History in the Media
Ancient Aliens aren’t Real
Largely thanks to the internet and a drive for ratings by the History Channel, so-called “Ancient Astronaut Theories” have resurfaced in the public imagination. Originally popular with New Age/Hippie types in the 1970’s, they found a renewed popularity among conspiracy theorists, and of course among their original demographic as well. However, these are works of proven liars […]
Five Reasons the 1990’s Actually Kind of Sucked
Clickbait websites, most notably Buzzfeed, are full of “articles” replete with pictures of 1990’s fads. A large component of the most internet saturated among us grew up during this decade. Seeing images of Kid Pix, Tamagochi, and Capri Sun juice packets give the reader a whiff of nostalgia for their childhood. Dangerously however, nostalgia is […]
Why I’m Not a “Feminist”™
One who can define their entire political belief system in a single word is likely a simplistic and ideological minded person, lacking in nuance and intellectual curiosity. This blog has perhaps been somewhat hard on Libertarians; such as when it contended they live in an upside-down nonsense world. Nevertheless, there are still certain issues this […]
The Folly of Libertarianism IX: Other works, as told by Ayn Rand pt. 1: The Little Match Girl
Note: this is part Nine, parts One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, and Eight may be found here. Most terribly cold it was; it snowed, and was nearly quite dark, and was evening– the last evening of the year. In the cold and darkness there went through the street a disgusting little scrounger, bareheaded, […]
Why are Conservatives so Terrible at Satire and Political Humour?
Humour is a basic element of the human experience, few of us can go through a day without laughing at least once. According to Ron A. Martin’s The Psychology of Humor, certain apes, including chimpanzees and bonobos, have been observed to laugh in situations analogous to those of infants and toddlers; these include playing and […]
A Comparison of ISIS and Mahdist Sudan, 1885-1899
A frightening Islamic militant organization sweeps across a vast swathe of contested territory, participating in widespread violence and atrocities; and considered a reaction to Western intervention and appeared insults to their religion. Despite the shocking portrayals in the press, they are quickly and utterly defeated by vastly superior military technology. This story would be just […]
The Folly of Libertarianism, pt. VII: They Live in an Upside-down Nonsense World Where Somalia is Nice and Jesus was a Libertarian
Note, this is part Seven, Parts One, Two, Three, Four, Five, and Six may be found here. This article from the Ludwig von Mises Institute, a Libertarian think tank, proposes that Somalia isn’t as bad as the media would have one believe. This article, written by Lew Rockwell, contends the Nativity story has a Libertarian message. […]
The Folly of Libertarianism pt. VI: Cholera, it’s a Thing
Note, this is part six, parts One, Two, Three, Four, and Five may be found here. Cholera is a disease which is spread through exposure to unclean drinking water. Specifically, water which contains large amounts of fecal matter. A recent cholera outbreak in Zimbabwe has lead to the deaths of over 4,000 people since the […]
History in Nursery Rhymes: Religious & Civil Strife in Verse
Nursery rhymes have been long used as a means of entertaining children. However, many poems we now consider “nursery rhymes” were originally recited by adults with satirical intent, many poked fun at prominent figures and events of the day. What to modern audiences appear as nonsense rhymes were rather subtle jabs at those in authority. […]
Kickass History 