I have repeatedly stated what I mean. I have never denied that economic explanations of political behavior are valid, as you know. I merely insist that political explanations, and psychological ones too, are also valid. I do not understand the idea that psychological explanations are merely individual and therefore (!) not explanatory. I reject both parts of that proposition. Since I cannot make myself understood, despite having repeatedly stated what I mean in plain English, I leave the field to you all. Enjoy it. You may imagine that you grasp a deeper truth, a world where only economic reduction counts. I would have hoped this caricature of historical materialism was long dead. Alas, it is not. jks  BrownBingb@aol.com wrote: <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #1010ff 2px solid"> <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px" TYPE="CITE">-clip- Most people, when they ask a political question, are asking for the political explanatory factors. jks CB: Well, there is this school of thought that emphasizes class struggle as explaining political questions . </BLOCKQUOTE> </BLOCKQUOTE> <hr size=1>Do you Yahoo!? <a href="http://rd.yahoo.com/platinum/evt=8162/*http://platinum.yahoo.com/splash.html">Yahoo! Platinum</a> - Watch CBS' NCAA March Madness, <a href="http://rd.yahoo.com/platinum/evt=8162/*http://platinum.yahoo.com/splash.html">live on your desktop</a>!