Historian, writer, teacher, author of Men on Horseback: The Power of Charisma in the Age of Revolution.
Princeton, NJ
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With Twitter quite possible sinking, I've decided to start a Substack to let anyone who is interested follow my work. It is entirely free, and I promise not to flood your Inbox with random musings and hate posts. Please consider subscribing!
davidabell.substack.com/p/ab…
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Thread: It is scary, but also weirdly fascinating, how a coherent anti-democratic ideology is taking hold on the American right today. It has three distinct parts. /1
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“I have never downplayed the seriousness of it. I have never downplayed the severity of it.” Rush Limbaugh, 6/29.
“It’s the common cold, folks.” Rush Limbaugh, 2/24.
washingtonpost.com/nation/20… rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2020/…
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Its practical significance is that it allows the right to dismiss the importance of the popular vote, and to defend all the non-democratic and anti-democratic mechanisms that give the aging white non-urban minority such disproportional power in this country... /3
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namely unequal Senate representation, the electoral college, the filibuster, gerrymandering, voter suppression—and ultimately, perhaps, the right of state legislatures to overturn their own states’ popular votes. /4
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First, there is the idea that the United States is not a democracy, but a republic. This idea has a long pedigree, of course, going back to the founding, even if most subsequent American political history contradicts it. /2
theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv…
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Put these 3 elements together, and a simple message emerges. The Democrats are using illegal methods to “destroy the country,” and in response, the right is justified in using all the “republican" methods at its disposal to put a traditionalist, Orbán-like figure into power. /9
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Will it end up being a set of fringe ideas that cannot, in the end, compete with long-standing American political tradition? Or will it end up being something considerably more dangerous? I have no idea. But I do think it is worth taking seriously. /end
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Finally, there is the explicit praise for authoritarian leaders abroad, past and present, who claim to be acting in defense of “Western values”: Portugal’s 20th-c. dictator Salazar, Vladimir Putin, and most prominently of late, Viktor Orbán of Hungary. /7
slate.com/news-and-politics/…
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The people of New York City erasing history, July 9, 1776 (statue of George III on Bowling Green being torn down after the reading of the Declaration of Independence).
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in order to “replace” the existing population with foreigners who do not have the same commitment to our “values.” This allows them to present the “crisis at the border” as an existential threat to the country’s existence, and not just as a source of scary Mexican criminality. /6
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These men’s thuggery, corruption, and brutal repression of political enemies, LGBTQ people and minorities are dismissed as lies and exaggeration by the “lamestream” media. /8
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Second, there is the theory of “replacement,” recently championed by Newt Gingrich and Tucker Carlson: i.e. the idea that the Democrats are deliberately encouraging both legal and illegal immigration... /5
thedailybeast.com/newt-gingr…
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But the fact that the large majority of Republicans still believe that the election was stolen clearly indicates that they are receptive to the ideology, and ready to support explicitly authoritarian measures in order to "save the country." /13
news.yahoo.com/poll-two-thir…
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In France, distances are officially measured from a "point zero" directly in front of Notre Dame. The cathedral is located on the central island of Paris, the Île de la Cité but this still gives a good sense of its symbolic importance to the French nation.
atlasobscura.com/places/pari…
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For the moment, we shouldn't assume that this ideology has conquered the GOP. Most Republican office-holders at this stage have not in fact condoned legislatures overturning their states' popular vote, or endorsed replacement theory, or expressed admiration for Viktor Orbán. /10
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Despite Tucker Carlson’s best efforts, most rank-and-file Republicans have probably never heard of Viktor Orbán. /11
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Some people are complaining about the new name of this holiday by saying Columbus was moral by the standards of his day. Even if this were true (it’s not), remember that the people of his day are not the ones marking the holiday. We are. It is our standards that count, not his.
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The Claremont Institute--which has probably done the most behind the scenes to shape the ideology--does not reflect the views of most Republicans. /12
thebulwark.com/what-the-hell…
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Why is Trump even being asked if he will honor the results of the election? It only gives people (not least, Trump himself) the idea that he has a choice in the matter.
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Deeply saddened to hear of the death of Natalie Zemon Davis (1928-2023). A brilliant, warm, inspiring teacher, a person of astonishing generosity and integrity, and one of the greatest historians of our time. May her memory be a blessing.
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"The real enemy, he writes, is 'the century-old predominance of germ theory.' That’s right. Our new head of HHS doesn’t believe germs are the main cause of infectious disease. It’s like learning that the new NASA administrator thinks the Earth is flat."
commentary.org/articles/jame…
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In 1793, French Revolutionaries turned Notre Dame into a "Temple of Reason." In 1804, Napoleon Bonaparte crowned himself Emperor of the French there. And in 1831, Victor Hugo published his great novel "Notre Dame de Paris," featuring the hunchback Quasimodo.
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Yep. That is why the German Democratic Republic is proudly celebrating its 70th anniversary this year, and it looks like Germany will be divided forever.
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If you want to make sure the wind turbines in Texas can function in the cold, just put @tedcruz in front of them. His supply of hot air is infinite.
I’m making sure we do everything we can to get the power turned on in Texas and to make sure this never happens again.
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"even further Left"???
Joe Biden’s real objective with the Supreme Court: nominate someone who is a liberal vote 100% of the time and someone who will drive the court even further Left. #Verdict
piped.video/2seoK5xAdjo
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In the new De Gaulle bio, Julian Jackson writes that on the flight to England in 1940, the General asked for coffee. He received a cup, tasted it, and said, “no, this is tea.” “No sir, it is coffee,” came the reply. Jackson comments: “His martyrdom had begun.”
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Amazing number of errors in this piece @washingtonpost, starting with the facts that Allen Guelzo is not a Princeton history professor, and that critical race theory did not start with Immanuel Kant, who was not a foe of reason. washingtonpost.com/opinions/…
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1. A quick thought on Peggy Noonan's wretched WSJ piece. In it, she calls the French Revolution "a moral and political catastrophe... For ten years they simply enjoyed killing each other... It was a revolution largely run by sociopaths."
wsj.com/articles/what-were-r…
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The “anomalies” are that Biden got more votes in some cities than in others, and as a result won the states in question. Clear evidence of fraud!
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Annual streaming costs:
NetFlix $108
Hulu $72
YouTube $120
Showtime $132
Disney+ $84
Harvard $50,420
(H/t Jerry Muller)
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The students quoted here seem unable to grasp the point that good grades are not simply a reward for putting in a lot of effort.
Harvard students pushed back against a new University report condemning grade inflation, arguing that it misrepresented their academic experience and would add pressure to an already demanding campus.
@wzrenwick and @nirjatriv report.
thecrimson.com/article/2025/…
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Maybe Texas should also ban the rather famous book that features scenes of incest, child murder, adultery, torture, fratricide, etc.
nbcnews.com/news/us-news/tex…
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1. Thanks to @ProfDaveAndress for pointing out this disgraceful article that gives credence to far-right conspiracy theories and ignores copious scholarship and debate. quillette.com/2019/03/10/the…
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Future events
(chronological order):
*Reelection of Trump
*Collapse of world economy
*Flooding of coastal regions worldwide
*Global warming exterminates all life
*Sun becomes red giant, swallows earth
*Heat death of universe
*Construction completed on I-95 north of Philadelphia
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As @KevinMKruse predicted: "Whereas before conservatives insisted the bomber’s method told us everything we needed to know about his ideology, now they insist it tells us nothing at all about his ideology." nymag.com/intelligencer/2018…
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Historians of the US: So Tommy Tuberville thinks we fought WW2 to free Europe from socialism, and that the three branches of government are the House, Senate and presidency. Is he the most ignorant person ever elected to the US Senate? Other contenders?
It really is worth reading this interview with @TTuberville in full. There is a lot here -- his view of the 3 branches of government, what the US was fighting in Europe in WWII, Al Gore's apparently 30-day presidency, whether to learn the Senate rules...
aldailynews.com/in-the-weeds…
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We can mock people for taking horse dewormer for COVID, but one reason they do it is because of a system in which powerful prescription medications are advertised like candy and people are encouraged to “do their own research” and make decisions that should be left to doctors.
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Stephen Kotkin discusses Ukraine with David Remnick.
newyorker.com/news/q-and-a/s…
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First reactions to "Napoleon": As pure entertainment and spectacle, pretty impressive. As drama, pretty good, but the acting is uneven and the characters only partly convincing. As history, um... the word "travesty" comes to mind. /1
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8. The French Revolution also prompted a lot more thinking about the rights of women and of non-whites than the American Revolution ever did.
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4. which Noonan thinks so highly of, if you think it was "non-violent," well, go read E.P. Thompson. Or, for that matter, talk to just about anyone in Ireland.
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Very upsetting to hear Spanish spoken in The Angels, Saint Francis, Saint James, Holy Faith, Holy Cross, and all those other cities in the west with good old-fashioned English names.
washingtonpost.com/business/…
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As a historian of France, it's hard not to find the fuss over the #1619Project somewhat amusing. The idea that there are radically different interpretations of a country's history, some of which challenge long-cherished notions, is not exactly a surprising one. /1
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Just received my first text from Jack Schlossberg, who is running for my NY 12 Congressional district. Almost entirely about his family, especially his grandfather JFK. Nothing about his own qualifications. Does he have any?
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Good for him, but it does leave open the question of why UGA was relying on an 88-year-old rehiree to teach, instead of trying to create a new faculty position.
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Classic GOP use of “American Exceptionalism.” We are exceptional because freer than socialist police states like… Canada. Depends on not actually knowing anything about other countries, as you can read in my essay for @KevinMKruse and @julianzelizer’s forthcoming “Myth America.”
Anyone who has ever casually dismissed American Exceptionalism as some arrogant and self-centric notion might do well to look at countries like Canada and Australia right now.
The Bill of Rights actually matters, a lot.
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Candidate whose positions would identify him as moderate center-left in Western Europe elected Mayor of New York City.
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1. One more time. People really need to be taking what this columnist says seriously and sounding the alarm bells. The world faces any number of terrible problems right now: plague, climate change, inequality, etc. Americans can address NONE of these if...
washingtonpost.com/opinions/…
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James Sweet has started a pretty predictable Twitterstorm with his critique of “presentism,” and of “read[ing] the past through the prism of contemporary social justice issues—race, gender, sexuality, nationalism, capitalism.” But what is presentism? /1
historians.org/publications-…
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Reminds me of an old joke. An American says to a Russian: "We have free speech, because I can stand in front of the White House and shout 'down with Nixon!'" Russian replies: "Then we have free speech too! Because I can stand in front of the Kremlin and shout 'down with Nixon!'"
Meanwhile on Russian state TV: a never-ending Tucker fest. This clip seems to be one of their latest favorites, I'm seeing it everywhere.
#TuckyoRose
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More than sixty years ago, Yuri Gagarin went into orbit around the earth, and Alan Shepard completed a suborbital flight reaching an altitude of over 100 nautical miles. The idea that this flight is any sort of landmark is actually pretty pathetic.
Jeff, Mark, Wally and Oliver are now getting into their seats, buckling up, and preparing for hatch close in advance of #NewShepard’s flight to space and back. #NSFirstHumanFlight
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The Dawn of Everything by David Graeber and David Wengrow has been extravagantly hyped in the media, and is #2 on the NYT best-seller list. But its treatment of the Enlightenment comes close to scholarly malpractice. My take. persuasion.community/p/a-fla…
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Another new piece of mine: my review of Sudhir Hazareesingh’s terrific biography of Toussaint Louverture. theguardian.com/books/2020/a…
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As every year at this time, incredibly annoyed by academic institutions that think submitting letters of recommendations requires a level of security appropriate for the transmission of atomic secrets, and expects me to remember a unique password that I last used a year ago.
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Pity we can’t make basic scientific literacy (as in, fifth-grade level) a condition for being able to serve in Congress...
@replouiegohmert questioning the associate deputy chief for the National Forest System at a House Natural Resources Committee hearing. nitter.app/mollyjongfast/status/1… h/t @MollyJongFast
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The various tattoo scandals remind me of a story about Sweden’s King Karl XIV Johan, born Jean Bernadotte. He was a French Revolutionary & Napoleonic general before becoming Swedish Crown Prince in 1810. At his death the words “Death to all kings” were found tattooed on his arm.
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So excited. Just heard on Fox News that America is becoming a socialist country tomorrow. Looking forward to all Americans enjoying decent, affordable healthcare, childcare, public transportation, housing, and primary, secondary and higher education...
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No, democracy isn't the "objective." But it's the basic condition. Only a sovereign people, through democratic action, can be trusted to define which forms of liberty, peace and prosperity are right for itself--for all the people. As the Preamble to the Constitution states.
Democracy isn’t the objective; liberty, peace, and prospefity are. We want the human condition to flourish. Rank democracy can thwart that.
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2. It reminds me of the classic scene in Monty Python's "Life of Brian," in which the John Cleese character asks, "What have the Romans ever done for us?" If you don't know it, you can watch it here: piped.video/watch?v=2ozEZxOs…
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BREAKING: After discovery of interview in which Trump praises Stalin, Pol Pot and Charles Manson, and admits to torturing puppies, support among Republicans drops to 93%.
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Whitaker's appointment as Acting Attorney General is unconstitutional.
nytimes.com/2018/11/08/opini…
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RIP Claire Bretécher, one of the truly great, original cartoonists. This one was on my office door for many years.
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Much as I have been hesitant to use the adjective “fascist” about Donald Trump, today’s events look to me like the 1923 Beer Hall Putsch. It was incompetent, like today’s would-be coup. The Weimar Republic survived... but only for a decade. Our republic too will survive. Today.
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Coming soon! With essays by Keith Michael Baker, Thomas Dodman & Rebecca Spang, Christine Haynes, Jeff Horn, Colin Jones, Rahul Markovits, Christy Pichichero, Emma Rothschild, Miranda Spieler, Timothy Tackett and yours truly.
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You spend years of your life researching a subject, trying to understand it, writing about it, teaching about it, and then you read something like this and wonder why you bothered...
wsj.com/articles/what-were-r…
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My new review, of Christopher Clark’s history of the 1848 revolutions. thenation.com/article/archiv…
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When asked about historians who had pointed out the (much less serious) errors visible in the trailer, Ridley Scott said: "get a life." Fair enough. He's an artist, not a historian. But a lot of people don't get this. They will think this is the real history, and that's a shame.
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Sad that such obvious points even need to be stated. nytimes.com/2019/10/30/opini… via @NYTOpinion
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3. The French Revolution did indeed lead to a great deal of horrific bloodshed. Of course, the American Revolution was not exactly free of violence directed at civilians (especially the Loyalists). As for the British model of supposedly non-violent progress towards democracy,...
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Small academic job market thread: Job candidates often plan to apply selectively, only to the jobs they want the most or think they have the best shot at. It sounds sensible, but it’s actually not. /1
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Why Trump is like Samson:
1. He really, really cares about his hair.
2. He will bring the temple down on top of himself.
3. He uses the same weapon.
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Jacobin Pitchbot: Trump is worse than Biden, but he is going to win, deport millions, destroy the climate, shred the constitution, and sign a national abortion ban, and it’s all Biden’s fault because I’m too pure to vote for Biden.
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In which I am not particularly kind to a new history of communism...
thenation.com/article/politi…
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A good start to 2021: The opening of the Moynihan Train Hall at Penn Station NYC. For the first time in ages it is possible to describe this train station with adjectives other than “horrible,”’”disgusting,” “wretched” or “gross.”
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Bill Sewell is one of the living historians I admire most, and his new book is a summation of many decades of research and reflection--a must-read for anyone interested in the origins of capitalism and/or the French Revolution. My latest in the LRB:
lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v43/n19/…
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Very happy to see my new book in print. And grateful to the people who kindly said nice things about it for the back cover, including @danedels, @AntoineLilti, @samuelmoyn and @Yascha_Mounk.
us.macmillan.com/books/97803…
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In an absolute outrage, my friend Jeff Horn, a terrific historian of France, the author or editor of nine books, has been laid off by Manhattan College /1
www-chronicle-com.ezproxy.pr…
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Depressing to see colleagues here trying to shame young historians for accepting the Dan David prizes. It's one thing to argue for BDS as a way of putting pressure on Israel (not that I agree with this). It's another to call people "complicit"...
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In one sense, the most famous US universities can be divided into two categories: hedge funds with academic units, and football teams with academic units (in a few cases both).
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