16) Pearl Harbor & American Leadership

Dr. Mitton concludes this series with several questions: Is the United States an Empire? Is it is possible for a republican empire to be benevolent? Finally, how do the decisions of average American consumers both demand and support global empire?

How did the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1967 lay the groundwork for the age of terrorism? Dr. Mitton takes us right up to our own day in this episode.

What political & economic elements led to the Reagan Revolution? Did Ronald Reagan win the Cold War? And how conservative was Reagan really? Dr. Mitton takes us through the recent past.

Taking lessons from Nixon and the concept of the Imperial Presidency, Dr. Mitton asks the question "Are the American people fit for world leadership? And does the world need a leader at all?"

Was the Civil Rights Era in the U.S. a response to the geopolitical forces of the Cold War? Can the LBJ's Great Society be understood in the context of international affairs? And how can we explain the evolution of the American political parties, and their reversal of historical positions in the middle of the Twentieth Century?

This episode begins a thematic approach to 20th century history as Dr. Mitton explores the emergence of the American superpower and the simultaneous development of the social welfare democratic state. -- And why these two themes are mutually reinforcing.

What specific United States policy was Japan responding to when they attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941? How did the Depression lead directly to World War II? And why, after half a century as the largest economy on earth, did the U.S. finally decide to take up the mantle of world leadership in 1941?

Two themes dominate 20th Century world history: The emergence of the United States as a global superpower, and the simultaneous emergence of the modern Social Welfare State. This episode examines the roots of both in the Great Depression. Was the depression inevitable? Was it a result of gross mis-management of the economy, or a natural by-product of laissez-faire capitalism...or both?

The U.S. has officially declared war just five times; yet American troops have been involved in hostile incursions on foreign soil a total of 272 times! In this episode Dr. Mitton begins a discussion of American in the world. Woodrow Wilson understood that, as the largest economy on the planet, United States had responsibilities in the global community. But the horror of World War I disabused most modernists of the ideological notions of a global order based on self-interested nation states. - Join the discussion of the ideas that shaped a generation...and likely led directly to the most destructive conflict in the history of humankind: World War II.

Despite the fact that no mention of political parties can be found in the Constitution, bitter partisan divides have characterized U.S. politics since George Washington's administration. In this episode Dr. Mitton first explores the unique qualities of the American political system that guarantee an acrimonious two-party system. Then he guides us through the issues that divided the country and characterized the first partisan battles of the 1790s. -- Issues and principles which are remarkably similar to those we still fight about today.