I don’t know that ignorance can be self serving. Or that not learning the lessons of history are very self serving. I don’t know that the military/industrial dominates as much as compared to the megabanks and megacorps that have more geopolitical power than most countries. “The victor writes the history” quote is disputed who is author, but they agree to leave the citation reference as “attributed to Churchill.” My favorite time periods of continued studyare Christian Rome, Reformation. Elizabethan England, And Puritan Massachusetts.
OK, Teach. So if Cato made this remark over 2000 years ago – and you are able to recall it – why is it that nobody else can even cite it, much less act thoughtfully upon it?
Does the entire world suffer from amnesia? Is it as simple as Santayana put it (those who do not remember their history…etc.,etc.)? Or is it about Eisenhower’s dreaded, macho military-industrial complex that is now essential keep our country going?
My bet: we haven’t forgotten history – we just never paid attention to it. We never learned it or understood its implications even if we did. Carl: I believe it’s mostly plain old, all-American, shallow, self-serving ignorance.
Neither are the policy makers. Someone needs to enlighten them that men are not the tin soldiers of our youth. And that when men are knocked down you don’t get to stand them up again.
Yes, the 50,000 in Korea are actually hostages because if these men killed in North Korean attack it gives us excuse for war. I am glad a great discussion is taking place this morning. Besides cartoons I like history and politics, but have to be careful with such topics on a humor blog because you are bound to anger many visitors and provoke them to unsubscribe. Hope you are feeling better and adjusting to conditions.
WW 2 to defeat fascism and the horrible plans of horrible men. But Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan, this history teacher and Goldwater Republican can see no reason or justification. In Afghanistan 5,800 dead, 35,000 returning amputees. For what? This is not about Islam or terrorism but since 70% opium comes from there, this is about who controls production and distribution of dope. Why aren’t we napalming the poppy fields? Will not this president learn from the folly of LBJ? And if we liberated Iraq why aren’t I paying 50 cents gallon for gas?
I ddin’t mean that I had actually forgotten why they were fighting but the fact that sometimes things go on for so long and get so tangled up that you can’t remember where or why you started. Kind of the Hatfield’s vs the McCoy’s thing.
Thanks for the history lesson though, there were things I hadn’t remembered after reading your comment.
Of course I know what you meant. I suppose if you account for the casualties as fathers and husbands and sons, nobody wins. And of course this does not mean to omit the sacrifice of women in our armed services.
Sometimes we know exact nature of the event but still do not know the truth. Was the A-bomb dropped on Japan in 1945 so an invasion was not necessary which would save Japanese and American lives? Or was it a signal to Russia not to expect to take over Western Europe and parts of
Asia? Was it a racial thing and so justified? Was it necessary at all since from the beginning of 1945 USA flew over Japan with impunity and the hundreds of thousands of deaths and destroyed cities through fire bombing had already demoralized civil population that little or no resistance would had been offed in invasion and that was ignored? Or were peace overtures from early 1944 from Japan ignored in order to advance USA post war stature? Was it to astonish the world and the American people in that we would dominate the geopolitical future of the planet? We know exactly what happened yet still will never know the truth even though the allies wrote the history. And since the colonial powers of Europe were stripped of all their land in Africa and Asia as since Germany and Japan prospered so well post war to the present, one can argue that Germany and Japan won WW 2 !
16 responses to “History is Written by the Victors by Carl D’Agostino”
carldagostino
January 26th, 2011 at 10:40
I don’t know that ignorance can be self serving. Or that not learning the lessons of history are very self serving. I don’t know that the military/industrial dominates as much as compared to the megabanks and megacorps that have more geopolitical power than most countries. “The victor writes the history” quote is disputed who is author, but they agree to leave the citation reference as “attributed to Churchill.” My favorite time periods of continued studyare Christian Rome, Reformation. Elizabethan England, And Puritan Massachusetts.
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steve
January 26th, 2011 at 09:05
OK, Teach. So if Cato made this remark over 2000 years ago – and you are able to recall it – why is it that nobody else can even cite it, much less act thoughtfully upon it?
Does the entire world suffer from amnesia? Is it as simple as Santayana put it (those who do not remember their history…etc.,etc.)? Or is it about Eisenhower’s dreaded, macho military-industrial complex that is now essential keep our country going?
My bet: we haven’t forgotten history – we just never paid attention to it. We never learned it or understood its implications even if we did. Carl: I believe it’s mostly plain old, all-American, shallow, self-serving ignorance.
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gallowaygrave
January 24th, 2011 at 15:33
Even more of a problem is the author from the victors side was never on the front line!
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carldagostino
January 24th, 2011 at 17:29
Neither are the policy makers. Someone needs to enlighten them that men are not the tin soldiers of our youth. And that when men are knocked down you don’t get to stand them up again.
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kateshrewsday
January 24th, 2011 at 15:31
Wars have been godawful messes since at least Cato’s time, then…
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carldagostino
January 24th, 2011 at 17:25
I understand Napoleon once said boastfully that he could make men willing to die for little pieces of ribbon.
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Maxi Malone
January 24th, 2011 at 12:51
My sentiments exactly on the poppy fields and liberation of Iraq.
When it comes to Iraq and Afghanistan, even South Korea, maybe it’s time to bring the troops home.
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carldagostino
January 24th, 2011 at 13:00
Yes, the 50,000 in Korea are actually hostages because if these men killed in North Korean attack it gives us excuse for war. I am glad a great discussion is taking place this morning. Besides cartoons I like history and politics, but have to be careful with such topics on a humor blog because you are bound to anger many visitors and provoke them to unsubscribe. Hope you are feeling better and adjusting to conditions.
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flyinggma
January 24th, 2011 at 11:51
And what were fighting about??? I forgot!
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carldagostino
January 24th, 2011 at 12:08
WW 2 to defeat fascism and the horrible plans of horrible men. But Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan, this history teacher and Goldwater Republican can see no reason or justification. In Afghanistan 5,800 dead, 35,000 returning amputees. For what? This is not about Islam or terrorism but since 70% opium comes from there, this is about who controls production and distribution of dope. Why aren’t we napalming the poppy fields? Will not this president learn from the folly of LBJ? And if we liberated Iraq why aren’t I paying 50 cents gallon for gas?
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flyinggma
January 24th, 2011 at 12:15
I ddin’t mean that I had actually forgotten why they were fighting but the fact that sometimes things go on for so long and get so tangled up that you can’t remember where or why you started. Kind of the Hatfield’s vs the McCoy’s thing.
Thanks for the history lesson though, there were things I hadn’t remembered after reading your comment.
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carldagostino
January 24th, 2011 at 12:45
Of course I know what you meant. I suppose if you account for the casualties as fathers and husbands and sons, nobody wins. And of course this does not mean to omit the sacrifice of women in our armed services.
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planejaner
January 24th, 2011 at 11:48
Cal–
who hold’s history’s truth? the victors or those left in the rubble..
jane
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carldagostino
January 24th, 2011 at 12:02
See reply to Sunshine above.
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sunshineinlondon
January 24th, 2011 at 10:09
So does history reflect the truth? Or the perspective of whoever got to write it? Makes you wonder ….
Sunshine
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carldagostino
January 24th, 2011 at 12:02
Sometimes we know exact nature of the event but still do not know the truth. Was the A-bomb dropped on Japan in 1945 so an invasion was not necessary which would save Japanese and American lives? Or was it a signal to Russia not to expect to take over Western Europe and parts of
Asia? Was it a racial thing and so justified? Was it necessary at all since from the beginning of 1945 USA flew over Japan with impunity and the hundreds of thousands of deaths and destroyed cities through fire bombing had already demoralized civil population that little or no resistance would had been offed in invasion and that was ignored? Or were peace overtures from early 1944 from Japan ignored in order to advance USA post war stature? Was it to astonish the world and the American people in that we would dominate the geopolitical future of the planet? We know exactly what happened yet still will never know the truth even though the allies wrote the history. And since the colonial powers of Europe were stripped of all their land in Africa and Asia as since Germany and Japan prospered so well post war to the present, one can argue that Germany and Japan won WW 2 !
LikeLike