Colin's Last Stand

The Third Amendment to the US Constitution protects Americans from having to house and take care of soldiers without Congressional approval. This video tells the story of how this rather strange and antiquated Amendment came to be, and why it may still be relevant today.

The Political Compass -- controversial as it may be -- is a solid way to better understand your ideological leanings. Today, Colin takes the test, explaining each of his answers along the way.

Launching missiles at Syria and changing the rules of the Senate to push a SCOTUS nominee through are just a couple of recent examples of how the drive for political expediency at all costs has failed us. And it will fail us until we, as a people, demand better.

If the Yes California movement gets its way, California will secede from the United States and become an independent country. The bad news? The movement is predicated on selfishness and flimsy justifications. (Part One of Two.)

There's nowhere on Earth that compares to North Korea. With a dictatorial, murderous, oppressive, and brazen history, it may just be time to take the country down a notch once and for all. Or is it?

If you want to attract positive attention and popular support, fight with words and ideas, not fists and bats.

If the Yes California movement gets its way, California will secede from the United States and become an independent country. The bad news? The movement is predicated on selfishness and flimsy justifications. (Part Two of Two.)

Anyone who makes you feel bad for "appropriating" elements from another culture hasn't paid much attention the last 100,000 years.

Earth is so 20th century. The greatest mysteries, adventures, and answers of all aren't on this planet. They're out there, among the stars. That's where NASA comes in, the rare governmental organization that fills us with wonder and awe.

In 1846, the US and Mexico went to war. In 1848, the US took a huge chunk of Mexico as its own. By 1917, Germany sought to use that conflict as the catalyst for a second Mexican-American War that would keep the US out of World War I.

Let's be real: "Far Right" is a modern pejorative meant to politically injure candidates for office. Thing is, the two most prominent "Far Right" candidates of them all -- Marine Le Pen and Donald Trump -- have some pretty left wing ideas. Go figure.

For many, the fight for transgender rights is rooted in science. But that's silly. It's an argument that should instead be rooted in liberty. Question is, where does that leave transracial issue? Well...

Calculating, determined, and smart, Richard Nixon should have been one of the 20th century's great presidents. But the Watergate Scandal rapidly unraveled a man known as much for his dishonesty as for his brilliance.

The Confederate States of America was a traitorous and racist organization led by selfish cowards that almost universally got away with their crimes. They shouldn't be celebrated, revered, or respected, especially in 2017.

The dreaded "I" word is being tossed around, meaning it's time for a refresher course on what impeachment means and where the powers of impeachment come from. Oh, and we should probably discuss the two times an American president has been impeached in the past, too.

The word nationalism has been utterly co-opted. Yet, by reclaiming its true meaning, people from around the world can show pride in their home countries and cultures, and share the best of both with the rest of Planet Earth.

In 1959, the American Department of Defense wrote more than 400 classified pages investigating whether it could build a fully functioning lunar base by 1966. This is the story of Project Horizon.

If this Wonder Woman/Alamo Drafthouse fracas proves anything, it's that identity politics is unequally distributed, philosophically inconsistent, and politically and personally toxic.

Kathy Griffin and Bill Maher both made bad mistakes. Perhaps instead of trying to destroy them like they've committed an actual crime, we should forgive them, and not let the politics of destruction continue to obliterate everything around us.

Fed up with British abuse and encroachment, the US declared war on Great Britain in 1812. Two years later, Washington D.C. was left in smoldering ruins, nearly bringing the American government to its knees.

Global warming is real, and it's likely caused (almost?) entirely by man. It's a problem we can solve, but it will require moderation and reason, not creating endless doomsday prophecies that are wrong time and time again, making the problem that much harder to actually fix.

There are few debates in American politics more farcical than the one surrounding the country's so-called "gun epidemic," which, as this video will show you, is largely overblown by virtually any metric.

The Democrats have lost every Special Congressional Election since Donald Trump became president (save one, where only Democrats ran). It doesn't bode well for the 2018 Midterms, but beyond that, it begs a simple question: How can the Democrats be this inept in such a fortuitous political climate?

Andrew Jackson was the United States’ seventh president. He also happened to be fucking insane. Let’s chat about a few great Andrew Jackson stories, from the time he was a POW during the American Revolution, to the duels and brawls he found himself in throughout the years, to the ragers he threw at the White House.

It’s entirely possible -- if not quite likely -- that Donald Trump didn’t collude with Russia, after all. Will the media’s brinksmanship continue, or will we finally let the facts take control of an unwieldy and out-of-control game of chicken between our brash POTUS and our rogue press?

The United States can be a gray and ambiguous place. On this Fourth of July, we should take the time to celebrate that, revel in the ups and downs, the contradictions and complexities, the triumphs and mistakes, and realize that for as much as we get wrong, we get a whole lot right, too.

Lose an election. Term-out. Resign. Get impeached. Die. Those were the only ways a President could leave office until 1967, when the 25th Amendment to the Constitution was passed, opening up a new avenue for the Vice President, Cabinet, and Congress to remove a man or woman unfit for office. But where did this Amendment come from, what does it specifically say, and could it ever actually happen?

It’s simple: The government shouldn’t have the right to tell consenting, willing adults that they can't trade money for sex. It’s not a matter of morality, lewdness, or vice. It’s a matter of liberty.

While ideologues at both political extremes accomplish nothing in their endless bickering, the moderate masses yearn for an adult to take the reins. A new Pew Research poll may show a deeply divided populace, but it also hides some good news: There are plenty of people in the middle who hate both sides, and may embrace a new, third way forward.

Christopher Nolan's "Dunkirk" tells the harrowing story of perhaps the most daring military escape in human history. With the Nazis blitzing France in 1940, hundreds of thousands of (mostly) British soldiers found themselves trapped. Due to infinite amounts of bravery and gusto, 338,226 of them lived to tell the tale, later finding themselves at the forefront of the force that brought Hitler to his knees.

It's early. So very early. But in politics, the next election is always right around the corner. With a year and a half or so before people start declaring their candidacies for President of the United States, I figured a little speculation might be in order.

President Trump thinks he can surround himself with unending chaos and lead the world's most powerful, prestigious, and vibrant country. But as virtually every piece of evidence shows, he's dead wrong. See, Donald Trump isn't a bad man. He's just a man very much in over his head.

HBO recently announced a new show called Confederate. It's an alternate history tale where the American north and south remain split apart, and slavery is still legal. It sounds like a tantalizing story. But don't tell that to the Professionally Outraged, who are more interested in censoring fiction than living in the real world. (And then there's Black America...)

Venezuela is in complete freefall, and socialism is to blame. Its economy is crumbling in every conceivable way, and its government is corrupt, unpopular, and under growing threat of coup or civil war. Yet, this ongoing, years-long story is still rarely talked about when compared to a ton of other far more minor stories, and lots of people are confused about the fundamentals underpinning the entire mess. This video aims to fix that.

A Google employee was recently fired for writing a rather innocuous, internally-circulated document about the company’s drive for diversity. So let’s use this opportunity to talk about why diversity for diversity’s sake is silly, and why pure meritocracy can, should -- and hopefully will -- win the day.

Racists took to the streets in Charlottesville, Virginia, and an innocent woman died in the chaos that ensued. It's simply the next chapter in America's all-new, increasingly lawless and chaotic culture war, and it's high time for the madness to end, and for reason to take hold.

It makes perfect sense to move controversial, loaded pieces of history and art to venues (like museums or private collections) where they belong. But outright destroying history and art? Let's call that what it is: Barbarism. We should be very careful we don't become what we hate. We may just regret it.

Albert Einstein was a brilliant celebrity-scientist. FDR was one of the most beloved and respected Presidents in American history. This is the story about how the former convinced the latter to invest heavily in the US atomic bomb project known as The Manhattan Project as a matter of survival. The consequences of not doing so? A nuclear-armed Nazi Germany that wouldn't be afraid to use the bomb.

In 1945, the United States dropped not one, but two nuclear bombs on Japan, ending World War II. The alternative to this controversial move? An invasion of the Japanese Home Islands that would have cost the lives of millions. Harry Truman, as it turns out, made the right call.

Violence is rarely justified. Yet, its political use is being normalized by increasingly erratic and dangerous groups of extremists. It’s time for the overwhelming majority of good and decent people in this world to break their silence and condemn violence, in whatever form it may take, unless it's absolutely necessary. And when it comes to what’s happening in the streets of America, it’s far from justified.

North Korea’s decades-long game of brinkmanship with the United States and its Asian allies is perhaps the world’s biggest international relations conundrum. Run by a nuclear-armed madman, and in close proximity to multiple targets it could obliterate, North Korea gets away with its behavior because there are simply no good solutions in dealing with them. Why? China, Japan, and South Korea, for starters.

America’s illegal immigration problem has been raging for decades, and nothing ever gets solved. Instead of kicking the can down the road some more, perhaps Congress should instead consider a comprehensive, fair, and robust plan that will fix the problem. This video is dedicated to that plan.

September 11th, 2001 changed America forever, but for those unlucky enough to experience it firsthand, it left an inescapable -- and often haunting -- impact. To commemorate the 16th anniversary of 9/11, Retired FDNY Lieutenant Gerard Moriarty (Colin's father) flew from Long Island to California to discuss his memories of that day (and the days that followed), the friends he lost, and how he dedicated his life to making a real impact for those that lived through 9/11, even after years had passed.

Your dreams have come true: Colin Moriarty is President of the United States. In this first of two videos dedicated to the topic revolves around the How and Why of Moriarty For/As President. How does it happen? And why would anyone trust him with such a serious job?

Part II of the Hypothetical Colin Moriarty as President video is all about “the what.” What will Colin do as president? What legislation will he pursue? And what will be his governing philosophy? Well… watch and learn.

America’s most popular politician may just be America’s biggest hurdle in finding the common ground necessary to solve the United States’ myriad problems. Needless to say, when idealism heavily outweighs pragmatism, you have a gigantic problem, indeed.

The Phantom Time Hypothesis suggests that 297 years -- 614 CE to 911 CE -- never actually happened. It's the brainchild of a couple of German historians, and suggests a conspiracy between the Catholic Church and some major imperial forces, a conspiracy only revealed centuries later when the western world began transitioning from the Julian Calendar to the Gregorian Calendar. Needless to say, you should buckle up for a strange ride.

The Second Amendment to the US Constitution outlines an American’s right to keep and bear firearms. It’s a contentious right -- especially in the wake of terrible mass shootings -- but it’s important to keep in mind why the Second Amendment exists in the first place, and to remind society-at-large that we shouldn’t be so eager to throw away sacred privileges at the cornerstone of our society and way of life.

Colin’s Last Stand only exists because of the dedicated support of thousands of people who love politics and history. That’s why Episode 50 of CLS is all about 50 unsung historical figures recommended by you, the audience. Thank you for your love and support. Enjoy the episode.

Spekr is a 100-question online test that attempts to identify your political ideology. Today, I go through each of the 100 questions and explain how I arrived at my answers. Take the test along with me, and see where you fall on the spectrum!

Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus is a video game that explores a terrifying alternate history in which a technologically-advanced Nazi Germany wins World War II. The premise is largely outrageous, of course, but that doesn't mean there aren't some historical nuggets buried within the adventure's deep lore.

There's only one way to truly ascertain how the Founding Fathers might feel about the United States in 2017: Jump into the writings they left behind, and compare and contrast their thoughts to the realities of the present day. Enter the Federalist Papers, which allow us to do just that.

When it comes to economics, the United States and China need each other. Badly. The US requires liquid cash and cheap goods; China seeks to devalue its currency in pursuit of high economic growth in order to placate its export-heavy industries. But there’s one component of this relationship that gets the most attention: China’s massive monetary loans to the US.

With the all-important midterm elections only a year away, the struggling Democratic Party showed some life this week with a few big electoral wins across the country. 2018 should be theirs for the taking. But there are a few glaring issues that need to be solved first.

The FCC is on the verge of eliminating Net Neutrality. That’s a very, very bad thing. Here’s why.

Where are the adults? Not in Washington D.C. That’s for sure.

Alabama showed America (and the world) what we couldn’t know for sure anymore: Decency isn’t dead. Hallelujah.

Following World War II, the notion of Zionism -- the return of the Jewish people to their ancient homeland -- picked up steam. Why? Because Jews had been on the ropes for centuries, crescendoing with the Nazis’ attempt to wipe them off of the face of the planet completely in World War II. A return to the Middle East seemed logical, but there was a major problem: The land Israel wanted was also home to a different group who had lived there for a very, very long time: The Palestinians. And so, beginning in 1947, the never-ending drama between the Israelis and the Palestinians began, and it has never let up.

Oprah Winfrey is a smart, savvy, successful woman. That doesn’t mean she should be President of the United States, though. Haven’t we learned anything? Anything at all?!

To understand why the Wild West (also known as The Old West, or simply The West) eroded into cultural obscurity, we first need to understand why Americans were so hell-bent on expanding westward to begin with.

It’s exceptionally easy to point out everything wrong with Donald Trump’s presidency. I do it all the time. But there’s far more to the story than just that. You’d have to be a pretty blatant and shameless partisan not to see that, in some ways, President Trump has taken the US in a surprisingly positive direction.

By June of 1944, it was finally time to halt Nazi Germany's conquest across the European continent. Doing so wouldn't be easy, though. Ending Adolf Hitler's Third Reich would require the perfect execution of the biggest, most complex, and most dangerous military operation in human history. This is the story of Operation Overlord.