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History That Matters Now

History That Matters Now

Civil LibertiesFreedomHistory That Matters NowPodcastRacism

It’s the bedrock of who we are today. But to believe there was agreement among the “Founding Fathers,” that they aimed to to replace plutocracy with democracy is just wrong. In this lively interview, historian Woody Holton reveals fascinating little-known

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History That Matters NowJusticePodcastTrump

In her new book Of Rule and Office: Plato’s Ideas of the Political, Princeton Professor of Politics Melissa Lane shows how the orange one serves both anarchy and tyranny. Better politicians use virtue and justice to achieve success, and get

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GunsHistory That Matters NowPodcastRacism

So many mass shootings; how did the gun culture become so powerful? Look to the Civil War: Militarily devastated, the angry determined Confederate culture transformed guns into a totem. In this revealing discussion, U of Wisconsin-Madison professor Nick Buttrick sheds

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DemocratsForeign AffairsHistory That Matters NowMiddle East NewsPodcastWar

History moves in many different directions at the same time. On this show author and independent journalist Patrick Lawrence explains how as we begin a new year there is optimism beneath the pessimism. The failure of our many imperial policies

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History That Matters NowPodcastPopulism

In a democracy, we have a right to our own say over how we are governed: that’s what history shows is the impetus behind populism, both right and left. It says: we are experiencing economic injustice; how do we get

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CultureFreedomHistory That Matters NowPodcast

Democracy and oligarchy: since our founding it’s been a long balancing act. In his new book Realigners: Partisan Hacks, Political Visionaries, and the Struggle to Rule American Democracy, author historian Timothy Shenk tells of how such incredibly diverse people as

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Civil LibertiesHistory That Matters NowJusticePodcastTrump

Authoritarianism. Anti-Immigrant. White men fearful of losing control.   Books banned, free press shut down. Widespread domestic spying. Dissent criminalized and many jailed tortured and killed. In his new book, American Midnight: The Great War, A Violent Peace, and Democracy’s

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Central and South AmericaFascism on the RiseHistory That Matters NowPodcast

Republicans determined to replace democracy with authoritarian tyranny. No it’s not 2023, it’s 1973 when they succeeded. Duly elected democratic socialist Salvador Allende is overthrown and replaced with dictator Augusto Pinochet. It’s not well known today, but listen in as,

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History That Matters NowJusticePodcastRacism

This book changed my view of US History. He posits that the standard story is not the truth: The surprising reality of America’s founding shows we were created for insider rule, a stable hierarchy but not justice. On this show

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CultureHistory That Matters NowNational PolicyPodcastRacism

It’s not just blue vs red, North vs South. There’s us here in Yankeedom, Then there’s New Netherlands, The Midlands, Tidewater, Greater Appalachia, The Deep South (of course), New France, The Far West, El Norte, The Left Coast, and First

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GunsHistory That Matters NowPodcastProtests & Resistance

In short, it was not about individual rights but about protecting the institution of slavery. It created militias as slave patrols. And despite conventional wisdom, militias were useless in the war for independence. Historian Carl Bogus’s new book Madison’s Militia,

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Civil LibertiesHistory That Matters NowPodcastProtests & Resistance

It was a crime to even be a member of the “One Big Union.” But even Helen Keller was a member of the IWW, the Industrial Workers of the World. On this show, Ahmed White talks about his new book

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CultureFascism on the RiseHistory That Matters NowPodcastReligion

Bradley Onishi is himself a “deconverted” Christian nationalist. His new book is titled Preparing for War; The Extremist History of White Christian Nationalism–And What Comes Next. On this show, he answers the puzzling question of why so many who consider

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History That Matters NowPodcastWar

You’ve heard of the famous Christmas Truce of 1914 between the trenches of the British and German soldiers. These were indeed brave men. But that was not the only such event: there were desertions, mutinies, and fraternizations. Today it seems

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GunsHistory That Matters NowPodcast

So many mass shootings; how did the gun culture become so powerful? Look to the Civil War. Militarily devastated, the Confederate culture transformed guns into a totem. In this revealing discussion, U of Wisconsin-Madison professor Nick Buttrick reveals the roots

Read More
History That Matters NowPodcastPopulismProtests & Resistance

Democracy and oligarchy: since our founding it’s been a long balancing act. In his new book Realigners: Partisan Hacks, Political Visionaries, and the Struggle to Rule American Democracy, author historian Timothy Shenk tells of how very diverse people like Mark

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History That Matters NowPodcastWar

With renewed interest in the first world war, November 11 is celebrated as the end of “the war to end all wars.” But in reality it was a peace that ended peace. The German negotiators at that famous train car

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DemocratsHistory That Matters NowPodcast

It’s echoing everywhere: Trump was the biggest loser of the 2022 elections. Recorded two days after the votes, our guest today, veteran political news person John Kosinski sees what so unexpectedly happened as a wake up call. Could it be

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DemocratsHistory That Matters NowPodcastPopulism

America today is not the America of the past. But in his new book What it Took to Win, author and history professor  Michael Kazin, it’s clear what has and still works.  Today’s right plays on a sense that it

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History That Matters NowInternational NewsMilitary and Defence PolicyPodcastWar

Of all the motivations for war, nostalgia is at the top. Longing for an imagined glorious past. We see it not only in Ukraine but in many former empires, like France. And this nostalgia plays itself out in racist nationalist

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FreedomHistory That Matters NowPodcastProtests & Resistance

It’s the bedrock of who we are today. But to believe there was agreement among the “Founding Fathers” to replace plutocracy with democracy is just wrong. A lot of the answers as to where we find ourselves today, good and

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Foreign AffairsHistory That Matters NowPodcast

Shock Therapy. That was the US policy toward Russia after the fall of the Soviet Union. That brought economic anarchy, a real depression, and the clamoring for a strongman government. And today we see the results. According to our guest

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DemocratsHistory That Matters NowPodcastWomen

As with many success stories, an impoverished, unknown yet powerful woman made it happen. In his new book, The First Kennedys, The Humble Roots of an American Dynasty author Neal Thompson tells us about the Ireland they fled and the

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Civil LibertiesDemocratsHistory That Matters NowPodcast

There used to be a long held American tradition of opposition to colonialism and that government served the common good. FDR’s vice president Henry A Wallace was an outstanding visionary. Then a corrupt political machine performed a bloodless coup at

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History That Matters NowJusticePodcastWar

You’ve heard of the famous Christmas Truce of 1914 between the trenches of the British and German soldiers. These were indeed brave men. But that was not the only such event: there were desertions, mutinies, and fraternizations. Today it seems

Read More
History That Matters NowPodcastWar

You’ve heard of the famous Christmas Truce of 1914 between the trenches of the British and German soldiers. These were indeed brave men. But that was not the only such event: there were desertions, mutinies, and fraternizations. Today it seems

Read More
Civil LibertiesHistory That Matters NowJusticePodcastRacism

It was called the Gilded Age. In the late 19th and early 20th century, there was extreme wealth and everybody else (remind you of another time?). Wall Street bankers back then were getting robbed, someone had to protect them. In

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DemocratsFascism on the RiseHistory That Matters NowPodcastProtests & Resistance

The prospect of losing the power of empire brings out fear which can lead to police states. Or it can be seen as an opportunity for significant improvement. On this show, Matt Wehmeier, who spent recent years in the former

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Fascism on the RiseHistory That Matters NowMilitary and Defence PolicyPodcastWar

Regime change in Iraq was on Bush’s agenda since 1998, September 11 merely enabled it. On this show is historian Larry Hartenian whose new book is titled George W Bush Administration Propaganda for an Invasion of Iraq, subtitled Absence of

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Covid 19CultureEducationHistory That Matters NowPodcastPresident Biden

In the Scopes Trial of 1925, William Jennings Bryan spoke against teaching evolution, saying “I have all the information I need to live and die by.” Today’s intense fight against teaching Critical Race Theory is more of the same. To

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