Notably absent so far from the 2012 presidential campaign (which seems to have started the day after the last state was tallied in the 2008 election) is a discussion of foreign policy. American soldiers still face death in combat in south central Asia. The Euro crisis in Europe seethes with potential for world-wide catastrophe, but most Americans seem oblivious to anything beyond domestic concerns.

Obviously the fact that millions are un or under employed is part of the reason. However, Americans have never been overly interested either in other countries or in understanding the history of today’s problems. Our pattern is to meet some sudden disaster (i.e, 9/ll) with heroic effort and, usually, lots of money, then forget it. We’re not interested in the past, in why the crisis appeared in the first place, to guide us in the avoidance of future crises.

We should be. One of my high school history teachers began our study of the First World War (which led to the Second World War) with the religious wars of the 1600’s that devastated Germany.

A retired U.S. ambassador, David Newsom, made the point in an article (Foreign Service Journal, February, 2005). He called for the understanding of our past actions and how they influence today’s present crises (like Afghanistan). “That understanding can . . . demonstrate how difficult it is, under the pressures of immediate action, to foresee the longer-term consequences of that action.”