History

History articles feature analysis of historical context in relation to censorship, policy, technology, media, economics, and social life.

All Brownstone Institute articles on the topic of history are translated into multiple languages.

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Brownstone Institute - Feel-Good Leftist Abstractions Destroy Communities

Feel-Good Leftist Abstractions Destroy Communities

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So yes, it is undoubtedly true that since the French Revolution, if not before, the political Left has been plagued by an unfortunate tendency to impose unproven and abstract new ideas upon society through coercive means. They generally do so because they, not entirely wrongly, see tradition mostly in terms of its ability to stymie man’s ceaseless gift for improving (or is it divinizing?) himself and the overall condition of the world. 

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Brownstone Institute - Is This a Free Democratic Society?

Is This a Free Democratic Society?

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The time has come to get rid of the whole lot of them. It is not difficult to eliminate cowards trying to cover their tracks and empty heads, suggesting the latest idiotic policy to circumvent it. We keep calling them out with the help of the populace they rule over. We need your help to keep going, but we must confess that the clowns being deposed by Mr Dawson have given us a leg up.

Is This a Free Democratic Society? Read Journal Article

Brownstone Institute - Today’s Censorship Is Personal

Today’s Censorship Is Personal

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The outcome of Missouri v. Biden – the Biden administration has fought the case at every step – could make the difference as to whether the US will maintain its former distinction as the land of the free and home of the brave. It’s hard to imagine that the Supreme Court will decide any other way than to smack down the federal censors, but we cannot know for sure these days. 

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Brownstone Institute - Can Federalising Central Governments Fix...Federalism?

Can Federalising Central Governments Fix…Federalism?

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The US, Australia, and the EU each started out as federalist ideas with extremely independent constituent states, and with constitutions that made the rise of a large central government illegal and impossible. Yet, in all three places, the federalist project has failed, and a giant central bureaucracy has arisen that is strangling the life out of both states and country, as we have opined previously. How did this hostile takeover happen, and how do we create a new federalism that is resistant to becoming a monster all over again?

Can Federalising Central Governments Fix…Federalism? Read Journal Article

Brownstone Institute - Maybe More People Objected Than We Knew 

Maybe More People Objected Than We Knew 

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The problem of figuring out whether and to what extent people acquiesced to tyranny is an important one. It is complicated by accumulating evidence that the government worked with tech and media, and therefore with the main way people get their news, to actively suppress contrary voices, even when they came from recognized experts of great credibility. 

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Brownstone Institute - Our Last Innocent Moment

Where Are We Now?

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I learned how easy it is for us to betray one another and how COVID exposed the fault lines in our relationships. But I also saw humanity all around. I saw hugs and connection and immense warmth everywhere I went. I saw the worst side of humanity and the best, and I witnessed the indomitable power of inconvenient truths. The COVID-19 battleground has certainly created its heroes and villains, and we have all taken sides about which is which. 

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Brownstone Institute - Filtration of Rooms Didn’t Work Either

Room Filtration Didn’t Work Either

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Yes, you remember those days. Let’s say you have installed a new HVAC system. That’s good but it does not quite do the trick. You still must stay away from everyone. You have to mask up, outdoors even. You have to wash your hands constantly. You have to spray everything down with sanitizer. I mean, it seems like your whole life is consumed by fear of disease. 

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Brownstone Institute - Did Liberalism Fail the Test of Covid?

Did Liberalism Fail the Test of Covid?

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I am completely obsessed with the question of whether liberalism failed in response to Covid. As I’ve written before, I think it is perhaps the most important question in the world right now. If liberalism failed then we are now seeking an alternative to liberalism. If liberalism did not fail (or was lynched) then perhaps we are seeking a return to liberalism (or the introduction of “true” liberalism for the first time). I believe that figuring out this question will provide a map to guide us out of the valley of death that we are currently in.

Did Liberalism Fail the Test of Covid? Read Journal Article

Brownstone Institute - Gonsalves and the Origins of 'Six Feet Apart'

Gonsalves and the Origins of ‘Six Feet Apart’

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Curious to see who had promoted this arbitrary rule that “sort of just appeared”, I began searching news articles and social media and ran across an expert declaration on Yale’s website, filed by Gregg Gonsalves with the School of Public Health and Yale Law School. Gonsalves also writes regularly for multiple media outlets, including The Nation where he is their public health correspondent. “Data from China indicates that the average infected person passes the virus on to 2-3 other people at distances of 3-6 feet,” Gonsalves claimed in a legal filing.

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