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PODCAST

Making sense of this crazy world

historymadeeasier

I am a student of history, a teacher of history and a writer of history. You could say history is a passion of mine. I have a website for students and I had been mulling around this idea of a podcast for some time. Would people be interested? Would I make it interesting? That’s essentially what was holding me back. But with a new year starting, the craziness still all around us, I thought what the hell – give it a go, John! The primary purpose of the podcast is to use history to help us make a

history documentary

All Episodes

20:12

What led to the BRICS group - Non-Alignment

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/12/24

At the same time as the world was polarising between the West and the Communist bloc, what came to be called the ‘Third World’, essentially the world emerging from the European empires, was struggling to assert itself. Some of this ‘Third World’ morphed into a non-alignment group, asserting independence and ensuring neutrality in the Cold War. But it was also a declaration that there were more important issues to address, notably the imbalance of power – economic, cultural and political

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19:01

What led to the Brics bloc of countries? Bretton Woods

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/12/17

This little series will trace the history that led to the formation of BRICS bloc of countries. And it will begin by looking at the impact of a conference that took place before WW2 had ended in Bretton Woods in America. For the decisions made there, and they were driven by America, would have a profound impact on the post-war world. Intro and outro music curtesy of slip.stream: https://slip.stream/tracks/58fb6726-c035-4d10-a8e8-eba70e5164ad

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27:37

The Holocaust

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/12/10

While not forgetting the sorry plight of Palestinians since 1948, this episode goes back to Nazi Germany and traces the path that led to the death camps and the Holocaust in an attemt to understand the Jewish, Israeli position. Intro and outro music curtesy of slip.stream: https://slip.stream/tracks/58fb6726-c035-4d10-a8e8-eba70e5164ad

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21:05

New Dimensions

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/12/03

Since the Six Day War and the Yom Kippur War the biggest threat to Israeli’s, though not Israel itself, has come from various militant groups supporting the Palestinian cause, not from Arab states, though a Persian state, Iran lurks ominously in the background of what the likes of Hezbollah and Hamas do. Whilst Israel has done its cause no good whatsoever in the court of world opinion as it set out on a policy to build more and more settlements on the West Bank, while at the same time treating the

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27:44

Two Deaths

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/11/26

This week were going to look at the impact of two brave leaders, or at least I think they were brave, their deaths, and the end of a chance for peace for two peoples in one patch of land. Intro and outro music curtesy of slip.stream: https://slip.stream/tracks/58fb6726-c035-4d10-a8e8-eba70e5164ad

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25:39

Three Wars that shaped today’s Palestinian-Israeli...

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/11/19

Three wars that literally shaped the Palestinian-Israeli conflict as we see it today: the first resulting from the Suez Crisis in 1956; the second, the Six Day War in 1967; the third, the Yom Kippur War in 1973. Three wars that we must know about in order to understand today's conflict. Intro and outro music curtesy of slip.stream: https://slip.stream/tracks/58fb6726-c035-4d10-a8e8-eba70e5164ad

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21:49

The Birth of Israel

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/11/12

This episode examines what led to the creation of the Israeli state and the immediate reaction from Israel's neighbouring Arab countries. Intro and outro music curtesy of slip.stream: https://slip.stream/tracks/58fb6726-c035-4d10-a8e8-eba70e5164ad

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12:29

Blowin’ In The Wind: 60 Years On

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/11/05

Bob Dylan repeatedly asks the question “How many”? How many times, how many roads, How many seas….. “How many”? How many times must we make the same mistake, go through repeated tragedies, how many years before we learn? Clearly, he was hoping that things would change – but this was sixty years ago. This episode considers what's happened since 1963. Intro and outro music curtesy of slip.stream: https://slip.stream/tracks/58fb6726-c035-4d10-a8e8-eba70e5164ad

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15:47

Hitler’s neighbours in Vienna

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/10/29

I have talked about Hitler having lived in Vienna, the capital of Austria-Hungary as it was pre-WW1, and where both his anti-democratic views and his anti-Semitism took root. Well, by a freak of history, it so happens, for a short period in 1913, Hitler had some interesting neighbours when he was in Vienna. This episode is going to take a look at them and consider what might have been as well as what was. Intro and outro music curtesy of

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13:52

Why we should see Trump and Putin as fascists 2

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/10/22

In this final episode in my little series called “Lessons from Hitler”, a second episode looking at fascism and comparing Hitler’s Nazi Germany to Putin’s Russia and to Trumpism. The focus this time is on fascisms contempt for democracy and its violent nature. Intro and outro music curtesy of slip.stream: https://slip.stream/tracks/58fb6726-c035-4d10-a8e8-eba70e5164ad

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18:30

Why we should see Trump and Putin as fascists

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/10/15

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22:41

Hitler’s lesson for Putin

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/10/08

In this episode we come to Hitler’s lesson for Putin in my little series on “Lessons from Hitler”. We take a look at how Hitler dealt with opposition and then a look at how Putin does so. It's not that Putin really learnt from Hitler but that we should learn from both of them. Intro and outro music curtesy of slip.stream: https://slip.stream/tracks/58fb6726-c035-4d10-a8e8-eba70e5164ad

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19:33

Lessons from Hitler - the argument for putting Trump...

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/10/01

Last week I looked at the dangers of putting Trump on trial, this week I’m going to consider the argument for stopping someone like Hitler, someone with utter disregard for the values of liberal democracy, someone such as a Trump or a Putin by focusing on how Hitler so easily destroyed democracy in Germany. Intro and outro music curtesy of slip.stream: https://slip.stream/tracks/58fb6726-c035-4d10-a8e8-eba70e5164ad

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25:32

Lessons from Hitler - the dangers to putting Trump on...

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/09/24

I’m starting a little series that I call “Lessons from Hitler”, comparing what Hitler did with what Trump and Putin have been up to. In this first episode I go back to Hitler's trial in 1924 that followed his failed coup in the previous year. It serves as a stark warning - not that Trump shouldn't face justice. Intro and outro music curtesy of slip.stream: https://slip.stream/tracks/58fb6726-c035-4d10-a8e8-eba70e5164ad

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24:53

The Hijab

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/09/17

On September 16th, one year ago, Mahsa Amini died in a Tehran hospital three days after being arrested by the Iranian moral police for not wearing her headscarf properly. This episode looks at issues behind the hijab, not just in Iran but in France too. Intro and outro music curtesy of slip.stream: https://slip.stream/tracks/58fb6726-c035-4d10-a8e8-eba70e5164ad

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19:52

Walls

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/09/10

Ray Lamontagne, a great song writer and a great musician, wrote a song called Be Here Now that includes a such a profound line: ‘Don’t put your trust in walls cos walls will only crush you when they fall’. The first time I heard it I thought wow, that’s a great lyric, and it’s the same every time I listen to the song. If you don’t know him, you really should check him out. More recently, I came across Anais Mitchell and her song, Why We Build the Wall: We build the wall to keep us free The wall

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28:13

The impact of the Cultural Revolution

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/09/03

It is so important to step back and take stock of the impact of the Cultural Revolution, as well as to try and make sense of it. And China itself had to do this. With Mao’s death in 1976 and Deng Xiaoping effectively in control by the end of 1978, soon to be made ‘paramount leader’ (what a survivor!), China needed to put the whole affair in the rear-view mirror and move on. But it had some explaining to do before it could do that! Intro and outro music curtesy of

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22:20

The Cultural Revolution - seizing back control

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/08/27

We left things last week at the beginning of 1967 with the Cultural Revolution out of control and turning on the Chinese Communist Party itself. Even Mao now thought that “trusting the masses” had gone too far. Intro and outro music curtesy of slip.stream: https://slip.stream/tracks/58fb6726-c035-4d10-a8e8-eba70e5164ad

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17:34

The Cultural Revolution spirals out of control

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/08/20

This week we are continuing our examination of Mao in power by looking at what must be the most chaotic, crazy period in any country’s history as the Cultural Revolution spiralled out of control. Intro and outro music curtesy of slip.stream: https://slip.stream/tracks/58fb6726-c035-4d10-a8e8-eba70e5164ad

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23:09

China’s Cultural Revolution

Making sense of this crazy world ·

2023/08/13

The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, to give its full grand title, lasted from early 1966 to Mao’s death in 1976, though its fiery phase ended in 1969. But what was the Cultural Revolution? The answer - surprise, surprise - is not straightforward. Intro and outro music curtesy of slip.stream: https://slip.stream/tracks/58fb6726-c035-4d10-a8e8-eba70e5164ad

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148 results

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