by L. DeAne Lagerquist | Mar 1, 2022 | AmCon
We read together a section from Michael Klarman’s book The Framer’s Coup in which he argues that the framers of the Constitution of the USA were far less devoted to democracy than many Americans today might assume. Rather he demonstrates their suspicion...
by L. DeAne Lagerquist | Feb 26, 2022 | AmCon, Uncategorized
Of course I’ve read bits of Democracy in America from the several editions on my AmCon shelf. It was one of our original “dense facts.” Usually the sections we read highlighted American ethos: individualism, voluntary associations, etc. We used to...
by L. DeAne Lagerquist | Feb 26, 2022 | AmCon, Uncategorized
We returned to The Name of War, having considered the heady arguments for a social contract and in favor of independence from England. Lepore takes us through the changing presentations of natives into the 19th century. In doing so she does not give a single, simple...
by L. DeAne Lagerquist | Feb 19, 2022 | AmCon
The Battle at Concord and Lexington is said to have included the “shot heard around the world.” It is one candidate for the beginning of the American Revolution. If so, one reason would be that the battle tipped Thomas Paine’s opinion firmly to the...
by L. DeAne Lagerquist | Feb 18, 2022 | AmCon, Uncategorized
Locke, Rousseau, Jefferson: these were our conversation partners on Wednesday as we considered the thinking behind the Declaration of Independence. Although perhaps tangential, the thing that struck me about both Locke and Rousseau was their speculative imagination....
