"No theory, no history."

Werner Sombart, quoted in Theodore Von Laue The World Revolution of Westernization

"Men have forgotten God; that’s why all this has happened."

- Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn in his 1983 Templeton Address re the disastrous history of Russia in the 20th century, quoted in Philip Yancey Soul Survivor

In my latest National Post column I say it's time to leave Afghanistan and keep our powder dry and our morale up for the next challenge.

"I grew up in the ‘70s and ‘80s, as part of a generation who were taught the minutiae of 'social history.' There was no wider context to put it in, no framework, no sense of a larger, grander picture. It was plodding and confusing and mind-numbingly dull. It was after I left school that I became interested in history as it is meant to be taught – as a story, as conflict and character, as cause and effect. My approach comes from my own 're-discovery' of Canadian history."

Will Ferguson in a Q&A in The Beaver October-November 2005

Jesse Brown of Canadaland just posted an interview with me about The Rebel, Charlottesville and the state of public debate more generally. He and I certainly don't see eye to eye on a lot of things so I appreciate the opportunity to have a civil discussion about our disagreements instead of the sort of shouting match that too often erupts nowadays.