Monday, August 23, 2021

New episode of Revolutions Podcast out today 10.66- Finland Station (Wherein the Bolsheviks call for an Uber.)
Given that Mike Duncan appears to be really busy this week with media appearances for his new book (see here) I had been worried the weekly podcast might suffer.  But there are no signs of this.  Another excellent episode.  I've said it before, but Mike Duncan really does a great job of telling history as a story.
Because Mike Duncan is trying to show the Russian Revolution from all angles, there are now a lot of plot threads being juggled, and its been a while since we last checked in with Lenin or the Bolsheviks.  (I think the last episode that featured the Bolsheviks in a main role was episode 10.45 all the way back in March.)  
A number of interesting things in this episode.  It picks up following the collapse of the Second Socialist International (from episode 10.55).  It was interesting to hear what the international socialists were up to.  (And Rosa Luxemburg gets mentioned briefly).  
Lenin's writings on imperialism are also interesting.  I'm not enough of an economists to weigh in on the debate, but it is interesting to consider The Scramble for Africa (which was happening right before World War I) and wonder what was causing it--as I wrote in my review of The Scramble for Africa by Thomas Pakenham.
All in all, another fascinating 30 minutes.

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