PREVIEW. The Possibility of a Tale of Two Gazas. David Daoud speaks with John Batchelor about Gaza, now divided with the IDF patrolling one half and Hamas controlling the other. Daoud presents the possibility of a "tale of two Gazas," one destroyed, one rebuilt. The excerpt also mentions a difficult domestic task for al-Sharaa, involving massacres …

PREVIEW. The Possibility of a Tale of Two Gazas. David Daoud speaks with John Batchelor about Gaza, now divided with the IDF patrolling one half and Hamas controlling the other. Daoud presents the possibility of a "tale of two Gazas," one destroyed, one rebuilt. The excerpt also mentions a difficult domestic task for al-Sharaa, involving massacres …

PREVIEW. Naivety in Solving the Gaza Conflict. Husain Haqqani speaks with John Batchelor about the apparent assumption that Gaza is "solved" following a ceasefire signing in Sharm el-Sheikh. Haqqani observes naivety in American negotiators who believe they are fixing the world forever. Gaza's turmoil is noted to have persisted for at least 2,000 ye…

PREVIEW. Russia's New Guided Glide Bomb in Ukraine. John Hardie discusses Russia's new version of a glide bomb used against Ukraine. The weapon, which can be released up to 200 kilometers away, allows Russia to avoid air defenses and inflict damage economically with a sizable warhead. The latest version is the UMPK, strapped to a FAB-500, a 500-kil…

PREVIEW. The Domestic and Foreign Ambitions of Syria's al-Sharaa. Ahmad Sharawi describes the two faces of al-Sharaa, Syria's leader. Externally, al-Sharaa seeks international legitimacy, investment, and full sanctions relief via diplomatic visits. Domestically, he faces resistance; there have been two massacres, and groups like the Druze, Kurds, a…

PREVIEW. The Continuing Power of Presidential Tariffs. Alan Tonelson discusses the Supreme Court's pending oral arguments concerning the president's "Liberation Day tariffs." Tonelson argues the tariffs are likely to stay, and presidential power will continue. Even if the court strikes down the tariffs under the 1977 statute, the president possesse…

3. LONDINIUM 91 CE. Hollywood and Rome. Gaius and Germanicus concluded their meeting by critiquing Hollywood's portrayal of Roman decline, focusing on Gladiator 2. Gaius admitted he could not finish the film due to its historically inaccurate conclusion. The film's ultimate payoff—the removal of bad emperors and the return to the Republic—is viewed…

2. LONDINIUM 91 CE. Seven Warnings, Part II. The conversation continued with Germanicus detailing the remaining maxims, noting that the United States seems to follow this list of strategic errors as if it were a program. (5) Never think "it will never happen to us"—this belief stems from American exceptionalism, the idea that the US is superior bec…

1. LONDINIUM 91 CE. Seven Warnings, Part I. Gaius and Germanicus, joined by retired centurions, convened at the Friends of History Debating Society to discuss Germanicus's list of seven maxims detailing how empires, specifically the US, engage in self-harm or self-destruction. Gaius offered the example of the emperor deciding Nigeria needs attentio…

The Legacy and Hidden History of the Graces' Style. The full set of fashion plates documenting this radical style revolution was rediscovered at the Morgan Library after being incorrectly cataloged. The true story of this fashion was radical and had been "concealed from the world." The three women, known as the Graces, became world-famous celebriti…

Cotton, Cameos, and Cashmere: The Accessories of Revolutionary Style. The Graces made cotton, previously worn by lower classes, the most fashionable and revolutionary fabric, often importing high-quality white muslin from India. Painters like David were fascinated by how the thin fabric revealed women's bodies, making the women appear artful and al…

From Prison Garb to Neoclassical Chic: Style and Scandal in the Directory. During the Directory (circa 1795), Teresia (Madame Tallien) and Rose (not yet Josephine) held influential salons, using style to gain success in a world where women lacked financial empowerment. Their revolutionary fashion stemmed from the prison shift Teresia wore and the p…

The Birth of Revolutionary French Fashion: Teresia, Rose, and Juliet. Professor Anne Higonnet's book Liberty, Equality, Fashion: The Women Who Styled the French Revolution examines how three women drove a style revolution separate from the concurrent violence. Teresia, famed as the most beautiful woman in Europe, emerged from prison (La Force) in 1…

The Scarcity Value of Time: Impressionism and the Legacy of Julie Manet. Sebastian Smee discusses how Berthe Morisot's life is carried forward by her daughter, Julie Manet, who represents a "perfect representation of Berthe." Before Berthe succumbed to illness, she wrote a tender letter expressing how Julie had "never once not made me happy." Smee …

The Wedding, Manet's Decline, and the Posthumous Fight Over Morisot's Legacy. Sebastian Smee discusses how in the aftermath of the "terrible year," Édouard Manet painted Berthe Morisot several times in a series Smee considers one of the greatest records of intimacy in art history. Manet resolved the situation by setting Berthe up with his brother, …

Sincerity, Transience, and the Domestic Focus of Berthe Morisot's Art. Sebastian Smee discusses how the Impressionists' defining characteristic was plein air painting—painting outside directly in front of the subject. Berthe Morisot was highly innovative, concentrating on women at home doing ordinary, domestic activities. Her work was quick, often …

May 1871: Bloody Week and Morisot's Transformation Into a Professional Artist. Sebastian Smee discusses how the Commune began to fall when French government forces returned to retake the city, resulting in Bloody Week in May 1871. The civil conflict was atrociously violent, with the Communards retreating street by street and systematically burning …

The Siege, Starvation, and the Start of the Communard Revolt. Sebastian Smee discusses how during the Prussian siege of Paris, Parisians suffered terribly in the coldest winter on record. Radical Republicans grew furious at the moderate government's failure to defeat the Prussians. When the government surrendered and accepted severe conditions, the…

The Republican Fire: Manet, Gambetta, and the War That Declared a French Republic. Sebastian Smee discusses how Édouard Manet's family wanted him to pursue law or the Navy, but he became a passionate, anti-autocratic Republican inspired by the 1848 uprisings. Manet established himself as an activist painter, creating works protesting Napoleon III's…

Berthe Morisot and Édouard Manet: Art, Affection, and the Struggle Against Bourgeois Expectations. Sebastian Smee discusses how the Impressionists lived amidst the violence of the 1870 Franco-Prussian War. Berthe Morisot came from the wealthy haute bourgeoisie and, along with her sister Edma, became a serious painter, successfully exhibiting at the…

Paris 1874: The Artistic Revolt Against the Salon and the Birth of Impressionism. Sebastian Smee discusses how on April 15, 1874, an exhibition opened marking the birth of Impressionism. The group, including Monet, Pissarro, Renoir, Sisley, Cézanne, Degas, and Berthe Morisot, set up the show deliberately outside the established Salon. The Impressio…

The "Genial and Aloof" Communicator: Reagan's Psychological Defense and Exquisite Political Timing. Max Boot discusses the late Reagan administration, his personality, and his legacy. Reagan was famously defined as "genial and aloof," and Boot argues that Reagan was "very hard to know," even by his wife Nancy and his closest aides, who felt part of…

Reagan's Pragmatic Cold War Victory, Don Regan's Disastrous Tenure, and the Iran-Contra Near-Death Experience. Max Boot discusses how Ronald Reagan had no patience for communism, and in his first term, his policy toward the Soviet Union was somewhat unsuccessful, though it improved in 1985 with the ascension of Mikhail Gorbachev. Reagan's genius wa…

The Finest Hour: How the Assassination Attempt Secured Reaganomics and the Rise of the Baker-Deaver Troika.Max Boot discusses how on March 30, 1981, just 69 days into his administration, Ronald Reagan was shot after giving a speech in Washington and came very close to death. Boot describes the event as Reagan's "finest hour," as Reagan behaved hero…

Presidential Ambition and the 1980 Victory: From Farm Hand Friendship to the "There You Go Again" Knockout. Max Boot discusses Ronald Reagan running for president, first challenging incumbent Gerald Ford in the 1976 Republican primaries. Reagan narrowly lost the New Hampshire primary to Ford by about a thousand votes, but won the hearts of the conv…