The Growth and Collapse of One American Nation, The Early Republic 1790-1861 By Donald J. Fraser Fraser & Associates, Roseville, California, 2020, 605 pp. A Book Review by Nancy Spannaus June 21, 2020—In examining the question of what defines an American identity, author Donald Fraser has chosen one of […]
A Book for Our Time of Crisis April 5, 2020—A horrific crisis we could have minimized, if not avoided, is already upon us, but this is no time to simply sit back and let it proceed. It’s time to read my book Hamilton Versus Wall Street: The Core Principles of […]
By Nancy Spannaus Jan. 4, 2020—Many authors of American history have acknowledged the role of Swiss lawyer-philosopher Emer de Vattel (1714-1767) in the deliberations surrounding the establishment of the U.S. Constitutional system. Vattel’s Law of Nations, published in French in 1758, arrived in English translation in the American colonies during […]
By Nancy Spannaus Nov. 22, 2019–“Let Americans disdain to be the instruments of European greatness! Let the thirteen States, bound together in a strict and indissoluble Union, concur in erecting one great American system superior to the control of all transatlantic force or influence and able to dictate the terms […]
By Nancy Spannaus Nov. 8, 2019—The coincidence of recent extravagant claims about the sterling performance of the American economy (highest stock market ever, lowest unemployment rates, etc.) and the persistent decline of key demographic indicators (increased mortality rate, increasing rates of suicide and other deaths of despair), should provoke some […]
By Nancy Spannaus June 19, 2019—The seminal role of Mathew Carey (1760-1839) in promoting and advancing the American System of political economy is a long and important story, mostly obscured in the United States. In this post, I concentrate on re-introducing him, with emphasis on one crucial aspect which is […]
By Nancy Spannaus June 16, 2019—Today, this blog turns two years old. Over the past two years, we have published 333 posts, ranging from reprints of key historic documents, to in-depth analyses of FDR’s New Deal and war mobilization, to more pithy analyses of current economic developments from the standpoint […]
By Nancy Spannaus May 15, 2019—On May 8, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, under Chairman Peter DeFazio, took a baby step toward increasing Federal spending on vital national infrastructure. It passed out of Committee HR 2440, a bill which would allow the Army Corps of Engineers to utilize the […]
By Nancy Spannaus April 28, 2019—I am very happy to announce that my book Hamilton Versus Wall Street has received a new thoughtful endorsement from another veteran economic scholar. On April 20, Neil C. Hughes wrote the following: In an age in unbridled individualism and banking system greed, Nancy Spannaus […]
By Nancy Spannaus* Oct. 14, 2020—The Oct. 2 release of Arthur Wilmarth’s new book calling for a new Glass-Steagall law is timely, and critical. Unfortunately, it is not clear that the relevant political figures are yet prepared to listen. Wilmarth’s book is entitled Taming the Megabanks: Why We Need a […]
September 19, 2020–I am pleased to announce that on September 23, I will challenge the myths about Alexander Hamilton in a lecture sponsored by the Treasury Historical Association (THA). My talk, addressed to the Treasury group via internet platform, will be based on my 2019 book Hamilton Versus Wall Street: […]
FDR: Leadership in a Time of Crisis
In Memoriam By Nancy Spannaus April 12, 2020—It was 75 years ago today that President Franklin Delano Roosevelt departed this life. His relatively early death at the age of 63 meant that much of his vision for bringing the United States and the world into a new era of prosperity […]