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What % of Americans are this uneducated about history?

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General interest discussions, not necessarily related to depletion.

Which percentage (roughly)?

0%
0
0%
20%
1
No votes
40%
1
No votes
60%
3
No votes
80
10
No votes
nearly everyone (including some people on here)
11
No votes
 
Total votes : 26

What % of Americans are this uneducated about history?

Postby 3aidlillahi » Tue 20 May 2008, 21:30:09

I'm sure most people, if they watch the news, have seen the video of Matthews stomping on Republican talk show host Kevin James. If not, here it is:Web Page Name

Simply put, the guy knew almost nothing about one of the most key points in the run-up to the greatest war ever, which was just a few decades before his birth, one in which his father may have fought in.

It's always good to get a laugh at these fools when they finally get called on their horrible, fear-mongering propaganda, showing that they don't even know what they are talking about, save the talking points in which they demonize their enemies.

Question is: how many guys are like him? Not just in the lack of knowledge of very basic history (I must've learned about this at least three separate times in school) but the complete inability to argue. The guy could have at least known what appeasement is and take a gamble on what Chamberlain did.
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Re: What percentage of Americans are this uneducated about h

Postby Fiddlerdave » Tue 20 May 2008, 22:28:43

So nice to see SOMEBODY put one of these dimwad Bush blowhards on the carpet. "you're in a hole, quit digging" :lol:
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Re: What percentage of Americans are this uneducated about h

Postby BigTex » Tue 20 May 2008, 23:55:37

I was not familiar with Kevin James, but he is an obnoxious idiot.

He should have simply deferred to Matthews immediately and asked for him to describe what he was referring to.

It's not a crime to be unaware of something, but a person ought to be humble enough to just admit it and try to learn something if they can.

I hate dealing with people who think they know everything because it's impossible to share anything with them or have any real give and take in a discussion.

I've always thought it was incredibly stupid to teach history out of a textbook that tried to put long periods of time into some kind of narrative. Life isn't like that, and it's dull when viewed from that perspective.

If I tried to teach someone about the 1980s, for example, and focused on broad themes of greed, materialism and the last stages of the cold war, they would walk away with a vague or no understanding of the 1980s. However, if I focused on a few actual events and really spent a lot of time trying to understand those events, INCLUDING USING NEWSPAPER ARTICLES FROM THE TIME, that would be so much more useful for actually teaching someone something.

I'm thinking maybe cover:

- the 1981 assassination attempt on Ronald Reagan
- the 1983 Marine barracks bombing in Beirut
- the 1985 Chicago Bears phenomenon
- the 1986 Challenger explosion
- one of the meetings between Reagan and Gorbachev

Those are all events that are actually interesting to learn about. You could read newspaper accounts of the event, watch videos of the news coverage, discuss how people reacted and why, what changed as a result of the events, etc. In a word, it would be INTERESTING.

I was an adult before I figured out that history could be incredibly interesting. I never had anyone teach it like I describe above, except for one high school teacher (who was otherwise a horrible teacher) who had us read newspaper accounts of the aftermath of the Kennedy assassination and that just instantly brought things to life.
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Re: What % of Americans are this uneducated about history?

Postby Plantagenet » Wed 21 May 2008, 00:43:58

That guy is as stupid and uneducated as the liberal Seattle Times editor who tried to defend Obama from the "appeasement" charge by saying Hitler had a perfect right to take over other countries and appeasement by Chamberlain wasn't such a bad idea

Seattle liberal and newspaper editor stands up for Hitler to show Obama is right on appeasement

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Re: What % of Americans are this uneducated about history?

Postby smiley » Wed 21 May 2008, 16:00:36

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')hat guy is as stupid and uneducated as the liberal Seattle Times editor who tried to defend Obama from the "appeasement" charge by saying Hitler had a perfect right to take over other countries and appeasement by Chamberlain wasn't such a bad idea


I'd say that it is a controversial viewpoint. But I wouldn't go as far as saying it is uneducated.

What this guy is saying is that something which is inconceivable now, namely handing a country over to another country was normal practive then.

And he is right in saying that. I mean look at the history of African and middle eastern nations. Also in Europe there are vast stretches of land which have swapped hands now and then. And often for even lesser reasons then were described here.

All he is asking is that you judge the Munich convention without the benefit of hindsight and with consideration for the prevalent zeitgeist.

I think that is a legitimate request although I do believe that even then they could have (and should have) foreseen the later actions of Hitler. the signs were already there.

What Bush is doing is judging people like Chamberlain on the basis of information that he at that time didn't have. Moreover he is judging Chamberlain on the basis of a morality which did not exist at that period. Morality is not a God-given, universal, black and white thing as Bush makes us believe, it is a thing which evolves.

I think those two errors make the remark of Bush far more stupid and uneducated than the comments from the Seattle Times editor.
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Re: What % of Americans are this uneducated about history?

Postby BigTex » Wed 21 May 2008, 16:14:19

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('smiley', 'W')hat Bush is doing is judging people like Chamberlain on the basis of information that he at that time didn't have. Moreover he is judging Chamberlain on the basis of a morality which did not exist at that period. Morality is not a God-given, universal, black and white thing as Bush makes us believe, it is a thing which evolves.


Morality is the tuxedo that Power wears to the prom.

Nothing more.

Morality is merely a tool used to serve the interests of those who hold the power.
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Re: What % of Americans are this uneducated about history?

Postby Plantagenet » Wed 21 May 2008, 16:24:55

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('smiley', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')hat guy is as stupid and uneducated as the liberal Seattle Times editor who tried to defend Obama from the "appeasement" charge by saying Hitler had a perfect right to take over other countries and appeasement by Chamberlain wasn't such a bad idea


I'd say that it is a controversial viewpoint. But I wouldn't go as far as saying it is uneducated.

What this guy is saying is that something which is inconceivable now, namely handing a country over to another country was normal practive then.


It was not a "normal" practice. It was morally repugnant, and courageous people at that time clearly said so.

People knew then that political dissidents, intellectuals, liberals, religious people and jews in countries "handed over" to Nazi Germany would be attacked, murdered, robbed and hounded. People knew then that the resources of the countries would be used by Hitler to expand his power. There was nothing "normal" about giving in to Hitler's blackmail.

It is not "normal" to appease Nazis and other kinds of mass murderers.

Chamberlain's appeasement of Nazi Germany led directly to the horrors of World War II, and it is profoundly ignorant of the liberal Seattle Times editor not to know that, and wrong-headed of him to suggest that similar appeasement of tyrants is a good policy for the western world to pursue today. :)
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Re: What % of Americans are this uneducated about history?

Postby smiley » Wed 21 May 2008, 18:28:23

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'I')t was not a "normal" practice.


No and what exactly was it when Truman and Attee gave East Germany to your great friend Stalin at Potsdam?

What was it which compelled to give Volksdeutschland to Czechoslovakia at Saint Germain knowing that the Germans would be oppressed?

Filantropy?

I agree that it is morally repugnant. But it was more or less practice to trade land around with complete disregard for the people living on it, just to appease some dictator.


$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'P')eople knew then that political dissidents, intellectuals, liberals, religious people and jews in countries "handed over" to Nazi Germany would be attacked, murdered, robbed and hounded. People knew then that the resources of the countries would be used by Hitler to expand his power.


You're talking about 38. True people should have known about which way the regime was heading. They should have known about it since at least 35.

But you also have to realise that this was before the tipping point. Kristalnacht, which for many was the first true manifestation of the regime, only occurred later that year.

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'I')t is not "normal" to appease Nazis and other kinds of mass murderers.


I think my examples show that this was the case. And you just have to look around in Africa, South America, Asia and the Middle east to find countless more examples of appeasement at the cost of many.

And I like to hope it was the case with emphasis on was, but I have my doubts.
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