We often hear the axiom “history repeats itself.” And while there is a substance of truth to it, the statement itself is a little simplistic and needs some analysis. As a historian, let me see if I can elucidate some.
When we say, “history repeats itself,” we need to understand that specific human actions can lead to inevitable consequences; they don’t always do so, but they frequently do. Overdosing on drugs can lead to death, but not always. Repeating specific actions will often lead to the same outcomes. Indeed, people who don’t use drugs will never overdose and die from them. Wise people will learn the principle and behave accordingly. Drug abuse can produce death by overdose; no drug use will ever produce death by overdose. In that way, history “repeats itself.”
It is impossible for humans to know the future absolutely, or if there will even be one. We can make “predictions” about the future, but the only legitimate way to do that is upon historical precedents. Leftist totalitarian governments have constantly invariably tortured, imprisoned, and murdered massive numbers of their own people, so we can draw a reasonable conclusion that if they gain total power in the United States, they will probably do the same thing. We don’t know that for sure, of course, because, again, we can’t know the future. But to make proper preparations for coming possibilities—as we all should—it would be best to make those preparations, if possible, predicated on events that have occurred in the past, especially if those events have been repeated multiple times—and it those events always, invariably produce the same results. Leftist governments always, invariably, do the same things. So, it is the better part of wisdom to conclude they will continue to do so unless some strong evidence is produced to counter the conclusion.
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Those who assert, “Democrats will never do that in America!” (I’ve had them say so in comments to my articles) must provide some rational, reasonable explanation for why they draw such a conclusion when historical precedent is 100% against them. Again, I don’t know what Leftists will do if they gain total power in America because, not being God, I don’t know the future. I just know what their kind has done everywhere else. They’ve gained power. I base my predictions of what they will do in America upon 100% historical precedent, i.e., what they have always done before. I also see that Leftists in America have no qualms about censorship, killing unborn babies, or mutilating innocent children. So, given past and current evidence, I try to wisely prepare for inevitable future events and encourage others to do the same. History may not “repeat itself,” but we are undoubtedly foolish if we don’t consider it and take precautions. And I definitely trust the historical—and current—evidence more than I do Leftists’ protestations, which are based on absolutely nothing but their protestations.
I also know that Leftists all over the world have proven, time and time again, to be habitual liars. I lost thousands of dollars in China to such an individual. For me, it’s not just a matter of personal historical study; it’s also a matter of personal historical reality. Pardon me if I believe the historical record and my own personal experience far more than I do some Trump-hating Leftist’s insistence that it will never happen again.
The future can be “changed,” but that would require knowing what and why humans did what they did in the past, what the negative consequences of those actions were, and providing proper positive incentives for a change of such behavior to produce positive benefits. Governments have rarely, if ever, done that in the past, so I question whether it will happen in the future. Governments DO change people’s behavior; as I have demonstrated in many previous columns, Leftists have done so many times. Shoot enough people; you can terrorize the rest into doing whatever you want them to do. That certainly qualifies as a “change of behavior.” But I’m talking about positive incentives that would produce willing virtuous behavior. Governments use force, not positive reinforcement. Indeed, it would seem virtually impossible for a government to use positive incentives because the government, by definition, is the nationalization of force. “Positive, willing, voluntary virtue” being forced upon people is a contradiction of terms. “Forced virtue” is an oxymoron. It isn’t virtue unless it is done voluntarily and willingly.
Thus, empires or dynasties do not survive long (more than a few hundred years at most) simply because they all become tyrannical and rule by force, which the free spirit of humanity ultimately rebels against. There is no Assyrian Empire on earth today as there was 3,000 years ago. There is no Roman Republic today as there was 2,300 years ago. So—though I do not and cannot absolutely be sure—I tend to doubt there will be an American republic 2,000 or 3,000 years from now. Of course, none of us alive today will be around to prove me right or wrong. That is undoubtedly one thing history absolutely does repeat itself about and a prediction I can be 100% sure of—“it is appointed unto man once to die” after a relatively short existence. There is no earthly immortality.
Specific actions often lead to inevitable consequences, such as “history repeating itself.” We study history to learn about those actions and what their consequences were—e.g., Leftist governments, what they have done, and what the results were. We are the ultimate fool if we don’t. Karl Marx understood this, which is why he wrote, “Keep people from their history, and they are easily controlled.” If Americans don’t learn that, they will soon go the way of Assyria, Rome, and every other people who were unwilling to learn from history.
But that’s just a prognostication—based on history.
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