Defending History - Past Imperfect

History can be a fragile thing, very much like an old book. The pages are brittle and become more easily lost, damaged or  removed. The older the history, the more at risk it is.

Sometimes history is lost or broken by accident.  Records are destroyed - like the loss of the ancient library of Alexandria. Sometimes history is destroyed on purpose. Historical revisionists abound. These are not people who present thoughtful, encompassing, documented examinations of events. These are individuals and groups who present arguments which omit or offhandedly dismiss large chunks of the historic record. Usually this is in pursuit of a political or social agenda. Sometimes it's about mitigating responsibility or guilt. Rarely is it about respecting history. Many oppressive governments have proved that.

Defending history is not just about perpetuating stories and retaining facts. History is about people. When we negate any aspect of the historic record, good or bad, we dishonor the memories of the people who lived it and sometimes died in it. Teaching history, repeating history, going to the places where it happened is not just about keeping things known, its about speaking for the for the dead - the heroes, the villains, the good people, the bad people and the foolish.

We cannot ignore that history is recorded by people. People are fallible. The historic record is imperfect. Imperfect is not the same as untrue or wrong.

History is like food. What we had yesterday makes us what we are today and what we have of it today will make us what we will be tomorrow. To be historically anemic is ugly, unhealthy, unnecessary and dangerous.