Slavery - Hardcore History podcast review

Dan Carlin's Hardcore History has the occasional 'blitz' show. Obviously distinct from the interview shows, they are, but less so from the regular shows. However, taken in mind the previous blitz show which was about drug use (mostly alcohol) through the ages and the last one which is about slavery through the ages, the blitz shows are, apparently more thematic.

On the theme of slavery Dan Carlin argues that slavery is of all times and of all places. He goes over a series of examples and appears to use as his main source Milton Meltzer's book Slavery: a World history. On the one side slavery turns out to be a humane alternative to death, but all in all the whole feature of enslavement, servitude and hard labor is problematic. It also remains so, in spite of the numerous attempts to justify it.

The bottom-line Carlin steers to, is that slavery exists still today and not only that, but also that we all, Carlin and his audience, profit from slavery. There are just enough grades of separation that allow us to not actively know of it and feel we can reject slavery as immoral. Carlin takes the additional step, suggesting, if people are like this, they are really evil. The thought that arose with me, however, was that if low-wage work is similar or even equal to slavery, how different is it with higher-wage work if apart from the higher wage, the employee is just as much owned by his employer and his life is governed by his work.

More Hardcore History:
Gwynne Dyer Interview,
Interview with Victor Davis Hanson,
Punic Nightmares III,
Punic Nightmares II ,
Punic Nightmares I.

Science and Religion - LSE podcast review

The public lectures at the School of Economics are podcast in the LSE podcast and afterward at the compiled Uchannel Podcast (sometimes nearly immediately, sometimes up to months later). The latest lecture I listened to was held on January 21st with speaker Professor John Worrall about the incompatibility of science and religion.

Worall operates from the perspective of Science in this matter and examines a variety of ways to define religion such that it might be compatible with science, yet is not too widely or so vaguely defined. Too widely defined would mean that in the definition either science gobbles up religion or vice versa. Too vague would mean religion is watered down to such an extent the definition no longer covers what in practice is understood as religion.

It struck me that Worall, coming from science, was not particularly dedicated to haul in religion. He was, so to speak, rather indifferently weighing modern understanding of religion and see if the religious way to understand the world would meet his starting point requirements of science. His view on science was that of a method rather than a body of knowledge or a view of the world; the method of testing all claims it makes by systematic observation - one feels the influence of Karl Popper. As close as a free version of religion comes to it, Worall supposes the two just might be compatible in that light. But otherwise they would not and he doesn't seem to be particularly worried about this.

This, in my view, might have been very different had we had a talk by a religious person, trying to save science for his or her world view. Any religious person (obscure fundamentalists apart) will try to salvage science and this in itself goes to show what profound authority science has acquired in the modern world. I think there are many like Worall, who wouldn't want to reject religion out of hand, but would lose any sleep over the conclusion the two were incompatible. The division of task, Worall suggests by the end, in which science explains the how and religion the why in the world, smack of being reduced and simplified for both the large body of science as well as the large body of religions, leaving the matter totally unresolved.

More LSE Events:
The crisis,
Desiring walls,
The Post-American World,
Reparing Failed States,
Europe and the Middle East.

August von Mackensen - veertien achttien recensie

Er is een toegevoegde waarde van de wijze waarop de podcast Veertien Achttien de eerste wereldoorlog in kaart brengt. Soms kan het wat versnipperd lijken, maar door elke week een biografie te geven van een van de vele hoofdrolspelers, komt de oorlog in zijn historisch perspectief te staan, net als de oorlog zelf, begint elke biografie ver voor de schoten van Gavrilo Prinzip en gaat vaak nog verder na de verdragen van Versailles.

Zo kan je in elke biografie niet alleen een klein aspectje van de grote oorlog ontdekken, maar ook de verhalen die tot de oorlog geleid hebben en waar de oorlog weer toe geleid heeft. In de biografie van August von Mackensen, komt dat ook weer sterk naar voren. Von Mackensen draagt het tweede rijk in zich mee, als voormalig helper van Bismarck, als officier uit Pruisen en aan het einde, als hij al 95 is, wordt hij gefeteerd door Hitler. Evenals deze individuele Duitser is Duitsland in de oorlog ingeklemd tussen Bismarck en Hitler, tussen de Duitse eenwording en plotse dominante aanwezigheid in de Europese machtspolitiek en afgleiding naar het Nazisme.

Een uiterst curieus element in het verhaal van de Pruisische August is een legende dat alles van een verzinsel heeft en presentator Tom Tacken kan er ook niet veel meer mee dan het zijdelings noemen. Er zou een persoonsverwisseling hebben plaatsgevonden en Von Mackensen zou eigenlijk een Schot zijn met een tweede leven. Is dit nou een dwaze associatie omdat de achternaam met Mac- begint? Wie heeft dit verzonnen, de Britten? Is er misschien een vader van de gedachte, de wens dat grote officieren eigenlijk Britten zijn? Nou ja, het blijft een zijspoor.

Meer Veertien Achttien:
Franz Hipper,
Enver Pasha,
Veertien Achttien premium,
Hindenburg,
Oskar Potiorek.

Modest Proposal - In Our Time review

Before the podcast will be taken out of the feed, here is a quick recommendation for the latest In Our Time about Jonathan Swifts 'A modest Proposal'. The discussion involves the history of Ireland, Swifts relation with it, his success with Gulliver's Travels and eventually on the effect of his 'A Modest Proposal for Preventing the Children of the Poor People in Ireland from Being a Burden to Their Parents or Country, and for Making Them Beneficial to The Public' on the phenomenon of pamphleteering.

A thought that stuck with me was the fact that Swift used the pamphlet for humor. Whereas the pamphlet would, as you expect, say what the writer wants to say in an immediate way, Swift's pamphlet makes an exaggeration and while obviously saying something the author doesn't mean (arguing for cannibalism), it makes a point and has the political effect any old-fashioned pamphlet would hope to have.

More In Our Time:
History of history,
Darwin special,
The Consolation of Philosophy,
The Great Fire,
Heat.

Abrrev & txt - The Word Nerds podcast review

The Word Nerds have gotten back on track with regularly releasing podcast and what is more, they are also getting back at their old amazing quality being informative, light, entertaining and delivering a very cosy atmosphere.

Also, the nerd that had long been absent from the show: Michael Chang was recently back on the show. "The rumors of my demise (from the show) were greatly exaggerated," he quotes and procedes to contribute his research in the modern abbreviations to the show Abrrev & txt. Abbreviations are of all times and Chang wouldn't be the classicist he is, if he wouldn't kick the subject off with the abbreviations used by the Romans. But soon it is fast forward to the present.

I was expecting that the nerds would speak also of the need for abbreviation in SMS, but mostly the entertained the talk of IM. My favorite abbreviation was KPC for Keep Parents Clueless. It goes to show the nerds are teachers in their day jobs. The rude word of the week could be guessed at the beginning of the show: WTF. LOL!

Previous reviews of TWN on this blog:
Stories and Story Telling,
Debate,
Ambiguity and linguistic tics,
Syntax,
Prosody.

Stuff you missed in History Class

Thanks to the discussion boards on The Podcast Parlor I found out there is a history podcast named Stuff you missed in History Class (feed). This is yet another podcast by How Stuff Works, which also brings the history podcast Fact or Fiction aside podcasts that are not about history.

The formula of How Stuff Works is that of the dialog and this is applied in Stuff you missed in History Class as well. A question is raised and two speakers smoothly discuss the subject. The efficacy is great. You will be updated on issues such as the possibility that the Chinese got to America before Columbus did in a matter of 10 to 15 minutes (with the occasional cast just under 30 minutes). In addition the episodes are released very regularly, up to once every two days.

This is exactly according to the formula I'd give to any new podcaster: release regularly, keep it short and use different voices. Still, I did not connect to the podcast personally. The dialog is too scripted. The subjects are too fancy. Something about this podcast is not genuine. Or maybe it is just too light for my taste. And if so, then it is exactly the right kind of history tidbit podcast for the leisure listener.

More How Stuff Works:
Fact or Fiction.