In this weekend episode, Victor Davis Hanson with cohost Sami Winc discuss a recent interview with Obama biographer David Garrow, the origins of World War I, and anti-fossil fuel construction.
Menu
In this weekend episode, Victor Davis Hanson with cohost Sami Winc discuss a recent interview with Obama biographer David Garrow, the origins of World War I, and anti-fossil fuel construction.
“They are always naive about it,” said the historian, referring to the Leftist tactic against their enemies, namely Mr Trump and everything he stands for right now.
Same old party line…”the conservative thinks the left is wrong and the left thinks the conservative is evil.”Well, I think the left is evil and the conservative is naive. How do you like that, huh?!
Thank you for your analysis of WWI and its causes. You are the first person I have heard or read that stated so clearly that had Versailles was not in fact unjust compared to the treaties Germany imposed on its defeated enemies in conflicts before and during the Great War, and had it been enforced, Hitler would not have been able to rise. I happen to think that after the Cold War dualism between the USA and USSR ended, that WWI and its aftermath are one of the most relevant historical parallels to our time.
I am I suppose what some would call a Neocon. I I believed that the reasons WWI and WWII ended so differently was American withdrawal from its position as a superpower in the 20s and 30s, and American embracing of its role and implementation of both the Marshall Plan and a military government in Japan until they were ready to assume self governance in a way that was not aggressive and militaristic. I joined the Navy in 1996 and when I was assigned Arabic at DLI, I began to read books to try to understand the Middle East, including A Peace to End All Peace by David Fromkin. I wonder what role you think the way the British and French divided the former Ottoman states in Sykes-Picot, and the promises Wilson made about nation-states for all in his 14 points led to the chaos we have seen in the Middle East and Eastern Europe, or if you think this chaos is better explained otherwise? I also wonder if you think Bush’s plan for post 9/11 Iraq was always doomed to fail.
I’m fascinated more by The Great War than any other and I think it’s a pity that you can’t spend more time on it, Dr. Hanson. There’s a hugeness about it that’s hard to imagine. On one level, The Somme, Verdun, Passchendaele and Gallipoli were about waves and waves of death, filth, stench, disease, explosions, rain, snow, hand-to-hand combat in zero degree weather, horses and bayonets. Climb up, get over and get shot or blown away. It seems redundant in too massive a way.
I understood why France didn’t want to go through that trauma again and chose to watch rather than see another million boys go through what they went through before but what caused Germans to volunteer to risk all their boys again? The loss was massive on their side too. Did they feel when you have nothing you have nothing to lose? Didn’t mothers love their sons? Didn’t fathers remember the horror? I can’t imagine it could be about the loot a soldier could bring home. As a child of the 60’s, the ‘no more war’ naive generation I can’t imagine they didn’t think, ‘enough’.
Sami, is it possible to do the historical portion first, then the current event?
The reasons being I am ignorant about history, and I take every word Victor said as gospel truth. So I enjoy listening immensely.
On current events not as much and the reason being I’ve listened to Victor for many years, and have become familiar with his body of work. And thus can compare/contrast against his view vs. reality and vs. Tucker, and draw my own conclusion. Therefore, it’s hard for me to continue to listen once I hit on a point of disagreement with the professor.
On this one, he lost me when he said the Left is naive.
PS. I can skip it to the history portion. Problem solved! Thanks. LOL
Victor – Majors who issue executative orders to prohibit the construction of buildings with appliances that use fossil fuels is based upon a belief in man-caused global warming. Will you critique this belief and report on it?
It has been documented that protecting the environment is a Communist tactic to take control over society.