Reflecting History

Of all the crazy years during the Great War, 1917 was probably the most eventful. The Russian Revolution, Unrestricted Submarine Warfare, the Zimmerman Telegram, Woodrow Wilson and the United States entering the war, the Nivelle Offensive, and Passchendaele are just some of the momentous events. It can be difficult to make sense of it all without an understanding of one of the key themes of 1917-...

Fake News and propaganda have been around as long as civilization itself. The modern epidemic of lies and deception as a means to influence public opinion can draw some interesting parallels to World War I. What can we learn from the efforts of both governments and private citizens to control the narrative of war? -Consider Supporting the Podcast!- Leave a rating or review on apple podcasts or spo...

In 1916, World War I continued to corrupt and destroy everything it came into contact with. The rates of death and destruction at Verdun and the Somme were unlike anything ever seen before. Soldiers, governments, and civilians were decimated by the tragedy and the "lost generation" was born. -Consider Supporting the Podcast!- Leave a rating or review on apple podcasts or spotify ! Support the podc...

During 1915, it was apparent that World War I was becoming something truly malevolent. With the carnage and the devastation continuing on the Western and Eastern Front, new innovations and tactics had to be used in order to have any measure of success. With the horror show continuing to get worse, political and military leaders took part in a "search for elsewhere" looking for any other strategy t...

The first year of World War I set the tone for the rest of the war. Violence, brutality, and chaos ruled the day as huge armies clashed in what many see as the first truly modern war. But could things have turned out differently? Should the Germans have won the war in 1914? What role did poor leadership play in the disaster that was to come? Why did the war become a self-perpetuating tragedy? This...

It is amazing how misinformed the general public is regarding the origins of World War I. Even historians debate the causes of the Great War. Who or what is to blame for one of the greatest tragedies in history? Like most things that are complicated and nuanced, it turns out there is a mix of factors that led Europe down a path of terrible destruction.  -Consider Supporting the Podcast!- Leave a r...

"Terror can be endured so long as a man simply ducks; but it kills, if a man thinks about it." Published by Erich Maria Remarque in 1929, "All Quiet on the Western Front" is one of the most important war novels of all time. This episode is a discussion of the novel and some of the themes it portrays, such as war, dehumanization, and the lost generation.  Link to Paul Bloom's alternative take on De...

The Great War has it's share of amazing stories, but the Christmas Truce of 1914 stands out as one of the greatest. In a spontaneous outburst of humanity, soldiers on the Western Front put down their weapons and met the enemy in no-man's-land to exchange drinks and cigars, sing carols, and take a break from killing each other. But what did it all mean? Was this an example of moral goodness shining...

Fighting against historic odds, 53 slaves aboard "La Amistad" decided to take fate in their own hands. In an epic struggle of violence, politics, and public opinion, the Amistad Africans overcame incredible adversity to do the one thing they wanted more than anything else-go home. This is Part II and the conclusion of a two-part series on the Amistad Slave Rebellion. It deals with the rebellion it...

Historians estimate that 12.5 million African slaves were transported across the Atlantic Ocean from the 1500's into the early 1800's. Millions would die due to the horrible and dehumanizing conditions of the Middle Passage. But in July of 1839, slaves aboard "La Amistad" slave ship overthrew their captors and changed history forever. This is Part I in a multi-part series on the Amistad Slave Rebe...

What will be the main source of world conflict in the future? According to political scientist Samuel Huntington, the globe will be engulfed in a struggle of cultural identity called the Clash of Civilizations. What role does belief, identity, and the dangerous "us vs. them" mentality play in world events? Read Huntington's Clash of Civilizations for yourself here.   -Consider Supporting the Podca...

A train is barreling out of control towards five people. You have the opportunity to divert the track and send the train towards only one person instead. Do you do it? Surprisingly, the answer to this question can tell us a lot about history and how we interpret the past.  -Consider Supporting the Podcast!- Leave a rating or review on apple podcasts or spotify ! Support the podcast on Patreon: htt...

How do you turn a democracy into a dictatorship while maintaining a thin veneer of legitimacy? Hitler and the Nazi party pulled out all the stops to turn the Weimar Republic into a totalitarian machine. The Reichstag Fire in early 1933 gave the Nazis all the justification they needed to incinerate the human values of compassion and decency.  This is the final part in a four part series on the Rise...

After Hitler's first attempt at violent revolution fails miserably, he is back to the drawing board. Sadly, the Weimar Republic gave him chance after chance to take control until he finally succeeded. Propaganda, the Great Depression, and a healthy dose of violence and intimidation are some of the factors that lead Hitler to become the most powerful man in Germany by the beginning of 1933.  This i...

The unstable conditions in Germany after World War I are ideal for a radical fringe party to come to power. Adolf Hitler builds his Nazi Party and unleashes them on the world. Violence, chaos, and polarization are the fuel that feed the Nazi fire.  This is Part II in a multi-part series on the rise of the Nazis. It deals with the background and beliefs of Adolf Hitler and Nazi ideology. It then ch...

More so than maybe any other historical topic, students of history have been fascinated by the brutality and moral depravity of the Nazi totalitarian regime. This is the story of how they rose to power. In a perfect storm of political, economic, and social upheaval, a democratic society slowly steers itself into deadly waters. This is Part I in a multi-part series on the rise of the Nazis. It deal...

A young girl receives a strange vision that turns into a prophecy for an entire people. One year and 400,000 dead cattle later, more than 40,000 people would be dead as a result. The Xhosa Cattle Killing is one of the most tragic and bizarre stories in all of history, but it also has some interesting lessons for the study of history. -Consider Supporting the Podcast!- Leave a rating or review on a...

In this episode I attempt to answer the question of whether or not we can make moral judgments about the past. All too often history gets boiled down to a simple good guy vs bad guy narrative in pop culture. I reflect on some of the dangers of that and discuss why moral relativism is not the answer to this conundrum. I am calling episodes like this Reflection Shows. They will attempt to discuss so...

In what was maybe the most controversial and unethical psychological experiment of all time, psychologist Philip Zimbardo turned average university students looking for a summer job into either dehumanizing bullies or hapless victims. The only thing more ethically murky than the experiment itself is it's explanations of past history and it's implications for the future. This is the Stanford Prison...

It is said that desperate times call for desperate measures. The ultimate historical example of this might just be the Great Leap Forward. As the horrors of collectivization ramped up, how were the people of China impacted? This is the final part in a multi-part series on the Great Leap Forward in China from 1958-1962. It focuses on the tragedies average people went through and the terrifying leng...

Whether digging irrigation ditches or working backyard furnaces, the people of China were forced to smolder their lives away in the all-consuming destruction that was the Great Leap Forward.  This is Part II in a multi-part series on the Great Leap Forward in China from 1958-1962. It focuses on the horrors of collectivization and the inefficiencies of Mao Zedong's schemes.  Check out the Episode 1...

Most people look to the Soviet Union when discussing the dangers of communism and totalitarianism. But from 1958-1962 Mao Zedong and the Communist Party of China initiated a system of incompetence, violence, and terror on a scale never before seen. The Great Leap Forward destroyed the lives of tens of millions.  This is Part I in a multi-part series on the Great Leap Forward in China. It provides...

The Holocaust has been analyzed often from the victim's perspective (including by me, check out Episode 3: Night ), but less often from the perspective of the perpetrators. How did a group of middle-aged men deemed unfit for real combat become some of the worst killers in history? The answers may surprise you.   -Consider Supporting the Podcast!- Leave a rating or review on apple podcasts or spoti...

The Social War may be won for Rome, but that doesn't mean it's over. Gaius Marius and Lucius Sulla take the stage in a winner take all battle for Rome. As the heads roll and the bodies pile up, nobody seems to be registering the destructive damage all this chaos is doing to the Republic.  This is the final episode in a three part series on the Social War and its impact on the fall of the Roman Rep...

In 91 BC, reason and civil discussion have failed, so now it comes to war for Rome and the Italian Allies. A bizarre conclusion in 88 BC makes all sides wonder what it all was for. Hundreds of thousands would be dead by the time the fog of war is cleared.  This is part two in a three part series on the Social War and its impact on the fall of the Roman Republic. My intention is to make each episod...