Niall Ferguson: The Go-To Guy in the World of Op-Ed.

I read the newspaper a lot, because I want to be (or I want to give off the impression that I am) informed about global events. I try to avoid the opinion pieces for the sole reason that they tell you what to think by virtue of dramatic portraits of controversial issues that usually involve unnecessarily scathing language and gimmicky writing styles. That's why I feel a breeze of fresh air upon reading Ferguson's op-ed pieces on the last pages of the Los Angeles Times, for they offer a fairer account of global events in the seemingly incorruptible language and ethos of the historian.

As the Laurence A. Tisch Professor of History at Harvard University, Ferguson benefits from the professional, objective air that surronds the work of historians (not to say that historians are categorically honest and unbiased 100% of the time, but that's my [flawed] perception). His writing complements this prejudgment, as he consistently grounds his political observations by framing them in historical terms. In an article partly about the Labour Party's success in educating Brits, entitled "Schooled for Unemployment," Ferguson implies that an ignorant and/or uneducated British population is a "failure" of Prime Minister Tony Blair that future-PM Brown will inherit, but he is sure to elaborate on the importance of education in the terms of a social/economic historian. He contextualizes Britain's problems in education by citing real-world examples that address the history of the social and economic roots of the globalization-related problems Britain faces today.

Ultimately, the value in Ferguson's work lies in its ability to combine historical observations and political observations in a comprehensive way. Offering a historical perspective on recent events, Ferguson teaches me how to entertaingly apply ("entertaining" in that his writing is excellent, as it sustains your interest) my academic pursuits to the real-world task of participating in a democracy. Put simply, he affirms the notion that I have long held: History is of supreme importance in understanding the world around us. Without being educated in it, you are a fool doomed to understand superficial details and nothing else; with it, you have the undeniable edge over your peers.