Couldn't agree more

Submitted by Ron Thompson, Apr 4, 2017 at 16:52

As someone for whom History plays the role Religion plays for others (although without the supernaturalism) I can almost feel the extent to which most people have become oblivious to the role and meaning of History, as shown by the reality-free way they react to current events.
I was weaned, and weaned myself, on such works as William MacNeil's RISE OF THE WEST-A History Of The Human Community, and Robert Palmer's HISTORY OF THE MODERN WORLD.If you don't have such broad, sweeping histories under your belt, you can benefit from but not fully digest even good National, Political, Economic or Intellectual histories.

And to get into the kind of narrow off-center histories like the ones cited by Niall Ferguson is worse than useless. Because anyone who takes, and takes seriously, such courses will have a permanent problem of balance when faced with the mega-events unfolding around us.
Fortunately I find many good histories still appearing, but none of them are being written by the students who take such courses or the teachers who offer them.

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