What do you think were the most major events in American political history?

[Dee Dee Warren]

I am right now listening to a historical work called The Forgotten Man by Amity Shlaes- and like all history, it is being interpreted in a specific way by the author, I realize that, but in trying to filter out the bias and just listen to the facts, I have come to a dislike of Roosevelt's tactics during the depression era and see a great many of what I see as the unAmerican crap we have today as completely the spawn of that time. The other major event I think obviously was the civil war.

[Raptor]

Politics have always been contentious, even during the time of the founding fathers.

What does Shlaes mean by the "Forgotten Man"?

[Dee Dee Warren]

Politics have always been contentious, even during the time of the founding fathers.

What does Shlaes mean by the "Forgotten Man"?

It is interesting - he traces the origin of that term in which it was used to mean the middle person who shouldered the burden of entitlement programs. Roosevelt hijacked it to mean the exact opposite, and I despise when people to do that, to mean those he thought should be supported by everybody else. So the book goes through and examines "the forgotten man" card played by various sides and how this shifts, with the author's general bias being evident that he agrees that the true forgotten man is the one funding current entitlement programs that will only bankrupt the country and are doing the unethical robbery of future generation to give a "right" of entitlement to the current generation.

Politicis have of course been contentious, but there are true turning points. Roosevelt was a huge turning point in way that other presidents were not - in the type of grand scale that Lincoln was I think.

Socialism makes me want to puke.

[Conductor42]

I am right now listening to a historical work called The Forgotten Man by Amity Shlaes- and like all history, it is being interpreted in a specific way by the author, I realize that, but in trying to filter out the bias and just listen to the facts, I have come to a dislike of Roosevelt's tactics during the depression era and see a great many of what I see as the unAmerican crap we have today as completely the spawn of that time. The other major event I think obviously was the civil war.

The Trail of Tears comes to my mind, and the japanese internment camps in our own country.

[Amazing Rando]

Civil Rights movement.

[Dee Dee Warren]

The Trail of Tears comes to my mind, and the japanese internment camps in our own country.

Yes, I also just listened to another historical work called "O What a Slaughter" about the American Indians. Very good work, and in that, I think the author was much more careful to hide any bias than this current work I am listening to.

[Dee Dee Warren]

Civil Rights movement.

Maybe I wasn't precise enough, I am referring I guess more to things down on the national level by government - and the CRM I see more of a grass roots up type of thing. Definitely a huge and needed impact.

[Dee Dee Warren]

Oh and I haven't learned much about the Japanese internment camps, that is another area of American history that I am eager to learn about.

[Tfbandie]

I think the decision to use of atomic weapons at the end of WW2 is a major event to truly shock and awe the world and then foster in the cold war

[NeilUnreal]

It's already been mentioned, but the biggest one in my opinion was the Civil War. As Ken Burns pointed out, it was the event that made us a nation, in some ways even more so than the Revolution.

I think the Great Depression, which involved huge internal migrations, also did a lot to define us as a nation.

WWII and its aftermath turned us from being a nation of myriad discrete neighborhoods into being a nation of relatively monocultural suburbs, and so has had a huge effect on the last sixty years.

-Neil

[Ratnat]

It is interesting - he traces the origin of that term in which it was used to mean the middle person who shouldered the burden of entitlement programs. Roosevelt hijacked it to mean the exact opposite, and I despise when people to do that, to mean those he thought should be supported by everybody else. So the book goes through and examines "the forgotten man" card played by various sides and how this shifts, with the author's general bias being evident that he agrees that the true forgotten man is the one funding current entitlement programs that will only bankrupt the country and are doing the unethical robbery of future generation to give a "right" of entitlement to the current generation.

Politicis have of course been contentious, but there are true turning points. Roosevelt was a huge turning point in way that other presidents were not - in the type of grand scale that Lincoln was I think.

Socialism makes me want to puke.

I too think Lincoln and FDR were "turning point" leaders in the history of the US.

Why does socialism make you want to puke? I think it gets a bad rap sometimes because it is misunderstood. I think socialism on the local level up through the state level is most effective but realize it often fails at the federal level.

I don't think entitlement programs are to blame as much as the squandering of our public funds to engage in unwarranted military exploits.

Morally speaking, I would rather have my money go to feed the 21 year old single mom with 3 kids or the 85 year old grandmother or even educate the child of an undocumented immigrant than to risk killing an innocent family in a foreign country.

[Dee Dee Warren]

I too think Lincoln and FDR were "turning point" leaders in the history of the US.

Yes obviously I agree absolutely.

Why does socialism make you want to puke? I think it gets a bad rap sometimes because it is misunderstood. I think socialism on the local level up through the state level is most effective but realize it often fails at the federal level.

It is immoral and thievery. It is social DRM and will always utterly fail leaving blood in its wake eventually.

Morally speaking, I would rather have my money go to feed the 21 year old single mom with 3 kids or the 85 year old grandmother or even educate the child of an undocumented immigrant than to risk killing an innocent family in a foreign country.

Morally I think you SHOULD have that choice. Not Big Brother or Sister if socialist-leaning Hillary (God forbid ) gets elected.

[Dee Dee Warren]

It's already been mentioned, but the biggest one in my opinion was the Civil War. As Ken Burns pointed out, it was the event that made us a nation, in some ways even more so than the Revolution.

I think the Great Depression, which involved huge internal migrations, also did a lot to define us as a nation.

WWII and its aftermath turned us from being a nation of myriad discrete neighborhoods into being a nation of relatively monocultural suburbs, and so has had a huge effect on the last sixty years.

-Neil

I know it is alleged that Lincoln abused the Presidency and some of his actions during the Civil War, and I am learning a bit now of some of the moves that FDR did, that we are suffering from today.

I wish we had "the Four Horsemen" of that Supreme Court that existed back then.

[Philosophickle]

The Patriot Act.

[Conductor42]

Yes, I also just listened to another historical work called "O What a Slaughter" about the American Indians. Very good work, and in that, I think the author was much more careful to hide any bias than this current work I am listening to.

I'm thinking about visiting one of the camps (2 are within a day's drive) this spring

The Betrayal Act.

fixed.