Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan !  The axiom, fear;  The method, logic;  The conclusion, despotism. Published in 1651 during the chaos of the English Civil War, it is one of the most influential works of political philosophy ever written. Hobbes was essentially trying to solve one problem:  How do we keep people from killing each other? Here is a breakdown of the core ideas in Leviathan : 1. The State of Nature Hobbes asks us to imagine a world with no laws, no government, and no police. He calls this the "State of Nature." In this state, everyone has a "right to everything," which leads to a "war of all against all." Because humans are naturally competitive and selfish, he famously describes life in this state as: "Solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short." 2. The Social Contract To escape this miserable state of nature, Hobbes argues that rational people will eventually agree to a Social Contract . The Deal: You give up your absolute freedom to do w...

The demographics of England have been measured by the decennial national census since 1801, and are marked by centuries of population growth and urbanization.  Due to the lack of authoritative contemporary sources, estimates of the population of England for dates prior to the first census in 1801 vary considerably.  The population of England at the 2021 census was about 56,489,800 Religion Population (approx.) % of England Christianity 26.2 million 46.3% No Religion 20.7 million 36.7% Muslim 3.8 million 6.7% Hindu 1.0 million 1.8% Sikh 520,000 0.9% Jewish 269,000 0.5% Buddhist 262,000 0.5% Other Religions 332,000 0.6% Religion not stated 3.4 million 6.0% Understanding the Categories 1. English Catholics The national census for England and Wales asks a broad question: "What is your religion?" with "Christian" as a single checkbox. It does not officially break down denominations (like Catholic vs. Anglican). However, independent surveys provide a clear picture: Perc...