Bot's list of definitions sounds like a set of talking points for the Young Republican's Dictionary of Spin.
I have added a few comments throughout in
red....
The following is a list of the major political parties in North America:
Canada --
Blow Quebecois (French separatist party)
ootpoot sez: Were you thinking about your coke dealer, or is this a typo?
It's the BLOC Party.
Bureaucracy - officials using fixed rules and a hierarchy of authority characterized by red tape, delay or inaction
(Basically, too many people and too many steps).
ootpoot sez: Is this Ronald Reagan's definition before or after he went into the final stage of Alzheimers Disease?
Constitutional Convention - this applies in Canada.
And in Britain and all the other Commonwealth countries. It's a not a rule or law in the Constitution, but rather an understanding.
(Like the annual State of the Union Address -- it's nowhere in writing anywhere!)
Democrat - One who advocates social and economic equality and government efforts, through tax-supported programs, at achieving this equality
(Spend, spend, spend, tax, tax, tax).
ootpoot sez: ... someone is showing their bias here -- oh, wait, is it an attempt at humour?
Fascism - a totalitarian governmental system that emphasizes nationalism and racism and is led by a dictator.
ootpoot sez: Not quite. Defined by Mussolini when he said "Fascismo, it's corporatism, totalitarianism, nationalism, militarism and anti-Communism all rolled into one spicy meatball."
Left/Left Wing - those on the left side of the political spectrum; those associated with Socialism, Social Democracy, or Liberalism.
And Fairness, and Justice, and Equality, and Community and Peace.
Nation Building - undertaken after war to help rebuild the political and economic infrastructure of a country
(What the U.S. is
NOT doing in Afghanistan and Iraq.
In fact, the USA is plundering their resources and occupying their land).
Neo-conservative (Neocon) - the original neocons were Jewish-Americans, formerly socialist or communist, who moved over to the political right. Perceiving a split in the GOP, some came to use the term to vilify the "religious right" (Republicans that support Israel and Jews for biblical reasons). More recently, the term "neocon" is being broadened to include anyone who judges others using a "values" based morality, which includes the concepts of accountability and personal responsibility.
ootpoot sez: That's the Bizzaro definition. In the real world, Neo-Cons are the followers of Leo Strauss's philosophy of paranoid rigidity and blustering militarism typified by the Kristol father-son cabal of delusional liars. Taken to its logical conclusion it has resulted in the One Percent Solution and "I Got Mine, Go Fuck Yourself" ideology of Dick Cheney.
Progressive Liberal - an emphasis on equity to the extent that a dependent class must be supported and provided for by society. Disparage capitalism and increase socialist concepts such as government control and ownership, to include tax increases for new and larger social programs. A belief that our domestic and foreign policy should conform to international directive.
ootpoot sez: I just don't know where to begin here... so many half-truths... so much distortion... (Go to 'Spin' at bottom of post).
Propaganda -
The common use of propaganda is to use false
or misleading
information
to promote a partisan
and unbalanced
picture.
It is a deliberate attempt to change people's views on a given topic through the use of deception
and confusion
, rather than persuasion and understanding (i.e.
those rightwing critics of Fahrenheit 9/11).
Republican - an advocate of conservatism.
ootpoot sez: "LOOK THERE'S THE SYMBOL OF THE REPUBLICAN PARTY, AN ELEPHANT AND AN OLD FAT WHITE GUY WHO'S AFFRAID OF CHANGE".
Right/Right Wing - those on the right side of the political spectrum; those associated with Conservatism.
And Bigotry, and Racism, and Intolerance, and Homophobia, and War Mongering, and Hypocrisy and Greed.
Social Democrat - one who advocates, through a democratic process, a slow transition to socialism.
ootpoot sez: No cigar for you! Social Democrats aim to reform capitalism democratically through state sponsored programs and organizations which work to ameliorate or remove injustices inflicted by the capitalist market system.
Socialism - a system of economic organization in which state,
worker, or community ownership controls the basic means of production and where centralized planning
exercised through popular collectives such as workers' councils, rather than market forces, determines the allocation of resources.
Spin - a political agenda, twisting truths or facts into something that "proves" your point of view.
Spin: What Bot's definitions try to do -- that's why it's called "Politics for Dummies".
8-)