I don't know much about this topic in particular, so I don't have any real details about it, but I've seen it referenced in so many places that it's made me curious. The only source I can actually remember is Forrest Gump, where one of Forrest's superiors loses his legs and later becomes homeless.
Why did so many Vietnam War veterans become homeless? Does this happen frequently to veterans in general?
3 Answers 2016-10-13
I'm just curious. Saw some funny videos and now I want to know if they have ever been in any combat.
3 Answers 2016-10-13
There has been a number of attempts recently (Jonathan Sperber of MU 2013, and Gareth Stedman Jones of QMU 2016) to historicize the life and writings of Karl Marx, apparently to paint a contrast between Marx's ideas and the apparent relevance of his critiques' derivatives in Neo-Marxism, Socialism, and Communism. I was reading a review of these books, in which the critic summarized that Marx was a figure distinctly tied to his times: much of his writing, which has been interpreted as prophetic by later communist societies, were simply cryptic allusions to current events, for example.
Yet, as the reviewer points out, Marx was not a popular figure in his day. He was a political exile less because of some revolutionary horde of followers, but more because he was a polemic writer. When he published the Communist Manifesto, it quickly fell out of circulation. Similarly, Kapital -- a behemoth of a book that he dedicated decades of research to -- didn't make a large splash during his lifetime, and was never finished. Rather, it was Engels who compiled, edited, and published his loose papers to 'complete' the project for his longtime friend and colleague. The review then goes on to generalize that many of Marx's oft-quoted manuscripts were not published until many decades after his death, presumably because Marx himself did not view them to be worthy of publication.
So, my question. Since Marx was apparently disliked, relatively obscure within his own field (let alone within the population at large), and never had any significant students or colleagues aside from Engels, how were his ideas carried into the world after his death? Who was responsible for his deification? How do we get from a polemic philosopher that contemporaries had no time for to the international spread of Communism, inspired loosely from Marxist ideas? Why do we see 'Marxism' as a product of Marx's writings, if so much responsibility for the proliferation of his ideas is owed to his quasi-religious proponents? Finally, if my premise is flawed (e.g. if these authors' historicizings of Marx are colored against him by a distaste for his ideas), I'd love to see some meta-discussion criticizing the review as well. Thanks!
1 Answers 2016-10-13
Does he mean the emperor of China?
1 Answers 2016-10-13
I know there is a term for it and I can't remember what it is. I was just reading more about siege warfare and militaries of the medieval times and it got me thinking about this term that I can't think of.
1 Answers 2016-10-13
This week, ending in October 13 2016:
Today's thread is for open discussion of:
History in the academy
Historiographical disputes, debates and rivalries
Implications of historical theory both abstractly and in application
Philosophy of history
And so on
Regular participants in the Thursday threads should just keep doing what they've been doing; newcomers should take notice that this thread is meant for open discussion only of matters like those above, not just anything you like -- we'll have a thread on Friday for that, as usual.
4 Answers 2016-10-13
This is one of these historical figures which always baffle me. Read a lot about him and he is a frequent subject in pop culture. And even the supposed truth about him always seems far fetched.
1 Answers 2016-10-13
Apologies in advance for the quality, but this is the footage in question.
What appears to be some sort of grenade launcher is the weapon that I'm the most curious about, because I've never seen anything like it before. Can anyone identify that and the other weapons in this video?
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In many World War II movies and tv shows, American soldiers are often shown to be very profane and sexually crass.
This is seen in 'Saving Private Ryan', 'Band of Brothers' and particularly 'The Pacific'.
I also read an article online from containing excerpts from veterans who had seen 'The Pacific' and were slightly unsettled by the liberal use of 'fuck' and sexually aggressive remarks toward women.
Article in question: http://www.veteranstoday.com/2010/06/14/but-we-didnt-talk-that-way-by-randy-ark-staff-writer/
Thanks.
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In England between 1300 and 1600, what powers and rights did Dukes, Marquesses, Earls, Viscounts, and Barons have? Did these titles come with land that they ruled? Was there a bureaucracy with cerain barons under certain viscounts, etc? What made the real differences between these titles?
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I understand that idea's were pushed about the Clean Wehrmacht, the Rommel Myth and many other misconceptions about the Third Reich after World War II. I understand that chief among them was Liddell Hart in order to enhance his own reputation. I have also read commonly this was used as an argument to rearm Germany to fight the Soviets, which makes me question whether or not this was pushed at a Government level or by Academics or even Media?
Furthermore, was there no critical scholarship of these points or the memoirs of the German generals such as Manstein or Guderian? Was this all a coincidence of how post World War II scholarship played out or was their a larger conspiracy at play?
2 Answers 2016-10-13
Spoiler below:
In (one of) the ending of "Das Boot", the submarine finally makes it back home to a welcoming ceremony, and moments later an allied bombing raid catches them completely by surprise and destroys the dockyard.
To me it seemed a bit inprobable that the planes could just swoop down, unseen and unopposed, and wreck a (very?) important military installation.
1 Answers 2016-10-13
In a reddit discussion on the pilot Franz Stigler it was claimed that Luftwaffe members weren't allowed to join the Nazi Party. "A Higher Call" by Adam Makos was cited as a source.
I find that very hard to believe, but I was hoping someone could shed some light on the Luftwaffe stance on membership in the Nazi Party, officially and perhaps unofficially.
Thanks!
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Soon before the atomic bombings the US and its allies (but not the Soviets apparently) issued a demand for surrender of the Japanese forces, and threatened destruction if they did not comply.
Why did they not allude directly to the atomic weaponry in their possession?
Was it concerns of interception of the weapon?
Concerns that failure of the weapon would be an embarrassment?
1 Answers 2016-10-13
Amazon says it only just came out in February 2016.
It's about hoplite, phalanx and pike warfare and supposed to be fairly in-depth.
1 Answers 2016-10-13
In a newspaper shown in Ken Burns: The Civil War he is addressed as "Gen. Jefferson Davis": did he ever hold formal military rank in the army of the Confederate States? Did any of his military ranks from his service with the United States (Colonel, Lieutenant, Secretary of War) carry over?
1 Answers 2016-10-13