Featured Playlist Episode:
Notre Dame and the Nine Lives of Gothic Cathedrals
We put the disastrous fire at Notre Dame de Paris into historical perspective – by considering the history of Gothic cathedrals, their cosmic religious meanings, and their remarkably powerful and mysterious construction. How did medieval builders create these massive, complex structures without steel, steam power, electricity, or even written plans? We also follow the tumultuous experiences of Notre Dame itself, the social and symbolic center of Paris – from religious riots and Revolutionary iconoclasm to malign neglect and controversial restorations. More…
Image: Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption, Port-au-Prince, Haiti, immediately after the 2010 earthquake.
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History as It Happens Episodes
2022 in Historical Context - How Do You Like Your New Gilded Age?
We consider some of the major events of this year in light of their historical roots, from the abortion ruling to the Ukraine war; in particular, we consider the Twitter controversy in light of the history of media monopolies beginning with the telegraph, and the crisis over railroad labor in light of the railways strike of 1922, exactly one century ago.
First video segment of Dr. Sam's appearance on the Katie Halper Show.
Listen on Apple Podcasts
Full Episode Details
Emergency Podcast: The Royal Crisis in Historical Context
The messy exit of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle from the royal family marks the third great crisis of the British monarchy in the past hundred years - following the abdication of Edward VIII to marry an American divorcee in 1936 and the breakup of Charles and Diana's marriage in the 1990s. Michael and I discuss the ramifications for the monarchy, Britain, the empire, and the world, situating the disaster in the context of the crown's central role in the long-running struggle to redefine Britain as it loses its imperial status. Since the reign of Victoria, the monarchy has lost its political "hard" power but has correspondingly gained in the "soft" power of social influence and celebrity, rising to become the primary symbol representing the British nation to itself, and forcing the monarch to navigate the tension between Britain's place at the head of the multi-racial Commonwealth and its connection to Europe. The appearance and quick departure of a bi-racial American woman in the royal family serves as a test of the monarchy's supposed embrace of a color-blind future. Also see:
Link to beginning Vernon Bogdanor's lecture series at Gresham College on the monarchy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZUQd22OdVk
Listen on Apple Podcasts
Full Episode Details
History as it Happens: Notre Dame and the Nine Lives of Gothic Cathedrals
We put the disastrous fire at Notre Dame de Paris into historical perspective -- by considering the history of Gothic cathedrals, their cosmic religious meanings, and their remarkably powerful and mysterious construction. How did medieval builders create these massive, complex structures without steel, steam power, electricity, or even written plans? We also follow the tumultuous experiences of Notre Dame itself, the social and symbolic center of Paris--from religious riots and Revolutionary iconoclasm to malign neglect and controversial restorations. Finally, we consider the resilience of Gothic buildings through fire, lightning, earthquake, war, and revolution, and ask what other important monuments or community buildings we should support in our own communities. Also see:
Listen on Apple Podcasts
Full Episode Details
Special Comment: The "Sokal Squared" Hoax and the Academic Cult
I have a conversation with a friend in the scientific field about the recently exposed "Sokal Squared" academic hoax, by which three junior professors concocted a series of intentionally absurd, nonsensical articles and had several of them accepted into respectable academic journals. What are the implications of their success? Is "theory" or "postmodernism" to blame? The lax standards of humanities journals? The drive to "publish or perish" in academia? Does the problem extend to social science or "hard science" fields? And what should be done about it? We try to sort through the confusing picture, and I recommend possible responses, such as the inclusion of non-academics in the peer-review process.
Listen on Apple Podcasts
Full Episode Details
Goodbye to Catalonia?
What is going on in Catalonia? We trace the long history of the small region in Spain’s northeastern corner, considering how medieval rebellions, dynastic struggles, and radical anarchist unions all helped to lay the groundwork for the separatist movement that today is flirting with unilaterally breaking away from Spain. We also account for the refusal of neighboring countries or the EU to say anything about the Spanish crisis, since Catalan independence threatens the survival not only of Spain, but of almost every large nation-state in Europe and the liberal internationalist order that they have built.
Listen on Apple Podcasts
Full Episode Details
The Confederacy -- Its Roots and Its Legacies
We explore the history behind the statues being destroyed across America in a wave of iconoclasm -- when and why they were erected, and what they represented. We consider the roots of the Confederacy, which lie in the rapid change in the American view of slavery -- from an embarrassing but necessary evil in the 1780s to a positive good in the 1850s -- that caused a sectional rift between North and South. We examine Confederates' own words to understand why so many Southerners fought for the Confederacy -- and why just as many of them refused.
Support the fight against slavery in America and in our world today: www.freetheslaves.net and www.antislavery.org
Listen on Apple Podcasts
Full Episode Details
Also see Jim Crow's America, 1880-1960
2022 in Historical Context - How Do You Like Your New Gilded Age?
We consider some of the major events of this year in light of their historical roots, from the abortion ruling to the Ukraine war; in particular, we consider the Twitter controversy in light of the history of media monopolies beginning with the telegraph, and the crisis over railroad labor in light of the railways strike of 1922, exactly one century ago.
First video segment of Dr. Sam's appearance on the Katie Halper Show.
Listen on SoundCloud
Full Episode Details
Emergency Podcast: The Royal Crisis in Historical Context
The messy exit of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle from the royal family marks the third great crisis of the British monarchy in the past hundred years - following the abdication of Edward VIII to marry an American divorcee in 1936 and the breakup of Charles and Diana's marriage in the 1990s. Michael and I discuss the ramifications for the monarchy, Britain, the empire, and the world, situating the disaster in the context of the crown's central role in the long-running struggle to redefine Britain as it loses its imperial status. Since the reign of Victoria, the monarchy has lost its political "hard" power but has correspondingly gained in the "soft" power of social influence and celebrity, rising to become the primary symbol representing the British nation to itself, and forcing the monarch to navigate the tension between Britain's place at the head of the multi-racial Commonwealth and its connection to Europe. The appearance and quick departure of a bi-racial American woman in the royal family serves as a test of the monarchy's supposed embrace of a color-blind future. Also see:
Link to beginning Vernon Bogdanor's lecture series at Gresham College on the monarchy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZUQd22OdVk
Listen on SoundCloud
Full Episode Details
History as it Happens: Notre Dame and the Nine Lives of Gothic Cathedrals
We put the disastrous fire at Notre Dame de Paris into historical perspective -- by considering the history of Gothic cathedrals, their cosmic religious meanings, and their remarkably powerful and mysterious construction. How did medieval builders create these massive, complex structures without steel, steam power, electricity, or even written plans? We also follow the tumultuous experiences of Notre Dame itself, the social and symbolic center of Paris--from religious riots and Revolutionary iconoclasm to malign neglect and controversial restorations. Finally, we consider the resilience of Gothic buildings through fire, lightning, earthquake, war, and revolution, and ask what other important monuments or community buildings we should support in our own communities. Also see:
Listen on SoundCloud
Full Episode Details
Special Comment: The "Sokal Squared" Hoax and the Academic Cult
I have a conversation with a friend in the scientific field about the recently exposed "Sokal Squared" academic hoax, by which three junior professors concocted a series of intentionally absurd, nonsensical articles and had several of them accepted into respectable academic journals. What are the implications of their success? Is "theory" or "postmodernism" to blame? The lax standards of humanities journals? The drive to "publish or perish" in academia? Does the problem extend to social science or "hard science" fields? And what should be done about it? We try to sort through the confusing picture, and I recommend possible responses, such as the inclusion of non-academics in the peer-review process.
Listen on SoundCloud
Full Episode Details
Goodbye to Catalonia?
What is going on in Catalonia? We trace the long history of the small region in Spain’s northeastern corner, considering how medieval rebellions, dynastic struggles, and radical anarchist unions all helped to lay the groundwork for the separatist movement that today is flirting with unilaterally breaking away from Spain. We also account for the refusal of neighboring countries or the EU to say anything about the Spanish crisis, since Catalan independence threatens the survival not only of Spain, but of almost every large nation-state in Europe and the liberal internationalist order that they have built.
Listen on SoundCloud
Full Episode Details
The Confederacy -- Its Roots and Its Legacies
We explore the history behind the statues being destroyed across America in a wave of iconoclasm -- when and why they were erected, and what they represented. We consider the roots of the Confederacy, which lie in the rapid change in the American view of slavery -- from an embarrassing but necessary evil in the 1780s to a positive good in the 1850s -- that caused a sectional rift between North and South. We examine Confederates' own words to understand why so many Southerners fought for the Confederacy -- and why just as many of them refused.
Support the fight against slavery in America and in our world today: www.freetheslaves.net and www.antislavery.org
Listen on SoundCloud
Full Episode Details
Also see Jim Crow's America, 1880-1960
2022 in Historical Context - How Do You Like Your New Gilded Age?
We consider some of the major events of this year in light of their historical roots, from the abortion ruling to the Ukraine war; in particular, we consider the Twitter controversy in light of the history of media monopolies beginning with the telegraph, and the crisis over railroad labor in light of the railways strike of 1922, exactly one century ago.
First video segment of Dr. Sam's appearance on the Katie Halper Show.
Listen on YouTube
Full Episode Details
Emergency Podcast: The Royal Crisis in Historical Context
The messy exit of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle from the royal family marks the third great crisis of the British monarchy in the past hundred years - following the abdication of Edward VIII to marry an American divorcee in 1936 and the breakup of Charles and Diana's marriage in the 1990s. Michael and I discuss the ramifications for the monarchy, Britain, the empire, and the world, situating the disaster in the context of the crown's central role in the long-running struggle to redefine Britain as it loses its imperial status. Since the reign of Victoria, the monarchy has lost its political "hard" power but has correspondingly gained in the "soft" power of social influence and celebrity, rising to become the primary symbol representing the British nation to itself, and forcing the monarch to navigate the tension between Britain's place at the head of the multi-racial Commonwealth and its connection to Europe. The appearance and quick departure of a bi-racial American woman in the royal family serves as a test of the monarchy's supposed embrace of a color-blind future. Also see:
Link to beginning Vernon Bogdanor's lecture series at Gresham College on the monarchy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZUQd22OdVk
Listen on YouTube
Full Episode Details
History as it Happens: Notre Dame and the Nine Lives of Gothic Cathedrals
We put the disastrous fire at Notre Dame de Paris into historical perspective -- by considering the history of Gothic cathedrals, their cosmic religious meanings, and their remarkably powerful and mysterious construction. How did medieval builders create these massive, complex structures without steel, steam power, electricity, or even written plans? We also follow the tumultuous experiences of Notre Dame itself, the social and symbolic center of Paris--from religious riots and Revolutionary iconoclasm to malign neglect and controversial restorations. Finally, we consider the resilience of Gothic buildings through fire, lightning, earthquake, war, and revolution, and ask what other important monuments or community buildings we should support in our own communities. Also see:
Listen on YouTube
Full Episode Details
Special Comment: The "Sokal Squared" Hoax and the Academic Cult
I have a conversation with a friend in the scientific field about the recently exposed "Sokal Squared" academic hoax, by which three junior professors concocted a series of intentionally absurd, nonsensical articles and had several of them accepted into respectable academic journals. What are the implications of their success? Is "theory" or "postmodernism" to blame? The lax standards of humanities journals? The drive to "publish or perish" in academia? Does the problem extend to social science or "hard science" fields? And what should be done about it? We try to sort through the confusing picture, and I recommend possible responses, such as the inclusion of non-academics in the peer-review process.
Listen on YouTube
Full Episode Details
Goodbye to Catalonia?
What is going on in Catalonia? We trace the long history of the small region in Spain’s northeastern corner, considering how medieval rebellions, dynastic struggles, and radical anarchist unions all helped to lay the groundwork for the separatist movement that today is flirting with unilaterally breaking away from Spain. We also account for the refusal of neighboring countries or the EU to say anything about the Spanish crisis, since Catalan independence threatens the survival not only of Spain, but of almost every large nation-state in Europe and the liberal internationalist order that they have built.
Listen on YouTube
Full Episode Details
The Confederacy -- Its Roots and Its Legacies
We explore the history behind the statues being destroyed across America in a wave of iconoclasm -- when and why they were erected, and what they represented. We consider the roots of the Confederacy, which lie in the rapid change in the American view of slavery -- from an embarrassing but necessary evil in the 1780s to a positive good in the 1850s -- that caused a sectional rift between North and South. We examine Confederates' own words to understand why so many Southerners fought for the Confederacy -- and why just as many of them refused.
Support the fight against slavery in America and in our world today: www.freetheslaves.net and www.antislavery.org
Listen on YouTube
Full Episode Details
Also see Jim Crow's America, 1880-1960
Things You Don’t Know
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