1983 and How Close We Came to Nuclear War w/ Marc Ambinder

Examining the moment in 1983 when nuclear war was possible with new research and stories from the Soviet side.  How close did we come to war?  And could that war have been accidental?  w/ former White House Correspondent for National Journal and Political Editor of The Atlantic Marc Ambinder, author of “The Brink – President…

Dark Side of Booms Part 2: Wild Times in the North Dakota Bakken Fields w/ Maya Rao

All about the Bakken oil region of North Dakota and the recent boom.  Fast money and fast growth in a state that had peaked in the 1930’s High volume trucking on unsuited roads, High wages matched by high rents and local price inflation, hungry outsiders and upset locals, and ubiquitous “Man camps” housing workers from…

The Dark Side of Booms: The 1920s

Are economic good times always good?  A look at the 1920’s and the other side of booming economic times.  This episode was recorded in 2014. http://traffic.libsyn.com/mhcbuyp/darksideofboom.mp3

Elvis Meets Nixon – The Inside Story

A look at a frenetic day at the Nixon White House.  A seemingly trivial meeting, that has long after captured the public’s imagination, does provide some inside into how Team Nixon dealt with daily events. http://traffic.libsyn.com/mhcbuyp/elvisnixon.mp3

Soccer and Repression: The 1978 World Cup in Argentina

The story of the 1978 World Cup, a cautionary tale about democracy.  The world spotlight on the junta that controlled Argentina that year helped focus some attention on the plight of the victims of a vicious dictatorship, but locally, may have enhanced support for the regime.  We talk about soccer and politics, we talk about…