It's a peculiar article in that I was tasked with explaining the United States' disunity -- via American Nations of course -- without explicitly mentioning the American Nations or unpacking the framework. Still, it seems to have gotten plenty of attention, and hopefully a subset of readers will dig further to uncover the full picture.
Factoid I learned while researching this article: the Fourth of July was celebrated in the Confederacy at least until 1864. As in the Antebellum Period, they chose to pretend the second paragraph of the Declaration of Independence didn't exist, instead focusing on the other stuff about just rebellions against tyrants, the virtues of self-governance and all that un-revolutionary stuff. Fascinating.
This article also marks a milestone: the first national media mention of my new book, American Character: A History of the Epic Struggle Between Individual Liberty and the Common Good, out with Viking on March 15, 2016.
For those new to my take on American regionalism, I've created synopses here and here.
My last piece for Politico Magazine was on Hungary's abandonment of liberal democracy, which came out just a couple weeks back.
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