Links to Recent Articles of Interest
By Jack F. Matlock, Responsible Statecraft, posted October 17
A historically grounded argument by the last US ambassador (1987-91) to the Soviet Union. Among his books is Reagan and Gorbachev: How the Cold War Ended (Random House, 2004).
By Lawrence Wittner, History News Network, posted October 16
Briefly traces the rise of popular pressure on the major nations to reduce the risk of nuclear warfare, and the setbacks to this goal over the past decade. The author is a professor emeritus of history at SUNY Albany.
By Stephen Kinzer, Boston Globe, posted October 12
“So the crisis was ended not by threats of force, as [Secretary of State Dean] Rusk suggested, but by the precise opposite: diplomatic compromise. That is the urgent message Washington and Moscow must heed as we careen toward another nuclear crisis in Ukraine.” The author is a longtime journalist who is a senior fellow at the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs at Brown University.
By Michael Klare, TomDispatch.com, posted October 11
Traces the history of US-China relations regarding Taiwan and the erosion of the mutually understood One China policy and its accompanying 'strategic ambiguity,' due to policy changes initiated by the Trump administration and continuing today. The author teaches Peace and World Security Studies at Hampshire College.
By Diana D'Amico Pawlewicz. Washington Post, posted October 10
A historical argument that, as the author writes, ” American public school teachers have neither the sort of tenure protection critics fear nor the academic freedom.”
The author is a historian of educational policy at the University of North Dakota and is the author of Blaming Teachers : Professionalization Policies and the Failure of Reform in American History (Rutgers University Press, 2021).
The author is a historian of educational policy at the University of North Dakota and is the author of Blaming Teachers : Professionalization Policies and the Failure of Reform in American History (Rutgers University Press, 2021).
By Adam Hochschild, TomDispatch.com, posted October 6
“On the repression during and after World War I that crushed the US socialist movement and, in the author's argument, accounts for the limited social welfare provisions in the US compared to other advanced countries. The author's latest history book is American Midnight: The Great War, an Violent Peace, and Democracy's Forgotten Crisis (harperCollins, 2022).
By Gillian Frank, The Revealer, posted October 6
Relates the current 'moral panic' against trans persons to historical crackdowns of queers and abortion seekers – other groups that have long been forced into interstate migration by local and state laws. The author is a historian of religion and sexuality who co-hosts the podcast Sexing History
Dialogue between David Barsamian and Noam Chomsky, TomDispatch.com, posted October 4
Excerpted from their new book Notes on Resistance (Haymarket Books), this is a wide-ranging dialogue on threats to democracy in a context of growing danger from climate change and nuclear weaponry. Chomsky: “There are very dangerous things happening. That’s pessimism of the intellect. At the same time, we need to recognize that there are ways out, real opportunities….”
By David Cortwright, Foreign Policy in Focus, posted October 3
Likens Russian resistance to the newly instituted conscription policy to the resistance in the US to the Vietnam-era draft, and uges the US and European governments to welcome Russian resisters. The author, a Vietnam-era veteran himself, wrote Soldiers in Revolt: GI Resistance During the Vietnam War (Haymarket Books, 2005).
By Anatol Lieven, Responsible Statecraft, posted September 30
“Megalomaniacal ambition appears to have been replaced by a measure of desperation — but that only makes the present situation all the more dangerous, and direct talks between Washington and Moscow all the more urgent.” The author has written several books on the history of Russia and its neighbors.
By William J. Astore, TomDispatch.com, posted September 29
“So many defeats, so little honesty: that’s the catchphrase I’d use to characterize this country’s military record since 1945. Keeping the money flowing and the wars going proved far more important than integrity or, certainly, the truth.”The author, a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel, has taught history at the Naval Academy and currently at the Pennsylvania College of Technology.
By Adrian De Leon, Washington Post, posted September 25
A capsule history of the US colonial and neo-colonial domination of the Philippines before and after the granting of formal independence in 1946. “The ongoing fight for justice across the Pacific … takes place on the battleground of historical memory.”
The author teaches American studies and ethnicity at the University of Southern California.
The author teaches American studies and ethnicity at the University of Southern California.
Thanks to Rusti Eisenberg and an anonymous reader (always the same one) for suggesting articles included in the above list, and to Roger Peace for consulting on which articles to include. Suggestions can be sent to jimobrien48@gmail.com.