Economist, Apr 25, 2015 (I)

choi

(1) Letters to the Editor
www.economist.com/news/letters/21649436-letters-editor

(a) "Powerful prime ministers [which is the heading] * * * British prime ministers and American presidents are indeed very different creatures (Letters, April 11th). Once a prime minister has a majority in the House of Commons he can push through bills drawn up by the executive almost at will. Committees can probe but have little real impact if the executive wants to get something done, as Lord Hailsham pointed out in the 1960s.

Note:
(i) Viscount Hailsham
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viscount_Hailsham
(of Hailsham in the County of Sussex)

(A) Hailsham
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hailsham
(V) For pronunciation of Hailsham, see Hailsham of St Marylebone
www.collinsdictionary.com/dictio ... am-of-st-marylebone
(ii) At issue is Quintin Hogg (1907-2001; second Viscount Hailsham)
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quintin_Hogg,_Baron_Hailsham_of_St_Marylebone

, who popularized the phrase
elective dictatorship
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elective_dictatorship
(iii) Well, I have not observed at ringside how parliamentary system works. But Israel-- as well as polls BEFORE the recent general election in UK--chronically has not had a political party holding a majority of seats. I just do not see how stable a parliamentary government can be.

choi

(d) “You said that ‘the South has long since been transformed by civil rights and air conditioning.’ You forgot the third essential: bug spray.  JIM MARTIN[,] St Petersburg, Florida”

Note: Insect repellent
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insect_repellent
(commonly called "bug spray")

choi

(c) “The final shot in the civil war [heading] * * * the last Confederate surrender was that of the CSS Shenandoah a battleship, on November 6th 1865 in Liverpool. As the world’s pre-eminent city in trading cotton, Liverpool’s sympathies lay firmly with the Confederate government * * * The Shenandoah’s commander, Captain James Waddell

Note:
(i) CSS Shenandoah
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CSS_Shenandoah
(1864-1865; iron-framed)
(A) CSS = Confederate States Ship
(B) Shenandoah River
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shenandoah_River

* Another Wiki page states, “The word Shenandoah is of unknown Native American origin.”
(C) Ironclad warship
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ironclad_warship
(The first ironclad battleship, Gloire, was launched by the French Navy in November 1859)

* French ironclad Gloire: (French for glory; “ironclad with a wooden hull. Her 12 cm-thick (4.7 in) armour plates, backed with 43 cm (17 in) of timber”)
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_ironclad_Gloire
* UK's answer was HMS Warrior (1860)
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Warrior_(1860)
(1861-1883)

, which was UK's first ironclad warship, protected by armor of the same thickness (4 ½ inches)

(ii) “As the world’s pre-eminent city in trading cotton, Liverpool’s sympathies lay firmly with the Confederate government”

Liverpool and Manchester, which arose first in regard to cotton?  The answer is Manchester.
(A) Cottonopolis
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cottonopolis
(a sobriquet applied solely to the city of Manchester; In 1781 Richard Arkwright opened the world's first steam-driven textile mill in Manchester
(B) Stuart Maconie, Rivals: Liverpool v Manchester, BBC, May 13, 2010
news.bbc.co.uk/local/liverpool/hi/people_and_places/history/newsid_8677000/8677547.stm
("Raw cotton imported to the UK was spun in the mills of Manchester, it was said that Manchester clothed a quarter of the world. * * * but the material [cotton from US south] all had to come from over 30 miles away through Liverpool. The Port of Liverpool set high charges on the importation of the raw materials destined for Manchester's cotton mills, and this provoked Manchester into action. The city decided to simply bypass Liverpool and in building the Manchester Ship Canal was able to bring goods in direct to Salford at a stroke avoiding the import charges of the Port of Liverpool. When the Manchester Ship Canal opened in 1894 the rivalry between Liverpool and Manchester was sealed")
(C) Liverpool
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liverpool
is on the eastern bank of River Mersey. View the map at upper right corner of this Wiki page.
* River Mersey
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Mersey
("Its name is derived from the Anglo-Saxon language and translates as 'boundary river,' * * * The start of the Mersey is at the confluence of the River Tame and River Goyt in Stockport [eastern neighbor of Manchester]. It flows Westwards towards")
* History of Liverpool
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Liverpool
(The history of Liverpool can be traced back to 1190 when the place was known as 'Liuerpul,’ possibly meaning a pool or creek with muddy water, though other origins of the name have been suggested)
(D) The relative geographical position of Liverpool, Manchester, River Mersey, and
Manchester Ship Canal
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manchester_Ship_Canal

may be found in a map at section 3 Route.

(iii) James Iredell Waddell
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Iredell_Waddell
(1824-1886)

choi

(b) "Taiwan’s lesson in trade [heading] * * * Kaohsiung model [of special economic zones: Kaohsiung Export Processing Zone 高雄加工出口區] was meticulously studied by Deng Xiaoping and China’s economic reformers when they sought to breathe life into the economy. Kaohsiung influenced the creation of Shenzhen and was the inspiration for the Zhuhai and Xiamen special economic zones.