Pt 1: Governance in History, with Shauna Gordon-McKeon (episode 20)

Buckle up, anthropology, history, and political philosophy nerds! It’s a two-parter! Shauna Gordon-McKeon, a writer, programmer, and one of the most brilliant, multifaceted people I know, talks about how two books: The Dawn of Everything and Legal Systems Very Different from Ours, inspired her to think differently about progress and the possibilities of governance. In part one, we learn about: the myth of the evolution of civilization, historical seasonal governance structures, and what political egalitarianism and high school yearbook superlatives have in common. 

Books referenced: 

The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity, by David Graeber and David Wengrow: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780374157357/thedawnofeverything

Legal Systems Very Different from Ours, by David Friedman, Peter T. Leeson, and David Skarbek: https://bookshop.org/books/legal-systems-very-different-from-ours/9781793386724

ConstitutionFacts.com has a complete list of people who left the Constitutional Convention early. Note that it includes people who left in protest because they did not want to overturn the Articles of Confederation, but also people who left because of poor health, sick family members, etc. 

The historical cultures that Shauna referenced that had seasonal governance structures were Cheyanne Lakota, Inuit, and pirates. The Wikipedia article “Governance in 18th-century piracy” explains the leadership structure on pirate ships in detail. 

TRIGGER WARNING: Pics of oral papillae!:

From a camel: 

From a sea turtle: 

You can find the article "Why The inside of a Camel's Mouth is a Sarlacc Pit" on Mental Floss.

You can learn more about Shauna by following her on twitter at @shauna_gm or visiting her website: http://www.shaunagm.net/. You can find bonus clips, including a chat I had with Shauna Gordon-McKeon about the movie Twelve Angry Men by supporting me, Val Howlett, on Patreon.