31 MAR 2024 · Hey all, I hope you’re doing well. I have for all of you the audio adaptation of https://historyimpossible.substack.com/p/oppenheimer-and-the-nuclear-question in response to my seeing the magisterial Oppenheimer, and given its newly Oscar-anointed status, I figured now would be the best time to get this out as a bonus as you all patiently await the return of the Muslim Nazis series (it’s still coming, worry not!). In this, we cover, mostly from my own memory (but supported by sources), the various reasons the United States might have dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. To say this is a complicated question is an understatement. To say there is a consensus, even almost 80 years later, is impossible. So we’re going to get into the weeds with this question while also showing the love Christopher Nolan’s magnum opus deserves. And as always, History Impossible has been made possible by the following generous supporters on Patreon, Substack, and PayPal. Please consider https://www.patreon.com/historyimpossible to help keep me free and this show alive: David Adamcik Rajan Athul Babeonbobby Dave Baxter Michael Beach Benjamin Elias Borota Johannes Breitsameter Charles C Cliffydeuce CR daddygorgon Paul DeCoster Neil Dickens Nathan Diehl Bob Downing Dramicas Rob Duval Gavin Edwards Pierre Ghazarian Jayson Griesmeyer Nathan Grote Benjamin Hamilton Peter Hauck Carey Hurst Joe6245 Thomas Justesen Mike Kalnins Bryn Kaufman Leah Kodner Benjamin Lee Constance Loucks Maddy Mounty of Madness Jose Martinez Mike Mayleben Judy McCoid Jim Miller Kyle Mohney Kostas Moros Ryan Mortenson Cameron Needham Skip Pacheco David Page Molly Pan Jeff Parrent Jean Peters John Pisano Sr. Powell Brian Pritzl AnaR737 PJ Rader Gleb Radutsky Aleksandr Rakitin Reptilycus Phillip Rice Chris Rowe Jon Andre Saether Alison Salo Jake Scalia Emily Schmidt Julian Schmidt Andrew Seeber Joshua Simpson Cameron Smith Thomas Squeo Brian Steggeman Pier-Luc St-Pierre Athal Krishna Sundarrajan Jared Cole Temple ChrisTX Robert VS Jonny Wilkie Ricky Worthey Michael Wroblewski F. You

7 MAR 2024 · Hey everyone. The following is an ad-free bonus audio essay that follows up on the recent conversation I had with the History Underground's J.D. Huitt, where I make some corrections and then provide some deeper context to my thinking about how we might fix the Holocaust Knowledge Gap via education. I will let the episode speak for itself, but I want to thank all of you for your constant support of the show and your patience as I work on the longer episodes. History Impossible has been made possible by the following generous supporters on Patreon, Substack, and PayPal. Please consider https://www.patreon.com/historyimpossible to help keep me free and this show alive: David Adamcik Rajan Athul Babeonbobby Michael Beach Benjamin Elias Borota Johannes Breitsameter Charles C Cliffydeuce CR daddygorgon Paul DeCoster Neil Dickens Nathan Diehl Bob Downing Dramicas Rob Duval Gavin Edwards Pierre Ghazarian Jayson Griesmeyer Nathan Grote Benjamin Hamilton Peter Hauck Carey Hurst Joe6245 Thomas Justesen Mike Kalnins Bryn Kaufman Leah Kodner Benjamin Lee Constance Loucks Maddy Mounty of Madness Jose Martinez Mike Mayleben Judy McCoid Jim Miller Kyle Mohney Kostas Moros Ryan Mortenson Skip Pacheco David Page Molly Pan Jeff Parrent Jean Peters Sr. Powell Brian Pritzl AnaR737 PJ Rader Gleb Radutsky Aleksandr Rakitin Reptilycus Phillip Rice Chris Rowe Jon Andre Saether Alison Salo Jake Scalia Emily Schmidt Julian Schmidt Andrew Seeber Joshua Simpson Cameron Smith Thomas Squeo Brian Steggeman Pier-Luc St-Pierre Athal Krishna Sundarrajan Jared Cole Temple ChrisTX Robert VS Jonny Wilkie Ricky Worthey Michael Wroblewski F. You Greg Zink

23 FEB 2024 · In this newest special installment of History Impossible, we’re joined by long-time friend of the podcast and friend of mine, J.D. Huitt, the man behind the incredible https://www.youtube.com/@TheHistoryUnderground, probably one of the best historical travel and educational content creators in the game (who has more than earned his 600,000 subscribers). Both J.D. and I were DMing on Twitter/X recently, sharing our discomfort with the seeming spike we’ve been seeing of not just ignorance about the Holocaust—what we thought was one of the best known event of the 20th century—but also the skepticism and even downright denial of it as it’s been traditionally known. This coincided with the https://www.economist.com/united-states/2023/12/07/one-in-five-young-americans-thinks-the-holocaust-is-a-myth released in late 2023 that showed a shocking 20 percent of young Americans believing the Holocaust was a myth, with more vastly underestimating the numbers. As it happens, this is a subject J.D. and I had discussed before in one of our conversations a number of years ago, and J.D. warned the audience that this was the natural consequence of poor education on this subject. Much as it’s crude to say, we felt it was necessary to take a rueful victory lap on our concerns being confirmed. We discuss why this phenomenon has occurred in a bit more depth, while also offering some broader solutions to how one teaches such a horrifying event in a way that might stick with people, without it simply going in one ear and out the other. It’s hard to say whether we succeed, so we’ll let you be the judge of that. History Impossible has been made possible by the following generous supporters on Patreon, Substack, and PayPal. Please consider https://www.patreon.com/historyimpossible to help keep me free and this show alive: David Adamcik Rajan Athul Babeonbobby Michael Beach Benjamin Elias Borota Johannes Breitsameter Charles C Cliffydeuce CR daddygorgon Paul DeCoster Neil Dickens Nathan Diehl Bob Downing Dramicas Rob Duval Gavin Edwards Pierre Ghazarian Jayson Griesmeyer Nathan Grote Benjamin Hamilton Peter Hauck Carey Hurst Joe6245 Thomas Justesen Mike Kalnins Bryn Kaufman Leah Kodner Benjamin Lee Constance Loucks Maddy Mounty of Madness Jose Martinez Mike Mayleben Judy McCoid Jim Miller Kyle Mohney Kostas Moros Ryan Mortenson Skip Pacheco David Page Molly Pan Jeff Parrent Jean Peters Sr. Powell Brian Pritzl AnaR737 PJ Rader Gleb Radutsky Aleksandr Rakitin Reptilycus Phillip Rice Chris Rowe Jon Andre Saether Alison Salo Jake Scalia Emily Schmidt Julian Schmidt Andrew Seeber Joshua Simpson Cameron Smith Thomas Squeo Brian Steggeman Pier-Luc St-Pierre Athal Krishna Sundarrajan Jared Cole Temple ChrisTX Robert VS Jonny Wilkie Ricky Worthey Michael Wroblewski F. You Greg Zink

5 FEB 2024 · “I scarcely ever passed a week under such depression of spirits. […] It is terrible to see the extent to which all classes go in their determination to win. Conscience offers no restraint; nothing is so common as the resort to perjury unless it is violence. In short, I do not know who to believe: if we win, our methods are subject to impeachment for possible fraud; if the enemy wins, it is the same thing exactly. Doubt, suspicion, irritation go with the consequence, whatever it may be.” —Lew Wallace, retired Civil War general, 1876 Many people will call out elections in our lifetimes as being particularly divisive, whether it’s the 2000 election or the 2020 election. Those were indeed divisive, but very few elections have approached the divisiveness and the chaos unleashed in the United States Presidential Election of 1876, fought between the Democrat Samuel Tilden and the Republican Rutherford B. Hayes, in which the ultimate decision on who would be president was decided by one electoral vote. In this special five year anniversary episode of History Impossible in which we revisit this event only briefly touched upon in the inaugural episode of this entire show, we’re joined by Richard Lim of the https://www.thisamericanpresident.com/, who helps shed some light into the details of this contentious election and this absolutely wild period of American history. With the election of 2024 looming large and with everyone’s imaginations running wild with how things will turn out, Richard and I thought it might be prudent to not just provide a historical reality check on just how wild things can get, but how Americans were able to extract themselves from such insanity while living through it. Happy five years and here’s to five more with History Impossible. For more detailed look at the Election of 1876, https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fake-news-and-nasty-men-the-1876-election/id1223767856?i=1000385483453. History Impossible has been made possible by the following generous supporters on Patreon, Substack, and PayPal. Please consider https://www.patreon.com/historyimpossible to help keep me free and this show alive: David Adamcik Michael Beach Benjamin Elias Borota Johannes Breitsameter Charles C Cliffydeuce CR daddygorgon Paul DeCoster Nathan Diehl Bob Downing Rob Duval Gavin Edwards Pierre Ghazarian Jayson Griesmeyer Nathan Grote Benjamin Hamilton Peter Hauck Carey Hurst Thomas Justesen Mike Kalnins Bryn Kaufman Leah Kodner Benjamin Lee Maddy Mounty of Madness Jose Martinez Mike Mayleben Judy McCoid Jim Miller Kyle Mohney Kostas Moros Ryan Mortenson Skip Pacheco David Page Molly Pan Jeff Parrent Jean Peters Brian Pritzl AnaR737 PJ Rader Gleb Radutsky Aleksandr Rakitin Phillip Rice Chris Rowe Jon Andre Saether Alison Salo Jake Scalia Emily Schmidt Julian Schmidt Andrew Seeber Joshua Simpson Cameron Smith Thomas Squeo Brian Steggeman Pier-Luc St-Pierre Athal Krishna Sundarrajan Jared Cole Temple ChrisTX Robert VS Jonny Wilkie Ricky Worthey Michael Wroblewski F. You

30 DEC 2023 · Sometimes, the best way to understand everything a people have gone through is to understand a dream. This is how many nations frame themselves and their own origins. No matter the context, there is always truth in the idea that before there was a nation, there was a dream. And that dream, however morally sullied by the ugliness of reality, consequences, and choices, can never and should never be discounted, even with the nations who have had their dreams frustrated for so long. In fact, the truth of that dream can be seen in those realities, consequences, and choices that we may not understand or accept on a moral level many years later. This can be seen in plenty of nations, both old and young, and that everyone recognizes, from the United States to Israel. But there are few nations whose history better represents this dynamic than the young nation (but very old culture) of Bosnia. In this conclusion to the Balkan Inferno trilogy that will lead us by the hand back into the good graces of the so-called “Muslim Nazis,” we look at that long history of that central, symbolic part of the old Yugoslavian Region we today call Bosnia-Herzegovina (or Bosnia, for short). We’ll look at many of the strange and mysterious aspects of this place’s history, including its own schismatic Bosnian Church, and the various attempts at self-determination peppering the timeline. This timeline is often dominated by collapsed empires—Roman, Ottoman, Austro-Hungarian, German—and failed kingdoms—Serbian and Croatian—but always present is the story of Bosnia. This nation and its people has always had others trying to define them for their own ends, but there has always been a force within that has wanted to define itself. This has indeed led to some truly disturbing decisions—namely alliances—but these decisions could always be tracked back to the dream that forges all nations. That is what we explore here today. History Impossible has been made possible by the following generous supporters on Patreon, Substack, and PayPal. Please consider https://www.patreon.com/historyimpossible to help keep me free and this show alive: David Adamcik Michael Beach Benjamin Elias Borota Johannes Breitsameter Charles C Mind Chatterings Cliffydeuce CR daddygorgon Paul DeCoster Nathan Diehl Bob Downing Rob Duval Gavin Edwards Pierre Ghazarian Jayson Griesmeyer Nathan Grote Benjamin Hamilton Peter Hauck Carey Hurst Thomas Justesen Mike Kalnins Bryn Kaufman Leah Kodner Benjamin Lee Maddy Mounty of Madness Jose Martinez Mike Mayleben Judy McCoid Jim Miller Kyle Mohney Monica Kostas Moros Ryan Mortenson Ben Mullen Allen Pace Skip Pacheco David Page Molly Pan Jeff Parrent Jean Peters Brian Pritzl AnaR737 PJ Rader Gleb Radutsky Aleksandr Rakitin Phillip Rice Chris Rowe Jon Andre Saether Alison Salo Jake Scalia Emily Schmidt Julian Schmidt Andrew Seeber Joshua Simpson Cameron Smith Thomas Squeo Brian Steggeman Pier-Luc St-Pierre Athal Krishna Sundarrajan Jared Cole Temple ChrisTX Robert VS Jonny Wilkie Ricky Worthey Michael Wroblewski F. You

24 NOV 2023 · Hey everybody. Now that I’ve finished up the notes and script for the conclusion of the “Balkan Inferno” trilogy (which will lead us right back into the thick of the “Muslim Nazis” series), I’m hard at work putting all of that together. In the meantime, please enjoy (as much as one can enjoy such a subject—I really do say that a lot, don’t I?) this bonus episode that slightly tweaks and expands https://historyimpossible.substack.com/p/pogroms-and-students, “Pogroms and Students.” This episode covers relatively current events regarding the escalation of anti-Semitic incidents—especially in the United States, where in New York https://www.nydailynews.com/2023/11/08/war-in-gaza-and-israel-brings-surge-in-nyc-hate-crime-against-jews-new-nypd-data-shows/—on the heels of Hamas’ declaration of war on Israel and the ongoing war being waged against them by the IDF, but it also gets into the history of the role students played in some of the most infamous pogroms in Jewish history, particularly in Russia around the time of the First Russian Revolution. It also revisits the discussion of mass violence we did in https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/balkan-inferno-the-heritage-of-horror/id1450885141?i=1000626794792https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/balkan-inferno-the-heritage-of-horror/id1450885141?i=1000626794792 which unfortunately, feels even more relevant than ever (so please consider giving that 5 hour 18 minute beast a listen if you haven’t already and have a strong constitution). History Impossible has been made possible by the following generous supporters on Patreon, Substack, and PayPal. Please consider https://www.patreon.com/historyimpossible to help keep me free and this show alive: David Adamcik Michael Beach Benjamin Elias Borota Johannes Breitsameter Charles C Mind Chatterings CJ Cliffydeuce CR daddygorgon Paul DeCoster Nathan Diehl Bob Downing Rob Duval Gavin Edwards Pierre Ghazarian Jayson Griesmeyer Nathan Grote Benjamin Hamilton Peter Hauck Carey Hurst Thomas Justesen Mike Kalnins Bryn Kaufman Leah Kodner Benjamin Lee Maddy Mounty of Madness Jose Martinez Mike Mayleben Judy McCoid Jim Miller Kyle Mohney Monica Kostas Moros Ryan Mortenson Ben Mullen Allen Pace Skip Pacheco David Page Molly Pan Jeff Parrent Jean Peters Brian Pritzl AnaR737 PJ Rader Gleb Radutsky Aleksandr Rakitin Phillip Rice Chris Rowe Jon Andre Saether Alison Salo Jake Scalia Emily Schmidt Julian Schmidt Andrew Seeber Cameron Smith Thomas Squeo Brian Steggeman Pier-Luc St-Pierre Athal Krishna Sundarrajan Jared Cole Temple ChrisTX Robert VS Jonny Wilkie Ricky Worthey Michael Wroblewski F. You

7 NOV 2023 · The recent https://historyimpossible.substack.com/p/israel-gaza-and-three-root-causes and https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/israel-gaza-and-three-root-causes/id1450885141?i=1000633190895 of History Impossible about the significant three root historical causes of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict has largely been well-received. What I didn’t expect is that one of the main sources I used for that episode would be willing to speak with me in greater depth about the massively underrated Arab Revolt of 1936-1939. In this episode, we’re joined by the scholar, political analyst, and writer Oren Kessler, whose https://www.amazon.com/Palestine-1936-Revolt-Middle-Conflict/dp/1538148803 should be included as required reading for anyone interested or invested in what has been topping the news since October 7th, 2023. Oren, like myself, is a believer in the notion that the Littlefinger of Palestine, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem Hajj Amin al-Husseini, is a figure of massively underrated importance. In this episode, we discuss the Arab Revolt through the eyes of the Mufti and examine just why he and his decisions and his legacy matter in the 21st century, despite him becoming largely forgotten except for his infamous photo op with the Fuhrer of Nazi Germany himself, Adolf Hitler. Oren makes the case that this is giving al-Husseini the short shrift with regards to his impact and we discuss why this should be both self-evident and required for understanding why things have gotten so bad between Israel and Gaza. Thank you and enjoy! History Impossible has been made possible by the following generous supporters on Patreon, Substack, and PayPal. Please consider https://www.patreon.com/historyimpossible to help keep me free and this show alive: David Adamcik Michael Beach Benjamin Elias Borota Johannes Breitsameter Charles C Mind Chatterings CJ Cliffydeuce CR daddygorgon Paul DeCoster Nathan Diehl Bob Downing Rob Duval Gavin Edwards Pierre Ghazarian Jayson Griesmeyer Nathan Grote Benjamin Hamilton Peter Hauck Carey Hurst Joseph Hurst Thomas Justesen Mike Kalnins Bryn Kaufman Leah Kodner Benjamin Lee Maddy Mounty of Madness Jose Martinez Mike Mayleben Judy McCoid Kyle Mohney Monica Kostas Moros Ryan Mortenson Ben Mullen Allen Pace Skip Pacheco David Page Molly Pan Jeff Parrent Jean Peters Brian Pritzl AnaR737 PJ Rader Gleb Radutsky Aleksandr Rakitin Phillip Rice Chris Rowe Jon Andre Saether Alison Salo Jake Scalia Emily Schmidt Julian Schmidt Andrew Seeber Cameron Smith Thomas Squeo Brian Steggeman Pier-Luc St-Pierre Athal Krishna Sundarrajan Jared Cole Temple ChrisTX Robert VS Jonny Wilkie Ricky Worthey F. You

31 OCT 2023 · When you talk about history for a living, the contemporary world often has opportunities to make your knowledge more relevant. What knowledge actually possessed here about Israel and Palestine is likely more limited than some, I'd like to think that there is still some I can share to help clarify the conversation a little, at least when it comes to the notion of truly root causes to this ongoing conflict whose 2023 flare-up is the worst it's been in a long time, if not ever. In this special dispatch of History Impossible--which is being treated as a proper episode--we're going to revisit some old stomping grounds of this show, namely the Israeli-Palestinian region of the world during the 1890s-1930s. There are some familiar events and faces, and some information has been adapted from previous episodes, but this is largely all new ground to cover with new sources added into the mix. This will not solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by a long shot, and it will not please everyone, but it will hopefully add some historical clarity into the mix for folks who find themselves increasingly invested in the ongoing events in the Middle East. Love to you all who support this show: David Adamcik Michael Beach Benjamin Elias Borota Johannes Breitsameter Charles C CJ Cliffydeuce CR daddygorgon Paul DeCoster Nathan Diehl Bob Downing Rob Duval Gavin Edwards Pierre Ghazarian Jayson Griesmeyer Nathan Grote Benjamin Hamilton Peter Hauck Carey Hurst Joseph Hurst Thomas Justesen Mike Kalnins Bryn Kaufman Benjamin Lee Maddy Mounty of Madness Jose Martinez Mike Mayleben Judy McCoid Kyle Mohney Monica Kostas Moros Ryan Mortenson Ben Mullen Allen Pace Skip Pacheco David Page Molly Pan Jeff Parrent Jean Peters Brian Pritzl PJ Rader Gleb Radutsky Aleksandr Rakitin Phillip Rice Chris Rowe Jon Andre Saether Alison Salo Jake Scalia Emily Schmidt Julian Schmidt Andrew Seeber Cameron Smith Thomas Squeo Brian Steggeman Pier-Luc St-Pierre Athal Krishna Sundarrajan Jared Cole Temple ChrisTX Robert VS Jonny Wilkie Ricky Worthey F. You Please consider supporting History Impossible over on https://www.patreon.com/historyimpossible or https://historyimpossible.substack.com/subscribe if you like what I do here and want to support my work.

10 OCT 2023 · This is a bonus episode (a bit bigger than one might expect) that adapts and, more importantly expands, an essay I wrote for my friend and editor Jamie on his https://americandreaming.substack.com/p/affirmative-action-may-have-always. I seriously need to thank him for letting me write something so…I dunno, controversial? Combative? Anyway, whatever, so THAT under his publication’s name). This does use a very contemporary and contentious issue as its launchpad, and while some might see this as impolitic or even inappropriate, my history-addled brain only allowed me to see, hear, and read what I see, hear, and read and interpret it thusly. Pretentious way of saying, yes, I know I’m being edgy, and I know I’m being provocative, but I do implore all of my listeners to hear me out. This is not only history, but it’s, in my mind, an important aspect of history both in the United States and the “West” more broadly. So yes, we’re talking about the biggest problems with the mere idea of affirmative action and what I—and by extension Hannah Arendt—believes is the real issue at heart when aristocrats and monarchs (literal and figurative) grant privilege as a means to improve their own lots, while, of course, always under the guise of improving everyone’s lot. Is History Impossible too cynical? It’s been suggested. But there’s a polemic in here that needed to be made, otherwise I’d go a little crazy without making my self-important analysis known. Love to you all who support this show: David Adamcik Michael Beach Benjamin Elias Borota Johannes Breitsameter Charles C CJ Cliffydeuce CR daddygorgon Paul DeCoster Nathan Diehl Bob Downing Rob Duval Gavin Edwards Pierre Ghazarian Jayson Griesmeyer Nathan Grote Benjamin Hamilton Peter Hauck Carey Hurst Joseph Hurst Thomas Justesen Mike Kalnins Bryn Kaufman Benjamin Lee Maddy Mounty of Madness Jose Martinez Mike Mayleben Judy McCoid Kyle Mohney Monica Kostas Moros Ryan Mortenson Ben Mullen Skip Pacheco David Page Molly Pan Jeff Parrent Jean Peters Brian Pritzl PJ Rader Gleb Radutsky Aleksandr Rakitin Chris Rowe Jon Andre Saether Alison Salo Jake Scalia Emily Schmidt Julian Schmidt Andrew Seeber Cameron Smith Thomas Squeo Brian Steggeman Pier-Luc St-Pierre Athal Krishna Sundarrajan Jared Cole Temple ChrisTX Robert VS Jonny Wilkie Ricky Worthey F. You

19 SEP 2023 · Hey all. This is an adaptation/audio version of an essay I recently wrote for my friend and editor Jamie Paul’s https://americandreaming.substack.com/, in which I examine the uniqueness of the Holocaust as both a genocide and historical event. If you like what you hear and want to hear me delve more into this subject, I’ll try to delve further into it in a future special episode like this one. But in the meantime, please enjoy. And thank you very much for all of your patience as I try and juggle all the projects I have on tap at once. History Impossible has been made possible by the following generous supporters on Patreon, Substack, and PayPal. Please consider https://www.patreon.com/historyimpossible to help keep me free and this show alive: David Adamcik Michael Beach Benjamin Elias Borota Johannes Breitsameter Charles C CJ Cliffydeuce CR daddygorgon Paul DeCoster Nathan Diehl Bob Downing Rob Duval Gavin Edwards Pierre Ghazarian Jayson Griesmeyer Nathan Grote Benjamin Hamilton Peter Hauck Carey Hurst Joseph Hurst Thomas Justesen Mike Kalnins Bryn Kaufman Benjamin Lee Maddy Mounty of Madness Jose Martinez Mike Mayleben Judy McCoid Kyle Mohney Monica Kostas Moros Ryan Mortenson Ben Mullen Skip Pacheco David Page Molly Pan Jeff Parrent Jean Peters Brian Pritzl PJ Rader Gleb Radutsky Aleksandr Rakitin Chris Rowe Jon Andre Saether Alison Salo Jake Scalia Emily Schmidt Julian Schmidt Andrew Seeber Cameron Smith Thomas Squeo Brian Steggeman Pier-Luc St-Pierre Athal Krishna Sundarrajan Jared Cole Temple ChrisTX Robert VS Jonny Wilkie Ricky Worthey F. You