By ALEXANDER DOLITSKY
“History doesn’t repeat itself but it often rhymes,” Mark Twain reportedly said. In my various articles published in Must Read Alaska (e.g., “Appreciation of history, truth, fact, and understanding of beauty”) I similarly reiterated that, “History doesn’t repeat itself, but patterns of historic events do.” Indeed, yesterday will never become today or tomorrow, but the patterns, or the “rhymes,” of historic events will.
Let me blend definitions of the terms—history, reality, facts, truth, and beauty—since they are important to the objectives of this essay.
Just like beauty, truth also is “in the eye of the beholder.” And even though history is created by facts (facts actually occurred in reality independent of human minds and desires), it becomes a story told by storytellers, and the biases and viewpoints of the storytellers become very much a part of that history; and what people remember of those stories depends on their own biases and viewpoints, too. So, history, just like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder.
Thus, history can be rewritten to be politically correct, and once the new story becomes the one people have learned, it becomes unimportant whether it really happened or not. Indeed, today we are living in the bleakly dystopian Orwell’s 1984 science fiction. George Orwell’s dystopian novel about the dangers of totalitarianism, warns against a world governed by far-left propaganda, surveillance and censorship.
Interestingly, the job of Winston Smith (the protagonist in George Orwell’s novel), while working for the Records Department of the Ministry of Truth, was to rewrite historical documents so they match the constantly changing current party line. This involves rewriting newspaper articles and doctoring photographs—actually, rewriting history—so they would correspond with whatever new history was being told today.
There you go—truth and history tied together by facts that simply need to be rewritten by clever progressive activists to change history. This is a reality of the today’s progressive movement wrapped in the neo-Marxist ideology, namely: Pro-Palestinian activism, Black Lives Matter, White Privilege doctrine, Critical Race Theory, Systemic Racism, and ANTIFA.
Today, worldwide antisemitism, pro-Palestinian activism, vandalism and insane anti-Israel protests were triggered by a Hamas heinous terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. Mostly misinformed and brainwashed young individuals, pumped up by progressive educated elite and far-left media, suddenly found a “cause and mission“ in their life and the reason to stand for something that they clearly do not understand very well.
These “world peace” activists, for the most part, have no historic, ethnic, geographic or theological connections with the Middle East, particularly Gaza and Israel. They cannot clearly explain the concepts of genocide, apartheid and occupation in relation to the Israel/Gaza-Hamas history and today’s conflict between these two countries; and, yet, these radical protesters are demanding ceasefire in Gaza, condemnation of Israel in defending itself and to end Israel’s military efforts in eradicating the terrorist Hamas organization.
Recently, the radical far-left activists demanded from Anchorage and Juneau City Assemblies to pass ceasefire resolutions between Israel and Gaza and condemnation of Israel’s military operations in Gaza in defending their country, citizens and livelihood.
Such resolutions open the door for the far-left radicals to initiate other aggressive demands, hypothetically, including destructions of Jewish properties, vandalism against of pro-Israel political leaders, burning books of prominent Jewish authors (e.g., Sholem Aleichem, Michael Chabon, Franz Kafka, Lion Feuchtwanger, Menachem Mendel Dolitsky[my great-great uncle], etc.); and who knows what else is hidden in their horrific “tool box.” For example, as was reported by Must Read Alaska on March 14, over 33 campaign signs for Mayor Dave Bronson have been vandalized in Anchorage by far-left pro-Palestinian activists.
In fact, these are similar historic patterns that occurred in the Nazi Germany from the 1930s through the mid-1940s. We are all well aware of the rise of Nazism in Europe and the consequences of these historic patterns.
Evidently, pro-Palestinian protests and activism are not random and spontaneous undertakings. These anti-Semitic protests are well planned, organized and funded; they have far-left agenda, professional neo-Marxist leaders and provocateurs.
American patriotic and rational citizens and our political leaders must prevent these anti-Semitic developments in our country and stand for the Judeo-Christian moral values, advocate good vs. evil, and to protect and preserve freedom, liberty and factual truth.
Alexander B. Dolitsky was born and raised in Kiev in the former Soviet Union. He received an M.A. in history from Kiev Pedagogical Institute, Ukraine, in 1976; an M.A. in anthropology and archaeology from Brown University in 1983; and was enroled in the Ph.D. program in Anthropology at Bryn Mawr College from 1983 to 1985, where he was also a lecturer in the Russian Center. In the U.S.S.R., he was a social studies teacher for three years, and an archaeologist for five years for the Ukranian Academy of Sciences. In 1978, he settled in the United States. Dolitsky visited Alaska for the first time in 1981, while conducting field research for graduate school at Brown. He lived first in Sitka in 1985 and then settled in Juneau in 1986. From 1985 to 1987, he was a U.S. Forest Service archaeologist and social scientist. He was an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Russian Studies at the University of Alaska Southeast from 1985 to 1999; Social Studies Instructor at the Alyeska Central School, Alaska Department of Education from 1988 to 2006; and has been the Director of the Alaska-Siberia Research Center (see www.aksrc.homestead.com) from 1990 to present. He has conducted about 30 field studies in various areas of the former Soviet Union (including Siberia), Central Asia, South America, Eastern Europe and the United States (including Alaska). Dolitsky has been a lecturer on the World Discoverer, Spirit of Oceanus, andClipper Odyssey vessels in the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions. He was the Project Manager for the WWII Alaska-Siberia Lend Lease Memorial, which was erected in Fairbanks in 2006. He has published extensively in the fields of anthropology, history, archaeology, and ethnography. His more recent publications include Fairy Tales and Myths of the Bering Strait Chukchi, Ancient Tales of Kamchatka; Tales and Legends of the Yupik Eskimos of Siberia; Old Russia in Modern America: Russian Old Believers in Alaska; Allies in Wartime: The Alaska-Siberia Airway During WWII; Spirit of the Siberian Tiger: Folktales of the Russian Far East; Living Wisdom of the Far North: Tales and Legends from Chukotka and Alaska; Pipeline to Russia; The Alaska-Siberia Air Route in WWII; and Old Russia in Modern America: Living Traditions of the Russian Old Believers; Ancient Tales of Chukotka, and Ancient Tales of Kamchatka.
Read: Russian Old Believers in Alaska live lives reflecting bygone centuries
Read: Russian saying: Beat your friends so your enemies fear you
Read: Neo-Marxism and utopian Socialism in America
Read: Old believers preserving faith in the New World
Read: Duke Ellington and the effects of Cold War in Soviet Union on intellectual curiosity
Read: United we stand, divided we fall with race, ethnicity in America
Read: For American schools to succeed, they need this ingredient
Read: Nationalism in America, Alaska, around the world
Read: The case of the ‘delicious salad’
Read: White privilege is a troubling perspective
Read: Beware of activists who manipulate history for their own agenda
Read: Alaska Day remembrance of Russian transfer
Read: American leftism is true picture of true hypocrisy
Read: History does not repeat itself
Respectfully disagree. History repeats. Even when we try to learn from it.
To the Masked Avenger: Are you the same as 2 years ago? Probably not; you changed a little. But your habits (patterns) are still the same.
Why quote a prankster? Your talking about a writer. An entertainer. History does repeat itself. The names and faces change, but the end result is the same to disrespect MA was low even for you. You never would have done that in the past.
To Greg: I absolutely did not mean any disrespect to MA; he is entitled to his opinion and point of view. I used my comment as a metaphor. Cheers.
To Greg: I absolutely did not mean any disrespect to MA; he is entitled to his opinion and point of view. I used my comment as a metaphor.
Actually, for the most part I am. I have the same patterns, habits, vices, etc that I did 30 years ago. Leaned life experience have refined but not changed them.
It appears, I may be wrong, you’re arguing semantics. I’m not sure why, but you are entitled to your opinions. Despite coming in various flavors, designs, and sizes, cake is still cake.
Wars continue, usually for the same stupid reasons.
Pogroms continue to this day.
Idiots continue to try socialism despite it failing everywhere it’s tried.
Republics fall in every instance they try.
Racial hatred beyond sane reason.
Same for religion.
People still die, despite medical advances.
Society drifts leftward, then to fascism/totalitarism.
Societies rise and fall for the same basic reasons.
On and on and on. Only the timeframes and locations vary.
MA: THAT was uplifting!
But spot on.
A good read is the Balfour Declaration; written in 1917 from British government to Lord Rothschild.
From a reader in Arizona, and former Alaskan. Excellent points about rewriting history. A project the left has been doing since the 1960s and increasingly in the years since 9/11.
We history sure has shown us to be moving backward as a civilization.
We can’t even agree on past history like concentration camps or who did what to whom.
Let me make it easy on you. Over 3500 years ago when Joshua led his people into the land of milk and honey, was there a problem then? Was God wrong? Lost his way? Compass malfunctioning? 🧭
Mr. Dolitsky, much of this piece is very well stated, and right on the money.
The end of one of the later paragraphs stretches credulity in stating:
“…today’s conflict between these two countries; and, yet, these radical protesters are demanding ceasefire in Gaza, condemnation of Israel in defending itself and to end Israel’s military efforts in eradicating the terrorist Hamas organization.”
How in the world can one truthfully describe the complete and total physical annihilation/decimation of Gaza that way? It is not possible. It is a deception to describe it that way. It does not seem plausible that these words appeared in that order due to carelessness. Conflating what is actually happening with the mere act of “eradicating the terrorist Hamas organization” is to tell a lie. Devalues everything on both sides of it.
And yet the supporters of a cease fire still refuse to demand Hamas lay down their weapons and surrender…
Steve-O, the supporters also fail the mention where those weapons are stored, schools, hospitals, mosques, apartment blocks, etc. They also fail to mention that the numbers they report are fed to them by Hamas, the ones who blew up a hospital parking lot and then claimed Israel blew up the hospital killing hundreds. They also fail to understand that there will be no peace there until the death cult that is Hamas, Islamist Extremism, is eradicated; perhaps Hezbollah and the Irani mullahs too.
How do you reason with a rabid animal? Please explain.
How do you recover from cancer if you don’t remove it? Please explain.
How do you make peace with someone epistemically committed to your genocide? Please explain.
Gaza still exists. Just maybe not in the way you’d prefer.
All three of your questions could easily and justifiably be asked by either side here. The answers would essentially be the same.
Why do the tax dollars of American citizens need to be poured into this conflict? Oddly, it seems like they are being poured into both sides of it. Do we really need to build this up into a conflict that we can pour generations more of our young men into? Do you realize the extent of the damage to our nation that the left’s uncontrolled border has caused, and is about to become readily apparent to everyone? Don’t you think we are going to be needing our boys here? Its already HERE.
Israel has been left with a no win situation following the barbaric October 7 attack. To defend herself she must inflict harm upon an enemy who operates and remains hidden amongst a civilian population. This use of human shields by Hamas results in collateral damage upon the civilian population in Gaza. One has to believe that it is the intent of Hamas to generate the highest number of civilian casualties possible in an effort to influence the worlds opinion against Israel.
You can sympathize with the residents of Gaza and yet at the same time realize that Israel is in fact doing the heavy lifting for all of Civilization. Israel isn’t an aggressor, she merely is fighting to save the lives of her women and children so that her civilization might endure. Civilization it turns out is fragile and a failure to protect it will only begat more barbarism which will certainly be the end to civilization everywhere.
Good points Robert. Kindly allow me to elaborate. Throughout history, civilizated cultures engaged in structured conflict whereby disciplined armies faced each other on battlefields under strict rules of honorable engagement. Generally, guerilla warfare, attacking civilian populations, sacking cities, terrorism, surprise raids, were all considered dishonorable and beneath proper militarism. On the other hand, throughout history, there have always been dishonorable elements who disregard traditions. It is the fallen nature of man. Some primitive cultures had no honorable miltary structures or traditions whatsoever; they basically operated very brutally (reference Gibson’s film “Apocalypto.”) In this current era it seems that terrorism is the accepted strategy for many factions. This fact makes defending a nation with honor a very difficult undertaking.
If anyone is interested in questioning the Hamas propaganda this is a worthwhile read:
‘https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/news/articles/how-gaza-health-ministry-fakes-casualty-numbers’
Muslim math.
Like regular math but wrong.
Can I use this? Great comment.
👍 It also works for the “Give Me Reparations” group.
Well then it wouldn’t be like regular math… A boat that does not float is not like a regular boat. Logic 101.
Yes, Dr. Dolitsky! A fact that is often neglected is that the “principals” in this tragedy are belligerents. It is best to let them resolve their own differences. Human nature hasn’t changed: let them bash the shit out of each other without interfering in their affairs. The people in the U.S. have problems enough without being yoked to a foreign policy promulgated by the military-industrial complex under the guise of protecting “us” and “our” way of life!
The undeniable fact is that humans–with all their frailties and faults–are “running” this “world” into the ground regardless of who’s writing history. Let’s give them something to write about! We needn’t be a “peacemaker” swinging a club or hurling stones: enough of playing the good guy in this Shakespearean drama–nay, this celestial tragedy!
Mr. Dolitsky, errors often go uncorrected. I mistakenly referred to you as Dr. Dolitsky. I, however, remembered that you hold double M.A. degrees: that in itself is commendable.
Yes, double M.A. degrees (Kiev Pedagogical Institute and Brown University) and ABD from Bryn Mawr College. But it is not really important.
Mr. Dolitsky,
“Just like beauty, truth also is “in the eye of the beholder.”” Your point subsequent to your quote above, that history too is in the eye of the beholder, or at least in the words of the winner. But truth, my friend, is not. If it is, as you and modern society say, then you’re telling me: “It’s absolutely true that there is no truth.” Or perhaps even that God, as The Way, The Truth, & The Light, is dead. By what I see all around me, I have to disagree. Truth is alive, well, and singular.
The “we” in the sentence “We needn’t be a ‘peacemaker’ swinging a club….” includes our proxies!
Alex, in reading the comments here and elsewhere, it is obvious that your point is being missed at best and possibly purposely being misconstrued. We must resist these forces of evil. Please keep up the good fight.
To Oran Woolley: I probably did not make my point clear enough. Well, perhaps in the next article.
Alexander,
I disagree that an educated elite actually exists in the US since before the 1970s. We abandoned education disciplines decades ago. The pseudo marxist university professors talking nonsense in faculty lounges are more ignorant and superstitious than peasants in the Dark Ages. The US has become a fascist state, defined by the merger of corporate interests controlling and merging with the state. We are ruled by extremely incompetent, ignorant and dangerously foolish political, corporate and military leaders. The US has also long abandoned Christianity, family and decency as national norms. The October 7 attack is peculiar as Israel was allegedly caught off guard. Something doesn’t add up, as Israel infiltrates Gaza and even installed Hamas in power. Are Israeli military and intelligence services as incompetent as ours in the US? Any nation dependent on US weapon systems or warfare doctrine is doomed. We have 40 4 star generals who cannot fight their way out of paper bags. The hatred toward Jews is not a political issue, rather a universally common spiritual illness, which leads to genocide.
Brian,
I agree with most of your points. I also questioned the October 7th attack from day one: How in the world could Israelis miss nearly 20,000 rockets and rocket’s launchers hidden somewhere in the tunnels? These are not little toys. But we are in a very complicated and complex situation now that can erupt in something unpredictable and devastating, especially for Jewish communities worldwide. I was in the Czech Republic and in Dresden, Germany in August/September of last year, and one day in the central park in Dresden, a group (8-10) of young/military-age Ukrainian refugees were drinking heavily and yelling “Jude kaput” in German (Jews die). This is why I wrote this article, alerting Alaskans of possible devastating consequences of pro-Palestinian movement worldwide and patterns of history. It starts with peace-minded ceasefire resolutions and then it opens the door for other aggressive actions. I only hope that I am wrong on this count.
Ah, yes, Mr. Dolitsky, the notion of just a bit of pregnancy–nothing “full-blown” and certainly nothing to be concerned about! That is whats at work with the expansion of Jewish settlements on the West Bank–first a few Jews, then the whole shtetl! As a bit of sarcasm–I’m certain the irony is not lost on you–the Yiddish word “lebensraum” best describes the principle underlying Zionist expansionism on the West Bank.
Dolitsky, the United States needs to get the hell out of the Middle East and let the damned tend to themselves and their own lost souls. We needn’t act as anybody’s savior, besides every red cent we spend funding the Zionists is just another penny squandered. You know the old adage: First the pennies, then the dollars–all is lost on free-loaders!
Edits:
“That is what’s at work with the expansion of Jewish settlements….”
“First the pennies, then the dollars–all lost on free-loaders!”
The irony of the concept of pro Palestinian is rich. Words and definitions are critical. There is no historical Palestine. The term was given by the Imperialist British in 1918 to the lands they occupied after defeating the Ottoman (Turkish) empire. Transjordan (Jordan) is the region assigned to the disparate Arab clans that were ruled by the Turks for centuries. The Turks are particularly cruel masters and treated their Arab subjects (despite sharing a Sunni Muslim faith) in the most base manner. Systematic sexual abuse of Arab boys by Turkish authorities is just one example. The hype of a historial Hashemite royalty (ruling Jordan only since 1947) is nonsense. Yasser Arafat died a billionaire from all the graft he extracted from the left wing European and American support for the fraudulent PLO. The inhabitants of the western regions of the so called “Ukraine”, another modern artificial state construct, tend to emulate the sick world view of their historical leader Bandera. Their pathological hatred of Jews, Poles and Russians is well known. The US installed Zelenskii regime is propped up by fascist/racist western Ukrainians, comprising the Azov and Kraken units who shoot their front line conscript survivors trying to (understandably) flee for their lives or surrender on the Donbass front, or they flee the country like the drunk punks you encountered in Dresden. They use the nazi cross symbol painted on the Abrams, Leopard and Challenger tanks being incinerated on the eastern steppe lands in their fascist tradition. Israel was doing very well until recently. Its’ current leadership is as incompetent as ours, endangering Jews everywhere.
To Brian: Good summary, Brian. Here is a link of my presentation at the World Affair Council in 2014 on Russian-Ukranian Relations: Looking Back and Looking Foreword on YouTube. If you can’t open this link then search for Alexander Dolitsky on Russian-Ukranian Relation on YouTube.
‘https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4LW-rTLP9E
Migration of the Lost Tribes of Israel, Saxons, Scythians, Celts; Tribes of Israel became the white race of Europe. According to the attached old video?
And never returned.
‘https://www.brighteon.com/41c6665c-d134-44c6-858b-9c9febad2349
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