Category: History

Liberalism and Mobilization

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Here is my most recent essay for the World War I course I’m taking from Mises Academy.   Liberalism and Mobilization During World War I Based on the readings, how did the broad social and military mobilization for the war contradict the liberal civilization that Europe had developed by the last third of the 19th century? In this essay we will first briefly define what liberalism means, and then explore the influence of liberalism during the late 19th century in Germany, France, Britain, Austro-Hungary, and Russia. After understanding the scope of liberalism, we will look at the consequences of mobilization…

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Book Review: Living for God’s Glory by Joel Beeke

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I heard Joel Beeke for the first time at the Ligonier National Conference in March of 2012 and of course since all the books there were at such an incredible discount, I couldn’t resist purchasing this one. I eventually got around to reading it a few months later. Overall, I really liked the idea of the book. I find that people sometimes think Calvinism can be reduced down to the 5 points or TULIP, and as long as your church affirms salvation by faith alone through Christ alone then you are Calvinistic. Well, maybe that’s true, but TULIP fits into…

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In Defense of Liberty

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My latest post, The Lesser of Two Evils, resulted in quite the controversy. I had a feeling about that, so I wasn’t completely surprised. I really hesitated to publish it because I knew the topic was so loaded. I have compiled a list of arguments against my position, and I’d like to take the time to respond to each of those.   1) A person must use the “lesser of two evils” principle and vote for the candidate who has the best chance of winning.  I don’t see why this is necessary. We are called to do what is right. As long…

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Favorite Videos

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I’m sure I’ve posted some of these before, but just wanted to do it again. Here is Ron Paul’s “What If?” speech from Congress. Absolutely brilliant.     And here is a rather chilling history of Iran. Chilling because there is so much I didn’t know our government did. Chilling because everyone is saying we need to bomb Iran. Really? Don’t you know your history?     And every so often I watch this one, just to cheer myself up and get all excited about liberty again. It is so clear and so beautiful in the defense of self-ownership. Must…

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Mr. Madison’s War

I’m doing a history class this week on the War of 1812. This war has confused me and I’ve never been sure what to think of it. There are some very interesting things I’ve discovered so far. – Madison knew he wouldn’t have a chance for reelection unless he found some way to unite the country and better his public image. – The First Bank of the United States had just been disbanded, but the new owner of it (Stephen Girard) was very good friends with Madison’s Secretary of Treasury, Alexander Dallas. Girard funded about 95% of the War of…

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On Thomas Jefferson

Right now I’m fascinated with the ideas and life of Jefferson, partly inspired by what I think was a most accurate portrayal of him in the HBO series “John Adams.” Since everything on Wikipedia can be infallibly trusted (*sarcasm*) here is their write-up on Jefferson. Since we’ve been indoctrinated with the politically correct story, here is the real account of Jefferson and his beliefs by Albert Jay Nock. I suspect he took great pleasure in discovering all the dirty secrets about all the people we have always admired. I just hope he doesn’t do that to Jefferson. Since the only…

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Hamilton vs. Jefferson

I’ve spent nearly every evening this week watching the HBO series on John Adams. It has all been very fascinating. I have the impression that overall, it is extremely accurate. Their John Adams actor (Paul Giamatti) even looks like the pictures we have of John Adams. By the end of the movie his teeth are black and rotting. I don’t know if John Adams really had this dental problem, but I assume that if he hadn’t, they would not have made their actor look unattractive. He and most of the main players look very realistic. HBO probably didn’t intend this,…

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Speech Topic?

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Giving a speech in a couple weeks in Dublin, trying to think of a topic along the lines of “Vigilance and Freedom: Past, Present and Future.” That title seems to have a lot of potential. I will have enough time (around 45 minutes) to maybe going into detail on times when Americans weren’t vigilant (can anyone say, “Federal Reserve”?) and times when they were, such as Jefferson protesting the Alien and Sedition Acts. I’m looking for suggestions or ideas as well. P.S. Dublin Georgia…not the famous Dublin. Sorry…didn’t want to mislead you there, but it does sound very impressive if I…

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