There's lots of talk right now about the people losing trust in government. The current wisdom seems concerned that this is a bad development, that the government can only continue to grow and expand if the people trust what it is doing. As Orrin Woodward and I recently wrote, the American founders thought the people should strongly mistrust … [Read more...]
Careers & Freedom, Part 2 – Oliver DeMille
September 20, 2013 by 2 Comments
Read Part 1 Here Most people in the modern world tend to see human history as a long progress from tribal societies to the Agrarian Revolutions that brought communities and cities and civilization, to the Industrial Revolution’s advanced technology, and now further progress into the Information Age. From this view, education and careers have … [Read more...]
The Real Fall of Rome – Oliver DeMille
September 17, 2013 by 2 Comments
Why it Isn’t What Most People Think, and Why it is Essential Knowledge For All of Us When I finished reading Livy’s history of early Rome this summer, I was still excited about Roman history and went looking for other books on the topic. I found a lot of mediocre books and a few good ones. And also one great one! At the same time, I received a … [Read more...]
How the Holocaust Will Be Repeated – Oliver DeMille
September 11, 2013 by 4 Comments
The Holocaust is a blight on human history, and when the West found out what really occurred under Hitler’s regime a whole generation vowed that they would never again let such a thing happen. Yet similar events occurred just a few years later in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. When freedom is lost, human beings abuse power to the extreme of … [Read more...]
A Surprising Word Choice by America’s Founders – Oliver DeMille
August 23, 2013 by Leave a Comment
One of the most surprising events in the American founding occurred when the Continental Congress used the word “happiness” in the Declaration of Independence. Up to that point, it was not a word often utilized in great political writings. Words like “justice,” “liberty,” “property,” “honor,” “power,” “rights” and others were expected in such a … [Read more...]
The Rise & Fall of Institutions: Commentary on Edward Snowden by Oliver DeMille
July 12, 2013 by 18 Comments
We are living through a major transition in America, and the Edward Snowden case illustrates just how significant it is. As recently as 1991, the American people were proud of their country, and highly impressed with their government institutions and leaders. The people looked up to the White House after what many considered a successful … [Read more...]
When Society Makes Sex its God
April 12, 2013 by 1 Comment
It’s time to bring to light a forgotten text that may be the definitive work on the rise and fall of civilizations. The book is called Sex and Culture and British anthropologist J.D. Unwin published it back in 1934. Unwin set out to test the idea put forth by Freud that civilization is born out of repressed sexuality. He studied 86 different … [Read more...]
Are You Ready for the LeaderShift?
April 6, 2013 by Leave a Comment
I'm excited for my new book, LeaderShift, and I think it’s incredibly important. As my co-author, business leader Orrin Woodward, put it: “Washington D.C. isn’t going to fix its problems anytime soon, so things are going to get worse in our politics and the economy until real leadership is found outside of government.” In short, it’s … [Read more...]
The Human Spirit
January 14, 2013 by 3 Comments
In spite of the fact that we live in a world dominated by the extreme credentialism, government regulation and oversight, and aristocratic hierarchy prophesied by Alexis de Tocqueville, Americans are still capable of pushing through the social and political miasma that bogs down our society and shine their individual brilliance on a nearly comatose … [Read more...]
The Fifty Steps of Crisis Eras by Oliver DeMille
January 10, 2013 by 2 Comments
Note to the Reader: I offered this list three years ago in early 2010, and since then the steps of crisis have advanced. I felt it was time to review and see where we are right now. Today I added a few words of commentary that update things since 2010—these are at the very end of this list. If you want, feel free to skip to the end and read the … [Read more...]
