Mike's Mini History Lessons

This week's lesson covers two of the most notorious outlaws the US has ever seen. Jesse James and Billy The Kid. Both rebelled, both robbed, both killed, and both died young.

With the inauguration of Joe Biden approaching, this week's lesson looks at 7 of the most famous (or infamous) things that have happened during a Lame Duck period in the presidency, the house, and the senate. Don't know what a Lame Duck period is? Don't worry. It's the first part of the lesson.

Why Did Japan Attack Pearl Harbor?  Pearl harbor day is remembered every December 7th, and is a subject learned in history classes throughout the country. We know the who, the when, the where and the how, but why did Japan attack pearl harbor?

With everything in the news still revolving around the 2020 presidential election, many people have been posting things they have seen online as facts when in reality, there is no evidence to back up the claims. This has given rise to fact checkers on sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. It is easy to look online and see stories that seem real, or shocking, and look amazing. But what makes a story credible? It comes down to evidence that is agreed upon by multiple sources. What makes UFO stories hard to credit is they tend to be single source accounts without hard evidence or physical proof. For fun, we discuss what the media has deemed to be most credible stories in regards to these UFO sightings and you the listeners can debate what evidence supports these accounts and what evidence it lacks.

The richest man to ever live. No I'm not talking about Jeff Bezos or some sultan from the Middle East, I'm talking about The wealthiest person in history, Mansa Musa. Because, before European colonization, Africa was a very rich continent, and Mansa Musa was the richest man ever.

Mike has been getting asked a lot about the supreme court battle. And now that Amy Coney Barrett has been confirmed to the supreme court without a single democratic vote in favor, mike decided to do a little research. And To his surprise he found that this trend of partisan divide is not new at all. Here is an unbiased fact based historical account. 

Even in the darkest of times, there can be a light. This week's lesson is about the man who saved nearly 700 jewish children from concentration camps during World War II. Learn how a British banker became a hero, the remarkable story of Sir Nicholas George Winton.

Due to the positive Covid-19 test that President Trump received, this week's lesson is all about the many scenarios that could come about if a president or presidential candidate dies while in office or during an election.

In this week's lesson, we learn that some countries take their sports rivalries a little too seriously. 

In this week's lesson, we learn just how dangerous getting into politics can be by learning about a dutch Prime Minister from 1672.

In this not so mini history lesson, we take a good look at many of the proponents or systemic racism in the US and what has caused the mass incarceration problem we face today. There are more people in US prisons today than any other country in the world. And roughly 1/3 of those prisoners are Black. Join us as we look back to the creation of the modern prison, the end of the civil war, and the history of the prosecutor here in America and how all of these directly contributed to mass incarceration. 

Sometimes, brief snips of history are so short, even we can't turn them into a full episode. So here are a few history fun facts.

Sometimes, brief snips of history are so short, even we can't turn them into a full episode. So here are a few history fun facts.

Sometimes, brief snips of history are so short, even we can't turn them into a full episode. So here are a few history fun facts. 

Sometimes, brief snips of history are so short, even we can't turn them into a full episode. So here are a few history fun facts. 

Everyone probably knows what a tumble weed is, but not everyone knows that they are not native to North America. Find out where they came from, and why they are such a big problem even today.

Within Japan there is an entire North Korean subculture stemming from the end of the second world war. Find out how it happened, and how Japan feels about it today.

In this week's lesson, we take a look at the complicated past present and future of Hong Kong and Macau. 

The title pretty much says it all. China is complicated. This week's lesson is a brief overview of Chinese history from the early 1900s to the present day. 

How many countries are there in the world? The answer is slightly more complex than just looking at a map and counting. This week's lesson is all about the actual number of countries in the world, and the number might surprise you. 

Automation is a serious concern for a lot of people. Self driving cars, drones delivering packages, people are fearful for their jobs. But what if I told you that history tends to repeat itself? Automation is not just a new concern, and this week's lesson is all about those concerns...from the early 1800s.

A lot of men from a lot of countries fought in World War 1. But possibly the most interesting tale of the worst world war is that of the Knights Templar. Confused? Thats ok. Just hit play and you will understand what this week's lesson is all about.

Do you want know what the difference is between state and federal land? How much federal land does your state have? What is federal land used for? Get these answers and more in this weeks lesson!

Ever wonder how someone becomes the pope? There is a lot involved in becoming the leader of 1.2 billion religious followers. To find out just how much, just hit play!

The Bucket War was fought between Bologna and Modena back in medieval times. But it was preceded by the politics of the Holy Roman Empire. But don't worry, there are still flaming crops and catapulting donkeys. 

This week's lesson is about an American World War 1 soldier who single handedly captured 100 enemy soldiers, at the same time. Then decided to capture more. Come learn all about him and his many accomplishments. Just hit play!

The Last Meal is an interesting American tradition for death row inmates. In many ways it can be used to look into the true mindset of these inmates in their final moments and gage their true feelings about themselves, their actions, and society at large. This week's lesson is about some of the more interesting last meal requests from US history. 

Ever wonder what happens when you want to sell your house, and it happens to also be home to a bunch of ghosts? Well Mike's lesson this weeks is about the house that set a precedent for the sale of all haunted houses to follow. That's right, a house can be declared legally haunted. To find out how, just hit play!

In this weeks lesson, discover how the United States Navy was founded by a pirate.

Coming April 2020, Mikes Mini History Lessons are short lesson plans, prepared by Mike and read by JR Suppa. Hopefully, this trailer will explain everything.