In college I was a history minor. Not because it actually served a professional purpose, because it doesn't, but because history is important to the enrichment of intellectual people. To me, I learned more from my travels and history museums/classes than anywhere else and my education would be incomplete without being able to study history at the source. Just reading about Europe in a history book is one thing, but setting foot in Dresden and seeing the bombed out shells of buildings gives it a sense of realism. History can seem so disconnected from the present, but EVERYTHING has its roots in a past event. Studying history can also have negative consequences however, like the racist anti-Japanese sentiment because of 12-7-41, or the anti-German feelings many Americans (especially Jews) have because of the Nazi regime. History cannot be used as an excuse for hatred.


Here are some little known historical facts that I really find interesting, but are not usually taught in standard classes. George W Bush is actually not only the son of a president, but the great.(etc.)..grandson of Franklin Pierce, president during the tumultuous 1850s, which makes him the only president to have a president on both sides of his family. The Mayflower had sails made of Hemp, which was farmed by Jefferson and Washington and was also the material on which the US Constitution and Declaration of Independence were printed. The reason why I bring up Hemp is to show how Americans (much more than Europeans) have a tendency to forget the past. Hell, most Americans forget that they were invading immigrants that stole the land from the Mexicans and Native Americans...


In 1994 the World Trade Center was attacked by Muslim terrorists, but just 7 years later the American people had totally forgotten about that attack. In fact, Americans just plain forgot that terrorism existed, despite the fact that there's been a major terrorist attack against the US by Jihadists every decade since the 70s. We act as if political corruption is a new thing, but that's been around forever. We act as if this is the first time we've noticed the fact that we're running out of oil...despite the fact that the late 70s had Americans waiting in lines and only being allowed to fuel up on specified days/times. We live so much in the present that we totally forget the past. It's that way with parents too, they forget what it was like to be a child, to go through puberty or to be in middle school. I see this when I coach with the way the kids are treated by some adults who forget what it was like when they were that age.


I dwell on the past way too much, I'm always reflecting on old decisions and actions and analyzing them as I do with European history. I do this just as a nation should, to learn from my past to see what worked and what didn't. I can gauge what is going to happen based on an aggregate of the past. I do this in relationships, when I see something that was a problem in a previous relationship, I pay extra attention to it. Unfortunately, W doesn't understand this concept. Regime changes have NEVER worked. Ask the Chileans who died under our "puppet" Pinochet...any time we try to install a leader, that person (always a man) ends up as our enemy. Look at the main enemies of the state over the past 5 years: Hussein (someone we supported in the 80s) and Bin Laden (trained by OUR military intel)...so we're obviously not good judges of character. I believe this is because we don't respect history enough, and as the cliche goes "Those who forget history are bound to repeat it." Next time you're somewhere new, go to a history museum, you'll be amazed at the different perspective you will get. I will never be satisfied with my knowledge of the past, because the more of the past I know, the less scary the future becomes.


Well, I'm off pretty soon for a three day weekend. I get to leave work early to volunteer with the Boys & Girls Club at a little bowling party, so that'll be a lot of fun. Happy Passover to the Jews and Easter to the Christians!