Don't Remove History's Lessons

From Selena Zito, at the Pittsburgh Tribune:

Never look at history thru ego of the moment you live in; it distorts history's realities http://t.co/Oy2PERUuq8 pic.twitter.com/HMbbSoYHTo

— SalenaZito (@SalenaZitoTrib) July 5, 2015

It's not hard to imagine how life was conducted in 1776 as you stand where 56 men signed a document severing them from Great Britain.

River rock remains the bumpy surface for the grid of streets between old buildings that grandly stand more than 200 years after serving as the seat of defiance, rebellion and, yes, treason.

Today, kids on field trips bounce between tourists eager to connect with and understand the past. They all walk through the interconnecting yards of structures where history was made — the Declaration of Independence was signed here, the cracked Liberty Bell lay in state there, the old City Tavern still serves mugs of stout and Ben Franklin lies in his final resting place.

When we look back from the distance of time, it all seems so regal, so uncluttered from today's political battles raging on social media or among panels of partisans on cable news.

Nothing could be further from the truth; so much divisional politics existed in 1776 that it makes us look like amateurs.

All the past divisions we forget should serve as a warning to never look at history through the ego of the moment you live in; it distorts history's realities.

Historians often caution that to declare you live in the worst of times is to not know history at all.

We run a dangerous risk when we hide parts of the fabric of who we were just because it makes us uncomfortable. We can't learn from our mistakes if we take objects off the shelf that offend us in a Gettysburg gift shop, at Wal-Mart or online at Amazon.

Doing so does our Republic damage, with its hasty perception of political correctness. History is not politically correct — not in 1861, not in 1961, not today; it is messy and it is hateful but it is the chronicle of our progression.

Understanding history means understanding mistakes, even atrocities, and shows us why we shouldn't repeat them...

Still more.