Professor Brands, Along these same lines, I’d like for you to write a post about WWI sparking much of the misery and wars of the 20th century. The German injection of Lenin into the Russian revolution which led to a Marxist Russia and ultimately the Cold War. Also how the harsh peace treaty led to the rise of the Nazis. I think it would be a splendid post.
Another thought-provoking post, Bill. It reminds me of your "The golden age" (https://hwbrands.substack.com/p/the-golden-age) piece: if we could only travel back in time to a supposed golden age, then life would be better for us. If we could only travel back in time and change certain historical events, then everything in the present would go exactly according to how we want them to. A quote I heard from a religious leader is "The past is to be learned from, not lived in." I am a personal fan of counterfactual/alternate history, but devoting too much energy desiring to change the outcome of events that have already occurred isn't the most productive use of my time/energy. Better to teach my students what was instead of what could have been.
Professor Brands, Along these same lines, I’d like for you to write a post about WWI sparking much of the misery and wars of the 20th century. The German injection of Lenin into the Russian revolution which led to a Marxist Russia and ultimately the Cold War. Also how the harsh peace treaty led to the rise of the Nazis. I think it would be a splendid post.
Another thought-provoking post, Bill. It reminds me of your "The golden age" (https://hwbrands.substack.com/p/the-golden-age) piece: if we could only travel back in time to a supposed golden age, then life would be better for us. If we could only travel back in time and change certain historical events, then everything in the present would go exactly according to how we want them to. A quote I heard from a religious leader is "The past is to be learned from, not lived in." I am a personal fan of counterfactual/alternate history, but devoting too much energy desiring to change the outcome of events that have already occurred isn't the most productive use of my time/energy. Better to teach my students what was instead of what could have been.
I really like that quote, Jake. It nails the point perfectly.