Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Question everything you ever learned

I just finished reading "Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong" and I cannot recommend it more.  I have a degree in history and I am pretty knowledgeable regarding American history but this book is jarring.  We've been taught by a an educational machine that reinforced what boils down to American propaganda.  The feeling that everything you've learned as fact is much more nuanced or in fact a lie is troubling. 

Challenge everything you think you know
Question,  push and find out truth for yourself. Ask questions,  be skeptical about assumptions and keep on learning.  It's very difficult to undo everything you think, but your views on things and the world should be changing consistently.  Your thoughts when you were 18 years old shouldn't be the same as when you are 25, or 30 or 50.  Life should evolve.  Only by questioning your everyday assumptions, either in history,  work or ideas can we change and move forward.

PS.  Reading is fucking awesome!

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