One of John Adam’s greatest achievements was not taking the nation to war with France when the rest of his party, especially Hamilton, wanted war. He was able to avoid all-out war, but our nation’s first international conflict was what we call the Quasi-War from France. This was contained to a naval war where American … Continue reading Class Notes
Author: James Finck
Dr. James W. Finck was raised in the shadows of history in the great state of Virginia. Growing up it was difficult to travel too far without running into a monument or battlefield from the Revolutionary or Civil War. In this environment, Finck developed a love for studying the past and from his youth knew that he wanted to make it his life’s work. Finck received a B.A. from the College of William and Mary in Virginia. He then studied under James I. Robertson and William C. Davis at Virginia Tech, while earning a Master’s degree. Finally, he received his Ph.D. at the University of Arkansas, under the direction of Daniel Sutherland. For five years, Finck taught at the University of Texas-Pan American before accepting his current position as American Historian at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma in 2011. At a small liberal arts institution, Finck considers himself a generalist in history, but his specialties are the Civil War and American Politics. Finck has established himself in Oklahoma with the creation of the Oklahoma Civil War Symposium, which has brought in leading Civil War scholars for the past eight years, and he has spoken at many venues around Oklahoma, especially working with the Honey Spring Battlefield. Finck is the author of Divided Loyalties: Kentucky’s Struggle for Armed Neutrality in the Civil War, as well as Images of America: Chickasha. Finck is also the author of the syndicated newspaper column “Historically Speaking.”
Class Notes
One positive aspect of the Founding Fathers was their unselfishness. A good example of this is how the first Congress created provisions to allow for new states to enter the Union. There is nothing in the Constitution that said they had to allow new states and if they did, they could have made them with … Continue reading Class Notes
Class Notes
One of the biggest issues facing the new government when Washington took over was our debt. We owed a total of 83 million in their time, a larger debt to income ration than we have today. To solve this major issue, he turned to his young prodigy, Alexander Hamilton. In 1790-1791, Hamilton issued three reports … Continue reading Class Notes
Divided Parties
Just when you thought our political leaders could not divide us any further, they have now turned on themselves. Right now, both parties are dealing with internal conflicts. The Democrats are struggling between the so called “progressives” (I still believe they are not using that term correctly) and the "moderates." One recent difference is between … Continue reading Divided Parties
Class Notes
As soon as the Constitution was finished the nation split into two camps, the Federalists who wanted to accept the Constitution and the Anti-Federalists who did not. Generally speaking, the Federalists were the wealthy and educated. Their interests were better served by a strong government and now they needed more to hold the nation together. … Continue reading Class Notes
Class Notes
Class Notes is back as I am starting my summer semester. This summer I will be teaching U.S. History from the creation of the Constitution to the Civil War. Probably the biggest argument in the 19th Century and in some ways today is over the “Necessary and Proper” clause or sometimes called the elastic clause … Continue reading Class Notes
Crime and Policing Patterns
One key job of historians is to find patterns. Most things in history are circular and come and go throughout time. The majority of what I do with this column is to try to show that current events have happened before and that nothing is new. Knowing this can help us make better decisions in … Continue reading Crime and Policing Patterns
Class Notes
After seeing today’s vote to remove Liz Cheney from the House leadership after she stood up against the Republican majority reminded me once again of the quotes from Edmund Burke, the great 18th Century British legislator. He understood the role of a representative in a Republic much better than any of our political leaders do … Continue reading Class Notes
Court Packing
Court Packing In the pantheon of great American presidents, a few are always at the top. Lincoln usually comes to mind, then Washington, and Jefferson. In the 20th century, the president who makes every list is Franklin Roosevelt. What makes FDR interesting is that, unlike Lincoln, FDR was beloved in his own time. Because of … Continue reading Court Packing
Executive Orders-Part III
All Americans should be concerned about President Biden's recent executive order on gun control. Try to forget for a moment, if you can, whether you agree with Biden or not and try instead to focus on the procedure. Biden is falling back on the two justifications that other presidents have used to skirt the Constitution, … Continue reading Executive Orders-Part III
Historically Speaking 