Category History Methods
“Dissident Historians” Interview on the Tom Woods Show.
I was recently interview about my book What is Classical Liberal History? on the Tom Woods Show. Listen here. I like the title “Dissident Historians” even though I didn’t choose it, and I didn’t try to be radical in my book or in the interview. At any rate, simple believing in open argument about […]
Feyman on the French Revolution
The physicist Richard Feynman, one of my heroes and inspirations, once said: “When he [a historian] says Napoleon existed, or that the French Revolution was in 1783, he means that if you look in another book about the French Revolution, you’ll find that same date. 1789, maybe. That’s pretty accurate for a physicist to have […]
Reading an unreadable copy of a microfilmed newspaper
I’ve shown y’all some examples before of difficult historical handwriting. This is the digitized version of the microfilm copy of the 1859 Pella Gazette (in Iowa). It’s about politics. I’m reading hours of this stuff and its like listening to a record that is 50% static. At least it is in English. There is plenty […]
Historic Inscriptions in the Shenandoah Valley
In the thousands of names and dates inscribed on the walls of Virginia’s Grand Caverns I see a giant puzzle, a sort of tapestry of American culture, two hundred years in the making. Some names, dating as early as 1808, were engraved in the form of type-set letters, the red walls carefully scarred to reveal […]
On Female Vikings and Voynich Translations
(I know what you are thinking: what an unoriginal article for a blog post. There must be hundreds of articles online with the same title.) The internet has the potential to magnify new historical discoveries. A new piece of evidence or a new theory can quickly leap from historical journals and magazines into popular social […]
Unbiased History is a Unicorn
A few years ago, I came across a book with a curious title: The Truths of History:A Fair, Unbiased, Impartial, Unprejudiced, and Conscientious Study of History. The author tries to one-up Fox New’s “fair and balanced” motto, but of course, labelling yourself “fair” or your views “unbiased” does not make them so. First of all, […]
Numismatics for Historians
For whatever reason or reasons, I never had a history teacher who mentioned numismatics, the study of old coins, as a legitimate historical pursuit. Coin collecting falls into the category of antiquarianism, that pedantic collecting and assembling of old things. For the different between history and antiquarianism, I can recommend the works of Arnaldo Momigliano. […]
Making fun of the pay-to-play scheme
A few days ago, I received a message asking me to submit my work to the International Journal of Modern Engineering Research. Of course, this is some pay-to-play outfit edited by a host of shady and non-existent characters. Anyway, I read through some back issues online, found the best parts, and assembled them into this […]
Historical Humility and the Big Debates of History
I seldom weigh in on the big debates of history that serve as fodder for many internet arguments. It is not only that I find these debates unhelpful, I also think they are mostly unsolvable, at least in this medium. Moreover, the vitriol and certitude in which competing sides of these debates are presented is […]
Review of Gigantino’s The Ragged Road to Abolition
I mostly liked this book. All I can offer is a preview of my review.
Michael J Douma 