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Garritt C van Dyk

Garritt C van Dyk

The Conversation

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Trump welcomes Columbus to the White House – and reignites America’s history wars

By resurrecting statues toppled in protests during his first term, Donald Trump wants to reverse attempts to ‘erase history’. But history is never...

06.04.2026 10

The Conversation

Garritt C van Dyk

Monumental ambitions: the history behind Trump’s triumphal arch

From ancient Rome to Napoleon’s Paris, the triumphal arch has long memorialised imperial dreams. Is Donald Trump on track to realise his own in...

29.01.2026 30

The Conversation

Garritt C van Dyk

Inside scoop: the 2,500-year history of ice-cream

You can trace your summer treat all the way back to the ‘ice pits’ developed in the Persian desert in 550 BCE.

31.12.2025 30

The Conversation

Garritt C van Dyk

Comedians and kings: is Donald Trump reviving the ancient crime of lèse-majest é?

Donald Trump’s claim that some satire could be ‘illegal’ harks back to an age when criticising a monarch could see the offender drawn and quartered.

18.11.2025 20

The Conversation

Garritt C van Dyk

'Sewer socialism’ revival changed NYC election

06.11.2025 20

The New Daily

Garritt C van Dyk

How a ‘sewer socialism’ revival could see Zohran Mamdani become New York’s next mayor

A pragmatic form of socialism based on improving ordinary people’s lives is winning votes – and making powerful enemies – in equal measure.

28.10.2025 20

The Conversation

Garritt C van Dyk

Instant ramen: a short history of a long noodle

The origin story behind instant ramen reveals working-class roots and innovative cooking techniques.

19.09.2025 10

The Conversation

Garritt C van Dyk

Trump is not like other presidents – but can he beat the ‘second term curse’ that haunts the White House?

According to myth, the ghost of George Washington cursed anyone serving more than four years. But a nonconsecutive second term is different – as is...

03.07.2025 10

The Conversation

Garritt C van Dyk

Fake news and real cannibalism: a cautionary tale from the Dutch Golden Age

Fake news is also old news – 350 years ago, it brought down the Dutch Republic in a frenzy of political violence distinctly similar to more...

10.06.2025 20

The Conversation

Garritt C van Dyk

From peasant fodder to posh fare: how snails and oysters became luxury foods

Oysters and escargot are recognised as luxury foods around the world – but they were once valued by the lower classes as cheap sources of protein.

23.05.2025 20

The Conversation

Garritt C van Dyk

The origin story of the Anzac biscuit is largely myth – but that shouldn’t obscure the history of women during the war

The Anzac biscuit is a cultural icon, invented after the first world war. But women still provided necessities and small comforts to the ANZACs.

24.04.2025 20

The Conversation

Garritt C van Dyk

Consumer resistance is rising in the age of Trump. History shows how boycotts can be effective

The fragile global economy could fuel the boycotts of companies that have aligned themselves with the policies of Donald Trump.

05.03.2025 70

The Conversation

Garritt C van Dyk

Trump is reviving a tariff strategy from America’s ‘Gilded Age’. It didn’t end well last time

Donald Trump praises the 19th-century “reciprocal” tariff policy of former president William McKinley. But that strategy damaged the US economy...

24.02.2025 30

The Conversation

Garritt C van Dyk

'America First' trade policy is pushing economic self-sufficiency - but history shows this is harder than it seems

10.02.2025 20

Canberra Times

Garritt C van Dyk

‘America First’ trade policy is pushing economic self-sufficiency – but history shows this is harder than it seems

Economic self-sufficiency can bring higher costs and higher inflation. Instead, countries need to be nimble, rather than isolated, to survive economic...

09.02.2025 20

The Conversation

Garritt C van Dyk