Mensch tracht, und Gott lacht

Tuesday, October 18, 2016

Bleating at Sheep



PBS: "Trump overwhelmingly leads rivals in support from less educated Americans"

The Washington Post: "Donald Trump’s surge is all about less-educated Americans"


"Historians Against Trump" in "An Open Letter to the American People":
 As historians, we consider diverse viewpoints while acknowledging our own limitations and subjectivity. Our profession reminds us to look for the humanity in everyone as we examine the ideas, interests and movements that shape world events. We interrogate and take responsibility for our sources and ground our arguments in context and evidence. Donald Trump’s record of speeches, policies and social media is an archive of know-nothingism and blinding self-regard. Donald Trump’s presidential campaign is a campaign of violence: violence against individuals and groups; against memory and accountability; against historical analysis and fact.

We have a professional obligation as historians to share an understanding of the past upon which a better future may be built. This means equipping the public with historical skills [skills to do what? -tk] and narratives that are “factual, accurate, comprehensible [to whom?--are we to presume Trump and his supporters are unable to comprehend "narratives that are factual and accurate," or that such narratives would not interest them? -tk], meaningful [whose meaning?--are we to presume this follows the project of "acknowledging our own subjectivity? -tk], useful [toward what "use"? -tk], and resistant to cynical manipulators who sell snake oil as historical truth.” [But one person's "meaningful," "useful" "narrative" is truth, just as much as it is "snake oil" to another. -tk] When Donald Trump accepts the Republican nomination on July 21st, a Grand Old Party born out of the struggle for abolition and justice will have succumbed to snake oil. We are here to say, “No more.” Join us in standing up to Trump—for our history, for our future, and for each other.

Historians Against Trump Organizing Committee:
Brian Dolber
Amy Harth
Caroline Luce
David Schlitt
Jonathan Zimmerman: "Why I’m Not Joining ‘Historians Against Trump’":

… I won’t join Historians Against Trump, which indulges in some of the same polarized, overheated rhetoric used by Trump himself....



1 comment:

Tom Van Dyke said...

I have found historians no wiser about current events than normal people.

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/ist/?next=/smart-news/why-experts-are-almost-always-wrong-9997024/