History's Worst Decisions

Hi,

Well I didn't finish my courses. I suppose that will be an ongoing challenge! I am finding it difficult to stay focussed.

So, instead I finished reading another book. This one was called "History's Worst Decisions and the People Who Made Them". I enjoyed reading this book, so perhaps the only challenge here was that I completed this in three days or so? I enjoyed learning more about parts of history I didn't know before. Although I have to say the books purpose is one in which I agree with, so it wasn't a stretch to read this book. George Santayana a philospher and writer once said "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." I agree with this sentiment and is one of the primary reasons I obtained a degree in history in the first place.  In any case, I learned quite a bit from reading this book.

Here are some interesting things I learned:
-Although I have a great deal of respect for Churchill, he was responsible for several blunders of history. These include the battle for Gallipoli in World War One, he is attributed to arbitrarily drawing Iraq's borders, which of caused many lives to be lost in the region due to fighting, and had a hand in the Suez Crisis with Eden (who was apparently addicted to speed) and a hand in the fall of Malaya during World War Two.  I found all of this intriquing. One has to argue that he has left a legacy that affects the world today, good or bad.

- I was also excited to learn about so many more things in history that I was not aware of before. Jim Jones and his cult was something I had never studied before or Agent Orange or even Thalidomide. It is also interesting to learn about different regions and how colonization has led to many conflicts, even through today.

Anyways, thanks for reading.

My next challenge was to be going to a local museum which I have never gone to. However, this will have to wait. There are some seasonal closures occuring right now. I'll keep you posted!