Ostracism (Greek: έξω-οστρακισμός – exo (out)-ostrakismos) was a procedure under the Athenian democracy in which any citizen could be expelled from the city-state of Athens for ten years. While some instances clearly expressed popular anger at the victim, ostracism was often used preemptively. It was used as a way of defusing major confrontations between rival politicians (by removing one of them from the scene),^{[citation needed]} neutralizing someone thought to be a threat to the state, or exiling a potential tyrant. Crucially, ostracism had no relation to the processes of justice. There was no charge or defense, and the exile was not in fact a penalty; it was simply a command from the Athenian people that one of their number be gone for ten years.

A modern use developed from the term is to describe informal exclusion from a group through social rejection. Although the psychology of ostracism takes this further, where it has been defined as “…any behaviour in which a group or individual excludes and ignores another group or individual”. This could therefore be an intentional act or an unintentional one.

Narendra Damodardas Modi (Gujarati: નરેન્દ્ર મોદી; born 17 September 1950) is the current Chief Minister of the Indian state of Gujarat. Born in a middle class family in Vadnagar, he was the third of six children born to Damodardas Mulchand Modi and his wife Heeraben. He has been a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) since childhood also having interest in politics since adolescence. He holds a master's degree in political science. In 1998, he was chosen by L. K. Advani, the leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), to direct the election campaign in Gujarat as well as Himachal Pradesh.

He became Chief Minister of Gujarat in October 2001, promoted to the office at a time when his predecessor Keshubhai Patel had resigned, following the defeat of BJP in the by-elections. His tenure as chief minister of Gujarat began on 7 October 2001, and he is the longest serving Chief Minister of the state of Gujarat. In July 2007 he became the longest serving Chief Minister in Gujarat's history when he had been in power for 2063 days continuously. He was elected again for a third term on 23 December 2007 in the state elections, which he had cast as a "referendum on his rule".

Darren Hanlon is an Australian singer/songwriter who plays urban folk music. He has released five solo albums, three EPs and eight singles on Candle Records and Flippin Yeah industries , as well as several compilation tracks. After the dissolving of Candle Records he has started his own pseudo-label called Flippin Yeah Industries in 2008.

There have been eight video clips made of his songs "Happiness is a Chemical", "Hiccups", "A to Z", "Elbows", "The Unmade Bed","Fingertips & Mountaintops", "All These Things", "Electric Skeleton" and the latest "Butterfly Bones" starring Bob Ellis, Rhys Muldoon and Jessica Tovey.

Before becoming a solo artist in 1999, he was a member of the Simpletons, and contributed backing guitar and keyboards for the Lucksmiths, the Dearhunters, and Mick Thomas.

Darren is known for his engagement with his audiences, through his down-to-earth storytelling at live gigs as well as his often charming lyrics. Additionally, he is known for his quirky videos, including I Wish That I Was Beautiful For You which starred Darren himself alongside Eli Wallach. He has toured with Billy Bragg, David Dondero, Tim Kasher, Violent Femmes, and The Magnetic Fields and has recently completed his latest album I Will Love You At All, released on 16 July 2010 in Australia (Flippin' Yeah) and 21 September in the United States (Yep Roc).