Resources on History – Political

Learning on the Run

By Charlie Wingard · December 11, 2013 · 2 Comments
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Until October, when I had to curtail my activities, I enjoyed listening to history lectures on my longer runs. Below are some of my favorites. Series from The Teaching Company: The Conservative Tradition, Patrick Allitt Famous Greeks, Rufus Fears Famous Romans, Rufus Fears Robert E. Lee and His High Command, Gary Gallagher The American Mind, Allen Guelzo Donald Kagan’s “Ancient Greek History” lectures are available for free through Open Yale Courses. Both audio and video are available.  In one lecture he  uses students to demonstrate the hoplite phalanx. The video is hilarious. I remain an enthusiastic subscriber to Ken Myers’ Mars Hill Audio Journal, which “is committed to assisting Christians who desire to move from thoughtless consumption of contemporary culture…

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A Leader’s Mature Judgment

By Charlie Wingard · December 2, 2013 · 0 Comments
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The excerpt below comes from a 1774 speech by Edmund Burke after his election to represent Bristol in Parliament. He argues that a representative, as he makes laws in a deliberative assembly, is not bound to vote the mandates of those who elected him. Instead, he must exercise his mature judgment, which may lead him to vote contrary to the wishes of his constituency. If he is unable to persuade his constituency of the merits of his action, they may remove him. Accepting the risk of electoral defeat, the representative must lead. Certainly, gentlemen, it ought to be the happiness and glory of a representative to live in the strictest union, the closest correspondence, and the most unreserved communication with…

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