The Point of the List
One of the purposes of this site is to provide you, the reader, with the tools necessary to learn about history, philosophy, and politics. I strive to provide material that is thoroughly documented, based in fact, and pulled from primary sources (where possible) or from secondary and tertiary sources that rely on the primary sources. To that end, I have compiled a list here of useful sites and links to allow you to study out history and philosophy or to learn more about current events. I have striven to provide you with a variety of primary sources and secondary or tertiary sources for the first two and sources that are fair and factual in their assessments.
The philosophy section requires particular note as not all of the works or individuals listed reflect my own views. However, they may be considered primary sources in this instance in so far as their own writings do accurately reflect what they believed. So, I provide them for study as I am of the opinion that we can learn many things even from those with whom we vehemently disagree. To this end, I have included individuals like Marx and Kant because, while I strongly disagree with their conclusions, I do believe that no system can be proven to be false without a proper understanding first of the system. If anyone is interested in studying the history of various areas of philosophy or economics, individuals like Marx and Kant cannot be ignored.
Lastly, my particular expertise lies mainly in American history or in world history as it relates to philosophies now impacting America. As such, there will be a broader range of sources and documents listed under American history than there is for other countries’ history. If you have a particular author or book you feel would be a valuable source for me to investigate and consider for the list on non-American history, please feel free to reach out. I may not be able to go through everything, but I am always glad for more ways to expand my knowledge base and the resources I am able to suggest or provide to my audience.
A Note on Bias
For any source, it is important to be realistic about bias. Many people I have spoken to refused to consider certain sources I had provided because they had bias. This is a logically faulty position as every human being has bias. Bias is simply having your own opinion or belief about any given topic. Some may be more neutral than others, but no one is entirely unbiased.
So if we can’t find any unbiased sources, what do we do? Give up on trusting any source? Of course, the answer is no. Instead, we should be looking at what the author(s) did with the bias. Do they avoid mixing their opinion with facts in a way that prevents the reader from telling what is true versus mere speculation? Do they report their opinions as if they are fact? Are they honest in labeling pieces opinion versus research articles?
If they are intellectually honest about the bias, admit it, and then seek to provide you with the facts and data necessary for you to come to your own conclusion without telling you what to think, then the source is–at least on the matter of bias–a good one. A source that instead does as CNN’s Don Lemon has and states that they report their “truth” is a source that cannot be trusted, not because they are biased but because they have confused their own opinion with reality or have refused to accept or report reality when it conflicts with that opinion/bias.
I have provided sources that I believe deal equitably with the facts in spite of bias and sources that I believe are clear and honest about when something is a matter of bias or personal opinion versus actual fact, scientific or otherwise. My hope is that you will approach the sources with a similar mind toward bias as you determine whether or not to utilize them in your own research.
Sources and Links
Philosophy
Christian Philosophers with Publications or Writings
Augustine’s writings
A.W. Tozer
Eric Ludy
Elisha Williams
John Calvin
Jonathan Edwards
John Macarthur
John Piper
Martin Luther
Oswald Chambers
Ancient Philosophers
Aristotle
Cicero
Epicurus
Marcus Aurelius
Plato
Pythagoras
Socrates
Other Philosophers
Ayn Rand
David Hume
Immanuel Kant
John Locke
Karl Marx
Niccolo Machiavelli
Rousseau
Thomas Hobbs
Voltaire
History
American History
Wallbuilders.org
Wallbuilder’s list of writings from the Founding Fathers and accompanying list of historical documents
David Barton (Historian specializing in early American history; uses mostly primary sources)
Lives of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence (Reprint of a book published in 1848, available through Wallbuilders)
George Washington’s Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior in Company and Conversation
Eighteen Sermons from the Late Rev George Whitefield (Reprint of 1771 original, available through Wallbuilders)
The Essential Rights and Liberties of Protestants by Elisha Williams
Declaration of Independence
The Constitution
The Bill of Rights
Mayflowerhistory.com (Provides links with digital copies of original documents surrounding the Mayflower and the Plymouth/Massachusetts Bay colonies)
Bradford’s History of ‘Plimouth Plantation’ by William Bradford
The Book of the General Lawes and Libertyes Concerning the Inhabitants of the Massachusets published on Puritanism.online.fr
Virtual Jamestown (Provides links with digital copies of documents from Jamestown)
A Documentary History of the United States by Richard Heffner
A Short History of the Civil War by James Stokesbury
Thomas Sowell’s works
The Uncle Eric series by Richard Maybury
Primetime Propoganda by Ben Shapiro
World History
Ancient Rome by Richard Maybury
The Rise of Communism by the Great Courses
The Road to Serfdom by F.A. Hayek
Dietrich Boenheffer by Janet and Geoff Benge (Biography on one of the influential leaders of the Confessing Church in Germany during Hitler’s time. Offers some great insight into how Hitler took power and the way he managed to lead the German people into going along with all of the horrible atrocities he committed.)
Convention of States and Amendment Process
Convention of States Website
Mark Levin’s The Liberty Amendments
Politics
American Sources
Daily Wire
Reuters
The Economist
Wall Street Journal
Mises Institute
The Ayn Rand Institute’s New Ideal
The Associated Press
Ben Shapiro’s How to Destroy America in Three Easy Steps
Foreign Sources (Best for foreign news, not recommended as a wholly accurate source for news on American politics)
BBC
Foreign Affairs from the Council on Foreign Relations