Past Present

In this episode, Natalia, Neil, and Niki discuss the history of U.S. national parks.

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Here are some links and references mentioned during this week's show:

• Yellowstone National Park turned 150 years old this year. Natalia recommended historian Rachel Louise Moran's book Governing Bodies; American Politics and the Shaping of the Modern Physique. Niki cited historian Sarah Phillips' book This Land, This Nation: Conservation, Rural America, and The New Deal and this Atlantic essay by David Treuer. Neil discussed this Smithsonian magazine article. Natalia recommended historian Megan Kate Nelson's book Saving Yellowstone: Exploration and Preservation in Reconstruction America, and Neil talked about the exclusionary policies in national parks outlined in this USA Today article.

In our regular closing feature, What's Making History:

• Natalia shared her latest column for Observer, "Coss Marte's CONBODY Combined Fitness and Social Justice. Now He is Adding Legal Cannabis."
• Neil discussed the Netflix series Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey and his 2008 Slate essay, "Short Creek's Long Legacy."
• Niki recommended Katherine Rosman's New York Times article, "That Voice You're Hearing? It Might Be Hers."

In this episode, Neil, Natalia, and Niki discuss the growing popularity of prenuptial agreements.

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Here are some links and references mentioned during this week's show:

• Prenuptial agreements are becoming more common among millennials. Niki cited this New York Times article, and Neil referred to legal scholar Allison A. Marston's Stanford Law Review article on the politics of prenups. Natalia referenced some of these celebrity couples whose prenuptial agreements made news.

In our regular closing feature, What's Making History:

• Natalia recommended the podcast, "Normal Gossip."
• Neil commented on the passage of the Respect for Marriage Act by the House of Representatives.
• Niki shared her latest CNN column, "Controlling Who Can Travel or Talk About Abortion Brings a Dark Past Into Our Present."

In this episode, Niki, Neil, and Natalia discuss the images from outer space captured by the Webb telescope.

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Here are some links and references mentioned during this week's show:

• Everyday Americans and astrophysicists alike thrilled at the dreamy, full-color photos shared by NASA last week. Niki drew on this Guardian essay about how "Earthrise" changed our perspective on Earth. Natalia contrasted the Webb images with these early, grainy photos from space. We all drew on this Christie's retrospective on space photography.

In our regular closing feature, What's Making History:

• Natalia commented on the divergent interpretations of who won this exchange between Senator Josh Hawley and law professor Khiara M. Bridges.
• Neil recommended Susan Orlean's New Yorker article, "An Old Dog That Found A New Best Friend," and this Instagram feed.
• Niki shared Justin Peters' Slate article, "The Ridiculous Claims That Journalists Shouldn't Have Published the Uvalde Video".

In this episode, Natalia, Niki, and Neil discuss the American tradition of travel to Europe.

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Here are some links and references mentioned during this week's show:

• American travel to Europe is back with such a vengeance that some are calling it "revenge travel." Neil referred to this history of the "Grand Tour." Natalia and Niki drew on this Hudson Valley magazine article about midcentury Catskills resorts.

In our regular closing feature, What's Making History:

• Natalia discussed Rick Emerson's new book, Unmask Alice: LSD, Satanic Panic, and the Impostor Behind the World's Most Notorious Diaries, as reviewed in Observer by Nathan Smith.
• Neil shared about Amanda Mull's Atlantic article, "You're Not Allowed to Have the Best Sunscreens in the World."
• Niki recommended Livia Gershon's article for JSTOR Daily, "The Forgotten Temperance Movement of the 1950s."

In this episode, Neil, Niki, and Natalia discuss the outbreak of monkeypox in the United States.

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Here are some links and references mentioned during this week's show:

• Monkeypox is the latest disease to concern the American public. Niki cited this Stat News article, and Neil referred to historian Jim Downs' Atlantic essay about the historical continuities with the HIV-AIDS virus.

In our regular closing feature, What's Making History:

• Natalia discussed her latest "Quick Study" column for Observer, "American Childhood As We Knew It Is Over."
• Neil recommended the Instagram account, A History of Dogs.
• Niki discussed her latest CNN column, "This is so much worse than Watergate."

In this episode, Niki, Natalia, and Neil discuss Carson v. Makin, the Supreme Court decision that overturns Maine's ban on giving public funds to private religious schools.

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Here are some links and references mentioned during this week's show:

• In a victory for proponents of school choice and a major weakening of church-state separation, Maine will now be required to provide state funding to religious schools. Neil cited this Slate article about the ruling, and Natalia drew on this City Journal piece.

In our regular closing feature, What's Making History:

• Natalia discussed Amanda Mull's Atlantic article, "Fashion Has Abandoned Human Taste."
• Neil recommended Hugh Ryan's book, The Women's House of Detention: A Queer History of a Forgotten Prison.
• Niki shared about Patricia Bell-Scott's book, The Firebrand and the First Lady: Portrait of a Friendship: Pauli Murray, Eleanor Roosevelt, and the Struggle for Social Justice.

In this episode, Natalia, Neil, and Niki discuss the national tampon shortage and the history of feminine products.

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Here are some links and references mentioned during this week's show:

• A national tampon shortage has until recently been dismissed as a minor inconvenience or even a punchline. We all drew on this Smithsonian history of menstrual products. Niki referred to this Atlantic essay on the history of the tampon, and Natalia to Lara Freidenfelds' book, The Modern Period: Menstruation in Twentieth-Century America.

In our regular closing feature, What's Making History:

• Natalia shared about ProPublica's new study of adult literacy and referred to this New York Times article about challenges to a popular literacy program.
• Neil recommended Sasha Issenberg's book, The Engagement: America's Quarter-Century Struggle Over Same-Sex Marriage.
• Niki discussed Christopher Mathias' HuffPost article, "Living With the Far-Right Insurgency in Idaho," and her own column for CNN, "Arrests at Idaho Pride Event Could Be a Harbinger of Things to Come."

In this episode, Neil, Natalia, and Niki discuss the long American tradition of June weddings.

Support Past Present on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pastpresentpodcast

Here are some links and references mentioned during this week's show:

• June wedding season is upon us, and after two years of delayed celebrations, it is especially packed. Natalia referred to this Harper's Bazaar photo essay about representation and same-sex marriage, and to this Buzzfeed article, which is useful despite repeating a myth about bathing practices being related to June wedding date selection. Niki referred to this Atlantic article on the relationship between marriage, weddings, and adulthood.

In our regular closing feature, What's Making History:

• Natalia recommended Molly Worthen's New York Times guest essay, "400 Years Ago They Would Be Witches. Today They Can Be Your Coach."
• Neil shared about the HBO Max series, "It's A Sin."
• Niki recommended Rebecca Traister's article for The Cut, "The Institutionalist: Where Did it All Go Wrong?"

In this episode, Niki, Neil, and Natalia discuss the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas.

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Here are some links and references mentioned during this week's show:

• Yet another mass shooting, this one at a Texas elementary school, highlights the unique American obsession with gun rights. Niki referred to this NPR piece on the tape recording of NRA leadership after the 1999 Columbine school shooting, and Natalia drew on Susie Linfield's New York Times guest essay on the photography of graphic violence.

In our regular closing feature, What's Making History:

• Natalia recommended this Kathryn Fiona Substack interview with a former Johnny Depp supporter, shared by technology writer Kat Tenbarge.
• Neil discussed Penelope Green's New York Times obituary of Margot Heuman.
• Niki shared Maris Kreizman's Esquire article, "The Legacy of Gone Girl."

In this episode, Natalia, Niki, and Neil discuss the cryptocurrency craze.

Support Past Present on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pastpresentpodcast

Here are some links and references mentioned during this week's show:

• The crash of TerraLuna is proving "crypto" to be both more than a passing trend and less than the miracle its boosters once promised. We recommended Kevin Roose's "Latecomer's Guide to Crypto" in the New York Times. Niki drew on this History News Network article to link crypto enthusiasm to other financial bubbles, and Natalia referred to James Ledbetter's FIN Substack This 2013 (early) history of Bitcoin from New York Times provided useful context for all of us. Niki also recommended David Yaffe-Bellany's New York Times piece, "Ben McKenzie Would Like a Word with the Crypto Bros," and the Crypto Island podcast.

In our regular closing feature, What's Making History:

• Natalia talked about Amy Odell's new book, Anna: The Biography.
• Neil discussed Sarah Pulliam Bailey's Washington Post article, "Southern Baptist Leaders Covered Up Sex Abuse, Kept Secret Database, Report Says."
• Niki recommended Maureen Ryan's Vanity Fair article, "The Great Pottery Throwdown is a Balm for a Weary Age."