Empires of Trust
How Rome Built - and America Is Building - a New World
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Narrated by:
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Richard Poe
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By:
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Thomas F. Madden
About this listen
By making friends of enemies and demonstrating a commitment to fairness, the two republics - both "reluctant" yet unquestioned super-powers - built empires based on trust. Madden also includes vital lessons from the Roman Republic's 100-year struggle with "terrorism."
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The Mighty and the Almighty
- Reflections on America, God, and World Affairs
- By: Madeleine Albright
- Narrated by: Madeleine Albright
- Length: 10 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Does America have a special mission, derived from God, to bring liberty and democracy to the world? How much influence does the Christian right have over U.S. foreign policy? And how should America deal with violent Islamist extremists? Madeleine Albright, the former Secretary of State and best-selling author of Madam Secretary, offers a thoughtful and often surprising look at the role of religion in shaping America's approach to the world.
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The point??
- By Thomas on 11-04-06
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Reset
- Iran, Turkey, and America's Future
- By: Stephen Kinzer
- Narrated by: Alan Sklar
- Length: 9 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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What can the United States do to help realize its dream of a peaceful, democratic Middle East? Stephen Kinzer offers a surprising answer in this paradigm-shifting book. Two countries in the region, he argues, are America's logical partners in the 21st century: Turkey and Iran.
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challenges stereotypes
- By R.S. on 06-14-10
By: Stephen Kinzer
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What If? Part 1
- Reshaping the 20th Century
- By: Stephen E. Ambrose, John Keegan, more
- Narrated by: John Cunningham, Janet Zarish
- Length: 4 hrs and 45 mins
- Abridged
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What if Hitler had won the war, if Japan had another sneak attack, or if the cold war turned hot? What If? provides a fascinating new perspective on history's most pivotal events. Featuring today's foremost historians speculating on what could have happened, we discover where we might be if history had not unfolded the way it did.
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For history buffs
- By Charles Elmore on 05-11-04
By: Stephen E. Ambrose, and others
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The Shortest History of Germany
- From Julius Caesar to Angela Merkel: A Retelling for Our Times
- By: James Hawes
- Narrated by: Matthew Lloyd Davies
- Length: 6 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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A country both admired and feared, Germany has been the epicenter of world events time and again: the Reformation, both World Wars, the fall of the Berlin Wall. It did not emerge as a modern nation until 1871 - yet today, Germany is the world's fourth-largest economy and a standard-bearer of liberal democracy.
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The narrator can’t pronounce German
- By Vauras Ilmari on 03-22-19
By: James Hawes
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The ISIS Apocalypse
- The History, Strategy, and Doomsday Vision of the Islamic State
- By: William McCants
- Narrated by: Stephen McLaughlin
- Length: 6 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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How did the Islamic State attract so many followers and conquer so much land? By being more ruthless, more apocalyptic, and more devoted to state building than its competitors. The shrewd leaders of the Islamic State combined two of the most powerful yet contradictory ideas in Islam - the return of the Islamic Empire and the end of the world - into a mission and a message that shapes its strategy and inspires its army of zealous fighters.
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It's time to dig into this...
- By MetaDreaming on 12-08-15
By: William McCants
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Napoleon
- Soldier of Destiny
- By: Michael Broers
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 20 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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Written with great energy and authority - and using the newly available personal archives of Napoleon himself - the first volume of a majestic two-part biography of the great French emperor and conqueror.
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Clarity
- By Tad Davis on 03-25-19
By: Michael Broers
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Destiny Disrupted
- A History of the World through Islamic Eyes
- By: Tamim Ansary
- Narrated by: Tamim Ansary
- Length: 17 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
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Until about 1800, the West and the Islamic realm were like two adjacent, parallel universes, each assuming itself to be the center of the world while ignoring the other. As Europeans colonized the globe, the two world histories intersected and the Western narrative drove the other one under. The West hardly noticed, but the Islamic world found the encounter profoundly disrupting.
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A history of the world before the West mattered
- By David on 05-05-14
By: Tamim Ansary
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The Story of Russia
- By: Orlando Figes
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 12 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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The Story of Russia is about how the Russians defined themselves―and repeatedly reinvented such definitions along the way. Moving from Russia’s agrarian beginnings in the first millennium to subsequent periods of monarchy, totalitarianism, and perestroika, all the way up to Vladimir Putin and his use of myths of Russian history to bolster his regime, celebrated historian Orlando Figes examines the ideas that have guided the country’s actions.
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Almost perfect…
- By Samantha Dispenzieri on 02-21-23
By: Orlando Figes
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Nonviolence
- The History of a Dangerous Idea
- By: Mark Kurlansky
- Narrated by: Richard Dreyfuss
- Length: 7 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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In this timely, highly original, and controversial narrative, New York Times best-selling author Mark Kurlansky discusses nonviolence as a distinct entity, a course of action, rather than a mere state of mind. Nonviolence can and should be a technique for overcoming social injustice and ending wars, he asserts, which is why it is the preferred method of those who speak truth to power.
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A brief, necessary account of the history of nonviolence
- By Real Talk on 07-29-20
By: Mark Kurlansky
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Fire in the Lake
- By: Frances FitzGerald
- Narrated by: Jeff Bottoms
- Length: 22 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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This magisterial work, based on Frances FitzGerald's many years of research and travels, takes us inside the history of Vietnam - the traditional, ancestor-worshiping villages, the conflicts between Communists and anti-Communists, Catholics and Buddhists, generals and monks, the disruption created by French colonialism, and America's ill-fated intervention - and reveals the country as seen through Vietnamese eyes. Originally published in 1972, Fire in the Lake was the first history of Vietnam written by an American, and subsequently won the Pulitzer Prize.
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American Hubris; Vietnamese Misery
- By gunnerThrax on 01-24-21
What listeners say about Empires of Trust
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Edward P. Meehan
- 06-23-24
insightful walk though history
Really enjoyed this in depth discussion of the history of the Roman Empire. So many parallels to how societies develop and evolve. Pretty clear that the human condition seems to repeat itself. I believe that this book can be very valuable to all citizens to better understand the role of government and the responsibility that each individual has in shaping the future.
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Overall
- Edward W
- 12-29-08
Provocative comparison, Rome vs US circumstances
Madden's portrayal of early Rome sometimes takes on a Normal Rockwell quality. Rome was, aw shucks, just some well meaning guys who were dragged into building an empire when they really just wanted to stay at home and remodel the living room.
If you can get past the whitewash, the book provides and interesting walk through Rome's early history. The political science treatment of Rome's development is a refreshing break from dull recitation of chronological events that comprises most history books.
Madden steps on plenty of toes. He s an equal opportunity offender, providing analysis and opinions that give nearly everyone an opportunity for righteous indignation. But thats what makes it genuinely interesting and thought provoking.
If you like history, political science, current events, AND if you can enjoy reading a work that is going to challenge your political orthodoxy, then you'll probably like this book.
If you find yourself shouting at Fox news commentators on TV, then you might give this a pass, take a xanax and read Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. (actually if you read Decline and Fall, you won't need the Xanax..zzzz..)
Gripe: Annoying and repeating grammar mistakes in pluralization. Maybe its GW Bush's influence on the evolution of grammar..... "is the children learnin' "
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15 people found this helpful
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- Thomas
- 01-23-15
Excellent!
This is a must read for anyone interested in the realities of how our world works. A great example of the old "The more things change the more they stay the same" rule. The section near the end of comparing the Romans fighting the Jews and the Americans fighting the Islamic fundamentalists was spot on.
Too bad not enough people in the Obama administration read this book before they decided to pull out of Iraq. They merely put off what will be inevitable and lost a lot of lives to boot.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Ryan
- 07-03-15
Good but repetitive.
Interesting argument on the problems of our time and their causes. Author does glaze over the horrors of Rome such as the third Punic wars causes (carthago delenda est).
Also is very repetitive especially early on with many concepts.
Would absolutely recommend to others.
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Overall
- DogSportsEnthusiast
- 12-16-08
Very Relevant to Modern Events in the Middle East
The author is a bit repetitive in the beginning establishing both his definition of an "Empire of Trust" and his thesis that much of ancient Roman and modern American history can be evaluated usefully in that context. Don't let the initial repetition get to you though. This starts off being a fascinating history of the Roman Empire that then begins to draw parallels to just how much our own government has been shaped by the same core principles and similar circumstances.
Even more interesting however are the last few chapters that show how the lessons learned by the Romans in their dealings with terrorism and strife in the Middle East are very much applicable today.
This isn't dry history; Madden writes in a very accessible style that is complemented well by reader Richard Poe. I was listening to this book while driving mostly and I was always disappointed to arrive at my destination and have to turn the book off.
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7 people found this helpful
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- Ray
- 10-26-11
Aptly Named Book
Certain segments of the political left view America as an evil empire. In this view, we are likened to the Roman empire of the latter centuries of classical Roman history. This book does not refute that America is becoming an empire, but it doesn’t go so far as to accuse America as a whole of being an imperial nation bent on conquest.
This will annoy people on both the left and right. The left because he doesn’t agree with them that George Bush was an imperialist dictator in democratic disguise, and the right because he acknowledges that America is indeed an empire of influence at least.
The points the author makes however are well reasoned and based on fact that can be easily researched. The only critiques I’ve seen in writing so far were taken out of context, and thus not valid.
The only real flaw I would call the author on is portraying Rome as being completely unwitting heirs to their empire. This is necessary for him to make the point that America has also stumbled on to empire, which isn’t entirely true either. There is some pro-empire sentiment to be found in ancient Rome and modern America - among Democrats and Republicans both. Democrat Presidents got America in to both world wars, Korea and Vietnam. Attacking state support of Islamic terrorism after 9/11 is hardly an imperialistic venture, but of course our government has long consisted of two main parties, neither of which has had such overwhelming control that either can step back and point a validly accusative finger at the other.
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- Luke
- 04-14-18
Well worth it.
Professor Madden provides a nice comparison of Roman and American culture and the similarities and differences between the two. I think this is an important work that Americans in particular need to reflect upon, given our status in the world and the direction we are currently heading in.
Madden provides a balanced approach to all sides and I would recommend this book to any one who likes Roman/American histories as well as those who like to see how the past and present are related.
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- Daniel
- 02-04-12
Great Read
Would you listen to Empires of Trust again? Why?
NO, don't reread books. Too many good ones out there.
What other book might you compare Empires of Trust to and why?
Maybe Empires of the Sea, in terms of scope.
Which scene was your favorite?
Description of the political culture of Rome and the United States.
Any additional comments?
I thought it was a really good read. Learned alot about Rome and how the empire was founded and developed.
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- Paul Norwood
- 05-29-09
remarkable
I see some who are anti this book. Pay no attention. The wealth of history, the correlation of Rome and the Americans is obvious to those who are able to see the world as it is and not the way you want it to be. If you are a person who lives their life by the way you want it to be but not by how it is, you will not like this book. Hard truths are told. I agree with them and I can take it.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Drew Nietert
- 09-01-15
excellent in every way
great narration.
excellent story.
wonderfully presented.
Any history buff who sees similarities between Rome and the U.S. should read.
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1 person found this helpful