Episode · The Rubin Report · 2020-06-30
Books mentioned on Historian: Woke Politics Destroying US History & Academia | Niall Ferguson Interview
Dave Rubin of The Rubin Report talks to Niall Ferguson (Historian, Hoover Institute Senior Fellow) about the decline of academia and the distorting of American history. Niall discusses the backlash to the progressive woke politics that are being forced on children and how it may make the next generation less "woke".
Niall Ferguson discussed On the Road by Jack Kerouac, Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville, and The Federalist papers by Alexander Hamilton and others, and criticized A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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On the Road
On the Road by Jack Kerouac is a seminal autobiographical novel that chronicles the cross-country road trips of its protagonist and captures the restless energy of the Beat Generation.
Discussed“I actually reenacted Jack Kerouac's On the Road with considerable fidelity to the original.”
Where to get it
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A People's History of the United States
A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn is a controversial and influential historical work that retells American history from the perspective of marginalized groups, laborers, and social movements.
Critiqued“But I don't think we should be teaching young Americans, from how it Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States, in which the negatives are constantly emphasized over the positives.”
Where to get it
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Democracy in America
Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville is a foundational socio-political study offering an insightful external perspective on the American political and cultural landscape.
Discussed“What Tocqueville noticed, the great French political theorist, Alexis de Tocqueville, when he came to the United States before writing his great book, Democracy in America, was that Americans then, did not expect the government to solve their problems.”
Where to get it
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The Federalist papers
The Federalist papers by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John Jay, James Madison, John Jay is a foundational collection of essays advocating for the ratification of the United States Constitution.
Discussed“Alexander Hamilton was very explicit about that in the Federalist Papers and elsewhere.”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (2) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
“In my field, I was writing a lot of financial history, I'd written the history of the Rothschilds.”
“I actually reenacted Jack Kerouac's 'On the Road' with considerable fidelity to the original.”