[427] in libertarians
Laissez Faire Book News: Paul Johnson on MODERN TIMES
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Chris Whitten)
Wed Nov 23 10:26:12 1994
Date: Wed, 23 Nov 1994 10:20:58 -0500 (EST)
From: Chris Whitten <lfb@panix.com>
Apparently-To: <libertarians@mit.edu>
Exclusive interview--
Historian Paul Johnson talks about *Modern Times*,
his million copy sleeper on 20th century tyranny and liberty
When Paul Johnson's *Modern Times* was published in 1983,
there was little fanfare. It didn't appear on bestseller lists.
But word-of-mouth was fantastic: this was an absolutely thrilling
story of tyranny and liberty in the 20th century. While everyone
agrees Hitler was bad, plenty of historians made excuses for
other tyrants. Paul Johnson amassed dramatic facts which damned
them all--Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, Mao and the Third World tyrants
who were so fashionable among Western intellectuals. *Modern
Times* quietly sold over a million copies and has been translated
into more than a dozen languages. In 1991, Johnson revised
*Modern Times* to cover the widespread revival of liberty since
the 1980s. We were delighted to talk recently with him about his
great work. --Jim Powell
LAISSEZ FAIRE: How did you come to write the book?
JOHNSON: There was no book which dealt with the whole of the
modern period, covering the entire world. I wrote *Modern Times*
to clarify in my own mind what had gone wrong during the 20th
century.
LAISSEZ FAIRE: What do you consider the most important findings
from your research?
JOHNSON: First, the dangers to humanity of moral relativism. My
research confirmed my view much more than I had expected. If you
depart from moral absolutes, you go into a bottomless pit.
Communism and Naziism were catastrophic evils which both derived
from moral relativism. Their differences were minor compared to
their similarities.
Second, my research confirmed the dangers of social
engineering. During the 1920s, people throughout the world got
the impression that the main function of government was to plan
the economy. Millions were shovelled around like concrete, not
just in totalitarian regimes but in so-called social democracies
as well. If people wanted something like health care improved,
they turned to government. Bitter experience showed none of this
works.
Curiously, one of the things you learn from history is you
have to learn these lessons again and again.
LAISSEZ FAIRE: *Modern Times* seems to have had an enormous
impact, in part, because it expresses moral outrage at tyranny
and the hypocrisy among intellectuals who supported tyranny.
JOHNSON: Yes, I am a didactic historian. I draw morals from
history. I show my opinions openly. I nail my colors to the
mast.
LAISSEZ FAIRE: Thanks very much.
MODERN TIMES: The World from the Twenties to the Nineties
(Revised Edition)
by Paul Johnson
Book No. HS5957 (paperback) 870p. $15.95
THE BIRTH OF THE MODERN: World Society 1815-1830
by Paul Johnson
Book No. HS5495 (hardcover) 1095p. publisher's price $35.00
LAISSEZ FAIRE PRICE ONLY $21.95
HISTORY OF THE JEWS
by Paul Johnson
Book No. HS5066 (paperback) 656p. $14.95
HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY
by Paul Johnson
Book No. HS0501 (paperback) 556p. $17.95
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Chris
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Chris Whitten LFB@panix.com
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