Niall Ferguson

[[File:World Debate - Niall Ferguson crop.jpg|thumb|right|165px|It;s him.]]{{imperialism|1}}
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{{cquote|Noted clown says clownish thing.|||Robert Farley<ref>[https://twitter.com/drfarls/status/505353372233654272 Chamberlain!]</ref>}}
'''Niall "...for [[Germany]]"<ref>[http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2013/05/niall-ferguson-keynes-was-gay-for-germany.html Oh God, we didn't know the coming downfall would be so hilarious.]</ref> Ferguson''' {{lived|1964|}} is a [[Scotland|Scottish]] 
historian
 [[Historical revisionism|revisionist]] who was appointed senior fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution in July 2016. Previously, he was Laurence A. Tisch Professor of History at Harvard University and CES Resident Faculty.<ref>https://ces.fas.harvard.edu/people/000055-niall-ferguson</ref> Criticized for being an [[Eurocentrism|anglocentric]] apologist for [[British Empire|Empire]], Ferguson is among the world's most well-known [[economic]] historians and created a number of TV documentaries (attempting to make massive credit and financial organisations intelligible to the average Joe).

==Blow the horn of Helm Hammerhand!==
{{main|Eurabia}}
Ferguson is not a [[Islamophobia|huge fan of the Muslims living in Europe]], and fears that the continent will [[Bullshit|eventually succumb to "the fatal embrace of Islam]]."<ref>[http://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2012/09/18/newsweek-releases-controversial-muslim-rage-cover/ Newsweek releases controversial “Muslim rage” cover]</ref> He married ex-Muslim [[Ayaan Hirsi Ali]] in 2011, who would have never been able to seek asylum in [[secular]] nations if Eurabia was actually taken seriously by politicians. Ferguson had left his wife and three children for her—they have since had a son, Thomas.<ref>http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2011/12/ayaan_hirsi_ali_gives_birth_to.php</ref> He is an [[atheist]], born and raised.

==History or his story?==
{{main|Pseudohistory}}
As a historian, Ferguson is at best a bit of a weirdo who claimed in an "[[Utopia|alternate history]]" scenario that had Britain stayed out of the [[First World War]], it would have ''prevented'' [[communism]], [[socialism]] and the [[EU]] from existing.<ref>[http://books.google.com/books/about/The_Pity_of_War.html?id=McfJaJ25lscC It's a horrid book.]</ref> He's written similarly contrarian works on the [[British Empire]] (''Empire'') and [[World War II]] (''The War of the World''), which bemoan the imminent [[Declinism|decline]] of [[Western world|Western Civilization]]. His more overtly crankish books are ''Colossus'', a blueprint of [[American Exceptionalism|how America should run the world]], and ''Civilization'', [[Ethnocentrism|ethnocentric]] cheerleading about how [[Not even wrong|everything culturally or scientifically worthwhile came from Europe or America]].<ref>[http://www.lrb.co.uk/v33/n21/pankaj-mishra/watch-this-man This article] by Pankaj Mishra thoroughly demolishes Ferguson's body of work, ''Civilization'' in particular</ref> 

In 2015, Ferguson published the first volume of an authorized biography of [[Henry Kissinger]]. The book quickly received criticism for its fawning tone towards its subject<ref>[http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/magazine/septemberoctober_2015/on_political_books/restoring_henry057190.php?page=all Review by the ''Washington Monthly'']</ref> and for trivializing "loss of life in strategically marginal countries" wrought by Kissinger's actions.<ref>[http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/oct/15/kissinger-1923-to-1968-the-idealist-niall-ferguson-review-biography and ''The Guardian'']</ref> So with this stroke of his pen, Ferguson consigns the victims of the [[Vietnam War]], [[Pol Pot]], [[Augusto Pinochet]], [[Bangladesh]], and [[Indonesia]]'s invasion and subsequent occupation of [[Timor-Leste]] to the dustbin of history.

In the same vein, Ferguson shacked up with [[PragerU]], the [[wingnut]] [[conspiracy theory]]-peddling [[YouTube]] channel, pushing their particular brand of bizarre, right wing worldview with fawning videos on [[Margaret Thatcher]], how wonderful a time he had becoming a US citizen (in the age of [[Trump]]), and why “[[The West]]” has just such been so darn good at making money.<ref>[https://www.prageru.com/presenter/niall-ferguson/ PragerU, Presenters: Niall Ferguson]</ref> This development could arguably be seen as an example of Ferguson’s (d)evolution from producing provocative, conservative “what if?”-historical scenarios, over conservative panegyrics, to, at the very least, being an enabler of (out)right [[pseudohistory]] by lending his professional reputational credit (whatever it’s worth these days...) to PragerU.

===On war===
{{main|Imperialism}}
Ferguson was a vocal supporter of the [[Iraq War]] and called himself "a fully paid-up member of the neoimperialist gang."<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/27/magazine/the-empire-slinks-back.html?pagewanted=all At least he's honest?]</ref> He was also a [[Mitt Romney]] supporter. He wrote a criticism of [[Obama]] in ''Newsweek'' that threw all history out the window and made Harvard the target of mockery for a while.<ref>[http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2012/08/a-full-fact-check-of-niall-fergusons-very-bad-argument-against-obama/261306/ A Full Fact-Check of Niall Ferguson's Very Bad Argument Against Obama], ''The Atlantic''</ref>  He's since been credited as one of the reasons why the magazine fell apart in 2012.<ref>[http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/05/tina-brown-how-to-lose-100-million-105907_Page6.html#.VAFY4SjqEUV How to Lose $100 Million], ''Politico''</ref> He's also on record claiming that Obama is like Felix the Cat because both are "black and very, very lucky."<ref>http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/17/black-cats/?_r=0</ref>

===On gay people===
When asked what he thought of [[Keynes]]' famous quote "in the long run we are all dead", he replied with "Keynes was a homosexual and had no intention of having children. We are not dead in the long run … our children are our progeny"<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-22417231 Niall Ferguson apology over Keynes remarks]</ref>. This is, of course, [[ad hominem|complete]] [[non sequitur|nonsense]]. He issued an apology on his website later, calling his remark "insensitive and stupid". We are still waiting for a similar apology for the rest of his career.

==Alternate theory==
Niall Ferguson is a [[Poe's Law|performance artist]], whose articles are really satires reflecting frustrations people around the world feel when arrogant foreigners (usually [[American]]s) mind other people's business.

==See also==
*[[Fractal wrongness]]
*[[Andrew Roberts]], another conservative Briton.

==External links==
*[http://delong.typepad.com/sdj/2013/10/whiskey-tango-foxtrot-wall-street-journal-bang-query-bang-query-is-this-some-strange-berkeley-acid-trip-i-am-on-weblogging.html Is This Some Strange Berkeley Acid Trip I Am On?], Brad DeLong
*[http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/03/upshot/inflation-hawks-views-are-independent-of-actual-monetary-outcomes.html?abt=0002&abg=1 "It’s hard to admit you are wrong—whether you’re Niall Ferguson or Jenny McCarthy."]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

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[[Category:Atheists]]
[[Category:Declinists]]
[[Category:Historians]]
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[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Political pundits]]
[[Category:Pseudohistory promoters]]
[[Category:Scotland]]

Categories: Atheists, Declinists, Historians, Imperialists, Islamophobes, Living people, Political pundits, Pseudohistory promoters, Scotland