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Although aligned ideologically with the Conservative Party's right wing, she has won respect—and perhaps some support—from the left and center as well. The energy apparent in her spirited, sure-footed performances in the House has injected new life into a flagging party. After Heath's lackluster performance for most of last year, this vigor alone accounts for much of Mrs. Thatcher's appeal. "I just make lists of things to do and get a lot of pleasure in ticking them off," she once explained. And she has a long, long list.
-*"La Pasionaria " was the pen name of Dolores Ibarruri, a Communist leader and propagandist during the Spanish Civil War who is credited as being the author of the aphorism that "it is better to die on your feet than to live on your knees."