72-473: The Australia Party was a minor centrist political party in Australia from 1969 to 1986. It was most influential in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The party was established in 1969 under the leadership of Senator Reg Turnbull , as a merger of Turnbull's supporters and Gordon Barton 's Australian Reform Movement . Turnbull's involvement was short-lived and he resigned from the party in 1970. At federal level,
144-432: A welfare state with moderate redistributive policies . Though its placement is widely accepted in political science , radical groups that oppose centrist ideologies may sometimes describe them as leftist or rightist. Centrist parties typically hold the middle position between major left-wing and right-wing parties, though in some cases they will hold the left-leaning or right-leaning vote if there are no viable parties in
216-656: A full-page advertisement in the Sydney Morning Herald lamenting the involvement of Australian troops in the Vietnam War. At that time no political party was opposed to Australian involvement in the war. Nick Gorshenin telephoned Gordon Barton that evening and they decided to form the Liberal Reform Group, later rebranded as the Australian Reform Movement. They used their various contacts to establish
288-566: A grey face" led by John Major , and the anti-neoliberalism of Mexican president Vicente Fox . The centre-left adopted Third Way policies, emphasising that it was neither left nor right but pragmatic . This adopted ideas popular among the centre-right, including balanced budgets and low taxes. Among these movements were British New Labour led by Tony Blair . Social democratic parties became more accepting of supply-side economics , austerity policies, and reduction of welfare programs. Some authoritarian powers, such as China and Russia, resisted
360-700: A larger middle class. Following the pink tide that saw several left-wing politicians take office, those in democratic nations adopted relatively moderate policies, including Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in Brazil, Michelle Bachelet in Chile, Mauricio Funes in El Salvador, and Tabaré Vázquez and José Mujica in Uruguay. These nations implemented the Washington Consensus , which mixed deregulation and privatisation with
432-503: A new political party, which was named the Australia Party on the basis that it would "put Australia before party". A main goal of Turnbull and the new party was the end of Australian involvement in the Vietnam War. At the time of the party's creation, the ARM claimed 800 formal members and 8,000 supporters. Turnbull's term as leader of the Australia Party proved to be "brief and unhappy", with
504-534: A number of former ARM members leaving the Australia Party as they felt Barton and its leadership had acted undemocratically in conducting secret negotiations with Turnbull. He resigned from the party on 3 March 1970 and reverted back to being an independent. In July 1974, Gordon Barton announced he would not seek re-election as national convenor of the Australia Party. He was replaced by Melbourne industrialist John Siddons in December 1974, who defeated Ian Gilfillan for
576-449: A party's ideological stance. Conversely, some centrist parties will only be challenged from one direction instead of facing both left-wing and right-wing challengers, preventing it from taking its typical location in the middle of a party system. What constitutes the middle of a political system is unique to each nation, while ideological centrism is a political stance that exists internationally. Coalition building typically occurs around
648-471: A plurality in most European countries. John Siddons John Royston Siddons AO (5 October 1927 – 22 September 2016) was an Australian politician. He was a businessman and the executive chairman of Siddons Industries Ltd. before entering politics. Siddons was born in Melbourne on 5 October 1927. He was the second of three children born to Agnes Emily (née Smith) and Royston Siddons . His father
720-490: A political system designed to encourage centrism in an ethnically divided nation as it transitioned away from colonial rule in 1965. Each voter was to vote for four candidates, each for a distinct ethnic group. This failed to produce a centrist government, as in effect it solidified the ethnic division in government. As post-colonial party systems developed in the Middle East, the influence of one-party states varied. Parties like
792-569: A political system, opposing the right's adherence to the status quo and the left's support for radical change. Support for a middle class is a defining trait of centrism, holding that it is preferable to reactionary or revolutionary politics. In contemporary politics, centrists generally support a liberal welfare state . Centrist coalitions are associated with larger welfare programs, but they are generally less inclusive than those organised under social democratic governments. Centrists may support some redistributive policies , but they oppose
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#1732854560808864-467: A set of moderate political beliefs between left-wing politics and right-wing politics . Individuals who describe themselves as centrist may hold strong beliefs that align with moderate politics, or they may identify as centrist because they do not hold particularly strong left-wing or right-wing beliefs. In some cases, individuals who simultaneously hold strong left-wing beliefs and strong right-wing beliefs may also describe themselves as centrist. Although
936-412: A side, causing political instability . Maurice Duverger argued that politics naturally drifts away from the centre into a two-party system and that a centrist party is an unnatural combination of the centre-left and centre-right. Giovanni Sartori argued that centrism is the default in a political system, but that the existence of a centrist party prevents the left and the right from moving toward
1008-438: Is a form of centrism defined by its rejection of the left–right dichotomy or of ideology in general. Liberal scepticism and neo-republicanism can both be elements of radical centrism. Third Way politics is a radical centrist approach taken by centre-left parties to find a middle ground between capitalism and socialism . Though populism is commonly associated with strong left-wing or right-wing beliefs, centrist populism
1080-603: Is commonly associated with the political centre. Both left-leaning and right-leaning variants of liberalism may be grouped within a broader understanding of centrism. In Europe, left-leaning liberalism emphasises social liberalism and is more common in nations with strong conservative movements, while right-leaning liberalism emphasises economic liberalism and is more common in nations with strong Christian democratic movements. Social liberalism combines centrist economic positions with progressive stances on social and cultural issues. Left-leaning liberalism generally sits closer to
1152-464: Is critical of the political system independently of social, economic, and cultural issues. Centrist populist parties often do not have a strong ideological component, instead making anti-establishment politics the core of their message to capitalise on voter dissatisfaction and receive protest votes . These parties are most common in Central and Eastern Europe. Centrism advocates gradual change within
1224-491: Is the range of political ideologies that exist between left-wing politics and right-wing politics on the left–right political spectrum . It is associated with moderate politics, including people who strongly support moderate policies and people who are not strongly aligned with left-wing or right-wing policies. Centrism is commonly associated with liberalism , radical centrism , and agrarianism . Those who identify as centrist support gradual political change, often through
1296-467: Is typically a junior partner that has little ability to enact its own policy goals. Party systems with a strong centrist element are associated with lower interparty conflict. The overall effect of centrist parties on a political system is a subject of debate in political science, and it is not always clear whether they encourage or discourage political polarisation, or whether they benefit or suffer from it. One unanswered question in political philosophy
1368-412: Is whether centrist parties create centripetal or centrifugal party systems. When centrist parties exert a centripetal force on other parties, it causes left-wing and right-wing parties to move closer to the centre and creates political stability . Alternatively, they may exert a centrifugal force in which left-wing and right-wing parties move away from the centre to pressure the centrist party into choosing
1440-692: The Arab Socialist Union in Egypt and the General People's Congress in Yemen acted as restraints on political elites to keep them from deviating from the political centre. Anwar Sadat became president of Egypt, and in 1976 he split the ruling Arab Socialist Union into three parties based on its left, centre, and right factions. Rule was maintained through what became the centrist National Democratic Party , effectively controlling Egyptian politics and marginalising
1512-646: The Colorado Party of Uruguay. Christian democracy, usually a conservative movement, serves a similar role in Latin America as its opposition to more rightward politics moves it toward a centrist or centre-left position. Some political parties label themselves as centrist but do not hold centrist positions. These are typically more right-wing parties such as the centre-right Union of the Democratic Centre in Spain and
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#17328545608081584-767: The Liberal Reform Group , a group of members of the Liberal Party of Australia and Independents who opposed the party's policy of conscription and military involvement in the Vietnam War . The leading figure in this group was a businessman, Gordon Barton , who was assisted in the funding by Ken Thomas of TNT Transport and with the party organisation and branch establishment by Nick Gorshenin , Sydney shark meshing contractor and North Sydney Council alderman. On 22 October 1966, when US President Lyndon B. Johnson visited Sydney , Gordon Barton and Ken Thomas sponsored
1656-726: The New Liberal Movement in the formation of the Australian Democrats for the 1977 federal election . However, a rump party continued on, fielding separate candidates in NSW, SA and Victoria in the 1977 election, in SA and Victoria in the 1980 election and the 1982 Flinders by-election . One candidate stood for the House of Representatives in Victoria in 1983 . Relations between the rump party and
1728-536: The dissolution of the Soviet Union as it spread through Europe and the Americas, but it declined in favour of populism after the 2007–2008 financial crisis . As with all ideological groups, the exact boundaries of what constitutes centrism are not perfectly defined, but its specific placement on the left–right political spectrum makes its position clearer relative to other ideologies. Centrism most commonly refers to
1800-419: The 1950s and 1960s, this declined to approximately 15% by 2020. Centrist dictatorships rarely occur. Most political party systems lean toward the centre, where centre-left and centre-right parties compromise with centrist parties. Centrist parties are typically found in the middle of a party system, leading to mixed use of the term centre to refer to centrist parties and to this middle position regardless of
1872-490: The 1960s as polarisation grew and radical parties developed. Industrialisation reduced the appeal of agrarianism in the post-war era. The Agrarian Parties of Sweden , Norway , and Finland changed their names to the Centre Party in 1958, 1959, and 1965, respectively. This left Denmark as the only nation with a major self-proclaimed Agrarian Party , but it also described itself as liberal beginning in 1963. Fiji implemented
1944-473: The 1960s. Taiwan's political system, already inclined toward centrism, saw its two major parties move closer to the centrism in the late 1990s as newer parties developed on either side. After a long period of strong left-wing and right-wing movements, Latin American nations trended toward centrism in the 2000s. This came about as the nations' economies strengthened and the reduction of wealth inequality created
2016-417: The 19th century, but it did so less than its primary advocates, and it rejected the related concept of social Darwinism . Instead of the idea that non-white races could not achieve European-style civilisation, centrist liberals believed that they could but it would take them longer to do so. Centrist liberalism was one of the two major global ideological groups at the beginning of the 20th century, where it
2088-478: The 19th century. As research universities became more common, advocacy for centrist reform was taken up by academics. Instead of engaging in direct activism, they considered social issues and presented their conclusions as objective science. Other ideological groups did not have success in this endeavour, as taking strong partisan stances risked one's reputation. Centrist liberals in Europe accepted scientific racism in
2160-608: The Advance Australia Party. At the time The Canberra Times reported that the Australia Party had few remaining members, most of whom were in Victoria. Significant figures in the Australia Party were Senator Reg Turnbull (elected as an independent, but Australia Party leader in 1969–1970), and journalist Alan Fitzgerald , then an elected member of the Australian Capital Territory Advisory Council . Two Australia Party members were elected to
2232-592: The Australia Party and later Australian Democrats is that they nullified and then overtook the minority influence of the Democratic Labor Party, which had wielded much influence in post-war federal and state politics. The Australia Party altered the power dynamics, and the Australia Democrats continued that role until they were succeeded by the Greens in the 2004 federal election. Centrism Centrism
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2304-516: The Australia Party in December 1974, defeating Ian Gilfillan . In 1980, he was elected to the Australian Senate as a Democrats senator for Victoria . He was defeated at the 1983 election , when he was required to take second place on the Democrats ticket in deference to party leader Don Chipp . He was, however, re-elected in the 1984 election , when seven places were up for election due to
2376-713: The Australian Democrats were poor: in the 1977 election in South Australia, Australia Party preferences flowed to the Liberal Party rather than the Democrats, resulting in the Liberal Baden Teague defeating the Democrat Ian Gilfillan for the fifth and final Senate seat. The rump party merged into former Australian Democrat John Siddons ' new Unite Australia Party (UAP) in December 1986, along with
2448-564: The Australian franchise rights and in 1952 incorporated Ramset Fasteners (Australia) Pty Ltd as a division of Siddons Drop Forging, with himself as general manager. Due to import restrictions the firm had to manufacture Ramset guns in Australia, quickly ramping up production and later establishing subsidiaries in New Zealand and South Africa. By 1955 profits from the Ramset line had surpassed the rest of
2520-567: The Christian Democrats expressed centrist positions but were the rightmost of Italy's major parties and took on a more conservative role. Turkey developed a two-party system with two centrist parties in the 1950s. The parties were instead motivated by demographics: the Republican People's Party was supported by urban voters and the military while Democrat Party was the party of rural voters and businessmen. This system fell apart by
2592-565: The Siddons' tool-making divisions. Siddons' first involvement in politics was through the Australia Party . He was an unsuccessful candidate for the party at three federal elections, standing for the House of Representatives in the seat of Diamond Valley at the 1972 election and for the Senate at the 1974 and 1975 elections . He was elected to succeed Gordon Barton as national convenor of
2664-477: The capture of specific voters instead of the general population. The popularity of centrism in the Western World is contradicted by the relative electoral weakness of centrist parties. One possible explanation for the paradox is that centrists may be perceived as lacking the leadership or capability demonstrated by leaders of other ideologies. Another is that centrists are unable to increase their vote share because
2736-501: The centre and encourages polarisation. Anthony Downs proposed a model in which a centrist party emerges after the left-wing and right-wing parties diverge from a centrist-leaning public. Hans Daalder [ nl ] rejected the concept of a singular political centre entirely. When parties become more extreme, disaffected moderates may be enticed to join centrist parties when they would otherwise have been unwilling to join an opposing party. More broadly, polarisation can lead to
2808-584: The centre in the 1990s and 2000s. The centre-right, previously dominated by neoliberalism , became more accepting of the welfare state, and it showed more support for combatting poverty and inequality. This included the "kinder, gentler America" championed by George H. W. Bush in the United States, Die Neue Mitte ( transl. The New Centre ) of Gerhard Schröder in Germany, the British " Thatcherism with
2880-404: The centre is challenged by parties that seek to undermine the legitimacy of the political system. These parties come from both the left and the right and have different positions on how the government should function, which prevents them from unifying against the centre, giving the centre an opportunity to retain power. According to the median voter theorem , parties are incentivised to move toward
2952-444: The centre than right-leaning liberalism. Parties associated with social democracy and green politics commonly adopt the liberal position on social issues. Green parties , usually associated with left-wing politics, have a history of centrist economic policies in Central and Eastern Europe. Christian democracy , often considered a centre-right ideology, is sometimes grouped with the centre. Agrarianism may also be grouped with
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3024-535: The centre when it maintained an element of working class revolution. Empires were forced to maintain the political centre, avoiding reactionary or revolutionary politics that could have affected their stability. Centrist liberalism was slower to develop outside of the great powers of Western Europe. By the 1830s, conservatism and radicalism in Western Europe began a shift toward moderation as they accepted ideas associated with centrist liberalism. The United Kingdom
3096-480: The centre, depending on how they seek votes. Some populist parties take centrist positions, basing their political position on opposition to the government instead of left-wing or right-wing populism . Centrism developed with the left–right political spectrum during the French Revolution , when assemblymen associated with neither the radicals nor the reactionaries sat between the two groups. Liberalism became
3168-662: The centre-right to form a rightward flank. Centrist liberalism has only a minor presence in the Middle East, where it is overshadowed by leftism and Islamism . More developed countries in Latin America often have prominent centrist parties supported by the middle class. These have historically included the Radical Civic Union of Argentina, the Brazilian Democratic Movement , the Radical Party of Chile , and
3240-452: The centre. Agrarian parties are associated with the interests of farmers and other people associated with agriculture . Decentralization and environmental protection are also major agrarian ideals. These parties often developed in European countries where there was not a strong liberal movement, and vice versa, but they became less relevant by the mid-20th century. Radical centrism
3312-487: The dominant centrist ideology in the 18th century with its support for anti-clericalism and individual rights , challenging both conservatism and socialism . Agrarianism briefly existed as a major European centrist movement in the late-19th and early-20th centuries. The eugenics associated with the Holocaust caused centrists to abandon scientific racism in favour of anti-racism . Centrism became more influential after
3384-812: The expansion of the Parliament. In 1986, he left the Democrats, claiming that the party had moved too far to the left. In 1987, he registered the Unite Australia Party , amalgamating two other minor parties, the Advance Australia Party and the remnants of the Australia Party . He was joined in the Senate by South Australian Democrat David Vigor . The new party contested the 1987 election but received under 1% in all states contested. Siddons and Vigor were both defeated. He died in 2016, aged 88. This article about an Australian independent politician
3456-520: The far-right Centre Party in the Netherlands. Relative to left-wing and right-wing parties, centrist parties are infrequently studied in political science. Centrism is part of the left–right political spectrum that developed during the French Revolution . When the National Assembly was organised, reactionary conservatives coalesced in the seats to the speaker's right, while the radicals sat on
3528-486: The first time since 1949. The Australia Party poll performance declined a little in 1974 and again in the 1975 federal election ; however, by this stage it had replaced the Democratic Labor Party as the fourth party after Labor, Liberal and Country parties. On 20 July 1969, independent senator Reg Turnbull announced that he and his supporters had agreed to merge with the Australian Reform Movement (ARM) to form
3600-559: The fragmentation of the left and right into multiple parties, allowing a centrist party to perpetually be the Condorcet winner . Polarisation may also weaken a centrist party if both ends of a polarised society are made to oppose centrism. Centrist parties make up a specific party family and have commonalities across different nations and political systems. In the Nordic countries where social democracy dominates politics, centrism competes with
3672-459: The given direction. Centrist parties in multi-party systems hold a strong position in forming coalition governments as they can accommodate both left-wing and right-wing parties, but they are often junior partners in these coalitions that are unable to enact their own policies. These parties are weaker in first-past-the-post voting and proportional representation systems. Parties and politicians have various incentives to move toward or away from
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#17328545608083744-689: The ideals that would accompany liberalism as it became the predominant centrist ideology in Europe. The political centre became a major force in England and France after the Napoleonic Wars . English centrism came from the Whigs , such as Henry Peter Brougham and Thomas Babington Macaulay . French centrism was supported by the Doctrinaires , such as Pierre Paul Royer-Collard and François Guizot . The Bonapartism of Napoleon III brought French conservatism to
3816-569: The ideological space around them is already occupied by other parties. Politicians with high approval might move to the centre to capitalise on their popularity with a larger voter base, while those seen as uncharismatic or incompetent may shift away from the centre to capture more reliable activist voters who will invest more into the politician's campaign. Opponents of centrism may describe it as opportunistic. Centrist-controlled governments are much rarer than left-wing or right-wing governments. While approximately 30% of world leaders were centrist in
3888-524: The immediate aftermath of the war. Under the leadership of Alcide De Gasperi , it absorbed the centre-left and centre-right to create a centrist grouping and combat the Italian Communist Party . The group fractured during a leftward shift in the 1950s and 1960s as the leadership invited socialists into the party, hoping to deprive the Communist Party of an ally. This created a scenario in which
3960-535: The initial branches in Sydney, Melbourne , Brisbane , Newcastle and Gold Coast . The "Australia Party" name was adopted in 1969, by which time it was also attracting disaffected Australian Labor Party (ALP) supporters. The party contested state and federal elections, achieving its best results in 1972. Though failing to win any seats, by directing its preferences to the ALP, it greatly assisted that party to win government for
4032-577: The late-19th century through the Mugwumps of the Republican Party . The radical movement gave way to centrism after the 1870s as they both coalesced around ideals of republicanism , secularism , self-education , cooperation , land reform , and internationalism . Toward the end of the 19th century, agrarianism became a significant political movement in Europe to represent farmers' interests. Western social science intertwined itself with centrism in
4104-445: The left-centre-right trichotomy is well established in political science , individuals far from the political centre may occasionally reframe it, with the far-right alleging that the centre is leftist and the far-left alleging that the centre is rightist. Likewise, they may allege that their more moderate counterparts, the centre-left and the centre-right , are actually centrists because they are insufficiently radical. Liberalism
4176-520: The newly formed Australian Capital Territory House of Assembly in 1975: Ivor Vivian and Maureen Worsley . Vivian joined the Australian Democrats, and was re-elected in 1979, but Worsley sat as an Independent from 1977 to the end of her term in 1979. Australia Party members who later entered federal parliament as Australian Democrats senators included Colin Mason (NSW), John Siddons (Vic), Sid Spindler (Vic) and Jean Jenkins (WA). An important aspect of
4248-468: The only nations to retain strong agrarian parties. The Holocaust ended support for any scientific racism and eugenics espoused by centrist liberals, as they instead adopted antiracism as scientific truth. Following World War II, middle class centrist parties in developed countries became less common as they moved leftward or rightward. Italy was dominated by the Christian Democracy party in
4320-405: The other factions. The fall of dictatorships in countries such as Argentina, Chile, Peru, and Portugal in the 1980s was met by centrist parties that became the primary forces in transitioning the nations to democracy. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in the 1990s, centrist liberalism was seen as the dominant force in politics. The centre-left and the centre-right both moved closer to
4392-616: The party achieved its best result at the 1970 Senate election , with nearly three percent of the national vote. Its preference allocations were also influential at the 1972 and 1974 federal elections , while two candidates were elected to the Australian Capital Territory House of Assembly in 1975. Most members of the party joined the newly formed Australian Democrats in 1977, with former Australia Party national convenors John Siddons and Colin Mason later elected as Democrats senators. The Australia Party grew out of
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#17328545608084464-434: The political centre to maximise votes and to have the final say on closely-contested policies. Centrist parties face some intrinsic disadvantages when competing with left-wing and right-wing parties. Elections based on first-past-the-post voting or proportional representation provide less incentive for parties to hold centrist positions. Proportional representation systems weaken centrist parties because they incentivise
4536-399: The political centre, giving centrist parties hold a strong position in the formation of coalition governments, as they can accommodate both left-wing and right-wing parties. This gives them additional leverage in the formation of a minority government . When radical parties become viable, forming a coalition with the centre can force them to moderate. Once in a coalition, the centrist party
4608-570: The position. Siddons was publicly critical of the Whitlam government 's economic policies, and proclaimed that the party stood for "the middle ground against the extremes of either right or left". In November 1975 the Australia Party formally affiliated with the Liberal International . Siddons was replaced as national convenor by Colin Mason in August 1976. Subsequently, the party allied itself with
4680-476: The speaker's left. The moderates who were not affiliated with either faction sat in the centre seats, and they came to be known as the centrists. While liberalism began as a centre-left challenger to conservatism, it came to occupy the political centre of Western politics at the beginning of the 19th century as it also opposed radicalism and socialism. Liberal support for anti-clericalism and individual rights developed in opposition to conservatism, establishing
4752-549: The total abolition of the upper class . Centrist liberalism seeks institutional reform, but it prioritises prudence when enacting change. European centrist parties are typically in favour of European integration and were the primary movers in the development of the European Union . Whether political positions are considered centrist can change over time; when radical positions become more widely accepted in society, they can become centrist positions. In multi-party systems ,
4824-455: The use of social programs. In many Latin American nations, opposing presidential candidates campaigned on similar platforms and often supported retaining their predecessors' policies without any significant changes, shifting the focus of elections to personality over ideology. Support for centrism declined globally after the 2007–2008 financial crisis as it was challenged by populism and political polarisation . As of 2015, centrists made up
4896-486: The western liberal consensus. In the Pacific, New Caledonia did not form a strong centrist movement until the 1990s as a consequence of the independence question. Conservative groups had actively suppressed centrist figures like Caledonian Union leader Maurice Lenormand [ fr ] , who was accused of being a communist and prosecuted for allegedly organising the bombing of his own party newspaper's headquarters in
4968-608: Was an industrialist who founded the Sidchrome line of tools. Siddons spent his early years in the suburb of Ivanhoe , attending Ivanhoe State School and Preston Technical School. He completed his secondary education at Wesley College from 1943 to 1945, but did not matriculate as he had always intended on joining his father's business. In 1945, Siddons began working for one of his father's firms, Siddons Drop Forging Pty Ltd, drop forging hammers at its factory in Clifton Hill . He
5040-478: Was challenged by right-wing conservatism and Catholicism. Centrism faced increased pressure beginning in the interwar period as left-wing politics saw a resurgence, meaning centrism was challenged from both directions. Agrarianism lost much of its influence in the 1930s as nations fell under right-wing dictatorships, and its return in the 1940s was short-lived as nations fell under communist rule. The Nordic countries, which were mostly spared from both movements, were
5112-415: Was groomed to take over the business and worked across all departments of his father's conglomerate, starting at factory level to gain an understanding of manual labour. Siddons was sent to the United States on a research tour in 1949, where he was introduced to the newly created Ramset gun – "a powder-actuated tool gun that greatly sped up the process of fastening slabs of concrete or steel". He acquired
5184-412: Was spared from the many revolutions during the early 19th century as its conservatives took a decisively centrist position, enlightened conservatism, and expressed willingness to compromise with the nation's strong radical element. As radicalism declined in Western Europe, liberalism and conservatism became the two dominant political movements. The United States saw a centrist liberal movement develop in
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