Summer 2005
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Summer 2005 |
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Selected from a pool of 63 nominations in April, the history and political science faculty members met at Harvard University to consider the question of how historians assess and generalize about events still fresh in public memory, which are not only controversial but still influential in debates about current issues, and for which new evidence may well still come to light in the future. This fourth annual seminar, co-sponsored by CIC and the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, began with discussion of the decision to use the atomic bomb at the end of the Pacific War in 1945 and “McCarthyism,” in relation to signal intelligence that has only recently come to light. The use of secret tapes as historical evidence was also considered, and participants were able to listen to recordings of President Kennedy during the Cuban Missile Crisis as well as tapes of President Johnson working the phone as American involvement in the conflict in Vietnam deepened. Participants also had the opportunity to view the film Thirteen Days and discuss the use of film as a teaching device. The seminar concluded with discussion of the 9/11 Commission Report, fresh on the heels of May’s article about the crafting of the Report that appeared in the May 23, 2005 issue of The New Republic. Participants were enthusiastic about the seminar discussion, led by Professor May in a Socratic method of discourse. Discussion of the seminar topics continued through lunches and dinners. Ernest May is a member of the board of directors of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, a consultant at various times to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the National Security Council, and other agencies, and is currently a member of the DCI’s Intelligence Science Board and of the Board of Visitors of the Joint Military Intelligence College. He also served as senior advisor to the 9/11 Commission. His publications include Thinking in Time: The Uses of History for Decision-Makers (with Richard Neustadt); The Kennedy Tapes: Inside the White House During the Cuban Missile Crisis (with Philip D. Zelikow); and Strange Victory: Hitler's Conquest of France.
Independent |
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Ernest May of Harvard
University directed this year’s CIC/Gilder Lehrman Institute
history seminar for faculty members of CIC institutions.