When writing an encyclopedia of this type, the most difficult challenge is to
decide what to leave in and what to leave out. In making these decisions, our
overall rule of thumb was to err on the side of contemporary terms and issues.
Our hope is that, in the process, we have developed a reference work that will
be relevant and useful to both the student of government and the average citizen.
If we have managed to succeed in this we will have accomplished a great deal.

Although the authors alone accept responsibility for any errors which remain
in this text, our appreciation must be expressed to the several individuals who
have assisted us at various points in the writing process. Linda Babinec and
Tanisha Miller gave generous amounts of their time to proofreading and pho-
tocopying early drafts of this encyclopedia. Our particular thanks is extended to
Donna Esterly, who in the first stages of preparing this work gave valuable
editorial assistance.

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