An Overview of Systems of Government.

capitalism and climate change cartoon

H.L. Mencken said the typical American voter was a boob and the system was booboisie.

In order to understand the submission “ Democracy is a Function of Capitalism” one has to delve deep into Social, economic, and political evolution of human race and subject it to critical analysis.

Let us start with a few broad definitions.


Capitalism is an economic system in which means of production are controlled and in a large measure, owned by a numerically small group of people- the capitalist class. They dominate the government by maintaining a dominant-symbiotic relationship with mainstream political parties, media and academia.


Socialism is an economic system in which an ideology driven party controls the means of production, state, media, labor unions, academia and professions etc. The party/state endeavors to provide for the basic needs of the public.


Fascism is an economic system in which an ideology driven party exercises the same degree of control over levers of authority as the socialists do, but makes little effort to provide for the public.

Sub-types of Fascism are:

i). Theocracy in which, clergy are in control, as in Iran and pay little attention to public welfare.

ii). Military Dictatorship, in which the army functions on behalf of the cabal of feudal lords, clergy, bureaucrats and petty bourgeoisie as they routinely do in Pakistan. Over a course of time they metamorphose into a service and export substitution/real state agglomerate and reduce traditional feudal landowners to an apparently subsidiary status and try to sideline the clergy.

They are subservient to international capital.

iii) Civilian fascists such as, Franco, Salazar, Batista, Somoza, Papa Doc, Zulfiqar Bhutto, Saddam and Pinochet.
They take advantage of the parlous state of the country and seize all the levers of power.
They can last a long time if they continue to tow the imperialist line.

Imperial system: in which all power is vested in the king who delegates some authority to his family, friends, and henchmen. The imperial system controls all means of production. Feudal landowners/tribal heads are given limited authority in their area of influence. Muslim kingdoms and Gulf Emirates are prime examples.

This is not to be confused with the Pseudo-Imperial system in which the King/Queen and royal family are kept for ceremonial purposes, as in some European countries, Malaysia and Japan.

Feudal System: In which an imperial/colonial power left the levers of power in the hands of feudal landowners, as in Pakistan. The feudal class was able to subjugate the Royal house as in the U.K from sixteenth to nineteenth centuries.


Democracy is a system of government in which people are (supposed to be) governed by and with their Consent. Representative democracy is government by representatives of the people.

Majority and consensus types are offered as models; in the first, the party holding majority in an elected house makes the decision. In the consensus type, elected representatives seek to maximize the the size of the majority by compromises between the parties.

A state may be governed under a centralized, Federal or a Con-federal system. In the Federal system, there is a guaranteed division of power between the center and the regions (The U.S.A). Constitution is rigid and there is provision for judicial review. Central banks are independent.

The government works through a cabinet and committees. In the centralized system, most of the power is held by the central legislature (The U.K and Russia). In the Con-federal system, constituent units enjoy a great deal of autonomy (Switzerland).

Democracy has legislatures, courts and political parties and is offered as a government of the people. In practice, it is not possible for all citizens to govern, as was the case in ancient Greece, so representatives are supposed to act on behalf of the people.

Even if we accept the idea at its face value, the question remains as to who will govern, and on whose behalf when there is disagreement.

The Westminster type is widely admired. The concentration of power is in one party. Since not every one votes, opposition parties are strong, the government actually represents a minority of voters. In actual fact, the cabinet composed of leaders, is clearly dominant.

In the U.S.A, the president and the Congress have rough parity of powers. In France and countries of Latin America, the president is much more powerful.

In fact, the term, without further qualifications, stands for bourgeoisie democracy in which multiparty elections are held at fixed or regularly irregular intervals under adult franchise. Political parties, invariably beholden to financial interests, present a platform to attract voters.

Liberals throw crumbs at the working class; conservatives do not even do that.

Under Democracy, the working class is kept under control with the aid of such sedatives as sports programs, soap operas, and distracted by issues such as immigration, religious conflicts, wars and ethnic divides. When the working class gets too rebellious, they are sedated with such measures as social security, health care, free education and unemployment benefits.

Role of the Global Capital:

This is the more evolved current form of Capitalism. In sharp deviation from national capital, which developed industry in its own domicile, and let some benefits trickle to its fellow citizens, this “advanced” form moves industry to where labor is the cheapest.

Current choices are China and to a lesser extent India. Manufactories are being closed in the U.S.A on a daily basis. U.S workers have a choice of taking a drastic cut in wages or join the ranks of the jobless.

The capitalist class, squeezes all resources from all economies, reduces the system to ‘a melt-down’ from time to time, and demands that its minions ‘bail’ it out, as in the recent sub-prime, the 1929, the 1885 and 1860 crises.

India is a special case in study. It developed a big industrial base while still under alien rule. Industry financed Indian National Congress, which won Independence and promptly abolished the feudal system. In the initial years Nehru adopted egalitarian policies. His successors, from his party and the opposition, gradually reversed welfare measures.

On the contrary, in the less developed Pakistan, industrial capitalism never took root. Only service industry, largely dominated by the feudal class, passes for industrialization.

In fact feudal landowners are not only surviving, indeed they are thriving. Bhutto, a diabolically shrewd feudal lord, effectively demolished the nascent and fast emerging capitalist class, in order to reinforce the supremacy of his class.

Study of Japan and Korea is very instructive. Under pressure of industrialization, and being deficient in raw materials, they evolved from Imperial/ feudal to fascist to pseudo imperial and democratic system in a short span of time.

Muslims, Democracy and Finance:

Muslims are under such overwhelming intellectual and cultural influence of the West that they regard any Western institution, especially democracy as a highly desirable objective. At the same time they are under great sway of clerics. In any event, in Islam sovereignty belongs to Allah. In democracy it resides in the people.

Islam should not permit Capitalism, as interest is an integral part of the system, but clerics look the other way, and governments/finance men have developed a cover under which interest is called partnership/profit sharing.

Islam has not ordained any particular system of government, the only injunction being that the system should abide by God given laws. It has accepted tribal, hereditary kingship, fascist and theocratic states as Islamic. Though they collaborate with all but socialist systems, they are always on a look out for replacing the existing order-examples are the Muslim Brotherhood, Al-Qaida, Jammat e Islami and Taliban.

The survey would not be complete without mention of social benefits in certain capitalist European countries, Great Britain, France, Germany and more so Scandinavian countries, like unemployment benefits, health care, and education, granted after World War II, which had devastated the societies and when the governments were apprehensive that communists would take over, as they nearly did in Italy, and had to be overthrown in Greece, and became a considerable force in France. The benefits were gradually withdrawn especially in Britain under Thatcher and Blair.

Still democracy is thought of as something desirable.

In the sense of, by the people, of the people and for the people, it is a fantasy.

Roots of the word go back to 5 BC, Athens. Greek Demos means people and Kratein, to rule, which is related to Keratos (authority) and came into use to bring more people to defend against Iranian invasions.

Athens, over the course of time, imposed its own ‘democratic’ structure on two hundred Greek city states, which replaced the erstwhile rule by one man, who was called a tyrant, which at the time meant lord or the chief. He ruled by popular consent and did not have the evil connotations of the current times.

Under Athenian democracy, an elected assembly made all the laws, and officials were appointed through a lottery system.

According to Pericles (461-429 BC), the system of paying public servants out of national treasury was introduced, in order to attract people to seek office. (1).

Only free male citizens, 43,000 in number, were allowed to vote. There were about equal number of women, who along with 110,000 slaves and 28,000 non-citizens did not have a vote. According to the historian, Thucydides, contemporary of Pericles, resident aliens were also excluded. (2).

Very soon, though, starting with Pericles, it became a majority party rule.

It did not last long. Spartans destroyed the Athenian Empire at the end of 5th century BC. Nominal democracy did not re-emerge for 2000 years. (3).

Democracy, in the true sense of is a twentieth century phenomenon. (4) In the nineteenth century, women did not have a vote (New Zealand introduced universal suffrage in 1893. (5) England allowed women a vote only in the late 1920s, while the U.S in 1930.Australia did not allow aborigines a vote till 1962 (6).

There is tendency among the political scientists to equate democracy with majority rule. Stephanie Lawson says that, “a strong opposition is the sine qua non of contemporary democracy. The prime purpose (of the opposition) is to become the government”. (7)

The idea was revived in the 17th century AD Britain as a highly romanticized version of Greek democracy. Britain was in the grip of a civil war at the time. It eventually developed into a popular sovereignty which was adapted later in France and the USA. (8).

New England Puritans, who had fled the revolution in Britain in the 17th century AD, tried the concept in town meetings, which were attended by the entire male white European population and served as the legislature and the executive. It was democracy at the local level. The king of England appointed governors and judges.

According to James Madison pro-British citizens had their property annexed by popular vote. Constitution makers at the 1787 AD convocation wanted to prevent “tyranny of the majority”. (9).

Again according to Madison, the representatives usually act according to their own, and not the people’s notion; a concept alien to the concept of democracy.

The point of difference between a Democracy and a Republic is the delegation of the government in the latter to a small number of citizens. (10).

Let us take a more detailed look at the foremost example of ‘democracy’, the U.S.

The U.S. constitution offers a Republic, not a democracy. It has produced vote producing political machines beholden to vested interests, not the public.

George Washington appointed Thomas Jefferson, erstwhile U.S. ambassador to France, the first secretary of state. He opposed the establishment of a U.S bank as it would favor money interest. G.W, however, sided with the treasury secretary, Alexander Hamilton. Hamilton’s vision was that of a mercantile/manufacturing country. Jefferson saw it as an agrarian society. Opponents of Hamilton mainly the farmers, gathered behind Jefferson. They called themselves Republicans and favored the French revolution.

The 19th amendment in the 1930s, gave the vote to women. (11). Briefly, after the civil war, African-Americans were allowed to vote, but the 1876 deal with the Southern states, effectively kept them from voting. (12).

Less than 50% vote in the presidential election year; far less do in the mid-term and even fewer in local elections. Many well-informed citizens do not vote, as they see no difference between the democrats and republicans.

In a democracy, at a minimum, people have to be consulted, if not in making actual decisions.

Politicians buy votes through tax-supported programs. During the crises, the establishment offers welfare. When things settle down, parties of all hues make concerted effort to nibble at benefits, (post Johnson in the US and post Labor in Britain-conservative Thatcher and the neoconservative Blair). Similar steps have been taken in Canada and European countries.

The UK government, under Blair, supported and took part in the aggression on Iraq, even though a majority of the British people opposed it. He got away with it because the Tory opposition wanted nothing better than leftovers after the U.S had dined at the main table.

In large cities, parties are run by machines and dispense favors.

No matter how informed the voter, choice is restricted to two to three candidates. In order to appeal to all economic, religious, cultural and education classes, candidates indulge in unabashed double talk. Usually the established ones win.

Most Americans presidents, when first elected, are synthetic creations of public relations firms, who are acceptable to interest groups, which are governed by big money.

Professional party workers are in there for jobs and favors.

Professor Hook, “Delegation of authority is inescapable in any political assemblage…the basic question is whether the delegation is reversible…”. (13).

Democracy is related to making laws and policy. Execution of the edicts had, of necessity, to be delegated; the entire population cannot serve in the army or deliver mail.

Constitution can easily be perverted as was clearly seen under Bush II. He and his team lied through their teeth. No one in his administration went to jail.


A prerequisite to democracy is a well-informed electorate. There are no definitive methods of obtaining such data.

Opinion is formed by the media which is owned by corporations. People are deluded into thinking that the leaders are following their mandate. The most illustrative example is the invasion of Iraq for which the Republican Establishment invented the Weapons of Mass Destruction. The Democratic establishment meekly fell in line.

Literacy, though very different from education, can be one criterion. In the U.S.A, nearly 80% finish high school (12 grades). But a substantial percentage is virtually illiterate (comparable to the average BA/MA in Pakistan). In 1988, “27 million Americans are functionally illiterate, with reading skills below the fourth grade level and the number grows by two million every year. (14).

Functioning democracy requires knowledge of the government. Even the members of the congress are not well informed; witness the complaints, hearings and investigations. The focus of the public is kept riveted on beer, football and ‘soaps’. Corporate misinformation on Vietnam, Iraq, Israel, Afghanistan and U.S. Health care, should provide sufficient proof even to the skeptics. (15).

Democracy is virtually non-existent. At best, serves to obfuscate issues to befuddle popular thought. (16).

Electoral Process:

During the elections, candidates promise everything that will get them a vote, but forget all about it soon after election. People can’t do much as the mainstream party candidates are together in this.

Elections do not determine policy, which is always at variance with or even opposed to public expectations. The one benefit they offer is that they function as seminars on political awareness. But the process is very long. Indian voters, after scores of elections over the last six decades, even in the absence of the corporate media pushing distractions, are not much better informed than their Pakistani counterparts, who if the negative effect of religious fundamentalism could be obviated, would actually be more enlightened as they are better fed and have more energy to discuss issues.

Democracy Corporations and War:

WW I broke out in 1914, the U.S. declared neutrality, but the UK and France borrowed heavily from the U.S. banks and ordered war supplies. By 1916, it was a stalemate. British and French propaganda machine churned out lie after lie to persuade the U.S to join. It succeeded.

Germany made the mistake of not borrowing money on the Wall Street and announced their horrifying war plans. The U.K and France kept their intentions a secret.

On 5/7/1915, a R.M.S. , Lusitania, was torpedoed off the coast of Ireland. The ship carried ammunition and was a legitimate target, which claim was denied by the U.S. shipping company. The U.S.: had knowingly cleared the shipment. Subsequent British inquiry established that the ship did carry ammunition and the British submarines in the area were under orders not to intercept the Germans and deliberately let them attack the ship, resulting in the loss of one hundred twenty eight U.S. servicemen. (17).

Wilson still kept the US out of war and contested the 1916 elections on the slogan, “He kept us out of war” while launching preparations to enter it. They had blatantly lied to the U.S. public. (18).

The era of systematic thought manipulation began. Germans adopted it later; inherent superiority of the Aryan race. Clerics joined in. (19).

Wilson declared war on April 4, 1917, and imposed a virtually dictatorial dispensation. Fierce anti-German and anti-foreigner propaganda under the Committee on Public Information, headed by George Creel, was launched German music-Bach, Beethoven- and language was banished. (20). (Post 9/11, US behaved the same way towards France, changing the name of French Fries to Freedom Fries). People changed their names in thousands.

Joseph Goebbels was to emulate Creel, the US Head of the Committee on Public Information under Wilson’s war cabinet. Nazis were to do the same, at a much larger scale, to Jews, Gypsies and political opponents. (21).

Entry into the war for Democrats required intensive propaganda. (22)

In a parliamentary system, pre-election positions are more likely to be adopted as policy. Blair suffered a setback after 9/11 and had to leave office due to pressure of public opinion.

But Bush won re-election in spite of the unpopularity of his decisions.

The 1929, Crash and the Following Regimes Hardly Democratic:

Due to the reckless speculation of the financiers, the market crashed in 10/1929.

Depression, contrary to popular belief was not caused by the crash. It was a consequence of imposing high import tariffs, the “Save the capitalist” policy of Hoover. Foreign capital retaliated. International trade and manufacturing hit bottom.

Federal Reserve, at the instance of NY Reserve, which was (and is) under control of Manhattan Banks, kept the interest rate high. That led to worsening of the depression and to 25% unemployment and millions more underemployed. It lowered consumer spending and production and made the depression worse. (23).

Roosevelt promised to cut down federal spending, and broke the promise immediately after taking office. Scores of agencies, called the Alphabet soup, at the time, were set up. Popularity was gained by direct aid to citizens reduced to poverty and creation of jobs. (24).

The schemes failed. WW II, with massive orders for war supplies, came to the rescue and lifted the U.S. out of depression and sent Europe into virtual bankruptcy.

Truman succeeded Roosevelt. To prevent a general strike in 1950, he had the army seize the railroads. In 4/52, in order to prevent a strike, he seized the steel mills. On 6/2/52, the S.C found the order illegal. (25).

Eisenhower won in 1952 and 1956 against a much more qualified candidate on the basis of his WW II reputation.

Kennedy won largely on the issue of fictitious missile gap. (26)

Religion plays a great role in US elections. Truman got nearly all the Jewish votes for his support of the Zionist state. Religious fundamentalists, including the Muslim ones supported G.W.B. (27).

Johnson ran on a peace plank, a lie, as he was preparing for expansion of the war, and got the congress to go along with the fictitious Gulf of Tonkin incident (Vietnamese torpedoes fired on US warships). (28).

Nixon won on the basis of a “certain plan to end the war”. He continued the war for six years, broke all the laws he could and ended up in Watergate. 29

Jimmy Carter won on the backlash of the pardon and lost the bid for reelection because of his perceived ineptitude to handle the Iranian hostage crisis. (30). His major achievement was the Camp David peace accord between Egypt and Israel. The Zionist lobby was unhappy with the concessions Israel had to concede. 31

It is widely believed that the Reagan team negotiated with the Iranian government not to release the hostages before elections. As a face saving device, they were released only after he had been inaugurated. Iran-contra, some assert was the payoff. (32).

Reagan did the capitalist bidding and effectively nullified the welfare measures from Johnson’s time. His major “achievements” were an attack on Granada, a tiny republic the size of a mid-size US city and the Iran-Contra scandal. (33). The Congress was reluctant to impeach another president so soon after Nixon.

Bush Sr enraged the Israeli lobby by demanding a freeze on settlements in the occupied territory in return for a ten billion-loan guarantee. (34) TV channels showed skull cap wearing crowds screaming “We will see you at election time”. He lost the re-election bid, though he had enjoyed above 90% approval rating after Gulf 1.

His other achievement was the invasion of Panama, because his old partner, Noreiga had started defying the CIA, which did not need the drug money anymore to fund El-Salvador and Nicaragua terrorists.

Bill Clinton, unknown except in Arkansas, defeated an incumbent president largely because of the Jewish lobby’s opposition to Bush Sr, and the most successful third party candidate, to date, Ross Perot.

Clinton was the most ardent promoter of Global corporations. He deregulated finance, the media and pushed W.T.O and NAFTA. (35). The first resulted in the meltdown of 2008, the second reduced the number of news media owners from eighty five to five and the last two tightened the stranglehold of corporations on third world countries. His time in office was chiefly memorable for the Monica Lewinsky scandal during which he publicly committed perjury, was impeached and escaped dismissal because he kept on apologizing.

G.W. Bush did not know that Social Security was a Federal program. He was in fact just a front man; decisions were taken by Cheney, Rumsfeld and their coterie. He dragged the country into invasion on Iraq, which he justified on the basis of deliberate lies of WMD’s in Saddam’s arsenal. The congress went along, as it was cognizant of the fact that it was the first step to physical control of energy resources.

Barak Obama, most likely the brightest person to win the U.S. presidency, overcame his skin color, offered Obama Health Care, deals with Iran, Cuba and others on Nuclear bombs, but continued the existing policy on other issues like wars in the Mid-East, support of Saudi and other such corrupt regimes and support of Israel.

Trump (popularly known as Dumb Trump) defeated Hillary Clinton (she had instigated massacres in several African countries most in Libya and Algeria) who had won the Democratic Party nomination at the behest of the Wall Street against Bernie Sanders, the only truly progressive presidential candidate in US history. Trump was the biggest racist, religious and moron-bigot in the White House. He managed to alienate most of third world and socialist countries. He lost only because of the Covid pandemic and his inability to understand it.

Joe Biden, vice president under Obama defeated him. But the mini Hitler never conceded and incited the unprecedented attack on the Capitol and told the rioters that he loved them. Joe is a less bright version on Obama; not much by the way of progressive government can be expected of him.

Candidates Lie and Keep on Doing it After Election to Office:

The above should be sufficient to establish that presidential candidates and presidents routinely and deliberately lie about their intentions.

Above ground tests in Nevada exposed troops in the vicinity. Clouds settled over Utah. Eisenhower ordered aides to give ambiguous answers.

Proponents of atomic power (supplies 20% energy in the US) tried to equate radiation to smoke from wood, coal and oil. The Atomic energy commission kept leakage into air and water a secret for 28 years. (36). The purpose was to keep the public in dark.

Industrial hazards are generally downplayed for the benefit of corporations; toxic waste is not dealt with by corporations, which created it. (In Nigeria, Bolivia and other third world countries, gas is simply let out in the atmosphere or burnt into it).

According to Johns-Manville Corporation records, danger of exposure to asbestos was known as early as 1890s in the UK, but was used till a few decades ago. (37).

People have little knowledge about candidates:

Candidates are constructed by speechwriters, media men, tailors, artists, stage designers and hair dressers.

Wilson had a long history of Cerebrovascular Accidents which produced alteration in behavior. (38). He had spells of irrationality during the April 1919, Paris peace conference.

After victory, punitive measures for reparation were forced on Germany. The idiocy of Versailles, are well documented by John M. Keynes in his “Economic Consequences of Peace”-1919. (39).

FDR was paralyzed from waist down, but few knew about it. Kennedy had Addison’s disease, problem with blood level of cortisone, a serious disability. (40). Johnson had a heart attack before the 1964 election.

Kennedy was presented as an earnest, serious, Catholic patriotic veteran of WW II. In fact he was secular, hedonist and a rank opportunist. Jackie was bribed by his father from going public about Jack’s womanizing before elections. He magnified a guerrilla training operation into an invasion of Cuba- Bay of Pigs. Contrary to common belief, he did not inherit it. (41).

He and his brother Robert engaged known mobsters to assassinate Fidel Castro, in clear violation of international law and US constitution. (42).

Installation of Soviet missiles was a reaction to Bay of Pigs. (43). Khrushchev gave in and was dumped by the politburo. More recalcitrant chiefs followed, ICBMs and submarines were still on target.

There are degrees of democracy in countries, which hold elections on a regular basis. The British government is more democratic than the one in the U.S., as it has to be more responsive to public opinion, though Blair went to war in Iraq in the face of overwhelming public opinion against the war.

Just because the process is open, does not mean that the public is well informed.

Corporations act without the least government or democratic direction, pretty much as they please.

Character of Politicians:

David Hume, the Scottish philosopher, 1711-1776, referred to the natural depravity of mankind in “That Politics May be Reduced to Science”. (44).

They are known from antiquity as dissemblers. The U.S. ones excel others because they have to cater to a multiplicity of ethnic, religious and linguistic groups.

Words acquire nuances. Liberal has taken the meaning of support of unqualified people. Opponents are called racists and bigots.

Democracy stops when a candidate is elected.

War in Class Interest:

Improvement in the lot of the downtrodden cannot be achieved by a democratic process. It has to be fought for against the establishment.

The US feudal and commercial class fought a war of independence from the Britain. It was successful largely because of the help of the French, traditional rivals of Britain.

Civil war started in 4/1861. The North of the country was commercial/industrial, while the South was slave owning feudal. The emancipation proclamation to free slaves in 9/1862 was to strike a blow against the South. A conflict inevitably arose. In the ensuing civil war, the North won. Support of blacks made the difference.

In the disputed 1876 elections, Samuel Tilden of NY, a Democrat, won more votes than Rutherford Hayes, an Ohio Republican. In the subsequent voting in the congress, Southern Democrats opted for Hayes in return for segregation of blacks. (45).

The Supreme Court in 1883, declared the Civil Rights Law unconstitutional. In 1896, Plessy vs Ferguson, “Separate, but equal” facilities for whites and blacks were ordained, in violation of the constitution, which does not permit separation, except for criminals in prisons. (44-38).

Blacks, in effect, reverted to slave status.

The U.S.S.R was hitting hard at the U.S racial policy. In 1954, Brown vs Board of Education, the Supreme Court decided against school segregation. In an expected war and for trade, the US needed the support of nonwhites, who constituted the vast majority of the population of the world. (45-39)

In the early 20th century AD, in Chicago, except for the Anglo-Saxons and the Scots, all other whites were called “niggers”. (48)

Happy melting pot is an illusion.


1. Pomeroy, S.B. Burstein, S.M, Donlan, W, Roberts, J.T., “Ancient Greece: A Political, Social and Cultural History,” (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999)..

2. Ibid.

3. Cartledge, Paul, “Sparta and Lakonia: A Regional History 1300 to 362 BC-2nd Edition”, (Oxford: Routledge, 2002).

4. Dahl, Robert A,”A Preface to Democratic Theory,” (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 19565).

5. Therborn, Goran, “The Rule of Capitalism and the Rise of Democracy,” (New Left Review 103, May-June, 1977, pp 3-41)

6. Hymowitz, Carol, Weissman, Michaele, “A History of Women in America,” Random House Digital 2011.

7. Lawson, Stephanie, “Coinceptual Issues in the Comparative Study of Regime Change and Democratization,” (Comparative Politics 25, no 2, Jan 1993, pp 183-205.

8. Feiling, Keith,“History of England,” (London: Book Club Associates, 1970).

9. “The Record of the Federal Convention of 1787,” Max Farrard, ed., (New Haven, Conn: Yale University Press, 1937, Revised Edition).

10. Scott, Kyle, “The Federalist Papers: A Readers Guide,” (New York: Bloomsbury Press, 2013). Federalist Papers no 10.

11. Dubois, Ellen C. “Woman Suffrage and Women’s Rights,” New York: N.Y.U Press, 1998).ref “

12. Peskin, Allen, “Was There a Compromise of 1877? “ Journal of American History 1973, pp 63-75.

13. Hook, Sidney, “The Paradoxes of Freedom,” (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1984).

14. The New York Times September 4, 1988.

15. Nichols, Bill “U.N- Iraq Had no WMD after 1994”, U.S.A Today, March 2, 2004;

16. Lundberg, Ferdinand, “Myth of Democracy,” (New York: Carol Publishing Group, 1989), p 50.

17. Ibid, p 55.

18. Nisbet, Robert, “America Enters the World,” vol 7, p 568 in “A People’s History of the Progressive Era and WW I,” (New York: McGraw Hill, 1985).

19. Abrams, Ray H., “Preachers Present Arms,” (Round Table Press, 1933).

20. Nisbet, ibid 18, pp 540-566.

21. Ibid, p 572

22. Ibid, p 578.

23.Lundberg, ibid 16 p 59.

24. Ibid, p 60.

25.Brenner, Aaron, Day, Benjamin, Ness, Immanuel, “The Encyclopedia of Strikes in American History” (Google eBook); Youngstown Sheet and Tube Co vs Sawyer 343 US 579 (1952).

26. Alsop, Joseph, “True Missile Gap Picture Belies Pentagon Response,” Eugene Register-Guard Oct 13, 1959.

27. Renee, Ghert-Zand, How Good a Friend of the Jews Was Harry Truman, The Jerusalem Post, April 4, 2012. Alexander Rose, The Middle East Quarterly, How Did Muslims Vote in 2000, Summer, 2001, pp 13-27.

28. Moise, Edwin E, “Tomkin Gulf and the Escalation of the Vietnam War,” (Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 1996).

29. Dickinson, Willam B, Mercer, Cross, Polsk, Barry, “Watergate: Chronology of a Crisis”Washington DC Congressional Quarterly Inc 1973, pp 8, 133, 140, 180, 188.

30. Sick, Gary, “October Surprise: America’s Hostages in Iran and the Election of Ronald Reagan,” (N.Y: Random House, 1991).

31. Stein, Kenneth, “Heroic Diplomacy: Sadat, Kissinger, Carter, Begin and the Quest for Arab-Israeli Peace”, (Oxford:Taylor and Francis, 1999).

32. ibid 30

33. ibid 30

34. “The Israeli-Palestinian Roadmap: What a Settlement Freeze Means and Why it Matters” International Crisis Group, Middle East report N 16, July 25, 2003.

35., NAFTA-Fast Facts. North American Free Trade Agreement”, The Governments of Canada, the U.S.A and Mexico, 2012-04-04

36. The New York Times 11/4/1988.

37. Casteman, Barry, “Asbestos, Medical and Legal Aspects,” (Aspen, Co: Aspen Publishing, 2005), pp 603-613.

38. Wienstien, Edward MD, Prof of neurology at Mount Sinai Medical School, New York, in Journal of American History, September 1970, Vol 57, pp 324-351.

39. Keynes, John M., “Economic consequences of Peace 1919,” (, 2011).


41. Wills, Garry, “The Kennedy Imprisonment,” Mariner Books 1983), pp 232-254; 34. Ibid, pp 251-252.

42. ibid

43. ibid.

44. Hume, David, (1740), “A Treatise of Human Nature,” (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1967).

45. ibid 12.

46. Fireside, Harvey, “Separate and Unequal: Homer Plessy and the Supreme Court Decision that Legalized Racism” (New York: Carrol and Graf, 2004).

47. Patterson, James T. “Brown vs Board of Education: A Civil Right Milestone and its Troubled Legacy,” (New York: Oxford University Press, 2001).

48. ibid 16. p 149;

I retired from surgery in 2005.





One Comment

  1. A rather rambling dissertation – but accurate – apart from the title.