Shows
History ImpossibleThe Slave Who Would Be a Spy (w/ Isaac Willour)Slavery is often known as the United States’ original sin, and for good reason. Much of our perceptions of it are informed both by the Civil War’s cause and outcome, and the contradictions—and even moral hypocrisy—that it created with our Founding Fathers’ professed beliefs. Contradiction is the theme not just of the United States’ values and history, but it also a major theme of this episode of the podcast.In this newest installment of History Impossible, we’re looking at the extraordinary life of James Armistead Lafayette, the slave who would become the Colonies’ most vital spy during...2025-03-141h 00
The Reckless MusecastThe Reckless Musecast Ep. 165 - Nazi Talk w/ Alexander von SternbergIn this episode, Ben and Joe welcome Alexander von Sternberg of the History Impossible podcast to discuss censorship in the Weimar Republic and how it led to the rise of the Nazi Party. They wander off into other political and cultural topics and somehow always manage to bring it back to Nazis. (By the way, Nazis are bad.)Follow Alex and his podcast:- Twitter: https://x.com/ARaderVon- Substack: https://historyimpossible.substack.com/- Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/history-impossible/id1450885141- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5t2HrBMNFX4WtSTERcopCF- Website: http://www.historyimpossible.comFollow...2025-03-081h 20
History ImpossibleThe Spirit of the American West (w/ David McGarry)The American West (or the “Wild West” as it’s still sometimes known) is arguably one of the defining features of the United States’ history and culture, if not the most defining feature. After all, much of the world has the image of the American cowboy (or less often, the American settler) planted firmly in their heads when they think of “Americans.” And while certainly not consciously, many Americans think of themselves in this way. There is a lot to be critical of the reality of the “American West,” not least of which being the brutality that it unleashed at various times an...2025-03-071h 41
History ImpossibleA Bug in the SoftwareHey everyone, happy to present to all of you fine people with a brief bonus, this time adapting my recent historiographical essay that I had written my first semester in graduate school on the study of infectious disease’s effects throughout history and how it was written about from around the 1970s until the 2010s. This should serve as a nice pairing with the recent “Mother’s Wrath, Mankind’s Cope” and demonstrate the sort of academic origins of my thinking on this particular subject. Please enjoy and stay tuned!…History Impossible has been made possible by the follo...2025-02-2856 min
History ImpossibleMother's Wrath, Mankind's Bargain (The Los Angeles Fires of 2025)In this episode of History Impossible inaugurating 2025 and the sixth anniversary of the show, we will be looking at the Los Angeles Fires of 2025 but from an extended, historical, and probably overly philosophical lens. Because as it turns out, natural disasters are a constant of the human experience and create some of the greatest extremes, and reflecting on what afflicts us now alongside what has afflicted us in the past can provide at least some clarity (or, in my case, closure).The destruction faced by Los Angelenos in 2025 is not too dissimilar from many examples of destruction in...2025-02-131h 50
History ImpossibleA Revulsion of Feeling: The Arab Revolt and Collective IdentityThis is the first installment of something that doesn’t really have a name; the Grad School Files? That sounds a little like a bad Netflix show. I’ll take suggestions, but in the meantime, we can simply define this as it is: the first adaptation of one of my academic papers from graduate school into an honest-to-goodness episode of History Impossible. The first thing I want to say is that it was more difficult than I expected to adapt an academic paper into a podcast than I expected. The material is all there, but speaking in formal academic language mana...2024-12-301h 31
History ImpossibleThe Question of GenocideThis episode of History Impossible is an adaptation of the historical polemic I wrote on the one-year anniversary of October 7th, 2023, examining the interpretation of genocide, as applied to the current war between Hamas and Israel, and to the devastation wrought against the Bosnian Muslims by their Serb counterparts in the early 1990s. This episode touches on some extremely upsetting and dark material, including descriptions of child death, mass killing, and rape, so please consider yourself warned if that sort of thing is something you might want to avoid.This episode will serve as a polemical counterpart to...2024-12-061h 04
History ImpossibleThe Original Donald Trump (Throwback Thursday!)Hello all, hope you are doing well.For a long time, I was skeptical of doing “re-runs” of History Impossible’s earlier episodes. I didn’t think that I had the “right” to do so, or something along those lines. Obviously, that’s a silly way of looking at things and, to be honest, it’s counterproductive. Many of you reading or hearing this have been with me since Day One (or near Day One) and many of you have likely gone through the entire show archive, and I love you all to pieces for it. But then I look at the ca...2024-11-222h 48
The Drunken Taoist PodcastEpisode 263 - Guilt by Association: A Chat with Alexander Von SternbergEpisode 263 - Guilt by Association: A Chat with Alexander Von Sternberg2024-10-271h 21
History ImpossibleRevisionism and Misplaced Empathy: The Darryl Cooper - Tucker Carlson SituationI have, for many years, recommended Darryl Cooper’s hit podcast Martyr Made to the relative handful of people kind enough to listen to my own show and read my thoughts on various publications, including my own Substack. And not to fully bury the lede, I still do, though admittedly with a little more reservation than I might otherwise have only a month earlier.This comes from the piece I wrote for the good folks at Merion West which takes a close look at the claims made last month by my podcasting comrade Darryl Cooper while he was be...2024-10-021h 24
History ImpossibleThe Elites Who Would Play God (w/ CJ Killmer of Dangerous History)In this newest special episode of History Impossible, I sat down to discuss a super-light topic, one not fraught with intense controversy and tragedy, with my long time friend and podcasting comrade, CJ Killmer, of the Dangerous History Podcast: that is, the topic of eugenics! More accurately, we discussed a particular man in that noteworthy field who CJ discussed on his second-most recent episode (as of this writing; the 12th and newest epic installment of the Woodrow Wilson series he’s been working hard on just released), Dr. Edwin Katzen-Ellenbogen.This man’s storied career included being a pion...2024-09-091h 34
History ImpossibleThe Yasuke Conspiracy (w/ Sebastian Major of Our Fake History)To say historians can be pedantic is like saying water is wet. To say gamers and gaming commentators can be pedantic is yet somehow even more of an obvious understatement. So what happens when these two communities clash and/or blend? You get what we could charitably call the Yasuke Conspiracy.As many gamers likely know by now, the insanely popular and long-running Assassin’s Creed series of games has explored multitudes of time periods, aesthetics, and characters from across history, ranging from Renaissance Italy, to Revolutionary America, to Victorian London, to Roman Empire-era Egypt, to, most recently, Vi...2024-08-271h 53
History ImpossibleWhy Hajj Amin MattersThe following is the audio version of the recent essay addendum to the most recent episode of History Impossible, “The German Voice of Islam.” Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read and listen and, when at all possible, support my work. Please consider becoming a patron or paid subscriber to History Impossible at whatever level you feel comfortable.History Impossible has been made possible by the following generous supporters on Patreon, Substack, and PayPal. Please consider donating today to help keep me free and this show alive:David AdamcikRajan AthulR...2024-08-1237 min
History ImpossibleThe Muslim Nazis: The German Voice of IslamThe Third Reich’s so-called war on the Jews was not one that they fought alone.In fact, their war had been being fought for decades before Hitler even took power, perhaps even a full generation. The fight began in the late 19th century in Jerusalem, within the office of the mufti of that city. He was an elderly, serious man who, unlike everyone around him, believed he could read the tea leaves and explain where these land sales to an ever-increasing number of Jews was supposedly heading (despite the fact that he himself was also taking part in...2024-07-226h 02
History ImpossibleAssassinations and Stoic Optimism (w/ The Eastern Border)Considering what happened…some thoughts needed to be shared. I’m already working on something for the Substack, and believe it or not, the next episode of the “Muslim Nazis” will actually be up and available for paid supporters of the show within the next day or so.However, given what indeed has happened, involving the former president almost getting his head taken off, a lot of conversation has appeared. My dear friend Kristaps Andrejsons and I decided to sit down to add our voices to this choir (after overcoming some tech-related SNAFU’s that finally resolved themselves). This conve...2024-07-161h 10
History ImpossibleQuestioning Anti-Zionism, Colonizing Gaza, and Revealing Lenin (w/ David Josef Volodsko)For this next special installment of History Impossible, we’re joined by the journalist, writer, and fellow podcaster David Josef Volodsko, one of the most well-traveled individuals I’ve ever had the pleasure of speaking to (both in and out of the United States). He is the man behind The Radicalist Substack (which I encourage all of you to subscribe to), but he has also contributed to the Wall Street Journal, New York Magazine, Foreign Policy Magazine, The Nation, Bari Weiss’ The Free Press, and most famously (thanks to his abrupt 2023 ouster, which he explained here), the Seattle Times, where he ser...2024-06-112h 57
History ImpossibleThe Oddsmakers of Armageddon (w/ Benjamin Teitelbaum)“When a cycle of civilization is reaching its end, it is difficult to achieve anything by resisting it and by directly opposing the forces in motion. The current is too strong; one would be overwhelmed. The essential thing is to not let oneself be impressed by the omnipotence and apparent triumph of the forces of the epoch. These forces, devoid of connection with any higher principle, are in fact, on a short chain. One should not become fixated on the present, and on things at hand, but keep in view the conditions that may come about in the future. Thus th...2024-05-201h 08
History ImpossibleThe Soviet Who Saved the World (w/ The Eastern Border)In this special conversational episode of History Impossible, we’re joined again by friend of the show and friend of mine, Kristaps Andrejsons of The Eastern Border podcast (which will also host this conversation on its feed!), who was kind enough to grace the shores of the United States for a visit, specifically Texas. Specifically, we turned to his recent special wedding episode where he discussed the eponymous “man who saved the world,” Stanislav Petrov, who, according to erroneous headlines from publications like the Atlantic a number of years ago, saved the world by “doing absolutely nothing.” Kristaps is here to disabuse...2024-04-291h 21
History ImpossibleOppenheimer and the Nuclear QuestionHey all, I hope you’re doing well.I have for all of you the audio adaptation of the essay I wrote last year in response to my seeing the magisterial Oppenheimer, and given its newly Oscar-anointed status, I figured now would be the best time to get this out as a bonus as you all patiently await the return of the Muslim Nazis series (it’s still coming, worry not!). In this, we cover, mostly from my own memory (but supported by sources), the various reasons the United States might have dropped the atomic bombs on H...2024-03-3155 min
History ImpossibleClosing the Holocaust Knowledge GapHey everyone. The following is an ad-free bonus audio essay that follows up on the recent conversation I had with the History Underground's J.D. Huitt, where I make some corrections and then provide some deeper context to my thinking about how we might fix the Holocaust Knowledge Gap via education. I will let the episode speak for itself, but I want to thank all of you for your constant support of the show and your patience as I work on the longer episodes.History Impossible has been made possible by the following generous supporters on Patreon, Substack...2024-03-0746 min
History ImpossibleThe Holocaust Knowledge Gap w/ The History UndergroundIn this newest special installment of History Impossible, we’re joined by long-time friend of the podcast and friend of mine, J.D. Huitt, the man behind the incredible History Underground channel over on YouTube, probably one of the best historical travel and educational content creators in the game (who has more than earned his 600,000 subscribers). Both J.D. and I were DMing on Twitter/X recently, sharing our discomfort with the seeming spike we’ve been seeing of not just ignorance about the Holocaust—what we thought was one of the best known event of the 20th centur...2024-02-231h 31
History ImpossibleThe Perfect Tie: The Election of 1876 (w/ Richard Lim of This American President)“I scarcely ever passed a week under such depression of spirits. […] It is terrible to see the extent to which all classes go in their determination to win. Conscience offers no restraint; nothing is so common as the resort to perjury unless it is violence. In short, I do not know who to believe: if we win, our methods are subject to impeachment for possible fraud; if the enemy wins, it is the same thing exactly. Doubt, suspicion, irritation go with the consequence, whatever it may be.”—Lew Wallace, retired Civil War general, 1876Many people will call out...2024-02-051h 04
History ImpossibleBalkan Inferno: The Bosnian DreamSometimes, the best way to understand everything a people have gone through is to understand a dream.This is how many nations frame themselves and their own origins. No matter the context, there is always truth in the idea that before there was a nation, there was a dream. And that dream, however morally sullied by the ugliness of reality, consequences, and choices, can never and should never be discounted, even with the nations who have had their dreams frustrated for so long. In fact, the truth of that dream can be seen in those realities, consequences, and...2023-12-304h 05
History ImpossiblePogroms and StudentsHey everybody. Now that I’ve finished up the notes and script for the conclusion of the “Balkan Inferno” trilogy (which will lead us right back into the thick of the “Muslim Nazis” series), I’m hard at work putting all of that together. In the meantime, please enjoy (as much as one can enjoy such a subject—I really do say that a lot, don’t I?) this bonus episode that slightly tweaks and expands my recent Substack post, “Pogroms and Students.” This episode covers relatively current events regarding the escalation of anti-Semitic incidents—especially in the United States, where i...2023-11-251h 03
History ImpossibleThe Greatest Blunder in Palestinian History w/ Oren KesslerThe recent Substack post and episode of History Impossible about the significant three root historical causes of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict has largely been well-received. What I didn’t expect is that one of the main sources I used for that episode would be willing to speak with me in greater depth about the massively underrated Arab Revolt of 1936-1939. In this episode, we’re joined by the scholar, political analyst, and writer Oren Kessler, whose 2023 book Palestine 1936: The Great Revolt and the Roots of the Middle East Conflict should be included as required reading for anyone interested or invested in what...2023-11-071h 02
History ImpossibleIsrael, Gaza, and Three Root CausesWhen you talk about history for a living, the contemporary world often has opportunities to make your knowledge more relevant. What knowledge actually possessed here about Israel and Palestine is likely more limited than some, I'd like to think that there is still some I can share to help clarify the conversation a little, at least when it comes to the notion of truly root causes to this ongoing conflict whose 2023 flare-up is the worst it's been in a long time, if not ever.In this special dispatch of History Impossible--which is being treated as a proper episode--we're...2023-10-311h 47
History ImpossibleAffirmative Action and the Making of a TokenThis is a bonus episode (a bit bigger than one might expect) that adapts and, more importantly expands, an essay I wrote for my friend and editor Jamie on his American Dreaming Substack. I seriously need to thank him for letting me write something so…I dunno, controversial? Combative? Anyway, whatever, so THAT under his publication’s name).This does use a very contemporary and contentious issue as its launchpad, and while some might see this as impolitic or even inappropriate, my history-addled brain only allowed me to see, hear, and read what I see, hear, and read and...2023-10-101h 15
History ImpossibleIs The Holocaust Unique?Hey all. This is an adaptation/audio version of an essay I recently wrote for my friend and editor Jamie Paul’s American Dreaming Substack, in which I examine the uniqueness of the Holocaust as both a genocide and historical event. If you like what you hear and want to hear me delve more into this subject, I’ll try to delve further into it in a future special episode like this one. But in the meantime, please enjoy. And thank you very much for all of your patience as I try and juggle all the projects I have on tap...2023-09-1930 min
The Reckless MusecastThe Reckless Musecast Ep. 91 - Impossible History with Alexander von Sternberg
In this episode, Alexander von Sternberg of the History Impossible podcast returns to chat about even more wild historical events. And yes, they talk about Nazis.
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History ImpossibleBalkan Inferno: The Heritage of HorrorCONTENT WARNING: This episode contains persistent graphic genocide violence and cruelty, especially in its first 75 minutes. Listener discretion is advised.In this part of the ongoing Balkan prelude to our return to the "Muslim Nazis" series, we are about to descend into the depths of hell. This was by design by the murderous Ustashe regime that took power after the invasion and dismemberment of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia by the Fuhrer of the Third Reich, Adolf Hitler. What happened next was a nightmare beyond the the imagining of most modern, comfortable nations in the 21st century...2023-09-055h 18
History ImpossibleBalkan Inferno: The Yugoslav Vortex“[B]y strange contrast, which in fact isn't so strange, and could perhaps be easily explained by careful analysis, it can also be said that there are a few countries with such firm belief, elevated strength of character, so much tenderness and loving passion, such depth of feeling, of loyalty and unshakable devotion, or with such a thirst for justice. But in secret depths underneath all this hide burning hatreds, entire hurricanes of tethered and compressed hatreds maturing and awaiting their hour.”—Ivo Andrić“I had come to Yugoslavia because I knew that the past has made the present...2023-06-274h 17
History ImpossiblePandemic Addendum: Gutenberg GPTHello ladies and gentlemen, brothers and sisters, comrades and friends! I'm here with another miniature episode for your listening pleasure, adapted from a recent essay I wrote over on the History Impossible Substack, which you can go check out if you're interested. I'm in the home stretch of recording the next big History Impossible episode, so I figured I'd give all of you a nice thanks for supporting the show this long.In the case of this one, we're looking at some potential predictions for how the future of AI could shake out, assuming that it ends up...2023-06-1326 min
History ImpossibleRags: The Pure-Hearted Mutt of the Great WarDogs have been man’s best friend for millennia, so it stands to reason that man’s best friend will follow man into the depths of hell, that is, war. This wasn’t simply to rip and tear the throats of man’s enemies (though that certainly would play a part) or to serve as cannon fodder. Oftentimes, the dogs utilized in war—war dogs—would outshine their human counterparts in acts of heroism. This has been going on for thousands of years, but it became apparent just how valuable dogs were during the Great War of 1914-1918.Among t...2023-05-163h 23
History ImpossibleThe First Woke PresidentIn this newest episode of History Impossible, I was joined by my friend, comrade, and frequent collaborator CJ Killmer, host of the Dangerous History Podcast, primarily to dive deep into the question of one of America's most underrated villains, President Woodrow Wilson, particularly on his track record and beliefs regarding one of the dooziest of topics: race. And to put it bluntly, Wilson, as outlined by CJ in his recent 5+ hour episode concerning this subject that's part of his larger Woodrow Wilson series, did not have a good track record when it came to race in America, particularly when it...2023-05-022h 21
History ImpossiblePandemic: A Plague CodaWhile there is plenty to say about how a pandemic affects us while we’re in the middle of it, there is just as much, if not more, to say about how a pandemic affects us when it ends.As of May of 2023, over three years have passed since the outbreak of COVID-19 and, according to the President of the United States Joe Biden, the emergency has ended. And yet, many people around the world, but in America in particular, continue to grapple with the realities of the pandemic that wreaked havoc on our way of life and st...2023-03-223h 29
History ImpossibleThe Fictions of HistoryHello everyone. This is an audio version of the essay I wrote for the History Impossible Substack (as well as here!) called "The Fiction(s) of History." In this special episode, I take a dive into the dueling narratives of historical progress (what my friend CJ Killmer of the Dangerous History Podcast calls the teleological approach to history; yes, he's much smarter than me) and historical cycles of the Strauss-Howe and Turchin-Nefedov variety. It's not all philosophy, despite the subject matter, and it does indeed touch upon some historical topics that I do intend to cover in more detail one...2023-02-141h 59
History ImpossibleThe Blonde Conspiracy feat. Greg Zink (An Impossible Interview VII)In this newest History Impossible conversation, I’m speaking with Greg Zink, the host of the Smoke Filled Rooms podcast, a new and up-and-coming show that gives us a deep dive into political true crime. I’ve been following Greg since he started his show in early 2022, beginning with a series on the Nuremberg Trials, and when he tackled a topic I had been considering doing myself ever since I threatened all of you with a return to Hollywood’s scandalous history—namely, the death (and life) of Marilyn Monroe—I invited him onto History Impossible to discuss both it and the re...2023-01-242h 53
History ImpossibleStakeholder Nazism (An Impossible Polemic)Happy 2023, everybody. I hope everyone's 2022 was a good one. It's hard to believe we're really getting into this new decade often portrayed as "the future" in old-school sci-fi/cyberpunk stories, isn't it?Anyway, I wanted to close out 2022/open up 2023 with something a little different; as you know I'm essentially turning my written Substack posts into audio versions for the supporters of History Impossible so you can all get some good exclusive content and this one is no exception. However, this essay I wrote about stakeholder capitalism and the economics of National Socialist Germany struck a different chord...2023-01-021h 44
History ImpossibleThe Birth of the Lexicon, Part II: The American Lunatic (Infinitesimal Impossibilities 04)In this second part of our story about the birth of the Oxford English Dictionary, we cover the second half--perhaps the second hemisphere, to use a brain pun--of the main minds behind the creation of the multi-volume book. This is the story of William Chester Minor, an American polymath of sorts similar to James Murray, though of far greater education and class status.Minor's time growing up in Ceylon (what is now Sri Lanka) is discussed, as is his military education and time serving in the U.S. Civil War, where it is quite possible that his mind...2022-12-192h 13History ImpossibleThe Birth of the Lexicon, Part I: The Scottish Polymath (Infinitesimal Impossibilities 04)If ever there was a story whose subject was small but whose effect was immense--i.e., the central theme of Infinitesimal Impossibilities--this would be that story.We don't often think about where words come from, and when we do it's usually pretty selective. This is for good reason: the English language has an almost unquantifiable number of words. And yet, back in the 19th century, the first serious endeavors were made to quantify these multitudes of words. The United States came first with the famous Webster's Dictionary (now Merriam-Webster), but the far more comprehensive and complete English dictionary--the Oxford...2022-12-121h 38
History ImpossibleKen Burns' Water-Carrying FailureHey everybody. This is the first of hopefully many audio versions of the essays/analyses I write for the History Impossible Substack. This one is going up on the public feed of the podcast (though you're all getting this before that release) so the bulk of my listeners can get a sense of what you fine people who support the show financially are getting to read and hear. But moving forward, all pieces written here will, for paying subscribers be available early to read. When the audio version goes up, that will typically be exclusive to paying subscribers both here...2022-11-2146 min
History ImpossibleA Third Reich BildungsromanNOTE: Please stick through the intro. There's an important announcement.WARNING: This episode contains the use of offensive racial epithets and disturbing depictions of bigotry that some listeners may find upsetting.What was like to be a child and grow up during the rise of the Nazis? Many have given us memorable answers to that question. There are even those who are still alive and remember it, however vaguely, though we are quickly losing them to the passage of time. But a more pressing and unusual question must be asked, especially in the context of...2022-10-254h 56
History ImpossibleAssassinations and Historical Discontents (ft. Kristaps Andrejsons of the Eastern Border)In this special episode of History Impossible--and The Eastern Border--I was lucky enough to sit down with the host OF The Eastern Border, Kristaps Andrejsons, in what I am calling my fastest guest turnaround I've done with the show so far. It was meant to be, however, given the whirlwind of news that continues to come from his area of expertise, that is, the Eastern Border, namely involving the Russo-Ukrainian War, and above all, how all that relates to the history of that region. Because, as is always the case with me and most other people who study...2022-09-131h 39
History ImpossibleThe Fuhrer’s Court Jew Part II: The Fall of IcarusYou can only fly so close to the sun for so long before the wax starts melting.This was a lesson that Erik Jan Hanussen, the most successful and famous clairvoyant in Europe (and quite possibly the world), would have to learn the hard way, as he positioned himself closer and closer with his friends in the nascent National Socialist Party of Germany. They would very quickly--through everything from IOUs to decadent parties, to private consultations--connected like symbiotic lifeforms, one feeding off the other and vice versa. Soon, though, that symbiosis would be challenged, perhaps inevitably thanks to Hanussen's...2022-08-022h 16
History ImpossibleThe Fuhrer’s Court Jew Part I: In League With the DevilIt's been well-documented, especially on History Impossible, that many of the Nazis in the upper echelons of power had a certain fascination with the occult, the otherworldly, and the non-Western. One thing, though, that has perhaps stirred the imaginations of our fair share of trashy pulp novels more than any other eccentricity possessed by the elite of the Third Reich was simple: magic. This wasn't embodied by anyone better than the famous clairvoyant Erik Jan Hanussen, who became known not just for his iconic performances of supposed mind-reading and fortune telling, but for his close associations with the budding N...2022-07-192h 08
History ImpossibleUkraine and the Latvian Podfather (An Impossible Interview VI): Kristaps Andrejsons of The Eastern BorderNote: Supporters of History Impossible over on Patreon currently have access to the uncut version of this interview, complete with more banter and fun discussion regarding how weird America is. Head over to www.patreon.com/historyimpossible and consider becoming a patron today so you can hear the uncut versions of conversations had on this show plus much more!In this edition of the Impossible Interviews series, we're joined by the one and only Kristaps Andrejsons of the famous Eastern Border Podcast to talk about both his time as not just a history podcaster on the Eastern Border of E...2022-06-152h 22
History ImpossibleHitler‘s BastardsCONTENT WARNING: This episode contains some graphic depictions of war and civilian casualties."Treason" is a funny word: it carries with it such a strong stigma that it can sometimes feel like a true curse when deployed. This is likely because of the consequences facing anyone charged with such a crime (i.e., one of the only crimes apart from murder that can be met with a death sentence, at least in the United States). And yet, despite it being so serious, we still occasionally hear it said regarding people whose crimes, all things considered, sometimes only amount to n...2022-04-254h 33
History ImpossibleIdeological Realignments: Past, Present, and Future (feat. CJ Killmer)In the midst of world events feeling significantly more historical than usual, we're joined by the host of the Dangerous History Podcast CJ Killmer--in our fifth overall collaboration!--to have a long, free-wheeling discussion of the notion of "realignment", a subject studied far and wide by political scientists of every stripe.The question of whether or not this is a tradition baked into American political DNA is addressed, as is the role of populism and populist backlashes, both in history and in the present and how they manifested in elections. We also chart the rise of Progressivism as the...2022-03-062h 52
History ImpossibleAn Impossible Interview V: Goran AdamsonImpossible Interviews returns with an excellent guest, Göran Adamson, professor of sociology and writer of numerous books including Populist Parties and the Failure of Political Elites, The Trojan Horse: A Leftist Critique of Multiculturalism, and, most importantly in the context of this interview and History Impossible more broadly, Masochistic Nationalism: Multicultural Self-Hatred and the Infatuation with the Exotic.Listeners of the previous episode of History Impossible--the Hitler Avatar and His Masochistic Priestess--will no doubt recognize the title, the name, and concept in question here, and as much as I wanted to pretend I have a firm grasp on t...2022-01-261h 17
History ImpossibleThe Hitler Avatar and His Masochistic PriestessEveryone knows who the Nazis were and what the Nazis did. Many also know what they, at least Hitler, generally believed. But far fewer actually understand what animated the truest of the true believers who saw Hitler as their prophet and savior. Far fewer still understand that much of this philosophical animating force didn't even concern Germany or the Germanic people as they saw them.So disgusted were they--at the occasional exasperation and even mockery of the Fuhrer himself--at the trajectory of European history in general and German history in particular that they searched far and wide for exotic...2021-12-304h 59History ImpossibleInfinitesimal Impossibilities 03: The Warlord‘s CookThe Infinitesimal Impossibilities subseries returns with a story in which Molly and Alex look at one of the most ruthless dictators of the 20th century...from the perspective of his personal chef. It's all drawn from the work of Polish journalist Witold Szablowski in his incredible 2020 book, How to Feed a Dictator (which it should be noted, Alex misdated during this first episode as being 2016). Uganda's infamous Idi Amin is discussed through the eyes of his personal chef, Otonde Odera, who not only managed to survive the murderous regime's rise and fall, but managed to be both Idi...2021-09-281h 31
History ImpossibleThe Muslim Nazis V: Taking Hitler By The HandAs Hajj Amin al-Husseini hurdles toward his destination with which we started this entire series, the scope of our tale expands drastically with the arrival of the Nazis themselves. Though this isn't to say they weren't always there, lurking in the background of Palestinian Littlefinger's schemes and dealings. In fact, it would be inaccurate to say that he hadn't been well aware and in open communication with them. Always playing the angles. In this mid-season finale of our story, we'll be looking at al-Husseini's early dealings with the Nazis throughout the 1930s and early 1940s, as well as...2021-09-033h 30
History ImpossibleEscaping Farhud: The Joseph Samuels StorySometimes the best way to convey the weight of history is to read the words of just one person who lived it.In this special episode of History Impossible, we'll be looking at the life of Joseph Samuels, whose incredible journey and profound resilience throughout his 90 plus years on this planet deserved examination. From the dusty streets of Baghdad, where he escaped the first and worst massacre of Iraqi Jewish history as a boy, to his dangerous flight to the new Jewish home of Israel, to his search for meaning in his life and his discovery of love and...2021-07-221h 43The Drunken Taoist PodcastEpisode 202 - Alexander Von SternbergEpisode 202 - Alexander Von Sternberg2021-07-031h 17
History ImpossibleThe Muslim Nazis IV: FarhudWhat do you get when all of your best laid plans seem to be falling apart around you with nothing but the suffering of your people to show for it? Bitterness.As the 1920s turned into the 1930s, Hajj Amin al-Husseini's power started to look increasingly fragile and precarious, largely thanks to the effects of the violence that rocked Palestine in the summer of 1929 that only served to raise the temperature across the nation. The nationalist movement would continue to splinter and many different factions would take much more strident, even recognizably jihadist measures against the...2021-05-313h 36
History ImpossibleThe Muslim Nazis III: Nineteen Twenty Nine1929 was, in a lot of ways, the year the world began its final descent into hell. The stock market crash in the United States would lead to untold misery in much of the Western world and allow for the rise and spread of particularly noxious ideologies across the whole of Europe. However, on the other side of the world, another "beginning of the end" was taking place, this time between the Jews and Arabs of Palestine, with the events that rocked this tiny nation setting the groundwork for suspicions, resentments, and hatreds for the decades to come. 2021-04-281h 56
History ImpossibleThe Muslim Nazis II: The Mufti"Palestine is my country and the country of my ancestors—I will sacrifice myself for the sake of its sons."—Hajj Amin al-HusseiniIn the second episode of History Impossible's first series, we'll be diving head first into the early life of our story's central character, Hajj Amin al-Husseini, the future Grand Mufti of Jerusalem in Palestine.We'll see how he developed his identity as a Palestinian nationalist from a very early age and the activities this passion led him to pursue. We'll look at what he did at the outbreak of the First World War and how...2021-04-072h 39
History ImpossibleThe Muslim Nazis I: Early Adventures with Imperial German Islamophilia"The peoples of Islam will always be closer to us than, for example, France. ... Had Charles Martel not been victorious at Poiters, then we should in all probability have been converted to Mohammedanism, that cult which glorifies the heroism and which opens up the seventh Heaven to the bold warrior alone. Then the Germanic races would have conquered the world."-Adolf Hitler The first episode of History Impossible's first series introduces one of the most controversial aspects of Nazi Germany's strategy in the Second World War: its implementation of Muslims. Where one could simply write it off...2021-01-231h 32
History ImpossibleAn Impossible Announcement: History Impossible in 2021This is a quick announcement I'd like to make regarding History Impossible's immediate future, which is mostly tied up in this inaugural long-term series--a season really--which needs a bit of explaining and reassuring (specifically to folks who prefer one-off stories). In addition, I couldn't resist making a quick comment about history being essentially made on January 6th, 2021 in Washington D.C., regardless of how you interpreted the events. 2021's future, however uncertain for a lot of people and even for the United States, is looking bright for History Impossible, so I'll be with you all the way, hopefully entertaining a...2021-01-1914 min
History ImpossibleAn Impossible Interview IV: Aaron Sibarium, The Washington Free BeaconThe Impossible Interviews series is back with a different, but still special conversation I had with the amazingly talented and insightful Aaron Sibarium. Aaron is an associate editor over at the Washington Free Beacon, as well as a writer for various publications including National Review, Quillette, and American Purpose, the last of which published one of Aaron's essays on October 26th, 2020, the exact same day as Pandemic: Rendering a Hue and Cry was released on History Impossible's feed. The name of Aaron's essay: "The Weimarization of the American Republic." And it was completely and totally brilliant.Aaron and I...2020-12-041h 33History ImpossibleInfinitesimal Impossibilities 02: The Mad Madame of New OrleansHistory Impossible is back sooner than some may have anticipated for another installment of the Infinitesimal Impossibilities series, this time recorded in the spirit (and in the last hours) of Halloween 2020. This time, we cover a story that takes place in early 19th century New Orleans. It begins with a fire, or rather perhaps concludes with one. A large mansion whose hosts had been entertaining guests, catches fire from its upstairs kitchen. As people pour into the streets to watch the blaze, they see one of the slaves screaming from an upstairs window before she is e...2020-11-211h 18
History ImpossiblePandemic: Rendering a Hue and CryThis episode is dedicated to Franco Bolelli.Since it's the year of our lord 2020, it was only inevitable that we'd talk about pandemics on History Impossible.What follows is an exploration of not just a pandemic and not just the most physically destructive pandemic in all of human history. What follows is an exploration of what a pandemic actually does. And by "does," we're talking about what it does to the human body, the human mind, and the wider social psychology of societies themselves, and of course, the historical consequences that result.The 1918 H1N1 Influenza A p...2020-10-266h 18
History ImpossibleBONUS! Ripples of Impossible History (on Fire): ConfuciusAs many of you are aware, I was recently featured among many other, far more talented history podcasters on Daniele Bolelli's History on Fire podcast in which we all discussed various figures and events in history that created massive ripples that no one could have predicted. My segment was focused on Confucius and how he basically shaped Chinese civilization forever, from the level of the family to the running of the government even under the Communists.In a generous move, the fine people at Luminary Media decided to let all of us present our segments on our own podcast...2020-10-1034 minHistory ImpossibleInfinitesimal Impossibilities 01: The First SubmarineAs History Impossible reaches its two year mark and the episodes get longer and longer, I figured that now was the time to do something different, namely to add a new show to the History Impossible family, as I've been calling it: Infinitesimal Impossibilities. These are stories that are simply too small--bite-sized, if you will--in comparison to the epic stories that have come to characterize History Impossible and to help me out with this, I've brought on my amazing Pop Quiz co-host (and victim) Molly Pan to help keep us on course. And speaking of staying...2020-09-251h 09
History ImpossibleA Very British Samurai (Assimilation)Japan in the 16th and 17th century was going through profound changes, not least of which being the ongoing civil war that had been ripping it apart for over a century, with warlord fighting warlord on a whim, the famed samurai chopping each other to bits on scales rarely seen elsewhere in the world. The other profound change involved men in black robes preaching the word of a god that the Japanese people had never heard of, but who many nonetheless gravitated toward. The Jesuits of Portugal followed by the Franciscan friars were in the process of converting an entire...2020-08-073h 02
History ImpossibleThe Devil Soldier and His Ever Victorious Army (Approbation)In the mid-19th century, as one country in the West was on its way toward the most famous civil war, another country in the East was in the grips of one far larger and more significant than any that had come before or would come afterward, if only in terms of numbers. By the end of this conflict, known as China's Taiping Rebellion, over 20 million people would lay dead, and China's relationship with the West would never be the same.While the man who started this conflict--a self-proclaimed prophet and younger brother to Jesus Christ named Hong Xiuquan--was...2020-06-123h 20
History ImpossibleAn Impossible Interview III: JD Huitt, History UndergroundIn this newest entry into the Impossible Interview series, I had a chance to sit down (via Zoom) with the incredibly talented and generous-with-his time J.D. Huitt, the brains behind and face of History Underground and the excellent History Traveler series on YouTube (remember: LIKE AND SUBSCRIBE!). He ranks among the top three history content creators that I diligently follow on YouTube for his excellent-quality videos exploring famous (and not-so-famous-but-should-be-famous) historical locations, ranging from Arlington Cemetery to the beaches of Normandy to Ford's Theater to a German U-boat housed in a museum I somehow missed while living in Chicago...2020-05-041h 41
History ImpossibleAn Impossible Pop Quiz: Blood, Bardos, Bullets, and BuddhismSurprise!In light of the current quarantine in which becoming starved for content is actually a very real possibility, as well as a way to say thank you to all of you for your patience as I toiled away at this most recent episode, I decided the time would be right to toss a freebie everyone's way, with a special thank you directed at all of you kind enough to be financially supporting History Impossible through Patreon and PayPal donations.Normally the Pop Quiz is a fun goof to be enjoyed by the Patrons of History Impossible, but...2020-04-241h 11
History ImpossibleBlood, Bardos, Bullets, and Buddhism (Appropriation)Let's set the stage:The most explosive event of the 20th century has just occurred and it has nothing to do with Nazis or atomic bombs or American blue jeans. In 1917, the world's largest terrestrial imperial power began to rip itself apart and would continue to do so during the next half decade, leading to the only other power with the ability to challenge the United States.The First World War and the Russian Revolution are both well-tread territory, as is the subsequent Russian Civil War, but what many might not realize is that these events were much...2020-04-135h 02
History ImpossibleAn Impossible Interview II: CJ KillmerIn this inaugural 2020 episode of History Impossible (and on the one year anniversary no less!), I sit down with CJ Killmer, host of the long-running and incredibly well-done Dangerous History Podcast. CJ has been one of my long-time inspirations for his capacity for detailed, deep dives into parts of history I literally had no interest in for most of my life (i.e. The American Civil War) and manage to completely draw me in with his nuanced, but strong takes. In this conversation, we discuss a wide range of topics, from anarchism to the Civil War's m...2020-02-032h 18
History ImpossibleThe Prisoner on the River Kwai (Forgiveness)Content Warning: This episode contains graphic depictions of physical and psychological torture.
A world away from the war raging across the European continent, a completely different theater of warfare was being conducted by the Empire of Japan and the Allied forces in Asia. Immediately after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941, attacks were made against the British Empire's and French territories in Southeast Asia, including the supposedly impregnable fortress of Singapore. After Singapore fell and the 80,000 troops taken prisoner would soon come to learn their own version of horror shared by victims of Hitler's hatred across the g...2019-12-202h 58
History ImpossibleThe Prisoner on the River Kwai (Forgiveness)Content Warning: This episode contains graphic depictions of physical and psychological torture.A world away from the war raging across the European continent, a completely different theater of warfare was being conducted by the Empire of Japan and the Allied forces in Asia. Immediately after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941, attacks were made against the British Empire's and French territories in Southeast Asia, including the supposedly impregnable fortress of Singapore. After Singapore fell and the 80,000 troops taken prisoner would soon come to learn their own version of horror shared by victims of Hitler's hatred across t...2019-12-202h 58
History ImpossibleThe American Executioners (Vengeance)Content Warning: This episode contains extremely graphic depictions of genocide, torture, and human experimentation.
On April 29th, 1945, one day before Adolf Hitler killed himself, the true evil of the National Socialists--and the necessity of crushing them--finally became known to the American men fighting through Germany. It all began with seeing a set of boxcars, filled from stem to stern with the starved, decaying bodies of thousands of Jews who had been traveling by rail for weeks, as their captors fled the approaching Allied forces without a care in the world for the miserable existence of their human cargo. From the t...2019-11-062h 20
History ImpossibleThe American Executioners (Vengeance)Content Warning: This episode contains extremely graphic depictions of genocide, torture, and human experimentation.On April 29th, 1945, one day before Adolf Hitler killed himself, the true evil of the National Socialists--and the necessity of crushing them--finally became known to the American men fighting through Germany. It all began with seeing a set of boxcars, filled from stem to stern with the starved, decaying bodies of thousands of Jews who had been traveling by rail for weeks, as their captors fled the approaching Allied forces without a care in the world for the miserable existence of their human cargo. From t...2019-11-062h 20
History ImpossibleAn Impossible Pop Quiz: The Werewolves of the Fourth ReichIt's the end of one era and the beginning of another. With the launch of History Impossible's Patreon, things with the Pop Quiz are different. This will be the final free episode the Pop Quiz series, which will now be accessible to the supporters of History Impossible at the 5 dollar level or higher (along with other great goodies).
So to celebrate, Molly and Alex took a trip down memory lane about werewolves, Nazism, Nazi terrorists, and Nazi trauma. It was, believe it or not, a lot of fun! Many things were discussed, including the notion that Nazis don't actually exist...2019-10-2253 min
History ImpossibleAn Impossible Pop Quiz: The Werewolves of the Fourth ReichIt's the end of one era and the beginning of another. With the launch of History Impossible's Patreon, things with the Pop Quiz are different. This will be the final free episode the Pop Quiz series, which will now be accessible to the supporters of History Impossible at the 5 dollar level or higher (along with other great goodies).So to celebrate, Molly and Alex took a trip down memory lane about werewolves, Nazism, Nazi terrorists, and Nazi trauma. It was, believe it or not, a lot of fun! Many things were discussed, including the notion that Nazis don't actually...2019-10-2253 min
History ImpossibleThe Werewolves of the Fourth Reich (Trauma)On April 30th, 1945, Adolf Hitler's brain was ripped apart by the bullet he'd fired through his skull. That is how we believe the Second World War ended. But in reality, the struggle to crush the most evil of regimes and its ideas was just beginning and arguably never ended. This is the story of how that struggle began with the Germans who refused to believe that the end--their end--had come, and as a result, transformed (if only metaphorically) into packs of werewolves, men who had unleashed the beast lurking somewhere within them, causing one of the least discussed insurgencies in...2019-10-023h 13
History ImpossibleThe Werewolves of the Fourth Reich (Trauma)On April 30th, 1945, Adolf Hitler's brain was ripped apart by the bullet he'd fired through his skull. That is how we believe the Second World War ended. But in reality, the struggle to crush the most evil of regimes and its ideas was just beginning and arguably never ended. This is the story of how that struggle began with the Germans who refused to believe that the end--their end--had come, and as a result, transformed (if only metaphorically) into packs of werewolves, men who had unleashed the beast lurking somewhere within them, causing one of the least discussed insurgencies in...2019-10-023h 13
History ImpossibleAn Impossible Interview I: Daniele BolelliIn this special edition of History Impossible, a trend is broken: this is not about a particular story in history. This is about a man. Or rather, a conversation with a man. The one, the only, Daniele Bolelli, host of popular podcasts History on Fire and The Drunken Taoist and known for semi-regular appearances on popular podcasts like the Joe Rogan Experience and the Duncan Trussell Family Hour.
Daniele has been in History Impossible's corner since day one and some wonderful collaborations have come out of it, including the episode we both crafted concerning Lyudmila Pavlichenko, better known as Lady...2019-09-031h 29
History ImpossibleAn Impossible Interview I: Daniele BolelliIn this special edition of History Impossible, a trend is broken: this is not about a particular story in history. This is about a man. Or rather, a conversation with a man. The one, the only, Daniele Bolelli, host of popular podcasts History on Fire and The Drunken Taoist and known for semi-regular appearances on popular podcasts like the Joe Rogan Experience and the Duncan Trussell Family Hour.Daniele has been in History Impossible's corner since day one and some wonderful collaborations have come out of it, including the episode we both crafted concerning Lyudmila Pavlichenko, better known as...2019-09-031h 29
History ImpossibleAn Impossible Pop Quiz: The Great Hollywood CoverupAfter a mega-sized two-parter episode of History Impossible, it seems only fitting that listeners get a pseudo-mega-sized Pop Quiz episode (if only because there was indeed more ground to cover).
Ms. Molly's recap of the Great Hollywood Coverup is certainly fun and full of the usual holes and minor errors that chip away at her final grade, but in the end, she did (relatively) well recapping all the events and theories surrounding the mysterious murder of William Desmond Taylor.
Extra credit was also to be had by Molly, though, not only because she managed to make Alex realize a major u...2019-08-151h 06History ImpossibleAn Impossible Pop Quiz: The Great Hollywood CoverupAfter a mega-sized two-parter episode of History Impossible, it seems only fitting that listeners get a pseudo-mega-sized Pop Quiz episode (if only because there was indeed more ground to cover).Ms. Molly's recap of the Great Hollywood Coverup is certainly fun and full of the usual holes and minor errors that chip away at her final grade, but in the end, she did (relatively) well recapping all the events and theories surrounding the mysterious murder of William Desmond Taylor. Extra credit was also to be had by Molly, though, not only because she managed to make Alex realize a...2019-08-151h 06
History ImpossibleThe Great Hollywood Coverup Part II: Dames, Drug Dealers, and DragooneryWhen we last left the side of renowned and loved silent film director William Desmond Taylor, he was lying dead on the floor of his bungalow and his valet was shrieking for someone--anyone--to help. Little did the valet know that "help" would indeed come, but the only people being helped were the ones who hired William Desmond Taylor to clean up the tarnished image Hollywood had earned for itself.
In the second part of our epic story involving the unsolved murder of William Desmond Taylor, as well as the greatest cover-up in Hollywood's relatively short history that followed it up...2019-07-262h 44
History ImpossibleThe Great Hollywood Coverup Part II: Dames, Drug Dealers, and DragooneryWhen we last left the side of renowned and loved silent film director William Desmond Taylor, he was lying dead on the floor of his bungalow and his valet was shrieking for someone--anyone--to help. Little did the valet know that "help" would indeed come, but the only people being helped were the ones who hired William Desmond Taylor to clean up the tarnished image Hollywood had earned for itself.In the second part of our epic story involving the unsolved murder of William Desmond Taylor, as well as the greatest cover-up in Hollywood's relatively short history that followed it...2019-07-262h 44
History ImpossibleThe Great Hollywood Coverup Part I: Moving Pictures, Moral Crusaders, and MurderNearly 100 years ago, scandal after scandal was rocking the new kid in town, the motion picture business; Tinseltown; Hollywood. Overdoses on mercury bichloride, cocaine-addicted starlets, prostitution and drug rings, suicides, and an alleged raucous orgy ending in the rape and murder of an actress by one of the top stars. This was all occurring while this new art form was under constant scrutiny by Christian fundamentalists and early feminist activists on a moral crusade to "clean up" and save America from its sinful trajectory off which Hollywood's leaders seemed hellbent on profiting.
It seemed like the wolves were closing in...2019-07-011h 59
History ImpossibleThe Great Hollywood Coverup Part I: Moving Pictures, Moral Crusaders, and MurderNearly 100 years ago, scandal after scandal was rocking the new kid in town, the motion picture business; Tinseltown; Hollywood. Overdoses on mercury bichloride, cocaine-addicted starlets, prostitution and drug rings, suicides, and an alleged raucous orgy ending in the rape and murder of an actress by one of the top stars. This was all occurring while this new art form was under constant scrutiny by Christian fundamentalists and early feminist activists on a moral crusade to "clean up" and save America from its sinful trajectory off which Hollywood's leaders seemed hellbent on profiting.It seemed like the wolves were closing...2019-07-011h 59
History ImpossibleAn Impossible Pop Quiz: The White DeathThe Pop Quiz returns for a much lighter, more fun episode (or fun recounting for Molly, at least) of the third episode of History Impossible, the story of Simo Häyhä, the White Death, the Magic Shooter.
Give this quiz a listen to see how Molly manages to find such a cold-blooded bad-ass mass-killer so "cute", manage to call him a butt-face, and still be in awe of his accomplishments and monk-like temperament. Also make sure to sympathize with Mr. von Sternberg as his patience is eternally tried by puns and silliness coming from his history-phobic significant other.
So fix yo...2019-05-1646 minHistory ImpossibleAn Impossible Pop Quiz: The White DeathThe Pop Quiz returns for a much lighter, more fun episode (or fun recounting for Molly, at least) of the third episode of History Impossible, the story of Simo Häyhä, the White Death, the Magic Shooter.Give this quiz a listen to see how Molly manages to find such a cold-blooded bad-ass mass-killer so "cute", manage to call him a butt-face, and still be in awe of his accomplishments and monk-like temperament. Also make sure to sympathize with Mr. von Sternberg as his patience is eternally tried by puns and silliness coming from his history-phobic significant other.So...2019-05-1646 min
History ImpossibleThe White DeathIn the winter of 1939, a Soviet colossus came bearing down on the small Baltic nation known as Finland, sparking off a 105-day conflict known to history as the Winter War. Facing impossible odds, the Finnish Army did all it could to fight off their Russian invaders, all with the simple goal to remain free from tyranny.
During the fighting, one man would set himself apart from the struggle with extraordinary deeds and yet come to symbolize the character of the struggle itself, as well as his nation. Claiming more individual kills in wartime as a sniper, this man, Simo Häyhä...2019-04-232h 02
History ImpossibleThe White DeathIn the winter of 1939, a Soviet colossus came bearing down on the small Baltic nation known as Finland, sparking off a 105-day conflict known to history as the Winter War. Facing impossible odds, the Finnish Army did all it could to fight off their Russian invaders, all with the simple goal to remain free from tyranny.During the fighting, one man would set himself apart from the struggle with extraordinary deeds and yet come to symbolize the character of the struggle itself, as well as his nation. Claiming more individual kills in wartime as a sniper, this man, Simo Hä...2019-04-232h 02
History ImpossibleAn Impossible Pop Quiz: The Union RapistsFor the second episode of History: Impossible, we have our second episode of An Impossible Pop Quiz!
This time around, we discuss the misery that was the second episode of History: Impossible about sexual assault in times of war--in particular the American Civil War. As impossible (ha) as it might seem, we managed to have a few laughs, but unlike the first Pop Quiz, there is less of a narrative recap/discussion and more of a sober-minded discussion about the concepts explored in the episode.
So fix yourself a nice drink, kick back, and listen to two amateurs attempt to...2019-03-2539 minHistory ImpossibleAn Impossible Pop Quiz: The Union RapistsFor the second episode of History: Impossible, we have our second episode of An Impossible Pop Quiz!This time around, we discuss the misery that was the second episode of History: Impossible about sexual assault in times of war--in particular the American Civil War. As impossible (ha) as it might seem, we managed to have a few laughs, but unlike the first Pop Quiz, there is less of a narrative recap/discussion and more of a sober-minded discussion about the concepts explored in the episode.So fix yourself a nice drink, kick back, and listen to two amateurs...2019-03-2539 min
History ImpossibleThe Union RapistsCONTENT WARNING: This episode contents graphic depictions of sexual assault and violence, occasionally involving minors.
The American Civil War was supposedly a war of liberation. But the question of who some of these liberators actually were rarely gets asked. Most of the soldiers on the side of liberation--the Union Army--were simply grunts; uneducated, poor men who were completely unprepared for the horrors that awaited them.
Equally unprepared were the women of the South, both white and black. Some feared having their property taken away from them. Others were the property and were told they were being freed. And yet both g...2019-03-111h 34
History ImpossibleThe Union RapistsCONTENT WARNING: This episode contents graphic depictions of sexual assault and violence, occasionally involving minors.The American Civil War was supposedly a war of liberation. But the question of who some of these liberators actually were rarely gets asked. Most of the soldiers on the side of liberation--the Union Army--were simply grunts; uneducated, poor men who were completely unprepared for the horrors that awaited them.Equally unprepared were the women of the South, both white and black. Some feared having their property taken away from them. Others were the property and were told they were being freed. And y...2019-03-111h 34History ImpossibleAn Impossible Pop Quiz: The Original Donald TrumpAnd now for something completely different...In light of the fact that there inevitably will be delays and desires to hear more from the world of History: Impossible, I've decided to have my history-ambivalent lady friend Molly Pan along for the ride. And since she can't be bothered to learn anything unless a grade is being given to her (her words, not mine), we decided to start our own little History: Impossible side show where she does her damnedest to remember the story of the most recent episode.As I say in the introduction, this is a bit...2019-02-2840 min
History ImpossibleAn Impossible Pop Quiz: The Original Donald TrumpAnd now for something completely different...
In light of the fact that there inevitably will be delays and desires to hear more from the world of History: Impossible, I've decided to have my history-ambivalent lady friend Molly Pan along for the ride. And since she can't be bothered to learn anything unless a grade is being given to her (her words, not mine), we decided to start our own little History: Impossible side show where she does her damnedest to remember the story of the most recent episode.
As I say in the introduction, this is a bit of an...2019-02-2840 min
History ImpossibleThe Original Donald TrumpNearly a century and a half before populist messaging was used to propel the unlikeliest and most divisive of candidates into the Oval Office, the groundwork was being laid amid the most terrifying time in American history.
A true vision of a post-apocalyptic landscape on the verge of exploding into chaos all over again: a sense of corruption at every level of government, starvation in the streets, the constant threat of violence, rampant racist pogroms, and a nation still attempting to heal its self-inflicted wounds caused by a destructive Civil War all serve as the backdrop for the least and y...2019-01-282h 35History ImpossibleThe Original Donald TrumpWARNING: This episode contains harsh scenes and quotes involving mass murder, racial slurs, and child abuse.Nearly a century and a half before populist messaging was used to propel the unlikeliest and most divisive of candidates into the Oval Office, the groundwork was being laid amid the most terrifying time in American history.A true vision of a post-apocalyptic landscape on the verge of exploding into chaos all over again: a sense of corruption at every level of government, starvation in the streets, the constant threat of violence, rampant racist pogroms, and a nation still attempting to heal i...2019-01-282h 35
History ImpossibleEpisode Zero: An Impossible IntroductionIn this introductory episode to History: Impossible, self-imposed ground rules are laid out, information on past, present, and future is provided, and thanks to inspirations are given.
This will probably be one of the few times you'll hear such an off-the-cuff ramble in this series.2019-01-2809 min
History ImpossibleEpisode Zero: An Impossible IntroductionIn this introductory episode to History: Impossible, self-imposed ground rules are laid out, information on past, present, and future is provided, and thanks to inspirations are given. This will probably be one of the few times you'll hear such an off-the-cuff ramble in this series.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/history-impossible--5634566/support.2019-01-2809 min