A note about Glenn's comments on the importance of Columbus - I think he's talking about the importance of the idea of Columbus (that he is a stand-in/proxy for the initiation of European cultural and political world domination that would last for hundreds of years and transform the world) rather than the man himself. Columbus was one of many New World explorers who initiated that European expansion, but he was also (as John mentioned) a particularly jerky and awful person out of that explorer pool.
The centrality of Columbus, ironically, came from the last great effort to re-frame America as a nation of immigrants (particularly Catholic ones) in the early 20th century.
History is an inevitably mixed bag. If we demand perfect sanctity of our historical figures., we shall have to limit ourselves to Jesus Christ and the BVM (I am a Roman Catholic). Meanwhile Confederate monuments can teach us a civilizing lesson: that there can be honorable men and women on both sides of a bloody conflict. None of this should make us less militant in opposing the slavery that is still going on today.
Celebrating Columbus with a day or statue was beloved ny my Italian American friends mattered not who he sailed for or what he did. Statues. Need to be around so students can learn about the time, if today legislators will alllow students to wade into history
It is easy to gloss over how the inventions and civic structures of the past 250 years have fundamentally transformed the way we CAN relate to our fellow humans. My grandmothers were able to go to college because they didn’t have to stay home and scrub laundry by hand. And yes it took three generations to get to a point where their granddaughters could go to college and be viewed as fully equal to the male students. But it is the washing machine that made that manifestation possible. This is what I tell my young children: “It wasn’t until recently that we figured out that it’s better to be nice to one another than mean. Not that long ago, everyone thought that you had to be mean, that the world was a fierce place and that the only way to get by was to be tough. But we realized that a lot of people were sad, and that actually, it is better to be nice to people. Some people do a better job of being nice. And some people haven’t learned this yet and are still mean. And everyone is still always learning how to do a better job of being nice.” For starters, while it sounds a bit treacly, I kind of think this is true. Humanism, especially postmodern plural humanistic social egalitarianism, is relatively young in comparison to civilization. But I also regularly give this preamble because I want my children to be able to engage with the terribleness (or even just the outdated cultural representations of that time) of the world and history without also believing that the world and people are fundamentally terrible and split between good and bad. I also think that this is a more “workable” perspective than the paradigm of oppressors and oppressed, because it allows for true critical thinking that can see the dilemmas and contexts on all sides and sees humanity as something that has evolved (and can evolve) over time. I want them to become mature humans who can be simultaneously self-worthy and self-critical, and not be afraid to hold competing ideas and feelings. I also think this helps avoid the devolvement into purity the good/bad split pulls for, with the corresponding need to sanitize the environment of anything deemed offensive.
I love how you are teaching your children, Suoj! And your thoughts about a better perspective than the paradigm of oppressors and oppressed, which does seem to flatten critical thinking. "I want them to become mature humans who can be simultaneously self-worthy and self-critical, and not be afraid to hold competing ideas and feelings."
I support the naming of the holiday as “Christopher Columbus”. Because of Columbus’ arrival, the Americas became a different place. As far as indigenous- technically native Americans are from east Asia. And everyone on the planet aside from inhabits with lineage native to Southern and Eastern Africa are immigrants/colonizers.
The Spanish colonization of Latin America resulted in trade with China (silver and corn and chili peppers). I accept the history, warts and all. I believe that if the opportunity had arisen, any other country would not have hesitated to colonize a distant land during that era. 100 years after the death of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), Muslim colonizers had made their way to India, China, Northern Africa and possibly Southern Europe.
Changing the name of the holiday will provide no tangible benefit to indigenous peoples.
More on Columbus, his ship crew was from Estremadura (spelling?) province of Spain which was and still is Spain’s most impoverished province. Inhabits had much of their daily life controlled (or at least affected) by landed nobility, especially marriage-age peasant daughters. All ship crew were granted freedom from serf status.
On the Confederate statues (and flag) - I don’t trust my own opinion because it comes from woke history sources. So, I am undecided on that one. SF mayor Diane Feinstein had the Confederate flag flying amongst an array of other flags during her time as mayor. I imagine the flag and statues mean different things to different people.
Please see discussion with Nishant above. My understanding is that several of the crew were Murano Jews escaping the Inquisition. I could equate the Confederate Flag with flags with Swastikas, but as far as statues I would prefer they stay as implements for teaching & discussion.
I am amazed that John seems to have some sympathy for the removal of a statue of Christopher Columbus, because he thinks, to some extent, that Columbus may have been motivated by the desire to make money and wasn’t a good person. My goodness, Columbus led the group that discovered the new world! An event that shaped and continues to shape our world in profound ways with both great positive and negative effect. He is a figure of immense historical importance. How is it that he can even consider canceling Christopher Columbus, and to make room for what? What narrative does he think will replace it when the statue is removed? What do we elevate to take its place, a memorialization of 1619?
How should we weigh the importance of John’s concerns against the monumental role Columbus has played in world history? Relegate his statue to a museum? It’s a shame some people are triggered by the statue and therefore seem willing to downplay the role he has played in our consciousness, by removing his statue. But, there are a great many things we can learn from the story of Christopher Columbus, and his role in how we got to be where we are today as a nation, and as a civilization. There are positives and negatives. I’m sorry people get triggered. I take it that John is truly disturbed, I would say triggered, by some aspects of the Christopher Columbus story, but the story needs telling. The good and the bad. For those who are concerned that the statues venerate, let them denigrate. Statues in prominent places remind us of our history. So, let those who focus on the negative tell that story when they see the statue, and those who see another picture tell that story, but the stories need to be told. They need to be called to our attention. They need discussing. Erasing statues is intended to remove the stories. In this case of our history, important history. Let’s not let that happen.
John tends to repeat the standard progressive view on things outside his wheelhouse. He's doing it on Columbus as made clear by Nancy's reference below to "Debunking Howard Zinn". He also does the the same thing concerning Climate Change, which he clearly knows little or nothing about but continuously throughs in little asides about how devastating it will be.
If you're not a climate scientist, perhaps proclaiming that climate change won't be devastating is something you should hesitate to do. I think John's showing some humility when he's merely echoing the scientific consensus on climate change.
If he is too busy (or lazy) to develop an informed opinion on an important subject then he should avoid making "off the cuff" remarks. As a public intellectual he has a responsibility to know what he is talking about.
It's strange that an American of Sicilian or Florentine origin from Italy, a nation-state pretty much stitched together in the 19th century, would hold such pride in a Genoan's expedition sponsored by the Spanish crown!
Let's set aside Columbus' horrible acts in the Caribbean - about which there's enough graphic detail in some outstanding historical accounts - and think about why Italian Americans and other Americans have chosen Columbus as an object of glorification. Celebrating Columbus is a weird way for Americans, especially Italian Americans, to suggest a link between Europeans' discovery of the new world and them. It makes no historical sense. It celebrates nothing of value. Aren't there other great Italian Americans we can celebrate? Joe DiMaggio, Enrico Fermi (The pope of Physics!!), and Sinatra are just a few that come to mind.
Nishant, Nishant, Nishant, I don't know how old you are, but DIMAGGIO & SINATRA!?! Fermi maybe worth a look, but I doubt the anti-nuke crowd would agree. I might have said Marconi. You need to stop judging through the lens of today. We're talking about a known world that didn't even know there was a continent out there. I don't recall Erikson making everyone aware. Also despite a number of Columbus' & Columbia's, it wasn't until the 1892 "Columbian" Exposition in Chicago that he was truly celebrated. (Let anyone respond if I'm mistaken-no sarcasm). Yes, the Knights of Columbus (an Italian organization) had some celebrations, but it was not until FDR (a darling of the left) proclaimed it a federal holiday. Most likely to appease the Mafia-run unions with another holiday off (we won't discuss my feelings about "national holidays" at this juncture) & garner votes. I believe myself that celebrating Columbus Day as such is a celebration of the VERY significant turning point in history, not of the man. He's just a symbol, a brave man, but a man of his times. Maybe we should call it "Queen Isabella Day" as she was forward thinking enough to fund the expedition. (The Fem-Libs should go for that). Here in North America maybe it should be "Ponce De Leon or Henry Hudson Day". I am sorry that the "Indigenous People" have suffered, but remember devastation, destruction & enslavement have been the norm since we came down from the trees. The ability to reason is not the same as reasonableness!
It's identity politics for thee but not for me. The same people who look askance upon celebrations of ethnic identity suddenly leap to the defense of an explorer who never even set foot in North America because a group, for whatever historical reasons, celebrates him. I don't buy it. Columbus was adopted by Italian-Americans as a heroic figure because he fulfilled a desire for a symbol of ethnic pride after decades of discrimination and abuse. Italian Americans are no longer persecuted, so I don't see why we can't celebrate other famous Italian Americans whose contributions are still fresh and relevant in our memories (Marconi BTW wasn't Italian-American).
The nation, with its Puritan impulse, can claim more of a direct line to the pilgrims on the Mayflower than Columbus discovering the Caribbean (and BTW he didn't prove that the earth was round).
I also don't buy that "he was a man of his times". There's enough historical evidence that condemns him even when we situate him in the 15th century. And the argument that devestation and destruction have been the norm for most of humanity shouldn't be an argument for anything. So, again, why celebrate the man? It's not like our celebrations and commemmorations are frozen in time like Amber. Surely we've evolved and changed our norms and morays. Do we celebrate the debt the West owes to ancient Rome with wine fueled orgies during Saturnalia? No, we read about it in textbooks and move on.
I think you are missing the point. We celebrated Columbus Day as a symbol of the discovery of the "New World". No one suspected it was in the way of proving the world was round. Discovery that the world was round ended up being left to others. But no other Italian made a greater contribution to world knowledge at the time. And yes we do celebrate Saturnalia, its called Christmas. Melding one belief system into another is how you win. (Islamic reverence of Jewish & Christian tenants). We could look at the adoption of paganist celebrations into Christianity in a similar vein as federal holidays & national celebrations. Juneteenth springs to mind
Which also brings me to the point about how these statues were erected in the first place? Who is the "we" who erected them? Why were they erected and what words were spoken when they were erected? What is their significance and what are we celebrating? These questions of course are left unanswered because if the movement to uproot them is reactionary, so is the movement to keep them. So, Please don't tell me you care about history, warts and all, because you don't.
Whether it's statues or memorials, they were important to a group of people and we should respect that and use them for points of teaching and discussion. They are a remembrance of history. Would you tear down the Acropolis because we don't believe in the Gods? The camps at Auschwitz or Bergen-Belsen, etc , in 100 years, the 911 Memorials?
I'm sorry, but those are bad comparisons. Surely you don't think taking down a Columbus statue is akin to destroying the extermination camps? Perhaps you ought to mull over that a bit...
I've been to Yad Vashem in Jerusalem, and the point of the camps and museums where we tell the stories of the victims of genocide, is to remind future generations that what happened was evil, and we must strive to never let that happen again. If we really want to move on from our barbaric past, we ought to remind ourselves of the victims and not the perpetrators of atrocities.
At the extermination camps in Europe, we're commemorating the exterminated, not the exterminators. Clearly, we don't erect statues of Hitler to remind us of the destruction of European Jewry by fascist madmen.
Read "Debunking Howard Zinn" by Mary Graber, Chapter One, "Columbus Bad, Indians Good." or the whole book. Why not Pizzaro or Cortes, who seem worse? Do they think things would have been different if the New World 50 or 100 years later? What if Leif Erikson and company had explored further & colonized North America? Would things have been different because they were "Scandinavians"? Don't recall hearing that the Vikings were always kind in engagement with the "natives" of the places they invaded.
On triggering. I may be wrong, but wasn't this term originally referring to events that were related to Antisocial, OCD, Hyper-aggression, etc. behaviors that are truly mental illnesses. Mental illness has become so ubiquitous that we all have some issues that are easily "triggered". Mine is "wokeness", the oversensitivity to everything, Fox News & MSNBC!!
I don't know if you listen/watch "Good Fellows", a Hoover Institute podcast. I do on YouTube. Anyway today I listen to an interview with Condi Rice on 9/11. When Niall Ferguson was able to join they started to talk of China possibly invading Taiwan among other things. I love her! Wish she could have been McCain's VP and then maybe the first female president. She is so smart, calm, measured in her responses, full of common sense. If you get the chance, let me know your thoughts. I enjoy reading your comments on this blog.
Just finished watching it. Condi Rice is very impressive. It's hard to believe that she wouldn't have done a better job than Obama, Trump or Biden as President. I would guess that she is happier as the Director of Hoover Institute and a member of Augusta National Golf Club.
At one time I routed for Gen. Colin Powell to be embraced by the Republicans but I understand why he could not. I switched from Republican to Independent when they went too far right for me.
Thank you for taking this on. Unfortunately many young people - products of universities in recent decades - know so little history that they may be unable to even discuss your points.
Also, if you all have missed it, have you seen Slate's parenting advice column yet? It's truly a sight to behold.
https://slate.com/human-interest/2021/08/sons-soccer-team-racist-name-care-and-feeding.html
A note about Glenn's comments on the importance of Columbus - I think he's talking about the importance of the idea of Columbus (that he is a stand-in/proxy for the initiation of European cultural and political world domination that would last for hundreds of years and transform the world) rather than the man himself. Columbus was one of many New World explorers who initiated that European expansion, but he was also (as John mentioned) a particularly jerky and awful person out of that explorer pool.
The centrality of Columbus, ironically, came from the last great effort to re-frame America as a nation of immigrants (particularly Catholic ones) in the early 20th century.
History is an inevitably mixed bag. If we demand perfect sanctity of our historical figures., we shall have to limit ourselves to Jesus Christ and the BVM (I am a Roman Catholic). Meanwhile Confederate monuments can teach us a civilizing lesson: that there can be honorable men and women on both sides of a bloody conflict. None of this should make us less militant in opposing the slavery that is still going on today.
Celebrating Columbus with a day or statue was beloved ny my Italian American friends mattered not who he sailed for or what he did. Statues. Need to be around so students can learn about the time, if today legislators will alllow students to wade into history
Please see my response to Nishant above
It is easy to gloss over how the inventions and civic structures of the past 250 years have fundamentally transformed the way we CAN relate to our fellow humans. My grandmothers were able to go to college because they didn’t have to stay home and scrub laundry by hand. And yes it took three generations to get to a point where their granddaughters could go to college and be viewed as fully equal to the male students. But it is the washing machine that made that manifestation possible. This is what I tell my young children: “It wasn’t until recently that we figured out that it’s better to be nice to one another than mean. Not that long ago, everyone thought that you had to be mean, that the world was a fierce place and that the only way to get by was to be tough. But we realized that a lot of people were sad, and that actually, it is better to be nice to people. Some people do a better job of being nice. And some people haven’t learned this yet and are still mean. And everyone is still always learning how to do a better job of being nice.” For starters, while it sounds a bit treacly, I kind of think this is true. Humanism, especially postmodern plural humanistic social egalitarianism, is relatively young in comparison to civilization. But I also regularly give this preamble because I want my children to be able to engage with the terribleness (or even just the outdated cultural representations of that time) of the world and history without also believing that the world and people are fundamentally terrible and split between good and bad. I also think that this is a more “workable” perspective than the paradigm of oppressors and oppressed, because it allows for true critical thinking that can see the dilemmas and contexts on all sides and sees humanity as something that has evolved (and can evolve) over time. I want them to become mature humans who can be simultaneously self-worthy and self-critical, and not be afraid to hold competing ideas and feelings. I also think this helps avoid the devolvement into purity the good/bad split pulls for, with the corresponding need to sanitize the environment of anything deemed offensive.
I love how you are teaching your children, Suoj! And your thoughts about a better perspective than the paradigm of oppressors and oppressed, which does seem to flatten critical thinking. "I want them to become mature humans who can be simultaneously self-worthy and self-critical, and not be afraid to hold competing ideas and feelings."
Wow, my heart is exploding from your kind words! Thank you. :-)
If anyone is interested in what is probably the greatest synoptic study of slavery and a work of extraordinary scholarship:
"Slavery and Social Death" by Orlando Patterson
I support the naming of the holiday as “Christopher Columbus”. Because of Columbus’ arrival, the Americas became a different place. As far as indigenous- technically native Americans are from east Asia. And everyone on the planet aside from inhabits with lineage native to Southern and Eastern Africa are immigrants/colonizers.
The Spanish colonization of Latin America resulted in trade with China (silver and corn and chili peppers). I accept the history, warts and all. I believe that if the opportunity had arisen, any other country would not have hesitated to colonize a distant land during that era. 100 years after the death of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), Muslim colonizers had made their way to India, China, Northern Africa and possibly Southern Europe.
Changing the name of the holiday will provide no tangible benefit to indigenous peoples.
More on Columbus, his ship crew was from Estremadura (spelling?) province of Spain which was and still is Spain’s most impoverished province. Inhabits had much of their daily life controlled (or at least affected) by landed nobility, especially marriage-age peasant daughters. All ship crew were granted freedom from serf status.
On the Confederate statues (and flag) - I don’t trust my own opinion because it comes from woke history sources. So, I am undecided on that one. SF mayor Diane Feinstein had the Confederate flag flying amongst an array of other flags during her time as mayor. I imagine the flag and statues mean different things to different people.
Please see discussion with Nishant above. My understanding is that several of the crew were Murano Jews escaping the Inquisition. I could equate the Confederate Flag with flags with Swastikas, but as far as statues I would prefer they stay as implements for teaching & discussion.
I am amazed that John seems to have some sympathy for the removal of a statue of Christopher Columbus, because he thinks, to some extent, that Columbus may have been motivated by the desire to make money and wasn’t a good person. My goodness, Columbus led the group that discovered the new world! An event that shaped and continues to shape our world in profound ways with both great positive and negative effect. He is a figure of immense historical importance. How is it that he can even consider canceling Christopher Columbus, and to make room for what? What narrative does he think will replace it when the statue is removed? What do we elevate to take its place, a memorialization of 1619?
How should we weigh the importance of John’s concerns against the monumental role Columbus has played in world history? Relegate his statue to a museum? It’s a shame some people are triggered by the statue and therefore seem willing to downplay the role he has played in our consciousness, by removing his statue. But, there are a great many things we can learn from the story of Christopher Columbus, and his role in how we got to be where we are today as a nation, and as a civilization. There are positives and negatives. I’m sorry people get triggered. I take it that John is truly disturbed, I would say triggered, by some aspects of the Christopher Columbus story, but the story needs telling. The good and the bad. For those who are concerned that the statues venerate, let them denigrate. Statues in prominent places remind us of our history. So, let those who focus on the negative tell that story when they see the statue, and those who see another picture tell that story, but the stories need to be told. They need to be called to our attention. They need discussing. Erasing statues is intended to remove the stories. In this case of our history, important history. Let’s not let that happen.
John tends to repeat the standard progressive view on things outside his wheelhouse. He's doing it on Columbus as made clear by Nancy's reference below to "Debunking Howard Zinn". He also does the the same thing concerning Climate Change, which he clearly knows little or nothing about but continuously throughs in little asides about how devastating it will be.
If you're not a climate scientist, perhaps proclaiming that climate change won't be devastating is something you should hesitate to do. I think John's showing some humility when he's merely echoing the scientific consensus on climate change.
If he is too busy (or lazy) to develop an informed opinion on an important subject then he should avoid making "off the cuff" remarks. As a public intellectual he has a responsibility to know what he is talking about.
It's strange that an American of Sicilian or Florentine origin from Italy, a nation-state pretty much stitched together in the 19th century, would hold such pride in a Genoan's expedition sponsored by the Spanish crown!
Let's set aside Columbus' horrible acts in the Caribbean - about which there's enough graphic detail in some outstanding historical accounts - and think about why Italian Americans and other Americans have chosen Columbus as an object of glorification. Celebrating Columbus is a weird way for Americans, especially Italian Americans, to suggest a link between Europeans' discovery of the new world and them. It makes no historical sense. It celebrates nothing of value. Aren't there other great Italian Americans we can celebrate? Joe DiMaggio, Enrico Fermi (The pope of Physics!!), and Sinatra are just a few that come to mind.
Nishant, Nishant, Nishant, I don't know how old you are, but DIMAGGIO & SINATRA!?! Fermi maybe worth a look, but I doubt the anti-nuke crowd would agree. I might have said Marconi. You need to stop judging through the lens of today. We're talking about a known world that didn't even know there was a continent out there. I don't recall Erikson making everyone aware. Also despite a number of Columbus' & Columbia's, it wasn't until the 1892 "Columbian" Exposition in Chicago that he was truly celebrated. (Let anyone respond if I'm mistaken-no sarcasm). Yes, the Knights of Columbus (an Italian organization) had some celebrations, but it was not until FDR (a darling of the left) proclaimed it a federal holiday. Most likely to appease the Mafia-run unions with another holiday off (we won't discuss my feelings about "national holidays" at this juncture) & garner votes. I believe myself that celebrating Columbus Day as such is a celebration of the VERY significant turning point in history, not of the man. He's just a symbol, a brave man, but a man of his times. Maybe we should call it "Queen Isabella Day" as she was forward thinking enough to fund the expedition. (The Fem-Libs should go for that). Here in North America maybe it should be "Ponce De Leon or Henry Hudson Day". I am sorry that the "Indigenous People" have suffered, but remember devastation, destruction & enslavement have been the norm since we came down from the trees. The ability to reason is not the same as reasonableness!
It's identity politics for thee but not for me. The same people who look askance upon celebrations of ethnic identity suddenly leap to the defense of an explorer who never even set foot in North America because a group, for whatever historical reasons, celebrates him. I don't buy it. Columbus was adopted by Italian-Americans as a heroic figure because he fulfilled a desire for a symbol of ethnic pride after decades of discrimination and abuse. Italian Americans are no longer persecuted, so I don't see why we can't celebrate other famous Italian Americans whose contributions are still fresh and relevant in our memories (Marconi BTW wasn't Italian-American).
The nation, with its Puritan impulse, can claim more of a direct line to the pilgrims on the Mayflower than Columbus discovering the Caribbean (and BTW he didn't prove that the earth was round).
I also don't buy that "he was a man of his times". There's enough historical evidence that condemns him even when we situate him in the 15th century. And the argument that devestation and destruction have been the norm for most of humanity shouldn't be an argument for anything. So, again, why celebrate the man? It's not like our celebrations and commemmorations are frozen in time like Amber. Surely we've evolved and changed our norms and morays. Do we celebrate the debt the West owes to ancient Rome with wine fueled orgies during Saturnalia? No, we read about it in textbooks and move on.
I think you are missing the point. We celebrated Columbus Day as a symbol of the discovery of the "New World". No one suspected it was in the way of proving the world was round. Discovery that the world was round ended up being left to others. But no other Italian made a greater contribution to world knowledge at the time. And yes we do celebrate Saturnalia, its called Christmas. Melding one belief system into another is how you win. (Islamic reverence of Jewish & Christian tenants). We could look at the adoption of paganist celebrations into Christianity in a similar vein as federal holidays & national celebrations. Juneteenth springs to mind
Which also brings me to the point about how these statues were erected in the first place? Who is the "we" who erected them? Why were they erected and what words were spoken when they were erected? What is their significance and what are we celebrating? These questions of course are left unanswered because if the movement to uproot them is reactionary, so is the movement to keep them. So, Please don't tell me you care about history, warts and all, because you don't.
Whether it's statues or memorials, they were important to a group of people and we should respect that and use them for points of teaching and discussion. They are a remembrance of history. Would you tear down the Acropolis because we don't believe in the Gods? The camps at Auschwitz or Bergen-Belsen, etc , in 100 years, the 911 Memorials?
I'm sorry, but those are bad comparisons. Surely you don't think taking down a Columbus statue is akin to destroying the extermination camps? Perhaps you ought to mull over that a bit...
Isn't the reason for tearing down Columbus because of atrocities and extermination?
I've been to Yad Vashem in Jerusalem, and the point of the camps and museums where we tell the stories of the victims of genocide, is to remind future generations that what happened was evil, and we must strive to never let that happen again. If we really want to move on from our barbaric past, we ought to remind ourselves of the victims and not the perpetrators of atrocities.
At the extermination camps in Europe, we're commemorating the exterminated, not the exterminators. Clearly, we don't erect statues of Hitler to remind us of the destruction of European Jewry by fascist madmen.
Read "Debunking Howard Zinn" by Mary Graber, Chapter One, "Columbus Bad, Indians Good." or the whole book. Why not Pizzaro or Cortes, who seem worse? Do they think things would have been different if the New World 50 or 100 years later? What if Leif Erikson and company had explored further & colonized North America? Would things have been different because they were "Scandinavians"? Don't recall hearing that the Vikings were always kind in engagement with the "natives" of the places they invaded.
On triggering. I may be wrong, but wasn't this term originally referring to events that were related to Antisocial, OCD, Hyper-aggression, etc. behaviors that are truly mental illnesses. Mental illness has become so ubiquitous that we all have some issues that are easily "triggered". Mine is "wokeness", the oversensitivity to everything, Fox News & MSNBC!!
My use of "trigger" was probably not the best word choice. Better to have said "evoked an overly sensitive negative reaction".
As you can see above. I have been "triggered".
Good amuse bouche! Read Niall Ferguson's "Empire" for the main course.
I don't know if you listen/watch "Good Fellows", a Hoover Institute podcast. I do on YouTube. Anyway today I listen to an interview with Condi Rice on 9/11. When Niall Ferguson was able to join they started to talk of China possibly invading Taiwan among other things. I love her! Wish she could have been McCain's VP and then maybe the first female president. She is so smart, calm, measured in her responses, full of common sense. If you get the chance, let me know your thoughts. I enjoy reading your comments on this blog.
Just finished watching it. Condi Rice is very impressive. It's hard to believe that she wouldn't have done a better job than Obama, Trump or Biden as President. I would guess that she is happier as the Director of Hoover Institute and a member of Augusta National Golf Club.
At one time I routed for Gen. Colin Powell to be embraced by the Republicans but I understand why he could not. I switched from Republican to Independent when they went too far right for me.
Will do!
I am so glad you did. Things may have gone very differently. Had you seen this podcast before?
I've seen Goodfellas but not this one with Condi Rice.
Also Niall Ferguson's "Civilization" & "Colossus".
Thank you for taking this on. Unfortunately many young people - products of universities in recent decades - know so little history that they may be unable to even discuss your points.