Dave Power and I talk about enlightened despots and the “greats”: Peter, Catherine, Frederick, Akbar, Abbas, Shivaji, Sejeong, as well as the Sikh Empire and the Ayuttaya Kingdom.
Category: Anti-Empire Project Podcast
The Anti-Empire Project podcast (formerly the Ossington Circle)
Civilizations Series Episode 3: Constitutional Monarchies and England’s Glorious Revolution
With David Power. If the quintessential absolute monarchy was Louis XIV, the quintessential constitutional monarchy is England after the Glorious Revolution. We talk about King Charles losing his head and foreshadow (following Gerald Horne) the dire consequences of this for Africa and Africans as it enabled a massive expansion of the slave trade. For our anarchist listeners, we’ve also got Guy Fawkes, the gunpowder treason, the Diggers, and the Levelers.Â
The Anti-Empire Project Episode 46: Biden and Imperial Propaganda
Starting with the hectoring of the Bernie movement by liberals to vote Biden – including their sudden discovery of Chomsky, who has always endorsed voting “the lesser evil”. From there, it’s on to early 20th century propaganda in both its British and American imperial incarnations.
Civilizations Series Episode 2: The Absolute Monarchies of Europe
The transition of European kingdoms from feudalism to absolute monarchy, with Russia, Prussia, and of course France under Louis XIV as examples. We open with some discussion of state formation, mentioning Plato’s The Republic, Chanakya’s Arthasastra, and Charles Tilly’s Coercion, Capital and European States.
The Anti-Empire Project Episode 45: How will the working class respond after COVID-19? With Sam Gindin
I talk to Sam Gindin about capitalism and the COVID-19 crisis. We started with economics, but it is really about consciousness, politics, expectations, and the struggles ahead.
Civilizations Series Episode 1: The World in 1492
In the first episode of our Modern Civilizations Course, a quick tour of the world around 1492 – Aztec, Inka, Ming China, Ottoman Turk, Mughal India, Kongo Kingdom, Haudenosonee Confederacy, and a breakdown of some European polities.
Introduction to the Civilizations Series
Introducing the Civilizations Series. We’re going to go through the canon of a “Modern Western Civilizations” history course, but we’re going to fix it – we’re going to put the people’s, the east, and the global south in and re-center your civilizations history. This first episode is a short introduction to our plan. I’m joined by retired history teacher David Power.
The Anti-Empire Project Episode 44: Bernie quits; and don’t be progressive
Justin and Dan start by grieving because Bernie ended his presidential bid today. Then on to a history the imperialism and racism of the Progressive Era and why “progressive” and “leftist” are words for two different politics.
The Anti-Empire Project Episode 43: Two Chomskyites Trapped in 2020
Justin and Dan (that’s Dan Freeman-Maloy, for new listeners) talk about Chomsky – and not just manufacturing consent, but Chomsky’s influence on their political thinking, where they might have tiny disagreements, and how they try to use Chomsky’s work to think through political problems in 2020.
The Anti-Empire Project Episode 42: US Troops at the Venezuelan border
We recorded quickly to react to the attack on a naval patrol boat (the Naiguata) off the coast of Venezuela and the positioning of US troops at the Venezuela-Colombia border. With Maria Victor and Joe Emersberger.