The Mass Transit Railway or MTR (in Chinese, 香港鐵路有限公司, literally "Hong Kong Railway Company"; or 港鐵 for short) is the main rapid transit railway system in Hong Kong. Since the MTR service first opened in 1979, the network has grown to more than 150 stations. Built and run by MTR Corporation Limited, the MTR system is a very popular mode of public transport in Hong Kong, with around 2.46 million passengers riding each day.

Construction
Hong Kong's growing economy and the quick increase in population created a lot of traffic problems. The Hong Kong government made a study of these problems. The first line was opened in 1979. The MTR was quickly popular with the people of Hong Kong, so later they built more lines to cover more ground. People are still deciding how and where to expand the MTR network next.

Network

History of the MTR

Initial proposal
During the 1960s, the government of Hong Kong thought they need to accommodate increasing road traffic that growing Hong Kong's economy would bring. British transport consultants Freeman, Fox, Wilbur Smith & Associates were appointed to study the transport system of Hong Kong. The consultants released the Hong Kong Mass Transport Study in September 1967, which proposed the construction of a mass transport underground railway system in Hong Kong.

In 1970, an underground network with four lines was laid out and planned as part of the British consultants' new report, Hong Kong Mass Transit: Further Studies. The four lines were to be the Kwun Tong Line, Tsuen Wan Line, Island Line, and East Kowloon Line. However, the lines that were eventually constructed were somewhat different compared with the lines that were originally proposed by the "Hong Kong Mass Transport Study".

In 1972, the Hong Kong government authorised construction of the Initial System, a 20-km system that roughly translates to the Kwun Tong Line today (except the line now extends to Tiu Keng Leng). Negotiations with four major construction consortia started in 1973. The government's intention was to tender the entire project, based on the British design, as a single tender at a fixed price. A consortium from Japan signed an agreement to construct the system in early 1974, but in December of the same year it pulled out from the agreement, stemming from fears of the Arab oil crisis.

Modified Initial System (Kwun Tong Line / Tsuen Wan Line)
Several weeks later, in early 1975, a government agency known as the Mass Transport Provisional Authority was established to take charge of the project. It announced that the Initial System would be slightly reduced to 15.6 kilometres, and renamed it the Modified Initial System. Plans for a single contract were also abandoned in favour of 25 engineering contracts and 10 electrical and mechanical contracts.

In addition, the government-owned Hong Kong Mass Transit Railway Corporation (MTRC) was established to replace the Mass Transport Provisional Authority. (This was the company succeeded by the MTR Corporation Limited on 30 June 2000)

Construction of the Modified Initial System (now part of Kwun Tong Line and Tsuen Wan Line) commenced in November 1975. After almost four years, the northern section was completed on 30 September 1979. On 1 October 1979, the northern section was opened, with trains running from Shek Kip Mei to Kwun Tong. The route from Tsim Sha Tsui to Shek Kip Mei was opened in December of the same year.

In 1980, the first harbour crossing was made by an MTR train as the Kwun Tong Line was extended even farther to Chater station, now known as Central station. To deal with increasing patronage, trains were also extended to six cars.

Tsuen Wan Line
The government approved construction of the Tsuen Wan Line in 1977, then known as Tsuen Wan Extension, and works commenced in November 1978. The project added a 10.5-kilometre section to the MTR system, from Prince Edward to Tsuen Wan. The line started service on 10 May 1982 with a total cost of construction (not adjusted for inflation) at HK$4.1 billion.

When service of this line started, the section of the Kwun Tong Line from Chater to Argyle, present-day Mong Kok station, was transferred to the Tsuen Wan Line. Thus, Waterloo became the terminus of the Kwun Tong Line, and both Argyle and Prince Edward stations became interchange stations. This change was made because system planners expected traffic of the Tsuen Wan Line would exceed that of the Kwun Tong Line. This forecast proved quite accurate, necessitating a bypass from the northwestern New Territories to Hong Kong Island. Launched in 1998, the Tung Chung Line serves exactly that purpose.

Although land acquisitions were made for a station at Tsuen Wan West, the station was never built. This is not to be confused with Tsuen Wan West Station on KCR West Rail, which lies on the newly reclaimed area near the former ferry pier.

It is interesting to note that since the line's opening in 1982, this is the only line whose alignment has virtually remained the same for the past 23 years. For example, the Kwun Tong Line's alignment has changed for 2 times since its opening - the taking over of Tsuen Wan Line from Mong Kok to Central, and the taking over of Eastern Harbour Crossing section by the Tseung Kwan O Line.

Island Line
Government approvals were granted for construction of the Island Line in December, 1980. Construction commenced in October, 1981. On 31 May 1985 the Island Line was opened with service between Admiralty and Chai Wan stations. Both Admiralty and Central stations became interchange stations with the Tsuen Wan Line. Furthermore, each train was extended to eight cars.

On 23 May 1986, service reached Sheung Wan station. Construction for this station was delayed for one year as government offices which sat on top of the station had to be removed to a new location before construction could start.

Eastern Harbour Crossing extension
In 1984, the government approved the construction of the Eastern Harbour Crossing, a tunnel to be used by cars and MTR trains. The Kwun Tong Line was extended across the harbour to Quarry Bay, which became an interchange station for the Kwun Tong Line and the Island Line. The extension was launched on 5 August 1989. An intermediate station, Lam Tin, started operations on 1 October 1989.

Airport Express and Tung Chung Line
The decision was made in October 1989 to construct a new international airport at Chek Lap Kok on Lantau Island to replace the overcrowded Kai Tak International Airport. The government invited the MTR to build a train line, then known as the Lantau Airport Railway, to the airport. But construction did not begin until the Chinese and British governments settled their financial and land disagreements in November 1994.

In the end, the new line was included in the financing plans of the new Hong Kong International Airport as the airport was not considered viable without direct public transport links. Construction costs were also shared by the MTR which was granted many large-scale developments in the construction plans for the new stations.

The Lantau Airport Railway turned into two MTR lines, the Tung Chung Line and the Airport Express. The Tung Chung Line was officially opened on 21 June 1998 by Hong Kong Chief Executive Tung Chee Hwa, and service commenced the next day. The Airport Express opened for service on 6 July 1998 along with the new Hong Kong International Airport.

The Airport Express line is the second most popular means of transport to the Hong Kong International Airport. In 2005, 22% of the commuters took the Airport Express to and from the airport.

Tseung Kwan O Line

The Quarry Bay Congestion Relief Works involved extending the Hong Kong Island end of the Kwun Tong Line from Quarry Bay to North Point via a 4.2–kilometre tunnel. The project was initiated due to overcrowding at Quarry Bay and persistent passenger complaints about the five-minute walk from the Island Line platforms to the Kwun Tong Line platform. Construction began in September 1997 and was completed in September 2001 at a cost of HK$3.0 billion (US$385 million). The tried-and-true cross-platform interchange arrangement is repeated here.

Construction of the Tseung Kwan O Line was approved on 18 August 1998 to serve new housing developments. Construction began on 24 April 1999 and the line officially opened in 2002, taking over the train tracks running through the Eastern Harbour Tunnel from the Kwun Tong Line, running from Po Lam to North Point. When the line was opened, the Kwun Tong Line was diverted to Tiu Keng Leng on the new line. Construction costs were partly covered by the Hong Kong Government and private developers which linked construction of the Tseung Kwan O Line to new real estate and commercial developments. Previously less developed areas were opened up for development with more transport options.

West Rail Line

While the construction of the Tung Chung Line was still underway, the plan to build a railway corridor serving the northwestern New Territories was conceived. Space had been reserved for the addition of an interchange station and two extra tracks (to allow nonstop service for the Airport Express) between Olympic and Lai King. Originally known as the Airport Railway Phase 2, the contracts of the West Rail Line Interface Works were awarded shortly after construction works of the West Rail commenced. The project comprised Mei Foo Interchange (modification of the existing Mei Foo station on the Tsuen Wan Line to provide a pedestrian link to the West Rail Line Mei Foo Station); Nam Cheong Station (an interchange station on the Tung Chung Line, jointly operated by the MTRCL and KCRC) and quadruplication works (the additional two tracks, four kilometres in length, allow the Tung Chung Line trains to stop at Nam Cheong without blocking the passage of Airport Express trains).

The works were completed in stages. The Tung Chung Line trains have been diverted to the new track since mid May 2003, whereas the Mei Foo station interchange subway and the Nam Cheong station were opened at the same time the West Rail Line opened for public use in December 2003. The Kowloon Southern Link extension from Nam Cheong Station to East Tsim Sha Tsui Station was opened on 16 August 2009, with West Rail Line trains now terminating at Hung Hom Station, interchange station for East Rail Line.

Interchange stations

The interchange between the Tsuen Wan Line and the Kwun Tong Line, the Island Line and the Tseung Kwan O Line, as well as that between the Kwun Tong Line and the Tseung Kwan O Line, are two stations long, allowing cross-platform interchange wherein a passenger leaves a train on one side of the platform and boards trains on the other side of the platform for another line. For example, when passengers are travelling on the Kwun Tong Line towards Tiu Keng Leng, getting off at Yau Tong would allow them to switch trains across the platform for the Tseung Kwan O Line towards North Point. Whereas, staying on the train and reaching Tiu Keng Leng would allow them to board the Tseung Kwan O Line trains towards Po Lam/LOHAS Park. This design makes interchanging more convenient and passengers do not have the need to change to different levels. However this interchange arrangement is not available for all transferring passengers at Kowloon Tong, Central, Hong Kong, Nam Cheong (Except transfer between Tuen Mun and Hong Kong bound trains), Mei Foo, Tai Wai Station (Except alighting from Ma On Shan Line to change southbound trains for East Rail Line) and Sunny Bay (Except alighting from Tung Chung bound trains to Disneyland Resort Line) stations, mainly because this service is available only when there are two continuous stations shared as interchange stations by two lines.

Two major works were undertaken to facilitate interchange between Kwun Tong Line and East Rail Line. The modification of Kowloon Tong Station started in June 2001. A new pedestrian link to Kowloon Tong Station southern concourse and a new entrance (Exit D) were opened on 15 April 2004 to cope with the increase in interchange passenger flow. Modification to Tsim Sha Tsui Station involved upgrading station facilities and concourse layout to facilitate access from the East Tsim Sha Tsui Station via its pedestrian links. New entrances to the subway links were opened on 19 September 2004 (Exit G) and 30 March 2005 (Exit F), with the whole scheme completed in May 2005.

Ma On Shan Line

The Ma On Shan Line was constructed by the KCR to serve Ma On Shan and City One residential areas and operation of the line was outsourced to the MTR. The system mostly runs on a viaduct between the middle of roads with stations, stopping right next to major buildings. The only time the trains don't run on viaducts is when the railway meets the route 2 highway, where it runs in the middle and then raises back to a viaduct. The railway is slightly different from all other Hong Kong railways because the trains run on the right, not the left; this is so that passengers can easily interchange from the Ma On Shan line to the East Rail Line towards Hong Hum. The majority of passengers using the line get off the train at Tai Wai to interchange to the East Rail Line, using the line as a feeder route.

Disneyland extension

The Disneyland Resort Line, previously known as Penny's Bay Rail Link, provides service to the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort which was opened on 12 September 2005. Service to Sunny Bay station on the Tung Chung Line started in 2005. The new line and the Disneyland Resort station opened on 1 August 2005. It is a 3.5–kilometre single-track railway that runs between Sunny Bay station and Disneyland Resort station. The Disneyland Resort station itself was designed to blend in with the ambience of the resort. The line currently operates fully automated, trains running every four to ten minutes without a driver, and the carriages were changed from the existing M-Train rolling stock to match the recreational and adventurous nature of the 3.5-minute journey.

Further expansion of the Airport Express

The new AsiaWorld-Expo Station is an extension of the Airport Express serving the new international exhibition centre, known as the AsiaWorld-Expo at Hong Kong International Airport. The station opened on 20 December 2005 along with the exhibition centre. To cope with the projected increase in patronage, Airport Express trains have been expanded to utilise eight carriages from the previous seven. Additional trains will also be deployed on the Tung Chung line during major exhibitions and events.

Privatisation and merger

On 5 October 2000, the operator of the MTR network, MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL), became Hong Kong's first rail company to be privatised, marking the beginning of the Hong Kong government's initiative to dissolve its interests in public utilities. Prior to its listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, the Mass Transit Railway Corporation (MTRC) was wholly owned by the Hong Kong government. The offering involved the sale of about one billion shares, and the company now has the largest shareholder base of any company listed in Hong Kong. In June 2001, MTRCL was transferred to the Hang Seng Index.

MTRCL has often developed properties next to stations to complement its already profitable railway business. Many recently built stations were incorporated into large housing estates or shopping complexes. For example, Tsing Yi station is built next to the Maritime Square shopping centre and directly underneath the Tierra Verde housing estate.

On 11 April 2006, MTRCL signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding with the Hong Kong government, the owner of Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation, to merge the operation of the two railway networks in Hong Kong in spite of the strong opposition by the KCRC staff. The minority shareholders of the corporation approved the proposal at an extraordinary general meeting on 9 October 2007, allowing MTRCL to take over the operation of the KCR network and combine the fare system of the two networks on 2 December 2007.

On 2 December 2007 the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC) granted a 50-year service concession (which may be extended) of the KCR network to MTRCL, in return for making annual payments to KCRC, thereby merging the railway operations of the two corporations under MTRCL's management. At the same time MTRCL changed its Chinese name from "地鐵有限公司" (Subway Limited Company) to "香港鐵路有限公司" (Hong Kong Railway Limited Company), but left its English name unchanged. After the merger, the MTR network included three more lines, East Rail Line, West Rail Line and Ma On Shan Line, as well as the Light Rail network and Guangdong Through Train to Guangzhou.

On 28 September 2008, fare zones of all commuter lines which is ex-KCR were merged. A passenger could travel on these networks with only one ticket, except where a transfer is made between Tsim Sha Tsui and East Tsim Sha Tsui stations, where two tickets are required. Student discounts on Octopus Card were also issued.

Safety on the MTR

Various campaigns and activities are taken to help ensure that the MTR is a safe system to travel on. Poster campaigns displaying information on topics such as escalator safety are a common sight in all MTR stations, and announcements are made regularly as safety reminders to travelling passengers.

Bylaws have been recently introduced to deter potentially dangerous actions on the MTR, such as the ban of flammable goods on the MTR and rushing into trains when the doors are closing. Penalties ranging from fines to imprisonment have been imposed for such offenses. Metallic balloons are also banned due to previous incidents on KCR and on MTR's Island Line where a metallic balloon interfered with the operation of the overhead power lines.

Police officers patrol on trains and stations, and police posts are available at some stations. The Hong Kong Police Force has a Railway District responsible for the MTR and the KCR. Closed-circuit television cameras are installed in stations.

Tung Chung Line, the Airport Express and Tseung Kwan O Line, except Quarry Bay station, had platform screen doors (PSDs) installed upon construction. These doors prevent people from falling onto the rails, and MTRC allowed the assumption that this implementation was primarily a safety campaign, without heavily promoting it directly. In fact, the primary motivation was to separate the stations from the tunnels, hence allowing substantial energy savings on station air-conditioning and tunnel ventilation. Automatic platform gates (APGs) have also been installed at the Sunny Bay and Disneyland Resort stations. Their heights are half of the PSDs and only prevent people from falling onto the rails.

In June 2000, The MTR Corporation proceeded with its plans to retrofit 2,960 pairs of platform screen doors at all 30 underground stations on the Kwun Tong Line, Tsuen Wan Line, and Island Line in a six-year programme. The programme made MTR the world's first railway to undertake the retrofitting of PSDs on a passenger-carrying system already in operation. A prototype design was first introduced at Choi Hung station in the 3rd quarter of 2001. HK$0.10 per passenger trip was levied on Octopus card users to help fund the HK$2 billion retrofit programme. The whole installation scheme was completed in October 2005. The original completion year was 2006. The MTR Corporation said that part of the cost had to be assumed by passengers.

Station facilities, amenities and services

With the high level of daily passenger traffic, facilities of MTR stations are built with durability and accessibility in mind. The elevators and escalators in stations are heavy duty, with the elevators installed by Otis Elevator Company/Fujitec and the escalators installed by Constructions Industrielles de la Mediterranée and Otis Elevator Company.

After extensive retrofits, the MTR system has become, in general, disabled-friendly—the trains have dedicated wheelchair space, the stations have special floor tiles to guide the blind safely on the platforms, and there are extra wide entry and exit gates for wheelchairs as well.

Unlike many other metro systems around the world, "main line" MTR stations do not have toilet facilities, although their installation has been contemplated. Only stations on the Airport Express and Disneyland Resort Line have access to toilet facilities.

Interchange stations
The MTR network is unique in its arrangement of interchange stations. Interchange stations between the Island, Tsuen Wan, Kwun Tong and Tseung Kwan O lines are arranged in pairs; such an arrangement allows cross-platform interchange wherein a passenger leaves a train on one side of the platform and boards trains on the other side of the platform for another line.

Most of those stations make use of a cross-platform interchange system, where the commuter can change to another line on the opposite platform. For example, when a person is travelling on the Kwun Tong Line towards Tiu Keng Leng, getting off at Yau Tong would allow him to change trains across the platform for the Tseung Kwan O Line towards North Point. Whereas, staying on the train and reaching Tiu Keng Leng would allow you to change trains for the Tseung Kwan O Line towards Po Lam.

This not only makes it more convenient for passengers, it also reduces the amount of traffic per station. Riders are made aware of the closest connection point by way of in-train visual and auditory messages. Although riders can disregard these tips, the design of the stations are for the convenience of passengers.

Telecommunications network coverage
A full GSM (GSM-900 and GSM-1800), CDMA and TDMA mobile phone network is in place throughout the MTR system of stations and tunnels. Passengers can stay connected underground.

Currently, full 3G network coverage in all stations and tunnels (except West Rail Line) for the MTR system has been provided by 3 Hong Kong, SmarTone-Vodafone and PCCW Mobile. Passengers with subscription services will be able to make video calls and access high speed video content on their mobile phones regardless whether the train is above ground or under ground.

Shops and other services
Until recently, MTR stations only had branches of the Hang Seng Bank and Maxim's Cakes stores, owned by Jardine Matheson, and a handful of other shops. Since the privatisation of the MTR, however, numerous shops have been added to certain stations, turning them into miniature shopping centres. Services available at most stations include:
 Hang Seng Bank branches and ATMs
 Bank of China ATMs
 7-Eleven or Circle K convenience stores

Apart from retailers, there are also dentists and medical clinics, drycleaners, and florists along the Tseung Kwan O Line. Standard services include payphones, vending machines (Coca-Cola only), and self-service photo-booths.

Free magazines and newspapers
Recruit was the first free magazine which was solely distributed in MTR stations since July 1992. However, in July 2002, the contract between the magazine and MTR was terminated. Another recruitment magazine Jiu Jik (招職), published by South China Morning Post, replaced Recruit as the only free recruitment magazine distributed in MTR stations on every Tuesdays and Fridays.

At the same time, there was another entertainment magazine Hui Kai Guide (去街 Guide). However, it is no longer distributed in MTR stations since 2006.

The Metropolis Daily (都市日報), published by Metro International, is the first free newspaper distributed free in MTR stations from Monday to Friday (except public holidays); and in 2005, there is another weekend newspaper Express Post (快線周報), distributed every Saturday except public holidays.

The Metropop (都市流行), also published by Metro International, started its distribution in MTR stations every Thursdays since April 27 2006, few months after the termination of Hui Kai Guide. It is a weekly magazine featuring cultural affairs and city trends.

Extra services for Airport Express
The Airport Express also offer value-added services to travellers on the line. Toilets and check-in facilities are available at every station on the line. A free Airport Express shuttle bus service transports travellers from stations to their respective hotels as well. Flight passengers can even have in-town check-in at the station, which offers a more convenient and time-saving routine.

Fares and tickets
As of January 2005, there are two different fare classes on the MTR: Adult and concessionary. Only children below the age of 12, senior citizens 65 years or older, or full-time Hong Kong students between the ages of 12 and 25 qualify for the concessionary rate. Children below the age of 3 travel free.

Similar to some other metro systems in the world, the fare payable by a passenger depends on the approximate distance travelled. However, taking any particular station as the origin, the other stations fall into fare "zones" depending on the distance from the origin. The fare to all stations in a "zone" is the same and increases with distance, especially if the journey involves a harbour crossing. Adult fares range from HK$3.80 to $26.00. Concessionary fares are usually half the adult fare, and range from HK$2.40 to $13.00. Fares for the Airport Express Line are significantly higher.

The price of using MTR is very low. For example, the price of going from Tsing Yi to Causeway Bay by taxi is around HK$200. Travelling the same distance by MTR costs HK$11.80 for grown up people and HK$5.40 for young and very old people. People can buy a one way ticket or a Octopus card to enter MTR. Octopus card is a contact-less smart card.

Octopus cards
The Octopus card is a rechargeable contactless smart card used in an electronic payment system in Hong Kong. It was launched in September 1997 for use on both the MTR and the KCR and now is the most widely used electronic cash system for transactions in Hong Kong as many retailers are fitted with readers.

The Octopus card uses radio frequency identification (RFID) technology so that users need only hold the card in front of the reader. Physical contact is not required, and the card need not even be taken out because the reader can penetrate through material. This fare collection system has been so popular that many cities such as Singapore, London, Chicago, and Taipei have adopted the idea, launching their own version of smart cards, respectively named EZ-link, Oyster card, and EasyCard.

Except for the Airport Express, MTR fares are slightly lower when using an Octopus card compared to using single journey tickets. For example, the cost of the 3-minute journey from Admiralty to Tsim Sha Tsui across the Victoria Harbour is (as of 2005) HK$7.9 using the Octopus card, compared with HK$9.0 for a single-journey ticket.

Tourist pass
Two types of tourist passes are available: one allows unlimited rides for a single day (at HK$50), while the other allows three days of unlimited rides on the MTR, with a stored value of HK$20, refundable deposit of HK$50 and choice of either a single (HK$220) or return (HK$300) trip on the Airport Express.

Tourists are required to produce proof of tourist status, (e.g. passports or, in the case of Mainland travellers, entry permits) when purchasing the pass, and whenever requested by a ticket inspector during spot-checks.

Other fares
The magnetic fare card system is used for single journey tickets. These tickets are pre-paid for between pre-determined stations, and are good for only one trip. There are no return tickets, except on the Airport Express.

Fares for the Airport Express are substantially different from main line fares. Apart from single tickets, same-day return tickets (same price as a single), and one-month return tickets are also available.

A one-day pass can be used to unlimited travel to/from Hong Kong Disneyland within the same day, and costs HK$50. This pass can be purchased from any MTR Customer Service Centres or Airport Express Customer Service Centres.

MTR rolling stock

Four variations of rolling stock operate on the MTR on 1.5kV DC overhead electrification. All trains are electric multiple units (EMUs), with ATC and ATP, operating on 1432 mm rail gauge. Except for the rolling stock of the Airport Express, all trains are designed with features to cope with high density passenger traffic on stopping services. Examples are the latitudinal seating arrangement, additional ventilation fans and 5 doors on each side per car.

The Tung Chung Line and the Airport Express use dedicated rolling stock designs specified to their respective lines. Initially run in 7-car formations, they have now been lengthened to eight cars. These two variations are built jointly by Adtranz (now Bombardier Transportations) and Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles between 1994 and 1997.

The other lines are operated using a mixture of the other two variations, known as the "M-Train" and the "K-Stock". The "M-Stock" (or CM-Stock") of "M-Train" are the oldest trains on the MTR, built originally by Metro Cammell (now Alstom) and refurbished by United Goninan. The "M-Train" is the only variation that uses sliding doors, as opposed to others which use plug-doors. The "K-Stock" are built jointly by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and ROTEM, and a further order of 32 cars is due to be in service on the Tung Chung Line by 2007.

The Disneyland Resort Line uses driverless "M-Trains" with their appearance overhauled to suit the atmosphere and theme of the line. Windows on each carriage and the handrails inside are made into the shape of Mickey Mouse's head, and there are bronze-made Disney characters decorating the interior of the carriages.

Tsuen Wan Line
 MTR Metro Cammell EMU (DC)

Kwun Tong Line
 MTR Metro Cammell EMU )DC)
 MTR CNR Changchun EMU

Tsueng Kwan O Line
 MTR Metro Cammell EMU (DC)
 MTR Rotem EMU

Island Line
 MTR Metro Cammell EMU (DC)

Airport Express
 MTR Adtranz-CAF EMU

Tung Chung Line
 MTR Adtranz-CAF EMU
 MTR Rotem EMU

East Rail Line
 MTR Metro Cammell EMU (AC)
 MTR SP1900 EMU

West Rail Line
 MTR SP1900 EMU

Ma On Shan Line
 MTR SP1950 EMU

Light Rail
Varies

Art promotion

With the objective "not only bring MTR passengers more time for life, but also more time for art", the "Art in MTR" Initiative has been a success since its reception in 1998, where the Airport Express Artwork Programme was the pioneer project. Thereafter, live performances, art exhibitions, display of artwork by established and emerging artists, students and young children have been brought into the MTR stations. MTR Corporation Limited have even made art part of the station architecture when building new stations or renovating existing ones. Artworks are exhibited in different forms on the network, including "arttube", open art gallery, community art galleries, roving art, living art, and art in station architecture.

By incorporating elements of art into the railway network, the travelling environment for the passengers is not only enhanced, but also makes their journeys even more pleasant and enjoyable. Moreover, with MTR stations being an integral part of the neighbourhood, the programme also provides opportunities to promote Hong Kong's community art, encourage art appreciation among the public and give residents a feeling of home at the stations.

The future

MTR Corporation Limited has suggested several future projects to the Hong Kong Government, with some already being built. The network is also set to grow quite much when MTR Corporation Limited joins with the government-owned Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC), with the non-binding "Memorandum of Understanding" agreement signed on 11 April 2006 to give MTR Corporation control of the KCR network for 50 years. The new Sha Tin to Central Link that was first given to KCRC would now also be run by MTR Corporation Limited, which will run from Tai Wai Station in Tai Wai to Central.

It has also been suggested to improve parts of MTR that are running now. Airport Station on the Airport Express will have a new platform to serve passengers flying out of Hong Kong International Airport's Skyplaza. New subway links to the stations are also being made, and it has been proposed to lengthen the Tseung Kwan O Line with a branch line to Tseung Kwan O South, and the Kwun Tong Line as far as Whampoa Garden, also linking with the Sha Tin to Central Link expansion.

The West Island Line and South Island Line, first suggested to the government by MTR on 21 January 2003, was finally accepted on 30 June 2005. It was made up of the West Island Line that took the Island Line to Kennedy Town, and the South Island Line (East section) from Admiralty to Ap Lei Chau and South Island Line (West section) that connects the other two lines. This is being talked about now and the whole longer line should be finished and running by 2012.

References

Other websites

 MTR service
 MTR Corporation Limited
 Map of the Hong Kong MTR
 Journey time and Fare Information

Related products
 Information on Octopus Cards

 Other
 Video of the effect of SARS on the Hong Kong MTR (Subway System)—Video of the effect of SARS on the Hong Kong MTR (Subway System)

MTR


Nancy Ajram or Nancy Agram (, born May 16, 1983) is a popular Arab singer from Lebanon. Her musical videos, directed by Nadine Labaki, also Lebanese, revolutionized the Arab music industry.

She had quite a normal childhood with her small family that consisted of her parents, her sister and brother and herself. But when Nancy Ajram was 12, she participated in a television program called "Nojoum Al Mostakbal" (which means "Stars of the Future") and actually won first prize. Soon after, Ajram began studying music under the supervision of some of the finest teachers in her country. When she turned 18, she joined the Syndicate of Professional Artists in Lebanon - after they made an exception because of her age.

Her first album; Mehtagalak, was released in 1998 and marked her first official step in the world of show business. But, it took the young singer another 3 years to launch her second album Shil Eyounak Aney in 2001. Then her true hit came with her third album Ya Salam in 2003. The singer stressed the success of the album by shooting four of its songs; Akhasmak Ah, Ya Salam, Yay - Sehr Eyounoh and Nasseto Gar7o in the form of video clips. The clips were a tremendous hit and gained popularity in such a short time and gave the singer incredible fame in the Arab world.

Her most popular album is Ah we Nos which was released in 2004. Nancy shot again four video clips for this Album. Ah w Noss, Lawn Oyounak, Oul Tani Eih and Enta Eih.

As for other activities besides singing, the Lebanese diva has agreed to be the spokesperson for the international soft drink company Coca-Cola. After signing the contract with Nancy Ajram, Coca-Cola sold much more drinks in the Arab world.

Other websites
 Official website
 Second Official website
 Nancy Ajram Zone
 Nancy Ajram VideoClips
 Popular FanPage
 Listen to all Nancy ajram songs

1983 births
Living people
Lebanese Christians
Lebanese singers

Nancy Ajram


The barong is a thick, leaf-shaped, single-edged blade sword. It is a weapon used by Muslim Filipino ethnolinguistic groups like the Tausug, Sama-Bajau, or Yakan in the Southern Philippines.

Description

Blade
Barong blades are thick and very heavy with the weight aiding in the slicing capability of the sword. Barong blade lengths range from 8 to 22 inches (20 to 56 cm) as the average blade length is originally 14 inch. Newer blades, on the other hand, tend to be longer measuring at 18 to 22 inches (46 to 56 cm). Damascene patterns are also thick but again most often not as controlled as the more widely known kalis.

Hilt (handle)
Most handles have a silver sleeve and lacquered braided fiber rings that sit on top. Nobility hilts were made of ivory, carabao horn, or kamagong (Philippine ebony). Other barong swords have less elaborate hilts and are smaller in size. Common motifs include the cockatoo (kakatua) and the sea serpent (naga). The long metal ferrule is most often made of silver, though copper, brass and swaasa is also used. Barongs used in World War II may also have aluminium ferrules. The ferrule tends to be around 8 cm (3 inches) in length. Often the ferrule will have lacquered braided natural fiber rings to aid in grip. Sometimes these fiber rings were on top of the ferrule, but often what would appear to be a solid metal ferrule would in fact be a number of metal bands that alternate between the fiber bands.

Cockatoo pommels tended to be made of banati. Higher end barongs belonging to the upper classes often had large elaborately carved junggayan (elongated) cockatoos. Barong for the lower classes, and the ones used for fighting, have less elaborate cockatoo pommels of much smaller sizes, often featuring de-emphasized crests or beaks (and on fighting versions mere vestigial elements of the crest and beak motifs). At one period near World War II, cockatoo forms changed. Crests became more triangular, and began to emerge directly from the back of the pommel, whereas older cockatoo had crests that flowed from the butt-plain of the pommel. Also, beaks started to become more massive and rectangular in form. Barong used by juramentados, or those who had taken the rite of Magsabil, often would feature smaller blades with normal size hilts.

Scabbard

Older barong scabbards tended only to be partially wrapped with large rattan lashings, while newer barong scabbards feature a full wrap of thin rattan. Also, the scabbards of older barong featured thinner flat boards, whereas post World War II barong scabbards are of much thicker stock, and feature a central ridge line. The terminus on modern-made scabbards tends to turn upward to a more dramatic degree, often at a near 90-degree angle and feature squared tips. As with kris scabbards of the post World War II era, mother of pearl inlays begin to appear at the throat and tips of barong scabbards as well.

See also
Kampilan
Pirah
 Smatchet

References

External links
 Federico's Muslim Swords
 Sandata — The Edged Weapons of the Philippines  by Ian A. Greaves, Jose Albovias Jr. & Federico Malibago:
 Cato, Robert, Moro Swords. Singapore: Graham Bash, 1996.
 Old Blades

Filipino swords
Blade weapons
Weapons of the Philippine Army

Barong (sword)


Barry Allen Darsow (born October 6, 1959) is an American retired professional wrestler who performed as Smash, one half of the tag team Demolition. He also wrestled as Krusher Kruschev, Repo Man, the Blacktop Bully and "Mr. Hole in One" Barry Darsow.

Throughout his career, he worked for Jim Crockett Promotions, the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), World Championship Wrestling (WCW), and several regional promotions in the 1980s and 1990s. He is a four-time former world tag team champion, winning three WWF World Tag Team Championships as part of Demolition and one NWA World Tag Team Championship as part of a three-man team with Ivan and Nikita Koloff (although the NWA no longer recognizes any former tag team champions prior to 1992, Darsow's championship is considered part of the WCW World tag team championship lineage), and a one-time NWA United States Tag Team Champion.

Early life
Darsow attended high school in Robbinsdale, Minnesota, with six other future wrestlers: Curt Hennig, Richard Rood (Rick Rude), Brady Boone, Tom Zenk, John Nord (The Berzerker), and Scott Simpson (Nikita Koloff). He also worked as a bouncer with The Road Warriors, Hawk and Animal.

Professional wrestling career

Early career (1983–1984)
Darsow made his debut in Hawaii as Tsar Mongo, before a short stint in New Zealand. He returned to Hawaii, before he began wrestling in 1983 in Georgia for Georgia Championship Wrestling before moving later that year to Mid-South Wrestling as Crusher Darsow, a turncoat American who was now a Soviet sympathizer and a tag team partner of Nikolai Volkoff. He changed his name to Krusher Khruschev and became the first ever Mid-South Television Title champion in a tournament by beating Terry Taylor in the finals on May 2, 1984, but lost it to Taylor on June 16, 1984. Darsow moved on to Florida Championship Wrestling where he teamed with Jim Neidhart. They won the Florida United States Tag Team Titles on October 11, 1984, from Hector Guerrero and Cocoa Samoa. The team held them until December 1984, when they lost them to Mark and Jay Youngblood.

Jim Crockett Promotions (1984–1987)
Khruschev moved on to the National Wrestling Alliance to work for Jim Crockett Jr. in December 1984. He was awarded a third of the NWA World Six-Man Tag Team Championship with Ivan and Nikita Koloff after they fell out with their former partner Don Kernodle. The Koloffs had already won the NWA World Tag Team Championship and Ivan declared that any two of them could defend the titles. They feuded with The Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson) and The Road Warriors. On July 9, 1985, he and Ivan lost the NWA Tag Titles to the Rock 'N Roll Express.  The Koloffs subsequently regained and defended the belts without Khruschev's participation. At Starrcade 1985, on November 28, Khruschev won the vacant NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship by defeating Sam Houston. Later on that night, he was in the Koloffs' corner as they lost their Tag titles back to the Express in a cage match with Kernodle in the Express's corner. On January 11, 1986, Khruschev severely injured his knee in a match with Houston on TBS. He lost the title to Houston and had to take almost six months off to recover.

When Khruschev returned, Nikita was feuding with Magnum T. A. for the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship. On August 17, 1986, Khruschev helped Nikita win the title in the final match of a Best of 7 series by holding the referee while Nikita used his "Russian" chain on Magnum. After helping Nikita defeat Magnum, Khruschev and Ivan targeted the new NWA United States Tag Team Championship, which was to be awarded to the winners of a tournament. They reached the finals, held on September 26, 1986, and defeated the Kansas Jayhawks (Dutch Mantel and Bobby Jaggers) with Nikita's help to become the first US Tag Team Champions. In October 1986, Magnum T. A. had a car accident that ended his career, and after admitting that he respected his one-time rival, Nikita turned his back on Ivan and Khruschev to team with Magnum's good friend, Dusty Rhodes. Kruschev and Ivan briefly feuded with Nikita and Rhodes but primarily defended their titles in rematches against Mantel and Jaggers. On December 9, 1986, they lost the US Tag Titles to Ron Garvin and Barry Windham. Darsow left the NWA after disputing a pay off with Jimmy Crockett.

World Wrestling Federation (1987 − 1993)

Demolition (1987–1991)

Darsow next went to the World Wrestling Federation. He was brought into the company to be part of the tag team Demolition, which had originally consisted of Bill Eadie as Ax and Randy Colley, who had been Moondog Rex of The Moondogs, as Smash. Darsow was tabbed as the new Smash after Colley, who wore face paint like Eadie did as part of his character, was deemed too recognizable even in disguise due to fans chanting "Moondog" at him whenever Demolition wrestled. At first, they were managed by Luscious Johnny V, but he was soon replaced by Mr. Fuji. Their initial feuds involved the team of Ken Patera and Billy Jack Haynes, and Strike Force (Tito Santana and Rick Martel). On March 27, 1988, at WrestleMania IV, they defeated Strike Force to win their first WWF World tag team title, which they held for a record 16 months. During this reign, they fell out with Mr. Fuji as he turned on them to manage their arch-rivals, The Powers of Pain (The Barbarian and The Warlord). This double turn at Survivor Series '88 was the solution to the massive popularity being enjoyed by Demolition. Originally, they were the heels in their rivalry with the Powers of Pain; however, as a result of the incident at the Survivor Series, Demolition became full-fledged babyfaces.  Demolition conclusively won the feud with their ex-manager and his new team when they defeated the Powers and Fuji in a five-man handicap tag match at WrestleMania V.

They lost the WWF Tag Team Title to The Brain Busters (Arn Anderson and Tully Blanchard) on the July 29, 1989 Saturday Night's Main Event XXII. They regained the title on October 2, but lost them to The Colossal Connection (Haku and André the Giant) on December 13. They defeated the Connection at WrestleMania VI on April 1, 1990, to become the third ever team to win the titles a third time in WWF history. The duo was joined by Crush (Brian Adams) later in 1990, making them a 3-man tag team and the second team Darsow had been involved in whose title reign operated under the Freebird Rule. Ax began appearing in a managerial role which was to eventually lead to the phasing out of the character. Demolition lost the titles to The Hart Foundation at SummerSlam '90. After a feud with Legion of Doom, the team dropped down the card and would disband in the spring of 1991, with Crush leaving the WWF for a year and Smash wrestling as a singles wrestler, primarily in house show undercards, where he was used to elevate other stars, such as Kerry Von Erich, Greg Valentine and Ricky Steamboat. His only victories during this run came over Jim Powers and Shane Douglas. He also appeared under a mask as an unnamed man hired by Ted DiBiase to wrestle Virgil on the August 18, 1991 SummerSlam Spectacular special. His final recorded WWF match as Smash would occur on August 24, 1991, getting pinned by The British Bulldog.

Repo Man (1991–1993)
While still wrestling as Demolition Smash, Darsow made his initial appearance as Repo Man on July 30, 1991, in Portland, Maine, wrestling in a dark match at a Wrestling Challenge taping. Four days before his final match as Smash, he made a second appearance in a dark match at another Challenge Taping in Erie, PA and defeated Phil Apollo on August 20. Following the August 24 house show defeat to Davey Boy Smith, Darsow retired the Demolition gimmick and was off the road for three months. On the November 9 edition of Prime Time Wrestling a vignette aired that introduced his new Repo Man character. The repackaging was of a character who was a ubiquitous, sneaky heel character who delighted in repossessing items such as cars from people when they were late on (or unable to make) their payments. As Repo Man, Darsow wore a black domino mask (similar to The Lone Ranger and Zorro) and an outfit decorated with tire tracks, and had mannerisms similar to Frank Gorshin's portrayal of The Riddler. He always carried a tow rope that he would tie up opponents with after defeating them and then assault them after. The character was actually the idea of Darsow himself, who previously had a job repossessing cars. Shortly after his debut, he was hired by Ted DiBiase to help him defeat Virgil for the Million Dollar Championship, leading to a series of matches with Virgil. At the This Tuesday in Texas pay-per-view, Repo Man and DiBiase defeated Virgil and Tito Santana. Repo Man made a memorable appearance at the 1992 Royal Rumble, sneaking to the ring and eliminating Nikolai Volkoff and Greg "The Hammer" Valentine before eventually being eliminated by The Big Boss Man. He also appeared at WrestleMania VIII, teaming with The Mountie and The Nasty Boys to be defeated by The Big Boss Man, Virgil, Hacksaw Jim Duggan and Sgt. Slaughter.

Repo Man's most notable feud was with The British Bulldog in mid-1992, sparked by Repo Man hanging the Bulldog over the ring ropes with his tow rope on the May 3, 1992, episode of Wrestling Challenge. The two had a series of house show matches as well as a match on Prime Time Wrestling, all of which saw Bulldog come out victorious. Repo Man lost a match to former partner Crush at SummerSlam, though it was never acknowledged on television that Repo Man was actually Smash. He also worked against Jim Duggan on house shows during this period. Repo Man also had a short feud with Randy Savage in January 1993 when he repossessed Savage's hat on an episode of Monday Night Raw. The two had a match the following week, which Savage won. Repo Man made his final PPV appearance at the 1993 Royal Rumble, where he was eliminated by Savage. Originally, Darsow had planned that after a run as a villain, Repo Man would become a heroic character. However, the turn never happened. His final recorded match in the WWF would be on March 28, 1993, a loss to Typhoon.

Independent Association of Wrestling (1993)
In 1993, Darsow joined the IAW promotion where he teamed with Paul Roma to win the IAW Tag Team titles on February 4, 1993 (while he was still on the WWF roster). They held them until July 24, when they lost them to The Iron Sheik and Brian Costello.

World Championship Wrestling (1994–1995)
In 1994, Darsow signed with WCW. He first wrestled under his real name in January. By August, he began appearing in the front of events with a blow horn, making noise and berating the faces while they wrestled, and would sometimes be kicked out of arenas by security. On the November 26 edition of WCW Saturday Night, he was eventually kayfabe arrested for pushing Dustin Rhodes. Col. Rob Parker bailed Darsow out from jail, after which point Darsow became known as The Blacktop Bully, with Parker as his manager. He feuded with Rhodes, but both were fired after Uncensored 1995, when he and Rhodes both bladed (which was against WCW's 'no-blood' policy) during a "King of the Road" match in the back of a moving flatbed truck, which Darsow won.

Independent circuit (1995–1997)
From there, he went to Pro Wrestling America in Minnesota to feud with Wahoo McDaniel and Tom Zenk. He next appeared in the American Wrestling Federation, with Jimmy Valiant's wife Big Mama as his valet. The AWF folded at the beginning of 1997.

Return to WCW (1997–1999)
Darsow returned to WCW under his real name on October 6, 1997, teaming with John Nord to defeat Mike Enos and Wayne Bloom in a dark match prior to WCW Monday Nitro. For the following year, he appeared in the undercard as a heel, mostly on WCW's tertiary and quaternary shows WCW Saturday Night and WCW Worldwide. He also notably lost to Goldberg on the March 9, 1998, edition of Nitro and the April 16, 1998, edition of WCW Thunder. On the October 17, 1998, edition of Saturday Night, he was repackaged as "Mr. Hole-In-One", Barry Darsow, a villainous golf player. He often entered the ring in casual wear and a flat cap as if ready to golf and, prior to matches, would offer his opponents a victory if they could make a putt in the ring, often only to sneak attack the opponent. Darsow feuded with "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan and Chris Adams during this time, typically on Saturday Night. On the April 24, 1999, edition of Worldwide, Darsow dropped the golfer gimmick, returning to his given name and wearing a black singlet. On August 28, 1999, Darsow teamed with Bobby Eaton in a loss to Harlem Heat on Saturday Night. After Booker T pinned Darsow, Harlem Heat hit Darsow in the head with their WCW World Tag Team Championships. Due to the blow to the head, in the following weeks, Darsow took on an amnesia gimmick, wherein he would reprise a different one of his past JCP/WCW gimmicks every week (the Smash and Repo Man gimmicks were WWE trademarks). On the September 18, 1999, edition of Worldwide, Darsow reprised his Krusher Kruschev gimmick, and then returned to "Mr. Hole-In-One" on the September 18, 1999, edition of Saturday Night. On October 2, 1999, he returned to his Blacktop Bully gimmick, which he used for the remainder of his time in WCW. His final match was a loss against Steven Regal on the December 18, 1999, edition of Worldwide.

Return to the independent circuit (2000–2001, 2007-2017)

Darsow joined the WXO promotion run by Ted DiBiase. He feuded with Mike Enos until it folded shortly after in 2001. That same year, Darsow made a special WWF appearance at WrestleMania X-Seven for the gimmick battle royal as Repo Man. After his Wrestlemania appearance Darsow retired from wrestling.

The Millennium Wrestling Federation (MWF) helped reunite Darsow with his partner Ax as Demolition and the two appeared at the Wrestling Living Legends reunion in Windsor, Ontario, Canada in March 2007. On the March 2008 MWF Ultra television program, Darsow, as Demolition Smash teamed with former WCW wrestler Rick Fuller to defeat Ox Baker's Army in a tag team casket match. On Raw XV, on the 15th-anniversary WWE Raw special on December 10, 2007, Darsow participated in the 15th Anniversary Battle Royal under his Repo Man persona.

Alongside Ax and One Man Gang, he competed in the Chikara King of the Trios Tournament in 2008, but were eliminated in the second round by "The Fabulous Three" (Larry Sweeney, Mitch Ryder and Shayne Hawke). On October 28, 2009, Smash appeared, with his partner Ax, at the Keystone State Wrestling Alliance. Where they defeated Tag Team Champions Shawn Blanchard and Lou Martin for the KSWA Tag Team Championship, which they would hold for that match only before relinquishing them due to not being able to return for further shows. Darsow still competes on the independent circuit to this day with Ax. They are currently the GLCW and USXW Tag Team Champions. On March 12, 2011, Darsow made his Dynamic Wrestling Alliance debut at Dynamic Destiny 2011 teaming with Ax as they took on another former WWF World Tag Team combination, The Dream Team (Greg "The Hammer" Valentine and Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake).

On May 21, 2011, Demolition reunited at Full Impact Pro's debut iPPV In Full Force. Their match against Tony DeVito and Ralph Mosco went to a no contest when local commentator and manager Larry Dallas came out and said his men wanted revenge. The ring was stormed by Manu, Sami Callihan, Blain Rage and Joey Attel. Demolition, Devito and Mosco managed to clear the ring and beat Dallas to end the show. Demolition returned to Chikara on September 16, 2012, taking part in a tag team gauntlet match, from which they eliminated The Devastation Corporation (Blaster McMassive and Max Smashmaster), before being eliminated themselves by their old WWF rivals, the Powers of Pain.

Outside wrestling and in popular culture
Darsow balances his time between wrestling, his two businesses, his family, and the golf course. Darsow owns Added Value Printing, a printing company that specializes in hard-hats and medical supplies, and also sells real estate. In December 2008, Darsow's son, Dakota, signed a developmental contract with WWE. Darsow has worked with the Millennium Wrestling Federation (MWF)'s efforts with the Special Olympics. Darsow is good friends with Arn Anderson, Barry Horowitz, Bill Irwin, and Brad Rheingans. He was also good friends with Curt Hennig, Rick Rude (both of whom he attended high school with), Brady Boone, Dino Bravo, and Brian Adams. Japanese band Aural Vampire produced a song called "The Repoman" and use video footage of Darsow and other wrestlers in live performances. Former Ring of Honor performer Adam Pearce is often heckled by fans who call him "Repo Man" because he looks similar to Darsow. At one match in 2007, at the pay-per-view taping for Driven, against Takeshi Morishima, Pearce pulled a mask similar to the Repo Man's out of his tights and put it on to the delight of the crowd.

Personal life
In July 2016, Darsow was named part of a class action lawsuit filed against WWE which alleged that wrestlers incurred traumatic brain injuries during their tenure and that the company concealed the risks of injury.  The suit is litigated by attorney Konstantine Kyros, who has been involved in some number of other lawsuits against WWE. The lawsuit was dismissed by US District Judge Vanessa Lynne Bryant in September 2018. In September 2020, an appeal for the lawsuit was dismissed by a federal appeals court.

Championships and accomplishments
Cauliflower Alley Club
Tag Team Award (2015) – with Ax
Championship Wrestling from Florida
NWA United States Tag Team Championship (Florida version) (1 time) – with Jim Neidhart
Great Lakes Championship Wrestling
GLCW Tag Team Championship (1 time, current) – with Ax
Independent Association of Wrestling
IAW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Paul Roma
Jim Crockett Promotions
NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
NWA United States Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Ivan Koloff
NWA World Six-Man Tag Team Championship (2 time) – with Ivan and Nikita Koloff
NWA World Tag Team Championship (Mid-Atlantic version) (1 time) – with Ivan Koloff and Nikita Koloff
Keystone State Wrestling Alliance
KSWA Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Ax
Mid-South Wrestling Association
Mid-South Television Championship (1 time)
New England Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame
 Class of 2020 – with Ax
United States Xtreme Wrestling
USXW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Ax
World Wrestling Federation
WWF Tag Team Championship (3 times) – with Ax

References

External links

Where Are They Now? - Darsow

Barry Darsow Interview

1959 births
American male professional wrestlers
Masked wrestlers
Living people
Professional wrestlers from Minneapolis
Sportspeople from Minneapolis
Stud Stable members
20th-century professional wrestlers
21st-century professional wrestlers
NWA United States Tag Team Champions (Florida version)
NWA/WCW United States Tag Team Champions
Professional wrestlers who use face paint
WCW World Tag Team Champions
World Tag Team Champions (WWE)

Smash (wrestler)


Wende ("the turn-around") refers to a historical process in the German Democratic Republic (GDR) in the years 1989 and 1990, after the Soviet reforms of Mikhail Gorbachev. The communist Socialist Unity Party of Germany (Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands, shortly SED) lost their power and a democratic government was established. The policy of this new government lead finally to German reunification in October 1990.

The Wende was known to be very peaceful. The people who were against the SED and communism did not want to use violence, and so these events are also known as the Peaceful Revolution (in German: Friedliche Revolution).

Beginnings
The Wende events were part of the fall of Communism all over Eastern Europe, for example in Poland, Hungary or Czechoslovakia. Soon there were reforms in that countries. In August 1989, Hungary opened its borders to Austria, and many tourists from East Germany crossed the border and fled to Western countries.

In September, East Germans were not allowed to go to Hungary any more.  Soon, more and more East Germans went to the embassies of West Germany in Warsaw and especially in Prague.  Soon there were more than 4,000 people in the Prague embassy.  West Germany could reach that East Germany allowed its people to go.  On 30 September 1989, the West German Foreign minister, Hans-Dietrich Genscher, came to Prague and told the East Germans in the embassy's garden that they could go.  The traveled to west Germany by trains which went through the GDR.  In the first days of October, even more East Germans went to West Germany from Prague.

Monday Demonstrations

In the GDR itself, some oppositional groups were founded, for example the Neues Forum ("New Forum"), the Demokratischer Aufbruch ("Democratic Awakening") or Demokratie Jetzt ("Democracy Now").

Since October 1989, there were lots of demonstrations against the SED and for democracy and human rights. In the city of Leipzig, people met every Monday in a church which is called Nikolaikirche. They prayed for peace and freedom, and after that, they went out and demonstrate. These demonstrations are called Montagsdemonstrationen ("Monday Demonstrations").

On 7 October 1989, there was the 40th "birthday" of the GDR. The SED held big celebrations and festivals in East Berlin and other cities. At the same time, lots of people protested in the streets, and more than 1,000 of them were arrested. In Plauen, in the south of East Germany, many people met for a demonstration. Two days later, on 9 October, there was the next Monday Demonstration in Leipzig. About 70,000 people went peacefully through the city centre, and the police or the State Security (Stasi) did not do anything to stop them.

On 18 October, the main leaders of the SED decided that their chairman, Erich Honecker had to resign. Egon Krenz became the new leader of the SED (Generalsekretär des Zentralkomitees der SED, "General Secretary of the Central Comitee of the SED") and head of state (Staatsratsvorsitzender, "Chairman of the State Council"). He said that he wanted to start a "Wende", but the demonstrants still wanted the SED to give up all power.

The Fall of the Wall

On 4 November, there was a very big demonstration on the Alexanderplatz in East Berlin. More than 400,000 people took part, and the demonstration was shown live on East German television.

The government of the GDR discussed a new law about travels to West Germany and other countries. In the evening of 9 November 1989, there was a press conference with the press secretary of the Central Committee of the SED, Günter Schabowski. Just before that press conference, Egon Krenz had given Schabowski a sheet of paper about the new travel law. Before the press conference ended, a journalist from Italy asked Schabowski a question about freedom of travel. Schabowski read out his sheet of paper, which said that everyone should be allowed to leave the country and come back whenever he or she wanted. When he was asked when this rule should come into force, Schabowski answered "at once" and "immediately".

Many people watched this press conference on TV, and the West German mass media reported that the GDR wanted to open the borders "immediately". So more and more East Germans went to the Wall to see if this was true. When they saw that the Wall was still closed, they became angrier and angrier. After 23:00, the border was opened at one border checkpoint, at Bornholmer Straße, and soon the other checkpoints followed. In that night lots of people went to West Berlin and back. In the next days and weeks, thousands of people visited West Germany.

"Round Tables" and the end of the Stasi
On 13 November 1989, Hans Modrow became the new Minister-President of East Germany. He established a Round Table for political decisions. On the Round Table were members of the SED and its mass organisations, from oppositional groups and from the churches. In cities, towns and villages, there were many other Round Tables established, too.

Many people in the GDR still feared the Ministry of State Security, which was known as the "Stasi". Modrow renamed the Ministry into Amt für Nationale Sicherheit ("Office of National Security"; AfN). The AfN started to destroy the documents which they had collected over the years. The oppositional forces wanted the documents to be kept, and so they occupied all the Stasi offices in the country in December 1989 and January 1990. The last was the Stasi headquarters in East Berlin on 15 January 1990.

Free election
On 18 March 1990, there were free elections to the parliament of East Germany, the Volkskammer ("People's Chamber"). These election was won by the Allianz für Deutschland ("Alliance for Germany"), a group of parties which wanted the GDR to be annexed by West Germany. The most importand party of the Alliance was the CDU, and their chairman, Lothar de Maizière, became the new Minister-President of the GDR. The new government started the process of reunification, which finally came to an end on 3 October 1990.

Other websites
 Online magazine about the Peaceful Revolution  (in German)
 "Chronicles of the Wende" (The Fall of The Wall) by German television (in English or German)
 Documents about the Wende

1989 in Europe
1990 in Europe
20th century in Germany
East Germany

Wende


Jamestown: Legend of the Lost Colony, also known as simply Jamestown, is a vertically scrolling shooter developed and released by Final Form Games in 2011. The game takes place on Mars in an alternate history steampunk 17th century, where the planet is a British colony contested by the Spanish and the indigenous Martians.

Plot

Gameplay
Jamestown features mechanics similar to many other shooters. There are 4 types of ships available, each with a primary and secondary attack, and a "Vaunt Mode" which the player can trigger when enough gold from destroyed enemies has been collected. When this mode is engaged the ship gains a temporary shield, increased firepower and a score multiplier for a limited time, which can be prolonged and increased by collecting more gold.

The game is playable in both regular singleplayer mode and in a local multiplayer mode supporting up to 4 players.

Development
The game was developed in two years by the small indie developer Final Form Games, and financed by the three founders' own personal savings. The developers present the Cave shooter Progear as being the closest thing to a direct influence, and say that the animated films of Hayao Miyazaki, in particular Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind and Castle in the Sky influenced the artstyle.  The story's alternate history references Roanoke Colony, and includes associated figures like Walter Raleigh, Virginia Dare, John Smith, and Joachim Gans as characters.

Reception

Jamestown and Jamestown+ received "generally favorable reviews" according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. IGN called the PC version "an accessible, punchy shooter with some clever mechanics at play and a surprising level of depth hiding beneath the 16-bit surface". 1UP.com praised its approachable, escalating difficulty, the 16-bit style graphics and its soundtrack.

Jamestown was selected as one of the "PAX 10" (a selection of the years best indie games) for the PAX Prime 2011 convention. The game was added to the Humble Indie Bundle 4 on December 13, 2011.

References

External links

2011 video games
Alternate history video games
Bullet hell video games
Cooperative video games
Cultural depictions of Walter Raleigh
Indie games
Linux games
Multiplayer and single-player video games
MacOS games
PlayStation 4 games
Steampunk video games
Vertically scrolling shooters
Video games based on real people
Video games developed in the United States
Video games set on Mars
Windows games

Jamestown: Legend of the Lost Colony


Thomas Alva Edison (11 Februar, 1847 – 18 October, 1931) wis an American inventor an businessman that cleckit monie important luims. "The Wizard o Menlo Park" wis ane o the first inventors til applee the principles o mass production ti the process o invention. In 1880 Edison foondit the jurnal Science, that in 1900 becam the jurnal o the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Edison is conseidered ane o the maist proleific inventors o his time, haudin a record 1,093 patents in his name. Maist o thir inventions wisna oreiginal but betterments o aerlier patents, an wis raelly cleckit bi his monie warkers. Edison wis aften creiticised for nae sharin the credit. Houaniver, Edison gat patents warldwide, in, amang ither places, the United States, Unitit Kinrick, Fraunce, an Germany. Edison stairtit the Motion Picture Patents Company, that wis a conglomerate o nine big film studios (better kent as the Edison Trust). Edison cleckit the diamont listenin record an aw whaur he uised his productit phonograph for tae play a thich  80 rpm record.

1847 births
1931 daiths
Fowk frae Ohio
Fowk frae Milan, Ohio
Fowk frae Fort Myers, Florida
American businessfowk
American inventors
American fowk o Canadian strynd
American fowk o Dutch strynd
American fowk o Inglis strynd
American fowk o Scots strynd
Businessfowk frae Ohio
Cinema pioneers
Congressional Gowd Medal recipients
Deaf fowk
Deists
Thomas
Great Floridians
Members o the Ryal Swadish Academy o Sciences
Honorary Members o the USSR Academy o Sciences
Officiers o the Légion d'honneur
Fowk associatit wi electricity
Fowk o Unitit Empire Lyalist strynd
Recipients o the Distinguished Service Medal (Unitit States)
Telegrafie

Members o the American Filosofical Society

Thomas Edison


Christopher Riggi (born September 18, 1985) is an American actor, known for his role as Scott Rosson in the teen drama television series Gossip Girl, and Jacob White in the Twilight parody film, Vampires Suck, which was released in the US on August 18, 2010.

Riggi was born in New York City, New York and is the son of philanthropists Michele and Ron Riggi. He started his career in 2008 in the short film Brotherhood as Jared, before moving onto screen works such as the independent films Toe to Toe and Dare. Additionally, Riggi made guest appearances in several TV series such as Human Giant and Lipstick Jungle.

Riggi played a role in The Wolf of Wall Street.

Filmography

References

External links

1985 births
21st-century American male actors
American male film actors
American male television actors
Living people
Male actors from New York City

Chris Riggi


The Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences or the Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb (Croatian: Filozofski fakultet Sveučilišta u Zagrebu) is one of the faculties of the University of Zagreb.

History
The Faculty of Philosophy is the oldest faculty of the University of Zagreb, which dates its founding to 1669. Philosophy and humanities were taught at the university from the very beginning, while a separate faculty first came into existence in 1776 when the university was divided into Faculties of Philosophy, Theology and Law.

In 1874 the modern University of Zagreb was officially established, with four faculties: Law, Theology, Philosophy and Medicine. The Faculty of Philosophy was called the Mudroslovni fakultet and had the following chairs:
 Philosophy
 History
 Croatian history
 Slav philology
 Classical philology – Latin
 Classical philology – Greek

The faculty also served as the general scientific faculty, and since 1876 it taught geology, botany, physics, mathematics, and chemistry; since 1877 zoology; since 1882 pharmacy; since 1883 geography.

In 1893, the Chair of Pedagogy was instituted. The Study of Archeology started in 1893. The Chair of German Philology was created in 1895. The Chair of Indo-Germanology was created in 1908, transformed into the Study of Indology in 1962. The Seminar on Romance Philology first started in 1920. The Chair of Ethnology was created in 1924/1927. The Art History Seminar was created in 1928. The Chair of Psychology was created in 1929. The English Seminar was created in 1935.

Mathematics, pharmacy and other sciences started to split off in several stages, with the creation of separate mathematics and pharmaceutical departments in 1928, when the faculty was renamed into its current name Filozofski fakultet, and the splitting off of individual departments into separate faculties in 1942, 1946 and finally in 1963.

The Institute of Phonetics was founded in 1954. The Chair of General Linguistics and Comparative Literature was created in 1956. The Chair of Sociology was created in 1963 (the Faculty of Law had one since 1906). The Study of Swedish started in 1985. In 1989, the Institute for Information Sciences was founded. In 1994, the Study of Hungarology started.

In 2009, the faculty was occupied by students who demanded free education. The peaceful occupation started on April 20, 2009, and ended on May 24. The second occupation started on November 23, 2009, and ended nearly two weeks later.

Current organization
There are two models of study programs: single major (all courses belong to one program) and double majors (student studies in two equally important programs for equal degrees in both):
 Single major programs are Archaeology, Psychology, Philosophy, Sociology, Pedagogy, Information Science, History, Comparative literature, Italian language and literature, and Croatian language and literature.
 Double major programs are Philosophy, Archaeology, History, Art History, Sociology, Ethnology and Cultural Anthropology, Comparative literature, Croatian language and literature, Pedagogy, Linguistics, Phonetics and languages and literature (English, French, German, Dutch studies, Hungarian, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, Swedish, Classic Philology (Greek and Latin), Turkish, Indology, East, West and South Slavic languages).

The faculty has more than 700 employees, with more than 500 academic staff as well as more than 600 part-time lecturers.

Departments
The faculty consists of following departments:
Department of English studies
Chair of Scandinavian studies
Department of archeology
Department of ethnology and cultural anthropology
Department of philosophy
Department of phonetics
Department of German studies
Department of information and communication sciences
Department of classical philology
Department of comparative literature
Department of Croatian studies
Department of linguistics
Department of indology and Far East studies
Chair of indology
Chair of sinology
Chair of Japanese studies
Department of turkology and Hungarian studies
Chair of turkology
Chair of Hungarian studies
Department of pedagogy
Department of history
Department of history of art
Department of psychology
Department of Romanic studies
Department of East Slavic languages and literatures
Department of South Slavic languages and literatures
Department of West Slavic languages and literatures
Department of sociology
Department of Italian studies
Chair of anthropology
Chair of Physical education

Library

The Faculty Library moved into a new building opened in March 2009, becoming the second largest library in Croatia (after the nearby National and University Library in Zagreb). It includes 24 department libraries with more than 600 000 books. The library consists of the ground floor, 6 upper floors and a closed repository. The ground floor is mainly intended to be used for reading and writing, while the five upper floors contain books from all departments.

, the sixth floor does not function yet. Books which have not been processed yet and are not available for public use are stored in the closed repository, located in the basement.

There are 750 working places and 250 computers available for use. The library is open to all students and employees of the facultyfor borrowing books, while members of the public may use books and other resources within the library building.
All members and library employees use Koha – a library software which has several interfaces depending on the type of user. The catalogue is open access. It is possible to search for particular books by title, author, ISBN, subject, publisher and call number.

The entire library system is highly technically advanced and equipped with models for supply, catalogization, public borrowing and statistics. One of the main advantages of the library is the 3M RFID system of electronic chips, which enables self-check, allowing users to borrow books by themselves.

The 2016 protest

During 2016, many students and professors became dissatisfied with the current dean, prof. dr. sc. Vlatko Previšić (specifically his organization of the university). Previšić planned to connect Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences (famous for its many agnostic and atheist students) with Catholic Faculty of Theology, offering a double major in Theology and another field of the students' choice.

Students at the Faculty of Humanities protested against this, claiming they do not want to be associated with a religious institution. They started posting images online ridiculing dean Previšić online, as well as putting them up at various locations across the university (such as public halls, library, and the toilet). The dean responded by hiring personal security guards. Many Croatian universities, institutions and charities also offered their support to the protesting students.

Notable faculty and alumni
 Nadežda Čačinovič (b. 1947)
 Zlatko Crnković (1931–2013)
 Vesna Girardi-Jurkić (1944–2012)
 Albert Goldstein (1943–2007), intellectual, writer, publisher, poet and translator
 Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović (b. 1968), fourth President of Croatia
 Mirela Holy (b. 1971), politician
 Tvrtko Jakovina (b. 1972), historian
 Hrvoje Klasić (b. 1972), historian
 Julijana Matanović (b. 1959)
 Predrag Matvejević (1932–2017), writer and scholar
 Ante Peterlić (1936–2007)
 Nenad Puhovski (b. 1949)
 Žarko Puhovski (b. 1946)
 Milorad Pupovac (b. 1955), linguist and politician
 Vesna Pusić (b. 1953), sociologist and politician
 Nino Raspudić (b. 1975)
 Zvonimir Richtmann (1901–1941), physicist, philosopher, and publicist
 Milivoj Solar (b. 1936)
 Tom Sunic (b. 1953), university professor
 Milena Žic-Fuchs (b. 1954)
 Rudolf Arapović (1937-2007) writer and dissident

References

External links
 Homepage
 Alumni

Humanities
Educational institutions established in the 1690s
1874 establishments in Austria-Hungary

Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb


Battlestar Galactica is a science fiction franchise. It includes two separate television series, one sequel series, movies, books, comic books, toy and other merchandise. The series are named after the main spacecraft, the Battlestar (a large type of warship in space) Galactica.

Original series
The first series was created in 1978 after the successful theater release of Star Wars. The series was shown on the American network ABC. The series lasted for eight months and 17 episodes before it ended. The cost of making the series was said to be one of the reasons for it ending. The series starred Lorne Greene as Commander Adama, captain of the Galactica. Richard Hatch played his son, the pilot Apollo. Dirk Benedict played Apollo's friend and fellow pilot, Starbuck.

In 1980, ABC made the sequel series Galactica 1980. This series took place after the fleet got to Earth. The series did not do well in the ratings and quickly ended. Several movies were made using edited version of both series.

Remake series
In 2003, Universal Television along with the Sci-Fi Channel and Sky One created a three-hour mini-series based on the original television series. This series was very well liked by both the audience and critics. This led to the Sci-Fi Channel making it into a series in 2004. After the 2007 season of Battlestar Galactica, the Nielsen ratings said that over 119 million people watched the series. This made it the highest rated and most watched series on cable networks. Edward James Olmos plays Commander William Adama. Jamie Bamber plays his son, Lee "Apollo" Adama. Katee Sackhoff plays Kara "Starbuck" Thrace. Starbuck was one of several characters to be changed from a male character into a female character.

Story
All of the Battlestar Galactica series have the same basic setting. In a far away part of the universe, a civilization of humans live on planets known as the "Twelve Colonies". In the past, the Colonies were at war with a cybernetic race known as the Cylons. With the help of a human named Gaius Baltar, the Cylons attacked on the Colonies. This surprise attack caused much damage to the planets where the humans lived and killed most of their populations. A few thousand of humans did not die in the attacks. They fled into space aboard any spacecraft they could. Of all the Colonial Fleet, the battlestar Galactica appears to be the only military ship that was not destroyed in the attack. Under the leadership of military leader Commander Adama, the Battlestar Galactica and its crew lead and protect the fleet of survivors into space in search of a fabled Thirteenth Colony and its home planet, Earth.

Other websites
Official site

Battlestar Wiki

Amazon.com interview with Battlestar Galactica star Katee Sackhoff

1978 television series debuts
1979 television series endings

Battlestar Galactica


The One's complement is an operation that can be done to binary numbers. It is obtained by swapping all the bits in the number, that is, replacing 1 with 0, or 0 with 1. In many systems, this is used to represent the inverse of a number. One of the big problems that occur when using One's complement is that the number zero has two representations, either all 0's or all 1's. Using 4 digits both 0000 and 1111 represent zero. This problem can be solved by using Two's complement.

Binary arithmetics

Ones' complement


Divie Bethune McCartee (Simplified Chinese: 麦嘉缔) (1820–1900) was an American Protestant Christian medical missionary, educator and U.S. diplomat in China and Japan, first appointed by the American Presbyterian Mission in 1843.

In 1845, he organized the first Protestant church on Chinese soil. He later served as United States Consul at Ningbo, China and was also judge of the "mixed court" at Shanghai.  His career in Japan led him to be a professor in the Imperial University at Tokyo, and he was also Secretary of the Chinese legation there.  His prolific writings covered  Asiatic history, linguistics, natural science, medicine and politics in the publications of the American Geographical Society, the American Oriental Society and other associations.

Early life
Divie Bethune McCartee was born in Philadelphia on January 13, 1820, the oldest son of Dr. Robert McCartee of New York. He entered Columbia University, New York City, at the age of 14 and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Medical School at 20. In June 1843, while engaged in the practice of medicine in Philadelphia, he received a message from the Board of Foreign Missions of the Church that he was needed to go to China as a pioneer and medical missionary. After consulting with members of his family, he agreed to go.

China
McCartee sailed for China in 1843 and arrived in Ningbo, Zhejiang, China in 1844. He began working primarily in medicine and evangelism. He was likely the first Protestant missionary, and certainly the first physician, to reside on Chinese soil following the First Opium War. He soon mastered the Chinese language, and his linguistic skills would be put to a variety of future uses. He opened a mission at Ningbo, one of the five ports opened to foreign trade and intercourse by the Treaty of Nanking in 1842.

In 1845, he organized the first Protestant church on Chinese soil. It was there that he married fellow missionary, Juana M. Knight in 1853. She was the first single Presbyterian woman to travel to China.

In 1868 or 1869, the McCartees adopted Kin Yamei (1864–1934), the daughter of Christian colleagues who died from disease when she was two years old.  She became the first Chinese woman doctor educated abroad.

In addition to his medical work, he became an adviser and interpreter for American officials and was later vice-consul in Chefoo (present-day Yantai) and Shanghai. McCartee acted in place of an American Consul until a regular consular service was set up in 1857. In this capacity in May 1861, at the request of United States Flag-Officer Stribling, he entered Nanjing, across the battle lines and helped persuade the "Heavenly King", Hong Xiuquan of the Taipings to promise "non-molestation not only to Americans and Christians, but to all Chinese in their employ." By this effort large numbers of native Christians and their friends were rescued when the Taiping army entered Ningbo.

Japan
In 1862, he was appointed vice-consul to Japan and became one of the first Protestant missionaries to work there. His tract translated into Japanese was the first Protestant literature in Japan.

The McCartees returned to Ningpo in 1865 to resume their missionary work. In 1872, they were transferred to the Shanghai mission but resigned shortly thereafter so that Dr. McCartee could join the Shanghai consular staff as interpreter and assessor to the Mixed Court.

In 1872, when the coolies of the Peruvian ship Maria Luz were freed by the Japanese government upon his suggestion, a commission was appointed from Beijing to proceed to Tokyo to bring home the freed men, and McCartee was nominated secretary and interpreter, receiving for his services a gold medal and complimentary letters. While on this Chinese government assignment to Japan, McCartee remained in Tokyo as professor of law and science at the Imperial University (now Tokyo University), curator of the botanical gardens, and later secretary to the Chinese Legation there until 1877.

In 1879, he advised Ulysses S. Grant, the former U.S. president, mediating on the Ryukyu Islands, although both China and Japan rejected his compromise.

McCartee returned to the United States in 1880, and in 1882, visited Hawaii on business connected with Chinese immigration. In 1885, Dr. McCartee was appointed consul to the Japanese legation in Washington, DC. Two years later, the McCartees were reappointed by the Presbyterian Board of Foreign Missions to the Japan Mission, where they served until Dr. McCartee's retirement in 1899. That year, he returned to the US as an invalid, and died in San Francisco on July 17, 1900.

Divie McCartee devoted nearly forty years of his life to work among the Chinese and Japanese. The Chinese Government gave him a gold medal in recognition of his services in connection with the suppression of the Macau coolie traffic, and later he received the title of Consul General for services in the Chinese legation. From the Japanese Government he received the decoration of the Fifth Order of the Rising Sun. He left a wife and four brothers-Peter, Robert, George, and Charles McCartee. His remains were buried at Newburgh, New York.

Archival collections
 The Presbyterian Historical Society in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, has a collection of Divie Bethune McCartee's correspondence.
 The University of Pennsylvania's Rare Book and Manuscript Library has a collection of handwritten notes by McCartee on Chinese and Japanese archaeology, geography, natural history, philology and other topics.
 The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University has zoological specimens sent from China by McCartee.

See also
 Protestantism in Japan

Notes

References

External links

Physicians from Philadelphia
Presbyterian missionaries in China
Christian medical missionaries
Presbyterian missionaries in Japan
Japan–United States relations
China–United States relations
Coolie trade
American orientalists
Educators from Philadelphia
19th-century American diplomats
American Presbyterian missionaries
1820 births
1900 deaths
American expatriates in China
American expatriates in Japan
Missionary educators
19th-century American physicians
19th-century American educators

Divie Bethune McCartee


A social conservative is someone who supports right-wing politics on social issues. Examples of such issues are: opposition to abortion, homosexual marriage, and/or euthanasia, supporting capital punishment, and similar issues. They may or may not be conservative on other issues, such as taxes.

In the United States social conservatives tend to be in the Republican Party and are usually also Christian Conservatives.  There are also Americans who are social conservatives for other reasons than religion.

In Canada, social conservatives are known as the Blue Tories.

Some people, such as Mary Wollstonecraft, George Orwell, and Stephen Leacock, have supported left-wing politics on many issues. However, they were socially conservative on issues like abortion, for Wollstonecraft and Orwell, or feminism, for Leacock.

Political movements
Conservatism
Christian democracy

Social conservative