Marcus Tullius Cicero, the great Roman philosopher, statesman, and orator, died on Dec. 7, 43 BC, almost two millennia before the attack on Pearl Harbor occurred on that same date in 1941. What connects these two events is that Cicero emphasized the importance of teaching history, and in modern America it seems as if we are quickly forgetting the lessons of World War II.
Who could ever have thought that within living memory of the Holocaust violent antisemitism would be rampant in America? Who might have guessed that within eight decades of our brave American soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines conquering multiple evil empires during World War II, a staggering number of Americans would hate their own country? It is our duty to teach history to our peers and younger generations and to explore both the victories and tragedies of our past.
One quote attributed to Cicero is, “What society does to its children, so will its children do to society.” Beware of the mental, moral, and behavioral corruption you allow in your children if you do not want that corruption to spread through your entire society. Much more famous is Cicero’s quote: “To be ignorant of what occurred before you were born is to remain always a child. For what is the worth of human life, unless it is woven into the life of our ancestors by the records of history?”
Many young Americans have been taught to despise their ancestors rather understand them. That is not to say, of course, that we should not condemn our ancestors’ significant moral failures, but the idea that everyone who came before us was somehow inferior to us is absolutely preposterous. The brave patriots at Pearl Harbor, both those who perished and those who survived, deserve better than that.
Related: More Than Eight Decades Later, Pearl Harbor Survivor Harry Chandler’s Memories Endure
During the Dec. 7, 1941, Pearl Harbor attack, the imperial Japanese struck around 20 warships and 300 aircraft, also killing over 2,400 men (including some civilians), all in less than two hours. A huge percentage of the casualties were from the USS Arizona.
Survivor and Navy medic Harry Chandler remembered more than 80 years later, "I saw the Arizona (blow) up … and then I saw the Oklahoma capsizing and Nevada trying to take off into the opening to get out of the harbor. It was unbelievable. I couldn't understand what was happening until I saw the sunburst on the (plane) wings and I knew we were being attacked by Japan." What hit hardest for him were the sailors he wasn't able to save as part of his rescue efforts.
Children should be reading accounts like Chandler's in school, and many other eyewitness accounts of American history—from Trenton to New Orleans, to Vicksburg, to Belleau Wood, to Iwo Jima, to Saigon, to Kabul. Too often, U.S. schoolchildren are taught to be anti-American and value only the most current woke commentaries.
But if we want our country to survive and thrive in the future, a massive overhaul of our education system is necessary. Take your kids, grandkids, or nephews and nieces to patriotic events and historic locations. Give them books and videos about the heroes of our past. Hold your local schools accountable for what they teach. Support educational initiatives to teach kids American history without the woke perspective. Celebrate patriotic holidays and the birthdays of our greatest men. As Cicero truly observed, "For what is the worth of human life, unless it is woven into the life of our ancestors by the records of history?"
