Wow! That's an excellent article.

I like that how he mentioned sociology and it's relation to history.

So what's your take?  Why do you think history is important to study? 

To me history is what we are, who we are, how we came to be at the place we are today, why we do the things we do, say the things we say and think the things we think. It's really the only subject that influences all others. It dictates the present and the future because they too will soon be history.

... the only subject that influences all others. It dictates the present and the future because they too will soon be history.

When I first was studying at Univ. we talked about the old geographic concept of environmental determinism; where a society lived made them, part and parcel, what they were... today this has been discredited by folks claiming that just the location can't totally dictated what a group becomes through time.However; consider the influence scenario. Where one lives (geographically) provides certain options of lifestyle, that is: way of life... which is culture by broadest definition "the way of life of a group or individual". The NW Coast Indians aren't buffalo hunters for a reason. A group has to use what nature provides to survive.The unique culture that results from the differing geographic influences will have a role in what happens to the group through time (their history). Continuing with the Amerind [dating myself here] analogy the California valley tribes lived in relative abundance and had a rather mild climate, so were mellow types. When the whites showed up the Indians gave way, backing into the wilderness a bit further and thought all would be okey-dokey... wrong (but another story). This wasn't the case with, say the Plains Indians. They had a more difficult way of making a living and hence weren't so disposed to moving back into the bush and letting the new guys have all the groceries. Two vastly different cultures lead to two different histories.While this may seem (read is) an over-simplification, I hope you will agree that it does illustrate the principle that geography influences culture which in turn has an influence on history.Influence is the key here; while the old concept was that geography determined.... That did not recognize that many factors (skill or intellegence levels, among others) also would have a bearing on the outcomes of both culture and history.I agree that history, too, will influence history... whatever happens causes feedbacks, positive or (all too often) negative.Wally

I agree that the environment influences culture, but the problem with the whole nature versus nurture argument is that sociologists and humanities professors want to use it to explain inequality and social injustices they hate rather than accepting the fact that people are what they are because they choose to be or were taught to be by their friends and family.

Culture consists of the things one generation values enough to pass on to then next; as long as the society is okay with the staus quo that culture will hold to the value set their history goes along a line. When the conventional wisdom is challenged (from within or without) if society sees the need and drives a change that line changes direction.Our current world situation is a result of cultures:1) ...that would like to roll time back 1000 years or so... the rest of the world will have to be destroyed if they won't roll back too!2) ...that have lost sight of how they got where they are... today, we are all that matters.3) ...that would like to lead but are too busy text messaging... to busy to think but have tell someone something all the time!

studying history encourages people to be grateful, espacially American History. All through the long history of the world one cannot deny the amazing hand of God that governs everything that happen in history and just work things out!

Only if they will open their eyes and minds.Welcome to the forum.Cheers,Wally

Or, one could phrase it more delicately:  Like history, farts repeat themselves ….

The “Foundation” series of science fiction novels is interesting.