During the Civil War, both the Confederacy and the Union tried to curry favor with Britain in order to support their respective causes. This online exhibition explores these relationships through original period maps, photographs, diplomatic documents, and much more. The Highlights area is a great place to start, as it showcases great finds from the collection including Civil War songs, silk cords...

While people may have seen individuals with a jacket that reads "ATF Agent", they may have only a vague understanding of what the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) does. As a law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice, the ATF is "dedicated to preventing terrorism, reducing violent crime, and protecting our Nation." On the homepage, users can read...

The Editor's Desk (familiarly shortened TED) at the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics, brings out daily "fresh information from all over the Bureau," coupled with intriguing data and links of note. On the site's homepage, visitors will find sections like Topics, Archive by Year, Archive by Program, and About TED. The Topics area includes a panoply of subjects, such as Benefits,...

The people at American RadioWorks don't shy away from difficult or controversial topics, and one of their latest documentaries takes on the rather touchy subject of the modern nuclear marketplace. On the site dedicated to the documentary, visitors can listen to the entire program, and even follow along with a transcript. While many still imagine this marketplace run by terrorists attempting to...

Over the past several decades, C-SPAN has brought many hours of fascinating programming to the generally curious. Many teachers have used their programming to edify their students about various aspects of US government, and now C-SPAN has created this very nice site to complement those informal activities. The formal mission of the C-SPAN Classroom site is "to enhance the teaching of Civics & U.S....

Many people enjoy the wide array of programs offered by C-SPAN, and those with a penchant for American politics and related topics will enjoy this website immensely. The site contains a wide variety of unique audio programs culled from materials at the National Archives, presidential libraries, the Smithsonian, the Library of Congress and other sources. One place to start is by listening to any...

California a leader in number of youths in prison for life http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/politics/scotus/la-me-juvenile19nov19,1,231437.story?coll=la-news-politics-supreme_court Crack cocaine sentence cut is stalled by retroactivity http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07323/835088-85.stm NPR: Should Sentencing Reform Be Retroactive? [Real...

The legacy of the 1968 presidential campaign and election continues to resonate with many Americans, and this radio documentary produced by American RadioWorks takes a close look into that fateful year. Visitors can get introduced to the candidates by clicking their photographs on the website. Further down the site, visitors can learn about some of the basic issues that informed that year's...

It's already a bit difficult to keep tabs on all of the many presidential candidates for the 2008 race, but the Washington Post has created this very nice issue coverage tracker to help out in this area. Visitors to the site can review press coverage and opinion writing on the various candidates and the major issues here, and they can also add this entire feature to their website or MySpace page,...

Campaign Buttons Etc. features campaign buttons dating back to 1896, when the William McKinley campaign featured an "honest dollar" pendant in support of McKinley's campaign against silver populist William Jennings Bryan. (Bryan, in turn, is pictured against a silver background in the three campaign buttons featured on this site). On this website, visitors can browse for campaign buttons for...