Threshold Theory

"We learn from history that we do not learn from history." That brilliant quote comes from that most profound of Philosophers, Hegel, and within it lies the fundamental paradox of modern history. We are now at a faze in which everything is carefully documented and preserved for the benefit of future generations. There's only one small problem with this, collectively we consistently prove incapable of doing so. It is universally accepted that it is impossible for people to write history until at least 25 years after an event occurs. This is primarily explained on the basis of the unavoidable nature of bias when one is closely linked to the times in which one lives. This is probably true, but I prefer the explanation given by the Threshold Theory. It rather simply states that the vast majority of people will choose not to accept a fact if it causes their brains to reanalyze to many previously accepted concepts, and thus no matter how valid the observation they are confronted with is, they will necessarily disregard it and/or switch into apathy mode as a subconcious defence mechanism. This is most commonly expressed through the expression: "I'm not ready to accept that". A lie readily accepted is often very difficult to discard. For example, most westerners still believe in the concept of Western Civilization as positive, or at the very least necessary, force upon the world. This is something that western culture has accepted as a fact since the time of the Renaissance. Well, despite all our achievements in the realm of science and art we refuse to admit that the only thing we really have ever had on the rest of the world is an indisputable ability to visit organized violence en masse upon peoples. But accepting this would go against years of schooling and generations of arrogance; and thus most people can't acknowledge this rather glaring fact that uneducated people in the so called Third World are completely ready to accept as fact. Another good example of this is how we call our essentially Imperialist and racist behavior as 'peace keeping'. Once again claiming a sort of moral and logical superiority to the people we are bringing our 'peace' to, even though we have sometimes ostensibly rejected these notions (e.g. today's Europe). We are getting to the point in which we starting to regard some of our assumptions as mistaken, but only in part, the broader underlying thesis is still maintained and preserved as indispensable. Although you might 'not be ready to accept this', you better damn well believe the people who call themselves your leaders do, and furthermore, sustain their authority through it. By heaping more and more lies onto the mountain of previously accepted lies, they are ensuring that most people will never be able to move beyond these notions in their lifetime. Don't think for a second that I think myself above this cruel aspect of the human psyche, or even that I'm saying something original by pointing it out. I merely like to discuss such things as a process of self awareness in which I hope to encourage in myself and others the idea that accepting anything as a 'truth' is just going to lead to your mind getting attached to it and basing a lot of subsequent 'truths' on it. We aren't born with these notions, and I'm fairly confident we don't get to keep them when we die, so why take them so horribly serious in between and play into self-serving leaders hands?