Blog Them Out of the Stone Age

Reconstruction as an Insurgency

2012-01-27T06:28:00.003-05:00

Mike Few, the editor of Small Wars Journal, recently interviewed me about Reconstruction as an insurgency. Here's his first question and my response: Mike Few: Traditionally, social scientists, viewing conflict through the lens of the state, prefer to quantify wars as resulting in a win, loss, or tie; however, history shows that the construction, reconstruction, or deconstruction of the

Progress Report

2012-01-21T05:17:00.001-05:00

I'm now about 2/3 of the way through the process of migrating the blogs from my old web provider to the new one. The really welcome development is that I've reached a point where malicious script is no longer a problem. That means I can resume making regular posts. I look forward to doing that.

Military History and the American Historical Profession

2012-01-06T16:43:00.002-05:00

Brian Carroll, a visiting professor at Central Washington University, is teaching an interesting course concerning (you guessed it) military history and the American historical profession.Among the assigned readings were several posts from Blog Them Out of the Stone Age. The only problem, of course, was that his students couldn't access the posts because I'd taken BTOOTSA offline. But not to

Military History: Past, Present, and Future

2012-01-06T16:40:00.001-05:00

A guest post by John Maass, a graduate student at The Ohio State UniversityThis post was originally published on February 23, 2006. John has since completed his PhD and is now a historian at the US Army Center of Military History.In the twentieth century, there have been three separate and somewhat distinct strands of military history, although in the early part of this period, the

The Types of Military History

2012-01-06T16:34:00.001-05:00

This was originally a two-part post, published on December 26, 2006 and January 30, 2007.In the spring of 1979 I took my first military history course with Allan R. Millett, whom many readers will recognize as one of the most distinguished names in the first generation of academic military historians; that is to say, those self-identified military historians who began teaching and publishing

Crocodile Tears for Military History: An Open Letter to John J. Miller, National Review Online

2012-01-06T16:23:00.008-05:00

This post was originally published on September 27, 2006.Dear John,Thanks for nothing."Sounding Taps," your September 26 article in National Review Online, is on the surface a sympathetic lament for the supposed marginalization of academic military history. But it is constructed so tendentiously, and overlooks so many relevant facts, that it is really quite misleading.So misleading, in fact,

Beyond the Culture of Complaint

2012-01-06T16:23:00.007-05:00

This post was originally published on December 28, 2006.A few months ago, the executive director of the Society for Military History asked me to write a brief essay for the SMH newsletter, outlining my thoughts about the field, especially the need to dispense with the reflexive negativity about military history's status within the academy. The result has been published in the new issue, so I

Hand Wringing for Military History

2012-01-06T16:21:00.001-05:00

This post was originally published on November 22, 2010Columnist Ed Hooper in today's Atlanta Journal-Constitution notes that Congress recently declared November to be "U.S. Military History Month." That's sort of interesting. The rest is sort of lame. Well, not sort of. Really lame.[S]ailors and soldiers are returning to a nation that no longer embraces their service as a serious

What Happens When Non-Military Historians Teach Military History?

2012-01-06T16:19:00.002-05:00

A guest post by Rebecca GoetzRebecca Goetz is a professor of history at Rice University. This post was originally published on November 1, 2006.(answer: students and instructor alike learn a lot from the experience)I’ve followed Mark’s ongoing reaction to John J. Miller’s September 26 article in the National Review about the supposed death of academic military history. Underlying Miller’s claim

Outflanking the Bad Guys

2012-01-06T16:06:00.001-05:00

Cross posted (in slightly modified form) from Civil WarriorsThe Civil Warriors Wordpress site has been plagued with malicious script, and what with the demands of work and life I haven't yet found time to address the issue decisively.Luckily, I discovered that I could create a redirect to its former home, namely the blog on which you've just landed.So Ethan and I are back in action.Huzzah!

Fallujah Combat via YouTube

2006-08-03T09:57:00.000-04:00

Fallujah combatThis video clip of fighting in Fallujah was purportedly taken -- or at least posted to YouTube.com -- by a 39-year old Briton identified only as scipiouk. It illustrates the latest extension of the Internet's ability to bypass traditional media. It's bereft of context, but this could easily be remedied by supplying an appropriate voiceover or set of captions.Return to Blog Them Out

Blog Them Out of the Stone Age Upgrades Complete

2005-09-13T20:57:00.000-04:00

Blog Them Out of the Stone Age is now upgraded and (hopefully) in good working order.

The Education of a Talking Head

2005-09-13T10:14:00.000-04:00

A guest post by Brooks D. Simpson, Department of History, Arizona State University [Note: The regular blog is being upgraded with new software, so you've been redirected here. Because it just recently appeared on Blog Them Out of the Stone Age, and because a number of other sources have linked to it, I thought I should republish this post in its entirety. It's divided into parts, as it was on the

Blog Them Out of the Stone Age - Third Update

2005-09-13T10:03:00.000-04:00

Still working out the kinks on the updated blog. The rest of the WarHistorian.org site is available as usual. I'll have today's post uploaded to this (blogspot) site shortly.

Blog Them Out of the Stone Age - Further Update

2005-09-12T20:48:00.000-04:00

Still fine-tuning the new blog software. Periodically Blog Them Out of the Stone Age may need to be redirected to this site, so I will place new entries on both sites until the work is complete. Look for a new post tomorrow.

Blog Them Out of the Stone Age Being Updated

2005-09-12T15:57:00.000-04:00

Blog Them Out of the Stone Age is temporarily unavailable pending completion of some routine software updates.

WarHistorian.org Back Online

2005-09-09T09:49:00.000-04:00

All is well again.This is an archive site for WarHistorian. The new site is WarHistorian.org. The blog is at Blog Them Out of the Stone Age.

WarHistorian.org Temporarily Down

2005-09-09T05:00:00.000-04:00

A technical issue has developed with WarHistorian.org, and pending its resolution I've asked my web host to shut down the site. The issue should be resolved shortly.If the problem takes longer than a few hours to resolve, I'll simply publish my new posts on this site until it is.Thanks for stopping by. And either way, you can expect to see a new post shortly--either on Blog Them Out of the Stone

Blogs Away!

2005-03-06T16:39:00.000-05:00

The blog has a new home: WarHistorian.org. And a new name:Blog Them Out of the Stone Age.Please set your bookmarks and blogrolls accordingly.This is now the archive site for War Historian. It will be maintained but not updated. I look forward to seeing you on the new site. Thanks very much for your visits and interest.-- Mark Grimsley

Academic Gate-keeping

2005-03-06T07:20:00.000-05:00

At last week's annual meeting of the Society for Military History, I asked a number of people about this business of the lack of political diversity within the academy. I got a number of thoughtful responses. Everyone found plausible the estimate of 80 percent liberals in the academy, though among academic military historians they estimated that percentage at only 60 percent, and among military

SMH Blog?

2005-03-04T10:51:00.000-05:00

For reasons I still haven't fully revealed, I'm a newly converted fan of the Society for Military History (SMH), which until recently I had concluded was unlikely to be of much help in advancing military history as an academic field. My conversations at the recent Charleston annual meeting have given me a more optimistic view.I promise not to keep you in suspense--or whatever you're feeling about

Me and Jakester

2005-03-01T15:02:00.000-05:00

Ward Churchill is a fraud and traitor and I am a fellow fraud and traitor. Don't take my word for it--ask the Jakester.

The Charleston SMH: Good News

2005-02-28T14:00:00.000-05:00

This will have to be very brief, but I had several conversations at the Charleston SMH that gave me reason to feel more optimistic about military history's future as an academic field--at least intellectually-- and the organization's interest in helping the field to expand, both intellectually and in terms of the number of academic positions. I'm currently digging myself out of the usual

The Charleston SMH: A Reconnaissance

2005-02-24T08:00:00.000-05:00

I leave in a few hours for the annual meeting of the Society for Military History.I've looked over the program with as much care as I could. If I counted correctly, there are forty-two sessions. Of these, fifteen deal directly with the conference theme, "The Rise of the Military Profession."Nineteen sessions, by my count, are exclusively concerned with the United States military experience.Eleven

Military History and the Academy

2005-02-23T08:43:00.000-05:00

In a comment on my previous post, Tom Bruscino asks me to take a look at the above post on Rebunk. I encourage readers of this blog to do the same.

The Charleston SMH

2005-02-21T07:50:00.000-05:00

The flagship organization for military historians, at least those who work in North America, is the Society for Military History. I sketched some background about the SMH in an entry composed after attending its last annual meeting, which was held last May in Bethesda, Maryland.The next meeting will be held later this week in Charleston, South Carolina. I'm looking forward to it. The meetings

A Strategy of Juxtaposition

2005-02-19T08:48:00.000-05:00

In a previous post, I wrote that I didn't "have time to cover the issues that need covering and at the same time explain to readers the reasoning that underpins my selection and weighting of issues." For example, "readers might wonder why a blog that has spent so much time engaging with the ideas of Tom Barnett in The Pentagon's New Map has of late spent so much time engaging with the ideas of

Away from the Blog

2005-02-16T05:29:00.000-05:00

I doubt that I'll have the opportunity to post further until Saturday, February 19. Look for a new post then.

(E) "Little Eichmanns" - Part VI

2005-02-13T19:27:00.000-05:00

I continue to wrestle with the issue of whether the "little Eichmanns" metaphor can be made coherent. As I have said, a major problem with the Ward Churchill essay is that the essay fails to deploy the metaphor effectively, at least as an aid to analysis. As an aid to incitement, it has proven to be quite effective.This video does a better job of explaining Churchill's basic perspective in two

Soldiers in Iraq: Hang On to Your Humanity

2005-02-13T02:18:00.000-05:00

An open letter to GIs in Iraq.Found this link in a syllabus in an English composition course whose thematic focus was "Making Peace, Making War."The letter was written in November 2003 by a Vietnam veteran who served in the 173rd Airborne Brigade. It is posted on the Bring Them Home Now web site. BTHN describes itself as "a campaign of military families, veterans, active duty personnel,

Clearing the Net

2005-02-12T21:00:00.000-05:00

An advantage of blogs: They can be about anything.A problem with blogs: They can be about anything.Between the Ward Churchill imbroglio and the more recent "Gooney Left" affair, the focus of this blog has of late drifted toward present-day politics. That's not necessarily divorced from its main subject--as Clausewitz famously said--"war is a continuation of politics by other means." But it does

Loyal Subversive

2005-02-12T17:07:00.000-05:00

is a new blog kept by a mobilized member of the Marine Corps Reserve with nearly 20 years combined active and reserve service. He is also an advanced PhD student in military history.

"The Gooney Left" - Part VI

2005-02-12T13:10:00.000-05:00

This is the conclusion of "The Gooney Left" entry. If there are further developments, I'll report them under a separate thread.About ten people have so far accepted the invitation to the "Gooney Left" open house. I'll repeat the invitation in a few days, shorn of the "Gooney Left" label, so that people can come who may not necessarily want to make an implicit political statement.Ninety percent

"The Gooney Left" - Part V

2005-02-11T06:18:00.000-05:00

Let's face it, so far this is just so much academic posturing. Prof. Watts's email is posturing. My reply is posturing. None of it gets us anywhere.No: it's not enough to lob grenades or chide people for lobbing them. The chide itself can be seen as little more than a grenade wrapped in nicer packaging. We've got to figure out a way to have a more constructive kind of political exchange. We've

"The Gooney Left" - Part IV

2005-02-11T05:30:00.000-05:00

At about two o'clock in the morning I succumbed to might well be the senile itch to write everyone who received Prof. Watts's email--a list which included all department faculty, grad students, and staff. . . .Hi all,My initial thought with regard to Prof. Watts's email was to let it pass, or perhaps poke fun at it by inviting one and all to the 1st Annual Gooney Left Open House.Which, come to

"The Gooney Left" - Part III

2005-02-11T05:20:00.000-05:00

Prof Watts's email brought this response from my colleague Kevin Boyles, whom readers may recognize as the author of Arc of Justice, which won the 2004 National Book Award for nonfiction:I take exception to Senator Watts' attempt to slander the serious work of our colleagues with such name-calling.Kevin BoyleKevin is one of those remarkable people who manages to combine keen intellect and high

"The Gooney Left" - Part II

2005-02-11T04:44:00.000-05:00

This email circular landed in our email boxes yesterday:Hello everyone,I wanted to draw your attention to a month-long series of events that will commemorate Japanese American Internment. The kick-off event is this evening, and it is sponsored by History Works 2. I hope you will encourage your students to attend.FACES FROM THE PAST, VOICES OF THE PRESENT:JAPANESE AMERICAN INTERNMENT IN ART &

"The Gooney Left" - Part I

2005-02-11T04:40:00.000-05:00

This week as I've kept abreast of the Churchill affair, continued my explorations of the politically-charged blogosphere, and viewed some of the cable news talk shows, I have also watched, repeatedly and as a form of therapy, the amiable musical 1776. I remember buying a paperback copy of the screenplay when I was 13. I loved it. Two years later I worked stage crew on a community theater

What the Heck?: A Quick Primer

2005-02-10T06:02:00.000-05:00

One of the things about keeping the blog these days is that I don't have time to cover the issues that need covering and at the same time explain to readers the reasoning that underpins my selection and weighting of issues.Some may wonder, for example, why a blog that has spent so much time engaging with the ideas of Tom Barnett in The Pentagon's New Map has of late spent so much time engaging

Russell Means on 9/11

2005-02-10T01:40:00.000-05:00

To Whom It May Concern: On Tuesday, September 11, 2001, I sat transfixed before the television watching the horror of the world trade center with many emotions running through my heart. On that day I said many prayers for the victims, families and the rescuers. Since that painful day, I have read countless

Russell Means on the Churchill Affair

2005-02-10T01:12:00.000-05:00

I've now heard Denver talk show radio host Peter Boyles's interview with Russell Means, who might be called the dean of American Indian activists. Boyles does a much less effective job than with his Churchill interview. He is by turns patronizing, querulous, and borderline insulting. In answer to a question asking his opinion the Churchill affair, Means responds that it's the tip of the iceberg

Not on the "Taxpayers Dime"

2005-02-09T13:21:00.000-05:00

Critics of Ward Churchill continue to blat that he espouses his opinions on "the taxpayers' dime," implying that as long as Churchill draws a professor's salary his First Amendment rights are somehow not as good as those of other people. Churchill blasted this kind of thinking in a speech last evening to a packed house at the University of Colorado. 'I do not work for taxpayers,' prof says

(E) "Little Eichmanns" - Part V

2005-02-09T08:16:00.000-05:00

"The dump" in the hills above La Ceiba, Honduras, July 2002. Since my last installment I've had a chance to read most of the commentary that L'Affaire Churchill has generated. I've also had a chance to take my first real look at what passes for discourse among the extreme Right. The comparison is illuminating. Although the Right is crying foul at the offensiveness of Churchill's essay,

WarHistorian.org

2005-02-09T05:51:00.000-05:00

War Historian will shortly be moving to its permanent digs under its own domain name, warhistorian.org. The Blogger site will continue to operate for a time as an archive and to direct traffic to the new site. In coming months I would like to see War Historian become a group or organizational blog aimed at bringing together scholars of all fields who are interested in issues of war and

David Horowitz: Retain Churchill, Build Real Diversity

2005-02-09T03:39:00.000-05:00

I'm not a big David Horowitz fan, but this piece makes a fair degree of sense--except the part about firing Churchill if he turns out not to be an American Indian. Definitions of who is and who isn't an Indian are too loose for that. By David Horowitz February 8, 2005 Editor's note: In an interview that appeared in Saturday's Rocky Mountain News, University of Colorado professor Ward Churchill

Colorado Talk Radio and Ward Churchill

2005-02-09T01:40:00.000-05:00

You can listen to Denver radio talk show host Peter Boyles's interview with Ward Churchill here. Also a second interview with Indian activist Russell Means. And two Ward Churchill parody songs. The first is less than successful; the second (to the tune of Paul Revere and Raiders' "Indian Reservation) is not bad. Interestingly, both parodies focus less on Churchill's "little Eichmann" remarks than

Ann Coulter on Radical Chic

2005-02-09T01:25:00.000-05:00

On Scarborough Country, the inimitable Ann Coulter actually has a perceptive point about academics with tenure who act as if, by speaking their minds, they're doing something courageous. That's a cheap and easy game if you're shielded from consequences, she notes. Then, perhaps disquieted by the fact that she's actually making sense, she puts her rhetorical Mack truck in gear and drives it

Scarborough Country Transcript

2005-02-09T01:15:00.000-05:00

Joe Scarborough (Scarborough Country, MSNBC), apparently thinks the Churchill imbroglio is his ticket to a loftier place in the crowded punditocracy firmament. He certainly deserves it--he's certainly as good as anyone else at making a cruel mockery of constructive political discourse. (For a model of constructive conservative engagement, check out Charles Colson's Breakpoint commentaries.)

Statements by Ward Churchill and the AAUP

2005-02-09T01:09:00.000-05:00

A statement from Churchill dated January 31 concerning "recent inaccurate accusations," and an undated statement from the American Association of University Professors (AAUP). Both are currently posted on Speak Out!, a speaker's bureau representing Churchill and 200 other speakers and artists for campus and university events.

(F) Indian Country Today Weighs in on Churchill

2005-02-08T02:12:00.000-05:00

From the Feb. 3 issue: Churchill's identity revealed in wake of Nazi comment A public speaking engagement at an Eastern college has turned hotly controversial for Ward Churchill, a professor and until last week the chairman of Ethnic Studies Department at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Churchill, a self-professed American Indian, is a prolific and highly polemical writer on Indian

(D) Return to Ground Zero

2005-02-07T18:29:00.000-05:00

I'm still working on the "Little Eichmanns" essay. It began as a short essay. I didn't know how long it would be when I started it. I think I expected it to run maybe a thousand words. It's well past that now. And it's beginning to pull me in. I mean, really pull me in. I think in part that's because Churchill did such a sloppy job with the material. It makes me embarrassed for the profession.

(F) DVDs re the War on Terrorism

2005-02-07T15:03:00.000-05:00

9/11 (2002) In Memoriam: New York City, 9/11/01 (2002) Operation Enduring Freedom (2002) Twin Towers (2004) 7 Days in September (2004) Control Room (2004) Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004) Fahrenhype 9/11 (2004) Uncovered: The Whole Truth About the Iraq War (2004)

(F) Press Action Defends Churchill

2005-02-07T06:22:00.000-05:00

One of the few entities willing to defend Churchill these days is PressAction.com, which has run a number of articles on the "little Eichmanns" imbroglio. Here are permalinks to some of these; there are others I haven't included, but if you can find these you can locate the others.: Ward Churchill Under Attack (Feb. 1) The Distortions of Acumen: Liberals Trash Ward Churchill (Feb. 5)

The War Dogs Ride - Part IIn

2005-02-07T04:30:00.000-05:00

Picking up a few last must-haves. All in all, I bought enough books to very nearly fill a five-shelf wall unit.

The War Dogs Ride - Part IIm

2005-02-07T04:29:00.000-05:00

Books here are half price, so the more I buy, the more I save!

The War Dogs Ride - Part IIL

2005-02-07T04:28:00.000-05:00

Day 2: Today I'll just browse. Honest.

The War Dogs Ride - Part IIk

2005-02-07T04:27:00.000-05:00

The end of Day 1.

The War Dogs Ride - Part IIj

2005-02-07T04:25:00.000-05:00

The Village Book shop, the midwest's largest dealer in overstock and remaindered books. I've been haunting the place since I was sixteen.

The War Dogs Ride - Part IIi

2005-02-07T04:24:00.000-05:00

Gypsy in the back seat--hey, if you're taking my picture, who's driving the car?

The War Dogs Ride - Part IIh

2005-02-07T04:23:00.000-05:00

En route to the next hemorrhage of cash.

The War Dogs Ride - Part IIg

2005-02-07T04:22:00.000-05:00

Which is the higher allegiance: God or country? If our steeple is patriotic, we needn't choose!

The War Dogs Ride - Part IIf

2005-02-07T04:16:00.000-05:00

I approach, mesmerized by the thought of what lies inside. Books. Must have more.

The War Dogs Ride - Part IIe

2005-02-07T04:14:00.000-05:00

Third stop: Barnes and Noble near campus. Jethro: "Don't spend too much!"

The War Dogs Ride - Part IId

2005-02-07T04:13:00.000-05:00

Second stop: the Mershon Center. Grabbing some books from my office. Mostly stuff dealing with atrocity, moral judgment in war, and globalization: the sort of materials needed to continue the "Little Eichmanns" essay.

The War Dogs Ride - Part IIc

2005-02-07T04:12:00.000-05:00

Looking over my stack of books, the cashier has a question. Why, if the conservatives control all three branches of government, do they seem so angry? Not all of them are, but you wouldn't know that to read Bill O'Reilly, Michael Savage, Ann Coulter, et al.

The War Dogs Ride - Part IIb

2005-02-07T04:11:00.000-05:00

First stop: Half Price Books near campus. This place tends to have the best selection of academically-oriented books for cheap. Note: I myself have yet to get remaindered; all my stuff is still in print and carried in inventory. Of course, that means I've yet to make the big kill that would result in a press run large enough to wind up yielding remainders.

(D) The War Dogs Ride - Part IIa

2005-02-07T04:10:00.000-05:00

Gypsy before the ride: C'mon Mark G., Exercise at least some restraint.

(D) The War Dogs Ride! - Part I

2005-02-06T13:45:00.000-05:00

Got a good night's sleep Friday, and on Saturday hit several book stores, giving my credit card a workout and stocking up on three interelated categories of books: works dealing with globalization, works reflective of the current state of domestic political discourse, and works on the War on Terrorism. Accompanying me were my two doughty war dogs: Jethro (shown), and Gypsy (who is reclusive

(F) Little Churchills

2005-02-06T11:34:00.000-05:00

Nice turnabout on "little Eichmanns" by Malcolm A. Kline of CampusReportOnline.net, Accuracy in Academia's "online news service in which we document and publicize political bias in education. Our articles focus on three issues: the exploitation of the classroom or university resources to indoctrinate students; discrimination against students, faculty or administrators based on political or

(D) A New Plan

2005-02-06T05:05:00.000-05:00

I have never been a very systematic person. Get me interested in something and I don't figure out one book to read on the subject. I figure out thirty or fifty or ninety. And I don't read them in some predetermined order, but rather dip into them all at once. It isn't the most efficient use of time and effort. It's merely the use that suits me. As with reading, so too with things analogous.

(F) Joe Scarborough: Up Against the Wall, Ultraliberal Profs!

2005-02-05T16:13:00.000-05:00

Time is up for radical professors like Ward Churchill (Joe Scarbough) [sic!!] Radical college professors are finally being put on notice by middle America that anti-American views will no longer go unchallenged if a liberal arts professor mutters the words “academic freedom.” Full rant here

(F) The Churchill Affair: Ramifications

2005-02-05T13:27:00.000-05:00

Ralph Lukens at Cliopatria continues to update his links on L'Affaire Churchill. That's how I came to read this terrific entry in D.B. Light's blog, Light Seeking Light. As Light documents, the right is using Churchill's "little Eichmann" comment to go after those in academe more generally. This is important stuff. Assuming you think academe is important.

(F) Job Position in Military History

2005-02-05T10:57:00.000-05:00

From Prof. Reina Pennington, Dept. of History, Norwich University Hi all. Norwich is starting an online MA program in Military History (MMH), and we need a director to run it. We hope to do preliminary interviews at SMH. It's a short deadline, since we need someone who can be here by July if at all possible. (We will also be looking for course developers and online instructors.) Norwich has

(F) PoMo English Title Generator

2005-02-05T05:44:00.000-05:00

A new way to "interrogate the project of military history" . . . Let's revisit, say, Russell F. Weigley, The American Way of War Here are 5 means by which you might destabilize, decenter, deconstruct, or otherwise devalue that book: 1. Identity and Community in The American Way of War: Russell F. Weigley Defamiliarizing Materialist Mythos 2. Russell F. Weigley Alienating

Iraq Bloggers Central

2005-02-05T03:23:00.000-05:00

"An American Looks at Iraq and the Iraqi Bloggers" Good starting point for Iraq blogs.

Australian Military History Links

2005-02-05T01:54:00.000-05:00

Yahoo : Australia : Military History