MetaFilter posts tagged with history and politics

"Then I see how they treat Ronald Reagan—he needs to get credit for saving the world from communism and for the good economy over the last twenty years because he lowered taxes."

defenestration — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 13:49:17 -0800

Revisionaries: How a group of Texas conservatives is rewriting your kids’ textbooks.

The Economist: The World in 2010

goodnewsfortheinsane — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:09:43 -0800

In 2010, Obama will have a miserable year, NATO may lose in Afghanistan, the UK gets a regime change, China needs to chill, India's factories will overtake its farms, Europe risks becoming an irrelevant museum, the stimulus will need an exit strategy, the G20 will see a challenge from the "G2", African football will unite Korea, conflict over natural resources will grow, Sarkozy will be unloved and unrivalled, the kids will come together to solve the world's problems (because their elders are unable), technology will grow ever more ubiquitous, we'll all charge our phones via USB, MBAs will be uncool, the Space Shuttle will be put to rest, and Somalia will be the worst country in the world. And so the Tens begin.

The Economist: The World in 2010. Previously: 2009, 2008, 2007. How did we do last time around? Guest contributions: President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso lines up Europe's priorities President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev argues for dialogue and cooperation President of the Maldives Mohamed Nasheed wants his island nation to remain above water President of Indonesia Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono would like for Islam and the West to live in harmony President of South Africa Jacob Zuma says Africa should rise to the occasion Director-General of the World Health Organisation Margaret Chan predicts the development of the flu pandemic Managing director of the International Monetary Fund Dominique Strauss-Kahn explains how to prevent another crisis CEO of Yahoo! Carol Bartz believes business leaders should tap into the information flood Chairman of HSBC Stephen Green argues that the financial sector should welcome emerging economies CEO of Fiat Group and Chrysler Group Sergio Marchionne thinks greener cars require bolder action CEO/CTO of SpaceX Elon Musk says the private sector should handle space travel

Taylor, Fillmore, Pierce, Buchanan

Iridic — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 13:49:16 -0800

There was a rivalry between the parties, of course, but in Potter's account, it was more like the rivalry between Cal and Stanford than that between today's Republicans and Democrats. The parties had somewhat different constituencies and pledged fealty to a different set of men, but each attempted to encompass as much of the political spectrum as possible rather than merely half of it. The story of the 1850s, by these lights, is about how this changed.

With reference to David M. Potter's The Impending Crisis, Adam Cadre surveys the four antebellum presidents. Previously profiled in his occasional series on the American presidents: George Washington ("...a sort of machine programmed to relentlessly seek out personal success.") John Adams ("...a dead-even mix of good and bad qualities.") Thomas Jefferson ("...a chess player's compulsion to rearrange the institutions of society into a more effective alignment.") James Madison ("...first nerd president.") James Monroe ("...kind of an empty suit...") Andrew Jackson ("...a third-world strongman.") John Quincy Adams, Martin Van Buren, William Henry Harrison, John Tyler, and James K. Polk ("...like reading Solo Avengers issues about Starfox and Doctor Druid.")

Ozmapolitan

crossoverman — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 05:59:20 -0800

Somewhere, over the rainbow, way up high,
There's a land that I heard of once in a lullaby.

The MGM musical version of L. Frank Baum's 1900 children's book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz turned 70 this week. It wasn't the first time it was a movie, nor the last time it was a movie or a movie musical. You just keep on keepin' on the road that you choose Don't you give up walking cause you gave up shoes Ease on down, Ease on down the road (come on) Many people read politics into the story, some read queer sexualties into it. Adapted as a radio play in 1908, Oz has been sequalised, reinterpreted, reimagined twice as science fiction and Muppet-ised. So if you care to find me Look to the western sky As someone told me lately - Everyone deserves the chance to fly Gregory Maguire's literary reinterpretation is a parallel novel (and the musical a further interpretation on top of that), while Ruth Plumly Thompson followed Baum's 14 Oz books with 19 novels - the bulk of the "Famous Forty" canon novels. Talk of another film. The Wiki of Oz.

The Squares of the City

kliuless — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 13:11:34 -0800

Paul Romer: A Theory of History, with an Application - "His economic theory of history explains phenomena such as the constant improvement of the human standard of living by looking primarily at just two forms of innovative ideas: technology and rules." (previously, via) BONUS: UNDERSTANDING SOCIETY - What cities have in common [1,2,3,4,5] - Great structures? [1,2,3,4,5] - The new institutionalism [1,2,3,4,5] - Norms and deliberative rationality [1,2,3,4,5]

The NRW timeline

tellurian — Tue, 12 May 2009 19:08:06 -0800

NRW 1946—2006. Short articles chronicling North Rhine-Westphalia. The site has one rather large shortcoming though, the video clips cannot be accessed (only available on VHS within the State!).

On This Ground

Miko — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 08:48:32 -0800

The International Coalition of Sites of Conscience is a directory of historic sites that interpret themes related to ethical, political, and social issues worldwide.

Islam, modernity and democracy

kliuless — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 18:54:28 -0800

Is the west thwarting Arab plans for reform? Few Muslims now invest much hope in the democratic western powers (essentially the US, Britain and France) that back the rulers who oppress them, even if, against the odds, they still admire “western” values, science and culture. There is no endemic or intrinsic conflict between Christians and Muslims. Rather, the root of the problem is that a majority of Muslims is convinced that the west – interested only in a stability based on regional strongmen, the security of Israel and cheap oil – is engaged in a war against Islam and is bent on denying them the freedoms it claims for itself. That is why it is so self-defeating to collude in tyranny as ostensibly a lesser evil than political Islam. BONUS Is a high IQ a burden as much as a blessing?

Reinhold Niebuhr

homunculus — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 20:16:05 -0800

What You Can Learn from Reinhold Niebuhr.

Wasting Away in Hooverville

homunculus — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 21:35:20 -0800

Quit Lying About Roosevelt! "Amity Shlaes, the GOP's Great Depression philosopher-queen, couldn't be more dangerously wrong." [Via]

Samuel Huntington Dies

Glibpaxman — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 17:12:34 -0800

Samuel Phillip Huntington, best known for his work "Clash of Civilizations," died on December 24. Previously on the blue (here, here, here, and here)

Washington to Obama

Glibpaxman — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 14:09:04 -0800

America has come a long way. There is the official version of history or the peoples' version. There are artifacts and rankings. They had some quirks and were occasionally men of their time. If you prefer audio or visual references those are available as well. Common knowledge has it that one GW was our first President but the title of first is under dispute. 230 years later another GW is making a run for worst. That is also under dispute by the nations best brains. For better and worse, the story of the Presidency is the story of America.

Depression 2009

homunculus — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 00:15:15 -0800

Depression 2009: What would it look like? "Lines at the ER, a television boom, emptying suburbs. A catastrophic economic downturn would feel nothing like the last one." [Via]

Adam Smith in Beijing

Abiezer — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 10:21:59 -0800

Adam Smith in Beijing Embedded Flash film 1hr59mins "Is US power in decline? What are we to make of the rise of China? Will a possible equalization of North-South relations herald a more brutal capitalism or a better world? Giovanni Arrighi, Joel Andreas, and David Harvey give their perspectives in this forum, for a discussion of Arrighi's 2007 book Adam Smith in Beijing. The event, filmed in Baltimore, MD, in March of 2008, was organized by the Red Emma's collective."

Take THAT, Louis Phillipe!

Alvy Ampersand — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 09:12:45 -0800

Thomas Nast, Honoré Daumier, Bill Mauldin, David Low, Theodor Geisel, Herblock, and good grief, more Herblock! In honor of some sort of election that's apparently coming up, Comics Should Be Good! will be featuring one ink-stained satirist every day this October! Visit the Stars of Political Cartooning Month Archive for daily updates.

Niccolo Machiavelli

homunculus — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 17:35:04 -0800

The Florentine. Niccolò Machiavelli, the man who taught rulers how to rule.

US Presidential Campaign Videos

flibbertigibbet — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 00:03:41 -0800

The evolution of the US presidential campaign ad, 1952 to 1996... 1952: Eisenhower-Nixon (We Like Ike, The Man from Abilene) vs Stevenson-Sparkman (I Love the Gov [apologies for the intro], Ike... Bob..., Vote Stevenson/The Music Man, (Remember the Farmer, Back to the Days of '31). Bonus: Newsreels dealing with the campaigns. 1956: Eisenhower-Nixon (Eisenhower Answers America: The Cost of Living [excerpt], Corruption (california spot)) vs Stevenson-Kefauver (How's that again, General?, The Man from Libertyville [same annoying intro], Ad-lee, Ad-lie). Bonus: Election Day newsreel, including a santa Claus arriving in a flying saucer; Eisenhower, Suez, and hungary in 1956. 1960: Kennedy/Johnson (Harry Belafonte for Kennedy, West Virginia PRIMARY reel, Every Republican.../Nixon's Experience [higher quality version as part of this reel of Kennedy ads], Kennedy Kennedy Kennedy Kennedy, If We Fail..., Viva Kennedy, Medical Care for our Older Citizens) vs Nixon-Lodge (Peace without Surrender, A Little Help from Ike, Lodge: Our Responsibility is Great). Bonus: Nixon, a year after the election, playing his piano concerto; Nixon/Kennedy bio and debate, other parts of whicdh, dealing solely with Nixon and his life, are available here; Kennedy's inauguration, (part 2), Kennedy on November 9th, 1960. 1964: Johnson-Humphrey (I don't feel guilty being a Republican, Goldwater needs the KKK's help, The Daisy Ad, Which Barry?/Remember Him?, Great Society, Saw off the Eastern Seaboard [annoying intro]) vs Goldwater-Miller (I Don't like No-Win Wars, Bearded Dictator, 90-miles off/The Hand of Big Government/Is Moral Responsibility Out of Style/I Pledge Allegiance). Bonus: Johnson's 1965 inauguration newsreel, more on his inauguration. 1968: Nixon-Agnew (Honourable End, Endorsed by Bush/Endorsed by Baker, Freedom from Fear, Do Something WITH your Country, American Youth, Speaking For You, So Ineffectively as in Vietnam) vs Humphrey-Muskie (What has Nixon ever done for you?, Agnew for VP [annoying intro], Nixon's Silence, Political Winds, Do you want Castro to have the bomb?) vs Wallace-LeMay (Wallace has the courage). 1972: Nixon-Agnew (Nixon Now) vs McGovern-Shriver (This is about..., You have to make those hard decisions, He was hired by James McCord/Don't want to rock the boat/assorted 1984 primary advertisements, Our Economy... [annoying intro]). Bonus: CBS on Nixon's re-election efforts, in January, 1972; Nixon goes on Soviet TV; Shirley Maclaine goes on Cavett for McGovern. 1976: Carter-Mondale (I'm a Southerner (annoying intro), It's hard Work (Rosalyn Carter) (annoying intro), The Republicans assure us/two 1980 commercials, We've built walls) vs Ford-Dole (He was...). Bonus: Carter profile, Ford's debate gaffe, Ford at Republican National Convention, Reagan's Impromptu Concession speech, Ford's bicentennial minute, Mark Russell's special on the '76 campaign (1, 2, 3, 4, 5), Dole: Democratic wars. 1980: Reagan-Bush (Nancy deeply resents..., Ted Kennedy: No More, Can we afford four more years?, George Bush: a president we won't have to train [primary commercial, 25 seconds in], Slowly we slip..., Biographical sketch: a State of Crisis, The Ayatollah Votes, Home-owning and inflation, Inflation and the elderly) vs Carter-Mondale (Two men are the real contenders..., Jimmy Carter, Commander in Chief. Bonus: clip of the Reagan-Carter debate ("there you go again"), and that phrase reprised in the Reagan-Mondale debate, Reagan accepts the nomination, Carter's statement on the doomed Operation Eagle Claw, the birth of toll-free contribution numbers. 1984: Reagan-Bush (Reaganomics, World Leaders, The Bear, Morning in America, secure Peace, A New Beginning [part 2], Next Tuesday, This was America in 1980... Today, This was america (Foreign Policy) vs Mondale-Ferraro (American Dream, Arms Control, Whole world at stake, Polls don't vote... fight!, Your share of Mr. Reagan's Deficits, Rollercoaster, Mr. Reagan's People, Always Felt [annoying intro], Teach your Parents, Orbit KILLER WEAPONS, The Red Phone [annoying intro], Gary Hart's 'New Ideas' [primary, annoying intro], Computers will take control!, Deficits of the Presidents [annoying intro], Idle Tools [annoying intro, primary]). Bonus: Jesse Jackson at Tendley Baptist (David and Goliath), Gary Hart campaign, Jesse Jackson Blues, second Reagan-Mondale debate. 1988: Bush-Quayle (Boston Harbor, The Willie Horton ad [poor quality], "He opposed, Raised taxes [1:15 in; video also includes Newscenter 8 sign-off, an ad for Speedy, US Air, and after the Bush commercial, an ad for Geraldo], Vetos and furloughs) vs Dukakis-Bentsen (The Bush Record; [N.B. all videos that follow for the Dukakis-Bentsen campaign have an annoying intro]: Leadership: Crime, I'm Fed Up With It!, The Best America is Yet To Come, Packaging Bush, Packaging Quayle, The President if Mortal/One in Five, 60-day notice, Social Security, Hey Pal!, All of us are enriched, Furloughs: The Response, Jimmy did well..., Packaging Bush, part 2, Can't Afford to be a Republican, Packaging Bush/Furlough: Part 3, Where was George?, Stopped Seabrook: Seabrook Nuclear Power Station). Bonus: CNN analysis of the campaign commercial [poor quality], CNN highlight reel [poor quality], "You're no Jack Kennedy, Bush vs Rather on Iran-Contra [poor quality], Read My Lips, Debate: If Kitty Dukakis were raped and murdered..., Debate: What do you see in Dan Quayle?, Dukakis vs Ted Koppel on Nightline, Seabrook Today. 1992: Clinton-Gore (Can't Afford Four more years, Read my Lips, Read My Lips [2], Endorsed by over 600 economists, Biography [annoying into; part 2], Enough! [annoying intro], Read my Lips Alert [annoying intro], More than 30-second ads [annoying intro], Republican Neglect [annoying intro], A Plan for America) vs Bush-Quayle (no advertisements found) vs Perot-Stockdale (Let your vote say so!, plus bonus video: Perot profile on CNN, which features clips of some commercials, and an example of Perot's speaking style). Bonus: Letterman: Top Ten reasons Bush Should [not] Dump Quayle, Letterman: Top Ten: Quayle's complaints about Clinton, Potatoe and other Quayle quips, Murphy Brown responds (part 2, 3, 4, 5), Letterman: Top Ten Things Overhead at the President's Fundraiser, Clinton in Beasley School, Chicago, during the primaries, Clinton vs heckler, Clinton on Nightline [focusing on leaked letter re: Vietnam draft] (part 2, 3), Gore on campaign trail, Super 8 Clinton, A Different World election episode clip, 1992 review, Read My Lips MTV Mashup with discussion by Bill Moyers and guests. 1996: Clinton-Gore (In the line of duty: assault weapons [poor quality], growth and opportunity [annoying intro], quitting [annoying intro], If Bob Dole were already here... [annoying intro], Risky! [annoying intro]) vs Dole-Kemp (Too Liberal? [primary ad], versus Steve Forbes [primary, poor quality]) vs Nader (no ads, but there are interviews). Bonus: Again with the Mark Russell! (part 2, 3, 4, credits), Dole representative vs Charlie Rose, Charlie Rose and guests discuss the presidential debate, and many, many more; Clinton-Dole debate clip on Dole's age, football and CFC stories.

Political Ephemera from the Vietnam War Era

Rumple — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 15:55:31 -0800

The University of Washington has put a collection of Vietnam War era printed ephemera (posters, flyers, pamphlets, magazines, mostly cheap mimeographs or photocopies) online. The browsable collection ranges from Defend the Black Panthers to How to Make a Revolution in the U.S. to the Planetary Citizen Human Manifesto to plain old Do Something. The collection offers a fascinating insight into the passion, energy and graphic sensibilities of grassroots, home-front politics in late 1960s and early 1970s Seattle. There are over 200 items, many with multiple pages (scroll bar in upper left frame). Some which caught my eye were: Gay Love is Here to Stay International Women's Day Teach-In Striking Covers of the Helix Magazine ("Seattle's Hip Rag"), e.g., 1, 2, 3, 4. Black American IQ Test for Honkies Our Fight is Here: Essays on Draft Resistance. NW Call - Democratic Socialis m: see the dove text-art on page 2. Job Ad for War Criminals Stop the War (Nixon as Bomb Payload) Housewives for Peace No More ROTC MANIFESTO - MAN (Making a Nation) January 1st, 1974: All Automobiles Will Be Destroyed Birthday Benefit for Huey SDS - Bring the War Home (see page 2, eery echoes of Iraq) The John Birch Society (a know thine enemy event) The Palestine Revolution and Its Problems People Can Stop IT&T Rehearse for the Apocalypse Seattle Gay Liberation Front Newsletter, Dec. 1970. Taste the Sweetness of Destiny, Racist Pig We Are All the Conspiracy Who's for the White Working Man? (American Nazi Party Recruitment) Plant Grass Everywhere Attention Campus Women: What did you learn in school today?

I have a boot in my eye! And I am shaped like a boot! To boot!

goodnewsfortheinsane — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 19:39:04 -0800

Satirical maps of Europe from 1914-15.

Persia

homunculus — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 21:05:12 -0800

Persia: Ancient Soul of Iran. "A glorious past inspires a conflicted nation."

Popery, Free Love, and Women's Rights.

EarBucket — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 10:23:36 -0800

John C. Frémont is a secret Catholic.

"the latest issue to arise for the McCain campaign involving aides' ties to foreign interests"

kliuless — Thu, 15 May 2008 04:14:50 -0800

Unsavoury¹ lobbyists running McCain's campaign. Two aides have quit over ties with the Burmese junta.²

Born with the birth of flight

Your Time Machine Sucks — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 05:12:10 -0800

With the grounds it was built on having hosted the first demonstration of airplane flight in 1909, Tempelhof International Airport, the world's second-oldest working commercial airport, was officially opened in 1923. Also known as City Airport, it takes its official name from the Tempelhof neighborhood of Berlin, itself named for the Knights Templar who owned its land in the Middle Ages. The Nazi era saw a redesign by architect Ernst Sagebiel at the request of Albert Speer, widely hailed as one of the classic airport designs of the 20th century despite the darkness of its origins. In the postwar era, Tempelhof was the delivery site for the Berlin Airlift, when the Western allies kept West Berlin supplied with the necessities of life for 15 months via nonstop plane deliveries from the so-called Rosinenbomber or "Raisin Bombers", despite the Soviet blockade. There have been very few logistical feats to rival the Airlift since: at the height of the deliveries, flights were arriving every 3 minutes, around the clock, with an average of 8,000 tons of goods being flown in daily. The operation succeeded, but at the cost of 101 British, American and German lives. After the blockade was lifted, this sacrifice for West Berlin's survival was commemorated with the Luftbrückendenkmal, or Berlin Airlift Monument, which remains one of the few remaining loci of the extraordinary postwar relationship between the US and the former West Germany. Nothing lasts forever. One of the big side-effects of the reunification of Berlin was that the city, formerly two cities, had multiples of everything: central train stations, operas, and a veritable embarrassment of airports. Plans were made for the BBI, a huge new consolidated airport to be placed just outside of the city in former-East Brandenburg, and these plans were made contingent on the closing of Tempelhof. Former-West Berliners were shocked, and although American Ronald Lauder has twice offered to save Tempelhof by investing a half a billion Euros to turn it into an air-accessible health (or possibly beauty) center, he has been rebuffed both times. Things took on an air of inevitability: much like the decommissioning of Charlottenburg's Zoo train station in 2006, another West neighborhood was going to lose one of its anchors as the price of progress. Oder? This winter, in a city of 3.4 million, over 175,000 Berliners signed a petition demanding a public binding refendum on whether to close Tempelhof, invoking a new procedural rule for allowing direct voting on a city policy for the first time ever. Soon, the fate of the airport will be decided: if 610,000 Berliners vote to keep it... ...well, that part isn't clear yet. Klaus Wowereit, Berlin's slightly-starstruck SPD mayor, has said that he will ignore the results of the vote and proceed with the closing plan. The conservative CDU party has made hay of this, accusing the Mayor of being anti-democratic. Even chancellor Angela Merkel has gotten into the local tussle, encouraging Berliners to get out and vote to keep Tempelhof, and referencing the Berlin Airlift in her entreaty. Did I mention that Ms. Merkel grew up in East Germany? Despite its intention to ignore the results, the SPD has decide to hedge their bets by making use of the Ron Lauder offers to invoke a little bit of class warfare [pdf], with a construction worker saying "Ick zahl doch nicht für'n VIP-Flughafen!" ("I'm not paying for a VIP airport!" in a Berlin accent) on their thousands of posters. But however the vote goes this Sunday, Wowereit's stance may have set the stage for something otherwise-unimaginable: Berlin having a conservative local government in its future. Tempelhof is the rare working airport which still manages to evoke the golden age of air travel, and I recommended that any former flight lover who has lost their faith in an age rife with humiliations make a pilgrimage to its graceful halls and rediscover their wonder. But don't wait too long to visit or you may miss your chance.

The Personal Use of Marijuana by Responsible Adults Act of 2008

kliuless — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 19:40:18 -0800

Thirty-six years after the National Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse recommended that "simple possession" of pot be decriminalised, Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) has introduced a bill, co-sponsored by Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas), to remove federal criminal penalties for possession of up to 100 grams (about three-and-a-half ounces) of marijuana and the not-for-profit transfer of up to one ounce (28.3 grams). Drug reform advocates ~~lit up~~ hailed the legislation as "an important step toward bringing federal law into line with scientific fact, practical reality and public opinion." Is America, at long last, having a collective moment of sanity?

The Saddam Sessions

kliuless — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 22:33:50 -0800

Saddam's Confessions - Given Saddam Hussein's central place in the American Consciousness over the last couple decades and particularly in recent years, I found 60 minutes' interview with FBI interrogator George Piro pretty fascinating.