* I know I promised a series of essays on marriage (which are still coming in a few weeks), but I’ve been distracted recently thinking about the nature of history.
It is child abuse. Professor Redneck nails it again. What can parents do (presuming it's not them abusing but rather the parents detect this is happening in school)?
A: Books. Parents have to create a durable pattern of book reading in their kids, by balancing their device time and extracurriculars (taking those away is not the answer either). I've found that kids who read classics/great books as tweens/teens, outside of school assignments, are far better able to circumnavigate the victim ideology offered by schools.
I learned a trade and did not spend much time studying after high school. However, I have always been interested in learning history, literature, and art, an interest that I continue today. I have come to learn that history is not always truthful to us in that it is largely one sided - shared by the survivors, the winners, and those with money (usually). I found your essay very well written and very interesting. I am brand new to this sub stack business... I am not sure what I'm doing here. I am finding essays that are absolutely blowing my mind. Thank you for writing this.
I am not a formal historian, but I will add a personal note on the study of history. I have been a professional investor for over 40 years. I took all the courses, learned all the financial theory, and earned all the certifications. They were of limited value - not worthless, but definitely of limited value. What has been the most valuable subject to study? Financial history, by far. And, of course, financial history is fully entangled with political and cultural history, so your study of finance necessarily extends beyond the financial record. I have learned, and re-learned countless times, that there is very little that is completely new under the sun, that historical patterns repeat because human beings of the past, present, and future are bonded by the unchanging characteristics that make us human. Here is a tip for anyone going into professional investing today: Cut the financial theory in half and double the financial history. No one else is doing it. This will be your secret weapon for long-term success.
America has done many bad things in the past because there has always been a significant proportion of Americans who opposed the fundamental American principle of individual rights. American leftists who criticize America are essentially arguing, “America is bad because America has always had some people with bad ideas—like us.”
You may enjoy a piece I just wrote, regarding American history before colonialism, with historic engravings that show a far different perspective than we were given.
The value revealed through the study of history emerges from an inescapable fact. Human nature is timeless! Yes, the specific values man's nature will demand, changes over time. but NOT the wider values nor the nature that assures them to be "timeless."
I agree and disagree with Jim, Brown, below. Agree that "money" represents time - the time of human being's life(time!). In that sense, money, its creation, its use, and its disposal, represents timeless human values.
On the other hand, money, as does all human creations, is the product of ideas. Which in turn, are the product of wider ideas. Ultimately, leading to the very philosophy you tie to history!
Nice work. I always like it when you get a wild hair and take off somewhere different. I’ve given some thought lately to the topic of history, usually right after some public facing idiot tells a bald faced lie about the past to justify some depredation in the fleeting present. My current favorite is “The American Civil War was fought to end slavery.” The fact is that the American Civil War “brought an end to slavery” but that is not WHY it began, or even WHY it was fought. I worry that the growing number of generations succeeding mine have no understanding of history at all, much less appreciate the value in its study. Do they even teach American History in government schools these days? I still want you to do a piece on “Human Nature.”
I love your concluding paragraph: teaching kids to hate their forefathers is indeed "cognitive child abuse"!
100% 🖖
It is child abuse. Professor Redneck nails it again. What can parents do (presuming it's not them abusing but rather the parents detect this is happening in school)?
A: Books. Parents have to create a durable pattern of book reading in their kids, by balancing their device time and extracurriculars (taking those away is not the answer either). I've found that kids who read classics/great books as tweens/teens, outside of school assignments, are far better able to circumnavigate the victim ideology offered by schools.
I learned a trade and did not spend much time studying after high school. However, I have always been interested in learning history, literature, and art, an interest that I continue today. I have come to learn that history is not always truthful to us in that it is largely one sided - shared by the survivors, the winners, and those with money (usually). I found your essay very well written and very interesting. I am brand new to this sub stack business... I am not sure what I'm doing here. I am finding essays that are absolutely blowing my mind. Thank you for writing this.
I am not a formal historian, but I will add a personal note on the study of history. I have been a professional investor for over 40 years. I took all the courses, learned all the financial theory, and earned all the certifications. They were of limited value - not worthless, but definitely of limited value. What has been the most valuable subject to study? Financial history, by far. And, of course, financial history is fully entangled with political and cultural history, so your study of finance necessarily extends beyond the financial record. I have learned, and re-learned countless times, that there is very little that is completely new under the sun, that historical patterns repeat because human beings of the past, present, and future are bonded by the unchanging characteristics that make us human. Here is a tip for anyone going into professional investing today: Cut the financial theory in half and double the financial history. No one else is doing it. This will be your secret weapon for long-term success.
Bravo! I'm a historian and I can't remember when I've heard the role of history and historians explained so clearly.
America has done many bad things in the past because there has always been a significant proportion of Americans who opposed the fundamental American principle of individual rights. American leftists who criticize America are essentially arguing, “America is bad because America has always had some people with bad ideas—like us.”
I really enjoy your style C!.
You may enjoy a piece I just wrote, regarding American history before colonialism, with historic engravings that show a far different perspective than we were given.
Great read, thank you!
The value revealed through the study of history emerges from an inescapable fact. Human nature is timeless! Yes, the specific values man's nature will demand, changes over time. but NOT the wider values nor the nature that assures them to be "timeless."
I agree and disagree with Jim, Brown, below. Agree that "money" represents time - the time of human being's life(time!). In that sense, money, its creation, its use, and its disposal, represents timeless human values.
On the other hand, money, as does all human creations, is the product of ideas. Which in turn, are the product of wider ideas. Ultimately, leading to the very philosophy you tie to history!
Yat another wonderful read, my "Redneck" tutor!
Fine last paragraphs indeed. The teaching of history can be done more completely as students age.
Nice work. I always like it when you get a wild hair and take off somewhere different. I’ve given some thought lately to the topic of history, usually right after some public facing idiot tells a bald faced lie about the past to justify some depredation in the fleeting present. My current favorite is “The American Civil War was fought to end slavery.” The fact is that the American Civil War “brought an end to slavery” but that is not WHY it began, or even WHY it was fought. I worry that the growing number of generations succeeding mine have no understanding of history at all, much less appreciate the value in its study. Do they even teach American History in government schools these days? I still want you to do a piece on “Human Nature.”
An essay for the ages. Kudos!
Those who control the present control the past and those who control the past control the future.