What do you read?

@sirenAngel Thanks. History is more important than ever, in these days of overheated partisanship & mindless political tribalism. As Sam Harris once said before he got obsessed with Trump, all communication has become weap0nized... Leftist & rightist factions cook up their own pseudohistorical narratives, not to discover the truth--they aren't concerned with any truth, though they claim otherwise--but to bolster their ideologies. That's one reason why I've read it from various sources, off & on, for over a decade now.

Real history will teach you a few things:

• In fictional stories there are perfect heroes & horrific villains. In the real world villains do exist but they usually have some redeeming trait, even if a minor one. In the real world, unblemished heroes & saints do not exist. Most everyone is in between the two poles.
• People make mistakes. Organizations make mistakes. Governments make mistakes. Sometimes a mistake proves fatal; what doesn't change is the people screwing up believe they're doing the right thing at the time.
• Corollary to the above: No plan survives the first contact, intact.
• History does not repeat but certain patterns recur. There's a difference.
• Every solution to a problem, when enacted, causes new problems.
• There is no final triumph of reason, virtue or any other form of total perfection. Human affairs are rarely ever so neat & tidy. You can't build a perfect house out of crooked timber...though technological advancement may change that one day.