History is a science, every bit as much as physics, chemistry, biology and others. And like them, it goes through various interpretations and analyses, which we call “historiography.”
The other sciences keep changing their interpretations, too. Take nutrition. Not long ago, margarine was extolled over butter. Salt tablets were recommended for athletes instead of water. Eggs were inviting a heart attack. Bleeding was seen as a way to expunge disease from the body and human reproduction went through endless theories until Max von Baer observed conception in 1829.
I won’t go into vaccinations here. That is an in-progress event, but the changing interpretations, now ongoing, are obvious.
This era, however brief or long, will stand forever as an embarrassing example that humanity is never very far from collective madness.
Events like the American, English, and Spanish Civil Wars, or the French and Russian Revolutions, go through phases where they are regarded by politicized academics with contemptuous, disdainful, acceptable, benevolent or heroic interpretations. We have heard the phrase “X is either a terrorist or a freedom fighter, depending on your side.” This is oh-so-true, and we must be careful, for the changing phases can lead to the conclusion that truth is a fluid, morphing thing and can never be identified.
That is wrong. The changing interpretations of science have as much to do with politics as it does with facts.
But be confident: “The truth will out!” The problem is that the blare horns of the zeitgeist can easily confuse us. We are experiencing that right now, and worldwide. There are holdouts, however, in eastern Europe and Africa. Those areas have, until very recently, experienced the tyranny of Communism and colonialism, have weathered the storm, and are not easily duped into the elevation of falsehood as truth.
The west, however, has forgotten the absurdity of imperialism and fascism, a result of several generations of care-free prosperity and the abuse of hard-won liberties. Thus, “progressives” have made the most obvious falsehoods normal. This era, however brief or long, will stand forever as an embarrassing example that humanity is never very far from collective madness.
There is an old philosophical argument that goes like this:
The Nihilist says, “There is no such thing as truth!”
Well, if this is so, then you have discovered a truth, no?
This can drive them crazy, and is where we are right now.
And suppose I thought I could fly by flapping my arms? Today’s progressives would gladly give me the wings of an aviator and push me out the window from the 20th floor.
“Your truth is not my truth” is a similar oxymoronic statement. So, if I say that marriage is only definable as between one man and one woman, and the Nihilist says that is a truth that he does not subscribe to, and that it can be defined as between two human beings of the same sex, we have a problem. They cannot co-exist. At least one has to be wrong. Both cannot be right. There cannot be two truths.
The “progressives” understand at least that truth, which is why they have created “cancel culture.” They are anything but tolerant, and their truths are the only ones that can be recognized. Having “your truth and my truth” is merely a temporary beachhead, and they are expanding it constantly.
If I said I was a dog, scrambled clumsily about on all fours, lifted my leg to urinate, barked and chased cats, you would call me crazy. A loving family would try to correct the behavior, and a caring culture would sustain mental hospitals and authentic, non-political psychiatrists. That’s how King Nebuchadnezzar was treated for seven years.
Same thing if I claimed to be Napoleon or Teddy Roosevelt. Or maybe both at once. Imagine me with a Napoleonic hat, pince nèz spectacles, tucked my hand inside my vest, spoke French, drew a sword, blew a bugle, and fought San Juan Hill and Waterloo all at once. Again, I would have to be committed, for my own safety … and that of others.
ALASKA WATCHMAN DIRECT TO YOUR INBOX
But today’s society would do neither. It would pander to my delusions, call them, “His own truth,” and accommodate it with a federal subsidy. Anyone denying me entry into the military would be sued by the ACLU. Once admitted, a senile president (or his press mouthpiece) would proclaim something like, “We are leading the world in military preparedness and progressive culture. We have an historic first once again! We present to you the first multi-identified soldier appointed to the Joint Chiefs. They/She/Him/Her/It have the combined talents of Theodore Roosevelt and Napoleon Bonaparte in one glorious persona. All hail Teddy-Parte, leader of the free world!”
And suppose I thought I could fly by flapping my arms? Today’s progressives would gladly give me the wings of an aviator and push me out the window from the 20th floor.
Tell me now, honestly, if we are not far from this?
The madness will cease as soon as they have accomplished the true purpose of all this: the destruction of the U.S., along with the de-population and enslavement of humanity.
The views expressed here are those of the author.
