It is an interesting exercise, one that demands thoughtful and honest introspection. Which is why we all likely will fail miserably. Thoughtfulness is difficult; honesty is harder. And when it comes to introspection, well, most of us would rather wear a suit of raw meat while wandering into a wolf den.
And still, there is value in asking ourselves a simple question: Which personal beliefs or societal norms will our grandchildren one day struggle to understand? In other words, which facets of our modern world will lead them to look askance and say, “Really?!?”
Through the lens of history, this is an easy exercise.
Two generations ago, for example, a majority of Americans thought it was a good idea to elect Richard Nixon as president. Twice. And yet the criminality and paranoia he brought to the White House nearly crumbled the republic.
Around the same time, a majority of Americans thought it was a good idea to fight a war in Vietnam. And yet the leaders who hastened that war lied to the American people and to the noble soldiers they sent to fight it, leading to a quagmire that diminished the United States’ standing in the world.
Three generations ago, a majority of Americans — at least in the South — believed it was necessary to have separate drinking fountains and separate bathrooms and separate schools for blacks and whites. In the process, they ignored the basic human decency that must form the foundation of any civilized nation. Really?!?
That is not to say the United States was not or is not a great nation. It remains the same country that won World War II, led the world in innovation and exploration, and put a man on the moon. But it also has flaws, and flaws are more easily recognized from the perspective of history than when you are standing in the middle of them. The forest and the trees and all that.
Climate change and kale
Which brings us back to the original premise: Which parts of modern history will not be viewed kindly by the future?
Yes, we all could answer “reality TV” and all agree on that. But there are other facets of society that will result in disagreement.
Such as the election of President Trump. Obviously, 63 million Americans were impressed enough to vote for him, but the guess here is that future generations will wonder how a serial liar ended up in the White House. Our descendants will hear that he said there were “some very fine people on both sides” of a neo-NAZI rally, and they will say, “Really?!?”
Or such as climate change. Someday, our grandchildren will wonder how anybody could ignore the conclusions of some 97 percent of climate scientists and deny that climate change was exacerbated by human activity. They will look at the impact on extreme weather events and the world’s food supply and the creation of millions of climate refugees, and they will hear tales of politicians who pretended it wasn’t happening. And they will say, “Really?!?”
Or such as the national debt. Our grandchildren will read about how today’s Republicans willingly increased the debt so they could give tax breaks to the wealthy, handing the bill to future generations. They will be told that the Trump administration ballooned the deficit despite a strong economy because people in power had no concern for anything beyond the next election. And they will say, “Really?!?”
Or such as health care. Our grandchildren will hear how the richest nation in the world declined to fund health care for all and how people who contracted a serious illness went bankrupt. And they will say, “Really?!?”
Or such as kale. They’ll hear how our generation thought kale was actually edible and . . . oh, never mind.
The point is that the United States does a laudable job of being great and a lousy job of looking to the future. We should hope that future views us kindly, and we should have enough introspection to make sure that it does.
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