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PODCAST

History Impossible

Alexander von Sternberg

History Impossible covers some of the less-known, strange, and supposedly impossible events, people, and ideologies throughout history that are all nonetheless true. The settings and time periods range from the Second World War to ancient Japan to medieval Europe, and many more. The show engages with difficult ideas and impossible decisions that were made by human beings like you or me, always to significant effect. It goes out of its way to grant agency to all of its subjects and does its best to

history

All Episodes

113:46

The Yasuke Conspiracy (w/ Sebastian Major of Our Fake...

History Impossible ·

2024/08/27

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

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37:25

Why Hajj Amin Matters

History Impossible ·

2024/08/12

The 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

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362:13

The Muslim Nazis: The German Voice of Islam

History Impossible ·

2024/07/22

The 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

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70:57

Assassinations and Stoic Optimism (w/ The Eastern...

History Impossible ·

2024/07/16

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

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177:44

Questioning Anti-Zionism, Colonizing Gaza, and...

History Impossible ·

2024/06/11

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

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68:12

The Oddsmakers of Armageddon (w/ Benjamin Teitelbaum)

History Impossible ·

2024/05/20

“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

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81:53

The Soviet Who Saved the World (w/ The Eastern Border)

History Impossible ·

2024/04/29

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

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55:01

Oppenheimer and the Nuclear Question

History Impossible ·

2024/03/31

Hey 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

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46:55

Closing the Holocaust Knowledge Gap

History Impossible ·

2024/03/07

Hey 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

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91:04

The Holocaust Knowledge Gap w/ The History Underground

History Impossible ·

2024/02/23

In 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

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64:29

The Perfect Tie: The Election of 1876 (w/ Richard Lim...

History Impossible ·

2024/02/05

“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,

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245:19

The Bosnian Dream

History Impossible ·

2023/12/30

Sometimes, 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

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63:26

Pogroms and Students

History Impossible ·

2023/11/24

Hey 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

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62:21

The Greatest Blunder in Palestinian History w/ Oren...

History Impossible ·

2023/11/07

The 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

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107:15

Israel, Gaza, and Three Root Causes

History Impossible ·

2023/10/31

When 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

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75:41

Affirmative Action and the Making of a Token

History Impossible ·

2023/10/10

This 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

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30:06

Is The Holocaust Unique?

History Impossible ·

2023/09/19

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

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318:58

Balkan Inferno: The Heritage of Horror

History Impossible ·

2023/09/05

CONTENT 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

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257:00

Balkan Inferno: The Yugoslav Vortex

History Impossible ·

2023/06/27

“[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

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26:29

Pandemic Addendum: Gutenberg GPT

History Impossible ·

2023/06/13

Hello 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

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