A is for Apparatchik

Ameliorate: 

1. trying to ameliorate the suffering of people who have lost their jobs
2. This medicine should help ameliorate the pain.
3. correct, emend, rectify, reform, remediate

APHORISM: An aphorism is an original thought, spoken or written in a laconic (concise) and memorable form.^[1] Aphorism literally means a "distinction" or "definition". The term was first used in the Aphorisms of Hippocrates. The oft-cited first sentence of this work (see Ars longa, vita brevis) is:
"No good dead will go unpunished"  Clare Boothe Luce 

Anabaptists (from Neo-Latin anabaptista, from the Greek ἀναβαπτισμός: ἀνά- "over again" and βαπτισμός "baptism") are Christians of the Radical Reformation of 16th-century Europe, considered Protestant by some, although some consider Anabaptism to be a distinct movement from Protestantism. The Amish, Hutterites, and Mennonites are direct descendants of the movement.
The name Anabaptist is derived from the Greek term anabaptista, or "one who baptizes over again." This name was given them by their enemies in reference to the practice of "re-baptizing" converts who "already had been baptized" (or sprinkled) as infants. Anabaptists required that baptismal candidates be able to make their own confessions of faith and so rejected baptism of infants. The early members of this movement abhorred the name "Anabaptist", claiming that since infant baptism was unscriptural and null and void, the baptizing of believers was not a "re-baptism" but in fact the first baptism for them. Balthasar Hübmaier wrote:

I have never taught Anabaptism. ...But the right baptism of Christ, which is preceded by teaching and oral confession of faith, I teach, and say that infant baptism is a robbery of the right baptism of Christ...^:204

As a result of their views on the nature of baptism and other issues, Anabaptists were heavily persecuted during the 16th century and into the 17th by both Magisterial Protestants and Roman Catholics.^[a]
While most Anabaptists adhered to a literal interpretation of the Sermon on the Mount which precluded taking oaths, participating in military actions, and participating in civil government, some who practiced re-baptism felt contrariwise.^[b] They were thus technically Anabaptists, even though conservative Amish, Mennonites, and Hutterites and some historians tend to consider them as outside of true Anabaptism. Conrad Grebel wrote in a letter to Thomas Müntzer in 1524:

True Christian believers are sheep among wolves, sheep for the slaughter... Neither do they use worldly sword or war, since all killing has ceased with them...^:45

Though a number of theories exist concerning origins, the three main ideas are:

• that Anabaptism began in a single expression in Zürich and spread from there (Monogenesis);
• that Anabaptism began through several independent movements (polygenesis); and
• that Anabaptism was a continuation of true New Testament Christianity (apostolic succession or church perpetuity).
•  
• In the following points Anabaptists who held to a literal interpretation of the Sermon on the Mount resembled the medieval dissenters:
  
• They condemned oaths, and also the reference of disputes between believers to law-courts in accordance with 1 Corinthians 6:1–11.
• The believer must not bear arms or offer forcible resistance to wrongdoers, nor wield the sword. No Christian has the jus gladii (the right of the sword).Matthew 5:39
• Civil government (i.e., "Caesar") belongs to the world. The believer, who belongs to God's kingdom, must not fill any office, nor hold any rank under government, which is to be passively obeyed.John 18:36 Romans 13:1-7
• Sinners or unfaithful ones are to be excommunicated, and excluded from the sacraments and from intercourse with believers unless they repent, according to 1 Corinthians 5:9–13 and Matthew 18:15 seq. But no force is to be used towards them.

ABBERANT
1. departing from the right, normal, or usual course.
2.deviating from the ordinary, usual, or normal type; exceptional; abnormal.
3.an aberrant person, thing, group, etc.

ANOMALY

1. Something that deviates from what is standard, normal, or expected.
2. The angular distance of a planet or satellite from its last perihelion or perigee.

Apparatchik /ˌɑːpəˈrɑːtʃɪk/ (plural apparatchiki or apparatchiks; Russian: аппара́тчик [əpɐˈrat͡ɕɪk]) is a Russian colloquial term for a full-time, professional functionary of the Communist Party or government, i.e. an agent of the governmental or party "apparat" (apparatus) that held any position of bureaucratic or political responsibility, with the exception of the higher ranks of management. James Billington describes one as "a man not of grand plans, but of a hundred carefully executed details."^[1] It is often considered a derogatory term, with negative connotations in terms of the quality, competence, and attitude of a person thus described.^[2]
Members of the "apparat" were frequently transferred between different areas of responsibility, usually with little or no actual training for their new areas of responsibility. Thus, the term apparatchik, or "agent of the apparatus" was usually the best possible description of the person's profession and occupation.^[3]
Not all apparatchiks held lifelong positions. Many only entered such positions in middle age.^[4]
Today apparatchik is also used in contexts other than that of the Soviet Union or communist countries. According to Collins English Dictionary the word can mean "an official or bureaucrat in any organization".^[5]
According to Douglas Harper's Online Etymology Dictionary, the term was also used in the meaning "Communist agent or spy", originating in the writings of Arthur Koestler, circa 1941.

ABROGATE. 1. : to abolish by authoritative action : annul. 2. : to treat as nonexistent <abrogating their responsibilities

Axiom: A self-evident truth that requires no proof. A universally accepted principle or rule.

Aeolistic: Long-winded which has various meanings such as being tediously long in speaking. It also refers to the manner in which one consumes much time or just being unnecessarily talkative or verbose.

Anthropophagy: 
Anthropophagy (Greek: ἄνθρωπος, anthropos, "human being" + φαγειν, phagein, "to eat") is the custom and practice of eating human flesh.
Cannibalism, when one human consumes the flesh of another
Self-cannibalism, the act of eating one's own flesh
Man-eating, the consumption of human flesh by non-human predators ("man-eaters"
Human hematophagy, the consumption of human blood by other animals

ANTHROPOPHACY
Anthropopathismnthe attribution of human passions, etc., to a deity, object, etc.

 

 

B is for Bacciferous

bien pensant = 
Someone who accepts and/or espouses a fashionable idea after it has been established and maintains it without a great amount of critical thought. Right-thinking, orthodox, conformist; conservative. 

 

Bacciferous:  (Pron: Bak siferous) bearing berries 

C is for Concupiscence

Chiraqistan:  France, land of weasels and psuedo-intelledctuals.
In Chiraqistan, we are all dhimmis!

Concupiscence:  A strong desire, especially sexual desire; lust. Ardent longing.

Cui bono /kwiːˈboʊnoʊ/ "to whose benefit?", literally "as a benefit to whom?" is a Latin saying which is still used.
The phrase a double dative construction. It is also rendered as cui prodest.
It is a Latin adage that is used either to suggest a hidden motive or to indicate that the party responsible for something may not be who it appears at first to be.
Commonly the phrase is used to suggest that the person or people guilty of committing a crime may be found among those who have something to gain, chiefly with an eye toward financial gain. The party that benefits may not always be obvious or may have successfully diverted attention to a scapegoat, for example.
The Roman orator and statesman Marcus Tullius Cicero, in his speech Pro Roscio Amerino, section 84, attributed the expression cui bono to the Roman consul and censor Lucius Cassius Longinus Ravilla:

“

L. Cassius ille quem populus Romanus verissimum et sapientissimum iudicem putabat identidem in causis quaerere solebat 'cui bono' fuisset. The famous Lucius Cassius, whom the Roman people used to regard as a very honest and wise judge, was in the habit of asking, time and again, 'To whose benefit?'

”

Another example of Cicero using "cui bono" is in his defence of Milo, in the Pro Milone. He even makes a reference to Cassius: "let that maxim of Cassius apply".

CALUMNY    

n. pl. cal·um·nies

1. A false statement maliciously made to injure another's reputation.

2. The utterance of maliciously false statements; slander.

D is for Deleterious

Deleterious:  Having a harmful effect; injurious,  injurious to health. Dhimmi is a word used by Muslims to describe a Christian or a Jew, and most recently people who do not follow Islam but live in an Islamic country or another country that does not follow Islam. Dhimmi's in past centuries who lived under a Muslim dominated country lost most of their legal rights and privileges if they did not convert to Islam. Dhimmi’s were also targeted and preyed upon because they were not allowed to testify in courts against Muslims, like Islamic or Sharia courts of today. It made Dhimmi’s easy targets and added incentives for them to hurry up and convert to Islam, or suffer until they do. Dhimmi's have to pay Jizya a tax for practicing their religion. In other words Islam uses the method of Dhimmi and Jizya to force Islamic conversions when they slowly take over a country. 1. Christians and Jews (and sometimes others) in traditional Islamic empires. They had a recognized but very subordinate legal status. 2. Zeropian politicians who kowtow to political Islam, as in Chiraqistan. In France, the elite are all dhimmis. Dhimmi A non muslim that takes a policy of appeasement or kowtows to muslim aggression and hatred of western civilization or a politician who sells out western civilization in return for votes or because they are too afraid to offend muslims The term Dhimmitude is derived from Dhimmi, which means a non-Muslim living in an Islamic country. The Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary has defined it as "a person living in a region overrun by Muslim conquest who was accorded a protected status and allowed to retain his original faith". According to orthodox Islamic law (Shari'ah), those who are qualified for Dhimmi status within the Muslim society are the free (i.e non-slave) Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians. Adherents of other religions, as well as those without religion, are asked to convert to Islam; if they refuse, they are to be forced to convert. However, historically, adherents of Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and other religions, have lived as Dhimmis within Muslim states. According to the Qur'an and hadith, Jizyah tax must be paid by the dhimmis as a sign of submission. This gives dhimmis some legal protection in return. As established by the Pact of Omar, dhimmis usually are not allowed to carry arms to protect themselves, serve in the army or government, display symbols of their faith, build or repair places of worship, they must wear distinctive clothing which includes the Zunar (a kind of belt) wherever they go, etc. Many of these laws are still enforced today in Muslim countries, like Egypt and Saudi Arabia, which enforce various aspects of Shari'ah. If the conquered do not wish to pay or convert, their fate may very well be slavery (under which, rape is permitted) or death. The pact also declares that dhimmis are forbidden to ride horses and camels, and may only ride donkeys, and only on packsaddles. The law professor Antoine Fattal offered the following analysis of dhimmitude after close study of Islamic law: Doxastic:  Denoting the branch of modal logic that studies the concept of belief Doxastic logic is a modal logic concerned with reasoning about beliefs. The term doxastic derives from the ancient Greek δόξα, doxa, which means "belief." Typically, a doxastic logic uses 'Bx' to mean "It is believed that x is the case," and the set denotes a set of beliefs. In doxastic logic, belief is treated as a modal operator.

F is for Fiat

Fiat (Latin for "let it be done") is a theoretical construct in policy debate—derived from the word should in the resolution—whereby the substance of the resolution is debated, rather than the political feasibility of enactment and enforcement of a given plan, allowing an affirmative team to "imagine" a plan into being.
For example: a student at a high school debate argues that increases in United States support of United Nations peacekeeping may help to render the United States more multilateral. Such an increase is very unlikely to occur from the debate judge voting affirmative, but fiat allows the student to side-step this practicality, and argue on the substance of the idea, as if it could be immediately enacted.
There are different theories regarding fiat:
"Normal Means"—Going through the same political process comparable with normal legislative processes. There is no overarching, accepted definition of the legislative pathways which constitute "normal means," but clarification about what an affirmative team regards as "normal means" can be obtained as part of cross-examination by the negative team.

Fiat money has been defined variously as:

• any money declared by a government to be legal tender.
• state-issued money which is neither convertible by law to any other thing, nor fixed in value in terms of any objective standard.
• money without intrinsic value.

The term derives from the Latin fiat ("let it be done", "it shall be").
While gold- or silver-backed representative money entails the legal requirement that the bank of issue redeem it in fixed weights of gold or silver, fiat money's value is unrelated to the value of any physical quantity. Even a coin containing valuable metal may be considered fiat currency if its face value is higher than its market value as metal.
The Nixon Shock of 1971 ended the direct convertibility of the United States dollar to gold. Since then, all reserve currencies have been fiat currencies, including the U.S. dollar and the Euro.

E is for Expiate

EXPIATE
v. ex·pi·at·ed, ex·pi·at·ing, ex·pi·ates

v.tr.

To make amends or reparation for; atone: expiate one's sins by acts of penance.

v.intr.

To make amends; atone.

Epistemic:  Of, relating to, or involving knowledge; cognitive. 
(Philosophy / Logic) denoting the branch of modal logic that deals with the formalization of certain epistemological concepts, such as knowledge, certainty, and ignorance

Empirical: Based on observation, experience, or experimentation (rather than on theory or speculation)

G is for Gnosticism

Gnosticism (from gnostikos, "learned", from Ancient Greek: γνῶσις gnōsis, knowledge; Arabic: الغنوصية‎ al-ġnūṣīh) is the belief that the material world created by the demiurge should be shunned^{[citation needed]} and the spiritual world should be embraced (God's world). Gnostic ideas influenced many ancient religions which teach that gnosis (variously interpreted as knowledge, enlightenment, salvation, emancipation or 'oneness with God') may be reached by practicing philanthropy to the point of personal poverty, sexual abstinence (as far as possible for hearers, total for initiates) and diligently searching for wisdom by helping others. However, practices varied among those who were gnostic. In Gnosticism, the world of the demiurge is represented by the lower world which associated to the matter, to flesh, to time, to molecules and more particularly to an imperfect world and an ephemeral world. The world of God is represented by the upper world, and is associated with the soul and perfection. The world of God is eternal and not part of the physical. It is impalpable, and time there doesn't exist. To rise to God, the Gnostic must reach the "knowledge" which mixes philosophy, metaphysics, curiosity, culture, knowledge, and secrets of history and universe.
Gnosticism was primarily defined in a Christian context. Some scholars have claimed that gnosticism predated Christianity. Such discussions have included pre-Christian religious beliefs and spiritual practices argued to be common to early Christianity, Neoplatonism, Hellenistic Judaism, Greco-Roman mystery religions, and Zoroastrianism (especially Zurvanism). The discussion of gnosticism changed radically with the discovery of the Nag Hammadi library and led to revision of older assumptions.

The demiurge is a concept from the Platonic, Neopythagorean, Middle Platonic, and Neoplatonic schools of philosophy for an artisan-like figure responsible for the fashioning and maintenance of the physical universe. The term was subsequently adopted by the Gnostics. Although a fashioner, the demiurge is not necessarily thought of as being the same as the creator figure in the familiar monotheistic sense, because both the demiurge itself plus the material from which the demiurge fashions the universe are considered either uncreated and eternal, or the product of some other being, depending on the system.
The word "demiurge" is an English word from a Latinized form of the Greek δημιουργός, dēmiourgos, literally "public worker", and which was originally a common noun meaning "craftsman" or "artisan", but gradually it came to mean "producer" and eventually "creator". The philosophical usage and the proper noun derive from Plato's Timaeus, written c. 360 BC, in which the demiurge is presented as the creator of the universe. This is accordingly the definition of the demiurge in the Platonic (c. 310–90 BC) and Middle Platonic (c. 90 BC – 300 AD) philosophical traditions. In the various branches of the Neoplatonic school (third century onwards), the demiurge is the fashioner of the real, perceptible world after the model of the Ideas, but (in most Neoplatonic systems) is still not itself "the One". In the arch-dualist ideology of the various Gnostic systems, the material universe is evil, while the non-material world is good. Accordingly, the demiurge is malevolent, as linked to the material world.

Ag·nos·ti·cism  (g-nst-szm)

n.

1. The doctrine that certainty about first principles or absolute truth is unattainable and that only perceptual phenomena are objects of exact knowledge.

2. The belief that there can be no proof either that God exists or that God does not exist.

.

a. One who believes that it is impossible to know whether there is a God.

b. One who is skeptical about the existence of God but does not profess true atheism.

2. One who is doubtful or noncommittal about something.

adj.

1. Relating to or being an agnostic.

2. Doubtful or noncommittal: "Though I am agnostic on what terms to use, I have no doubt that human infants come with an enormous 'acquisitiveness' for discovering patterns" (William H. Calvin).

---

[a- + Gnostic.]

---

ag·nosti·cal·ly adv.

Word History: An agnostic does not deny the existence of God and heaven but holds that one cannot know for certain whether or not they exist. The term agnostic was fittingly coined by the 19th-century British scientist Thomas H. Huxley, who believed that only material phenomena were objects of exact knowledge. He made up the word from the prefix a-, meaning "without, not," as in amoral, and the noun Gnostic. Gnostic is related to the Greek word gnsis, "knowledge," which was used by early Christian writers to mean "higher, esoteric knowledge of spiritual things"; hence, Gnostic referred to those with such knowledge. In coining the term agnostic, Huxley was considering as "Gnostics" a group of his fellow intellectuals"ists," as he called themwho had eagerly embraced various doctrines or theories that explained the world to their satisfaction. Because he was a "man without a rag of a label to cover himself with," Huxley coined the term agnostic for himself, its first published use being in 1870.

Garrulous:  Given to excessive and often trivial or rambling talk; tiresomely talkative.

H is for Hydronym

Hydronym, noun. From Greek hydor, “water,” + onoma, “name,” a body of water.

HUBRIS: excessive pride or self-confidence; arrogance. an excess of ambition, pride, etc, ultimately causing the transgressor's ruin.

Hegemony:  the social, cultural, ideological, or economic influence exerted by a dominant group 

Homogeneity and Heterogeneity are concepts relating to the uniformity in a substance. A material that is homogeneous is uniform in composition or character; one that is heterogeneous is distinctly nonuniform in one of these qualities<sup>.
Clam chowder, a heterogeneous material 

HYPHENATE:</sup>

i) a person working in more than one craft or occupation: a hyphenate in the film industry who has gained fame as a writer-director-producer.

ii) a person of mixed national origin or identity.

Hagiography 

Hagiography from the Greek (Hagio “holy” or “saint”) and graphēin (γράφειν, “to write”), refers to the biographies of saints and ecclesiastical leaders. The term hagiology, the study of hagiography, is also current in English, although less common.

Christian hagiographies focus on the lives, and notably the miracles of men and women canonized by the Roman Catholic church, the Anglican Communion, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Oriental Orthodox churches, and the Church of the East. Other religions such as Buddhism, Islam and Sikhism also create and maintain hagiographical texts (such as the Sikh Janamsakhis) concerning saints, gurus and other individuals believed to be imbued with sacred power.

I is for Inculcate

INVIOLABLE: -l-bl)adj.

1. Secure from violation or profanation: an inviolable reliquary deep beneath the altar.

2. Impregnable to assault or trespass; invincible

The definition of inviolable is something that has to be kept sacred, or that is unable to be broken or dishonored.

inculcated: 

1. To impress (something) upon the mind of another by frequent instruction or repetition; instill: inculcating sound principles.

2. To teach (others) by frequent instruction or repetition; indoctrinate: inculcate the young with a sense of duty.

INIMICAL
being adverse often by reason of hostility or malevolence, having the disposition of an enemy, reflecting or indicating hostility

J is for Jurisprudence

JUS GLADII. Supreme jurisdiction. The right to absolve from, or condemn a man to death. - The right of the sword.  The right of the sword; the executory power of the law; the right, power, or prerogative of punishing for crime. 4 Bl. Comm. 177.

jizya or jizyah (Arabic: جزية‎ ǧizyah IPA: [dʒizja]; Ottoman Turkish: cizye;) is a per capita tax levied on a section of an Islamic state's non-Muslim citizens, who meet certain criteria. The tax is and was to be levied on able-bodied adult males of military age and affording power^[1] (but with specific exemptions).^[2][3] From the point of view of the Muslim rulers, jizya was a material proof of the non-Muslims' acceptance of subjection to the state and its laws, "just as for the inhabitants it was a concrete continuation of the taxes paid to earlier regimes."^[4] In return, non-Muslim citizens were permitted to practice their faith, to enjoy a measure of communal autonomy, to be entitled to the Muslim state's protection from outside aggression, and to be exempted from military service and the zakat taxes obligatory upon Muslim citizens.  ⁽Under Islamic law,)

Modern jizya table

August 30, 2010

Many modern Muslims and Leftists defend the “theory” and “history” of the jizya. At the same time they tell us not to worry about the jizya because they claim that it no longer exists. That is a lie. Not only does jizya still exist, but it often takes place around the world under government auspices. We’ve covered this many times on this blog, but it’s time for a recap:

Contemporary jizya examples and government complicity

Country	Description	Government role?	Source
Pakistan	Jizya against Sikh & Christian homes, shops, and churches	“Government policies do not afford equal protection” to religious minorities	U.S. State Department’s International Religious Freedom Report 2009: Pakistan
Pakistan	Jizya imposed against Sikhs by Taliban, 2009 to present	Part of a 2009 truce between Pakistan & Islamic militants	Sikh News Network
Iraq	Jizya demanded of Christians in Baghdad & Mosul	N/A	U.S. State Department’s International Religious Freedom Report 2009: Iraq
Philippines	Tax authority offered to MILF Islamists	Part of government proposed “peace accord” in 2010	Iran Press TV
Philippines	Jizya demanded of Catholics in 2008	N/A	U.S. State Department’s International Religious Freedom Report 2009: Philippines
Yemen	Jizya imposed against Jews	Jizya used as “bargaining chips” by Yemeni politicians	Professor Adel Al-Sharjabi, Sana’a University

More coverage from Money Jihad:

• More on jizya against Sikhs here
• Additional commentary on Pakistan-Taliban truce here
• More on the situation of Yemeni Jewish jizya here
• Recap of the U.S. State Department’s finding’s here

The Jizya, Part III

November 1, 2009 Having laid out the moral depravity of the jizya and the jizya’s basis in Islamic texts, some readers may question whether the jizya isn’t a mere historical artifact, or a bogey man manufactured by war-on-terror hawks, that plays no real role in the world today.
The new 2009 Report on International Religious Freedom issued by the U.S. State Department last Monday should remove any doubts about the modern jizya push around the globe.  I pulled relevant passages for several countries.  These are all sad accounts which speak for themselves:
Pakistan

In April 2009 the Taliban began to extort money under the guise of a jizya tax (traditionally a tax on non-Muslims paid in exchange for government protection) in Orakzai Agency, FATA. In response to extortion and attacks, some members of the Sikh community fled the area after paying approximately $240,000 (20 million rupees) as jizya tax after the Taliban forcibly occupied their homes and kidnapped a Sikh leader, Kalyan Singh.
On April 22, 2009, a mob attacked a Christian locality, Tiaser Town, in Karachi, Sindh, after threatening signs were posted on the walls of a church stating that Christians should either convert or pay the jizya tax. One person, Irfan Masih, was killed and three others injured in the attack; several houses belonging to Christians, shops, and three churches were ransacked. The attacks came amid fears of growing Talibanization in Karachi, where minority groups had been subjected to violence in the past.

Iraq

Christians living in Baghdad’s Doura district and in the city of Mosul also reported that Islamic extremists threatened to kill them unless they converted, left, or paid a jizya (a tax on non-Muslims).
During a 10-day period in the beginning of October 2008, 14 Christians were killed in Mosul, prompting more than 2,000 families to flee their homes for villages in the Ninewa Plain north of the city. The attacks followed protests in which hundreds of Christians demonstrated for greater representation on the country’s local provincial councils. Leaflets were distributed in predominantly Christian neighborhoods threatening families to convert to Islam, pay the “jizyah” tax, leave the city, or be killed. Gunmen then set up checkpoints in several parts of the city, stopping vehicles in search of residents who could be identified as Christians. Local security forces did little to stop the killings, but Prime Minister Maliki sent two additional brigades of police to reassert control of the city.
In a symbolically significant event, the Chaldean archbishop of Mosul, Paulus Faraj Rahho, was kidnapped on February 29, 2008, for failing to pay protection money or “jizya” to Islamic insurgents. The archbishop died while in captivity.

Philippines

In July 2008 Catholic Bishop Martin Jumoad of Isabela, Basilan and other Catholics reportedly received letters from self-described ‘Muslim warriors’ possibly linked to the ASG [Abu Sayyaf Group], threatening harm if the Catholics did not convert to Islam or pay “Islamic taxes.”

Two final notes: 

1. Clearly, the report was not compiled by anti-jihad stalwarts like Tom Tancredo, Robert Spencer, and Geert Wilders, but by government employees in the Obama administration.  Like many government reports, the language tends to be guarded and understated.  Also, it is likely that only fully documented instances or complaints of religious persecution made their way into this report.  The prevalence of the jizya—or threats to pay the jizya—is even more widespread, more frequent, more virulent, and more humiliating than laid out in this report.
2. What’s so striking about almost all the accounts is the common thread of threats against non-Muslims to convert to Islam, pay the jizya, or be killed.  As Money Jihad laid out yesterday, that is precisely the same formulation set forth in the canonical Hadith Sahih Muslim Book 19, Number 4294.  In many respects it is unfortunate that the State Department report is divided into countries rather than themes, because the convert-pay-die formulation is not a Pakistani, Iraqi, or Philippino formulation; it is an Islamic one.

The jizya of the Koran and Hadith, which has been imposed throughout the history of the Islamic caliphates, is alive and resurgent today.  The jizya is quite possibly the foulest tax on earth, and it must be exposed, condemned, and refused at every turn.

Jurisprudence is the study and theory of law. Scholars of jurisprudence, or legal theorists (including legal philosophers and social theorists of law), hope to obtain a deeper understanding of the nature of law, of legal reasoning, legal systems and of legal institutions. Modern jurisprudence began in the 18th century and was focused on the first principles of the natural law, civil law, and the law of nations.^[1] General jurisprudence can be broken into categories both by the type of question scholars seek to answer and by the theories of jurisprudence, or schools of thought, regarding how those questions are best answered. Contemporary philosophy of law, which deals with general jurisprudence, addresses problems in two rough groups:^[2]

• (1.) Problems internal to law and legal systems as such.
• (2.) Problems of law as a particular social institution as it relates to the larger political and social situation in which it exists.

Answers to these questions come from four primary schools of thought in general jurisprudence:^[2]

• Natural law is the idea that there are rational objective limits to the power of legislative rulers. The foundations of law are accessible through human reason and it is from these laws of nature that human-created laws gain whatever force they have.^[2]
• Legal positivism, by contrast to natural law, holds that there is no necessary connection between law and morality and that the force of law comes from some basic social facts. Legal positivists differ on what those facts are
• Legal realism is a third theory of jurisprudence which argues that the real world practice of law is what determines what law is; the law has the force that it does because of what legislators, judges, and executives do with it. Similar approaches have been developed in many different ways in sociology of law.
• Critical legal studies is a younger theory of jurisprudence that has developed since the 1970s. It is primarily a negative thesis that holds that the law is largely contradictory, and can be best analyzed as an expression of the policy goals of the dominant social group.

Also of note is the work of the contemporary Philosopher of Law Ronald Dworkin who has advocated a constructivist theory of jurisprudence that can be characterized as a middle path between natural law theories and positivist theories of general jurisprudence.
The English term is based on the Latin word jurisprudentia: juris is the genitive form of jus meaning "law", and prudentia means "prudence" (also: discretion, foresight, forethought, circumspection; refers to the exercise of good judgment, common sense, and even caution, especially in the conduct of practical matters). The word is first attested in English in 1628, at a time when the word prudence had the now obsolete meaning of "knowledge of or skill in a matter". The word may have come via the French jurisprudence, which is attested earlier.

jus gladii: The right of the sword.

jus gladii: The right of the sword.