Michael Brooks Was a True Internationalist
Michael Brooks believed that every person, regardless of where they were born or where they lived, was worthy of fundamental human respect — and his dream was to create a more just world, not only for Americans, but for every working person on Earth.
Michael Brooks knew that we’re all connected — politically, yes, but also spiritually and morally.
I first met Michael Brooks in the spring of 2018. I had just released a book, and our mutual friend Christy Thornton suggested I speak with Michael and see if he’d be interested in interviewing me on his show. Much to my surprise — and excitement — he agreed. I went on the Michael Brooks Show (I admit I had never listened before) and was immediately impressed with Michael’s perspicacity. The questions he asked made clear that, unlike some other interviewers with whom I had experience, he had read the book and was actually interested in some of its more arcane subjects, such as Weimar-era socialism, the US national security state, and the struggle between social scientists who favored quantitative approaches and those who embraced qualitative approaches.
I didn’t expect to hear from Michael afterward — after all, I was just some random guest he interviewed one time — but he must have liked something about me, and soon he invited me on TMBS again to talk about US foreign affairs. Our intellectual conversations quickly developed into a friendship. Whenever I visited New York City, I hung out with Michael, and he quickly entered into my text rotation. If I had a thought about foreign affairs, I’d text Michael; if I came up with some dumb joke, I’d text Michael.
And he was literally the only person in my life with whom I had regular phone conversations. The first time he asked me to chat on the phone, I thought it was for TMBS. I went to my office, closed the door, made sure there was no noise, and picked up when he called. About fifteen minutes into the conversation — I believe we were talking about internal left-wing politics — I asked if we were recording. No, Michael responded — he just wanted to catch up and see how I was doing. I was surprised — millennials don’t talk on the phone — and a bit embarrassed I had assumed we’d only chat if it was recorded. We’d have many phone conversations over the next couple of years about US foreign policy, the Left, and what I believe was his true passion, the history of radical liberationist politics abroad.
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