The Future Past

We’ve all seen the surveys of high school and college students who don’t know anything about current events or history. There was a survey done of students at Texas Tech University in 2014 called Politically Challenged. Most of the students didn’t know who the vice president was, or who won the Civil War, or what country we fought for our independence. Everyone knew Snookie starred on “Jersey Shore”, and that Brad Pitt is married to Angelina Jolie and was married to Jennifer Aniston. You can laugh, or cry through it on “YouTube”. Most of the students laughed, or were only slightly embarrassed by their lack of knowledge. Some would think, “What’s the big deal?” And if we really had to find the answers, we could just look it up on our phone.

The future belongs to these students, and millions like them. Knowing the issues that affect all our lives, and the stories behind them are fundamental to making us all better and smarter. If we don’t know history, we will only repeat the mistakes of the past. The great Roman philosopher and writer Cicero said, “To know nothing of what happened before you were born is to remain a child forever.” We all grow up, at least physically. But, what about our intellectual curiosity? Not everyone has the advantage of those students at Texas Tech to get a college education, but more and more people do. But it goes back to those critical years in early childhood when we learn to read. Television, the internet, and the ever expanding digital world can give us experiences as never before. But reading allows us to explore ideas, the lives and minds of great and ordinary people, and their impact on history.

As journalists, we all have to be naturally curious. We have to know the background of the people and issues to put stories into context, and get to the heart of the matter. But, I would argue it’s the responsibility of all citizens to know the world around them. People say that happened years ago, it doesn’t mean anything to me. Or, I don’t care who gets elected. All politicians are the same. Or, those things that happen in other parts of the world don’t affect my life. If you feel that way, you haven’t been paying attention. The world is smaller and moving faster than ever. Our society is rapidly changing, and becoming more diverse. It is a central issue in the current presidential campaign that is stirring fear in the hearts of many who can’t, or won’t understand the changing tides of history. Every part of our lives is touched by history including our security, our health, our money, our laws, the food we eat, and the air we breath. How could we not want to know about that?

History is who we are as individuals and members of society. Most of us want to know where we came from, and how we got to where we are today. One of the things that connects people are stories. They can be written or oral. We enjoy being drawn into a world of the unknown and finding out what happened. The record of civilization are the stories documented and handed down through the ages. History tells us about the successes and failures of people like us, and people we aspire to be. It was bad enough that those students at Texas Tech didn’t know the answers to simple questions. It was worse that they didn’t care. These lessons are too valuable to forget. The past can tell us much about the future, if we only listen.