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This is the first post in a series discussing the basic contours of life – birth, marriage, labor, subsistence, death – of pre-modern peasants and their families. Prior to the industrial revolution, peasant farmers of varying types made up the overwhelming majority of people in settled societies (the sort with cities and writing). And when … Continue reading Collections: Life, Work, Death and the Peasant, Part I: Households →
As is traditional here, I am taking advantage of the Fourth of July this week to write something about the United States, this time a brief discussion of the nature of civil-military relations in the United States. Civil-military relations (typically shortened to ‘civ-mil’ or sometimes CMR) is, simply put, the relationship between the broader civil … Continue reading Collections: The American Civil-Military Relationship →
Fireside this week! Originally, I was thinking I’d talk about the ‘future of classics’ question in this space, but I think that deserves a full post (in connection with this week’s book recommendation and the next fireside’s book recommendation), so instead this week I want to talk a little about foreign policy realism, what it … Continue reading Fireside Friday, June 27, 2025 (On the Limits of Realism) →
This week at long last we come to the clash of men and horses as we finish our three-part (I, II, III) look at the iconic opening battle scene from the film Gladiator (2000). Last time, we brought the sequence up through the infantry advance, observing that the tactics of the Roman arrow barrage and … Continue reading Collections: Nitpicking Gladiator’s Iconic Opening Battle, Part III →
More in history
The Aztec Empire is among the most talked about Mesoamerican societies. The prominent empire spanned between 1325 and 1521 CE and covered a significant portion of the modern-day regions of central and southern Mexico. While historians refer to the inhabitants as the Aztecs, they did not use this term to refer to themselves. Instead, […]
“I wanted to show the whole picture of the Black Panther Party. Most of the media focused on the rallies and looked for controversy. I wanted to show what it was like behind the scenes and portray a more complete, complicated portrait of the Panthers.” – Stephen Shames photographs The Black Panthers, 1967 – 1973 … Continue reading "Photographing The Black Panthers: All Power To The People (1967 – 1973)" The post Photographing The Black Panthers: All Power To The People (1967 – 1973) appeared first on Flashbak.
In the final verses of the Gospel of Matthew we find a passage that is often called “the Great Commission.” Matthew’s Gospel ends abruptly, with the resurrected Christ appearing to the disciples one last time and saying the words that would later become famous as the Great Commission before he ascends into heaven. These […]
