I can explain

  It's been a tense few days what with the developments in the middle east. There is genuine reason for global concern. The unfortunate truth is Iran and Iraq are still at it. Another unfortunate truth is the global concern is centered on economics. That is the real issue with this conflict. That is the issue that will get others involved. The United States and every other developed nation in the world proclaiming they are just protecting their interests. That's the long and short of it. It may or may not be what history records. History, after all, is written by the victorious. There has been fighting in the middle east, among those nations for many centuries and few victories can be claimed. Short term peace has been achieved, long enough for countries to rearm themselves. Will the debate over ideology ever end? I have serious doubts about that. 

  History is a memory. Each of us remember things a bit differently. It's something I have written about a few times and it is a source of fascination to me. How we can both watch and witness the exact same action and tell the story completely differently. Remember playing telephone as a child? That's what happens with history as well, the message changes with almost every telling. With history that seems to happen with each generation. What will be remembered regarding this latest conflict? The story of Trump will certainly change in each version. Think about this, what do you remember about the Kennedy years or the Johnson years. What version of those stories do you repeat? 

  Consider the history of the Jews? They have always been the victims of history? They suffered everything from being enslaved by the Egyptians, to the holocaust. No one denies that these events took place. Then there was the birth of Jesus and a new testament. The old testament of Moses being updated and replaced. The Jewish people don't call it the old testament however, they call it the Jewish bible or the Tanakh. That development created lots of issues for the Jews. A few centuries later and the religion of Islam arrives on the scene to further complicate things. If you are a Jew you probably feel like the Christians and Muslims have been attacking you ever since. And there is historical evidence to support that. 

  What is the conflict always about? It's about economics. It's about the land, the resources and the potential wealth to be derived from that. The Jews were set free to seek their promised land, the land of milk and honey. Now I'm no authority on any of this, I'm not even well informed, and that is my point here. I'm simply repeating the stories I have been told or read in history books. You may or may agree with my conclusions. Twelve tribes that spread out across the land. All twelve tribes have been persecuted ever since is the narrative I've always heard, from the Jewish folks. Christians have a different story about all of that. It was the Jews that killed Jesus! Then the Muslims come along and they want to kill everybody! Well, the Muslims will kill you unless you pay them a tax that is. They could just enslave you as well. But there is hope, you can simply denounce your own religious beliefs and submit to Allah! Do that, and you can live. That's the history that I've heard and read some texts about. Mohamed was a bitter, angry man from all accounts I've read about his life.

  How does history recall the battle of the little big horn? Was that a victory for the native Americans or a massacre? That story has changed several times, along with the reasons behind the civil war and any number of historical events. History is a memory. History is the way you remember it. That's what it is. In all my writings, recording my thoughts and memories, I am recording history as I saw it. What I have seen is that little changes. Motivations remain the same. We act today in the hope that we can change the past. We are attempting to write a memory. It's the folly of mankind, a sort of ironic twist from our creator. 

 There have been various attempts to correct this. I believe it is safe to say religious practices have always been at the heart of things. It's what people believe that motivates them. It makes little difference if it a rock or a God, if that is what you believe will "help" or at the very least, not hurt you, you act accordingly. That depends upon your having a belief in a higher power than yourself. Something or someone you can appeal to. The issue there is in following the rules. There are always rules with Gods. What if we just eliminate the gods? Some of our founding fathers did just that, sort of. They called themselves Deists. They still believe in the Gods but believe the God(s) will not intervene on behalf of anyone. They just created everything and are watching it all unfold. A sort of, "trust the science" approach. It's just an different ideology. Basically it is a political system rather than a religious one, thereby eliminating the rules. You get to set your own rules, depending upon your own self interests. 

  And that is where we are at today. It's where we have really always been. I don't see that changing. The authority for setting the rules is what is under constant attack. Whether that is a god or an individual that is what is being challenged and questioned throughout history, establishing authority by appeasement or by force. Whose rules are you going to follow? I'd suggest that it will be whatever is in your best interests. Power, wealth, popularity, security or eternal life? What motivates you? Is your history the way you remember it? Well, not if you ask someone else it wasn't. It probably isn't if you are completely honest with yourself. But, I can explain.