Die programmatische Evolution der FDP in der Ost- und Deutschlandpolitik in den Jahren 1974-1982 im Lichte der neuen Quellen vom Archiv des Deutschen Liberalismus

The Program Evolution of the FDP in Ostpolitik and Deutschlandpolitik in 1974-1982 in the Light of the New Resources from the Archive of German Liberalism The main objective of the article is to analyse the program activities of the Free Democratic Party (FDP) in the Eastern policy (Ostpolitik) and German policy (Deutschlandpolitik) of the Federal Republic of Germany in the years 1974-1982. It needs to be emphasised that the author has used new archive resources from the archive of German Liberalism in Gummersbach in this work. This enabled him to present a new assessment of the influence of the FDP on the Eastern policy of the Federal Republic of Germany during the period presented.

Die Programmentwicklung und die Strategie der FDP in der Ostpolitik in den Jahren 1969-1974 im Lichte der neuen Quellen des Archivs des Deutschen Liberalismus

The Program Evolution and the Strategy of the FDP in Ostpolitik in 1969- 1974 in the Light of New Resources of the Archive of German Liberalism The main objective of the article is to analyze the program activities and the strategy of the Free Democratic Party (FDP) in the Eastern policy (Ostpolitik) of the Federal Republic of Germany in the years 1969-1974. The author has used in this work new resources from the archive of German Liberalism in Gummersbach, which is of great importance. This enabled him to present a new assessment of the influence of the FDP on the Eastern policy of the Federal Republic of Germany during the period presented.

The Brotherhood of the Union

This chapter focuses on the Brotherhood of the Union. The Brotherhood represented a particularly American version of the radical nationalist idealism characteristic of the European revolts of 1848–49. Unlike such associations abroad, it functioned within a civilization, paradoxically free in terms of a republican ideology but politically shackled to human slavery. In founding the order, Gothic writer George Lippard sought to create a mutual aid fraternal order that would play the same sort of role widely attributed to the secret political societies in Europe. Known members—a rather limited proportion of the entire order—included some of the leading socialist and radical land reformers, people with ties to the antislavery Free Democratic Party. No less than kindred associations abroad, the Brotherhood of the Union blended abstract romantic humanity and social love with political goals that required blood and iron.

Long Shadows

This epilogue considers the legacies left by spiritualism of the Civil War era. It begins with a discussion of the spiritualist movement's early links to the Free Democratic Party, the Republican Party, and Abraham Lincoln and what happened after the war to some of the prominent spiritualists such as Isabelle Laurie Miller, the Fox sisters, and Nettie Colburn. It then examines the spiritualists' involvement in Reconstruction; how spiritualism and its legacy found their fit in what Christopher Lasch later called “the culture of narcissism” on the West Coast; and how the experience of the antislavery movement and the war imbued spiritualism with a radical new kind of social empathy. It also cites some of the reasons why spiritualism declined after the war, when the issues of secession and Union receded, and looks at three of the organizations established by the spiritualists after the war.

The political Debate on the Wearing the Facing veil in Germany and the Back Right of religious Freedom

The discussions on the ban on burka in Germany started on November the 15 th. 2015 as the party convention of the CSU (a Bavarian part of the ruling CDU) demanded on its party convention to pass the law which would ban the wearing on facial veils in Germany. In the next months the discussion intensified in Germany as more and more politicians got involved in the debate , like the prominent German member of the Free Democratic Party Alexander Graf Lamsdorf or Wolfgang Kubicki, the vice chairman of the FDP which were both in favor of the ban, on the other side there are German politicians like the President of Germany Joachim Gauck or the German minister of justice Heiko Maas who were opposed to ban the wearing of facial veils in Germany.

On the Way Back into Government? The Free Democratic Party Gearing Up for the 2009 Elections

After the first Bundestag elections in 1949, the Free Democratic Party (FDP) established itself as kingmaker either of the Christian Democrats or the Social Democrats. The entrance of the Green Party into the German Bundestag in 1983 brought about a significant change in the German political landscape, which challenged the German Liberals to redefine themselves. At present, it seems that the FDP is on its way back into the federal government after ten years of opposition, although "neoliberal" ideology is currently facing a severe international crisis. This constitutes a puzzling issue for political scientists, which is addressed in this article by analyzing the factors that can explain the German Liberal's latest success. Furthermore, the FDP's chances in comparison to the other two small parties (Left Party and Greens) are discussed. Finally, attention is focused on the characteristics of the FDP's election campaign and its coalition options for 2009 and beyond.