Do we really judge other periods? I think we study them and understand the people who live in them as products of their environments. The rules are different and the people play by those rules.

We've been enjoying How we got to now on Netflix, which is basically Jame's Burke's Connections except slower, not quite as random, and with more wonder, less dread. It's chockablock with history and historical facts. The bit on "Light" talks about whaling and whale oil, and the massive hunts of sperm whales and how people would go out in boats to kill whales from seven feet away and then butcher them at sea and crawl into their skulls to scoop out buckets of spermicetti so that they could luxuriate in the bright white flame of whale funk. It's ghastly, really, and certainly not done for humanitarian means. But do we "judge" the whalers?

I don't. I don't think anyone else does, either. That was the time, that was the practice, that's what it was. We look back at Thomas Jefferson, slave owner, and don't dismiss everything he accomplished despite literally owning other people. That was the period, and we're damn glad slavery is illegal, and we acknowledge that it was Thomas Jefferson's time that was deviant by our standards. Thomas Jefferson would never be forgiven for owning slaves now, of course; this period of history is different. We relate to him, and we know that were we talking to him, the fact that he owned slaves wouldn't be a major component of his existence.

I dunno. These posts tend to be circlejerks of whining about all the social injustices of the day while we extrapolate to a future in which the majority agrees with our morals and philosophy. Really? Has sexuality liberalized since the 70s? Are campuses more open to social and political advocacy and experimentation? Are colleges and universities easier to attend? Is it easier to earn a living wage?

I've watched the '50s go from lame to cool to lame to cool again. I've watched the '60s swing from celebrated to vilified. The '70s were the worst decade imaginable in the '80s, in the '90s they had their own sitcom. Patrick Nagel has been a punchline since '88 but now? Now he's a style:

We don't judge "us." We judge our time, and our judgement is fickle and fluid and highly context-dependent. Was Germany justified in fighting WWII? Depends. What year is it and who's asking? This stuff is all settled until it isn't.

Whale oil used to be the lifeblood of intellectualism. Now it's a $2000 fine. I grew up with Lawn Darts; my daughter will grow up in a school district that forbids you from running at recess unless you're playing soccer. So whose childhood is going to be judged more harshly, mine or my daughter's? 'cuz lawn darts are really fucking stupid... but so's "combatting obesity" by forbidding any milk but skim while also ensuring that no one's pulse rises above 80.

How will history judge us? However they want to. Who cares? We'll be dead.