Is History Really True ???

[HanSolo]

Heres my 2 cents...please accept the fact that mostly everything you hav been taught in history class very well might be a lie...not saying everything is but it is quite possible...for instance it is a well known fact that countries make up nationalistic rhetoric..

U.S. history has been proven wrong time an time again..while japanese history hav their own nationalistic views and the same goes for korea... so my point is is that why do so many people get so friggin bent out of shape when it comes to history??? i know people must hav a strong sense of identity and patriotism when studying their countries history but i think it is foolish when people get fanatical about the subject...

i have had the fortunate and unfortunate pleasure of experiencing history tampering at its finest, the "battlefield"... yes, i hav witnessed some of the most amazing acts of heroism and some of the most of cowardice acts...for instance my time in the marine corps as an infantryman has raised questions on how our history is written... too many times i hav seen undeserving honors and miltary decorations bestowed on soldiers and marines ...

i cant count how many times i hav been a part of an awards ceremony and the official warrant or miltary document proclaiming a heroic act has turned out completely false ...how do i know this?? because i was there!!! and this is going into the history books!!! while so many deserving marines get awarded nothing except a pat on the back...

a prime example is the "pfc. jessica lynch story" or the "pat tillman story" (i.e. COVERUPS)"lol".... i guess my point is is that ultimately history is the word of a person or a group of people promising that a certain event happened that way.. sure they might hav some fancy degree of expertise on the matter but they are still human.

[kasia]

well, yeh, the winners get to write history, but that's not to say that we can't come closer to discovering what really happened by exploring beyond what is force-fed to us through our history classes. we have public libraries, the internet (an incredible source), documentaries, accounts from those who are still alive, etc. i'm not sure what your point is, but if you're advocating just completely giving up since history may be biased, i think that's a bit extreme.

[SunWuKong]

a prime example is the "pfc. jessica lynch story"

i haven't read her book myself, but supposedly she never referred to herself as a hero, and the book was supposed to clear that up, and that it was the Department of Defense that tried to pass her off as a hero for propaganda.

[HanSolo]

well, their is nothing wrong with keeping yourself educated... i mean people go to war and are at war right now as we speak because of history...why??...both side claim they are right....no u should not completely give up on history, like i said it is great to be educated but not fanatical their is a difference..i am a huge fan of history literature myself...but history can be turned into extreme nationalism very easily and then hate.

for instance, south korea proclaims dokdo island to be theirs ...japan says no, its takishima island...both countries hav their proof.. and their is now more tension between the two respected countries.

south korea , china and the phillipines still hav victims of nanking still alive...they give their tragic and heart felt story... theirs is also eyewitness accounts and they give their story...imperial japanese soldiers say "we did nothing wrong"...japanese war criminals (i.e. scientists) says im not sorry for conducting barbaric experiments on chinese citizens because it actually was a contribution to medicine and science. (in a horrible, sadistic way it was) but in my opinion it was wrong.

i jus think a younger generation should be more open minded instead of taking everything at face value...keep yourself educated, but also know that ultimately its jus a educated opinion.. your HISTORY BOOK IS NOT THE WORD OF GOD.

[Shiyuan]

Being a History major I can say that you have a point in the amount of tampering that goes on with the truth. However, not all historians are blind or lapdogs to the authorities, we argue and fight with each other as much as any other collection of individuals. There have been a few really honest and straight forward historians.

Take Howard Zinn for example, and his book, "A People's History of the United States." He's blunt, sometimes tactless, but he tells it how it was, and I love him dearly for it.

My own professors are also a godsend. They look at bullshit textbooks and call... well, bullshit on them. They critically analyze everything handed to them, and then they ask us to do the same. They teach us the tricks and steps to identify and/or interpret a bias in sources, and how we can cipher through the texts to find hidden meanings, sometimes hidden truths.

Most importantly, they teach us to think for ourselves, and to give a damn good argument to anything we find fishy, and in return be ready to defend your own assertions with sound logic and trustworthy evidence.

Unfortunately, all this is mainly only taught to History majors, and particularly the Upper Division students and grad students of our major. I wish general history classes could approach their material like this, but such is the way the institution has decided to run things, the protests of their faculty and students not-with-standing.

[Yeahman]

Revisionism is very popular these days so there's no shortage of opposing opinions.

Personally, while I enjoy the subject, I don't place much value in history as a tool to solve today's problems. Let's stop living in the past!

[Shiyuan]

Hmmm... I'll have to respectfully disagree. History if looked at in a certain way, can be a tool to gauge human reaction to future events. Perhaps even ascertain the nature of human behavior in regards to socio, political and economic factors.

Economics and Psychology is as much based on past observations filtered to a contemporary paradigm lens as History is.

Just my two cents.

[Yeahman]

Let me clarify. We can take valuable lessons from history when history is used to inform the practicality and prudence of our policies. But when history is used as a justification in and of itself, I find it utterly unpersuasive.

[Sunflare]

Personally, while I enjoy the subject, I don't place much value in history as a tool to solve today's problems. Let's stop living in the past!

You have a good point Yeahman, but sometimes people must point out past facts to reveal to others the truth or matters concerning the state of things in the present time that we are living in.

The textbooks today are still being revised and rewritten today because of the vast distortions in the facts made and recorded into the history books during the Cold War era and even with the current situation with Iraq.


Look aleardy with the situation with CNN and other media institutions, their biased coverage of the situation within the unrest in Tibet and the results on how it may affect how history may be written into our children's textbooks in the future. . . .

And as already discussed in the past there is the fact that the western media is just as biased as other media circles in other societies around the world, as well, twisting the truth about important events in history and the signifigance of it, and the factors involved.

All important points to consider.

From a subjective standpoint I agree with the fact that we cannot relive the past, I agree. there are many painful things about my own personal past that I am struggling to ignore and forget. . . .

. . . .but the same time we cannot reject the past because there are many lessons to be learned from it.

That's how I look at it.

[Shiyuan]

Let me clarify. We can take valuable lessons from history when history is used to inform the practicality and prudence of our policies. But when history is used as a justification in and of itself, I find it utterly unpersuasive.

Ah, then we are in agreement. :wink:

[HanSolo]

i love all of your comments