Steve Hochstadt
Steve Hochstadt is a writer and an emeritus professor of history at Illinois College.
-
Jan 10, 2019
by Steve Hochstadt
The Lost Cause story itself deserves an “F”, but it will persist as long as political leaders find its fictions convenient.
-
Nov 14, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
Lots of electoral
commentators are comparing this “blue wave” with past waves, often to prove
that their side did extraordinarily well. It’s more important to think about
the future. Will the overwhelming liberalism of young Americans gradually
replace the self-interested conservatism of my generation? Will women keep
moving in a liberal direction? Will they take the men around them along?
-
Oct 30, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
Gullible Trump have been
bombarded by Republican attacks on the morality and the patriotism of liberals
for decades. Their fears have been stoked by conservative lies about liberals
since the days of Sen. McCarthy. A FOX producer called it “riling up the
crazies”. Now a pathetic march of frightened Central Americans has been turned
into an invasion of disease-carrying terrorists.
-
Oct 23, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
Suppose you just met a man at
a party, in a bar, at a meeting, or at a ball game. He talked only about
himself. He told amazing stories about how wonderful and rich he was. He said
he was a genius, one of the most successful businessmen in the world, and
superior at everything he does. He commented on how attractive or unattractive
the women around him were and bragged about his sexual exploits. He laughed
about getting away with groping women he encountered. He made fun of the
intelligence of well-known people. He made fun of the handicapped. Although
flabby and overweight, he puffed up his chest praising men who were “tough”
like him.
-
Oct 9, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
A privileged segment of American society, white and male, has systematically
victimized underprivileged Americans, female and not white, and walked away.
The members of the Bronx district attorney’s office, who did not provide “potentially
exculpatory evidence” to McKee’s defense, walked away long ago. All of the
prominent men who have suddenly found themselves held responsible for their
treatment of women, from which they walked away for years, are outraged by
their new plight.
-
Sep 14, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
Donald Trump constantly
repeated that he would bring in “the
best people” or “the best people in the world”. He said, “I know the
best people.” “You’ve got to pick the
best people.” He boasted about how good he was at finding the best. Because he
rarely mentioned anyone in particular, we never found out what he meant by
“best”. Now we know a lot more.
-
Aug 21, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
Public property is a political
issue: Democrats want to maintain and expand public services and Republicans
want to turn public resources and services into private property.
-
Aug 14, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
There are some wild
candidates out on the trail this election season. I can’t remember a time when
so many unusual candidates for political office made headlines through what
they say and do.
-
Aug 7, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
Donald
Trump’s war against the free press is often compared
to the methods of Hitler, Mussolini, and other dictatorial rulers. But I think
these comparisons are misleading. Instead Trump has used another model for
reducing the ability of our free press to describe and criticize his
government.
-
Jul 31, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
The physical skills of individual players and
the intuitive coordination of team play at the World Cup were spectacular to watch. But I was
disappointed in an important aspect of these matches. Fighting for control of
the ball always involved pushing, grabbing arms and pulling on jerseys, all
strictly forbidden by the rules. Everybody appeared to consider this behavior a
normal part of the game.
-
Jul 25, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
Donald Trump began his
campaign by insulting Mexicans and promising to ban Muslims. He is leading the
reversal of American openness and a return to our earlier racially-based
immigration. The pulling apart of asylum-seeking families is only the most
inhumane aspect of this repudiation of what has made America great. We are
retreating to the worst aspects of our history.
-
Jun 27, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
There are big secrets in
America, which we ought to know about, for our own good. The most relentless,
most objective, most principled, and most experienced investigator of America’s
secrets is our free press.
-
Jun 19, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
We
can’t magically make our country healthy again in November, but we can reverse
disastrous recent trends. We can make America great again, not by being an ugly
neighbor, not by trashing other nations, not by just looking out for ourselves,
but by electing great Americans and encouraging them to represent the best in
us.
-
Jun 5, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
Republicans opposed to the
ERA talked about toilets in the 1970s, and talk about abortion today. Some
Illinois Republican arguments against the ERA are lies, such as Rep.
Peter Breen’s assertion: “The only alleged benefit ... that I’ve
heard about ... is that it will expand taxpayer funding of abortions. They have
no other thing they want to do.” Or the claim by the Illinois
Family Institute that it’s about “eradicating sex as a legitimate
characteristic on which to base reasonable distinctions.” Denial of equal
rights is not “reasonable”.
-
May 31, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
What will happen when
Democratic women, white and non-white, compete against Republican white men in
November? Will these newly diverse candidates mobilize new voters? Are
independent voters leaning more toward minority and female candidates like
Democrats or away from them like Republicans?
-
May 16, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
Decades of conservative attacks on higher
education have succeeded in creating an image of the college teacher as
radical, elitist, unpatriotic, and intellectually dictatorial. The students who
marched in their robes across the Illinois College campus Sunday, and tens of
thousands of students marching across America, know better.
-
May 1, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
Mutz supports this explanation
for Trump’s victory, one that also has been much discussed since the election:
groups of Americans with traditionally high status felt threatened and voted
for the candidate who seemed to support their continued dominance. White
Christian men who were concerned about social changes in recent decades
gravitated to Trump, whose rhetoric and behavior consistently prioritized
whiteness, maleness, and Christian belief.
-
Apr 17, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
Below the surface of public statements about gun
legislation, the NRA sells its members a disturbing critique of our society.
Under the title “Standing Guard | Colleges Spread Anti-Gun Sentiment” on the
NRA website, LaPierre says this about American higher education. “American
freedom faces no greater threat than from our academic institutions, where the
most basic fundamental principles upon which our nation was founded are
aggressively attacked by extreme socialists posing as honest professors,” etc.
-
Apr 10, 2018
by Steve Hochstadt
The name Asperger is widely
known as a syndrome related to autism. But Asperger played a despicable role in
a despicable system, participating in murdering children whom he deemed
unworthy of life. He deserves no international honor. His name should not be
used without an understanding of his deeds.
