I spent October traveling to schools throughout the South talking to students about American history. What I found were young people who understand we can tell a story that includes both the positive and the negative. As one 8th grader in Memphis said, “Doesn’t seem that hard, just say both things.”
We need a critique of AI in academic publishing. Following my decision not to sign an AI addendum to my contract with Cambridge University Press, I wrote this short essay which is now out in the Dublin Review of Books.
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drb.ie/move-over-fo...
try being a mets fan....
Join me Tuesday for a virtual book talk at the AAS.
www.americanantiquarian.org/node/13335
Luckily, Sinclair has a helpful database of all their stations, so you can see if they're operating in your area and respond accordingly.
sbgi.net/tv-stations/
Come join me for a virtual book talk at the American Antiquarian Society next Tuesday 9/23 at 7pm. Book talk will be followed by Q&A with Mark Peterson and the audience.
www.americanantiquarian.org/node/13335
My new book, Mending the Nation: Reclaiming "We the People" in a Populist Age, is now available for pre-order!
In a time of cynicism and despair, Mending the Nation uses lessons from the past to chart a new way forward.
kansaspress.ku.edu/9780700640638/
AI update (especially relevant for JHUP authors): I just zoomed with the rep from JHUP & she capitulated. She will remove my books from the LLM license w/o me signing their ridiculous statement.
Fave US history myth that needs to die sudden & quick death, GO:
myth: self-made man; ppl pulling selves up by own bootstraps; meritocracy
reality: behind every US success story is tangled web of opportunity from family wealth/connections, community support, govt-supported educ. & infrastructure...
The volume of Canadians taking road trips into the U.S.—the way most Canadians visit—dropped by 37% last month compared to July 2024, according to new data from Statistics Canada, following a 33% drop in June.
There was also a 26% decline in air travelers from Canada year-over-year.
Oh definitely! That's what made the NY knock-off caps so funny. Normally I'm trying to blend in and not look too American with my clothes. This time, it was my NYC tote bag that was helping me to fit in!
Yes, it definitely still felt like Europe. It's hard to explain. While they are embracing some aspects of American culture, it's not an unconditional or unconscious embrace. In some ways, I would say they are being "Europeanized" more than "Americanized" (which was one of the fears about the EU.)
16/ Maybe this isn’t new, but they all bring their dogs on vacation. So many dogs.
17/ There was very little toplessness on the beaches. My husband noticed this change. 😉 And even much more modest men’s bathing suits (very few “nut-huggers”).
15/ The variety of car makes & models is also an ongoing trend—mostly European brands, but also lots of Korean, Chinese, as well as US. (Yet surprisingly few Japanese other than Nissan.) Each country used to be dominated by a few local brands.
14/ With only a few exceptions, CC’s are virtually universally accepted. And as has been an ongoing trend, the Europeans are way more advanced with the use of “tap” for CC payment. There was even a “tap” basket in church at the collection during mass. You can now survive with almost no cash.
13/ Despite the crowds (and what has been reported in the news), we saw almost NO anti-tourism protests. And we encountered no anti-American sentiment. (Of course, the lack of Americans probably helped…)
12/ And also the variety of ethnic (i.e., non-French) restaurants, especially from the Middle East and North Africa, even in smaller cities. While this partially reflects their imperial legacy, they now seemed more integrated and accepted as part of the local fabric. And lots of pizza.
11/ The presence of hamburgers and chicken on menus at regular restaurants was surprising. (Obviously, the French are known for their frites, but usually with moules or steak.) And scrambled eggs and bacon at breakfast was unexpected.
10/ But this also means that air conditioning is becoming much more popular. It is certainly easier to find decent a/c in hotels and shops.
9/ They are getting hit hard by climate change. The melting of the glacier at Mont Blanc is truly shocking (we were there in 1996). And we accidentally got caught up in the recent wildfire (the country’s worst since 1949.) Many of the old growth grapevines can’t survive the drought conditions.
8/ But it was actually refreshing to be able to walk through a city without smelling marijuana everywhere. (Maybe I’m just getting old, but I find the smell of marijuana worse than cigarettes.)
7/ Europeans still smoke cigarettes way more than Americans (and are still kind of oblivious to it bothering non-smokers), although they no longer smoke indoors. Some now vape, but to a lesser extent than in the US.
6/ They wish they could bring their youngest to the US so he could learn too, but they are afraid to travel there now.
5/ At one point I heard a tween girl speaking perfect American English standing next to a woman in a Red Sox shirt. I asked where they were from: Grenoble, France. But they had lived in Mass. for several years, where the older kids picked up English.
3/ I have never seen so many NY Yankees caps in my life—even in NYC. (This was very disconcerting as a Mets fan!) Everyone wore them (both w/ the true Yankee logo & w/ plain NY knock-offs.)
4/ In very distant 2nd was Laker gear. In even more distant 3rd was everyone else (Chicago, Detroit, etc.)
1/ We encountered virtually NO other Americans. This was highly unusual. The sites were mobbed with people, but almost all Europeans. The only other English-speakers were Brits, Aussies, Kiwis.
2/ BUT, they were dressed more like Americans than ever before, wearing American branded clothing & gear.
Thoughts from an American traveling in Europe in 2025:
I have spent time abroad (mostly in Europe) almost every year for 30 years, and almost always in the summer. I just returned from 2 weeks in Southern France. Some observations...
Exactly right.
They simply want the end product — whether it’s an actual production of art or music or the end result of hard work like a PhD — without doing the work.
It’s cheat codes all the way down.
