History - Its Importance and Use

 A perspective on the importance and usefulness of history:

History informs us first concerning our starting point, then the path taken from that starting point to where we find ourselves today.  Having an adequate knowledge of our history, we are armed to make today's decisions – Armed to make the decision that will most properly guide our path into the future.

Decisions affecting the future must be based on the proper historic foundation – like the upper floors of a tall building, which are aligned with the foundation, and not simply on the floor below, and then built in accordance with an appropriate plan.

In making today's decisions, we should first ask if we can identify any past decisions, which in retrospect may have been erroneous and, therefore, ought to be corrected lest we propagate that error into the future by basing today's decision on the results of that previous error.

Once satisfied (either by acceptance or correction of past decisions) with the path our history has taken to bring us to where we are today, we are in a healthier position to make good decisions that will direct our path into the future.

To Ignore the past when planning for the future is like building a tall building by ignoring the foundation and adding each additional floor by working only from the floor you are currently on.  Eventually, the building will be so far out of alignment from the foundation that the entire structure will fall over and collapse in a useless heap of rubble and dust.