Tuesday, April 15, 2025

The Untold History of the United States TV series by Oliver Stone and Peter Kuznick: Review


The Martin Luther King speech on Vietnam that I mentioned: https://youtu.be/HISxIFwjO70?si=5e1jWkolBHL_wowO

This is part of my so-called "Scripted Review" series, in which I make a Youtube video based on an old blogpost.  For more information on what this is and why I'm doing it, see HERE:

This is also part of my Television Addiction series.  For my explanation of what the Television Addiction series is and why I'm doing it, see: https://youtu.be/T5CEQ9-35xA and http://joelswagman.blogspot.com/2021/04/television-addiction-article-on.html

Oliver Stone’s Untold History of the United States

          Another history documentary.
            This documentary series is at times spectacular.  Oliver Stone is no stranger to cinematic storytelling, and, in the earlier episodes especially, he brings all his storytelling abilities to this project.  The archival footage, the dramatic music, and the bold narration all contribute to the feel of watching something epic.
            The first 5 or 6 episodes are examples of documentary history at its absolute finest.
            The problem, from an entertainment perspective at least, is in some of the later episodes the editorializing gets in the way of the story telling.  For example, the episode on the 1980s is less a coherent narrative than it is just a list of all the reasons Reagan sucked.  The episode on George W. Bush  is the same.  I don’t disagree with Oliver Stone’s politics, but the powerful narrative thrust of the early episodes gets a bit muddled in the later episodes.
            Still, inspite of the fact that the narrative quality of the series is not entirely consistent over all 10 episodes, the high points of this series more than make up for the low points.  It’s well worth checking out.
Sidenotes:
1). I’m not sure all this information has ever been in one documentary series before.  I remember having to learn all my information about the untold history of the United States in piecemeal fashion.  I learned one thing here, another thing there, and just gradually accumulated knowledge. 
            Now it’s possible to just watch this documentary, and in 10 short hours accumulate all of this knowledge in one go.  Which brings me to my next point:
2) It’s really surprising they allowed this to be on TV. 

And 3). One last observation: Oliver Stone is famous for his conspiracy theories in his movie JFK, but fortunately he largely stays away from conspiracy theories in this series.  (He hints that relations between Kennedy and the CIA were not good, but stops short of trying to explicitly connect any dots.)  In The Untold History of the United States, Oliver Stone largely sticks to facts that, while they may not be largely reported, are not contested. I think this series is credible.
            (In my youth I was on-board with some of the Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories, but over time I’ve come to agree with Chomsky that spending too much time speculating on unknowns is a waste of time.  For Chomsky’s thoughts on why we shouldn’t waste time speculating about conspiracy theories SEE HERE.)


History Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x52uI39vSXVrJvUFjdN9QkL&si=dICJTZngZlwi8WIT

Did you enjoy this review? Consider supporting me on Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/joelswagman

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Monday, April 14, 2025

Started: We Are Your Sons: The Legacy of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg by Robert and Michael Meeropol (I've read parts of this book before, but not the whole thing--as I mentioned in this post here.)

Check out this book on Amazon: https://amzn.to/42wbMaO            (This is an Amazon Associate's Link.  If you buy anything through that link, I get a commission.)
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The Sheer Depravity is Astounding

For the past several years, whenever I am conversing about current events, I often find myself starting out by stating , "I know at this point nothing should shock me anymore, and yet..."

And so, when it comes to the deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, I have to say, "I know at this point nothing should shock me anymore, and yet... 
...and yet, how is this happening?

A man without a criminal record, and with court-ordered protected status, is sent to a torture prison in El Salvadore due to an administrative error.  This man is a father, and was taken away from his family, including a 5-year-old austic son who he was caring for.  Then the court orders the Trump administration to facilitate his return, and the Trump administration refuses to do it.


As far as moral conundrums go, this is one of the easy ones.  Just return the wrongly imprisoned father to his wife and son.  This doesn't have to be political.  This doesn't have to be a left/right issue.  Just do the obviously right thing.  Please.  This is one of the easy ones.
And yet, they won't do it.

And then I thought to myself, "How are we as a country allowing this to happen?  Why are we not flooding the streets and demanding Kilmar Abrego Garcia be returned?  Have we gotten to a point where we are so complacent and so desensitived that we can just read this in our news feeds and then go on to read something else?"

And that's when I realized, I could no longer stay silent.

The past few years, I've been trying to reinvent myself as apolitical (see here and here).  I had become embarrased of my youthful political advocacy, for a number of reasons (in my youth, I had been arrogant, annoying, certain that I was always right, dismissive of other views, tribalistic, I had uncritically adopted the opinions of the thought leaders of the Left, etc.).  Now that I'm middle-aged, I wanted to just be quiet and respectable and normal.
So that's why I wrote a few months ago: I'm (Mostly) Going to be Keeping Mute on Political Events.

I also, although I did not state it at the time, really wanted to keep this blog politically neutral, because I'm currently on the job hunt, and I figured employers would view a politically outspoken blog as a liability.

But how can you keep silent when this stuff is going on?  
The deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia is as blatant a miscarriage of justice as you could ask for. If we as a society can accept this, then we as a society can accept anything.  
And I know that statistically Kilmar Abrego Garcia is just one person, but the way he's being treated is an indication of what our society will tolerate.  When future historians write about Kilmar Abrego Garcia, what are they going to say about how the American public reacted to his case?
And if we stay silent when this type of thing happens, then, what really is the point of being alive?  We're only on this earth for a few years.  We have to at least do a little bit to confront the injustices of our time.

So, I'm going to be contacting my local representatives to let them know who I feel about the deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia.

And, I guess maybe I'll be doing more political posts on this blog after all.  I didn't want to, but... well, to quote from The Fellowship of the Ring:
“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo. 
“So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
******************************************
see also this tweet: 

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Sunday, April 13, 2025

This Week in Booktube: April 13, 2025
(These are the Booktube videos I watched this week. As always, I encourage you also to check out each of the videos I've linked to down below.  Support Booktube.  And let me know what you've watched this past week.)

Google document: docs, pub 

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Racso and the Rats of NIMH by Jane Leslie Conly: Book Review


Started: April 9, 2025

(This is a reread.  I originally read this book in 5th grade, as I mentioned before in this post here.  However, this is the first time I'm reviewing this book on this blog, so, according to my new rules, I'm doing this as a video only review.)








I was able to read this book thanks to the Michigan statewide state-wide interlibrary loan service called MeLCat, which may be in danger thanks to a Presidential executive order.  If you, like me, enjoy using MeLCat, contact your local representatives and let them know. 

Did you enjoy this review? Consider supporting me on Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/joelswagman

Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/JoelSwagman

Check out this book on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4cqWvwt            (This is an Amazon Associate's Link.  If you buy anything through that link, I get a commission.)
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Saturday, April 12, 2025

Starting: R-T, Margaret, and the Rats of NIMH by Jane Leslie Conly

Check this book out on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4jzlRe2              (This is an Amazon Associate's Link.  If you buy anything through that link, I get a commission.)
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Starting: Bone 4: The Dragonslayer by Jeff Smith

Check this book out on Amazon: https://amzn.to/44u1zxU                 (This is an Amazon Associate's Link.  If you buy anything through that link, I get a commission.)
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A History of Britain (TV series) by Simon Schama: Review


This is part of my so-called "Scripted Review" series, in which I make a Youtube video based on an old blogpost.  For more information on what this is and why I'm doing it, see HERE:

This is also part of my Television Addiction series.  For my explanation of what the Television Addiction series is and why I'm doing it, see: https://youtu.be/T5CEQ9-35xA and http://joelswagman.blogspot.com/2021/04/television-addiction-article-on.html


Simon Schama: A History of Britain

   I’m a huge fan of documentaries, and this one was very well done and well produced.
            Also, added to Monarchy and This Sceptred Isle, this show helped to complete my education about Britain’s long history.
            When I first started watching the show, I expected it to be another This Sceptred Isle—a show that would methodically go through all the centuries of British history.
            I was slightly disappointed then when I realized that the series was skipping over large parts of history entirely.  The series would chose on event to examine in detail, and then jump ahead 100 years or so to the next event. 
            The English Civil War, for example, was very well done, but other interesting events like the War of the Roses got skipped over completely.
            Nonetheless, it did a very good job with the stories that it did chose to focus on.


History Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x52uI39vSXVrJvUFjdN9QkL&si=dICJTZngZlwi8WIT

Did you enjoy this review? Consider supporting me on Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/joelswagman

Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/JoelSwagman

Check out this book on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3RbZU8D           (This is an Amazon Associate's Link.  If you buy anything through that link, I get a commission.)
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Friday, April 11, 2025

Assyria: The Rise and Fall of the World's First Empire by Eckart Frahm: Book Review


Started: March 25, 2025

(This is my first time reading this book, so according to my new rules, I'm doing this as a video only review.)





Did you enjoy this review? Consider supporting me on Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/joelswagman

Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/JoelSwagman

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Thursday, April 10, 2025


"As for you..." Nicodemus paused. "We haven't talked about whether you should stay."
Racso had never really considered the possibility that he would not stay at Thorn Valley. For a moment he was at a loss for words. Finally he said weakly, "I want to stay."
"Why?" Nicodemus asked.
Racso hesitated. He wanted to speak well, but he was scared. After a while he said, "I want to be a scientist. I want to be a hero, like you."
Nicodemus looked genuinely startled. He laughed briefly. His good eye was open wide, and he regarded Racso with quite amusement. "I am not a hero," he said. "And Thorn Valley is not in the business of raising heroes. Heroes are creatures of adversity – war, fire, accident or disaster. Our dreams for Thorn Valley don’t include the tragic circumstances that produce heroes. What we want is a community where rats cooperate to provide food and shelter, where work and pleasure are part of everyone’s life."
"But you'll need heroes," Racso argued. "You'll need leaders."
"Leaders, yes," Nicodemus nodded. "But leaders are no more heroic than the rat who carries more grain than she really has to, or the student who does not lose his temper when another rat takes what is rightfully his."
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Wednesday, April 09, 2025

Starting: Racso and the Rats of NIMH by Jane Leslie Conly  (This is a reread.  I read this book before in 5th grade, as I mentioned in this post here.)

Check this book out on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/4cqWvwt                (This is an Amazon Associate's Link.  If you buy anything through that link, I get a commission.)
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Boney M.--Sharing Music I Like

Okay, quick poll: Who out there has heard of Boney M.?  And how did you hear of Boney M.?
I never heard of Boney M. until I was in my mid-30s in Cambodia.  But I'm trying to figure out if that was just me, or if it's normal not to hear about this group.

Several years ago, when I lived in Cambodia, I started to hear the song Daddy Cool frequently.  


I had never heard the song before, so I assumed it was a new pop song.  (It does kind of have a timeless quality to it, doesn't it?  If you didn't know any better, you could kind of assume this was a 2010s pop song.)
Then, one night out at the bar, this song was playing, and I remarked about it to my Scottish friend "Oh, this is that new song I've been hearing lately."
And my Scottish friend said, "This is by Boney M.  This is an old song."

Ever since then, I've been trying to figure out if I just missed something when I was growing up, and I should have been familiar with this group, or if rather this group just never got a lot of play back in the United States.
First, some background.  According to Wikipedia:
Boney M. is a German reggae, funk and disco music group founded in 1974, who achieved popularity during the disco era of the second half of the 1970s.[1] 
Incidently, the group was created by Frank Farian, who would later go onto create Milli Vanilli, and Boney M was like an early version of Milli Vanilli in that the performers that you saw on stage were lip syncing, and not actually the ones responsible for the vocals.  See this video here: Boney M: The Original Milli Vanilli


Although the performers certainly put on a show in concert.  See this video:


After I learned about Boney M, I started catching references to them everywhere.  (See: The Frequency Illusion), and this caused me to think that everyone had known about this group except me.
Or had they?
I started to notice my British co-workers at work making references to Boney M. songs. 
...but then, they were British.  And Boney M. was a European group, after all. Perhaps this group had gotten more play in Britain then in America?

I certainly don't remember hearing any Boney M. songs when I was young.  And although Boney M. was before my time, I grew up on classic rock and oldies stations, so I surely would have heard these songs, right?
...but then, Boney M. was disco music, and the classic rock stations didn't really play any disco.

I've also started to notice some of my favorite Youtubers referencing Boney M. music.  The Boney M. song Rasputin, for example, is referenced in this Contrapoints video, and in this extra history video.  And these were American channels, right?
...but on the other hand, maybe the Internet has made this European disco music more accessible to the younger generation than it was to mine.  

I don't know.  Let me know in the comments what your experience with Boney M. was.  I did a quick poll the other day of my sister and my brother-in-law, and they had never heard of Boney M.  But then, they're not always an accurate representation of what the average American knows.

Anyway, Boney M.'s music was popular both in Cambodia and Vietnam, so in my years living in those countries, I got a fair amount of exposure to their music.  And if you've never heard of this group before, I'd like to share their music with you.
It's not good music, per se, but it sure is catchy.  I challenge you, listen to the Daddy Cool videos I linked to above, and then see if you're not humming that song to yourself for the rest of the day.

And then there's the Rasputin song I mentioned above.  Also terribly catchy:


Bahama Mama was another popular song I heard all the time in Vietnam--although I do have to say it wasn't my particular favorite, but I did hear it a lot.  If you want to check it out, you can find it on Youtube here.

And then the other song that I heard frequently in Vietnam was Rivers of Babylon.  


The song, you might recognize, is based on Psalm 137 from the Bible--omitting, of course, the violent ending that is in the original.  (In her Introduction to the Old Testament lectures, Christine Hayes notes that people very often quote the opening lines to this psalm, but very seldom quote the ending lines.)
Anyway, as a Bible/History nerd, I always thought it was interesting when I heard this song playing in Vietnam, because most Vietnamese people had no idea about any of the history that this song was referencing.  And because I love explaining history to people, I would use it as an excuse to launch into an explanation of the history of Babylon and Judah.  (Most of the time people just ignored me.)  But still, I found it fascinating that this 2,500 year old history has been popularized on a contemporary pop song.
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MTTC English as a Second Language (126) Secrets Study Guide by Mometrix: Review


Started the Youtube Videos: March 14, 2025

(This is my first time reading this book, so according to my new rules, I'm doing this as a video only review.)



Links to stuff mentioned:
* The public available study guide for this MTTC (126): https://www.mttc.nesinc.com/Content/STUDYGUIDE/MI_SG_OBJ_126.htm
* This book on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3Qr9iVz
* The Flashcard set on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4cJ7x0l
(These are Amazon Associate's Links.  If you buy anything through those links, I get a commission.)
* My playlist for Mometrix Academy Youtube Videos for MTTC English as a Second Language (126): https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x40jZXG-kTzcTQ44_7e-zj7

I mentioned in my started post for the Youtube videos that I would review the videos separately under my Podcasts, Youtube Series, Radio Shows, Etc project.  But I changed my mind, and decided to review the videos together with the book.

I attempted to make a quizlet for this book, but didn't get past the first few pages.  That quizlet is HERE.



Did you enjoy this review? Consider supporting me on Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/joelswagman

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Sunday, April 06, 2025

This Week in Booktube: April 6, 2025
(These are the Booktube videos I watched this week. As always, I encourage you also to check out each of the videos I've linked to down below.  Support Booktube.  And let me know what you've watched this past week.)

Google document: docs, pub 

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The Visitors from Oz by L. Frank Baum pictured by Dick Martin

According to the Oz Wiki, this book was adapted by Jean Kellogg. 

(Book Review--Land of Oz, Fantasy, Children's Books)  

Started: April 4, 2025

(This is my first time reading this book, so according to my new rules, I'm doing this as a video only review.)




Related Playlists: 






I was able to read this book thanks to the Michigan statewide state-wide interlibrary loan service called MeLCat, which may be in danger thanks to a Presidential executive order.  If you, like me, enjoy using MeLCat, contact your local representatives and let them know. 

Did you enjoy this review? Consider supporting me on Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/joelswagman

Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/JoelSwagman

Check out this book on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4i3zq4c       (This is an Amazon Associate's Link.  If you buy anything through that link, I get a commission.)
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Saturday, April 05, 2025

The New Teen Titans Volume Six by Marv Wolfman and George Perez: Book Review


Started: March 22, 2025

(This is my first time reading this book, so according to my new rules, I'm doing this as a video only review.)




Related Playlists:





I was able to read this book thanks to the Michigan statewide state-wide interlibrary loan service called MeLCat, which may be in danger thanks to a Presidential executive order.  If you, like me, enjoy using MeLCat, contact your local representatives and let them know.  

Did you enjoy this review? Consider supporting me on Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/joelswagman

Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/JoelSwagman

Check out this book on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4kPWzJT          (This is an Amazon Associate's Link.  If you buy anything through that link, I get a commission.)
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Friday, April 04, 2025

Starting: The Visitors from Oz by L. Frank Baum pictured by Dick Martin
Check out this book on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4i3zq4c           (This is an Amazon Associate's Link.  If you buy anything through that link, I get a commission.)
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Thursday, April 03, 2025

It looks like the Michigan statewide state-wide interlibrary loan service called MeLCat may be in danger.
I got the following email from my local library:
The Michigan eLibrary (MeL) and MeLCat are made possible with funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). You most likely have heard about the Presidential Executive Order calling for the elimination of non-statutory components of IMLS, and earlier this week all IMLS staff were placed on administrative leave. 
The Continuing Resolution that was approved by Congress and signed by the President on March 15, 2025 includes full funding of IMLS through September of this year. With no IMLS staff, it's unclear how the approved funding will be executed, but from what we know at this point in time, there are no changes or interruptions.
Please continue to enjoy use of these services. We are watching the developments closely and will keep you informed of changes as we become aware of them. 

This is a service I actually use a lot since returning to the US.  (Of course, it would be just my luck that right after I return to the US, they would get rid of this service.)

More information here and here.

So, I just called the office of my local representative (link HERE)  to let them know that this was a service I enjoyed using, and that I hoped it would continue to stay funded.

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Wednesday, April 02, 2025

I was substitute teaching again today, and the instructions the teacher left was to play an episode of MacGyver.  (Usually the instructions are to put on a movie, but this time it was a TV show.)
Some of the students had never heard of MacGyver.  (Of course they hadn't.  This show was way before their time.)  Other students recognized the name MacGyver from Simpsons references.  

As for myself, I actually had never seen an episode of MacGyver before.  I definitely knew about it.  Several of my friends from the church youth group were fans, and I remember some discussion about it.  But I had never seen it myself.  Mostly because my parents exercised tight regulation on my tv viewing when I was young.
In fact, I didn't even realize until I looked it up just now, but MacGyver was actually a 1980s TV show.  I always thought it was from the 1990s, I guess because I remember my friends talking about it in the 1990s.  But it turns out it started in 1985, and ran until 1992 (W).

Anyway, the episode that the students (and me) were assigned to watch for today was Season 2 Episode 21: "D.O.A.: MacGyver".  And because this was the lesson plan for 4 of the classes I was covering today, I ended up watching it 4 times.

If you know anything about MacGyver, you know that his schtick is that he's an action hero who fights crime using science.  This is why teachers generally approved of the show.  (I mentioned before that many of my church youth group friends were fans of the show, and I also remember the youth pastor himself talking approvingly of the show.)
It struck me upon watching my first ever episode that this was a pretty clever idea by someone.  Basically the show seems to play like any other 1980s action tv show, but the episode included a couple brief references to fixing things with some sort of science or mechanics.  It's a very small part of the episode, but it's just enough to get the show recommended by teachers and youth pastors.  And then the rest of it plays out like a normal action show.  Clever marketing.

D.O.A.: MacGyver plays like a pretty by the numbers 1980s action TV show.  In fact, it's SO by the numbers that they include not 1 but 2 TV tropes commonly used in that era: MacGyver has amnesia and can't remember who he is, and also as MacGyver begins to remember his past, they sprinkle in clips from past episodes.  That's right, it's both an Amnesia Episode and a Clip Show Episode.

But as much as I love to poke fun at 1980s TV shows, you do have to admit that it's very watchable.  I mean, you do really have to admire what they were doing in action TV shows in the 1980s--they managed to pull off 22 action episodes a year, on a tight budget, and ended up with a lot of action sequences and stunt work that were actually pretty good.

The ending of this particular episode, however, was anticlimatic.  I'm not sure how typical that is (as this is so far the only MacGyver  episode I've seen.)
Also, I didn't realize it until I went to the IMBD page, but the girl in this episode is played by Nana Visitor, who I, as a huge Star Trek fan, know from Star Trek Deep Space Nine.  (I thought she looked recognizable when I was watching the episode, but didn't realize who she was.)

Bonus: Someone made a fan trailer for this episode:

Check out this show on Amazon: https://amzn.to/43E3BeD           (This is an Amazon Associate's Link.  If you buy anything through that link, I get a commission.)
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Tuesday, April 01, 2025


Once again, you can blame substitute teaching for this one.  I was substitute teaching today, and the lesson plan was to resume playing this movie.  The students had already seen the first 12 minutes yesterday, so I played it from 12 minutes to the 48 minute marker.  And I had to do this 4 times in 4 classes today, so by the end of the day I was well acquainted with those 40 minutes.
This is a movie I've already seen.  (I saw it in the theaters when it originally came out.)  So it was another rewatch, or half-rewatch.

Although I didn't rewatch the whole thing (I missed the first 12 minutes, and the whole second half of the movie), it did strike me that the movie is operating on a few different levels.
1) It's a philosophical movie--the old "What if our reality was just a simulation?" hypothetical
2) It's a commentary on reality TV
3) It's a comedy
4) It's a suspense movie--as Truman keeps trying to escape his reality, and as he keeps getting thwarted, you get sucked into the suspense of "Will he be able to get out this time?"

It works realitively well on all of these levels.  The suspense scenes work great.  The humor is good.
It is, however, a bit repetitive, especially in the beginning.  The first 50 minutes of the movie are essentially Truman discovering that his reality is manufactured.  And then discovering it again.  And then discovering it again.  (He seems to realize fairly early on in the movie what is going on, but then the movie just has scene after scene of him rediscovering this.)

The movie is also completely unrealistic, even if you grant its premise.  (Even if you grant that society would tolerate a TV show making a prisoner of someone like this, and even if you grant that the show has the budget to do all the things that they do, there were still a lot of scenes were I didn't believe that this is a realistic portrayal of how people would actually act in this situation.)  So as you're watching this movie, you have to constantly shut down that voice in your head that keeps saying, "But real people wouldn't act like that."

This was one of Jim Carrey's first serious roles, and he plays it mostly well, but he's still a little bit over the top in some scenes.  Would this movie have been better served with a different lead actor?

It also occured to me (on the 3rd time watching) that this movie might also be operating as a commentary about how difficult it is sometimes to escape from your hometown and get out into the wider world.
Check out this movie on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4i4vvUK        (This is an Amazon Associate's Link.  If you buy anything through that link, I get a commission.)
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