“History--the product, not the raw material--is a bottle with a label. For many years now, the emphasis of historical discussion has been laid upon the label (its iconography, its target-group of customers) and upon the interesting problems of manufacturing bottle-glass. The contents, on the other hand, are tasted in a knowing, perfunctory way and then spat out again. Only amateurs swallow them.” WayYearsHas BeensProblemHandsInterestingKnowingGroupsMaterialsProductsHistoricalGlassesCustomersLabelsDiscussionTargetBottlesEmphasisManufacturingRaw MaterialsSpatsIconography Author:Neal Ascherson
“Sociologists and historians have avoided looking for the family sources of wars and social violence. Whenever a group produces murderers, the early parental relationship must have been abusive and neglectful. Yet this elementary truth has not even begun to be considered in historical research; just stating that poor mothering lies behind wars seems blasphemous.” Has BeensWarSeemsLyingSocialPoorBehindsViolenceGroupsProduceSourceResearchHistoricalHistorianMurdererAvoidedParentalAbusiveMotheringSociologistsHistorical Research Author:Lloyd deMause
“Our dreams of bringing the whole of human history under the control of the human will are ironically refuted by the fact that no group of idealists can easily move the pattern of history toward the desired goal of peace and justice. The recalcitrant forces in the historical drama have a power and persistence beyond our reckoning.” HumansWholeFactsDreamMovingForceGoalJusticeGroupsDramaHistoricalPatternsPersistenceOur DreamsHuman HistoryIdealistPeace And JusticeReckoningHuman WillRecalcitrant Book:Reinhold Niebuhr: Major Works on Religion and Politics: (Library of America #263) Source: Reinhold Niebuhr: Major Works on Religion and Politics: (Library of America #263)
“My historical reading of the situation is that these great monolithic empires developed, Rome, Turkey, and so forth, and they always break down when enough people, and it's always the young, the creative, and minority groups drop out and go back to a tribal form.” PeopleEnoughFormYoungReadingSituationBreakCreativeGroupsHistoricalMinoritiesEmpiresRomeBreaking DownTurkeysMinority Groups Author:Timothy Leary
“Curiously, the righteous Pharisees had little historical impact, save for a brief time in a remote corner of the Roman Empire. But Jesus' disciples - an ornery, undependable, and hopelessly flawed group of men - became drunk with the power of a gospel that offered free forgiveness to the worst sinners and traitors. Those men managed to change the world.” MenWorldLittlesJesusGroupsWorstImpactHistoricalCornersDrunkChanging The WorldEmpiresSinnerRighteousDiscipleFlawedTraitorRoman EmpirePhariseesOrnery Book:Grace Notes Source: Grace Notes
“Proficiency in art is a contract with your self and the empowerment of your self. Not all of us demand or even desire proficiency, but for those who do it's necessary to temper the influence of groups. And while some artists think history is bunk, the historical evidence is overwhelming: "In my isolation I grow stronger."” ThinkingArtSelfDesireArtistGrowsGroupsInfluenceDemandArt IsEvidenceEmpowermentStrongerHistoricalIsolationContractsOverwhelmingTemperProficiencyBunk Author:Paul Gauguin
“I'm actually the chairman of the historical foundation [in Franklin] called the Heritage Foundation in Franklin. We've got a pretty good group of folks, very influential folks, who are really striving to protect those lands and so far we're not having a lot of problems. We're growing too fast. Everybody wants to put up some sort of neighborhood but that's our biggest battle. Nobody's really trying to go on any of the historical land.” WantTryingProblemGrowingGroupsLandGoes OnBattleProtectFoundationHistoricalStriveFolksNeighborhoodHeritageInfluentialChairmanFranklin Author:Michael W. Smith