My Interest: British History

British History

I have been an avid reader of British history since I was a child. Look and Learn, the Hamlyn/Collins publications and my father’s enthusiasm for the subject were driving factors. Even to this day I have ingrained in my mind the exact order of the English/British monarch from Edward the Confessor onwards (as well as the PMs since Disraeli).

Areas of Primary focus: The British Empire (especially in Africa), the Monarchial succession, the Anglo-Scottish Wars, Tudors and Stewarts and the English Civil War.

Areas of Secondary Focus: The Norman Conquest, Hundred Years War, Royal Navy, Winston Churchill and the Crimean War.

What I feel I need to know more about: The details of the Irish fight for Independence, War of the Roses and the David Lloyd George.

These are the Ten Period that I divide British/English history into:

1.       The Celtic Era and Roman Britain

2.       Saxon Domination

3.       The Norman Conquest and the French Kings. Feudalism.

4.       The Rise of the Tudors and the Decline of Catholicism.

5.       Unification, the Stuarts and the English Civil War

6.       Restoration and the Emergence of the House of Hanover.

7.       The Early Empire and Parliament in the Age of the Enlightenment

8.       Period of Splendid Isolation

9.       Internationalism and WWI

10.   WWII and the Decline of Modern Britain

Overcoming Adversity

 

Special Thanks to the Stoics, Friederich Nietzsche and several other Western and Judeo-Christian thinkers.

·       Life is tough. This world was not custom designed for any individual specifically. We will all face many obstacles on both the objective and subjective level.

·       Challenges will vary in degree and many will be faced with severe adversity.

·       One needs to accept that life is a struggle but this should not weaken us. In fact we should embrace the downfalls.

·       Human beings can train themselves to face these challenges and overcome adversity. This isn’t easy but our species has been doing exactly this for millennia.

·       Running away and avoiding these obstacles or blaming others for our shortfalls weakens us. The tragedy of the modern human condition is that this has become the preferred route.

·       Alcohol and recreational drugs are means of running away. They are negative drivers. So are support groups that specifically sacrifice individuality for the collective will.

·       In facing adversity head on we grow as human beings. This betters us in the face of future events that will impact us later on in life. We will emerge as a stronger self. Nietzsche sees this as the birth of the Superman.

My Many Interests

 I am very much of a generalist with a strong passion for history, science, philosophy, education, psychology, political science, civuilization decline, education, soccer, comics, motivation strategies plus others. Over the next few weeks I plan to delve further into these areas outlining the specifics of each topic that I have chosen to focus on.

For now here is the list of these personal favourites (not in any order)

1. British History

2. Jewish History

3. American History

4. South African History

5. World War Two

6. The Cold War

7. Ancient History

8. European History

9. Physics Education

10. Understanding the human condition

11. Intelligence Measurement

12. Patterns of Population Movement

13 Jewish Thought

14. Philosophical Debates

15. Dystopias

16. Britsh comics

17. Soccer

18. Political Theory

19. Debunking Conspiracies

20. Parenthood

21. Sporting Feats

Reflections XI - Elitist Malfeasance

A wealth tax is a particular moral evil in that one is further burdening those in the population who are in the best position to create further societal wealth growth.

Most political rhetoric is at most two steps removed from egregious failure for it driven by short terming thinking that stumbles at the earliest roadblock.

It is not difficult to generate bad ideas which, is why they proliferate in the global milieu.

Collectivisms eventual aim is to create an equality of nothings. In this regard it is remarkably effective.

 Western Society is in decline as it undervalued its greatest resource – the sanctity of its own population.

 The elites need an army of foot soldiers to fight against their greatest enemy – the working and middle class. If the numbers are not there they will build the regiments with imports

Excellent video and Commentary on Simcha Jacobovici video

 I saw this on the Simcha Jacobovici video in the comments section. the clip can be found at Facts you need to know.

A crash course on history : 1. Before Israel, there was a British mandate, not a Palestinian state 2. Before the British Mandate, there was the Ottoman Empire, not a Palestinian state. 3. Before the Ottoman Empire, there was the Islamic state of the Mamluks of Egypt, not a Palestinian state. 4. Before the Islamic state of the Mamluks of Egypt, there was the Ayubid Arab-Kurdish Empire, not a Palestinian state. 5. Before the Ayubid Empire, there was the Frankish and Christian Kingdom of Jerusalem, not a Palestinian state. 6. Before the Kingdom of Jerusalem, there was the Umayyad and Fatimid empires, not a Palestinian state. 7. Before the Umayyad and Fatimid empires, there was the Byzantine empire, not a Palestinian state. 8. Before the Byzantine Empire, there were the Sassanids, not a Palestinian state. 9. Before the Sassanid Empire, there was the Byzantine Empire, not a Palestinian state. 10. Before the Byzantine Empire, there was the Roman Empire, not a Palestinian state. 11. Before the Roman Empire, there was the Hasmonean state, not a Palestinian state. 12. Before the Hasmonean state, there was the Seleucid, not a Palestinian state. 13. Before the Seleucid empire, there was the empire of Alexander the Great, not a Palestinian state. 14. Before the empire of Alexander the Great, there was the Persian empire, not a Palestinian state. 15. Before the Persian Empire, there was the Babylonian Empire, not a Palestinian state. 16. Before the Babylonian Empire, there were the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah, not a Palestinian state. 17. Before the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah, there was the Kingdom of Israel, not a Palestinian state. 18. Before the kingdom of Israel, there was the theocracy of the twelve tribes of Israel, not a Palestinian state. 19. Before the theocracy of the twelve tribes of Israel, there was an agglomeration of independent Canaanite city-kingdoms, not a Palestinian state. 20. Actually, in this piece of land there has been everything, EXCEPT A PALESTINIAN STATE.

Reflections X - Careful Ponderings

You hop, skip and jump into totalitarianism by convincing yourself that you are on the right side of history.

We have reached a point in the west where those with a self constructed sense of guilt are doing what the winners once did, in rewriting history. Their approach is no less dishonest.

The sad reality of war is that it is sometimes the only mechanism to purge society of really destructive ideas.

Unearned wealth is easy to squander which implies that a great deal of priority must be given to new and sustainable avenues of wealth creation.

The great economic lie sold to the populace is that wealth creation and distribution are synonymous.

Reflections IX - On World History

The British Empire was destined for an eventual fission. The island core was enveloped by too many shells that reached maturation quickly. Although the layers were sloughed off in various degrees they could never truly divorce themselves from their source origin.

Most of Rome’s military failures were reminders that it needed to accept its boundaries. Neither the Goths in the North (and East) and the Persians in Asia had any attention of acquiescing to Roman suzerainty. Since they were not a cavalry power (unlike the Mongols) or a sea empire (like the British) their boundaries had natural limitations which deterred expansion.

The history of Rome after the fall of Caesar is an ongoing saga of the debasement of the concept of citizenship. Citizenship is what held the Republic together. It withered to oblivion during the Empire until it had lost all meaning.

Next to its education and judiciary system, cricket must rank as Britain’s greatest export to its Empire (to the world it is football). Many an Indian, Pakistani or Sri Lankan will agree with this assessment as they sport has so thoroughly enveloped the sub-continent.