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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The Inflation Disaster Is Collateral Damage from Lockdowns 

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The pandemic response unleashed several seasons of policy recklessness, destruction, and nihilism, almost as if none of the lessons of the past applied, whether in public health or economics. If we ever emerge from this chaos, historians will surely look back in amazement that so many terrible decisions could have taken place in so many parts of the world and in such quick succession. 

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Faroe Islands: The Tiny Country that Rejected Lockdowns

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The Faroese authorities never fell prey to the irrational fear and scare tactics that unfortunately prevailed for the most part in the rest of the world. Instead, they showed the self-confidence, the respect for fact-based decision-making and consideration of the broader picture needed when confronted with an acute situation.

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The Fact-Checking Game

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If there is one element that is found in virtually all of the fascist movements of the 20th century it is their leaders’ rhetorical pose of being above the frequently off-putting hurly-burly of politics. But, of course, no one operating in the public arena is ever above politics, or for that matter, ideology, both of which are just two more examples of the structure-engendering cultural practices alluded to above. 

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The Silencing of the Scientists 

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As the pile of unshared science grows, our scientific understanding of crises like pandemics suffers from the attrition of the science it doesn’t know. It should be in the interest of all scientists to facilitate the sharing of scientific ideas to ensure no science goes unshared from fear of ridicule or public execution. 

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The Vindication of D.A. Henderson 

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Dr. Henderson died in 2016. Four years later, precisely what he warned against became policy the world over. And yet after two years of hell, and now that the fear has subsided and the political and bureaucratic class is acquiescing to the dramatic change in public opinion, the pandemic is becoming endemic in exactly the way it always has in the past, precisely as he said it would.

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Travel Blocked from Europe: The Second Anniversary

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This was a turning point not only in the Trump administration. Pollsters agree that the Covid response not only cost him the Presidency but his party also lost the Senate and secured minority status in the House. It was a turning point for American liberty and the general stability of the world economy. It set in motion all that we currently endure, including emergency powers, egregious mandates, inflation, stagnation, demographic upheaval, ill-health, cultural disorientation, and arguably war too. 

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American Lockdowns Began Two Years Ago Today

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Certain dates should live in infamy. One is March 7, 2020. That is the date that the Austin, Texas, Mayor, Steve Adler, acting on his own at least in public, canceled the in-person conference South By Southwest (possibly attracting as many as a quarter million people) that was set to begin in the city five days later. 

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A New Age of Barbarism

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The last two years have revealed to us what we would rather not have discovered, namely that freedom and rights, along with enlightened ideals and good science, are extraordinarily fragile. They are only guaranteed by a public that believes in them and is willing to stand up for them. When the cultural consensus in favor of liberty decays, terrible beasts are unleashed on the world. 

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A Priori Science In the Service of Power

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It speaks to a leadership cadre that knows in its heart of hearts that it has absolutely nothing to offer us, and strongly suspects, moreover, that its present prominence and power are the product of a long-running bluff and that, like all bluffs theirs will collapse as soon as enough people of conscience and empirical rigor stop running from their own shadows.

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Who Is Served by Emergency Powers?

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Covid-19 has been no different than any other disaster. Politicians made the most out of the situation based on the incentives at hand. Systems that incentivize public officials to do the right thing through sound checks and balances saw the least abuse of power. Conversely, those that afforded more discretion to executive figures saw more irresponsible and disruptive behavior.

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