Myth of the 20th Century

Looking at it philosophically, one can’t avoid the conclusion that it is corruption, not tyranny, which leads to the overthrow of governments. A strong and vigorous government, no matter how oppressive, usually need not fear revolution. But a corrupt, inefficient, decadent government — even a benevolent one — is always ripe for revolution. The system... Read More

If the United States appeared invulnerable following the dissolution of its biggest geo-strategic rival, the Soviet Union, in 1990 and America’s military victory against Soviet-equipped tanks in Iraq in 1991, the 2000s began to chip away at this image starting with the destruction of the Twin Towers in New York City in 2001. By 2005,... Read More

“With the departure into the study of modernist philosophy as a psychotoxin hostile to ethnic identity and masculine solidarity, Rosenberg is creeping up the steps to the final crime scene of WWI that his quest is calibrated to somehow reverse. He is the coroner invited by his conscience and his own well- tempered sword of... Read More

Composed by an unknown bard sometime in the 8th century, Beowulf took on legendary status among the Anglo Saxon people as a folk tale describing a king, a culture, and the origins of a group that for centuries languished in the shadows, only to rise to world significance in the years to come. Myth of... Read More

Much of the history we in the English speaking world have of World War II focuses on the campaigns in Russia, Messerschmitts dogfighting with Spitfires over London, and the massive island campaigns in the Pacific between the Japanese and Americans. But one of the two founding members of the Axis Powers, Italy, receives much less... Read More

It’s been a while since all the crew here at Myth of the 20th Century could get together, but in the spirit of Christmas we are happy to say this time we managed. From all of us we hope you have good holiday, and to remember when external forces try to divide us, it is... Read More

The modern world is an integrated system of almost unfathomable complexity, built upon sub systems, technologies, people and practices that if partially removed or neglected sufficiently, result in disastrous supply chain break downs as witnessed in wartime or as the world seized up in response to an over-hyped flu virus in 2020. One of the... Read More

In the summer of 1975, two FBI agents were shot and killed after pursuing a vehicle onto private property near the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. This had come after several tense years of strife on the reservation, including the armed Wounded Knee standoff where the FBI encircled for 71 days members of... Read More

Japan is a country with a deep history of self reliance, demonstrating time and again that for a small island nation lacking in natural resources, they can not only hold their own, but come to dominate militarily, economically, and culturally. By the 1980s, Japan’s prowess in the economy had become apparent, with the manufacturing sector... Read More

The transportation equipment industry, broadly defined, includes all manufacturers of road, rail, water, and air vehicles, making up the largest component of the US manufacturing sector, constituting 3% of value added in the economy in 2019 when including related industries such as steel and petroleum. It has declined from 6% of the economy in 1955,... Read More

Once possessing the highest GDP per capita in the world by the end of the 19th century, with its capital city Buenos Aires being called the Paris of South America, Argentina has since fallen to a country that while prosperous, remains prone to financial crises and political turmoil. In dealing with this, Juan and Eva... Read More

We had a more historically focused show planned this week, but because of scheduling conflicts we’re doing an After Dark. Cheers. Music Credit: Kino (Кино) – Shut the Door Behind Me Myth of the 20th Century – Episode 189 – Missiles and Martinis – After Dark — References — Princes of the Yen, Werner (2003)... Read More

Humans, like all biological organisms, seek to leverage their natural surroundings to their benefit. The human capacity for rapid transformation of their environment, especially in modern times, is so great that some have come to call it by its own geological epoch, the Anthropocene. As with any power dynamic, incentives exist such that those with... Read More

Hailed by many as the greatest city in the world, New York grew from a series of small settlements in the 17th century to a bustling metropolis by the 19th through a combination of excellent geography, intensive trade and industrial development, and a concentration of cultural and business acumen. The growth produced tremendous problems along... Read More

When the fires of 2020 have finally died down, and the ashes have fallen to earth and smoke no longer clouds the air, one thing is certain – uncertainly and lack of clarity is the pattern that the leaders of this fallen nation have inflicted on the population either by design, gross incompetence, or both.... Read More

After the end of the second world war, America strode triumphant, unmatched the world over in surviving capital stock, industrial capacity, and economic and military power. No other industry epitomized this power more than steel, with the saying “where steel goes, the nation goes” capturing the alignment between the incentives of the business, working, and... Read More

If the events of 2020 have had a common theme, it is there is nowhere to hide. If the plague doesn’t get you, the riots will, followed by a helpful dose of economic displacement and firestorms from 20,000 simultaneous lightning strikes as seen in California recently. If this all doesn’t make one believe in a... Read More

Viewed from the lens of a business, whether in the form of t-shirts, movies, amusement parks or even cruises, the ubiquity of Disney’s empire is a sight to behold. Viewed as a cultural phenomenon, the company and the legacy of its founder in particular demonstrate similarly profound impacts on the moral framework of America and... Read More

In the words of historian and noted Russian scholar Dr. Matthew Raphael Johnson, the Soviet Union was the only empire to fall without a war. To the ordinary Russian citizen, however, the 1990s were no less tragic as life expectancy, average income, and birthrates all plummeted as crime, alcoholism and unemployment all rose. As the... Read More

Herbert Hoover’s reputation as President is quite often thought of in less favorable terms, having presided over the United States as it entered into the depths of the Great Depression in the 1930s. After the economic boom of the 1920s, the contrast was stark, and increasingly clear in Americans’ minds as Hoover’s limited attempts at... Read More

In a world of psy-ops, plutocrats and pandemics, many normal people are becoming desensitized if not immune to the latest scandals and dictates from the powers that be in one of the strangest years on record. Security pioneer and entrepreneur John McAfee, however, has long been familiar with world of cyber spying and industrial espionage.... Read More

Before the Industrial Revolution, economists saw land and agriculture as the fundamental source of wealth. When feudalism gave way to mass production and the increased power of manufacturing, labor and capital became the chief measures of economic might. With the coming of the information age, however, power has shifted away from large factories and massive... Read More

Power is an ancient concept, with formalized attempts at understanding it going back to at least Machiavelli and almost certainly to Sun Tzu. In a more modern context, authors Mesquita and Smith in their 2011 book ‘The Dictator’s Handbook’ explore the factors that drive how politicians gain and retain power, with special emphasis on coalition... Read More

Ever since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1990 and Francis Fukuyama declaring the ‘End of History’ with the ascendancy of the ‘Washington Consensus’, America has led the charge of globalization as a means of expanding and solidifying its empire. In theory, this means the general ‘liberalization’ of political systems, favoring democracies over authoritarian... Read More

Hailed by many as the greatest American movie ever made, Orson Welles’ debut film is a technical and artistic triumph, showcasing his acting ability and creative vision. As a commentary on great wealth and media power as a vehicle to high society, but not to close relationships, ‘Citizen Kane’ set the standard and remains a... Read More

In E. Michael Jones’ seminal work ‘Slaughter of Cities’ on the decline of ethnic-American urban neighborhoods in the 1960s and 70s, he notes the coordinated attempt by the elites and social engineers to destabilize individual races and form deracinated, relatively homogeneous black urban ghettos and white suburbs. The legacy of this phenomenon has not abated,... Read More

Nestled in the highest mountain region in the world, separated by treacherous passages, boundless desert and locked between the world’s two most populous nations, Tibet is home to an ancient people and a religion that transcends much of modernity. Maintaining this position has required a multitude of strategies over the centuries, including alliances ranging from... Read More