed far left for the era (Frederik Pohl became a member of the Communist Party in 1936, but quit in 1939).

Pohl, in his autobiography, The Way the Future Was, said Wollheim voted for Republican Presidential Candidate Alfred Landon in 1936.

Members included

 * Isaac Asimov
 * Elise Balter (also known as Elsie Wollheim)
 * James Blish
 * Hannes Bok
 * Daniel Burford
 * Chester Cohen
 * Rosalind Cohen (later Mrs. Dirk Wylie)
 * Harry Dockweiler (also known as Dirk Wylie)
 * Jack Gillespie
 * Virginia Kidd
 * Damon Knight
 * Cyril Kornbluth
 * Mary Byers (also known as Mary Kornbluth)
 * Walter Kubilius
 * David Kyle
 * Herman Leventman
 * Robert A. W. Lowndes
 * Judith Merril
 * John Michel
 * Frederik Pohl
 * Leslie Perri, a pseudonym of Doris "Doë" Baumgardt
 * Jack Rubinson
 * Larry Shaw
 * Richard Wilson
 * Donald A. Wollheim

title: Futurians


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First Fandom

First Fandom is an informal association of early, active and well-known science fiction fans.

In 1958 a number of fans at Midwestcon realized amid table-talk that they all had been active in fandom for more than 20 years. This inspired the creation of an organization for longstanding fans under the initial chairmanship of Robert A. Madle, who "in 1958 suggested the idea of forming an organization called First Fandom". Originally only those fans who were known to have been active in fandom before the cutoff date, January 1, 1938, were eligible. Such fannish activity (or "fanac") including writing to letter columns in science fiction magazines, having been published in fanzines, or having participated in science fiction oriented clubs, or just generally doing fannish things.

The term itself is an oblique reference to Olaf Stapledon's classic science fiction epic Last and First Men. In this book the stages of mankind are enumerated. Thus early 1950s historian of fandom Jack Speer began to label successive generations of fans as First Fandom, Second Fandom, Third Fandom, and so forth... all the way to Seventh Fandom and beyond.

Currently the organization allows several classes of membership. For example, a Dinosaur is a member who was active before the first Worldcon (World Science Fiction Convention) held on July 4, 1939, while Associate Membership requires provable activity in fandom for more than three decades.

First Fandom annually presents its First Fandom Hall of Fame award and Sam Moskowitz Archive Award for excellence in science fiction collecting. at the beginning of the Hugo Awards Ceremony at the World Science Fiction Convention.

There is an analogous informal society in Finnish fandom called the Dinosaur Club; the cutoff being the first major Finnish con Kingcon.

Awards
First Fandom recognizes people for their work within the science-fiction community.

First Fandom Hall of Fame Award
This award "is presented annually for contributions to the field of science fiction dating back more than 30 years. Contributions can be as a fan, writer, editor, artist, agent, or any combination of the five." It is usually presented at the Hugo Awards.

See full article.

Posthumous Hall of Fame Award
This award "is presented for contributions to the field of science fiction dating back more than 30 years. The Posthumous Hall of Fame award was established as a separate and equal award with unique criteria in 1994 at Rivercon XIX" and is also usually presented at the Hugos.

 * 1966
 * David H. Keller

 * 1971
 * John W. Campbell, Jr.

 * 1994
 * Gerry de la Ree

 * 1995
 * Cyril Kornbluth
 * Mort Weisinger

 * 1996
 * Henry Kuttner

 * 1997
 * Mark Reinsberg

 * 1998
 * Oswald V. Train
 * Tom L. Sherred

 * 1999
 * Lynn Hickman

 * 2000
 * Theodore R. Cogswell
 * Mark Schulzinger

 * 2001
 * Gordon R. Dickson

 * 2002
 * Martha Beck

 * 2003
 * Philip Francis Nowlan

 * 2004
 * Edgar Rice Burroughs

 * 2007
 * Don H. Dailey

 * 2008
 * Isaac Asimov

 * 2009
 * Walter J. Daugherty

 * 2010
 * Ray Cummings

 * 2011
 * Oliver Saari

 * 2012
 * James "Rusty" Hevelin

 * 2013
 * Ted Dikty
 * Raymond A. Palmer

 * 2014
 * John 'Ted' Carnell
 * Walter H. Gillings

 * 2016
 * Olon F. Wiggin
 * Lew Martin
 * Roy V. Hunt

 * 2017
 * Jim Harmon

 * 2018
 * June Moffatt
 * Len Moffatt

 * 2019
 * Bob Shaw
 * James White
 * Walt Willis

 * 2020
 * Chad Oliver

 * 2021
 * Richard and Pat Lupoff

 * 2022
 * August Derleth

Sam Moskowitz Award Winners
This award is "for excellence in science fiction collecting. Most years, the award is presented at the World Science Fiction Convention."

 * 1998
 * Christine Moskowitz

 * 1999
 * Forrest J Ackerman

 * 2000
 * Ray Beam

 * 2001
 * Robert Weinberg

 * 2002
 * Robert A. Madle

 * 2003
 * Rusty Hevelin

 * 2008
 * Bob Peterson
 * Frank Robinson

 * 2009
 * Joe Wrzos

 * 2012
 * Donn Albright

 * 2013
 * Howard Frank

 * 2014
 * Mike Ashley

 * 2015
 * David Aronovitz

 * 2016
 * Stephen D. Korshak
 * Ned Brooks

 * 2017
 * Jon D. Swartz

 * 2018
 * Hal W. Hall

 * 2019
 * Dr. Bradford Lyau

 * 2020
 * John Carter Tibbetts

 * 2021
 * Kevin L. Cook

 * 2022
 * Doug Ellis
 * Deb Fulton

title: First Fandom


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Talk:Freemasonry

Mixed gender Masonry in North America
There are mix-gendered lodges spawned by the International Order of the Human Right (French "Droit Humain" mostly French speaking ones) in North America, as well as the genuine American Co-Masonry (English speaking). One can also find French speaking mix-gendered lodges in Canada, especially the under the custody of the Supreme Council of Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Québec. This canadian obedience has some links with the Grand Orient de France, but still uses the compulsory invocation to the Great Architect of the Universe and opens rituals with St-John's Gospel or the book of Kings from the Bible depending on the degrees. Women can freely be accepted into these Lodges in North America, as well as men and people of all races and colors. Hpm29 (talk) 23:14, 23 June 2023 (UTC)

 * I believe these are mentioned in the Droit Humain article, and might be included in the List of Masonic Grand Lodges. I don’t think this article should mention them. This article is designed to be a “broad brush” overview - a beginners guide, if you will… it’s a starting point for those searching for more info. It’s not really the right place to mention every small faction of the fraternity that exists in every country.  We have other articles and sub-articles for that. Blueboar (talk) 13:30, 9 July 2023 (UTC)
 * Well, no. There is no such thing as "mixed gendered lodges." There are all kinds of groups who practice Masonic rituals, but have zero provenance, association and amity with United Grand Lodge of England, which is the root of the tree, so to speak. All legitamate bodies of Freemasonry have amity (friendship and recognition) with the United Grand Lodge of England. This includes all jurisditions in the USA, Canada, Australia, western Europe, and others. Pedigee matters. There are a lot of so-called "masonic" organizations that have no pedigree from the real and original Masonic pedigree. Kornbelt888 (talk) 19:25, 2 February 2024 (UTC)

Masonic Degrees
There really isn't an article that I can find where Masonic degrees as rituals are discussed. This is definitely a significant oversight in the encyclopedia nature of our coverage on this topic.

It seems there used to be an article but it got merged in here. Jjazz76 (talk) 00:40, 20 September 2023 (UTC)

 * Are you thinking of Masonic ritual and symbolism? There are two major problems with crafting an article about the rituals … the first is finding reliable academic type sources to support it. The second is that there isn’t any standardization in Masonry - the rituals performed in one lodge or jurisdiction are often radically different from the rituals performed in another. This means that anything we can reliably verify has to be hedged as being specific to a particular lodge or Jurisdiction. Blueboar (talk) 12:17, 24 September 2023 (UTC)
 * It would seem to me the York Rite Craft Degrees, which are very common in the US, basically appear nowhere in any of the articles. There are plenty of sources about them. Jjazz76 (talk) 04:45, 25 September 2023 (UTC)
 * I am not sure what “York Rite Craft Degrees” are. In the US, the York Rite degrees are considered supplemental to the Craft Degrees. They are separate things. Blueboar (talk) 13:33, 19 November 2023 (UTC)

Please change letter G redirect
the current link does not describe anything to do with Freemasonry. Please change the link from G to https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Masonic_abbreviations#:~:text=with%20a%20G.-,G.,Grand%20Architect%20of%20the%20Universe. I would do so myself but my wiki-fu is admittedly not strong enough. 2603:800C:3D00:1ED2:F81D:98FA:D56:FB1A (talk) 05:38, 19 January 2024 (UTC)

 * I agree. Will do that for you:)) Michaelangelos (talk) 08:42, 14 June 2024 (UTC)

Article Unclear
The article is not very helpful in helping the readers understand what Freemasonry actually is. The three introductory paragraphs only focus on organizational structure and differences within Freemasonry, but leave aside the primary question of what the modern freemasonry is all about. There should at least be an attempt to answer this fundamental question in the introduction. ---bssasidhar- >Talk Page 08:15, 21 February 2024 (UTC)
 * The fundamental question is answered in the very first sentence… Freemasonry is a fraternal organization. It is about fraternity (ie friendship and brotherhood). Everything else stems from (and reinforces) that basic concept. Blueboar (talk) 12:43, 21 February 2024 (UTC)
 * "Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations and guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 14th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities and clients."
 * This sentence, being in past tense makes it confusing. -bssasidhar- >Talk Page 12:26, 26 February 2024 (UTC)
 * Sentence has been changed… hopefully it is clearer now. Blueboar (talk) 21:04, 21 March 2024 (UTC)
 * Yes. Thank you. -bssasidhar- >Talk Page 08:35, 25 March 2024 (UTC)

Are all stonemasons a part of freemasonry?
It is clear to me that freemasonry, a kind of fraternal organization with some secret rituals, code of conducts, and belief system; originated historically from stonemasonry. However, what is not clear to me that whether these 2 group of peoples are overlapping (as in venn diagram) or mutually exclusive. I know there are freemasons who are not stonemassons. But are there any stonemasons who are NOT associated with freemasonry by any means? or all stonemasons are mandated to go through freemasonry??

Please make this clear in the article.

2409:40E1:100D:518E:8000:0:0:0 (talk) 20:45, 22 April 2024 (UTC)

 * Thanks for the comment. Historically, all stonemasons were Freemasons and all Freemasons were stonemasons (the two terms meant the same thing).  However, beginning in the late 1500s and early 1600s they slowly drifted apart. Today they are separate.  So… today, while there are some stonemasons who are Freemasons, it isn’t automatic… and most stonemasons likely are not Freemasons. Blueboar (talk) 21:11, 22 April 2024 (UTC)

Proposed paragraph removal
In contrast to Catholic allegations of rationalism and naturalism, Protestant objections are more likely to be based on allegations of mysticism, occultism, and even Satanism. Masonic scholar Albert Pike is often quoted (in some cases misquoted) by Protestant anti-Masons as an authority for the position of Masonry on these issues. However, Pike, although undoubtedly learned, was not a spokesman for Freemasonry and was also controversial among Freemasons in general. His writings represented his personal opinion only, and furthermore, an opinion grounded in the attitudes and understandings of late 19th century Southern Freemasonry of the US. Notably, his book carries in the preface a form of disclaimer from his own Grand Lodge. No one voice has ever spoken for the whole of Freemasonry.

I believe that the above paragraph should be deleted due to poor sourcing and WP:OR issues. The deletion was contested by User:Blueboar, so I would like to elaborate more on the issues that I have with this paragraph.

The first sentence makes a general statement about what Protestant objections are more likely to be based on using one source alone: an anti-Freemasonry tract by Christian fundamentalist Jack Chick. Since this is a WP:PRIMARY work presenting the viewpoint of an individual Protestant Christian, we can only use it as a source for straightforward statements of fact that directly come from the source (e.g. what Jack Chick personally thinks about Freemasonry). We cannot engage in WP:OR and apply extrapolation and analysis to this source to say what Protestant objections are more likely to be based on overall.

The second sentence is published by the Masonic Information Center, meaning that it is not WP:INDEPENDENT of Freemasonry. Per WP:ABOUTSELF, it cannot be used to make claims about third parties, such as what Protestant anti-Masons have said or any misrepresentations they may have made.

The end of the passage is cited to Albert Pike's own Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, a WP:PRIMARY work. It cannot be used to establish whether Pike was learned, whether he was a spokesman for Freemasonry, whether it is [notable] that his book carries a disclaimer from his Grand Lodge, or whether his writings were controversial among Freemasons in general, all of which are not direct statements of fact about Pike's work but rather analytical statements contextualizing his work requiring a secondary source. As the paragraph states, His writings represented his personal opinion only, so they cannot be used as a source for describing the role of Pike in Freemasonry in WP:Wikivoice. Zylostr (talk) 06:17, 12 July 2024 (UTC)
 * An initial comment (I will respond in more detail later) - first, the source for the second sentence (De Hoyas and Morris) was originally published by M. Evans & Company, which is INDEPENDENT of Freemasonry. The online version that is linked to (Masonic Service Center) is merely a “courtesy link”… a re-publication by permission of the authors. Second - It is a secondary source, not a primary one. And… even if it were, the authors are two of the most notable scholars on Freemasonry, writing about a subject within their expertise, so it would pass the EXPERT exemption. Blueboar (talk) 10:01, 12 July 2024 (UTC)
 * It still seems to me that the source may be WP:COISOURCE. The publisher being independent doesn't make the authorship independent—for instance, a public figure's autobiography might be published through a major mainstream publishing house, but it would still be a non-independent source. The De Hoyas and Morris source appears to carry the copyright of the Masonic Information Center, making it the work of a Masonic organization. Additionally, the genre of the work appears to be a polemical work in defense of Freemasonry, and De Hoyas and Morris are Freemasons who have held leadership roles in Freemasonic organizations, so this is not a work by outsider academics.
 * To be charitable, I believe it might make sense to limit the extent to which COISOURCE applies to work written by members of very large organizations or movements, as well as work belonging to organizations that fall under the umbrella of a broader movement but are not necessarily formally connected to the movement as a whole. For instance, it seems to me that works written by scholars who happen to be religious are not categorically COISOURCE on religious matters. I can see an argument that De Hoyas and Morris's work is on par with the work of legitimately credentialed religious apologists, which could make it usable but not in WP:Wikivoice. Zylostr (talk) 04:46, 14 July 2024 (UTC)
 * I have been thinking about this further, and while I still disagree with your objections to Morris and De Hoyas, I do think these paragraphs are too long. In fact, I think the entire “religious objections” section (not just the paragraphs in question) could benefit from better summarization. The opinions that various religious sects and denominations have about Freemasonry (and Freemasonry’s response to those opinions) are covered in detail in linked articles. We don’t need to repeat it all here. This article is supposed to be an overview. Blueboar (talk) 00:00, 17 July 2024 (UTC)
 * I think I would also agree with summarization in accordance with due weight. Perhaps the whole section could be replaced with a brief paragraph cited to academic sources about religious history, with secondary sources guiding due weight considerations. This would potentially obviate concerns over De Hoyas and Morris by replacing the source with very similar information from an academic source.Zylostr (talk) 16:15, 17 July 2024 (UTC)
 * One problem is that there are no completely independent academic sources that cover the sub-topic. The closest we have are either Religious scholars or Masonic scholars like Morris and De Hoyas.  Still, I will give it a shot.  Be patient please… this will take time. Blueboar (talk) 16:35, 17 July 2024 (UTC)

title: Talk:Freemasonry


text:
Talk:Frederick Sanger/Archive 1

Any relation to our own Larry Sanger? --Damian Yerrick - Not that I know of--I very much doubt it. I'm pretty sure I am descended from the prolific New York State Sangers of the 19th century, which (it so happens) produced Margaret Sanger. I don't think I'm closely related to her, though, either. --LMS

Improvement!
This biography should be improved. Sanger won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry twice. He is a very important scientist. Other users are invited to contribute. Masterpiece2000 (talk) 06:33, 8 January 2008 (UTC)

title: Talk:Frederick Sanger/Archive 1


text:
Fianna Fáil

Fianna Fáil (, ; meaning "Soldiers of Destiny" or "Warriors of Fál"), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party (Fianna Fáil – An Páirtí Poblachtánach), is a political party in Ireland.

The party was founded as a republican party in 1926 by Éamon de Valera and his supporters after they split from Sinn Féin in order to take seats in the Oireachtas, which Sinn Féin refused to recognise. Since 1927, Fianna Fáil has been one of Ireland's two major parties, along with Fine Gael since 1933; both are seen as centre-right parties, to the right of the Labour Party and Sinn Féin. The party dominated Irish political life for most of the 20th century, and, since its foundation, either it or Fine Gael has led every government. Between 1932 and 2011, it was the largest party in Dáil Éireann, but latterly with a decline in its vote share; from 1989 onwards, its periods of government were in coalition with parties of either the left or the right.

Fianna Fáil's vote collapsed in the 2011 general election; it emerged in third place, in what was widely seen as a political realignment in the wake of the post-2008 Irish economic downturn. By 2016, it had recovered enough to become the largest opposition party, and it entered a confidence and supply arrangement with a Fine Gael–led minority government. In 2020, after a number of months of political stalemate following the general election, Fianna Fáil agreed with Fine Gael and the Green Party to enter into an unprecedented coalition, with the leaders of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael rotating between the roles of Taoiseach and Tánaiste.

Fianna Fáil is a member of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe and of Liberal International. From February 2019 to September 2022, Fianna Fáil was in partnership with the Social Democratic and Labour Party in Northern Ireland.

History
Fianna Fáil was founded by Éamon de Valera, a former leader of Sinn Féin. The previous year, de Valera proposed a motion calling for elected members to be allowed to take their seats in Dáil Éireann if and when the controversial Oath of Allegiance was removed. It failed to pass at the Sinn Féin Ard Fheis, leading de Valera and a number of other members, including most of Sinn Féin's parliamentary talent, to split from Sinn Féin. His new party adopted its name on 2 April of the same year. While it was also opposed to the Treaty settlement, it rejected abstentionism, instead aiming to republicanise the Irish Free State from within. Fianna Fáil's platform of economic autarky had appeal among the farmers, working-class people and the poor, while alienating more affluent classes. It largely pre-empted voters of the aforementioned groups from the Labour Party (with its almost identical economic and social policy) following its entry into the Dáil in 1927. Fianna Fáil would go on to style themselves for several decades as "the real Labour Party."

Cumann na nGaedheal sought to exploit the notion that Fianna Fáil was a party in thrall to communists. During the 1932 general election campaign, Cumann na nGaedheal declared in a newspaper advert that "the gunmen and Communists are voting for Fianna Fáil today – vote for the Government party." However, Fianna Fáil won the election, forming its first government on 9 March 1932. It was in power for 61 of the 79 years between then and the election of 2011. Its longest continuous period in office was its first, 15 years and 11 months (March 1932 – February 1948). Its longest single period out of office in the 20th century was four years and four months (March 1973 – July 1977). All of the party's leaders have served as Taoiseach.

The party's most dominant era was the 41-year period between 1932 and 1973, when party leaders Éamon de Valera, Seán Lemass and Jack Lynch served as Taoiseach in an almost unbroken chain save for two three-year stints by John A. Costello. De Valera's reign is acknowledged for having successfully guided Ireland through World War II unscathed but is criticised for leaving Ireland in economic and cultural stagnation. His successors such as Lemass however were able to turn around Ireland's economic fortunes as well as primed the country for entry into the European Economic Community, later the European Union.

Fianna Fáil's fortunes began to falter in the 1970s and 1980s. In 1970 the Arms Crisis threatened to split the entire party in two when Fianna Fáil cabinet ministers Charles Haughey and Neil Blaney were dismissed by Jack Lynch after being accused of seeking to provide arms to the newly emergent Provisional Irish Republican Army. Factional infighting over Northern Ireland, economics and the "moral issues" such as the legalization of divorce, abortion, and contraception plagued the party in this era and grew particularly intense when Charles Haughey later became party leader. Under Haughey, Fianna Fáil lost both the 1981 general election and November 1982 general election to Garret FitzGerald's Fine Gael during a particularly chaotic time in Ireland's political and economic history. Numerous failed internal attempts to oust Haughey as leader of the party culminated in the most significant split in the party's history when a large portion of the membership walked out to create the Progressive Democrats in 1985, under the leadership of Haughey archrival Desmond O'Malley. Haughey was forced to resign as Taoiseach and party leader in 1992 following revelations about his role in a phone tapping scandal.

Although the two parties had seemed poised to be bitter enemies owing to the personal conflicts between the memberships, from 1989 onwards Fianna Fáil and the Progressive Democrats served repeatedly in coalition governments together, helping to stabilise Fianna Fáil. In 1994 Fianna Fáil came under the new leadership of Haughey protégé Bertie Ahern, who also became Taoiseach in 1997. Under Ahern, Fianna Fáil was able to claim credit for helping to broker the Good Friday Agreement in 1998 which began the peace process in Northern Ireland, as well the economic upswing caused by the Celtic Tiger which saw Ireland's economy boom during the 2000s. However, this momentum came to a sharp and sudden halt following two events. Firstly, Ahern was forced to resign as Taoiseach and left the party in 2008 following revelations made in the Mahon Tribunal that Ahern had accepted money from property developers. Secondly, the party, which was still in government under a new leader and Taoiseach Brian Cowen, was held responsible for the effects of the post-2008 Irish economic downturn. The party's popularity crashed: an opinion poll on 27 February 2009 indicated that only 10% of voters were satisfied with the Government's performance.

In the 2011 general election, it suffered the worst defeat of a sitting government in the history of the Irish state. This loss was described as "historic" in its proportions and "unthinkable". The party sank from being the largest in the Dáil to the third-largest, losing 58 of its 78 seats. This broke 79 consecutive years of Fianna Fáil being the largest single party in the Dáil. That election took place with Micheál Martin as leader, as Cowen had resigned as party leader in January 2011, although retained his role as Taoiseach until the election. Cowen's premiership was sharply criticised in the media, with The Sunday Times describing Cowen's tenure as Taoiseach as "a dismal failure" and in 2011 the Irish Independent calling Cowen the "worst Taoiseach in the history of the State."

Recent history
Martin continued to lead Fianna Fáil past 2011; In the 2016 general election Martin's Fianna Fáil made a moderate recovery while Fine Gael retained control of the government as a minority government, made possible by a confidence and supply agreement with Fianna Fáíl. In 2018 the party was divided internally over how the party would handle that year's referendum on the Eighth Amendment, the provision in the Irish constitution which forbade abortion, with a significant portion of both the parliamentary party and the ordinary membership in favour of a No vote. Leader Micheál Martin signalled his own desire for a Yes vote, but was unable to bring the party under one stance, and ultimately more than half of Fianna Fáil's TDs campaigned for a No vote. On polling day the Yes side won, 66% to 33%.

After the 2020 general election, for the first time in history, Fianna Fáil entered into a coalition government with its traditional rival Fine Gael, as well as the Green Party, ending its longest period out of government since its formation. Under the agreement, Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin served as Taoiseach for the first half of the parliamentary term. That same year a number of Fianna Fáil members were involved in the "Golfgate" scandal, an event that ultimately led to the resignation of Fianna Fáil deputy leader Dara Calleary. In July 2021 Fianna Fáil suffered what a number of sources suggested might have been the single worst result in its history when the party polled extremely poorly in the 2021 Dublin Bay South by-election. The result prompted Jim O'Callaghan and Cathal Crowe to question whether Martin should lead the party into its next general election. In February 2023, former leader Bertie Ahern rejoined the party, having left in 2012.

Organisation and structure
Fianna Fáil uses a structure called a cumann system. The basic unit was the cumann (branch); these were grouped into comhairlí ceantair (district branches) and a comhairle dáil ceantair (constituency branch) in every constituency. The party claimed that in 2005 they had 50,000 registered names, but only an estimated 10,000–15,000 members were considered active.

However, from the early 1990s onward, the cumann structure was weakened. Every cumann was entitled to three votes to selection conventions irrespective of its size; hence, a large number of cumainn had become in effect "paper cumainn", the only use of which was to ensure an aspiring or sitting candidate got enough votes. Although this phenomenon was nothing new (the most famous example being Neil Blaney's "Donegal Mafia").

Since the 2007 election, the party's structure has significantly weakened. This was in part exacerbated by significant infighting between candidates in the run-up to the 2011 general election. The Irish Times estimated that half of its 3,000 cumainn were effectively moribund. This fraction rose in Dublin with the exception of Dublin West, the former seat of both Brian Lenihan Snr and Brian Lenihan Jnr.

Ideology and platform
Cited as being on the centre,  centre-right   or right-wing of the political spectrum, Fianna Fáil has been variously described as conservative, conservative-liberal, national-conservative, and Christian-democratic.

In the modern era, Fianna Fáil is seen as a typical catch-all party and has defined itself as such. In the 1980s, Brian Lenihan Snr declared "there are no isms or [ide]ologies in my party"; further, in the early 2000s, Fianna Fáil leader Bertie Ahern affirmed the party's catch-all stance by defining Fianna Fáil as a party that "looks out for the small ranking guy, the middle-ranking guy and assists the big guy". This contrasts with the more working-class orientation Fianna Fáil had in the early 20th century. In 1926, Seán Lemass described the party as "a progressive republican party based on the actual conditions of the moment" while upon winning the 1932 Irish general election, newly elected Fianna Fáil TD Seán Moylan proclaimed that Fianna Fáil's win meant a victory of "the owners of the donkey and cart over the pony and trap class". The Fianna Fáil party of the 1930s has been described as an economically social democratic one that sought to create an economically independent state (autarky) via protectionist policies, based on its culturally nationalist thinking.

During the leadership of Seán Lemass in the 1960s, Fianna Fáil began to utilise some corporatist policies (embracing the concept of 'social partnership'), taking some influence from the Roman Catholic Church. It was also during Lemass' time that the party shifted heavily away from autarkic thinking and towards a firm belief in free trade and foreign direct investment in Ireland.

In 1967, Jack Lynch described the party as "left of centre" while suggesting it was to the left of Fine Gael and Labour. However, during the 1969 Irish general election, the party ran red scare tactics against Labour after it began using the slogan "the seventies will be socialist!". As Fine Gael became more and more socially liberal in the 1970s under Garret FitzGerald, the party reacted by embracing social conservatism and populism. In the same time period, the emergence of the Troubles and the Arms Crisis of 1971 tested the party's nationalism, but despite these events, Fianna Fáil maintained their moderate culturally nationalist stance.

In the 1990s, Fianna Fáil was described as a conservative party but also as a nationalist party. It has presented itself as a "broad church" and attracted support from across disparate social classes. Between 1989 and 2011, it led coalition governments with parties of both the left and the right. Fianna Fáil's platform contains a number of enduring commitments: to Irish unity; to the promotion and protection of the Irish language; and to maintaining Ireland's tradition of military neutrality. While the party is distinctly more populist, nationalist, and generally more economically interventionist than Fine Gael, the party shares its rival's support of the European Union. Although part of the liberal Renew group in the European Parliament, the party has not supported the group's positions on civil liberties and its liberal nature is disputed, though the party did legalize same-sex civil partnerships in 2010.

The party's name and logo incorporates the words 'The Republican Party'. According to Fianna Fáil, "Republican here stands both for the unity of the island and a commitment to the historic principles of European republican philosophy, namely liberty, equality and fraternity". The party's main goal at its beginning was to reunite the North and the South.

R. Ken Carty wrote of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael that they were "heterogeneous in their bases of support, relatively undifferentiated in terms of policy or programme, and remarkably stable in their support levels". Evidence from expert surveys, opinion polls and candidate surveys all fail to identify strong distinctions between the two parties.

Leadership and president
The following are the terms of office as party leader and as Taoiseach:

Ógra Fianna Fáil
Ógra Fianna Fáil serves as the party's official youth wing.

Fianna Fáil and Northern Ireland politics
On 17 September 2007, Fianna Fáil announced that the party would for the first time organise in Northern Ireland. The then Foreign Minister Dermot Ahern was asked to chair a committee on the matter: "In the period ahead Dermot Ahern will lead efforts to develop that strategy for carrying through this policy, examining timescales and structures. We will act gradually and strategically. We are under no illusions. It will not be easy. It will challenge us all. But I am confident we will succeed".

The party embarked on its first ever recruitment drive north of the border in September 2007 in northern universities, and established two 'Political Societies', the William Drennan Cumann in Queens University, Belfast, and the Watty Graham Cumann in UU Magee, Derry, which subsequently became official units of Fianna Fáil's youth wing, attaining full membership and voting rights, and attained official voting delegates at the 2012 Ard Fheis. On 23 February 2008, it was announced that a former Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) councillor, Colonel Harvey Bicker, had joined Fianna Fáil.

Bertie Ahern announced on 7 December 2007 that Fianna Fáil had been registered in Northern Ireland by the UK Electoral Commission. The party's Ard Fheis in 2009 unanimously passed a motion to organise in Northern Ireland by establishing forums, rather than cumainn, in each of its six counties. In December 2009, Fianna Fáil secured its first Northern Ireland Assembly MLA when Gerry McHugh, an independent MLA, announced he had joined the party. Mr. McHugh confirmed that although he had joined the party, he would continue to sit as an independent MLA. In June 2010, Fianna Fáil opened its first official office in Northern Ireland, in Crossmaglen, County Armagh. The then Taoiseach Brian Cowen officially opened the office, accompanied by Ministers Éamon Ó Cuív and Dermot Ahern and Deputies Rory O’Hanlon and Margaret Conlon. Discussing the party's slow development towards all-Ireland politics, Mr. Cowen observed: "We have a very open and pragmatic approach. We are a constitutional republican party and we make no secret of the aspirations on which this party was founded. It has always been very clear in our mind what it is we are seeking to achieve, that is to reconcile this country and not being prisoners of our past history. To be part of a generation that will build a new Ireland, an Ireland of which we can all be proud".

Fianna Fáil has not contested any elections in Northern Ireland since its registration and recognition there in 2007. At the party's 2014 Ard Fheis, a motion was passed without debate to stand candidates for election north of the border for the first time in 2019.

Since 24 January 2019, the party have been in partnership with the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) formerly the main Irish nationalist party in Northern Ireland, but now smaller than Sinn Féin. There had long been speculation about the eventual partnership for several years prior. This was initially met with a negative reaction from Seamus Mallon, former Deputy Leader of the SDLP, who stated he would be opposed to any such merger. Former leader of the SDLP Margaret Ritchie originally stated publicly that she opposed any merger, announcing to the Labour Party Conference that such a merger would not happen on her "watch". On 10 January 2019, Richie stated that she now supported a new partnership with Fianna Fáil.

Both Fianna Fáil and the SDLP currently have shared policies on key areas including addressing the current political situation in Northern Ireland, improving public services in both jurisdictions of Ireland, such as healthcare, housing, education, and governmental reform, and bringing about the further unity and cooperation of the people on the island and arrangements for a future poll on Irish reunification.

In September 2022, SDLP party leader Colum Eastwood announced the end of its partnership with Fianna Fáil, saying that the SDLP needed to move forward by "standing on its own two feet".

Representation in European institutions
Fianna Fáil joined the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) party on 16 April 2009, and the party's Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) sat in the ALDE Group during the 7th European Parliament term from June 2009 to 1 July 2014. The party is a full member of the Liberal International. Prior to this, the party was part of the Eurosceptic Union for Europe of the Nations parliamentary group between 1999 and 2009.

Party headquarters, over the objections of some MEPs, had made several attempts to sever the party's links to the European right, including an aborted 2004 agreement to join the European Liberal Democrat and Reform (ELDR) Party, with whom it already sat in the Council of Europe under the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) banner. On 27 February 2009, Taoiseach Brian Cowen announced that Fianna Fáil proposed to join the ELDR Party and intended to sit with them in the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) Group in the European Parliament after the 2009 European elections.

In October 2009, it was reported that Fianna Fáil had irritated its new Liberal colleagues by failing to vote for the motion on press freedom in Italy (resulting in its defeat by a majority of one in the Parliament) and by trying to scupper their party colleagues' initiative for gay rights. In January 2010, a report by academic experts writing for the votewatch.eu site found that FF "do not seem to toe the political line" of the ALDE Group "when it comes to budget and civil liberties" issues.

In the 2014 European elections, Fianna Fáil received 22.3% of first-preference votes but only returned a single MEP, a reduction in representation of two MEPs from the previous term. This was due to a combination of the party's vote further dropping in Dublin and a two candidate strategy in the Midlands North West constituency, which backfired, resulting in sitting MEP Pat "the Cope" Gallagher losing his seat. On 23 June 2014, returning MEP Brian Crowley announced that he intended to sit with the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) rather than the ALDE group during the upcoming 8th term of the European parliament. The following day on 24 June 2014 Crowley had the Fianna Fáil party whip withdrawn. He has since been re-added to Fianna Fáil's website.

In the European Committee of the Regions, Fianna Fáil sits in the Renew Europe CoR group, with two full and two alternate members for the 2020–2025 mandate. Kate Feeney is third vice-president of the Group.

title: Fianna Fáil


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Fujiwara clan

The Fujiwara clan (藤原氏) was a powerful family of imperial regents in Japan, descending from the Nakatomi clan and, as legend held, through them their ancestral god Ame-no-Koyane. The Fujiwara prospered since the ancient times and dominated the imperial court until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. They held the title of Ason. The abbreviated form is Tōshi (藤氏).

The 8th century clan history Tōshi Kaden (藤氏家伝) states the following at the biography of the clan's patriarch, Fujiwara no Kamatari (614–669): "Kamatari, the Inner Palace Minister who was also called ‘Chūrō,’ was a man of the Takechi district of Yamato Province. His forebears descended from Ame no Koyane no Mikoto; for generations they had administered the rites for Heaven and Earth, harmonizing the space between men and the gods. Therefore, it was ordered their clan was to be called Ōnakatomi"

The clan originated when the founder, Nakatomi no Kamatari (614–669) of the Nakatomi clan, was rewarded by Emperor Tenji with the honorific "Fujiwara" —after the wisteria (藤 fuji) field on Mount Tōno (in present day Sakurai City) where Kamatari and the then-Prince Naka, who he befriended in a game of kemari, and conspired to eliminate the Soga clan— which evolved as a surname for Kamatari and his descendants. In time, Fujiwara became known as a clan name.

The Fujiwara dominated the Japanese politics of the Heian period (794–1185) through the monopoly of regent positions, Sesshō and Kampaku. The family's primary strategy for central influence was through the marrying of Fujiwara daughters to the Emperors. Through this, the Fujiwara would gain influence over the next emperor who would, according to family tradition of that time, be raised in the household of his mother's side and owe loyalty to his grandfather. As abdicated emperors took over power by exercising insei (院政, cloistered rule) at the end of the 11th century, then followed by the rise of the warrior class, the Fujiwara gradually lost its control over mainstream politics.

The Northern Fujiwara (Ōshū Fujiwara) ruled the Tōhoku region (northeast Honshū) of Japan during the 12th century.

Beyond the 12th century, they continued to monopolize the titles of Sesshō and Kampaku for much of the time until the system was abolished in the Meiji era. Though their influence declined, the clan remained close advisors to the succeeding Emperors.

Asuka and Nara period
The Fujiwara clan's political influence was initiated during the Asuka period. Nakatomi no Kamatari, a member of the lower-nobility Nakatomi family led a coup against the Soga in 645 and initiated a series of sweeping government reforms that would be known as the Taika Reform. In 668 Emperor Tenji (reigned 668–671), bestowed the kabane Fujiwara no Ason (藤原朝臣) on Kamatari. The surname passed to the descendants of Fujiwara no Fuhito (659–720), the second son and heir of Kamatari, who was prominent at the court of several emperors and empresses during the early Nara period. He made his daughter Miyako a concubine of Emperor Monmu. Her son, Prince Obito became Emperor Shōmu. Fuhito succeeded in making another of his daughters, Kōmyōshi, the empress consort of Emperor Shōmu. She was the first empress consort of Japan who was not a daughter of the imperial family itself. Fuhito had four sons; and each of them became the progenitor of a cadet branch of the clan: Among them, the Hokke came to be considered as the leaders of the entire clan. All four brothers died in 737 during a major smallpox epidemic in Japan.
 * the Hokke or Northern branch founded by Fujiwara no Fusasaki
 * the Kyōke branch founded by Fujiwara no Maro
 * the Nanke or Southern branch founded by Fujiwara no Muchimaro
 * the Shikike branch founded by Fujiwara no Umakai

Heian period
During the Heian period of Japanese history, the Hokke managed to establish a hereditary claim to the position of regent, either for an underage emperor (sesshō) or for an adult one (kampaku). Some prominent Fujiwaras occupied these positions more than once, and for more than one emperor. Lesser members of the Fujiwara were court nobles, provincial governors and vice governors, members of the provincial aristocracy, and samurai. The Fujiwara was one of the four great families that dominated Japanese politics during the Heian Period (794 AC–1185 AC), and the most important of them at that time. The others were the Tachibana, the Taira and the Minamoto. The Fujiwara exercised tremendous power, especially during the period of regency governments in the 10th and 11th centuries, having many emperors as practically puppet monarchs.

The Fujiwara dominated the government of Japan 794–1160. There is no clear starting point of their dominance. However, their domination of civil administration was lost by the establishment of the first shogunate (i.e., Kamakura shogunate) under Minamoto no Yoritomo in 1192.

Fujiwara princes initially served as highest ministers of the imperial Court (kampaku) and regents (sesshō) for underage monarchs. The Fujiwara were the proverbial "power behind the throne" for centuries. Apparently they never aspired to supplant the imperial dynasty. Instead, the clan's influence stemmed from its matrimonial alliances with the imperial family. Because consorts of crown princes, younger sons, and emperors were generally Fujiwara women, the male heads of the Fujiwara house were often the father-in-law, brother-in-law, uncle, or maternal grandfather of the emperor. The family reached the peak of its power under Fujiwara no Michinaga (966–1027). He was the grandfather of three emperors, the father of six empresses or imperial consorts, and the grandfather of seven additional imperial consorts; it is no exaggeration to say that it was Michinaga who ruled Japan during this period, not the titular Emperors. As a result of these unusually strong familial links, Michinaga never took the title of Kampaku—he held more than the power that the position would bring, and had no need of the title.

The Fujiwara clan is featured prominently in The Pillow Book, by Sei Shōnagon, and the character of Genji is partially based on Michinaga in the eponymous Tale of Genji.

Fujiwara regime in the Heian period
The Fujiwara Regency was the main feature of government during most of the Heian era. Kyoto (Heian-kyō) was geopolitically a better seat of government; with good river access to the sea, it could be reached by land routes from the eastern provinces.

Just before the move to the Heian-kyō, the Emperor had abolished universal conscription in the eighth century and soon local, private militaries came into being. The Fujiwara and the clans of Taira and Minamoto created later during the ninth century were among the most prominent families supported by the new military class.

In the ninth and tenth centuries, much authority was lost to the great families, who disregarded the Chinese-style land and tax systems imposed by the government in Kyoto. Stability came to Heian Japan, but, even though succession was ensured for the Imperial family through heredity, power again concentrated in the hands of one noble family, the Fujiwara.

Family administrations now became public institutions. As the most powerful family, the Fujiwara governed Japan and determined the general affairs of state, such as succession to the throne. Family and state affairs were thoroughly intermixed, a pattern followed among other families, monasteries, and even the imperial family.

As the Soga had taken control of the throne in the sixth century, the Fujiwara by the ninth century had intermarried with the imperial family, and one of their members was the first head of the Emperor's Private Office. While the earliest parts of the Heian period was marked by unusually strong emperors governing themselves (in particular from Emperor Kanmu to Emperor Saga (781–823)), the Fujiwara started to rebuild their influence first under Fujiwara no Fuyutsugu in the first half of the ninth century. Fuyutsugu's son Fujiwara no Yoshifusa was the first person not from the imperial family to become regent for a minor emperor when he gained that position when his grandson was enthroned as Emperor Seiwa in 858. His adopted son, Fujiwara no Mototsune, had himself further appointed kampaku (regent for an adult emperor, a newly invented position). After Mototsune's death Emperor Uda (who was not the son of a Fujiwara daughter) managed to regain control of much of government. However, after abdicating in favour of his son, Emperor Daigo (897–930), while apparently intending to control government from retirement, Mototsune's son Fujiwara no Tokihira managed to maneuver himself back to very prominent position until his early death in 909. The remaining period of Daigo's reign was again relatively free from Fujiwara dominance, but from the beginning of the reign of his son Emperor Suzaku, the Fujiwara again re-established their dominance of the court with the leadership of Fujiwara no Tadahira.

Nevertheless, the Fujiwara were not demoted by Emperor Daigo but in many ways became stronger during his reign. Central control of Japan had continued to decline, and the Fujiwara, along with other great families and religious foundations, acquired ever larger shōen and greater wealth during the early tenth century. By the early Heian period, the shōen had obtained legal status, and the large religious establishments sought clear titles in perpetuity, waiver of taxes, and immunity from government inspection of the shōen they held. Those people who worked the land found it advantageous to transfer title to shōen holders in return for a share of the harvest. People and lands were increasingly beyond central control and taxation, a de facto return to conditions before the Taika Reform.

Within decades of Emperor Daigo's death, the Fujiwara had absolute control over the court. By the year 1000, Fujiwara no Michinaga was able to enthrone and dethrone emperors at will. Little authority was left for traditional officialdom, and government affairs were handled through the Fujiwara family's private administration. The Fujiwara had become what historian George B. Sansom has called "hereditary dictators".

The Fujiwara presided over a period of cultural and artistic flowering at the imperial court and among the aristocracy. There was great interest in graceful poetry and vernacular literature. Japanese writing had long depended on Chinese ideograms (kanji), but these were now supplemented by kana, two types of phonetic Japanese script: katakana, a mnemonic device using parts of Chinese ideograms; and hiragana, a cursive form of kanji writing and an art form in itself. Hiragana gave written expression to the spoken word and, with it, to the rise in Japan's famous vernacular literature, much of it written by court women who had not been trained in Chinese as had their male counterparts. Three late tenth century and early eleventh century women presented their views of life and romance at the Heian court in Kagerō Nikki ("The Gossamer Years") by "the mother of Michitsuna", Makura no Sōshi (The Pillow Book) by Sei Shōnagon, and Genji Monogatari (Tale of Genji) by Murasaki Shikibu (herself a Fujiwara). Indigenous art also flourished under the Fujiwara after centuries of imitating Chinese forms. Vividly colored yamato-e (Japanese style) paintings of court life and stories about temples and shrines became common in the mid and late Heian periods, setting patterns for Japanese art to this day.

Decline in food production, growth of the population, and competition for resources among the great families all led to the gradual decline of Fujiwara power and gave rise to military disturbances in the mid-tenth and eleventh centuries. Members of the Fujiwara, Taira, and Minamoto families—all of whom had descended from the imperial family—attacked one another, claimed control over vast tracts of conquered land, set up rival regimes, and generally broke the peace of Japan.

The Fujiwara controlled the throne until the reign of Emperor Go-Sanjō (1068–73), the first emperor not born of a Fujiwara mother since the ninth century. Emperor Go-Sanjō, determined to restore imperial control through strong personal rule, implemented reforms to curb Fujiwara influence. He also established an office to compile and validate estate records with the aim of reasserting central control. Many shōen were not properly certified, and large landholders, like the Fujiwara, felt threatened with the loss of their lands. Emperor Go-Sanjō also established the In no chō, or Office of the Cloistered Emperor, which was held by a succession of emperors who abdicated to devote themselves to behind-the-scenes governance, or insei (Cloistered rule).

The In no chō filled the void left by the decline of Fujiwara power. Rather than being banished, the Fujiwara were mostly retained in their old positions of civil dictator and minister of the center while being bypassed in decision making. In time, many of the Fujiwara were replaced, mostly by members of the rising Minamoto family. While the Fujiwara fell into disputes among themselves and formed northern and southern factions, the insei system allowed the paternal line of the imperial family to gain influence over the throne. The period from 1086 to 1156 was the age of supremacy of the In no chō and of the rise of the military class throughout the country. Military might rather than civil authority dominated the government.

A struggle for succession in the mid-twelfth century gave the Fujiwara an opportunity to regain their former power. Fujiwara no Yorinaga sided with the retired emperor in a violent battle in 1158 against the heir apparent, who was supported by the Taira and Minamoto. In the end, the Fujiwara were destroyed, the old system of government supplanted, and the insei system left powerless as bushi took control of court affairs, marking a turning point in Japanese history. Within a year, the Taira and Minamoto clashed, and a twenty-year period of Taira ascendancy began. The Taira were seduced by court life and ignored problems in the provinces. Finally, Minamoto no Yoritomo (1147–99) rose from his headquarters at Kamakura (in the Kantō region, southwest of modern Tokyo) to defeat the Taira, and with them the child emperor Emperor Antoku they controlled, in the Genpei War (1180–85).

After this downfall, the younger branches of the Fujiwara clan turned their focus from politics to the arts, producing literary scholars including Fujiwara no Shunzei and Fujiwara no Teika.

Decline
Only forty years after Michinaga's death, his Fujiwara heirs were not able to prevent the accession of Emperor Go-Sanjō (reigned 1068–73), the first emperor since Emperor Uda whose mother was not a Fujiwara. The system of government by retired emperor (daijō tennō) (cloistered rule) beginning from 1087 further weakened the Fujiwara's control over the Imperial Court.

The Fujiwara-dominated Heian period approached its end along disturbances of 12th century. The dynastic struggle known as the Hōgen Disturbance (Hōgen no Ran) led to the Taira emerging as the most powerful clan in 1156. During the Heiji Disturbance (Heiji no Ran) in 1160 the Taira defeated the coalition of Fujiwara and Minamoto forces. This defeat marked the end of the Fujiwara's dominance.

Split and enduring influence
During the 13th century, the Fujiwara Hok-ke was split into five regent houses: Konoe, Takatsukasa, Kujō, Nijō and Ichijō.

They had a "monopoly" to the offices of sesshō and kampaku, and served in turn. The political power had shifted away from the court nobility in Kyoto to the new warrior class in the countryside. However, Fujiwara remained close advisers, regents and ministers to the emperors for centuries; the family retained political reputation and influence even until the 20th century (such as Fumimaro Konoe and Morihiro Hosokawa, who became the Prime Ministers). As such, they had a certain political power and much influence, as often the rival warriors and later bakufu sought their alliance. Oda Nobunaga and his sister Oichi claimed to have descent from the Taira and Fujiwara clans; regent Toyotomi Hideyoshi and shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu were related by marriage to various families from Fujiwara clan. Empress Shōken, wife of Emperor Meiji, was a descendant of the Fujiwara clan.

Until the marriage of the Crown Prince Hirohito (Emperor Shōwa) to Princess Nagako of Kuni (posthumously Empress Kōjun) in January 1924, the principal consorts of emperors and crown princes had often been recruited from one of the Sekke Fujiwara. Imperial princesses were often married to Fujiwara lords – throughout a millennium at least. As recently as Emperor Shōwa's third daughter, the former Princess Kazuko and Prince Mikasa's elder daughter, the former Princess Yasuko, married into Takatsukasa and Konoe families, respectively. Likewise a daughter of the last shōgun married a second cousin of Emperor Shōwa.

title: Fujiwara clan


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Federalism

Federalism is a mode of government that combines a general government (the central or federal government) with regional governments (provincial, state, cantonal, territorial, or other sub-unit governments) in a single political system, dividing the powers between the two. Johannes Althusius is considered the father of modern federalism along with Montesquieu. Althusius notably exposes the bases of this political philosophy in Politica Methodice Digesta, Atque Exemplis Sacris et Profanis Illustrata (1603). In The Spirit of Law, Montesquieu for his part sees examples of federalist republics in corporate societies, the polis bringing together villages, and the cities themselves forming confederations. Federalism in the modern era was first adopted in the unions of states during the Old Swiss Confederacy.

Federalism differs from confederalism, in which the general level of government is subordinate to the regional level, and from devolution within a unitary state, in which the regional level of government is subordinate to the general level. It represents the central form in the pathway of regional integration or separation, bounded on the less integrated side by confederalism and on the more integrated side by devolution within a unitary state.

Examples of a federation or federal province or state include Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Canada, Ethiopia, Germany, India, Iraq, Malaysia, Mexico, Micronesia, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Russia, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, and Venezuela. Some characterize the European Union as the pioneering example of federalism in a multi-state setting, in a concept termed the "federal union of states".

Etymology
The terms "federalism" and "confederalism" share a root in the Latin word foedus, meaning "treaty, pact or covenant". Their common early meaning until the late eighteenth century was a simple league or inter-governmental relationship among sovereign states based on a treaty. They were therefore initially synonyms. It was in this sense that James Madison in "The Federalist No. 39" had referred to the new US Constitution as "neither a national nor a federal Constitution, but a composition of both" (i.e. as constituting neither a single large unitary state nor a league/confederation among several small states, but a hybrid of the two). In the course of the nineteenth century United States, the meaning of federalism would come to shift, strengthening to refer uniquely to the novel compound political form established at the Philadelphia Convention, while the meaning of confederalism would remain at a league of states.

History
In the narrow sense, federalism refers to the mode in which the body politic of a state is organized internally, and this is the meaning most often used in modern times. Political scientists, however, use it in a much broader sense, referring instead to a "multi-layer or pluralistic concept of social and political life."

The first forms of federalism took place in ancient times, in the form of alliances between states. Some examples from the seventh to second century B.C. were the Archaic League, the Aetolic League, the Peloponnesian League, and the Delian League. An early ancestor of federalism was the Achaean League in Hellenistic Greece. Unlike the Greek city states of Classical Greece, each of which insisted on keeping its complete independence, changing conditions in the Hellenistic period drove many city states to band together even at the cost of losing part of their sovereignty. Subsequent unions of states included the first and second Swiss Confederations (1291–1798 and 1815–48), the United Provinces of the Netherlands (1579–1795), the German Bund (1815–66), the first American union known as the Confederation of the United States of America (1781–89), and second American union formed as the United States of America (1789–1865).

Political theory
Modern federalism is a political system based upon democratic rules and institutions in which the power to govern is shared between national and provincial/state governments. The term federalist describes several political beliefs around the world depending on context. Since the term federalization also describes distinctive political processes, its use as well depends on the context.

In political theory, two main types of federalization are recognized:
 * integrative, or aggregative federalization, designating various processes like: integration of non-federated political subjects by creating a new federation, accession of non-federated subjects into an existing federation, or transformation of a confederation into a federation
 * devolutive, or dis-aggregative federalization: transformation of a unitary state into a federation

Reasons for adoption
According to Daniel Ziblatt, there are four competing theoretical explanations in the academic literature for the adoption of federal systems:
 * 1) Ideational theories, which hold that a greater ideological commitment to decentralist ideas in society makes federalism more likely to be adopted.
 * 2) Cultural-historical theories, which hold that federal institutions are more likely to be adopted in societies with culturally or ethnically fragmented populations.
 * 3) "Social contract" theories, which hold that federalism emerges as a bargain between a center and a periphery where the center is not powerful enough to dominate the periphery and the periphery is not powerful enough to secede from the center.
 * 4) "Infrastructural power" theories, which hold that federalism is likely to emerge when the subunits of a potential federation already have highly developed infrastructures (e.g. they are already constitutional, parliamentary, and administratively modernized states).

Immanuel Kant noted that "the problem of setting up a state can be solved even by a nation of devils" so long as they possess an appropriate constitution which pits opposing factions against each other with a system of checks and balances. In particular individual states required a federation as a safeguard against the possibility of war.

Proponents for federal systems have historically argued that the power-sharing inherent in federal systems reduces both domestic security threats and foreign threats. Federalism allows states to be large and diverse, mitigating the risk of a tyrannical government through centralization of powers.

Examples
Many countries have implemented federal systems of government with varying degree of central and regional sovereignty. The federal government of these countries can be divided into minimalistic federations, consisting of only two sub-federal units or multi-regional, those that consist of three to dozens of regional governments. They can also be grouped based on their body polity type, such as emirate, provincial, republican or state federal systems. Another way to study federated countries is by categorizing them into those whose entire territory is federated as opposed to only part of its territory comprising the federal portion of the country. Some federal systems are national systems while others, like the European Union are supra national.

In general, two extremes of federalism can be distinguished: at one extreme, the strong federal state is almost completely unitary, with few powers reserved for local governments; while at the other extreme, the national government may be a federal state in name only, being a confederation in actuality. Federalism may encompass as few as two or three internal divisions, as is the case in Belgium or Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The governments of Argentina, Australia, Brazil, India, and Mexico, among others, are also organized along federalist principles.

In Canada, federalism typically implies opposition to sovereigntist movements (most commonly Quebec separatism). In 1999, the Government of Canada established the Forum of Federations as an international network for exchange of best practices among federal and federalizing countries. Headquartered in Ottawa, the Forum of Federations partner governments include Australia, Brazil, Ethiopia, Germany, India, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan and Switzerland.

Europe vs. the United States
In Europe, "federalist" is sometimes used to describe those who favor a common federal government, with distributed power at regional, national and supranational levels. The Union of European Federalists advocates for this development within the European Union, ultimately leading to the United States of Europe. Although there are medieval and early modern examples of European states which used confederal and federal systems, contemporary European federalism originated in post-war Europe; one of the more important initiatives was Winston Churchill's speech in Zürich in 1946.

In the United States, federalism originally referred to belief in a stronger central government. When the U.S. Constitution was being drafted, the Federalist Party supported a stronger central government, while "Anti-Federalists" wanted a weaker central government. This is very different from the modern usage of "federalism" in Europe and the United States. The distinction stems from the fact that "federalism" is situated in the middle of the political spectrum between a confederacy and a unitary state. The U.S. Constitution was written as a replacement for the Articles of Confederation, under which the United States was a loose confederation with a weak central government.

In contrast, Europe has a greater history of unitary states than North America, thus European "federalism" argues for a weaker central government, relative to a unitary state. The modern American usage of the word is much closer to the European sense. As the power of the U.S. federal government has increased, some people have perceived a much more unitary state than they believe the Founding Fathers intended. Most people politically advocating "federalism" in the United States argue in favor of limiting the powers of the federal government, especially the judiciary (see Federalist Society, New Federalism).

The contemporary concept of federalism came about with the creation of an entirely new system of government that provided for democratic representation at two governing levels simultaneously, which was implemented in the US Constitution. In the United States implementation of federalism, a bicameral general government, consisting of a chamber of popular representation proportional to population (the House of Representatives), and a chamber of equal State-based representation consisting of two delegates per State (the Senate), was overlaid upon the pre-existing regional governments of the thirteen independent States. With each level of government allocated a defined sphere of powers, under a written constitution and the rule of law (that is, subject to the independent third-party arbitration of a supreme court in competence disputes), the two levels were thus brought into a coordinate relationship for the first time.

In 1946, Kenneth Wheare observed that the two levels of government in the US were "co-equally supreme". In this, he echoed the perspective of American founding father James Madison who saw the several States as forming "distinct and independent portions of the supremacy" in relation to the general government.

Division of powers
In a federation, the division of power between federal and regional governments is usually outlined in the constitution. Almost every country allows some degree of regional self-government, but in federations the right to self-government of the component states is constitutionally entrenched. Component states often also possess their own constitutions which they may amend as they see fit, although in the event of conflict the federal constitution usually takes precedence.

In almost all federations the central government enjoys the powers of foreign policy and national defense as exclusive federal powers. Were this not the case a federation would not be a single sovereign state, per the UN definition. Notably, the states of Germany retain the right to act on their own behalf at an international level, a condition originally granted in exchange for the Kingdom of Bavaria's agreement to join the German Empire in 1871. The constitutions of Germany and the United States provide that all powers not specifically granted to the federal government are retained by the states. The Constitution of some countries, like Canada and India, state that powers not explicitly granted to the provincial/state governments are retained by the federal government. Much like the US system, the Australian Constitution allocates to the Federal government (the Commonwealth of Australia) the power to make laws about certain specified matters which were considered too difficult for the States to manage, so that the States retain all other areas of responsibility. Under the division of powers of the European Union in the Lisbon Treaty, powers which are not either exclusively of Union competence or shared between the Union and the Member States as concurrent powers are retained by the constituent States.

Where every component state of a federation possesses the same powers, we are said to find 'symmetric federalism'. Asymmetric federalism exists where states are granted different powers, or some possess greater autonomy than others do. This is often done in recognition of the existence of a distinct culture in a particular region or regions. In Spain, the Basques and Catalans, as well as the Galicians, spearheaded a historic movement to have their national specificity recognized, crystallizing in the "historical communities" such as Navarre, Galicia, Catalonia, and the Basque Country. They have more powers than the later expanded arrangement for other Spanish regions, or the Spain of the autonomous communities (called also the "coffee for everyone" arrangement), partly to deal with their separate identity and to appease peripheral nationalist leanings, partly out of respect to specific rights they had held earlier in history. However, strictly speaking Spain is not a federation, but a system of asymmetric devolved government within a unitary state.

It is common that during the historical evolution of a federation there is a gradual movement of power from the component states to the centre, as the federal government acquires additional powers, sometimes to deal with unforeseen circumstances. The acquisition of new powers by a federal government may occur through formal constitutional amendment or simply through a broadening of the interpretation of a government's existing constitutional powers given by the courts.

Usually, a federation is formed at two levels: the central government and the regions (states, provinces, territories), and little to nothing is said about second or third level administrative political entities. Brazil is an exception, because the 1988 Constitution included the municipalities as autonomous political entities making the federation tripartite, encompassing the Union, the States, and the municipalities. Each state is divided into municipalities (municípios) with their own legislative council (câmara de vereadores) and a mayor (prefeito), which are partly autonomous from both Federal and State Government. Each municipality has a "little constitution", called "organic law" (lei orgânica). Mexico is an intermediate case, in that municipalities are granted full-autonomy by the federal constitution and their existence as autonomous entities (municipio libre, "free municipality") is established by the federal government and cannot be revoked by the states' constitutions. Moreover, the federal constitution determines which powers and competencies belong exclusively to the municipalities and not to the constituent states. However, municipalities do not have an elected legislative assembly.

Federations often employ the paradox of being a union of states, while still being states (or having aspects of statehood) in themselves. For example, James Madison (author of the United States Constitution) wrote in Federalist Paper No. 39 that the US Constitution "is in strictness neither a national nor a federal constitution; but a composition of both. In its foundation, it is federal, not national; in the sources from which the ordinary powers of the Government are drawn, it is partly federal, and partly national..." This stems from the fact that states in the US maintain all sovereignty that they do not yield to the federation by their own consent. This was reaffirmed by the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which reserves all powers and rights that are not delegated to the Federal Government as left to the States and to the people.

Bicameralism
The structures of most federal governments incorporate mechanisms to protect the rights of component states. One method, known as 'intrastate federalism', is to directly represent the governments of component states in federal political institutions. Where a federation has a bicameral legislature the upper house is often used to represent the component states while the lower house represents the people of the nation as a whole. A federal upper house may be based on a special scheme of apportionment, as is the case in the senates of the United States and Australia, where each state is represented by an equal number of senators irrespective of the size of its population.

Alternatively, or in addition to this practice, the members of an upper house may be indirectly elected by the government or legislature of the component states, as occurred in the United States prior to 1913, or be actual members or delegates of the state governments, as, for example, is the case in the German Bundesrat and in the Council of the European Union. The lower house of a federal legislature is usually directly elected, with apportionment in proportion to population, although states may sometimes still be guaranteed a certain minimum number of seats.

Intergovernmental relations
In Canada, the provincial governments represent regional interests and negotiate directly with the central government. A First Ministers conference of the prime minister and the provincial premiers is the de facto highest political forum in the land, although it is not mentioned in the constitution.

Constitutional change
Federations often have special procedures for amendment of the federal constitution. As well as reflecting the federal structure of the state this may guarantee that the self-governing status of the component states cannot be abolished without their consent. An amendment to the constitution of the United States must be ratified by three-quarters of either the state legislatures, or of constitutional conventions specially elected in each of the states, before it can come into effect. In referendums to amend the constitutions of Australia and Switzerland it is required that a proposal be endorsed not just by an overall majority of the electorate in the nation as a whole, but also by separate majorities in each of a majority of the states or cantons. In Australia, this latter requirement is known as a double majority.

Some federal constitutions also provide that certain constitutional amendments cannot occur without the unanimous consent of all states or of a particular state. The US constitution provides that no state may be deprived of equal representation in the senate without its consent. In Australia, if a proposed amendment will specifically impact one or more states, then it must be endorsed in the referendum held in each of those states. Any amendment to the Canadian constitution that would modify the role of the monarchy would require unanimous consent of the provinces. The German Basic Law provides that no amendment is admissible at all that would abolish the federal system.

Other technical terms

 * Fiscal federalism – the relative financial positions and the financial relations between the levels of government in a federal system.
 * Formal federalism (or 'constitutional federalism') – the delineation of powers is specified in a written constitution, which may or may not correspond to the actual operation of the system in practice.
 * Executive federalism refers in the English-speaking tradition to the intergovernmental relationships between the executive branches of the levels of government in a federal system and in the continental European tradition to the way constituent units 'execute' or administer laws made centrally.
 * Gleichschaltung – the conversion from a federal governance to either a completely unitary or more unitary one, the term was borrowed from the German for conversion from alternating to direct current. During the Nazi era the traditional German states were mostly left intact in the formal sense, but their constitutional rights and sovereignty were eroded and ultimately ended and replaced with the Gau system. Gleichschaltung also has a broader sense referring to political consolidation in general.
 * defederalize – to remove from federal government, such as taking a responsibility from a national level government and giving it to states or provinces.

In relation to conflict
It has been argued that federalism and other forms of territorial autonomy are a useful way to structure political systems in order to prevent violence among different groups within countries because it allows certain groups to legislate at the subnational level. Some scholars have suggested, however, that federalism can divide countries and result in state collapse because it creates proto-states. Still others have shown that federalism is only divisive when it lacks mechanisms that encourage political parties to compete across regional boundaries.

Federalism is sometimes viewed in the context of international negotiation as "the best system for integrating diverse nations, ethnic groups, or combatant parties, all of whom may have cause to fear control by an overly powerful center." However, those skeptical of federal prescriptions sometimes believe that increased regional autonomy can lead to secession or dissolution of the nation. In Syria, for example, federalization proposals have failed in part because "Syrians fear that these borders could turn out to be the same as the ones that the fighting parties have currently carved out."

title: Federalism


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Firmin Abauzit

Firmin Abauzit (11 November 1679 – 20 March 1767) was a French scholar who worked on physics, theology and philosophy, and served as librarian in Geneva (Republic of Geneva) during his final 40 years. Abauzit is also notable for proofreading or correcting the writings of Isaac Newton and other scholars.

Biography
Firmin Abauzit was born of Huguenot parents on 11 November 1679 at Uzès, in Languedoc. His paternal family traces its origin to an Arab physician who settled in Toulouse during the 9th century. Accordingly, the name “Abauzit” is liked derived from the Arabic “Abu Zaid” (father of Zaid).

His father died when he was only two years of age; and when, on the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685, the authorities took steps to have him educated in the Roman Catholic faith, his mother contrived his escape.

For two years his brother and he lived as fugitives in the mountains of the Cévennes, but they at last reached Geneva, where their mother afterwards joined them on escaping from the imprisonment in which she was held from the time of their flight. Abauzit at an early age acquired great proficiency in languages, physics, and theology.

In 1698, he traveled to Germany, then to Holland, where he became acquainted with Pierre Bayle, Pierre Jurieu and Jacques Basnage. Proceeding to England, he was introduced to Sir Isaac Newton, who found in him one of the earliest defenders of his discoveries against Castel. Newton corrected in the second edition of his Principia an error pointed out by Abauzit, and, when sending him the Commercium Epistolicum, said, "You are well worthy to judge between Leibnitz and me."

The reputation of Abauzit induced William III to request him to settle in England, but he did not accept the king's offer, preferring to return to Geneva. There from 1715 he rendered valuable assistance to a society that had been formed for translating the New Testament into French. He declined the offer of the chair of philosophy at the University of Geneva in 1723. He assisted in the French language New Testament in 1726. In 1727, he was granted citizenship in Geneva, and he accepted the office of honorary librarian to Geneva, the city of his adoption. It was while he was in Geneva in his later years that he authored many of his works. He died in Geneva at the age of 87, on 20 March 1767.

Legacy
Abauzit was a man of great learning and of wonderful versatility. Whatever chanced to be discussed, it used to be said of Abauzit that he seemed to have made it a subject of particular study. Rousseau, who was jealously sparing of his praises, addressed to him, in his Julie, ou la nouvelle Héloïse, a fine panegyric; and when a stranger flatteringly told Voltaire he had come to see a great man, the philosopher asked him if he had seen Abauzit. Among his acquaintances, Abauzit claimed Rousseau, Voltaire, Newton, and Bayle.

Little remains of the labours of this intellectual giant, his heirs having, it is said, destroyed the papers that came into their possession, because their own religious opinions were different. A few theological, archaeological, and astronomical articles from his pen appeared in the Journal helvétique and elsewhere, and he contributed several papers to Rousseau's Dictionnaire de musique (1767). He wrote a work throwing doubt on the canonical authority of the Apocalypse, which called forth a reply from Dr Leonard Twells, and was published in Denis Diderot's Encyclopédie. He also edited and made valuable additions to Jacob Spon's Histoire de la république de Genève. A collection of his writings was published at Geneva in 1770 (Œuvres de feu M. Abauzit), and another at London in 1773 (Œuvres diverses de M. Abauzit).

title: Firmin Abauzit