Dear Friends,

LISTEN TO THIS WEEK’S PROGRAM (and click here to share my blog)

It’s always a delight co-hosting the program with Charles Goldman. It’s twice the fun with two Goldmans, as Charles’ brother, Steve, joins us this week.

I use the word “fun” loosely, of course, since our topics almost always address matters of pressing importance. This week — our Memorial Day edition — we discuss Steve’s soon-to-be-released book, One More War to Fight: Union Veterans’ Battle for Equality through Reconstruction, Jim Crow, and the Lost Cause.

Dr. Stephen A. Goldman

In an era where misinformation and outright lies too often pass as facts, Steve’s book “looks at the contentious post-Civil War era from the perspective of that special breed, Union soldiers, who lived by the bayonet and survived to carry on the fight for equality in the decades to come.”

Edna Greene Medford (Professor of History Emerita at Howard University) writes, “Goldman offers a compelling argument in this comprehensively researched volume that addresses ways in which certain groups of northern white Union veterans supported a ‘just’ Reconstruction that aimed to protect and extend the rights of African Americans. Of particular interest is Goldman’s discussion of the role of the members of the Veterans Reserve Corps (wounded warriors), whose political activism, especially in veterans’ organizations; Freedmen’s Bureau work; and opposition to Andrew Johnson’s Reconstruction plans, countered the prevailing prejudices and racism of post-Civil War America. This is a study that will enlighten both the serious student of history as well as the general reader.”

I think you’ll appreciate our conversation about Steve’s book. We also talk about the First Amendment and the often-misunderstood phrase “well-regulated militia.”

At the 40-minute mark of this week’s podcast, Charles and I discuss the mainstream media’s efforts to prep the American public for a “new Ukrainian offensive.” To me, it’s an abrogation of journalistic integrity to merely parrot Pentagon talking points. The mainstream media pay scant attention to the urgency of seeking a diplomatic resolution to the war, and seem almost blind to the heightened threat of nuclear war. Charles and I don’t entirely see eye-to-eye on the issue. I’d be interested in your thoughts.

Switching gears, Kathy and I discuss seaweed. Yes, some are touting one type of seaweed — sea lettuce — as the up-and-coming wonder food of the New Climate Era. It’s even being called “seawheat” in some circles. Sorry, but no ocean plant, no matter how it’s dolled up, is ever going to replace a nice, hot slice of fresh-out-of-the-oven whole wheat bread — served with gobs of homemade butter and honey, of course.

Thanks for reading, listening, and remembering our veterans.

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