What I learned from reading Napoleon: A Concise Biography by David Bell.----Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders at Founders Notes----Follow Founders Podcast on YouTube ----Follow one of my favorite podcasts Invest Like The Best ![3:00] He could think quicker and along more individual and original lines than any of them.[4:00] John D: The Founding Father of the Rockefellers by David Freeman Hawke. (Founders #254)[4:14] Miami meetup with Shane Parrish[7:31] His life was enormously important, endlessly fascinating, and connected to some of the most controversial and constantly reinterpreted events in the world history.[8:37] Paul Johnson’s books:Churchill by Paul Johnson. (Founders #225)Mozart: A Life by Paul Johnson. (Founders #240)Socrates: A Man for Our Times by Paul Johnson. (Founders #252) [10:54] Heroes: From Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar to Churchill and de Gaulle by Paul Johnson. (Founders #226)[12:20] He knew the importance of actively crafting his image in all available media.[15:08] Napoleon found comfort and companionship in books[17:02] The revolution was overturning age old hierarchies and giving worldwide prominence to previously obscure figures.[17:24] Napoleon was ruthless.[18:36] Only after that battle did I believe myself to be a superior man. And did the ambition come to me of executing the great things, which so far had been occupying my thoughts only as a fantastic dream.[20:00] Many are the historical opportunities that have been lost for lack of talent or vision. In Napoleon's case, the man met his hour.[20:13] He could see in a moment how to maneuver everything for maximum effect.[21:03] Napoleon was a man of stone and iron.[26:27] Napoleon was something new and the keenest observers understood it.[29:06] I wanted to rule the world, who wouldn't have in my place?[29:26] If papa could see us now.[29:45] Franklin & Washington: The Founding Partnership by Edward Larson. (Founders #251)[32:15] You might as well send a cow in pursuit of a rabbit. The Indians were accustomed to these woods.[35:30] The Empire was increasingly coming to resemble a skyscraper built in haste without a proper foundation.[35:58] Driven: An Autobiography by Larry Miller. (Founders #168)[39:24] The key to victory was to plan and pursue a war exactly contrary to what the enemy wants.[39:49] Hardcore History Ghosts of the Ostfront series[41:08] The distracted do not beat the focused.[42:36] Success is never permanent. The same person that built the empire, destroyed it.----Get access to the World’s Most Valuable Notebook for Founders at Founders Notes----Follow Founders Podcast on YouTube ----Join my free email newsletter to get my top 10 highlights from every book----“I have listened to every episode released and look forward to every episode that comes out. The only criticism I would have is that after each podcast I usually want to buy the book because I am interested so my poor wallet suffers. ” — GarethBe like Gareth. Buy a book: All the books featured on Founders Podcast

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the idea of charismatic authority developed by Max Weber (1864-1920) to explain why people welcome some as their legitimate rulers and follow them loyally, for better or worse, while following others only dutifully or grudgingly. Weber was fascinated by those such as Napoleon (above) and Washington who achieved power not by right, as with traditional monarchs, or by law as with the bureaucratic world around him in Germany, but by revolution or insurrection. Drawing on the experience of religious figures, he contended that these leaders, often outsiders, needed to be seen as exceptional, heroic and even miraculous to command loyalty, and could stay in power for as long as the people were enthralled and the miracles they had promised kept coming. After the Second World War, Weber's idea attracted new attention as a way of understanding why some reviled leaders once had mass support and, with the arrival of television, why some politicians were more engaging and influential on screen than others. With Linda Woodhead The FD Maurice Professor and Head of the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at King's College LondonDavid Bell The Lapidus Professor in the Department of History at Princeton UniversityAndTom Wright Reader in Rhetoric at the University of SussexProducer: Simon Tillotson

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the idea of charismatic authority developed by Max Weber (1864-1920) to explain why people welcome some as their legitimate rulers and follow them loyally, for better or worse, while following others only dutifully or grudgingly. Weber was fascinated by those such as Napoleon (above) and Washington who achieved power not by right, as with traditional monarchs, or by law as with the bureaucratic world around him in Germany, but by revolution or insurrection. Drawing on the experience of religious figures, he contended that these leaders, often outsiders, needed to be seen as exceptional, heroic and even miraculous to command loyalty, and could stay in power for as long as the people were enthralled and the miracles they had promised kept coming. After the Second World War, Weber's idea attracted new attention as a way of understanding why some reviled leaders once had mass support and, with the arrival of television, why some politicians were more engaging and influential on screen than others. With Linda Woodhead The FD Maurice Professor and Head of the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at King's College LondonDavid Bell The Lapidus Professor in the Department of History at Princeton UniversityAndTom Wright Reader in Rhetoric at the University of SussexProducer: Simon Tillotson

David Bell discusses the funding of right wing think tanks and the shift in American culture. Topics include the evolution of political labels, the influence of think tanks on policy decisions, the flawed strategy of the Rand Corporation in the Vietnam War, and the marketing of trickle-down economics.

David Bell, famous pervert and big bean, discusses the compelling aspects of the game Deathloop. The hosts talk about the game's simplicity, different play styles, story mining, and the use of AI. They also discuss the unique gameplay mechanics and puzzle strategies. Overall, they express positive opinions on Deathloop and its potential future projects.