And societies continually overwhelmingly reject values and systems they once overwhelmingly supported. That is why the society we have today is so different from early modern ones, medieval ones, ancient ones.
-
-
Show this thread
-
This is the wide scope. We can look closely at how well governments reflect the will of the majority and find they are failing on certain issues but step further back and look at the big picture in line with social & intellectual & cultural changes.
Show this thread -
We can point that out the majority of Germans were not in favour of Nazism but it happened anyway. It was still a product of political & intellectual developments which existed in that time & space. It could not have been formulated in that way in any other time & space.
Show this thread -
The reaction to it was also a product of that time and space and so is the way the word 'Nazi' is now commonly used to describe the epitome of evil. Some people seem to act as tho ruling powers are completely disconnected from wider intellectual and political developments.
Show this thread -
When in fact, we all progress together with different factions reacting against each other and pushing the Overton window back and forth. We are neither powerless against governments nor can systems we like remain strong if we don't protect their foundations.
Show this thread -
We are currently benefiting from living in secular, liberal democracies (those of us who are) and they took a great amount of intellectual work and moral progress to achieve. Whether they last & continue to progress depends entirely on what we as societies do now.
Show this thread
End of conversation
New conversation -
-
-
Reminds me of that Hancock joke: “Does Magna Carta mean nothing to you? Did she die in vain!?”
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
While I agree constitutions are powerless in the face of overwhelming public opinion that contradicts them, written constitutions help shape a society's mores and make them more resilient, due to deference to tradition & appeals to authority. It flows both ways.
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
History is not that important now. We have the internet, it’s changed everything.
-
Knowing history allows you to draw pragmatic knowledge of what has(n't) worked in times past and why things are as they are. Without it you're susceptible to dogmatic non-empirical rhetoric: whites as the sole violent conquerors, revolutionary change as an unmitigated good, etc.
End of conversation
New conversation -
-
-
Reading more history is always a great idea, honestly. It's so fascinating. It comprises every other subject.
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
So this is been my problem my whole life trying to explain to people that that thing has already been tried and it failed. Those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it but those who do know history are doomed to watch as other idiots repeat it.
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
Very wise and important observation.
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
Isn’t some form of complacency the right response to an informed historical conclusion that nothing important ever really changes?
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
Mr. Hogg could use some of that history, though his needs are in the realm of why societies all end up having armies and how Hitler couldn't be defeated through non-violent protest.https://twitter.com/RubinReport/status/991344604434845696 …
-
I want to lock Hogg in a room with Pinker’s “Better Angels” and not let him out until he’s read it. A pass mark of 80% will be set on the exam.
End of conversation
New conversation -
-
-
History. Yup.
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
Loading seems to be taking a while.
Twitter may be over capacity or experiencing a momentary hiccup. Try again or visit Twitter Status for more information.