A summary of alternative American history

Wil rogersl once said that the trouble in the United States is not that there are too many things that everyone doesn't know; The trouble in America is something that everyone thinks they know, but it's quite different.

No field fits this humorous comment better than American history. At least in the past few decades, the American history that most students have been exposed to is actually a bunch of boring, familiar and trite stories: the American Civil War was all about slavery, the anti-monopoly law saved people from evil big companies, franklin roosevelt saved us from the Great Depression, and so on. From colonial times to Bill Clinton's presidency, the guiding principle of this book is simple, aiming at straightforward writing.

At least in the past few decades, the American history that most students have been exposed to is actually a bunch of boring, familiar and trite stories: the American Civil War was all about slavery, the anti-monopoly law saved people from evil big companies, and franklin roosevelt saved us from the Great Depression. ...

Professor Woods bravely saved the true historical facts from the memory loophole of political correctness. Everyone who wants to know about American history should read this book.

Chapter one: the colonial origin of American freedom.

Guess what?

★ Thirteen colonies are not a "perfect alliance" at all.

Puritans never stole Indian land.

★ Christianity is the most important factor in educating colonial residents.

The first basic fact: colonists are not "diverse". They come from the same place in Europe. They speak the same language. They worship the same god.

From 1629 to 1775, there are four groups of immigrants from four regions of England. The following are four periods:

1629 turn 1640: Puritans settled in Massachusetts Bay.

1642 turn 1675: Several nobles from the south of England and a large number of indentured servants settled in Virginia.

1675 turn 1725: English people from the northern mainland and Wales settled in the Delaware Valley.

17 18 turn 1775: Immigrants from Yorkshire, Scotland and Northern Ireland moved inland to remote areas in the Appalachian Mountains.

Doubt+disgust = freedom: freedom formula

However, the cultural differences between those who make up the Federation are real, important and lasting. Here is an example of how early colonists looked at each other:

A Puritan commented on Virginians:

"Adding up the number of people in their world is still a long way from conscience and honesty."

Virginia william byrd II commented on the Puritans and said:

"You have to keep an eye on these profiteers."

Puritans and Virginians comment on Quakers:

"They pray for their compatriots one day a week and are domineering for the remaining six days."

Quakers comment on New Englanders:

"A bunch of murderers."

Religion was very important to the colonists. Although they believe in the same god, they are still noisy. Indeed, Quakers, or Quakers, aroused the resentment of many colonial residents. Puritans think they have purified the liturgy and "superstition" of the Anglican Church, but for Quakers, they are still too formal. In the decades before william penn settled in Pennsylvania in 17 1980, Quakers living in Rhode Island went to Massachusetts to wake up the ignorant residents there from their dogmatic sleep and make them convert to their boring beliefs clearly. Quakers disturbed the Puritans' religious ceremonies, created great difficulties for priests, and even walked up and down the aisle naked. Quakers have been banned from Massachusetts many times.

In a strange way, this mutual hostility is attributed to the development of American freedom: every Sect and colony is wary of others interfering in its internal affairs. The differences between colonies gave birth to a natural idea: everyone sweeps his own snow, regardless of the frost on other people's tiles; If it is possible to have a central government, this government should do the same.

Love your neighbor? The quarrel between colonies gave birth to religious freedom.

The First Amendment to the Constitution reflects this attitude: the federal government shall not interfere in the religious affairs of the states. The First Amendment declares: "Congress does not make laws related to religious institutions, so it does not prohibit free religious activities." According to the historian David Hackett Fischer's understanding, this announcement is intended to safeguard religious freedom in Virginia and Pennsylvania and ensure that church institutions in Massachusetts and other places can coexist peacefully without external interference.

The sacred community of Massachusetts Bay.

It is technically incorrect to describe Massachusetts colonies as theocracy, because priests themselves have no political power, but these colonies must have a theocracy side. For example, in the Massachusetts Bay Colony established in 1629, people hope that the law can reflect the instructions of the Bible as accurately as possible. Citizenship is granted only to church members; Before you become a member of the church, you must go through a process similar to interrogation. The "pillar of the church" will determine whether a probationary member belongs to God's chosen people (destined to go to heaven forever) or to the eternal punisher.

The latter kind of people, although they have no civil rights and have not been invited to attend the Eucharist, still have to go to church according to the order. The Puritans were immersed in the theology of the Covenant. They believe that if a truly sacred community can be established, God will still give them a good look. If they can't build it, they will have to let the wrath of God come. They want to live with like-minded people in order to improve their lives according to the same ideals. 65438+In the 1930s, in the Dadham Covenant drafted by Massachusetts, this matter was solved as follows: "We will spare no effort to abandon those who are alienated from us and only accept those who are United with us."

The community spirit of early New England was often highly valued, so that the Puritans' obligation to traditional English freedom was often ignored. John winthrop was an important figure among the Puritan immigrants, and served as the governor of Massachusetts Bay for a long time. He hoped that there would be as few written laws as possible, so that he and his judges could use their power at will and rule according to the Bible. But his colonial residents hope not to be so casual, and they hope to have clear protection of personal freedom.

164 1 year, because of this disagreement, winthrop lost the election, and the colonial residents established the Massachusetts Freedom Group. The relevant documents contain more than 100 clauses, some of which are familiar to Americans: the principle of non-taxation without reason, the right to trial by jury, and the guarantee that no one can be deprived of life, freedom or property without legal procedures. The document also contains a provision that it is forbidden to beat his wife unless the husband needs to take self-defense measures. ) A century and a half before the drafting of the American Constitution, we found a document whose purpose was to limit and define the power of the government. This is just one of many documents drafted by American colonists.

With the passage of time, some restrictions of Puritan life gradually collapsed. For example, more and more ah forces people to live far away from the city center, and it is not easy for the government and religious authorities to monitor and control them. In addition, Liberalism Theological is becoming more and more attractive to many colonial residents. This is the cause of a United group, but it pays more and more attention to individual freedom.

Meanwhile. In the rough and ignorant Jamestown ...

The development of Jamestown, Virginia, took the opposite path. At first, it was a colony with distinct personality, and later it needed the cohesion of the group. The early colonies in Virginia were mainly young bachelors. There are several factors, one of which is notorious. Virginia is a land of life and death where diseases are rampant (not entirely slander), which makes immigrant families with Puritan background flinch. However, moral prices have fallen and the prosperity of the colony is well known, so it is more wise for the whole family to move to Chesapeake in southeastern Virginia.

Virginia is more aristocratic because of its more solid foundation. The nobles are in favor of the principle of autonomy, and these people attach great importance to their responsibilities. It has strict rules: every member must attend the opening ceremony of parliament, and any absence must be forgiven. (Poor James Bray, at 169 1, the parliament was furious at his absence. The speaker actually signed an arrest warrant to arrest him and detained him until he apologized. This group of elites is made up of a group of men with high scores. When the relationship with Britain is in crisis, they have the ability to clearly explain how and how American power and freedom are threatened.

In the end, the colony successfully provided individual freedom and civilized life became possible. At the same time, they also cultivated a kind of community emotion, which led them to resist centralization. This kind of community emotion has become an individual's attachment to his own colony, which is a kind of regional patriotism.

Historians have noticed how much Virginians love their land. This statement is also true for all colonies; Until 1787, Maryland people still called their state "country".

The myth of political correctness: Puritans are racists

For the American Indians they met, the colonists also had to make some policies, some of which were more successful and just than others. In the course of American history, American Indians have always been victims of injustice and abuse, and few people deny this. However, those unjust things led many Americans to think that the colonists were nothing but contempt for American Indians. They tried their best to drive them away and "steal" their land. But in fact, ten years after the establishment of Harvard College, it is

Welcome Indian students. If the colonists killed Indians, it is possible and true that they were sentenced to death. Indians who converted to Christianity lived in the "city of prayer" in New England and enjoyed a considerable degree of autonomy.

Nowadays, Puritans are eager to convert the aborigines to Christianity, and they often encounter impatient and annoying smiles. But think about John Eliot, the greatest Puritan missionary, who lived from 1604 to 1690. In order to spread Christian belief to Indians, Eliot almost violated his own belief. When Algonquin people had no written language, Eliot studied the spoken language of Algonquin people in Massachusetts, developed a written language for them to record their language, and then translated the Bible into this language. If Eliot and the Puritans just wanted to oppress the aborigines, they could take a simple approach.

It is untrue to say that Puritans have a sense of racial superiority towards Indians. They must have a sense of cultural superiority, although we don't know how they should feel when they meet people who don't know what a wheel is and have no words, but actually live in the Stone Age. However, race has not yet entered the issue. Roger Webbis of Providence settled in Rhode Island. He believed that Indians were born white. Puritans generally agree with this view. It is said that dust and sunlight will make their skin black.

In recent decades, scholars have softened their earlier judgment on the Puritans' abuse of aborigines. The research results of experts always take some time to contact the texts written by knowledgeable scholars. For example, with regard to some general views on European history, learned scholars still describe the Middle Ages as backward and barbaric, while medieval scholars are fully aware of the contribution of the Middle Ages to European civilization, especially the origin of modern science, the development of the cosmic system and the fruitful academic life in the Middle Ages. The same is true of academic research on Puritans and Indians: learned scholars always speak ill of Puritans, while experts often come to the conclusion that Puritans' behavior is much better than people are misled to believe. The same is true of the study of the Puritan and Indian wars. Historian Alden Vaughan explained that in the eyes of "learned scholars", "Puritans started every conflict and planned to commit genocide-sometimes they did. No matter experts in military history or related topics, they all think that the cause of the war between the British and Indians is not so simple and unilateral; The result of the war, although shocking and devastating, is not as good as genocide. "

catalogue

order

Chapter one: the colonial origin of American freedom.

Doubt+disgust = freedom: freedom formula

Love your neighbor? The quarrel between colonies gave birth to religious freedom.

The myth of political correctness: Puritans are racists

No, the Puritans never stole Indian land.

Autonomy is not negotiable.

Chapter II American Conservative Revolution

Colonial tradition or English reform?

Fact: The American Revolution is not like the French Revolution.

Chapter III Constitution

States claim that the constitution is good, but in case ...

We will bolt the door.

Anti-federalist opposition

Federal government workers mind their own business.

It's okay to own a gun.

Just because it is not included in the bill does not mean.

This is not a right.

Anything that states don't allow federal officials to do.

It's up to the States to decide for themselves.

The right to war: Congress is weak in its responsibilities.

Chapter four: American government and the "98 principle"

Providing "National Welfare": the Foundation of Big Government

* * * Republicans versus Federalists

Chapter V North-South Division

Missouri is yours and Maine is mine.

Other big mouths brag.

Drive slavery out of this territory (leave the land to white people)

Arizona States compete for plantations?

This is related to slavery, but it has nothing to do with slavery.

Kansas "rivers of blood"

* * * and the rise of the party.

Fact: The Southern judge released Dred Scott.

Crazy Escape: Murderer john brown returns to the scene.

Chapter VI Interstate War

Is there such a thing as the American Civil War?

States have the right to secede from the union.

Is this war to liberate slaves?

Seeking truth from facts: Lincoln's view of race

Why do soldiers fight? The soldiers said ...

The outbreak of all-out war

Chapter VII Reconstruction

Lincoln, Johnson and the President presided over the reconstruction work.

Black code in the south

The 14th Amendment and State Power

The first impeachment case of the president

Chapter 8 How Big Enterprises Make Americans Rich

How does the government encourage waste and corruption in railway construction?

"Damn" Rockefeller

Living standards in andrew carnegie and the United States.

Herbert dow: The Forgotten American Hero

Anti-monopoly idiot: Should the anti-monopoly law be abolished?

Chapter IX World War I

Wartime propaganda? Can't!

Starving civilians is illegal.

The Germans fought back.

The Lusitania sank.

Sussex Commitment

Germany gave the last push.

Why did Wilson approve of war?

Paris peace conference: a disaster that Wilson turned a blind eye to

Opponents say we can't be world policemen!

Weirdness and Gaze: Wilson's Plan

Prepare for World War II.

Chapter 10 The Misunderstood 1920s

Vote against Wilson

The truth of the 1920s.

Chapter II XI The Great Depression and the New Deal

Hoover: An "Idle" President? I hope so!

Roosevelt went to town.

Let's destroy food to help hungry people.

Roosevelt's anti-enterprise fanaticism delayed the recovery.

Consequences of labor legislation

The disaster of "public building project"

The court told Roosevelt not to worry.

Did World War II save America from the Great Depression?

Recruitment has reduced the unemployment rate!

Chapter 12 Yes, people who sympathize with capitalism do exist.

"But in the future-it works!"

Soviet experiment: American model?

The trade union has something to say: the advantages of the Soviet system

Cheer up: it's all for the benefit of the working people!

How to starve one of our own?

Journalists covering up crimes on The New York Times.

Flatterers said that Stalin's posturing about public trials was brilliant.

Yes, Soviet spies are a problem.

Joseph mccarthy is a paranoid idiot, really?

Chapter 13 The Second World War is just around the corner

Franklin roosevelt has repealed China's legislation.

Emperor and President Forming: Did Roosevelt break the law?

The end of neutrality

How Roosevelt dragged the United States into the war

Is Roosevelt's war against Japan inevitable?

Chapter XIV World War II: Consequences and Aftershocks

Roosevelt and Joseph Roosevelt were related to Stalin.

How friendly is it?

Is the Marshall Plan a great success or another one?

A failed gift-giving project?

Truman flouted the Constitution.

Chapter XV Civil Rights

Replace law with sociology.

From racial neutrality to racial chaos

Let's get those children together-even if they

It takes two hours by bus every day!

The fiasco in Kansas City.

1964 civil rights act

Chapter 16 John F. Kennedy and lyndon johnson

Who is the real john fitzgerald kennedy?

Lyndon johnson: The Legacy of Failure

The lack of job opportunities cannot explain the huge number of welfare recipients.

"Big Society" and Vietnam Tragedy

Chapter 17 Ten Years of Greed

What's different about Reagan?

Charity Donation in the "Greedy Decade"

The truth about michael milken that the media loves and hates.

that person

The myth of budget cuts

Reduce taxes

Chapter 18 Clinton

"Centrist" Clinton?

"Only unqualified job seekers can apply"

Listening to CNN's foreign policy

There was a bad start in the Balkans: how Clinton abused his power,

Incite Muslims, lie and pay taxes.

People's billions of dollars have been wasted.

"The era of big government is over"-What are you talking about?

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Translation comparison table

Translator's postscript

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