Current Events that Relate to History
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CommentToo Great for Any One Man
Since the founding generation, there has been a rational consistent fear that the office of president is powerful to be constrained by democratic institutions.Liberal Currents -
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2026 Iran war
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Book ExcerptFrederick Jackson Turner’s Groundbreaking Frontier Thesis Was a Flop When He First Read It
How myth-making about the frontier shaped U.S. national identity, and who it left out.Literary Hub -
ComparisonA Plague on Both Your Houses
Exodus and the American Civil War.Arc Digital -
First PersonAs US and Israeli Bombs Fall on Iran, Echoes of the War on Iraq
Like Bush's invasion of Iraq, Trump and Netanyahu's joint attack on Iran is being sold on myths.Inkstick -
AntecedentRevolutionary Who Led Fight for Independence in Corsica Also Inspired America’s Rabble-Rousers
Pasquale Paoli was a “small fish fighting an entire empire.” Four thousand miles away, the founding fathers were watching and taking notes.Smithsonian Magazine -
LongreadA Brief History of the History of Science
What do "Works in Progress" and "Social Text" have in common?Asterisk
From the HNN Archive
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What Has His Billion Dollars Made of Him?
Finding shades of Elon Musk in Upton Sinclair’s 1937 novel about Henry Ford. -
There’s No Business Like Coup Business
In 1876, Porfirio Díaz successfully deposed the Mexican government. He couldn’t have done it without the help of powerful Americans. -
The Bad Bunny Doctrine
The Superbowl LX halftime show tapped into a 200-year old tradition of elevating hemisphere over nation in the struggle against imperial rule. -
An Appeal for Inaction
On the United States’ 150th birthday, Calvin Coolidge said that the country’s work was done. Not everyone agreed. -
Governing by Police
The Metropolitan Police Department in DC has been an essential component of Washington politics since its founding.