The Brion McClanahan Show Podcast

The neo-con historians strike again. Should we not expect this from the National Review? Of course, but a recent piece by “conservative” Jay Cost on “The Worst Presidents?” is particularly bad. Eric Foner could not have written it better. In fact, I wonder if Foner guest wrote the column. Cost considers Pierce, Buchanan, and Andrew Johnson to be the worst presidents in American history…after saying …more

Podcasting has become an important part of mass media. It has allowed everyone with a voice, a hobby, or an opinion to have an outlet for mass media consumption. It has not always been so. Traditional radio dominated this type of media for decades, and its staying power even in the age of podcasting is undeniable. The “national” talk radio trend of the last thirty …more

Urban America has never trusted rural America. That has been the case since the 18th century and it has not changed in 200 years. This dichotomy has created a political, economic, and social fissure in American life and is one of the more important trends in American history. The Wall Street Journal recently ran a piece entitled “One Nation Divisible” explaining the modern differences between …more

American politics has become a game of emotion. This is by design. We cannot have rational arguments because people “feel” their vote rather than “think” it. Such is the case with most cultural issues, from immigration to Confederate monuments. Paul Graham’s book “Confederaphobia” outlines this nicely, but the problem is bigger than what he describes. Emotivism is a cancer, but killing it will be almost …more

I hear many people–including “distinguished historians”–suggest that the War for Southern Independence can be explained by one word: slavery. Years ago I had someone tell me this was justified by “Occam’s Razor,” the idea that the simplest explanation was usually the correct one. That might work for science or theology, though that is debatable, but it does not work for history. I explain why in …more

Depending on who you ask, now that the dust has settled in the Roy Moore election and Trump has signed a new tax bill, all is either well or awful in the American Empire. It doesn’t matter either way. Sure, I want to save money in taxes, doesn’t everybody, but the tax bill and the Moore election are two reasons why everyone should be thinking …more

Historians like to keep things neat and tidy and thus often compartmentalize different periods in Western Civilization. The profession’s infatuation with monographs has led to a climate where the “longue duree” is often overlooked. That is unfortunate because it misses the conjunction between political, military, economic, and social history. As we reflect on American involvement in World War I, it is important to see that …more

A fan of the show emailed me asking what books, websites, etc. should he be reading to determine original intent. Of course my Founding Fathers Guide to the Constitution was designed for that purpose, but there are several other good books and websites that discuss either originalism or provide the primary sources to understand the concept. And of course there were members of the founding …more

The ContraKrugman Podcast hosted by Tom Woods and Bob Murphy should be on your podcast rotation. If not, you are missing out. That said, they covered the Thanksgiving column by Paul Krugman on a recent episode that piqued my interest. Krugman, it seems, is a highly fearful man, but not over things that rational people would fear. No. Krugman is afraid of getting his feelings …more

As I discussed in my podcast episode “Hollywierd,” pop culture is in decline in America, but there are a few nuggets that offer redemption. One is the recently concluded television series Longmire. The show reminded me of the classic series the Virginian, so I wanted to dive into the similarities and what makes both shows special. If you are hungry for a show depicting real …more