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Good topic. I've recently (within the last few years) noticed that people seem to have a disjointed view of history. Most younger people seem to think history started about the time they were born so their view of history is incredibly small. They think we're living in some flashpoint in history that will be remembered for a millenia when in reality anything happening now is just another 4 or 5 paragraphs in the history books of tomorrow.

The slandering Bush as the "worst president ever" does nothing but show their utter lack of knowledge concerning past presidents. Of course all that bleating is coming from people that know no other president than Clinton and, despite his actually being impeached for criminal behavior, they think he was the greatest ever. So their uninformed opinion matters little.

Also with regards to the current war, those that compare it to Vietnam are either intentionally trying to mislead or they're hopelessly stupid. We were losing nearly 500 soldiers a day at one point in Vietnam, for a total of around 59,000 all together. Other than the fact that during both wars our troops are fighting overseas there is no comparison and to say so either means you're a fat, drunken Senator from Massachusetts or a complete idiot, or in Ted Kennedy's case, both.

History was pretty much the only subject I cared for in school, and to this day I still read historical biographies and watch the History Channel constantly.

History always applies, but most people are either ignorant of it, or ignore it.

I don't think we have a lot of hope of typical people putting things in perspective historically when they can't even look at the bigger picture today. You mention how the bloodiest battles in the civil war caused more casualties than our entire time in iraq. That's a good point, but about 40,000 americans die every year from highway accidents. Worse, nearly 30,000 americans die from firearm use... in the united states alone

I don't mean to downplay the deaths of the brave soldiers over in Iraq, but historically speaking our losses are next to nothing. I wish those young men and women were not being killed over there, but when all is said and done, the casualty rate is very very low in a broader perspective.

I think that History is quite fun and a hobby for many.
I feel it is important to know history of the world not just out own.

History is necessary because it explains a lot and although it is good to learn from past mistakes sometimes history just that the past and some parts of it need to stay there.

To compare how many people died in a past war to how many people die in a war taking place with the technology and advancements of today is wrong.

There is no way to accurately generically apply history to current events and by doing so we almost ensure repetitive mistakes. I see this in Africa where the history of colonialism in so many ways is preventing the leaders to move on because they use it as their basis to judge present day political moves.

History sometimes dictates what happens and I think sometimes people lean too much on what happened in the past often not making that much of an effort to prevent it from happening again.

Sorry for the call-out, but Alday up there pretty much makes his own argument worthless by throwing in tired conservative vitriol that undermines his credibility to the point where I'll never him seriously. I do find it funny though, that upon being asked a question that's open to a very broad, his first reaction is to launch into a petty partisan attack.

But back to the question at hand. The nature of the human animal hasn't changed much over time, so the nature of his activities tend have a certain similarity, whether it's Amazon.com revolutionizing retail sales like Sears and Robuck did a century before or western nations getting involved in land wars in Asia.

But each situation is unique and there is never a certain way to predict the future based on past events. You can only look to it for guidance and try to learn from past mistakes. There's an old saying about the stock market that can be applied to just about anything, especially history: "Past performance is no guarantee of future returns."

There comes a point where the similarities end and contemporary context and evolutions need to be applied.

Isn't there a phrase about being the sum of all that has happened up to that point - well in that case then yes history does matter. Now, whether it is remembered that it matters is a different thing. Some mistakes we should have learned from and you do get a deja vu with similar threads running through past and present.

@ irregardless

Sorry, next time I'll be more respectful to the Senate's favorite drunken, murdering philanderer.

@alday - in your own madcap, carefree way you're talked about some recent discussions that made me ask the question in the first place. I think we might disagree about parallels between Vietnam and Iraq, for instance. But you are arguing from a longer perspective when you even raise the comparison. I think that's important for us to do from time to time. It offers perspective.

It also starts flame wars ... but it looks like we can avoid that here.

@ozone - thanks for the reality check there.

@cooper - I thought I was going to strongly disagree with your last point

History sometimes dictates what happens and I think sometimes people lean too much on what happened in the past often not making that much of an effort to prevent it from happening again.

... but, by the end, I was just confused.

I agree that we should avoid repeating mistakes from the past. I think a strong sense of history can help there.

But can you clarify how people "lean too much on what happened in the past" and still "not make an effort to prevent ..."?

@irregardless - it sounds like you're on the fence. There are repeating patterns in history, but we can't predict the future. So pick one :)

@karmatosed - I'm with you. We don't seem very good at remembering, on the whole. I think it's terribly important that we do.

I think often in terms of Africa these days.

The history of colonialism in Africa is in many cases dictating the policy which allows for many of the atrocities which occur there on a daily basis to.

Instead of learning from history and moving forward seems that the fear of it repeating itself has halted progress in many cases.

Yet while the governments of many of those countries refuse to allow needed aid in certain cases from countries - fearing colonialism they allow other countries to control them for a price.

My feeling has always been that the problem with the ol' adage about being "destined to repeat" history is that there's usually a lot of emotion thrown into the past... what you end up with is a nostalgiac view of history rather than a factual one, and at the end of the day, people can't recognize the correlation to present times.

It's tough not to have a dramaticized view of history, when you talk about the wrongful death of millions of Jews, or something like that. You can't help but get emotional over it. But my point is that to many people who weren't alive to experience the Nazi regime in real-time, it becomes more legend than fact. There are surely young men out there with agendas quite similar to Hitler's proposed plans for a superior race, but a young man on a stoop spreading propoganda is- in the minds of the public- so far removed from gas chambers and mad genetic scientists and millions of deaths, that the connection isn't made until it's too late.

History is always in the here and now, as we constantly create history, each time we interact.

My paternal side of the family came to America as a direct result of the Holocaust and World WarII. We would have been here earlier if the US welcomed displaced Jews from the Pale of Russia ---- or if my ancesters had been able to read the signs.

I should add here; since my family came here as a result of political and religious international events, I am particularly interested in the pockets of the world in many countries where ethnic cleansing is the unofficial policy of the majority.

@auburn - hmmm. Sounds like a topic that needs its own Note. Quite a ways from 'does History apply' ...

I think history get abused all too often. Nothing gets placed within context anymore, like the example you used for the Iraq campaign Brian. There are claims that the VT shooting was the worst in history, but others point out evidence that isn't really the case. However, does it matter if it was the worst or not when it still happened and effected so many?

In some cases I can see history being used to great effect, especially when it comes to economies, but when talking about destruction, war and killings I don't know if it has a place at all.