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That Was Then, This Is Now
North Miami Beach, FL May 2, 2002
A.H. Schectman
THINKING ALLOWED
Essays on Issues, Ideas and Reflections on the Times. Published now and
then. Opinions pro or con are welcome.
THAT WAS THEN, THIS IS NOW
How short our memories are. We dismiss negatives about the past in favor of
remembering only the "good" in "the good old days." Harboring ill feelings
is not considered healthy or productive. Yet, how can we learn lessons if
we do not keep the past with us in the present?
People who wrestle with this mass sensory overload of events happening today
tend to shut out selective memories of the past. It is typical for us to
claim, "That was then, but this is now." Two sides appear and there is
instant polarization of good and bad, legitimate and illegitimate. I am
O.K., you are not O.K.
There are several examples illustrative of this human behavior - one from
family affairs and one from international relations. The family
illustration is really very familiar. Just think back to the last argument
that you had. Isn't it the same one you have always quarreled about? We
tend not to forget the old hurts and slights and can dredge them up at a
moment's notice. They magnify and grow because of recent history that
acerbates the old hurt. Sides are taken and you find that you champion one
cause or someone else champions you in your version of a disagreement.
International relations are simply the history of quarrels of the past that
color all our responses now to what happened then. A good example of this
is the thousands of year's reenactment of a family affair that now rules
behavior of nations and peoples and the religious beliefs they hold dear.
Think back to the story of Abram who became Abraham. He and Sarai who
became Sarah were childless so he begat a child on Sarah's maidservant Hagar
and Ishmael became his heir. Somehow, the aged Sarah became pregnant and
she bore a child, Isaac. Hagar and Ishmael were sent away at Sarah's
command. Let us admit that this family dispute happened about three
thousand years ago. One would think that it was time for the family to stop
fighting and make up. But, that was then and it is still then.
Carol's Evaluation: 10 out of 10.
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