Week of October 1, 2012
Historian's Take: The First Debate
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 The Debate Worked The candidates offered substantive exchanges that focus much more on issues, statistics, and philosophy than passing gaffes. |
 Ninety Minutes of Talking Points The intellectually inert performance of two mediocre American politicians. |
 Was It 1992 Redux? George H.W. Bush was not a precedent that President Obama wished to revive. |
 Obama's Bad Night Was he channeling his inner Michael Dukakis? Or maybe his inner Tom Dewey? |
 Romney Takes Round One But we ought to be skeptical about the whole notion of debate "winners" and "losers." |
 Another Act in the "Theater-State" The pomp and pageantry of the American presidency are at least a clear echo of the great royal courts of the pre-democracy era. |
Your Take
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In Memoriam
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A giant of history -- and an unrepentant Communist -- passes away. Presenting the best of the web commentary on Hobsbawm's legacy, including thoughts by Stephen Kotkin, Eric Foner, and Niall Ferguson. |
 Eugene D. Genovese, R.I.P. Remembering a gentleman, a scholar, and a friend. |
He leaves behind a legacy of achievement and of principle. |
Remembering one of the most influential American historians of the last sixty years. |
Features
Robert Merry, editor of the National Interest, takes a serious yet playful approach to presidential rankings. |
Blogs
 Eric Hobsbawm, Social Bandit In recognition of his passing, Josh Brown presents a vintage 1983 drawing of Eric Hobsbawm from "Visions of History: Interviews with Radical Historians") |
 The 1980 Debates as Inspiration -- and Warning Happy October, which every four years becomes debate month in American presidential politics. |
 “Hope and Change”: The “Comeback Kid” of Political Narratives? Is Obama's "Forward" slogan a throwback to Bill Clinton-style political optimism? |
 Running Out of Energy But with the right federal policy, the U.S. could be a net exporter of energy and technology within ten years. |
News at Home
Once unique to the U.S., TV debates have truly gone global. |
What would the radical Charles Sumner have to say about today's Republican Party? |
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Mitt's stepped in it again, and this time it may stick to his shoe ... or his face. |
News Abroad
The three-star general turned right-wing Christian crusader is back, and now he's gunning for Obama. |
Why they go berserk: Muslims see insults to Muhammad as a broader attack on their dignity. |
It's not just the bomb -- Netanyahu's entire case against Iran is something out of Looney Tunes. |
It takes some serious gall for the president of Iran to criticize America's democratic process. |
Historians & History
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Education
 Back to $chool It's now cheaper to go to Harvard than Cal State. |
Culture Watch
The Boss is but the latest in a long line of the rock star historian/troubador. |
Teatime never was so much fun as when it's with two kooky lesbian lovers in 1901 New York. |
The story of a whistleblower in the 1880s resonates deeply today. |
A slow-moving play builds to an unforgettable, gut-wrenching conclusion. |
Books
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