LINKS FOR CONTROVERSIAL TOPICS

almanac of policy issues - Outlines major issues of public policy concern. The categories provide a simple outline of the issue with a list of related sites, issues, articles, and organizations.

google directory - society - issues - A great place to browse for topic ideas as well as find appropriate web sites with information on the topic. Most of the subtopics subdivide web sites by pro and con bias and can be used to locate advocacy sites.

idea debatabase - International Debate Educational Association. Great stop to get ideas for topics, a summary of the controversial nature of the issue, and a list of the pro and con arguments for the topic.

nationalissues.com - Pros and cons of an issue and an overview article for public policy concerns.

public agenda online - public opinion and public policy. Use the "Issues Guides" button at this site. Reports cover public opinion research.

speakout.com - An activism site with background and links to all types of advocacy organizations interested in the issues at this site.

findlaw - Use the topical directory to find links to articles, legal forms, FAQs, and related resources on these topics. Use the search feature to find resources within FindLaw, on other legal web sites, or on government sites.

govspot - a government information portal for federal, state, and local information.

thomas - u.s. congress on the internet - The definitive and official site for federal legislation. Search proposed federal bills and public laws by keyword or by number. Recently considered intiatives are highlighted on the top level page. It is also possible to find how congressional members voted on the bills.

all academic - Indexes over 200 freely available refereed journals and provides a browsable list of 350 academic journals listed by discipline or alphabetically. keep search statements short at this site.

american factfinder - Published by the U.S. Census Bureau - source for population, housing, economic, and geographic data.

fedstats -Portal to data and government agencies that have data on all aspects of American life.

ipoll online database of public opinion - Roper Center for public opinion research - Part of this site is free and you are able to get 10 sample answers out of the total number retrieved.

looksmart's find articles - a searchable database of thousands of articles from hundreds of magazines and journals going back to 1998. Full text articles are available for free.

opinion-pages - Find local ideas from over 600 newspaper opinion pages, editorials, and letters to the editor. This is an invaluable tool in getting opinions at the source!

pollingreport.com - This is not a searchable database. Deals only with timely topics.

moving ideas network - an electronic policy network - Browse by topic to find news and information resources from more than 130 progressive or liberal-leaning advocacy and policy research organizations.

nira's world directory of think tanks -lists approximately 500 public policy research institutes from 100 countries and regions, organized alphabetically by their name in English within groupings by country.

policyexperts.org - A searchable database of the conservative movement, presenting detailed information on over 300 public policy and advocacy organizations in the U.S.

webactive directory - An annotated, searchable directory of 1,250 progressive groups that are online. Input a key word and quickly use hyperlinks to find areas of interest.

school and library sites with excellent links to topics

king county library listing of topics

Multnomal County Library

Two Towns of Jasper (PBS) - Originally broadcast in 2003 and part of the PBS P.O.V. series (Point of View), this site contains numerous resources of interest to those studying hate crimes in America. You will find a poll conducted by ABC on race relations, transcript of Ted Koppels "America in Black and White," a Jasper update, overview of the event provided from a white and a black perspective, and standards-based lesson plans which may require access to the video.