Talking History with Big Coop

Suburbs, rock n roll, and the "good old days," but also redlining, segregation and the "woman's place." Get ready for a rollicking ride through America in the 1950s, cool tunes and cold wars.

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By 1953, the U.S. and Soviet Union had gone from allies to enemies… and the Cold War had its first battlefield in Korea. From Berlin to Hollywood to the 38th parallel, this is how it all began

The Cold War Begins (1945–1953)

The story of how WWII allies became Cold War enemies in less than a decade.

A short comparative episode tying U.S. “law and order” measures to:

• ​India’s use of sedition and protest laws

• ​France’s police surveillance post-yellow vests

Repressive tools often rise in democratic and authoritarian regimes alike — especially when power is threatened. America’s trajectory isn’t isolated; it fits a wider pattern of “order politics.”

New mini-episode:

🛑 National Guard in the streets

🧊 ICE with expanded powers

⚖️ “Law and order” from both Left and Right

We’ve heard this before...

And we’re breaking it down — with historical parallels and sociological tools.

America's fun times come to an end. The Wall Street Crash of 1929 heralds the beginnings of an economic depression that would change the way Americans perceive their government's role in their lives. 

A quick dive into issues of race and racism portrayed in Lorraine Hansberry's award-winning play, "A Raisin in the Sun."

What put the "roar" in the "Roaring 20s"? This week you'll find out. Take a dive into the grand experiment of Prohibition and its disastrous outcomes.

AND we're back! Sorry, had to take a short hiatus due to COVID, festivals and the end of the school year. We are going to finish up the Roaring 20s in the next few episodes. Buckle your seatbelts and get ready for the ride!!!

This week we look at the presidencies of Harding and Coolidge. One presidency marred by scandal, the other tainted by the first. The economic policies that promoted the "Roaring" part of the Roaring Twenties and set the stage for the Great Depression are initiated by these two men.

A brief sojourn back to the Gilded Age as we look at the coalescing of farmers into political groups known as granges and uniting with the Democratic Party under William Jennings Bryan for the election of 1896 on a ticket supporting "bimetallism."

The final of four special episodes about the First World War and the final episode of our first season! Make sure to check out the website for some great images about the war. In this episode we look at how the failure to forgive plants the seeds for the second world war.

Part three of four episodes on WWI: America primes it’s military for war and begins the arduous task of moving troops and weaponry across the pond. The penultimate episode of Season 1.

Part two of four episodes on WWI: A series of events pushes Woodrow Wilson from his isolationist stance to fighting a war for democracy against the Central Powers.

Here's a midweek special-the first of a four part series on WWI! In this episode I will look at the spark that sets off the Great War: the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand and the Sandwich Theory. 

The longest one yet!!! Following the success of the United State's "Splendid Little War" against the failing Spanish Empire, our Progressive (and expansionist) presidents approach their foreign policies in varied ways. Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and Woodrow Wilson oversee the years of American Empire and the road to World War I.

The buildup is over and the “Splendid Little War” episode is here and the Imperial transformation of the United States begins.

A brief backstory on the man who made the modern presidency and heralded the American Century.

This episode lays the groundwork for the "Splendid Little War," also known as the Spanish American War of 1898.