I can’t think of a better time than the cusp of a Presidential election year to brush up on US history. The History Channel, with its large library of programming, offers a perfect opportunity to begin with its American History Collector’s DVD set.
I confess. I am not a history geek. I have an interest in American history, particularly when it intersects with politics, but my husband is the real history go-to guy in our family. He agreed to subscribe to digital cable only because he could then have access to numerous History Channel channels. In fact, on a typical Sunday afternoon, if the Chicago Bears aren’t playing, chances are pretty good that one or another of those History channels are playing on the upstairs television.
On a more practical level, our high school junior is taking AP (Advanced Placement) US History right now, so the pressure is on to be able to answer any and all obscure questions about American history accurately and spontaneously. You never know when your knowledge of Fort Ticonderoga or the origins of the Gettysburg address might come in very handy during finals week cramming.
More seriously, and in a presidential election year, few things can be more important than understanding the underpinnings of our country, especially as some in our nation seek to re-define what the founding fathers meant, what civil liberties are meant to be, and how the early days of our country frame our present and will frame our future.
How do the presidents of the distant past measure up against the presidents of more recent vintage? On what principles was our country founded? Context in the face of social and political change is always necessary, and in that light, a review of some of the most important historical moments of the United States is a valuable tool for not only the history buff, but the average citizen too. It is only by studying (or remembering) the past that we can learn to make the future better.
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