Thread by @davetroy

Perhaps the biggest mistake we can make right now is to think that what we are going through is *totally* new. Some of this is new (the internet brings speed/scale), but a lot of it has happened before. Using history to differentiate old from new offers both comfort and utility.

If you've ever suffered from depression, one terrifying thing when it happens the first time is the feeling of "what if it's like this from now on?" When it does later get better, you realize that it was temporary. So when it happens the next time, it's not so terrifying.

We're going through something like that now? What if it's always like this from now on? What if it's worse? That can be terrifying, and disabling. It can be hard to find the ways to manage and improve when you are paralyzed by fear and uncertainty.

We must as much, as possible, look for the guideposts that can 1) put things in perspective, 2) manage the problems that are unique to this time, 3) use history and our skills to manage the problems that are recurring. In a real sense, we have nothing to fear but fear itself.

Punditry about the "end times of the American experiment" must, I think, be seen in this context. Please, bitches. You think we haven't seen dark days before? Really? Why, specifically, is this moment so special? Because of, what... cable news? Racism? Trump? Provincialism? LOL

Every time I crack open a book about history from, I dunno... 80 years ago (dark!), 100 years ago (oof), 160 years ago (ouch!), and all the injustices and horrible episodes that peppered the path, the more you realize... dark times happen. It's business as usual.

The human condition is like this. All we can do is aim to be, well, less awful. And we have tended to move in that direction. But let's refrain from the prideful assertion that we are unique, that this is the end. We are not that special. What we do matters, for those after us.

Journalism is a hard job, especially today. It is somehow now the fashion to look at current events with almost no historical context — through a "novelty" lens. This feeds a bias towards fear and away from deeper understanding. We only learn of history on special occasions.

History, and thus context, needs to be a bigger part of our journalistic processes. It's not just for weekend magazine features and for Dads to watch on the Hitler Channel. To properly deal with our present moment, nothing is more critical than context.