You are not finished until the conclusion is written and the conclusion may just be the hardest thing to write.
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This morning’s breakfast conversation centered on the international events headlining the news, and my ongoing attempt to write a thesis on the diplomatic history of the twentieth century. The central theme of the discussion revolved around the notion that great powers prefer a world were there are many large nations rather than many small nations. The conversation also turned to the problems created by superpowers.
When the Cold War ended, many in the United States naively celebrated the idea of being the only superpower. Many believed that being a superpower was better than being one of the great powers, and the opportunity to shed the role of superpower was waived. Now, after a quarter century of being the sole superpower whether in reality or in myth, a greater comprehension of the responsibilities and the dangers of being a superpower has developed.
The problem, however, is that when the United States now asks, “Here’s my cape, does anyone want it?” no one steps up to take it.
When Edna Mode, of The Incredibles, said “no capes,” is this what she was really warning us about? Are superpower capes just too dangerous? Should the capes simply be retired and replaced with the plain clothes of diplomacy?
It is with this question on my mind that I return to the realm of history and try for a few hours to shut out the political realities of the day.
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I have reached a point when my thesis and the events of the day have brought me to a strange observation. Those of us born before 1980 seem to be suffering from Post-traumatic Cold War Disorder.
Traumatized by the endless Cold War propaganda and rhetoric of our youth, we can no longer view the world through any lens other than a Cold War lens. Even the slightest hint of turbulence or discord between the USA and Russia sends us hunting for our bomb shelters or our protest signs. We see the world as us or them and begin to verbally attack anyone who does not sound like us as we split the world in two. We even view neutrality as an enemy.
Sadly, this disorder makes us paranoid that the actions of the other side are indicative of their determination to eradicate us from the earth rather than simply a manifestation of their desire to protect their own self-interests. In our race to divide the world, we neglect to see how the other side is acting just as we act. We see only differences and never similarities.
I love studying the Cold War, but I would like to see it remain in the realm of history rather than reignited by those throughout the world with questionable motives. I would love for the Post-traumatic Cold War Disorder to be a thing of fiction and not of reality.
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I wish journalists would study more than historical talking-points before tackling foreign policy issues, particularly the effectiveness of intervention wars.
If the history of foreign policy is not their strong suit, bringing in an ‘expert’ would be fine. Bringing in two opposing ‘experts’ would be better, especially if the ‘experts’ were really ‘experts’ and not just the talking heads of the day.
When did reporting the news become nothing more than selling the news? Maybe it has always been that way but there are simply more annoying ways to sell it today.
Propaganda has always had a role in war, and even without governmental encouragement media has spread war stimulating propaganda. It all seems to revolve around having a good story to tell. Sadly, the good story, which spreads like wildfire in the blink of an eye or the click of a share button, can and does affect the public and the officials who in the end create the events that make the news. Reporting the news, therefore, takes on the nature of predicting the future, but a future the psychic has helped create.
It has been fascinating to discover how often propaganda has been shared by the media without the urging of a government. As we swim through the dangerous waters of governmental oversight, we should worry about the other dangerous creature in the water. Drowning may not be what kills us, but rather the sharks feeding off our fear of the water.
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The only thing worse than your kids finding out you have a chocolate stash… is them finding that chocolate stash!
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Take the leap of faith and then take one step at a time. Oh, and remember to breath.
Life would be easier if we knew how the journey ended before taking each leap, but then life would be less of an adventure.
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Thank you archivists and dedicated graduate school interns!
My admiration for archivists and interns has abundantly grown in the last hour. When a document is placed on the web for public use, but not in a manner that facilitates creating a searchable pdf, it is a massive pain and reminds me to be forever grateful to those dedicated souls who transcribe original documents for public use.
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The true measure of strength is not the ability to climb the mountain and achieve the goal, but the ability to hold onto the dream while moving forward despite the climb.
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Interpersonal connections through various modes and methods, specifically during this past two months, have reminded me of the old saying,
“You can please some of the people some of the time, but you can never please all of the people all of the time.”
There is one category starkly missing, some people can never be pleased because they are determined to be miserable.
Regardless of the justifications of misery – temporary or chronic – there is a stark difference between experiencing misery and being miserable.
Wretched, distressful events occur, but it is a choice one makes to become wretchedly distressed by the events. The key factor separating the experience of misery and being miserable is Choice.
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Working with primary sources can be fascinating, intriguing, rewarding, and addictive. It can also lead you down tangents and make you think you should change your thesis topic entirely. U.S. presidents – who knew they said such interesting things.
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Pithy Ponderings 