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Posted on 05/19/2019 2:31:58 PM PDT by conservatism_IS_compassion
Historian Wilfred McClay aspires to be the antidote to Zinn, whom he accuses of “greatly oversimplifying the past and turning American history into a comic-book melodrama in which ‘the people’ are constantly being abused by ‘the rulers.’ ” Mr. McClay’s counterpoint, which comes out next week, is titled “Land of Hope: An Invitation to the Great American Story.”
He says . . . he’s seen too many students drawn to Zinn because the standard textbooks are visionless and tedious. “Just as nature abhors a vacuum,” Mr. McClay says, “so a culture will find some kind of grand narrative of itself to feed upon, even a poisonous one.” . . .
Mr. McClay’s objective in “Land of Hope” is to help readers develop a sense of perspective and “a mastery of the detail” of American history. The Zinn approach allows them to be lazy: “Why learn what the Wilmot Proviso was, or what exactly went into the Compromise of 1850, when you could just say 'original sin of slavery'?”
By contrast, “Land of Hope” delves into the complexity of the Founders’ debates over slavery. Many expected it would eventually end on its own, or believed the alternative to accepting it—abandoning the union—was worse. Some were conflicted. The book describes George Mason as “a slaveholder but also a Christian who labeled the trade an ‘infernal traffic’ ” . . . The Founders had to weigh what was possible, not just what was ideal—and Mr. McClay thinks it’s unfair to denounce them for failing to meet today’s standards.
“Land of Hope” is being published by a conservative house, Encounter Books. He probably won’t sell many copies to public schools, but he hopes there are enough private and religious and charter schools, not to mention home-schoolers, that it will find a market.
(Excerpt) Read more at wsj.com ...
Ping.
Thanks for posting. Choices BUMP!
Howard Zinn, eh? I know I have probably told you this before, butI had kind of a funny experience (well, at least it was funny to me) with my introduction to Howard Zinn…
My departed mother-in-law was, in life, a major-league liberal. She was a community organizer type of liberal. Now, I didn’t know this about her before I married my wife, but it wouldn’t have made a difference to me.
As the years went on, both my viewpoints and her viewpoints became known to each of us… and we entered a phase where she would say things deliberately to get a response out of me (or to see if I would just sit and say nothing)
Needless to say, I wasn’t about to sit and get baited by my mother-in-law, so I gave back in like kind when she initiated something. This went on for a relatively short period of time, then we kind of came to a mutual understanding. Neither one of us said a thing, but the understanding was there nonetheless that we would keep the peace by keeping our tongue. Not to say she wouldn’t occasionally poke at me (or me at her) but after that, that was pretty much all it was. I was kind of got the impression she was doing it just to see if I would stand up for myself.
In any case, I received a Christmas present from her one particular year. She knew that I was a history buff, and I read history prodigiously, so it was no surprise to me when I opened one of her Christmas presents and saw a history book. It was a fairly good-sized glossy volume, and I figured I’d put my feet up when I got home and begin reading.
When I got home, I opened the book up and began reading. At first, I was puzzled. “What the heck is this?” I read little bit further, and got even more perplexed. “What the hell kind of book is this?” I thought to myself.
I immediately begin skipping through the book, preferentially stopping in key areas in American history. As I reached each section, I would read sometimes only a sentence, or occasionally a paragraph. After I had been through multiple sections in this manner, I stood up angrily and exclaimed “screw this piece of crap!”
I walked out in the garage and through the book in the trash.
The name of the book was “The People’s History of the United States” by Howard Zinn.
I was appalled. I had never seen a history book quite like that one. I was even more disturbed to find out later that this was an actual textbook used in public school classrooms all over the country. I’m still appalled at that thought.
In retrospect, it popped into my mind almost immediately as I was throwing the book in the trash, that this was perhaps my mother-in-law poking her finger in my eye. After a few more seconds of contemplation, I guessed that was not the case.
Knowing how my mother-in-law shops, particularly for Christmas presents, this book was almost undoubtedly on the bargain bookshelf at the front of the Borders bookstore when she walked in. I’d be willing to bet that she didn’t pay more than a few dollars for, because I doubt you could find it inside the store at regular price.
So, every time I hear the name Howard Zinn, I think of the anti-American far left political screed that was his book, that I had the pleasure to throw into a garbage can.
*ping*
Let’s name names. FReeper LS is history professor Larry Schweikart, and his Patriot’s History of the U.S. should be on your bookshelf, folks.
http://www.patriotshistoryusa.com/author-bios/dr-larry-schweikart/
He is the antidote to Howard Zinn.
Get her back. Get her the book in the replied-to post.
The solution for our problems isn’t waiting for some other book writers to maybe show up some day and have them do it.
(This isn’t criticism of McClay, just so that is out there.)
The solution is for us to get up and do it ourselves.
We cannot leave history to “the historians” anymore. We need citizen historians - people who are specifically not connected to it in any way. Just like our biggest problem is that we don’t have enough citizen activists and citizen legislators.
The progressives never fail to show up. It’s our guys who fail to show up.
Nature abhors a vacuum.
I remember when people would misrepresent what the Bush administration was doing, and W’s and Roves flippant response was that they would leave it up to the historians to sort it out. Yeah real smart.
One of the things that upset me the most about the Bush Presidency. Right or wrong, he just let himself get walked all over.
Not Trump. Every time he tweets out to those scum, I love it.
She’s been gone now for a while, I suspect she now knows which side Leftist ideology is really on.
Also here, from Ricochet Podcasting:
https://ricochet.com/podcast/powerline/the-antidote-to-howard-zinn-land-of-hope-with-wilfred-mcclay/
Question is, will school adopt this textbook?
Sounds interesting — thanks for posting.
Excellent story. Thanks. Sounds like my relationship with my sister.
“We would keep the peace by keeping our tongue.” Yup. Just keep the conversation superficial about weather and family to avoid interesting topics such as religion, politics and physics.
Howard Zinn in public schools? Very sad.
I see the stubbornness of leftists as a spiritual problem. My sister doesn’t say the rosary, doesn’t go to confession and doesn’t bow before the Almighty with remorse. Stunted and no growth.
Fifteen or so years ago a couple od Freepers wrote and published A Patriots History of America. It was well done. My Asst Prin and I ordered
a class set for our Queens JHS. Another teacher had a class set of Zinn and the AP thought it was a good idea to have an antidote to Zinn. Compare and contrast.
zinn is to history what nye is to science... neither have a degree in that which they blabber about
I was shocked to hear it was used as a school textbook!
I know the school book publishing industry is a scam, and it is populated by Leftists.
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