It is a help towards sanity and calm judgment to acquire the habit of seeing contemporary events in their historical setting, and of imagining them as they will appear when they are in the past.
Source: Bertrand Russell,: How to Read and Understanding History, 1943.
Reprinted in: Understanding History and Other Essays, 1957
Brief Comment
When one speaks ill of politicians in general, or of a particular politician, one is often told that it was you -- the citizens -- who chose such politicians in the first place. In response, many people say that they were deceived by the politician, or that the media coverage was inadequate, and they rarely reflect seriously on the shortcomings of their own judgment. Some even boast that they never trusted what that politician said from the outset, and that events have proved how sound their own judgment was.
In any case, it is difficult to evaluate politicians from a long-term perspective. It is possible, after the fact, to draw lessons from the outcomes -- most of which are negative, though occasionally there are positive ones. However, people are quick to forget, and such lessons are seldom put to practical use.
In this respect, the philosopher Bertrand Russell often expressed views and outlooks that were at odds with the prevailing public opinion of his time, and when looked back upon from a later perspective, his remarks are frequently judged to have been prescient.
The following "Russell's words of the day," though consisting of only a single sentence, seem to offer profound insight into how we should think about such issues. What do you think?
"It is a help towards sanity and calm judgment to acquire the habit of seeing contemporary events in their historical setting, and of imagining them as they will appear when they are in the past."
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