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"A nation of sheep will beget a government of wolves." - Edward R. Murrow

Historically, the number of democratic governments has more than doubled in the past 30 years as communist states, military governments and traditional monarchies have waned.

For all practical purposes governments are put in place to collect taxes, oversee the building of roads, sustain health care and education, maintain military forces, manage budgets, govern courts of law as well as law & order in the streets.

Even so, more government versus less government has been debated within modern democracies since they first arose in the 18th century.

Today, clashes within democratic forms of government center around separation of church & state, equitable taxes, an independent press versus government 'spin', corporate lobbying and curbing traditional abuses by those in power, and halting a prevailing trend toward secret government.

On the Net, check out more general government guides & information, government home pages, along with facts on world rulers, types of governments in existence around the planet, refresher courses on civil liberties, and related resources for human rights and government watchdogs...

More about goverment around the Web:

Librarian's Internet Index - Government - A gold mine of collected resources to mainly U.S.-related sites on hot button issues such as immigration, privatization, propaganda, church & state, spies, taxes, and more on local & state government, politics & law.

Google U.S. Government Search - The Internet's top search engine does it again with a new portal to make finding government resources easier, with browseable news from U.S. government agencies & the latest headlines coming out of the White House.

World Government Resources - Comprehensive directory to governmental and related legal and political groups around the world.

Government Resources on the Web - Student guide from the University of Michigan with links to national, international, regional and local government sites plus educational resources including political science, political theory, debate topics for high school students and lots more...

Types of Governments - Detailed analysis of types of government's rise and fall in the 20th century, with historical information and related maps.

World Rulers - Kings, queens, military dictators, presidents and prime ministers plus where they ruled and when, with photos, browseable in a complete A-Z list.

Human Rights Watch - Taking governments to task with reports on prisons, police brutality, children's rights, refugees and related issues featuring photo essays, audio and video presentations.

Transparency International - Watchdog group on integrity and corruption by governments worldwide.

Official government home pages around the Web

also see in Society -> Politics | Law | Conspiracy Theories