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Mendeleev's Periodic Table
… The United Nations declared 2019 to be the International … by their atomic number rather than their atomic weight did not change the arrangement of the periodic table. In … available chemistry textbooks in Russian were translations) when he developed his periodic law. Perhaps most important, …
In the Beginning: Fundamentalism, The Scopes Trial, and the Making of the Antievolution Movement
Review of In the Beginning: Fundamentalism, The Scopes Trial, and the Making of the Antievolution Movement, by Michael Lienesch (Chapel Hill, University of North Carolina Press, 2007)
… In the first five years of the present decade, forty-three … eighty years ago continues to be so influential? How did the anti-evolution movement originate and how has it … if debatable. In the Beginning is certainly at its finest when providing the nitty-gritty details of movement strategy …
When Affirmative Action Was White: An Untold History of Racial Inequality in Twentieth-Century America
Review of When Affirmative Action Was White: An Untold History of Racial Inequality in Twentieth-Century America , by Ira Katznelson (W.W. Norton & Company, New York, 2005), preface, appendix, index, 238 pp.
… students, trying desperately to moderate a discussion on the legacies of the civil rights movement. It started the … extensively on urban politics and liberalism, his new book, When Affirmative Action Was White (2005), jumps into the … public assistance. Stated differently, "affirmative action" did not emerge as a new program in the late 1960s. According …
What We Talk About When We Talk About Confederate Monuments
… Jason Kessler, a former journalist and current member of the ultra-nationalist group the Proud Boys, planned a “Unite … of a covered Robert E. Lee statue in Charlottesville, VA. When police finally arrived, the violence had already begun. … and counter-protesters. Skirmishes broke out. The police did not intervene. Around 11 a.m., protesters marched to the …
Abortion, History, and the Beginning of Life
… “Life begins at conception.” “Abortion is murder.” Such is the basic pro-life argument against abortion, and it’s an … trying to restore the values, and laws, of the past. But did past generations always think that human life began at … and raped by a local king. According to the legend, when Kieran discovered that the nun was pregnant, “he made …
But Gore Did Help Invent the Internet
… When Al Gore allegedly claimed he invented the Internet, comedians, political pundits and Republicans … software and other components of what became the Internet, didn't differ from the creation of hundreds of other new …
Term Limits: Thank Goodness We Didn’t Have Them in 1787
… Once again Congress has debated and, at least for the moment, defeated a proposed constitutional amendment on … idea that those who framed the U.S. Constitution in 1787 did not expect government to be run by professional … for example, was first elected to public office in 1769, when the 26-year-old lawyer won a seat in Virginia’s …
“Operation Mississippi Freedom”: When State-Sponsored Terrorism Was American
… At a time when the president of the United States has the nation involved … a trial now underway in Mississippi takes us back to a time when state-sponsored terrorism existed in the United States. … ended, but freedom and democracy lasted only during the period of military occupation that followed the Civil War. …
Silent Spring Revolution, a Conversation with Douglas Brinkley
… his new book, "Silent Spring Revolution," which chronicles the rise of environmental activism during the Long Sixties … for me to be in this building. And I've had flashbacks when I'm in Dulles of conversations with Warren Van Tyne and … Douglas Brinkley And I will simply say I just recall I did a paper on Joseph Wood Krutch when I was undergraduate, …
Why the Sarah Palin Gamble Didn’t Pay Off
… whatever chance he had to become president on August 28, the day he invited Sarah Palin to be his running mate. In … of recent vice-presidential selection: presidential candidates run a huge risk if they choose a running mate who is … as a test of their values and decision-making ability. When both presidential candidates choose well, the vice …
When Congress Tampers with the Court’s Independence
… By a lopsided margin, the U.S. House has approved a bill to prevent the Supreme … involving the Pledge attracted much attention two years ago when a federal appeals court ruled that the phrase "under … without deciding its merits. Then, on Sept. 23, the House did something extraordinary. Rather than take a chance that …
When Congress Failed to Stop the Vietnam War
… Although polls show that two-thirds of the American public thinks that the war in Iraq is a … limitation was demonstrated thirty-five years ago when Congress tried to stop President Nixon’s bombing of … He agreed to sign legislation provided the bombing cutoff did not take effect until August 15. A historic Senate …
Afghanistan: Past and Prospects
… combat operations in Afghanistan in late December 2014, but the country remains fractured by ethnic and geographical … Afghanistan's future seems grim and little better off than when the western militaries arrived. Leticia Wiggins As … that Afghanistan, for the first time, for 40 years, they did not have occupations by outsiders, or civil wars inside …
Iran for Beginners
Review of A History of Iran: Empire of the Mind, by Michael Axworthy (New York. Basic Books. 2008)
… For several years, Iran has been at the center of international attention because of its … argues that Alexander's conquest of the Persian Empire did not result in the empire's "hellenization;" on the … much depth. This is understandable considering the lengthy period that the author covers in only 300 pages. For …
We Didn’t Go It Alone in 1944
… In the spring of 2003, French protesters marched in huge … unilateral policies now causing so much trouble in Iraq. When it comes to remembering World War II, Americans should … the Soviets, British, Canadians, Chinese and many others. When Americans ignore this lesson, as they have in Iraq, the … War II / WWII … Diplomacy/International Relations … We Didn’t Go It Alone in 1944 …
When Free Trade Meant Something Else
Review of Not Made by Slaves: Ethical Capitalism in the Age of Abolition, by Bronwen Everill (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2020)
… 2019 was an important anniversary year, not only in the history of the United States but also for the genesis of … by the mutual endorsem*nt of ethical capitalism, this did not lead to a unified vision for undermining enslaved … … Economics/Business/Trade … Early Modern … Slavery … When Free Trade Meant Something Else …
When “Sensitivity” Has Opened the Road to Victory
… In a critique of John Kerry’s presidential candidacy, Vice President Dick Cheney invoked historical memory … sensitive” war on terrorism. Cheney told a Dayton, Ohio, gathering on Aug. 12 that none of America’s victories in war … record also reveals the baseless nature of Cheney’s claim. When Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia surrendered …
Back When a Socialist Was a Socialist
… During the vice-presidential debate of 1988, Republican nominee Dan … was a friend of mine. Senator, you’re no Jack Kennedy!” When Republicans singled out Barack Obama’s income-tax … radicalism. That issue is the progressive income tax. Whenever McCain or Palin talked about Obama’s tax plan, they …
“What I Did On My Summer Vacation,” by the President
… of this month at his ranch in Crawford, Tex. By fleeing the White House, he continues a tradition of more than 200 … of ordinary citizens affected by his wartime decisions. Nor did the always accessible president shut the doors of his … be this: Lincoln was one president who rested easiest when he was busy listening and learning. Matthew Pinsker …
When Principle May Be the Best Policy
… Many Democrats are wringing their hands over the defeat of Sen. Joseph Lieberman, whose … History offers striking examples of the wisdom of candidates taking a stance on war, not to gain the approval of … with the enemy and even with betrayal is hardly new. When Wisconsin’s Republican Sen. Robert La Follette blocked …
When a Good Public Education Becomes a Constitutional Right
… California has something to offer the nation as it comes to terms with last month’s Supreme … such a sweeping improvement in California’s public schools didn’t come cheap. Over the first four years, beginning in … right to a meaningful education. Ever since the 1840s, when the United States began building public education …
What Happened When We Stayed the Course in Cuba
… seeking to alter course, Americans may wonder why the president remains so determined. They should look to the … American troops can bring democracy to Iraq, just as they did to nations in Europe and Asia in the years following … … Military/War/Peace … What Happened When We Stayed the Course in Cuba …
Guantanamo For Beginners
Review of Guantanamo, USA: The Untold History of America's Cuban Outpost, by Stephen Irving Max Schwab (University Press of Kansas, 2009)
… Guantanamo Bay has become one the most infamous places on earth. In the United States and … from historical scholarship and political debate. The work begins by recounting the rise of the United States Navy and … to create such a naval presence in the Caribbean came when the United States invaded Cuba – then a Spanish colony …
When the Soviets Domesticated the West
Review of To See Paris and Die: The Soviet Lives of Western Culture, by Eleonory Gilburd (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2018)
… Nikita Khrushchev’s “Thaw” (mid-1950s to early 1960s) led to the Soviet Union’s opening up to Western culture. The 1957 … presence felt in the Soviet Union. Westerners themselves did, too. In a captivating account of preparations for the … Diplomacy/International Relations … Intellectual History … When the Soviets Domesticated the West …
